Week Five in Review
By: Matt Harmon
Buffalo Bills- 24 at Cleveland Browns- 37
Reviewing the Game:
Kansas City Chiefs- 26 at Tennessee Titans- 17
Reviewing the Game:
Baltimore Ravens- 26 at Miami Dolphins- 23
Reviewing the Game:
Jacksonville Jaguars- 34 at St. Louis Rams- 20
Reviewing the Game
New England Patriots- 6 at Cincinnati Bengals- 13
Reviewing the Game:
Seattle Seahawks- 28 at Indianapolis Colts- 34
Reviewing the Game:
Detroit Lions- 9 at Green Bay Packers- 22
Reviewing the Game:
Matchup to Watch: Clay Matthews vs. Riley Reiff
New Orleans Saints (4-0) at Chicago Bears (3-1)
Reviewing the Game:
Philadelphia Eagles- 36 at New York Giants- 21
Reviewing the Game:
Carolina Panthers- 6 at Arizona Cardinals- 22
Reviewing the Game:
Denver Broncos- 51 at Dallas Cowboys- 48
Reviewing the Game:
Houston Texans- 3 at San Francisco 49ers- 34
Reviewing the Game:
San Diego Chargers- 17 at Oakland Raiders- 27
Reviewing the Game:
New York Jets- 30 at Atlanta Falcons- 28
Reviewing the Game:
Buffalo Bills- 24 at Cleveland Browns- 37
Reviewing the Game:
- I told you all not to just assume this was going to be a stinker just because of the two teams that played; this was probably the best of the NFL Network Thursday night games of the year so far. Unfortunately this game was not without its injuries. Brian Hoyer, who has completely reinvigorated the Browns, left on the second drive of the game after an incredibly poor form slide. It sounds like he may have torn his ACL, which is devastating. E.J. Manuel also limped off the field in the third quarter and never returned. On of Cleveland’s stud defensive lineman, Desmond Bryant, also left the game and was taken to the hospital. Despite the blood bath, the actually game was pretty entertaining. Brandon Weeden looked dreadful when he entered the game, but he eventually did get comfortable, and looked pretty good in the second half when he threw a beautiful score to Josh Gordon. Still, there is a noticeable difference in Hoyer and Weeden, especially when it comes to getting rid of the football on time. C.J. Spiller somewhat broke out of his funk an awesome, cutback 54-yard score, but the coaching staff is still running him in the A gap far too often. Two players who dominated for each team were Travis Benjamin for the Browns, and Mario Williams for the Bills. Williams has really stepped up his game this season for the Bills after a somewhat disappointing debut year for them in 2012. He added two sack to his season total, and blew up the Cleveland backfield a number of times. Benjamin is a wide receiver/return specialist who completely took this game over with several electric punt returns, including one for a score.
- This was Cameron’s first quite game for the Browns this season with only three catches for 36 yards. Cameron would have had another red zone touchdown, but Brandon Weeden missed him with an overthrown ball. The quarterback switch may have affected Cameron, but the Bills still did a good job shutting him down. This was my first extended look at Kiko Alonso and he was an absolute nightmare for the Browns. He was the one who hit Brian Hoyer when he suffered his knee injury, and covered ground in the middle of the field very well. Alonso is a sideline-to-sideline defender who looks to have a very bright future in this league.
Kansas City Chiefs- 26 at Tennessee Titans- 17
Reviewing the Game:
- After both of these teams began the season with surprising fast starts, the Chiefs came out and beat the Titans. The Titans showed that they are not a good enough team to overcome a turnover prone quarterback. Ryan Fitzpatrick showed he is still the physically limited player who tries to be risk-taker, and his turnovers, and a boneheaded special teams turnover, were the catalysts for the Titans loss. The Chiefs just do what they do every week. Its not pretty, there aren’t a ton of great stats, but they just keep on winning.
- This was the first of a few of my matchups that did not materialize into much. Robinson actually threw up goose eggs on every section of the stat sheet, and Kendall Wright gave another steady performance. This game did nothing to change the narrative on either player. Wright is a solid player, but is not the dynamic talent he was at Baylor, and Robinson is a past his prime slot corner.
Baltimore Ravens- 26 at Miami Dolphins- 23
Reviewing the Game:
- This game was kind of a snoozer with some pretty dull offenses for a while, but really, that is because both of these defenses really good. I mentioned this to a friend who is a Ravens fan when he was bemoaning the state of his team’s offense, all the Ravens have on offense is Flacco and Torrey Smith (who is turning into a stud before out eyes). The offensive line was a disappointment again and neither running back broke many explosive plays. The Ravens managed to eek out a win at the end after a big drive to close out the game with a winning field goal. The Dolphins played pretty well all the way around, but things were just a small step off all day, especially on offense. The final drive was a microcosm of Ryan Tannehill’s day. Despite the fact that the impressive young quarterback stood strong and consistently put passes where they needed to be, his receivers dropped pass after pass and his two inept tackles let defenders get to him over and over again. The combination of Jonathan Martin and Tyson Clabo is an embarrassment, and Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil took turns abusing them.
- Well, this did not exactly go as plan since Monroe was left inactive after just coming to the team this week, but that just meant that Dion Jordan got to face off with notorious bum Bryant McKinnie (check out my man Ross Tucker’s strong take on McKinnie). If you look at the stat sheet you will see just a single tackle for Jordan, but that does not even come close to the whole story. Jordan got consistent pressure in this game, and forced Flacco into other player’s waiting arms. His best play came when he destroyed McKinnie and was able to swat Flacco’s arm as he threw, which resulted in an interception that Reshad Jones returned for a score.
Jacksonville Jaguars- 34 at St. Louis Rams- 20
Reviewing the Game
- So, playing the Jaguars is all it took to cure what ails the Rams, who would have thought? Its almost not even worth discussing what the Rams did well, because playing the Jags is always a caveat, but I will say they may have found a running back in fifth-rounder Zac Stacy; should have been on the field sooner. The Jaguars were terrible again, and to add injury to insult, they lost their second overall pick, tackle Luke Joeckel, days after foolishly trading away their starting left tackle. Finally, Blaine Gabbert is the worst quarterback in the NFL. The only reason I can think of why this coaching staff will not replace him is that they really do not want Cad Henne to mess up this tank job.
- In what was probably his best matchup all season, MJD only manager a modest seventy yards on fourteen carries and two catches. Its sad, but this is who he is at this point in his career. And honestly, with Gabbert back there, why wouldn’t teams sell out to stop him?
New England Patriots- 6 at Cincinnati Bengals- 13
Reviewing the Game:
- Look guys, its time to say it: Tom Brady is not playing well. Yes, you can talk about his supporting cast, and the weather at the end of the game, but excuses aside, Brady is missing throws and it is costing his team. The Bengals defense gave Brady fits all day with their pass rushers, and at the end of the game, Brady threw up a duck that Adam Jones intercepted to win the game. There just is not much to get excited about with this Patriots offense right now. The Bengals offense was a pretty average unit today, but that was enough to win with their defense playing at an elite level. Andy Dalton threw one of the worst interceptions you will ever seen, but the coaching staff did a good job of managing him the rest of the game.
- Eifert had a solid five catches for 53 yards, and consistently beat the Patriots linebackers. I also loved how they sent him on routes to the seams out of the backfield on occasion. He did not explode like Gonzalez did on Monday night, but he did enough to move the chains, especially with the Bengals running so well. It is worth noting that Jermaine Gresham grabbed four passes as well.
Seattle Seahawks- 28 at Indianapolis Colts- 34
Reviewing the Game:
- I hate to pick against the better team, but I love to be right! This game was not about Seattle being a bad road team; this game was about Indianapolis showing us it is time to consider them one of the best AFC teams. With Trent Richardson once again disappointing, Andrew Luck once again put the team on his back, and won the game on another fourth quarter drive. Luck had a ton of success throwing to his speedy receiver, T.Y. Hilton. Hilton is electric, and has to be more involved with this offense going forward. With the Colts racking up wins against good teams, Luck is on his way to being an elite quarterback, and quickly. On the other side, Russell Wilson showed us why the future is in good hands with him as well as he shredded the Colts on the ground and in the air. However, when he usually takes his team down the field for a win, he threw the game clinching interception to Darius Butler. Even though people want to talk about Seattle’s struggles on the road, I think this game said more about the Colts than the Seahawks.
- This is a rare case where both players in the matchup to watch had a stellar game. Thomas was all over the field as usual, but did not bait Luck into any big mistakes. We have already discussed Luck’s stellar game above.
Detroit Lions- 9 at Green Bay Packers- 22
Reviewing the Game:
- In the first half, it seemed like the Lions wanted to give the game to the Packers, but they were just unwilling to take it from them, as it was only 6-3 at the half. In the second half, the Packers finally exploded on offense as Aaron Rodgers started dealing to all his receivers and Randall Cobb even took a carry out of the backfield for a huge gain. The Packers defense had an encouraging outing against a normally explosive Lions offense. Getting to the Lions, they looked pretty lost on offense without Calvin Johnson, who was a late scratch prior to game time. The Lions really should have got their two stellar running backs involved more, but Stafford spent too much time spreading the ball around to lesser players like Kris Durham and Brandon Pettigrew. Get healthy soon, Megatron.
Matchup to Watch: Clay Matthews vs. Riley Reiff
- This week, the Lions pass protection fell from the lofty standards they were played to in the first four weeks, as they allowed Stafford to be sacked five times. However, I thought Reiff held up pretty well, as most of the pressure was coming up the middle, or from the right side of the o-line. In fact, Clay Matthews only sack was on a play where he came in unblocked.
New Orleans Saints (4-0) at Chicago Bears (3-1)
Reviewing the Game:
- Rob Ryan is having one heck of a season as the Saints defensive coordinator. His blitz packages gave the Bears offense fits, and all three of their sacks on Jay Cutler came early from blitzing players on the second and third levels of the defense. Ryan has really turned this unit around. On offense, Jimmy Graham is the best offensive player (non-quarterback) in the league right now, and its not even close. He is on a dominant stretch right now. The Bears wee in this game, and Cutler had a nice day, especially throwing to emerging stud receiver Alshon Jeffery, but they just did not have enough to match the Saints. I think both of these teams will be playing into September.
- This is by far the most troubling aspect of the Bears season to date. Their defensive line was once again pushed around today, and never had a consistent pass rush to threaten Drew Brees. Right now, this is just not a good group. Julius Peppers has fallen off, Henry Melton is gone for the season, and Corey Wooton is just a solid player at his best. Is Shea McClellin ever going to show show up as a consistent player for them? Like I said, it is troubling how far this defensive unit has fallen.
Philadelphia Eagles- 36 at New York Giants- 21
Reviewing the Game:
- The Giants are so bad, its too the point its kind of a waste of time to even discuss them. David Wilson looked like he was finally going to get going in this game, but because this season is a disaster; he left with an injury and never returned. The most surprising thing about the Giants is how bad they are at rushing the passer, and both Eagles quarterbacks had all day in the pocket. Jason Pierre-Paul is clearly not healthy and Justin Tuck is finished. The Eagles won this game, but they took what was basically a gift from the Giants with three more Eli Manning interceptions. Michael Vick could not finish the game with multiple injuries, but the offense looked great with Nick Foles behind center. He has a chance to take this job and not let it go for the rest of the season.
- There really is no hope for the Giants right now, but it was still nice to see Hakeem Nicks, a really good player, rebound with nine catches for 142 yards. He and Rueben Randle made Bradley Fletcher look silly all day, and even though Cary Williams snagged one of the Manning interceptions, he still got burned too often.
Carolina Panthers- 6 at Arizona Cardinals- 22
Reviewing the Game:
- Well, this was our only gross game of the day, so we can probably get through this rather quickly. The Panthers came out of their bye week completely flat, and under the shadow of reports the team is already searching for their next head coach. The defense held up their end of the bargain, but once again, Mike Shula’s offense was an unmitigated disaster. They are just completely out of sync, and not much is going right on that side of the ball. The Cardinals should not walk away from this game feeling like they earned a nice win here. Their defense is a solid unit, but much like the Panthers, their offense turned the ball over too much, and only scored when the Panthers gift-wrapped them opportunities.
- Hardy came into this game unhealthy, and it showed. He never took over this game like I thought he would. The Cardinals offensive line is the much maligned unit, but it was the Panthers’ blockers who allowed Cam Newton to be dragged down seven times.
Denver Broncos- 51 at Dallas Cowboys- 48
Reviewing the Game:
- Well, the Cowboys made this game more than interesting. Tony Romo played probably the best game of his entire career, going for over 500 yards and four scores and taking beautiful deep shot after deep shot. Unfortunately, he played to the narrative and threw an ill-advised interception to give the Broncos a chance to kick the winning field goal. This was a heart-breaking and crushing loss for Dallas and even though they played really well on offense, all anyone will remember is that Tony Romo failed in the clutch moments, and its hard to argue against that. However, without Romo’s performance, they lose this game by twenty-plus points. After being unsure how I felt about them the first few weeks, I think I can confidently say the Cowboys defense is not very good. I know it was against Peyton and the mighty Broncos, but I actually thought the most telling deficiency was their abysmal performance against the run. Knowshon Moreno looked like the player we all thought he would be when he was the twelfth pick in the draft back in 2009. This is just who Dallas is; there is some talent, a lot of flash and they will get your hopes up at times but ultimately they just find ways to break your heart. For the Broncos, it was a huge positive to see them win a close game against a pretty good team, instead of just blowing their doors off. There just is not much to say about that offense, Manning is terrific and even though he threw his first pick, he still carved up the Dallas defense and even ran in a touchdown. The defense played pretty poorly, but you have to remember at different times of this game they were missing as many as six key contributors. This is still without a doubt the best team in the league.
- Julius Thomas, once again, was unbelievable in this game. He completely roasted those linebackers for Dallas I listed, but the Cowboys certainly tried to cover him with more than just linebackers. He out-muscled cornerback Brandon Carr, and torched their safeties as well. The Cowboys clearly tried to double up guys like Wes Welker and Demaryius Thomas, and they paid for it in the form of a dominant Julius Thomas performance. He, of course, is not on the level of another younger former basketball player, the untouchable Jimmy Graham, but with his talent and in this system, the sky is the limit for this player.
Houston Texans- 3 at San Francisco 49ers- 34
Reviewing the Game:
- To quote what I said in my preview “if they lose this game, we could be looking at a potential tailspin”, well I was wrong; we are way beyond tailspin. Houston Texans, welcome to rock bottom. We all heard how Matt Schaub was tied for the league record with three consecutive games with a pick-six, and then in the opening moments of the game, he went out there and broke that record. Schaub never got his confidence back and committed a “Backyard Banter unforgivable sin” when he threw his third pick of the night to a three-hundred-plus pound defensive lineman. There is just nothing else to say about the Texans but that they are in a terrible spot right now. The team insists he is still the starter, but it looks like Matt Schaub is no longer capable of leading this team, and it may only get worse from here. I feel like they should bench Schaub for T.J. Yates, but coach Kubiak wants to go down swinging with his man, and they may both go down before long. For the 49ers, they won, in convincing fashion, a game where their passing game never found its stride, because their defense and running game continue to carry them. It seems everyone wants to say “the Niners are back” but I would like to see them fire on all cylinders, especially through the air, before I think they can win in the playoffs again.
- Yet again one of my matchups that never came to fruition. The Texans kept Cushing near the line of scrimmage and mostly deployed him on run blitzes. He was very effective in that role, but it had its downside. In the fourth quarter Kaepernick fooled the Texans defense on a play-action fake and chucked the ball to Vernon Davis who roasted decrepit safety, Ed Reed, for a 64-yard touchdown. The Texans were fooling themselves when they singed Ed Reed in the offseason, and they are really fooling themselves if they think he can cover high-end athletes like Davis at this stage of his career.
San Diego Chargers- 17 at Oakland Raiders- 27
Reviewing the Game:
- Through the haze of my exhaustion watching this game I just kept thinking one thing; the Raiders have their guy at quarterback. Pryor started this game 10 for 10 on his passes and that included two touchdowns. It is pretty cool to see Al Davis’ last draft pick playing so well. Oakland is a much better team than anyone thought they would be, and if they continue to build around Pryor, they could be a good team before too long. The Chargers just seem to have these type of games every few weeks. They let this one get away from them early, and never could gain a lead. There were a lot of questionable decisions by the Chargers in this game, like using Danny Woodhead as a goal-line back, and some really bad Phillip Rivers interceptions. This was a big step back for an improved Chargers team.
- Little disclaimer here: Denarius Moore was often lined up across from Richard Marshall, and the other Raiders receiver, Tommy Streater faced Cox. Not that any of that mattered, because both Chargers spent the night/morning getting torched. Cox was beat badly on the opening touchdown by Streater, and Marshall had some rough moments with Moore. This position is a huge weakness for the Chargers, and it is going to put them in a lot of holes this season.
New York Jets- 30 at Atlanta Falcons- 28
Reviewing the Game:
- This game was awesome, but lets start with the Falcons. I predicted that they would miss the playoffs, but they are even worse than I expected. They cannot rush the passer and they cannot pass protect; you cannot win many games in the NFL with those problems. Despite some good numbers, Matt Ryan is not having his best season, and it really feels like this could be the end of an era in Atlanta. With ominous news coming out this morning, it looks like things are going to get worse before they get better for the Falcons. The Jets, and Geno Smith should be the story of this game. The Jets have found their starting quarterback in Smith, and it looks like this team should keep Rex Ryan around after this season is over. I said leading up to the draft that Geno may not ever be an elite quarterback, but he would be an above-average starter and it was a travesty he was not taken in the first round. He was absolutely phenomenal and made a number of perfect throws. This is still a depleted offense, but on this day, Geno made the players around him better.
- Barnes did not make much of an impact on this game, and he actually left it with an injury, but don’t think that meant the Atlanta offensive line played well at all. This position group might be among the worst in the NFL as I don’t think they have a single above-average starter playing along the line. The Jets have one of the best front sevens in football, and their young stars, Sheldon Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson threw around the Falcons lineman all night.
