A wild, wacky day of NFL action. Let's go right to it.
Chiefs 30, Chargers 27 - A doubly bad day for the Chargers... first they lose, and now they found out that Shawne Merriman will be suspended for 4 games. Although on the bright side, LaDainian Tomlinson continued his great passing... by my count, he's not 6/9 with 5 TD passes in his career. Meanwhile, Larry Johnson... he good.
Texans 27, Jaguars 7 - Just when I think I have things kinda figured out, this happens. The Texans stomp the Jaguars. Early in the year the Jags D was hailed as one of the tops in the NFL... and David Carr was great against it, Wali Lundy averaged nearly 5 yards a carry, and the Texans scored 27 points. I can't figure the NFL out.
Bengals 17, Panthers 14 - Two really good teams playing in a tight ballgame. Not really much more to say about it. Another big day for Steve Smith... this guy is just ridiculous.
Patriots 28, Bills 6 - Yeah, the Patriots are real good again. Brady is looking more comfortable every week... Ben Watson was solid at TE, Doug Gabriel continues to be their best WR, and the rookie Chad Jackson had a 35 yard TD grab. With that rapidly improving passing game, the two-headed monster at RB, and Bill Belichek game planning defensively, these guys are definitely going to be a threat in January once again.
Falcons 41, Steelers 38 OT - Just a great game here. Back and forth all day, big play after big play, and Michael Vick even making plays with his arm. One little thing that irritated me about this game, and about announcers in general... with the score 38-38, the Falcons ran a play that was stopped for not that many yards. The announcers reaction was something like this, "You can run that play successfully against a lot of teams, but not against a defense like the Steelers." Really? A great defense that gave up 38 points (at that point in the game)? Not against a defense that allowed Michael Vick (!) to tear them up in the passing game, or allowed Jerrious Norwood to get 8 yards per carry? Yeah, Steelers defense was awesome today. I hate announcers.
Bucs 23, Eagles 21 - Was that the best kick ever? I mean, when Elam kicked his, that wasn't to win the game, if I recall. 62 yarder, outdoors, to win the game. Unbelievable.
One more pet peeve, and this goes for everyone's logic and thinking skills. That was NOT the 2nd longest kick in NFL history, as I heard on lots of the NFL shows after the game. Two players made kicks that were 63 yards, which makes Bryant's the 3rd longest kick in history. Now, looking up the story, the AP does have it right, but all the TV shows I heard them say it was the 2nd longest kick in history, which is wrong.
But regardless, incredible, incredible kick.
Jets 31, Lions 24 - If I recall, Leon Washington mostly split carries at Florida St. with Lorenzo Booker... well, he's sure playing well as the starter for New York, with 129 yards and 2 TD on the day. Don't look now, but the Jets are 4-3 and have a date with the Browns next week.
Packers 34, Dolphins 24 - Last year, I thought the Dolphins were one of the better coached teams in the NFL. This year, not so much. How else do you explain Joey Harrington throwing 62 passes, and Ronnie Brown only getting 15 carries. 62 PASSES!! Have the Dolphins lost their mind? I mean, if you have a guy like Peyton Manning, I can understand throwing a lot of passes, even though 62 is way too many. But Joey Harrington? Throwing 62 passes in a game? Is this some kind of bizarro world?!?
Broncos 17, Browns 7 - Jake Plummer sucks a lot, the Broncos defense is really good, the Broncos running game is really good. Wash, rinse, repeat.
Vikings 31, Seahawks 13 - Dear Shaun, We need you back. I need you back. We're not the same without you. I mean, just between you and me, Maurice Morris isn't very good. Like at all. With Matt in there, we could just go 4 wide and throw all the time, which was kinda effective, but now he got hurt, and who knows if he'll be back. Please Shaun, Hutch is already gone, Matt might be gone, we need you back. Sincerely, Mike H.
Raiders 22, Cardinals 9 - So the Cardinals nearly beat a team that is arguably the best in football (Bears) one week, then get smoked by the team that is arguably the worst in football (Raiders) the next week? Matt Leinart looks like a seasoned veteran against the best defense in the NFL, and looks like he should still be buried deep in the depth chart against the Raiders? Football is a funny game.
Colts 36, Redskins 22 - Joseph Addai is putting up better numbers than Edgerrin James right now. I mean, I know their situations are very, very different right now, but do you think that Indy regrets letting Edge go? Like at all? Me neither.
Monday nighter is a good matchup... Giants/Cowboys. Hopefully I'll get to watch it and won't have to be writing a speech the whole time! Such is life.