I present to you my second regular season letter of the 2008 season.  I appreciate feedback of things that I failed to mention, but please don't get upset if I don't list something about your favorite player or team.  I could do a newsletter for just one team.  Trying to mention every team or player in one newsletter would be impossibility.  I hereby present to you a recap of the opening weekend in the NFL. 

 

Standings

 

AFC East                                                                        NFC East

1. New England (2-0)                                                1. New York Giants (2-0)

2. Buffalo (2-0)                                                            2. Dallas (2-0)

3. NY Jets (1-1)                                                           3. Philadelphia (1-1)

4. Miami (0-2)                                                              4. Washington (1-1)

 

AFC South                                                                   NFC South

1. Tennessee (2-0)                                                    1. Carolina (2-0)           

2. Indianapolis (1-1)                                                  2. New Orleans (1-1)

3. Houston (0-1)                                                         3. Tampa Bay (1-1)

4. Jacksonville (0-2)                                                  4. Atlanta (1-1)

 

  AFC North                                                                NFC North

1.Pittsburgh (2-0)                                                      1.Green Bay (2-0)           

2. Baltimore (1-0)                                                       2.Chicago (1-1)

3.Cleveland (0-2)                                                       3. Minnesota (0-2)

4.Cincinnati (0-2)                                                        4. Detroit (0-2)

 

 AFC West                                                                   NFC West

1. Denver (2-0)                                                            1. Arizona (2-0)           

2. Oakland (1-1)                                                          2. San Francisco (1-1)

3. San Diego (0-2)                                                      3. Seattle (0-2)

4. Kansas City (0-2)                                                    4. St Louis (0-2)

MVP of the Week: Hard not to start with Denver’s best receiver.  Brandon Marshall had one of the best days in the history of the NFL.  His 18 receptions tied him with Tom Fears of the then LA Rams for 2nd in NFL history.  The record is TO with 20 against the Chicago Bears on December 17, 2000.   Marshall added 166 yards receiving.  Next would be Kurt Warner.  He posted 19 completions in 24 attempts for 361 yards passing, 3 touchdowns, 0 picks and a perfect 158.3 QB rating.   His main target was Boldin who had 6 catches for 140 yards and 3 touchdowns.  Finally, Darren McFadden had 164 yards and 1 touchdown in his second game with the Oakland Raiders.  The Raiders hope it is the first of many 100-yard games to come.  

Loser of the Week: Carson Palmer and Matt Hasselbeck have been two of the premier quarterbacks in the NFL the last 5 seasons.  They have looked lost to start the season and Sunday was no exception.  Hasselbeck does have a lot of injuries to his receivers, but he has to do better than 18 for 36 for 189 yards, 0 touchdowns, 2 picks, and a 42.5 QB rating. Palmer played a tough Tennessee defense, but 16 for 27 for 134 yards 0 touchdowns, 2 picks, and a 41.3 QB rating is not acceptable.  Finally, Maurice Jones-Drew is going to have to do better than 7 carries for 17 yards if the Jags are going to start winning games and contending for the AFC South. 

Game of the Week: There were two games that were better than the rest.  It seemed that Denver and San Diego would be impossible to top.  The Broncos had a 31-17 lead at the half, but gave it away.  They trailed 38-31 late in the 4th quarter. Ed Hochuli missed a fumble by Jay Cutler and ruled it an incomplete pass.  Even though the ball was recovered by San Diego and the incomplete pass was reversed, by rule the ball was placed at the spot of the fumble and given back to Denver.  Two plays later Denver scored a touchdown on 4th down with 24 seconds.  They decided to go for the win and a two-point conversion proved to be the difference in their 39-38 victory.  It was one of the most bizarre endings I have ever seen.

Then came the Monday Night game.  The Cowboys and Eagles combined for 54 first half points.  The game featured long passes (72 yards to TO), long kickoff returns (98 yards to Felix Jones), and costly fumbles (Romo fumble recovered by the Eagles in the end zone for a touchdown).  The game finally saw the Eagles Donovan McNabb fumble a handoff to Westbrook in the 4th quarter that led to Dallas’s winning score.  The final was 41-37. 

Bay of Pigs: Pittsburgh seems to be making a habit of playing in these bad weather games.  Last year they had the 3-0 game against Miami in the mud and rain.  This year they played Cleveland in extremely windy and wet conditions.  The result was a 10-6 win by the Steelers that featured very little offense.  

The Mike Martz Award (Stupidity in Action): Had Shanahan’s gamble not paid off he would have been the most scrutinized coach in the NFL this week.  That was a very gutsy call.  You can’t go against a guy with that much experience that pulled out the win.  Therefore, I would go with Eric Mangini’s conservative offense at the goal line.  Trailing 6-0 in the second half the Jets had first and goal at the 3-yard line.  Instead of allowing their future Hall of Fame Quarterback to put the ball up in the air just one time they ran three plays to Thomas Jones that netted 1 yard.  The result was a field goal.  Had they allowed Favre to throw the ball it would not have guaranteed a touchdown, but it would have put the ball in the hands of their best player.  It makes no sense to bring Favre over and not utilize his talents.  The momentum could have swung much differently had the Jets been just a bit more aggressive.  

The other call that was puzzling to me was the last meaningful play of the Eagles and Dallas.  With a 4th and very long instead of running a conventional play to pick up the first down the Eagles came out of their final timeout and threw a mid range pass that was 10 yards short of the first down that was a designed lateral play that went to Westbrook and ran out of space on the sideline.  The Eagles were starting to get into desperation mode and probably wouldn’t have won the game anyway.  Still, have your quarterback throw the ball 25 yards downfield and make a play.  It was not a very strong call coming out of a timeout that had very little chance for success. 

Injury Report: Week 1 was disastrous in terms of injuries.  Brady and Merriman suffered season ending injuries.  Colston was lost for 6 weeks.  Those are some of the most important players on those rosters.  This week the most serious injury in terms of the players’ value to the team was Devin Hester.  He suffered a rib injury in the Bears loss to the Panthers.  His status is up in the air for next week.

Brett Keisel will not be taking snaps for the Steelers anytime soon.  He suffered a calf injury and is expected to be out until November.   That hurts their defensive line considerably.

The Seahawks suffered another setback. Logan Payne tore his MCL and is now out for the season.  That means Burleson, Obomanu, and Payne have been lost for the season.  Engram, Branch, Wallace, and Morris could return in Week 5.  It has been a rough start to the Seahawks who seem to be losing all their offensive weapons.

Overall Impressions of Week 1:

1) Mile High Resurgence – One of the pleasant early season surprises has been the Denver Broncos.  Their win over San Diego was not without controversy but everyone should be able to agree that Denver has looked impressive to start the season.

Jay Cutler is quickly letting people know that the best quarterback from the 2006 Draft class resides in Denver.  Matt Leinart has lost his job to Kurt Warner and Vince Young is injured and may not get his job back from Kerry Collins.  Neither has shown he ability to be a NFL starting quarterback.  Then there is Cutler.  His 52 completions ranks 2nd in the NFL.  His 650 yards passing leads the NFL.  He is tied with Phillip Rivers for the NFL lead with 6 touchdown passes.  He has only 1 pick.  Cutler’s completing 70.3 percent of his passes and his 118.6 QB rating is 5th in the NFL.  

The Denver offense has looked very solid.  Brandon Marshall leads the NFL with 18 receptions despite the fact he was suspended for the opening game.  Rookie Eddie Royal is tied for 5th with 14 receptions.  Denver is first in total offense, 2nd in passing yards, and 10th in rushing yards.  Their 40.0 points per game is currently first in the NFL.  Compare that to last year when the Broncos ranked 21st in the NFL with 20.0 points per game due to a red zone offense that settled for field goals and it is a drastic early season improvement. 

I am well aware that only two games have been played and that the offense is probably not going to maintain its 40.0 per game pace.  I’m also aware that the Broncos main weakness in 2007 was their rush defense, which is still giving up 115.0 yards per game and their defense in general is giving up 26.0 points per game.  While they looked good against Oakland, which is starting a rookie quarterback and features a rookie running back with no standout receivers; the Broncos defense looked horrible against an experienced San Diego offense. 

Two games is not enough body of work to make a judgment about a team.  What is quickly becoming evident is that the Broncos got the best quarterback in the 2006 draft and have finally found a long-term replacement for John Elway.  The Broncos also have a very young offensive nucleus.  The average age of Cutler, Hall, Marshall, Royal, Scheffler, and Young is 24.5 with Hall being the oldest of the group at 26.  This is an offense that barring a serious injury should be dangerous for at least the next 5 seasons.  The Broncos appear to be the early favorite to replace San Diego as the dominant team in the division once the Charger’s window begins to close.

2) The Cardinals in first place – My Cardinals pick for the division title is starting to look like a pretty good pick.  The Cardinals are 2-0 on the young season.  The Rams have been horrific giving up 79 points in their first 2 games.  They are in the discussion for worst teams in the NFL.  Seattle has not looked good and has been crippled by a rash of offensive injuries.  Their defense has not been playing well and their special teams have been anything but special.  San Fran has a lot of question marks.  Arizona could build a sizeable early season lead in the division if they continue to play well. 

The Cardinals offense has been lights out.  Kurt Warner has found a rebirth in Arizona.  It started last year when he replaced Leinart.  This year he has been nothing short of amazing.  He is 2nd in the NFL in QB rating at 128.5.  He is completing over 70% of his passes.  Most importantly he has 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.  Last year he tied for 7th in the NFL with 17 picks despite only starting 11 games. 

The thing people have to remember is that he played San Fran and Miami.  Those defenses will not be confused with the 2000 Ravens.  However, it is a good sign that he is taking care of the ball.  This is as close as he has looked to the 99-01 Kurt Warner in a long time.  Fitzgerald and Boldin have been their usual impressive selves.  Edgerrin James has also been effective, but still is averaging only 3.5 yards per carry and not scored a rushing touchdown.  He will need to pick up his production. 

The good thing for the Cardinals is that they are only giving up 11.5 points per game, which is tied for 5th in the NFL.  Again, the offenses they faced are nothing to write home about, but they gave up 20 points and 37 points to San Fran last year.  To give up only 13 points to San Fran this year is an improvement.  The schedule is going to get a little more difficult, but not impossible.  They play @ Washington, @ NY Jets, and then come home to face Buffalo and Dallas before heading into the bye.  If they can go 2-2 or 3-1 against that schedule they will be no worse than 4-2 headed into the bye week and looking pretty good in the NFC West.  Weeks 9-11 will be very important for them as they play the entire NFC West those 3 weeks. 

3) Minnesota’s Quarterback dilemma – My last two stories were about successes.  On to some disappointments.  Minnesota looks to be the same team they were a year ago.  Minnesota is 4th in the NFL in rushing offense this young season.  Adrian Peterson has two 100-yard games.  The rush defense ranks 7th in the NFL.  If it weren’t for a 56 yard run by Grant they would be number 2. 

The problem is the Vikings were number one in those departments a year ago.  NFL fans expected that.  That only got them to 8-8.  Where they needed to improve was the passing offense and passing defense.  The pass defense is still 24th in the NFL.  Aaron Rodgers lit up the Vikings with an 80% plus completion percentage.  Peyton Manning remembered who he was in the 2nd half after being shutout by the Vikings in the first half.

Then there is Jackson and the passing offense.  Minnesota ranks 24th in the NFL in passing yards with 143.5 per game.  Their 64.8 QB rating is 26th.  The passing offense has produced only one passing touchdown.  They can’t convert through the air on 3rd down.  Jackson has a rating in the 40s on that critical down.

No one is expecting Jackson to be Steve Young in his 3rd year.  He comes from a small school and is still learning the game.  Also, he was injured in training camp and is still having issues with his knee.  He is showing toughness by playing through the pain. 

However, he is entering his 3rd year.  The game is slowing down for Cutler.  It is still too fast for Jackson.  It isn’t too much to ask a 3rd year quarterback to have a rating in the 80s, convert 3rd downs, and throw some touchdown passes, especially when his offense has Peterson and defenses are putting 8 and 9 in the box. 

The Vikings time is now.  They have the running game.  They have the run defense.  They can force turnover and sacks.  They will give up some big pass plays, but they have only given up 21 points per game in their first two contests.  That should be enough to win NFL games.  They have only lost by a combined 8 points in their first two games.  There is no reason for panic yet.  This isn’t the Rams who are also 0-2 being outscored 79-16. 

What is clear though is that Jackson’s knee is either too bad to play or he is too bad to play.  They have to get more out of this passing game.  If they don’t they will continue to be the same 8-8 team they were last year.  That has to improve their quarterback play quickly if they want to get into the playoffs.    

4) Oakland’s Al Davis Problem – Al Davis has always been one of the more interesting characters in the NFL.  He has been a commissioner, owner, general manager, and head coach in the AFL / NFL.  Not many people can make that type of claim.  He is one of the most influential people in league and a big part of the league’s history. 

That said he is ruining the Oakland Raiders.  Since they went to the Super Bowl in 2002 the Raiders are 20-62.  Their best finish was 5-11 back in 2004.  The lowlight of that horrific run was 2006.  The Raiders finished an unthinkable 2-14.  Art Shell really set this team back with his one year as head coach.  That circus scored a league worst 168 points in 16 games.  It was the main reason Randy Moss wanted out of Oakland. 

The Raiders made a bold move by looking toward their past.  John Madden was an excellent Head Coach for the Raiders.  He was 33 years old when he took over the Raiders in 1969.  He still has the most wins in Raiders history compiling a 103-32-7 record in 10 seasons.  Jon Gruden was just 35 years old when he took over.  He compiled a 38-26 record and laid the foundation for the Raiders 2002 Super Bowl run.

That is one reason the Lane Kiffin hiring made sense.  The Raiders weren’t going to lure a big name head coach with the way Davis runs things.  By bringing in a 32-year-old guy he could make a name for himself and the Raiders had a coach their young team could grow around.  While they only improved from 2-14 to 4-12 there was drastic improvement.  For starters, the offense scored 283 points, which ranked 23rd in the NFL.  That was a 114-point improvement and nine spot improvement from 2006.  The Raiders lost 6 games by 7 points or less in 2007.  Compare that to only 4 games in 2006. 

The Raiders may have fooled themselves into thinking they are Super Bowl contenders this year.  At best they are the 3rd team in the division.  But they should be encouraged by the fact they have Russell and McFadden, both of whom are starting for the first time this year.  The Raiders need to give Kiffen a couple years with this team and develop them the right way.  While I am not privy to how he handles the team behind close doors the product on the field has been pretty good.  They play hard and are going through the struggles that any young team goes through. 

As long as Davis continues to toy around with firing him it hurts this young team’s development and just adds to the perception that Oakland is where coaches go to die.  Handling the situation the way he is will not allow him to bring in a big name coach, because they now that coming to that no win situation will tarnish their legacy.  Al Davis is Al Davis’s biggest problem right now and how he is running this team isn’t going to get the Raiders back to their Commitment to Excellence. 

5) Jacksonville’s Disappointing Start - This is a team that many thought would contend for the Super Bowl.   It was my Super Bowl pick.  Their 0-2 start has been disappointing to say the least. 

No one has been playing well, especially on offense.  The offensive line has been reduced to shambles by injury.  That has caused the running game to sputter.  Taylor and MJD have combined for 35 carries, 97 rushing yards, 2.8 yards per carry, and 1 rushing touchdown.  Matt Jones is the leading receiver on the team with 11 catches for 130 yards and 0 touchdowns.  Joey Porter has yet to play a game.  Troy Williamson has nicely resurrected his career with two catches for 11 yards on the young season.  Garrard has a rating in the 60s and has 1 touchdown to 3 picks.  The offense is a mess right now. 

Unfortunately for them it is going to get worse, before it gets better.   They play @ Indy, Houston, Pittsburgh, and @ Denver before they get to their bye week.  If they can somehow go 2-2 against those teams they will be back in the mix.  Coming out of the bye they play Cleveland, @ Cincy, and @ Detroit.  That could be enough to get them back in a flow and playing like they did at the end of last season. 

It’s too early to hit the panic button.  The Jags have only been outscored 37-26, so it isn’t like they haven’t been competitive.  A few plays here or there and no one is talking about their problems.  I still look for the Jags to make the playoffs, but they have to get their running game going.  It’s too early to call Sunday a must win, but they really need to beat Indy if they want to stay in the AFC South race.

A Look Ahead: 

Street Cred’s 2008 record:  17-14

1) Carolina (2-0) at Minnesota (0-2):  Carolina is doing a nice job of stopping the run this year, Delhomme is playing very well, and they get Steve Smith back who the Vikings have no answer for.  Minnesota’s got a world of problems at QB and the offense can’t seem to get out of its own way.  Peterson is a great talent, but he can’t win every game on his own.  I have picked against Carolina both weeks and I can’t see doing that again.  Until the Vikings prove they can score touchdowns and not field goals, I am not picking them to win.  Carolina in a low scoring, close game.  Winner: Carolina

2) St Louis (0-2) at Seattle (0-2):  This is probably the most important game of the season for Seattle.  Seattle can’t afford to start 0-3.  They can’t afford to go 0-2 in the division at home.  They need to get a win if they want to be a serious division or playoff contender.   Even without any receivers the St Louis defense is enough to get any offense out of a slump.  The Rams season is already over.  They have given up 79 points in their first two games, can’t get Jackson on track, and can’t score.  The Rams offense has 16 points on the season.  I’m not sure I would pick St Louis to beat USC right now.  I might not pick them to beat Ohio State.  I’m certainly not picking the Rams to beat a fellow NFL team.  I am going to go with the Hawks in this one.  Winner: Seattle 

3) Pittsburgh (2-0) at Philadelphia (1-1): We only get to see this game once every four years and this year both teams are off to a good start.  The Steelers offense destroyed Houston at home in Week 1 and the defense helped them survive some nasty wind and rain.  Philadelphia is off to a great start and would be 2-0 if they hadn’t drawn Dallas this early in the season.  They are playing very well right now.  I expect this game will compete for Game of the Week Honors.  I like Westbrook to win his match up with Parker, McNabb to play just a tad better than Big Ben, and the Eagles to win a great game.  Winner:  Philadelphia

4) Jacksonville (0-2) at Indianapolis (1-1): I still haven’t lost faith in the Jaguars.  I think once they get some of their receivers and line back they will be able to start winning some games in which they dominate the opposing team.  Regardless of the injuries they aren’t playing very well right now.  They need to get Taylor and MJD on track.   Indianapolis looked much better in the 2nd half against Minnesota, but still needed to take the game down to the wire before claiming victory.  It’s hard to decide which of these struggling teams to go with.  I’m going to go with the Colts.  Indy’s run defense did not look good on Sunday, but I don't see the Jags exploiting that.  On offense they still looked lost most of the game, but came through when it mattered.  Jacksonville’s defense is going to have to carry them in this game.  This is going to be a game very similar to the Minnesota and Indy game.  Indy by a field goal. Winner: Indianapolis

5) Dallas (2-0) at Green Bay (2-0):  This will be a big test for the Packers.  While they are 2-0 they have a lot of concerns.  They blew a 21-0 first half lead to trail 25-24 with 7:41 left in the game.  Calvin Johnson ate up the Packers secondary for 129 yards and 2 touchdowns.  The Packers have shown time and time again that their physical man-to-man style on defense can’t match up with some of the bigger receivers in the NFL.  Owens is as big as they come.  The Cowboys find good ways to put pressure on the quarterback.  I expect Dallas to win a high scoring game, similar to what we saw in Dallas last year when these two teams met.  Winner:  Dallas

and the rest…

6) Kansas City (0-2) at Atlanta (1-1): Atlanta looks to be on the way to respectability.  Kansas City looks to be in the running for the first pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.  I look for Michael “The Burner” Turner to have another big game and lead Atlanta to a victory.  Winner:  Atlanta

7) Oakland (1-1) at Buffalo (2-0):  Oakland is on its way up, but the speculation with the coach is not helping matters.  Buffalo is playing very well and I look for them to get to 3-0 behind #### and the running game.  Winner: Buffalo 

8) Tampa Bay (1-1) at Chicago (1-1): This is pretty much a toss up.  These are two good defenses with offenses that don’t make a lot of mistakes.  The key is going to be which defense can control the tempo of this game.  With the Bears best weapon in Hester in doubt, I’m going to go with the Bucs.  Winner:  Tampa Bay

9) Houston (0-1) at Tennessee (2-0): Houston played Tennessee tough in both games last year, but Tennessee swept the series.  I don’t think the hurricane did any favors for Houston in terms of preparation and Tennessee looks very tough to start the season.  Tennessee uses run defense and conservative offense to move to 3-0.  Winner:  Tennessee

10) Miami (0-2) at New England (2-0): I look for New England to open it up a bit more now that Cassel has a game under his belt, they are at home, and the opponent is Miami.  Don’t expect 35 points at half time, but expect the Pats to be in the high 20s to low 30s and expect Moss to have a good rebound game.  Winner: New England

11) Cincinnati (0-2) at New York Giants (2-0):  Cincinnati is as terrible as they come.  The Giants have another tough defense and are playing with confidence.  Giants in a rout.  Winner: NY Giants

12) Arizona (2-0) at Washington (1-1):  Washington looked better on offense.  This will be the first real offense the Cardinals face this season, unless you consider San Fran and Miami to be powerful offenses.  I like Portis and the defense to do enough to keep the game close, but I like Warner and the passing offense to win the game.  Winner: Arizona

13) Detroit (0-2) at San Francisco (1-1): Neither team really impresses me.  The 49ers gave up 30 points to an offense that is on its 6th string WR.  Detroit is Detroit.  I look for Johnson and Williams to play big, but I think Gore and the 49ers offense also have a big day.  I’m going with the home team.  Winner: San Francisco

14) New Orleans (1-1) at Denver (2-0): Winner: I don’t think the Saints have the defense to stop this suddenly powerful offense.  Look for Cutler and Marshall to have another big day.  Winner:  Denver 

15) Cleveland (0-2) at Baltimore (1-0): Cleveland was able to sweep Baltimore scoring 27 and 33 points in their two games last year.  Lewis was able to get just enough rushing in those two games to allow Anderson to make some plays passing.  The Browns have looked bad.  They definitely worry me.  However, their two games to start the season were against Dallas and Pittsburgh.  With an easier opponent I look for Cleveland to get their first W.  Winner: Cleveland

16) New York Jets (1-1) at San Diego (0-2): The New York Jets are still adjusting to playing football with Brett Favre.  While he had one of his best games of the season against San Diego in Week 3 last season, I don’t see the chemistry in place with the Jets to duplicate that.  I like the Chargers to win at home as long as Tomlinson is able to go at close to 100%. Winner:  San Diego

That’s all for this week.  Enjoy the opening week of football and I look forward to reading your comments this week.  

I present to you my third preseason letter. Again, while I appreciate feedback of things that I failed to mention, please don't get upset if I don't list something about your favorite player or team. I could do a newsletter for just one team. Trying to mention every team or player in one newsletter would be impossibility. I hereby present to you a recap of the fourth week of preseason action.

Standings

AFC East                                 NFC East

1. Buffalo (2-1)                      1.Washington (3-1)

2. Miami (2-1)                        2. Philadelphia (2-1)

3. New York Jets (2-1)         3. Dallas (1-2)

4. New England (0-3)          4. New York Giants (1-2)

AFC South                             NFC South

1. Houston (2-1)                  1. Carolina (2-1)

2. Tennessee (2-1)             2. New Orleans (2-1)

3. Jacksonville (2-1)           3. Tampa Bay (2-1)

4. Indianapolis (1-3)           4. Atlanta (1-2)

AFC North                             NFC North

1.Pittsburgh (2-1)               1.Detroit (3-0)

2.Baltimore (1-2)                2.Green Bay (1-2)

3.Cincinnati (1-2)               3.Minnesota (1-2)

4.Cleveland (0-3)               4.Chicago (0-3)

AFC West                           NFC West

1.San Diego (2-1)             1. Arizona (2-1)

2. Denver (1-2)                  2. Saint Louis (2-1)

3. Kansas City (1-2)         3. San Fran (2-1)

4. Oakland (1-2)                4. Seattle (2-1)

MVP of the Week: DeAngelo Williams had a very nice game with 9 carries for 101 yards and 1 touchdown. Darren Sproles had a nice game on Monday with 13 carries for 102 yards and 1 touchdown. Jason Hill from the 49ers had 4 catches for 91 yards and 1 touchdown. However, this week belonged to the quarterbacks, which is typical in a 3rd preseason game. There were 3 starters that were very impressive. Aaron Rodgers played nearly perfect in Denver. He was 18 for 22 for 193 yards, 1 touchdown, 0 picks, a 118.4 rating, and 1 rushing touchdown. Marc Bulger went 18 for 25 for 182 yards, 2 touchdowns, 0 picks, and a 119.1 QB rating. Drew Brees went 14 for 22 for 199 yards, 1 touchdown, 0 picks, and a 108.0 QB rating. Finally, Charlie Frye impressed filling in for Matt Hasselbeck. He had 19 completions in 29 attempts for 219 yards, 2 touchdowns, 0 picks, and a 111.1 QB rating.

Loser of the Week: Hard not to start with Matt Leinart. Despite Arizona’s 24-0 win, he lost his starting job with his 4 for 12, 24 yards, 0 touchdowns, 3 picks, and 2.8 QB rating. Washington’s run defense had a lot to be desired. They gave up 101 yards to Williams and 100 yards to Stewart in Carolina’s 47-3 domination. Finally, Brodie Croyle failed to seize the starting job for the Chiefs with his 12 for 21, 110 yard, 0 touchdown, 1 pick, and 51.7 QB rating. The Chiefs were shutout by the Dolphins 24-0.

Game of the Week: San Francisco and Chicago gave us a 37-30 contest that was tied 20-20 at half time. Orton had 2 touchdown passes and Sullivan and Smith combined for 2 touchdown passes. Dallas and Houston also played a good game that was won 23-22 by Dallas. Finally, San Diego and Seattle gave us a good Monday Night game, with San Diego taking the lead 18-17 on a 2-point conversion with 2:12 left in the 4th.

The Bay of Pigs: The Jets and the Giants didn’t give us a lot of scoring action. They played to a 0-0 first half tie, before posting a 10-7 second half score. The Giants were plagued with 4 for 13 third down efficiency and the Jets were plagued with 12 penalties. It was a pretty sloppy game.

The Mike Martz Award (Stupidity in Action): Still waiting for the regular season on this.

Remembering Gene Upshaw: The NFL lost one of its greatest players and Labor Leader in Gene Upshaw. He died of cancer at 63 years old.

Gene Upshaw got his start in the NFL as a guard for the Oakland Raiders. He was a first or second All Pro 11-times, 2-time Super Bowl Champion, member of the NFL’s 1970’s All Decade Team, and a member of the NFL’s 75th Anniversary All-Time Team. He started 207 consecutive games and played 307 total games. Gene Upshaw and Art Shell teamed to form one of the most dominant lines in NFL History. Upshaw was the only player in Pro Football history to play in three Super Bowls with the same team in three different decades.

He also led an incredible life after football. He served as the Executive Director of the National Football League Players Association from 1983 to 2008. That was a major accomplishment in terms of civil rights for a black person to hold a position of that stature. He was largely responsible for bringing the players free agency. Player’s salaries skyrocketed in his tenure.

Upshaw did not serve without controversy. Many players felt he was too friendly with NFL Owners and Management. The NFL is the only major American sports league without guaranteed contracts. He also received a lot of criticism for how the league treated former players in terms of benefits and disability.

Regardless of your opinion of his work it is rare that a player of his stature goes on to have an even more famous career after pro football. He is one of the most influential people in the history of the NFL and his death was an unexpected tragedy. He was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer on August 17, 2008. He died just 3 days later.

Hospital Visit: This is a pretty long list this week. Harry Williams, Jr. had the most serious injury. The Texans receiver was temporarily paralyzed from the neck down. He regained use of his extremities on the way to the hospital. He had surgery to repair a broken C3 vertebrae. His career is likely over.

It was a bad week for defensive players. Osi Umenyiora was probably the most devastating injury with his devastating knee injury. He as lost for the season.

Shaun Merriman has a career threatening knee injury. He is seeking medical advice all over the country as he contemplates whether to shutdown his season or play through the pain and risk permanent injury. Tuesday will be his 4th doctor. The previous three recommended he shut his season down. Either way it is hard to imagine him being as effective in 2008 as we are used to seeing.

Jason Taylor is expected to be out for a couple weeks and may miss the season opener against the Giants.

Carson Palmer suffered a broken nose. He should be ready for the season opener. His teammate Chad Johnson has a partially torn labrum. He expects to play with that injury. I don’t expect it to be too big of a deal. Kellen Winslow played with the same injury last season and tight ends have significantly more blocking responsibility. Still it’s a question mark.

Matt Hasselbeck has a sore back and missed the Charger’s game. He is expected back for Week 1. With all the injuries they have at receiver they can’t afford for him to be limited or on the bench, even with how well Frye played on Monday and Wallace has played this preseason.

Brian Dawkins is questionable for the start of the season due to an ankle injury he suffered against New England. Kevin Curtis had sports hernia surgery and will probably not be back until midseason.

Starting Dallas left guard Kyle Kosier strained his foot and is expected to miss 1 month.

The Raiders suspect offense was weakened further with receiver Drew Carter and fullback Oren O'Neal suffering season ending injuries. I told you it was a long list this week.

Overall Impressions of the Week that Was:

1) Cause for concern in New England? – Again, I’m not worried about 0-3 for New England. Brady isn’t playing on offense and a veteran team with this much playoff experience is not going to go full bore in the preseason.

It isn’t so much the losses, but how the losses occurred. It’s the 17-play 80-yard drive that Griese went 8 for 8 on to open the game against the first team defense. Its McNabb’s 13 for 17 for 180 yards and 1 touchdown against 0 picks. It’s the fact they have been outscored 42 to 70 in 3 preseason games.

Veteran teams struggle in preseason. The Colts are traditionally a bad preseason team. They went 1-3 in 2007, 1-3 in 2006, and 0-5 in 2005. They started all three of those seasons at least 9-0.

However, this also reminds me of the 2002 St Louis Rams. That team was coming off a tough loss as a favorite in the prior years Super Bowl. That was the 14-2 unstoppable favorite that lost by a field goal to big underdog New England. That team went 0-4 in preseason and looked awful. That team battled injuries and poor play on its way to a 7-9 season.

Until we see Brady on the field its impossible to know how this team does in 2008. Still, it has been a very bad preseason for the Patriots. It is enough to have me concerned as we approach the regular season.

2) Dallas coming into form – This is exactly what the 0-2 Cowboys needed. Romo was very sharp going 15 for 19 for 166 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 pick. Barber had 13 carries for 75 yards and 1 touchdown. Owens, Hurd, and Crayton had good halves. The Cowboys were up 20-10 at the half, before holding on for a 23-22 win.

This is exactly what you want if you are the Cowboys. They got a good game in their most important preseason game. They can build off this performance. Great week for the Cowboys.

3) Weekly Favre update – No newsletter would be complete without a weekly Favre update. He played very well. 9 for 12 for 96 yards, 0 touchdowns, and 0 picks. He had a 30-yard pass called back on a penalty and a long touchdown pass called back on a penalty. He’s slinging the ball, getting good velocity, and seems to be in decent command of the offense.

The biggest concern for the Jets is with so many new starters they are going to get false starts, motion penalties, and other mistakes that come with not having played together for a long time. Having a veteran like Favre can speed up the process. While the Jets look like anything but Super Bowl contenders the Favre experiment appears to have been a worthwhile gamble. They will need to continue to work hard to be ready for the opener.

4) The effect of Osi Umenyiora’s season ending injury – This is a devastating loss. Osi Umenyiora has led the NY Giants in sacks each of the last 3 years. He has either led or tied the team for the lead in sacks each of the last 3 years. He has 40.5 sacks over the last 4 years. Osi Umenyiora had 6 sacks in one game against the Eagles in 2007. He is a big part of their pass rush.

The plan to replace Strahan was to move Tuck to defensive end and have him team with Osi Umenyiora as double digit sack artists. Now the Giants have to contemplate whether it is worth making an offer to Strahan to come out of retirement. Strahan has to figure out if he is interested. Both have to decide whether he is a) in shape to comeback, and b) if not, how long that would take. This is not like Favre who was not in camp, but was keeping himself in NFL shape. Strahan is currently vacationing in Greece. I can’t imagine he’s doing 2-3 hours of workouts in the morning.

The Giants can survive this even if Strahan doesn’t comeback. They can move Mathias Kiwanuka back to his original position of defensive end. He played that position at Boston College as well as his first year with the NY Giants. That would weaken their linebacker position.

This is the worst possible scenario of preseason. To have a player of this caliber go down in preseason is the nightmare every coach has in August. The Giants still have the talent in place to compete in the NFC East. However, it will be challenging to play as well as they did at the end of last season. The Giants losing Strahan, Mitchell, Torbar, and Wilson in the off-season was not something to take lightly. Losing Umenyiora makes it that much more difficult. This injury puts even more pressure on Eli Manning to avoid the mistakes that plagued him in the 2007 regular season and continue on his strong postseason run.

5) Is Detroit emerging as a division favorite – Detroit has had a good preseason. In 3 games they have outscored their opposition 66-26. They squeaked out a 3-point win against the Giants before crushing Cincinnati and Cleveland. Kitna has been very sharp in preseason. Kevin Smith has run the ball well. Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams have both impressed. The defense has not gotten pushed around.

It’s not inconceivable the Lions could contend for this division. They started the 2007 season 6-2, before fading to a 1-8 finish. Smith should allow them to run the ball better in 2008 and Kitna shouldn’t have as many interceptions now that the premier game manager Mike Martz is blessing the 49ers with his run and gun style.

Green Bay has that Brett guy gone. Chicago is fielding an offense that figures to be somewhere between below average and terrible. That leaves Minnesota as the favorite. Minnesota has a lot of questions at quarterback. It is not inconceivable they could struggle at times. While Minnesota is probably the favorite with Green Bay in the mix, Detroit is playing the best preseason ball of any team in this division, if not the NFL. If they can carry that into the regular season they will add some intrigue to what figures to be a wide-open division.

6) Rodgers impressive in Denver; Packers were not – Rodgers played very well in Denver. He went 18 for 22 for 193 yards with 1 touchdown and 0 picks. He was only sacked once. He led the Packers on scoring drives in 4 of his 5 possessions. Despite that the Packers trailed 17-13 at the half and only won 27-24.

The reason for that was a terrible defensive effort. Ryan punted a ball that was downed inside the 1-yard line. The Broncos took that ball 99 yards down the field and scored a touchdown on the Packers. Then the Packers tried to cover Marshall with backup corner Williams in 1-on-1 coverage. The result was a touchdown drive that took 16 seconds.

I have not been very impressed with the Packers defense in preseason. The Bengals scored 20 of their 30 preseason points in the opener against the Packers. San Fran put 34 points on the board. The Broncos put 24 points on the board. Granted some of that was against backups. Still, what are the Packers going to do in the secondary if Woodson or Harris gets hurt? What are they going to do in nickel and dime sets?

The Packers will not be as good on offense in 2008 as they were in 2007. That is a given now that #4 is not there. In order for the Packers to succeed they will have to run the ball better and play better defense. Grant hasn’t carried the ball yet and the defense played much better in the preseason last year. That is not a good sign for Packer fans.

7) Raven’s offensive woes – This is an offense that has not disappointed. No one expected them to do well in 2008 and they are not giving us a false sense of hope in the preseason. The Ravens managed 13 first half points against the Patriots. Since then the Patriot defense has been shredded. The Ravens followed that up with 7 first half points against the Vikings. Then they had 3 first half points against the potent Rams defense.

Flacco has a 66.3 QB rating in the preseason. Boller has a 51.8. Smith has a 46.8. Compare that to the 115.6 QB rating of Brett Ratliff, 92.3 rating of Aaron Rodgers, or 82.5 rating of Brady Quinn. The preseason is supposed to be a chance for young quarterbacks to succeed against vanilla defenses. The Ravens are struggling to score any points with their first team. Their quarterbacks are struggling to put up good numbers in preseason action. That doesn’t bode well for the regular season where they play both the NFC East and AFC South.

Ravens fans will argue that McGahee isn’t playing right now and will help this offense. That is a valid defense. There are just so many tough defenses on the schedule and a lack of playmakers that are going to help these young guys put up big numbers. It’s a vicious circle. The skill players aren’t good enough to overcome average quarterback play and the quarterbacks aren’t good enough to overcome average skill position play. Mason, Heap, and McGahee are good players, but they aren’t game changers. None of those guys should be featured offensive weapons. The result is going to be a long year for the offense in Baltimore.

8) Matt Leinart’s failure, affect on Cardinals – This is why I wasn’t afraid to pick the Cardinals to win the AFC West. I am disappointed in Matt Leinart. I thought he had the potential to breakout this season. Reports out of Arizona were that he was doing well in practice and with the offense. However, he had a horrible game against the Raiders in which he had 3 interceptions. The result was a benching.

The nice thing is this doesn’t hurt Arizona too much. In fact it may help them. Kurt Warner is not the same guy he was in St Louis, but he still threw 27 touchdown passes last year. He has good chemistry with the star receivers and is a player that defenses respect. His only fault is that he tends to hold on to the ball too long causing unnecessary fumbles and sacks.

That said Warner isn’t going to get rattled in a big game. He is a solid veteran influence on a team that needs to learn how to win. While Matt Leinart appears to be headed for the bust category Arizona still has an excellent chance to compete in the NFC West.

9) What happened to Washington? - This was the head scratching game of the week. It’s one thing to lose a preseason game. But 47-3 is always going to be cause for concern, especially against a Carolina team that many people consider a fringe playoff team at best.

The majority of the damage was done in a 31 point 2nd quarter. Steve Smith, DeAngelo Williams, Johnathan Stewart, and Dante Rosario all got into the mix. Credit Carolina for playing a good game.

Washington was 3-0 headed into this game; so one preseason blowout isn’t reason for panic. Jason Taylor is now hurt and figures to miss time. He might not be ready to open the season as the Redskins face the NY Giants on September 4th to open the season. The team still seems to be learning the new offense and has had a number of injuries on defense.

The Redskins can’t afford to get off to a slow start. They play at New York, Dallas, and Philadelphia in the first 5 games of the season. They host New Orleans and Arizona. It is imperative that they don’t dig themselves a 2-3 or 1-4 hole. In that division it will be tough to overcome that.

10) What is going on in Cleveland? – If Detroit as been the most impressive team of the preseason the Browns have been one of the worst. They played well in the opener against the Jets. Since then they have imploded. Even though they only lost 37-30 to the Giants they trailed that game 31-3 in the second quarter. Those were backups getting the team back into the game. Then they lost 26-6 to Detroit.

Anderson suffered a concussion against the Giants and did not play against Detroit. Crennel has elected to hold out a lot of his starters to keep them healthy for the regular season.

The Browns have a tough start to the season. They play Dallas and Pittsburgh at home, before playing at Cincinnati and at Baltimore. If the Browns start 0-2 it is going to put a lot of pressure on them to win on the road in consecutive weeks. Last year the Bengals and Ravens had less than stellar seasons. Despite the Browns 10-6 record they lost 19-14 at Cincinnati and gave up 30 points in a 33-30 win against the Ravens. That was the crossbar miracle game. That was also the only game Baltimore scored over 30 points last season.

The Browns are going to score points in 2008. The problem is that they still have questions on defense and based on the preseason it doesn’t look like a real strength of the team. Hopefully for the Browns they can get that fixed in the regular season. If they don’t they are going to need to score points in bunches to be successful.

A Look Ahead: There isn’t really anything to look ahead too as most teams will be looking to rest their starters and get ready for the opener. That’s why I gave 10 impressions instead of just 5 in an attempt to cover more teams without wasting time predicting completely meaningless final preseason games.

Next weeks newsletter will be light on recapping action from the final week and will focus on Week 1 matchups and things to look for. I look forward to reading your comments.

It’s back.  Last year I did a weekly newsletter of all the NFL Action.  Due to the fact there was only one preseason game last week, I decided to hold off on my newsletter until this week.  Again, while I appreciate feedback of things that I failed to mention, please don't get upset if I don't list something about your favorite player or team.  I could do a Newsletter for just one team.  Trying to mention every team or player in one newsletter would be impossibility.  I hereby present to you a recap of the third week of preseason action. 

Standings

 AFC East                                                                        NFC East

1.New York Jets (1-0)                                               1.Washington (2-0)

2. Buffalo (0-1)                                                            2. Dallas (0-1)

3. Miami  (0-1)                                                            3. NY Giants (0-1)

4. New England (0-1)                                               4. Philadelphia (0-1) 

 

AFC South                                                                 NFC South

1. Houston (1-0)                                                        1. Carolina (1-0)           

2. Jacksonville (1-0)                                                 2. New Orleans (1-0)

3. Tennessee (1-0)                                                   3. Tampa Bay (1-0)

4. Indianapolis (0-2)                                                 4. Atlanta (0-1)

 

AFC North                                                                 NFC North

1.Baltimore (1-0)                                                      1.Detroit (1-0)           

2.Cincinnati (1-0)                                                     2.Chicago (0-1)

3.Pittsburgh (1-0)                                                     3.Green Bay (0-1)

4.Cleveland (0-1)                                                    4.Minnesota (0-1)

 

AFC West                                                                 NFC West

1.Kansas City (1-0)                                                 1. Seattle (1-0)           

2. Oakland (1-0)                                                       2. Arizona (0-1)

3. San Diego (1-0)                                                   3. San Fran (0-1)

4. Denver (0-1)                                                         4. St Louis (0-1)

MVP of the Week:  It’s hard to go with MVPs of preseason games when the starters are only playing a couple series.  Seneca Wallace had a fine opening to the preseason. He went 15 for 20 with 165 yards and 3 touchdown passes with no picks.   Julius Peppers did very well for the Panthers.  He sacked Sorgi, forced a fumble, and hurried him into an interception on the Colts first 2 possessions.  It is crucial he rebound from 2.5 sacks in 2007.  Aaron Rodgers also played a very solid game in his first start.  He went 9 for 15 for 117 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 pick.

Game of the Week:  Most fans aren’t going to watch 4 quarters of a preseason game unless it’s their favorite team.  If you are a Panthers or Colts fan you saw a pretty good game.  The Panthers took the Colts to OT and won 23-20.  Carolina stopped Indy on a 4th and 1 at the Carolina 34 yard line and then proceeded to drive down the field for the game winning field goal.       

The Bay of Pigs:  Some years the games are not viewable.  10-7 finals.  Punting exhibitions and penalty fests.  For preseason there weren’t too many really bad games.  I would say the worst games would go with a tie between San Fran vs. Oakland and Tampa Bay vs. Miami.  Both teams had a half time score of 7-3.  The Bucs threw for 181 yards to the Dolphins 134.  Tampa out gained Miami on the ground 114-64.  That final was 17-6.  In Oakland, San Fran out passed Oakland 199-98.  Oakland was able to dominate the ground 248-70.  However, the result was only a final score of 18-6.  Again, for a first preseason games nobody did too badly this week.  I’ve seen a lot worse over the years.

The Mike Martz Award (Stupidity in Action):  Last year I had this named the Mike Martz Award for the stupid decision made by a player or coach that cost his team the victory.  This was in honor of the man that used to challenge 7-yard plays and burn timeouts 3:00 minutes into the 3rd quarter when he was the headman for the Rams.  Unless I see something incredibly stupid I tend not to give the award in the preseason.  If you saw something like that this week make sure you leave it in the comments section.

Hospital Visit:  There were a lot of significant injuries this week.  The scariest injury of the weekend went to Denver linebacker Louis Green.  Green lay motionless on the Reliant Stadium field for several minutes.  Green was put on a stretcher and was moving his fingers and hands as he was taken from the field.  Green was released from the hospital and all signs are that he will be okay.

Bobby Engram is going to be sidelined 6-8 weeks with a crack in his shoulder bone.  He was the leading receiver from a year ago and the one veteran influence amongst a unit with a lot of question marks.  Hasselbeck is going to be playing with a lot of unproven wide receivers.  The Seahawks will need Engram back ASAP.

Madieu Williams suffered a neck injury and is expected to miss 6 weeks.  That is a big injury for a team that was depending on him to sure up a secondary that ranked 32nd in passing yards allowed.

Charlie Batch was a big injury for the Steelers.  He has been with them since 2003 as their backup quarterback.  He broke his collarbone in Friday’s game against the Eagles and is expected to miss 10-weeks with that injury.  That left Dennis Dixon as the backup, which prompted the signing of Byron Leftwich.  If Big Ben were to go down for a couple weeks the Steelers could be in a big bind.  Batch has filled in for Big Ben in the past and done very well for the Steelers.

Finally, Shawn Andrews just reported to camp this week, citing depression for the first 17 days he missed.  Quoting the AP, "I'm willing to admit that I've been going through a very bad time with depression," Andrews told the Daily News in his first public comments about his training camp absence. "I've finally decided to get professional help. It's not something that blossomed up overnight. I'm on medication, trying to get better."

First of all, you have to hope that he is getting treatment and can recover from this.  Situations like this remind you that there are bigger things going on in these guys life other than football.  From a football standpoint, having your 2-time Pro Bowl guard out of camp for this reason is never a good thing.  They need him to anchor that offensive line.  He is a fantastic guard and is a big part of that football team. 

Overall Impressions of the Week that Was:

1) Brett Favre – I am ready to be done talking about him from a non-football standpoint.  It is good to see him in a camp and start being talked about as a football player and not as a distraction.  When he starts making plays good or bad I would love to talk about those. 

I think all NFL fans are glad that the soap opera part of the story is over.  Now it would be nice if the announcers would move past it.  The ESPN crew beat that horse to death on Thursday night with the Cardinals and the Saints.  They picked right up where they left off on Monday Night.

When it comes to the NFL I like hearing about Favre more than just about anything, but enough is enough.  He isn’t with the Cardinals, Saints, or Packers and to mention his name on every play is a bit silly.  While some people will want to evaluate the trade on a play-by-play basis, it is going to take a year or two to ultimately find out if the Packers made the right call.   A play-by-play analysis of Rodger’s development is as absurd as mentioning Favre’s name on every play.

2) Aaron Rodgers played solid, but… – I got the feeling that many people in the national media were looking for validation of the trade in that game.  It’s a preseason game.  Most teams play vanilla defenses.  Cincinnati was a terrible defense in 2007. 

Even if it meant everything in the world you can’t evaluate trades on a game-by-game basis.  Here are two random game lines from two quarterbacks careers:

September 17, 2006: 20 completions, 27 attempts, 289 yards, 4 TD passes, 0 picks, 148.0 QB rating.             

December 17, 2006: 20 completions, 37 attempts, 174 yards, 0 TD passes, 3 picks, 32.9 QB rating                       

Both games were played in 2006.  Both games were against Detroit where Detroit was the road team.  The September game is Rex Grossman in a 34-7 victory over the Lions.  The December game is Brett Favre in a 17-9 victory over Detroit.  That doesn’t make Rex Grossman a better quarterback than Favre.  He just played better against Detroit at home that year.  Yet this is how many in the media is choosing to evaluate Rodgers vs. Favre.

Aaron Rodgers is probably under more pressure for a first year starter than any player in the history of the NFL.  He is going to be inconsistent this year just like most first year starters are inconsistent.  The important part of Monday’s game was to see how he responded to that pressure, something he did not handle well in the Family Night Scrimmage.  Other than that you weren’t going to find much out. 

Here was my impression of Rodgers.  He impressed me in the sense that there wasn’t a throw he couldn’t make, something people have been talking about since he took over for Favre.  He had good velocity on the ball.  He had command of the offense.  He didn’t stray from the pocket like many young quarterbacks do.  Fleeing the pocket doesn’t give the play a chance to develop.  He needs to feel the pressure a little better.  He missed a safety blitz and was hit a number of times.  If he does not improve in that area he will not play the full schedule.  He also needs to work on his touch and accuracy. 

He played a good game against a defense that was not very solid last year.  He also did that without Grant or Jennings, two of the Packer’s biggest offensive weapons.  My doubts haven’t been so much about his abilities as they have been about his ability to stay healthy.

Regardless of where you are at with this guy it is going to take a lot more games for anyone to make a determination about where he is at as a professional player.  Put a check mark on the good column Monday Night.  He played a solid game and will need to build off that game and keep getting better.  Based on his attitude since March I would expect him to do just that.

3) Larry Johnson looked healthy – This is a guy that gained 1,750 yards on 5.2 yards per carry scoring 20 touchdowns in 2005.  He set a NFL record with 416 carries for 1,789 yards and 17 touchdowns in 2006.  He never looked right last season gaining 559 yards on 3.5 yards per carry and scoring only 3 touchdowns.  He was hurt midseason against the Packers and missed the rest of the season.  

Johnson ran for a touchdown on the Chiefs first drive as the Chiefs beat the Bears 24-20.  He only had 8 carries for 18 yards, but had a nice run up the middle past Brian Urlacher for 7 yards and scored on a 5-yard touchdown.

People are very concerned about him for a couple reasons.  The Chiefs quarterback situation dictates that defenses will concentrate on him.  How he responds from a broken foot is going to be key if he is going to get the carries he needs for the Chiefs to be successful.

18 yards on eight carries is nothing to jump up and down about.  But he had a couple nice runs and looked to have some of his explosiveness back.  The Chiefs aren’t going to work him to hard in the preseason.  This was an encouraging sign and is hopefully a sign of things to come. 

4) Seattle impressive in opening win – It’s hard to tell what is what in the preseason.  However, Seattle had a very nice opening game.  They traveled to Minnesota and won 34-17.   What was encouraging was 35 carries for 162 yards, which is an average of 4.6 yards per carry.

Again, it’s preseason.  The Williams Brothers didn’t play 4 quarters.  Allen wasn’t chasing the quarterback the whole time. The scored was tied 17-17 at the half, so the blowout happened with a lot of backups that won’t be on the field come Week 1.

This team is set at quarterback. Brees, Hasselbeck, and Romo are probably the three best quarterbacks in the NFC.  Having a good quarterback will keep you in a lot of games.  If Seattle can run the ball like they did against the Vikings that will be a big plus.  Mare was also 2-2 on field goals and 4-4 on extra points, which is much better than his horrendous 2007 season.  How he replaces Brown this year is critical for them winning close games in 2008.

I have questioned how this offense is going to do in 2008.  Scoring 34 points on the road with an offense that has some questions is never a bad thing.  However, Bobby Engram injuring his shoulder is a very bad thing.  That leaves them even weaker at a position that has a lot of question marks.  Regardless, Seattle impressed against a good team and deserves credit for that.

5) 49er’s quarterback situation – It was interesting to see JT O’Sullivan starting for the 49ers in their first preseason game.  Nolan’s reason for that was that he knows what he has in Smith and Hill and wanted to see O’Sullivan work with the first team.  If that doesn’t tell that Smith has hit rock bottom, I don’t know what will.  Smith played in only 7 games and threw only 193 passes and you don’t want to see what your $49.5 million dollar investment looks like so that you can see what a 6th round pick from the 2002 draft looks like?

I’ve argued with quite a few 49ers that have argued that it is too early to label Smith a bust.  If labeling Bust were the equivalent of a football game it would be 35-14 with about 4:00 minutes left in the game with Team Bust comfortably in the lead.  If the coach is worried about what he has in JT O’Sullivan that is an obvious indicator that he isn’t too high on Alex Smith.

The reason O’Sullivan is getting a look is because he played in Detroit last year, which is where Martz coached.  O’Sullivan has the best knowledge of the offense.  I would not be shocked if he ends up starting the season as the number one quarterback for the 49ers.   

A Look Ahead:  It’s pretty hard to get hyped for the 2nd preseason game.  Once the regular season starts I’m going to pick the best 5 games on the schedule.  I’m not doing that with preseason games.  There is going to be a lot of attention paid to the Jets and Redskins as this will be Favre’s first action with a team other than the Packers since 1991.  People will be curious to see how he looks in this new offense.  New England and Tampa Bay features two playoff teams.  The Giants and Browns could be an entertaining matchup. 

I’m not going to waste too much time previewing preseason games.  As teams take the field for the second time we should start to see some trends and can start looking at possible concerns or possible things to be optimistic about.  The key is that teams build some momentum and keep their players healthy.  All in all it was a good week of preseason action and it is nice to have football back.  Let me know what you thought about this week's developments in the NFL and your favorite team's performance in the preseason.

Now that training camps have officially kicked off I decided to come up with a list of the 12 burning questions on NFL fan’s minds entering training camp. With 32 teams I could not cover everyone. If you think I made a glaring admission please leave it in the comments and I will try to address it. Without further delay here are the 12 biggest questions around the NFL now that teams have reported for training camp.

12) Is Matt Leinart ready to emerge as the Arizona starter? - All indications are that he has looked good through the off-season and is ready to take control of that offense. However, the Cardinals also like Warner and have been having him take snaps with the first unit as well. He had his best season since leaving St Louis.

I think Leinart’s party lifestyle has gotten blown out of proportion. These guys are going to enjoy themselves. They aren’t robots that eat and digest football 24/7. They have families, endorsements, business ventures, and yes…hot tubs full of sexy young ladies.

Had this happened the Saturday night before the Seattle game I would have had a different take. Had he gone to Mexico with his entourage of hotness the week before his opening playoff game I would not have been impressed. It happened in the off-season and there is nothing wrong with Leinart enjoying his celebrity. The world of camera phones make it hard to keep that stuff private. When you combine that with his USC celebrity status you have the makings for that type of story.

This is the year he needs to break out. He has great receiving talent and a solid back in James. He has a good coaching staff. The line is not perfect and the defense will give up points, but the Cardinals beat the Seahawks, Steelers, and Browns in 2007. All three teams won 10 games. The time for excuses are over. I think he does have a good year, but I’m not certain. What I am certain of is that whether he breaks out or not will have nothing to do with the company he kept in his hot tub.

11) Will the NY Jets and Oakland Raiders spending spree pay off? - It might have paid off in the NFC. The problem is that the Jets finished 12 games off the Patriots in 2007. Even with the players they added they are only the second best team in that division. The Raiders finished 7 games off the Chargers. They too have a long way to go to close that gap.

At the end of the day it is still a quarterback’s league. The Jets have Pennington and Clemens and the Raiders are trying to figure out if Russell and McFadden can usher in a new era of excellence. While both teams added some good players and both teams overpaid for some talent they will be better in 2008. I just don’t think they’ll be good enough to compete with the slew of playoff teams in the AFC.

I look for the Jets to get to the .500 mark and for the Raiders to get to 6-7 wins. While that will be improvement, it won’t satisfy fan’s expectations given that the Jets and Raiders were throwing dollars at free agents this off-season like PacMan throws at strippers on a Monday night. Sorry Dallas fans. I couldn’t help myself.

10) Where does Shaun Alexander end up in 2008? - I don’t understand why he hasn’t ended up in Green Bay yet. Ted Thompson drafted him in Seattle. Thompson has cap room and wouldn't have to give up draft picks. Ryan Grant is holding out for a larger contract. The Packers have no proven rushers on their roster. It would seem like a no brainer to get this guy into camp, 1) to put pressure on Grant to sign, 2) To have an insurance policy if Grant gets hurt, is ineffective, or both, 3) To show your younger players how to play the running back position.

Alexander doesn’t have nearly enough in the tank to generate a season like he did when he won the MVP in 2005. What he does have is a wealth of experience and the ability to share the load with another runner. He could be a valuable player in a playoff game. I would expect that someone’s running back is going to get injured and that they will turn to Shaun Alexander at that point to save their season. It is amazing how quickly a guy can go from MVP to out of a job.

9) Are Cleveland and Minnesota playoff teams in 2008? - These were basically the two teams that just missed the playoffs in 2007. These teams are usually the most intriguing the following year. In 2006 Green Bay used its playoff miss to improve from 8-8 to 13-3. Denver and Cincinnati regressed from their near misses in 2006 to play even worse in 2007. It can go both ways.

Minnesota had a great off season adding Jared Allen to the defensive line. Bernard Berrian gives them a much better target at receiver. Jackson is developing. With the “retirement” of Brett Favre the division is in flux and I expect the Vikings to grab the NFC North. In the extremely unlikely event the Vikings could acquire Favre they could be a Super Bowl contender.

Cleveland added a lot of talent on the defensive line with Rogers and Williams. They also added Stallworth to the receiver mix. Their offensive core is still young and improving. This could be a very dangerous team in 2008. I am expecting 10 wins and the final playoff spot.

Also don’t forget New Orleans. They finished 7-9 after making the NFC Championship in 2006. They have added Shockey. Vilma, Ellis, McCray, and Ga y. If their defense can regain its 2006 form and the offense can mount more of a downfield threat the Saints will be in prime position to win the NFC South.

8) Who will be the super surprise team of 2008? - I think the team with the best chance to go from the top 10 of the draft to playoff contention would be the St Louis Rams. They have a lot of offensive talent. Bulger is a solid quarterback. Jackson is a threat both as a runner and pass catcher. Holt is still a number one target. The Rams had a lot of issues on defense and the offensive line last year. Pace needs to stay healthy and Chris Long needs to have a big year to help bring back the defense.

That said the Rams don’t play in the toughest of divisions and they draw the AFC East in 2008. I only have them finishing 6-10, but I would not be shocked if they were able to get to 8-8 or 9-7 and contend for either the division or the last wildcard spot. They need to stay healthy and they need defensive improvement, but the Rams have a lot more skill position players than the run of the mill 3-13 squad.

7) Will the San Diego Chargers be healthy to start the season? - How is Gate’s toe? How is LT’s knee? How is River’s knee? How much work will they see in preseason? No one doubts that the Chargers have the talent in place to make a run for Tampa. The concern is that they will be hampered by injuries from the get go.

Phillip Rivers has been throwing the ball at camp and appears to be throwing the ball with excellent velocity. The San Diego Union reported that he appeared to be thicker in the upper body. All indications seem to point to him being ready for the opener. LT also appears to be a go with his knee for training camp. That is important because Turner bolted for Atlanta. The biggest question marks appear to be with Gate’s toe and Jamal William’s knee.

Gates is a huge part of the Chargers pass game. While Chambers and Jackson are solid targets they are by no means superstar number one caliber players. Gates is the best tight end in football when healthy. His blend of speed, leaping ability, and size make him impossible to defend. If he is not able to go that will be a huge blow to the Chargers.

On defense Williams is a big part of the run defense. Without him at full strength the Chargers will be more susceptible to the run. In a division with Denver, Larry Johnson, and Darren McFadden that would be a huge blow.

I expect the Chargers to go 12-4 this season and work through their injury issues. This is still a young team that should be able to overcome those issues. However, a few big injuries are enough to derail even the best squads and the Chargers are starting off the training camp season with some big concerns.

6) Can Pittsburgh survive the toughest schedule in the NFL? - I think they will, but that schedule is brutal. Pittsburgh is like the Baltimore Ravens of a year ago. The Ravens were coming off a 13-3 season, but people were very concerned about a Week 12-14 stretch where they played San Diego, New England, and Indy. Pittsburgh this season draws an even tougher slate. They play Indy, San Diego, New England, and Dallas in 4 out of 5 weeks from Week 10-14. Most people have those 4 teams somewhere in their top 5 or 6 rankings in the NFL.

I think the Steelers have a lot of things going for them that the Ravens didn’t in 2007. I think that Big Ben gives the Steelers the play at quarterback that a team needs to survive a stretch like that. McNair and Boller didn’t do that for the Ravens. I think the Steelers have more players on offense that can score points. I think the defense is in good shape. It also helps to have Cincinnati in the middle of that stretch. That is a team that the Steelers can regain offensive confidence against should they struggle to start that stretch.

The bottom line is that the Steelers still have a good team and I think people are getting a little too caught up in the schedule and in Cleveland’s off-season additions. This is still the Steelers’ division. That said it is imperative that Pittsburgh stay healthy and they don’t get off to a poor start and lose games early in the season that they should take care of. They need to beat the Ravens twice, the Bengals twice, and the Texans. They need to play well at home. They aren’t going to go 16-0 against that schedule, but they should be able to finish around 10-6 or 11-5. However, if things don’t go their way the schedule will do them no favors and could knock them on the ground fast. The Steelers have little to no margin for error.

5) Can the New York Giants repeat as Super Bowl champions? - They could, but I think it is very unlikely. Critics of the NY Giants are going to start with an Eli Manning bashing. I’m just going to look at it by the numbers. The New York Giants beat the Buccaneers soundly, 24-14. Then they beat the Cowboys by 3 points intercepting Romo in the end zone to close the game. They intercepted Favre in overtime to beat the Packers by 3 points. They won the Super Bowl by 3 points against New England. This is not a team that ran away with the playoffs. It is a team that got hot at the end of the season, played at a very high level both physically but mentally as well, and caught a lot of good breaks. To expect a team to win that many close games a second year in a row is not realistic.

The New York Giants had a lot of losses this off-season. Strahan is a Hall of Famer and the leader of this team. He is no longer there. Wilson, Mitchell, and Torbar left via free agency. Shockey was traded to the Saints. That is a lot of talent to lose. They drafted well, but those players will need time to develop.

Then there is Eli Manning. When all the dust settles he still has a 54.7 career completion percentage, has never thrown for more than 3,800 yards, has never thrown for more than 25 touchdowns, has never thrown for less than 15 interceptions in a season in which he started 16 games. He has a career 73.4 quarterback rating. I expect him to play his best season this year. I thin