Week Six in Review
By: Matt Harmon
Thursday Night Game:
New York Giants- 21 at Chicago Bears- 27
Reviewing the Game:
Oakland Raiders- 7 at Kansas City Chiefs- 24
Reviewing the Game:
Philadelphia Eagles- 31 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers- 20
Reviewing the Game:
Green Bay Packers- 19 at Baltimore Ravens- 17
Reviewing the Game:
Detroit Lions- 31 at Cleveland Browns- 17
Reviewing the Game:
Carolina Panthers- 35 at Minnesota Vikings- 10
Reviewing the Game:
St. Louis Rams- 13 at Houston Texans- 38
Reviewing the Game:
Pittsburgh Steelers- 19 at New York Jets- 6
Reviewing the Game:
Cincinnati Bengals- 27 at Buffalo Bills- 24
Reviewing the Game:
Tennessee Titans- 13 at Seattle Seahawks- 20
Reviewing the Game:
Jacksonville Jaguars- 19 at Denver Broncos- 35
Reviewing the Game:
Arizona Cardinals- 20 at San Francisco 49ers- 32
Reviewing the Game:
New Orleans Saints- 27 at New England Patriots- 30
Reviewing the Game:
Washington Redskins-16 at Dallas Cowboys- 31
Reviewing the Game:
Monday Night Game:
Indianapolis Colts- 9 at San Diego Chargers- 19
Reviewing the Game:
Thursday Night Game:
New York Giants- 21 at Chicago Bears- 27
Reviewing the Game:
- I thought this game would not be close, but I was clearly still underrating how bad this Bears defense is right now. Considering that they are down to about their third string defensive tackles, I should have been smarter. Brandon Jacobs of all people trampled the Bears in the running game. The Giants offensive line, a unit who has not been able to move anyone in the ground game all year, opened up huge holes against the Bears all night long. Jacobs played well, but I thought it said more about the Bears defense then Brandon Jacobs suddenly being reborn. The Bears line could not get pressure all night either as Will Beatty, a player who has been abused all year, pretty much erased Julius Peppers, and Eli Manning was able to find some holes in the Bears secondary. That is of course when he was not throwing passes to the other team. You can put some of the blame for those interceptions on his receivers, but you cannot get around the fact that the younger Manning’s performance has been at an unacceptable level all season. Jay Cutler had a stellar game tonight and could have had even better numbers if Alshon Jeffery had hauled in more of those deep attempts. Without Cutler’s great play, and some of those Manning interceptions, there is no way the Bears win this game. With so many injuries and declining players on defense, it looks like this is going to have to be the winning formula for the Bears all season.
- Pierre-Paul did have a few moments where he clearly beat Bushrod in this game, but those moments were too few and far in-between. It is clear that JPP is still bothered by his offseason back surgery, and at least for now, is not the same player he was in 2011. Another problem I noticed is that the Giants seem to be lining him up almost exclusively at right defensive end. Now that the line play has declined and some players have moved on to new teams, the Giants no longer have the flexibility or depth to move players around the formation to exploit matchups; that is clearly hurting this team.
Oakland Raiders- 7 at Kansas City Chiefs- 24
Reviewing the Game:
- The Oakland Raiders and their quarterback fell back to Earth pretty hard on a day when Arrowhead Stadium became the loudest place on Earth. This game showed that, despite being leaps and bounds ahead of where many thought they would be, the Raiders really cannot hang with the big dogs in the AFC. The Chiefs did what they always do. The Chiefs defense might just be the best in the league, and they were ferocious yet again today, but you still have to be concerned about this offense. The only reliable weapon is Jamal Charles, and Alex Smith (4.1 yards per pass attempt) looks incapable of challenging defenses right now. Despite those concerns, the Chiefs are 6-0 and you cannot argue with that record.
- Just as it was projected, this matchup was easily the biggest difference in the game. The Chiefs gathered an eye-popping ten sacks against Pryor and the Raiders, who already had a bad line coming in, and sustained multiple injuries during this contest. Of course the line was a problem, but pocket presence was a problem for Pryor and he absorbed sacks he should not have, and that led to his three costly interceptions. Despite the fact that this was a setback for Pryor, we should not even think about losing faith just yet since this was against the leagues best defense and he clearly still wants to be great.
Philadelphia Eagles- 31 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers- 20
Reviewing the Game:
- I thought that we would see the Tampa Bay defense be the difference in this game, since it was the best unit out of the four on the field. I was clearly wrong. The Buccaneers secondary let Nick Foles make a number of really pretty throws to Desean Jackson, and even worse, Riley Cooper. Dashon Goldson is billed as a top-flight safety in this league, but he still gets beat deep too often to earn that distinction. Its too bad the Bucs could not stop the Foles led Eagles, because they got a pretty good performance from Mike Glennon who looked poised and threw a number of nice balls. The Buccaneers really squandered a chance to get that elusive first win.
- Lets be clear here, Desean Jackson had a phenomenal game, and is in the midst of what is easily his best season as a pro, but if you hear anyone say that Jackson got the best of Revis then you know they are not really paying attention. Jackson’s twelve-yard touchdown came when the Bucs were playing in zone coverage and Revis was not even in the screen on his long touchdown catch. This game shows how the Buccaneers continue to misuse an asset they traded for, and paid a handsome sum to.
Green Bay Packers- 19 at Baltimore Ravens- 17
Reviewing the Game:
- The Packers went out and did what great teams do; they fought adversity and beat a good team on the road. Despite losing two of his top pass catchers in James Jones and Randall Cobb to injury, Aaron Rodgers his several big plays to get the Packers a close victory over the Ravens. Eddie Lacy had another consistent, grinding game on the ground with 120 yards on 23 carries. Lacy is the perfect example of a missing piece gained in the draft, and is a great fit in an offense that really needs him. The Ravens played with the same old problems; they are not running the ball well enough to make up for a passing offense that does not have many consistent options.
- Nick Perry completely blew up Baltimore’s other tackle, Eugene Monroe, for a strip sack in the first half and continued to look like a player ready to turn the corner. Unfortunately for Green Bay, Perry left the game with an injury and it looks like they may lose him for a while. The Ravens offensive line let Flacco get dropped five times for sacks, and there is a disturbing lack of push in the running game and this looks like it will be a serious problem for the Ravens all season.
Detroit Lions- 31 at Cleveland Browns- 17
Reviewing the Game:
- The Lions won this game because Matt Stafford was much better this week, even though Calvin Johnson was clearly not one hundred percent. Stafford spread the ball around to Kris Durham, Reggie Bush, and undrafted tight end Joseph Fauria, who continues to be a force in the red zone with three more scores. It is pretty disappointing for Cleveland that their defense was out-played this badly, since it has been their best asset all year. Brandon Weeden had his moments, but too often was dysfunctional in the pocket and tossed one of the worst interceptionsever thrown in professional football.
- The Lions did a pretty good job bottling up the Browns running game, but the Browns clearly had a plan for Suh in the passing game. Suh managed only one tackle all game, but as always the attention on him freed up players like Willie Young and Devin Taylor to sack Brandon Weeden.
Carolina Panthers- 35 at Minnesota Vikings- 10
Reviewing the Game:
- So, when the Panthers are not losing close games they are just going to blow teams out of the water? Seriously though, these are the days when it is hard to understand why Carolina is not a better team. Mike Shula and Ron Rivera finally put together an aggressive game plan and it worked to perfection. Cam Newton was efficient and everyone else on offense succeeded in their role. The Panthers showed us again what they could be, but I have a hard time thinking they can be this good through out the season. The Vikings were really never in this game, and it looks like we will be seeing Josh Freeman sooner rather than later. The Vikings defense has been a huge disappointment this season, and a run based offense without a reliable quarterback has not been enough to bail them out.
- One thing that has been consistently good about the Panthers this season has been the front seven. This group of players, once again keyed by Star Lotulelei, dominated the Vikings offensive line. Matt Cassel never had the time to get comfortable in the pocket, and Adrian Peterson was stuffed before the game got out of hand.
St. Louis Rams- 13 at Houston Texans- 38
Reviewing the Game:
- If you just looked at this score without knowing what happened in this game you would probably assume that Matt Schaub had another meltdown performance and was relegated to the bench. Well, that is not what went down on Sunday. Instead, the rest of the Texans team melted down with too many penalties and a defensive performance that was strikingly bad considering that side of the ball has been carrying this team. Schaub actually left this game with an injury and was replaced by T.J. Yates, who preceded to show everyone exactly why Schaub is still the best option for this team. I have been quick to criticize the Rams, but they dominated this game, and are actually sitting nicely with a 3-3 record. I was also ready to send Sam Bradford to the scrap-heap, but he has been pretty lights out since a terrible showing in that Thursday night game against the 49ers.
- Jenkins had a dominant game, as he snagged one of Yates’ interceptions and also collected a sack on a corner blitz. Jenkins looks the part of a number one corner in the NFL, and it is no coincidence the Rams defense has been much better since Cortland Finnegan has been injured. Andre Johnson had a solid statistical day, but with the Texans quarterback situation, it was no surprise he did not take over this game.
Pittsburgh Steelers- 19 at New York Jets- 6
Reviewing the Game:
- This outcome was just oh so predictable and easy to see coming. Of all the bad teams in the league, Pittsburgh is certainly better than most of them, and the Jets are not as consistently good as what they showed last Monday against the Flacons. After a flat-out dominant performance on Monday night football, Geno Smith came crashing back to Earth this week with a clunker against Pittsburgh. He was a rookie playing against a savvy, well-coached, veteran defense; these things happen. Ben Roethlisberger picked apart a Jets defense playing with a hobbled Antonio Cromartie. It will be interesting to see if the trajectory of these teams changes in the wake of this result.
- Heath Miller is such a huge presence for the Steelers, and it showed once again in this game. Miller’s six for 84- yards stat line is indicative of the work he does. He took advantage of Davis and David Harris in coverage and kept the chains moving for Pittsburgh.
Cincinnati Bengals- 27 at Buffalo Bills- 24
Reviewing the Game:
- This game did not turn out to be the slam-dunk that everyone expected, but the Bengals still won this game in overtime. Andy Dalton played a very good game, and actually did a great job of spreading the ball around. Gio Bernard and Marvin Jones made some spectacular plays while A.J. Green had his first dominant performance in about a month. The story of this game was Thad Lewis, who in his second NFL start gave the Bengals just about all they could handle. Lewis looked great. He threw with touch and timing and showed enough functional mobility to be a duel threat. Lewis needs to stay under center as long as E.J. Manuel is injured. Fair warning: Thad Lewis will probably be the latest back up quarterback I pump up to an annoying degree, but I really like this player.
- C.J. Spiller only had ten carries and two catches as the coaching staff continues to insist on deploying a three-headed monster in he backfield. I can understand mixing in Fred Jackson, but it is inexcusable for Spiller to be losing opportunities to Tashard Choice. Burfict was very good in this game, and continues to provide the Bengals with an undrafted steal.
Tennessee Titans- 13 at Seattle Seahawks- 20
Reviewing the Game:
- It is really surprising to see a team lose when they block a field goal for a touchdown, but that is what happens when you have Ryan Fitzpatrick starting at quarterback. Fitzpatrick was terrible against the great Seattle defense, and of course received no help from the artist formerly known as CJ2K. The Titans actually did a great job against the Seahawks offense, but the offense could not score enough to keep up. Russell Wilson’s pass protection is still really poor and he is taking the ball out of the pockets on scrambles a little too often as a result. The Seahawks will get better as pieces of their line return, and their record is not exactly hurting.
- Unger was able to keep Casey in check in the passing game, but the great defensive tackle made his presence felt in the run game. It was Casey who burst through the line on Marshawn Lynch’s fumble and assisted in keeping the stud runner under four yards per carry.
Jacksonville Jaguars- 19 at Denver Broncos- 35
Reviewing the Game:
- The Jaguars admirably kept this game close for most of the afternoon, but they eventually fell to the Broncos as the game wore on. If you are a Jags supporter, you probably feel pretty good about this game. Justin Blackmon was absolutely outstanding with Chad Henne behind center; no more Gabbert please, Gus Bradley. Blackmon was contantly whipping the Broncos on slant routes and ate up yardage in the middle of the field. The Broncos turned it on in time to win this game and this has been a better second half team the whole season. This was a pretty solid defensive performance as well, and this unit gets Von Miller back this week.
- This game was never the total annihilation many expect so we do not need to discuss Ronnie Hillman and Montee Ball, but lets take some time to mention Knowshon Moreno. Moreno was a career underachiever, but he has fit right into this outstanding Broncos offense. He kept chugging along on this day, adding three rushing touchdowns to his season total.
Arizona Cardinals- 20 at San Francisco 49ers- 32
Reviewing the Game:
- Vernon Davis was easily the best player on the field with 180 yards on eight catches and seven catches for 171 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. Now that he is finally healthy, we should see Davis become the focal point of the passing game that he needs to be. Todd Bowles put together a great game plan last week, but it looks bad that he could not come up with a plan to stop the 49ers most dangerous player. Kaepernick did not have a great game even in the win, and he is still struggling with the little things involved in being an NFL quarterback. It is time to say that Carson Palmer is hurting the Cardinals and not helping them.
- With Davis filling his role as the top receiving threat for the Niners, Boldin is back in his proper role as the second option. Unfortunately for Boldin, that means he is going to be getting a lot less targets, since Kaepernick still is not reading the whole field. We could see a lot more games like this, especially against top-flight cornerbacks like Peterson.
New Orleans Saints- 27 at New England Patriots- 30
Reviewing the Game:
- This was the game of the day, and it lived up to its hype, but it was not quite the beautiful offensive showing you would expect with two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks. Both teams were really committed to running the football and each defense really showed up to play. The Saints will kick themselves for this loss as they took the ball away from the Patriots twice in the final few minutes, but several three and outs gave the ball back to the Patriots one two many times. Tom Brady is a physically declining player, and he threw a terrible interception that looked to be the late dagger to kill the Patriots hope to win. However, he showed he can still lead this team to a win when it matters most as he threw the game winner to Kenbrell Thompkins with five seconds remaining.
- It turns out Bill Belichick decided to man up his top cornerback, Aqib Talib, with Jimmy Graham; on almost every snap, where Graham went, Talib followed. Graham was held to zero catches, and was a non-factor in the game. The battle between these two players was so fierce that both of them left the game with injuries.
Washington Redskins-16 at Dallas Cowboys- 31
Reviewing the Game:
- What we learned from this game is that these two teams are not even close. The Cowboys are clearly better than their division rivals right now, and they beat them in every phase of the game. Dwayne Harris may have been the MVP with several electric special teams play, and the offense was good enough to take advantage when they got opportunities. Dallas did not come away unscathed as DeMarcus Ware and DeMarcco Murray left the game with injuries, and could miss a few weeks. For the Redskins, I am worried that we are seeing more than just a short-term funk. We know their defense stinks, but here is what you may not know, Alfred Morris is not a great running back. Morris had 81 yards but 45 of those came on one touchdown run, and most of the game he was completely bottled up by the Cowboys defense. He has not looked like the same player without the threat of the read option; he is just an average player. Robert Griffin III looked like he was getting his running ability back, but his passing is spotty at best right now. Let me be clear here: I do not care about how Griffin looks when he is running or his speed, his accuracy and ball placement were what made him special, both are gone this year. I really like the player, but I am beginning to wonder if he can ever properly function in a traditional NFL offense. The Redskins need the 2012 version of RG3 back, and they need him back yesterday.
- About once a week, one of these matchups is just a miss, it happens. Hankerson did not make an impact with Robert Griffin playing poorly, but both of his two catches were over Morris Claiborne.
Monday Night Game:
Indianapolis Colts- 9 at San Diego Chargers- 19
Reviewing the Game:
- All signs pointed to this game being a shoot out, but that never materialized. The Chargers came out and ran the ball all over the Indianapolis defense. Both Danny Woodhead and Ryan Mathews ran right up the middle of this defense and the Colts could do absolutely nothing to stop it, especially with stud linebacker Jerrell Freeman missing most of this game. The Chargers completely controlled the time of possession in this game. Rivers started slowly, but heated up as the night went along. Corey Liuget may have been the MVP for the Chargers as he led a surprisingly dominant front seven that was all over Luck all night. The Colts squandered an opportunity to show themselves off on the national stage. The Chargers had a ton of drops, and their offensive line was dominated again, but my biggest concern is the scheme the Colts played in on offense. I have no idea why the Colts want to force this conservative, run heavy scheme on offense when they have Andrew Luck and a group of skill position players much more suited to an up-tempo attack. There seems to be a serious disconnect between the front office and the coaching staff on this issue. Despite the score being close in the end, the Colts did not have another classic Andrew Luck comeback in it.
- Keenan Allen was absolutely phenomenal in this game and he took both Davis and Greg Toler to task gathering nine catches for 107 yards and a score. Allen ran every route on the route tree and was sensational after the catch. This impressive young player is a number one receiver and a legitimate Offensive Rookie of the Year favorite.
