Write On Sports LLC - "I Think I Got All the Games; NFL Week 2 Review" by Matthew Wolf

I Think I Got All the Games; NFL Week 2 Review

2006-09-19 23:16:50 | By: Matthew Wolf

Home teams were able to reassert some control this week...and nothing too shocking went down in the League. What I saw:

Chicago/Detroit
I've got a good friend who was incredulous all season that Brian Griese was not the starter for the Bears (you might guess, he's a big UM fan...certainly no fan of Denver or Miami would think this), and all but guaranteed that Grossman would give up the job quickly. Seems like he might have been a bit off. So far, Rexy has to be the MVP. I know, a 2 game MVP is about as meaningful as getting the girl's number at the bar and not taking her home, but still. The man is on fire, and the Bears look positively dominant. They haven't run the ball very well so far, but they haven't really had to. I guess we might have to wait until they play Seattle before we know for sure how good they are...but we can safely say that the defense is top notch and Grossman's performance so far indicates good things to come. As for the Lions, well...Roy Williams may have been talking about cumulative points in the season when he said they could score at will and should've hung 40 on Seattle. The offense is just not making plays, I don't think Kitna is the right guy for the job. The Lions could turn things around with a relatively soft schedule, but so far there's no reason to think that this team is ready to be a playoff contender. Mike Williams, man I don't know what's up with that guy. Count me among those who thought he'd be a stud. And Kevin Jones, you're killing a lot of fantasy teams for the 2nd straight year.

Reaction: I was skeptical of the Bears last week--no longer. Time will tell if they can do anything in the playoffs, but they look like a lock to get there. Lions, well...I see a very mediocre team that could rise up if the offense comes together, but that's more just faith in Martz than faith in the guys on the field.

Denver/KC
How fun was this game to watch? I mean, HOW FUN WAS THIS GAME TO WATCH? Are we now doomed to one 9-6 game per week? How is this possible? I watched the whole game, and I really can only comment that Larry Johnson is really good, Damon Huard wasn't awful, Tatum Bell looks like he should be the main guy in Denver, and...I just can't figure out why these teams couldn't score at all. Last week, the Denver media jumped all over Jake...and its now worse. I'm skeptical that a rookie will come in and solve everything, but who knows? Plummer looks like he doesn't trust himself, and Shanny definitely doesn't trust him.

Reaction: Denver should still be a playoff team with Jake, but he needs to get his head out, as the young folk say. As for KC, Trent Green makes them competitive. Huard just isn't good enough...but a team with Larry J. is always going to be in the mix.

Miami/Buffalo
So Daunte is now at 3 on the "horrifying interception" counter. I think his head is now completely out of it. He stares down receivers, he misses wide open players, he just doesn't have the whole package functioning right now. As for the rest of the squad: the defense is not playing well, and I guess time will tell if they are slumping or if they are simply not that good. The O-line went from poor run blocking to poor pass blocking in one week. Ronnie B. looked good again, and Chambers' catch in the endzone was the nastiness. But this is a team facing an absolute must win. Any time your crowd is chanting for Joey Harrington...well, [gratuitous understatement forthcoming] that isn't good. As for Buffalo, I can say that: McGahee runs really well, and the d-line was great on pass rush. Otherwise, Losman held them back, they should have won a lot easier than they did, considering the ground game was churning and the defense was great.

Reaction: Miami is on the brink. Buffalo is a mediocre team that could be a wildcard contender if Losman shapes up. Hold your breath.

NO/GB
So Reggie Bush has a way to go before he's an every down back (or, we'll never know if he only gets 6 carries per game). Regardless, he's still a difference maker. As is Drew Brees, who looked pretty damn good to me. Favre? Saving his fantasy value, but if he rolls up 3TDs and 300+ and they lose at home at GB, well, this season will not be a grand exit for the old warrior.

Reaction: NO is interesting, but doesn't seem like they have enough to be a contender. GB...as a football fan, i don't want to see the pack go to Rodgers...just because. Even if its the smart thing to do.

Balt/Raiders
Wow the Raiders are bad, bad, bad. Brooks can't hang on to the ball. Walter looks like he might have some potential, but his potential is a long way from being realized. They now sit at #32 on the suck list, after GB's inspired loss. Baltimore's offense was far from electrifying, but Raven defense fantasy owners are rolling in it.

Reaction: Raiders will end up winning some games, just because...well, I can't think of a reason other than bad teams always manage a win or two. Balt will be a tough team all season.

Colts/Texans
Peyton is good. That offense is pretty when its spinning like a top. The Texans really didn't have a chance here, did they? Hard to get a read on them after getting pasted by two good teams. Nobody expects them to be good, but Carr looks decent to me. They need a back. And some defense.

Reactions: Cots = very good. Prohibitive favorite again? Texans = there's always next year. Easiest shot ever: at least, Reggie would have made them interesting. M. Williams ain't exactly putting butts in the seats. Or eyes on the screen.

Titans/SD
Tomlinson is, of course, awesome. Rivers looks really good to me. Defense is killing teams it should kill. The Titans might as well play Young full time. They should now be thoroughly disabused of whatever notion made them bring in Collins. Maybe they can get Turner from SD to get their running game started. Not the worst backup in the league, eh?

Reaction: SD looks great, but needs a real opponent. Tennessee might as well be playing for next year already.

College Digression:

Michigan v. ND was just an old fashioned, behind-the-woodshed beatdown. I thought after Henne's pick that it might be close, but man. ND looked like they've never covered a fade route before. Getting burned once is tough, twice is ridiculous, and three times? Wow. And Mich's defense looked great too. Domination.... Oregon got sooooo lucky that the refs handed them that game, but they rolled up like 500 yards on offense on that supposedly great OU defense. Peterson is a stud, but I just don't see Oklahoma as a very good team this year. Maybe 8-4. (How in the world do refs continually miss these reviews? The Palumalu thing last year was bad, bad, bad, but at least they were nonsensically trying to rely on an actual rule. The onside kick here was just flat-out missed, despite it being OBVIOUS what happened. Officiating is part of the game and all that, but still...Miami looked remarkably bad... LSU/Auburn was a hell of a boring game. Both teams left a lot of plays on the field...and Russell handled that last drive like a true freshman. SEC teams are "great" and all, and these rivalries are fun, but it would be nice to see some actual offense for once...USC looked really good despite not dominating. They played it pretty close to the vest. Booty will end up being a great player. He just needs more game experience. Jarrett is phenomenal. And Nebraska's game plan was not designed to win, only to not get killed. Pretty sad. Florida could be very interesting this year. That offense really does a lot of things to get receivers open, and leak can make the plays. That was a pretty fun game to watch, maybe the best of the day.

Back to the big boys:

NYJ/Pats
After two weeks, the Patriots just seem uninspired. Brady is still great, the running game looks good, and the defense looks fine. There's just something missing. Two "close" games against bad teams. Winning is, of course, the only thing...so who really cares, right? I get the sense that this team is not destined for greatness. Still, I wouldn't want to be the team that has to beat them in the playoffs. The Jets showed some serious heart, but their lack of talent is apparent. Here is a team that will look pretty good with Adrian Peterson next year...because their current stable of backs isn't exactly impressive.

Reaction: Jets better than expected. But still not that good. NE needs to flip a switch, or do they? I'm sure they can go on winning ugly...

Jax/Steelers
Only caught the end of this one, and Ben was not looking too good. After his subpar performance in the superbowl and his, shall we say, less than ideal offseason, I think there's a fair question about the Steelers now. Miami could have had them last week, and now they lay a huge egg against Jax...hmmmm. I did like, as the MNF boys noted, how Jax didn't go to a pure runrunrun mentality at the end of the game, but instead kept pushing the ball downfield.

Reactions: Pitt v. Cincy, I'm taking the orange boys. Pitt needs to show some real offensive improvement. Jax is the new Balt? All defense, just enough O to win? I like their weapons, for sure.

Browns/Cincy
Nothing quite like watching a Browns game with a Browns fan. Needless to say, he felt: the defense sucks, Frye sucks, this team is worse than last year. Hard to say if that's true, but hard to argue based on the results so far. Cincy looked great here, big test next week.

Reactions: Cincy looks primed to make a run, Cleveland needs to find some semblance of an offense. And a defense.

Thanks to the bar I went to this week, I couldn't see ATL/Tampa, though highlights suggest that Atlanta is basically playing like a dominant college team: "we'll just keep running until you stop us." So far, no reason to stop. Chris Simms...not much better than last week, it seems. I also missed Cards/Seahawks, which basically played out like I expected. Arizona take 2: lots of talent, won't win too much. Skins/Boys: no Portis, no offense for Gibbs. Brunell is done. TO's injury should maybe keep him off the front page? Naaaah.

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