It’s amazing how time flies. We’re already beginning the 2nd half of our beloved NFL season,  So of course, it’s time to see how your favorite team fared midway through the 2011 season. Only, instead of giving actual grades, I’m breaking them up in categories. Same analysis as ESPN, but better because it’s not so formal. So without further ado…. the midseason report cards.

 

F*ck It, I’m On One!: Green Bay Packers

The Packers deserve a column of their own. As far as NFL class goes, there’s the Packers and then there’s everyone else. No one is touching them right now and to be honest, I don’t know who will. Aaron Rodgers is playing like he’s possessed right about now. I like Green Bay but the little hater in me says they need to sit their bragging asses down somewhere. No reason why I feel that way, I’m just a little green and tired of seeing them win.

They Are Who We Thought They Were:  Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots

The Steelers started out old and slow, but they’ve finally got the ball rolling. They’ve been on fire the past few weeks, and have picked up from last season, thanks to the emergence of guys like Mike Wallace and Emmanuel Sanders. The Patriots make this list because they’re still a team of concern if they’re on your schedule, but they can’t stop a nose bleed (Bart Scott voice) so unless they figure out to stop good teams, they may be in trouble….

Well I’ll Be John Brown (c/o @DragonflyJonez): Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers, Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills

I dedicate this category to my Twitter buddy, who always uses this term at the right time and better than anybody I know. Most of us looked at contenders for 2011 and didn’t think about any of these teams, for a lot of reasons. New players, lockout hangover, inconsistent or not good in years past…. for whatever reason, unless you were a fan of these teams, they simply weren’t on your radar. Well I’ll be John Brown if they aren’t now. The Bengals are 5-2 with a Top 5 defense and have shown success with Andy Dalton and AJ Green. The 49ers changed their coaching staff and brought in Jim Harbaugh and have only lost one game so far, even giving Alex Smith some life. And the Bills, who had every bounce against them in 2010 despite playing hard, are finally getting the ball in their court. The Lions are probably the least bit shocking, since they finished 2010 strong. But it’s the Lions…. you still haven’t forgotten about 0-16 and Matt Stafford gets hurt if you blow on him hard enough. Alas, no bad karma and all teams are doing big things

They’re Good, BUT……..: Baltimore Ravens, New York Giants, San Diego Chargers, Houston Texans, New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons 

These teams have a winning record so they’re good based on record but we really have no idea what to expect for the 2nd half of the season. The Ravens have beaten quality opponents in Pittsburgh, Houston and the Jets, but have crapped the pot against teams they should have beaten in Tennessee and Jacksonville…… The Giants are decent, but their schedule the next 6 weeks is beyond brutal and one has to wonder will the injuries they have finally start to catch up….. The Chargers are actually starting out with a winning record for once, but QB Philip Rivers (my boo!) hasn’t looked like the Rivers of old, and fumbled control of the AFC West away last Monday night……. The Texans are good, but losing Mario Williams for the year and Andre Johnson for some time may hurt them in the long run…..The Jets have seemed to regress a little on defense, and Mark Sanchez not getting much help from his run game is an issue…..The Saints WERE in my “They are who we thought they were” column, but they lost to the Rams, The WINLESS ST. LOUIS RAMS, WITHOUT SAM BRADFORD! Yeah, they go down a notch after that one….. The Bucs have youth on their side, but their lopsided loss to San Francisco puts them in this category….. Atlanta always leaves me scratching my head at the end of their games. With all of the offensive weapons they have, I don’t see how they don’t put up 30 points easily, each week. They have some inexperience on defense that holds them to this category.

Ehhhhh……………..: Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland Raiders, Carolina Panthers, Tennessee Titans

It’s not that I don’t think these teams are good or can’t be good… it’s just that I couldn’t add them in the “They’re good but” category because they’ve done something not worthy of that category. The Bears’ offensive line blocks like Cutler stole their girl……The Eagles started out slow, and with the “Dream Team” talk prior to the season, expectations were above normal so their 3-4 record is underachieving at best… The Cowboys need a TV time out with the way they’ve played football lately. I thought they’d be better than this at this point. I haven;t totally written them off, tho. They have talent….. The Chiefs started off rough (remember Matt Cassel’s blow up with HC Todd Haley on the sidelines??), but they’ve rebounded well. It’s the AFC West so it’s hard to be impressed just yet…..The Raiders looked like they were gonna have a good season before Jason Campbell went down. Oakland traded their 2012 #1 pick and a conditional pick to Cincy for Carson Palmer, but all Palmer did was stink it up in his debut. He’s not the same QB he was before 2005 and quite frankly, I wonder if Al Davis came back from the dead to make one last WTF personnel decision… Despite Carolina’s record, I’m gonna put them in this column because I seriously believe they try hard each and every week, yet fall short. This team reminds me a lot of Buffalo’s team last season. They hang in there, but can’t get the “W” in the end. I can’t be mad at that. They should be added in my next group but I love their resilience. The Titans are here by default, because they have a good record. But Chris Johnson got paid and told the Titans, “Fcuk your couch”. He’s still holding out but we didn’t know until now. With Kenny Britt going down, that hurt big time for Tennessee. Good thing is, the AFC South could be a 2-man race, and they’re still in it.

“Insert Comment Here”: Cleveland Browns, Seattle Seahawks, Jacksonville Jaguars, Minnesota Vikings, Arizona Cardinals, Washington Redskins

Face it- these teams’ style of play are boring and uninspiring more times than not (minus the Vikings the past 2 weeks. But that’s because Ponder now has the keys). Put yourself in my shoes…. What could you possibly say about any of these teams individually that doesn’t sound like the others in this group? Can’t figure it out? Me neither. So feel free to insert your own comment here.

 

Bad…. Real Bad Michael Jackson: Indianapolis Colts, St. Louis Rams, Miami Dolphins, Denver Broncos

I guess this group could be called the “Suck For Luck” lottery, but that’s unoriginal and overused at this point. These 4 teams stink and I’d bet my money on LSU or Alabama if they played any of these teams at this point. Probably the worst team of them all is Indy. Never have I seen a franchise fall so fast from one key player going down. That’s a direct reflection of the GM and ownership and it’s inexcusable. The Rams have some good pieces and aren’t AS bad as Indy (not saying much), but their defense isn’t that good, particularly their secondary (although they did hold NO to one offensive TD in Sunday’s win) and there isn’t a true #1 WR on the team. The Dolphins need a new makeover, period. Not only did you celebrate the FLORIDA GATORS championship in MIAMI HURRICANES-land, you let Tim Tebow beat you in the Final 5 minutes of the same game. Yeah, you suck, Miami…….. Speaking of Tebow, he is getting KILT in the media (yeah, I said it… not killed, but KILT!) on what most of us already knew: Great college player, lots of heart and passion, not going to translate into the NFL. It’s been a while since I’ve seen so much attention lay on one guy like this. Denver officially came into the Top 5 pick race as of Sunday.

 

Yesterday’s game was overwhelming for me for so many reasons. We recognized the 10th anniversary of September 11th which was extremely patriotic, as the fans chanted, “USA” often. It was opening day from a LOOOOOOOOONG offseason full of lockout talk and off-the-field drama. And it was against the Ravens most bitter rival in the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Going into this game, I admit I had my doubts. The offensive line hadn’t played fully this preseason and the defense was pretty slow in that same span. But the Ravens were tired of all of the trash talk and mental edge the Steelers had over them, and it showed. Not only did the Ravens come out to play, they came out with a plan to show them how serious they were on the disrespect. All of the offseason changes they made paid off, at least for Week 1. They beat the Steelers like they stole something. Final score Ravens 35, Steelers 7.

The best part about yesterday’s game was how happy my son was. He was celebrating a milestone birthday (don’t ask!) And going to the game was a birthday gift. When he said that he had the best birthday ever, I knew yesterday was special. That’s what football does, especially after a win like that. His happiness means the world to me, and we have the Ravens to thank.

OT: I’ve said this over and over like a broken record, but I’ll say it one last time. Joe Flacco is a GOOD quarterback. Is he a great one? Nope. He still has some things he can change to better his game. But he’s efficient.. efficient enough to win football games for the Baltimore Ravens.

I don’t think there’s a question on who’s better between Flacco and Roethlisberger. Big Ben is a 2-time Super Bowl winning QB who knows how to make plays when he needs to. But yesterday, Joe Cool was the better guy. And while he’ll have struggles this season, he’s growing and maturing. I like it and I believe this is the start of finally getting the respect he’s long overdue for.

Double OT: “God can have his soul, but his ass belongs to me”- Terrell Suggs on Ben Roethlisberger after his 3-sack performance. Best quote I’ve ever heard!

The Colts are bad… real bad, Michael Jackson (hell, add the rest of the Jacksons too!). We knew the Colts would struggle without Peyton Manning, but if yesterday is what’s to come for the Colts without Pey-Pey, this is gonna get ugly QUICK! It kind of amazes me how the franchise had put so much stock into one guy with no insurance policy. The Irsays should learn from this.

On Saturday, I was on a local TV show talking football and one of the topics we discussed were injuries. I predicted that this season we would see an abundance of injuries, mainly due to the lockout. And so far that looks to be true. The Rams were plagued with injuries by key players yesterday, Bengals QB Andy Dalton went down, Charger RB Mike Tolbert got banged up..and the list goes on and on from yesterday’s games. Its alarming, especially when you have skill players taking the hit. As a fan, its a huge concern, but I’m sure as a player/coach that concern is 10x worse.

Isn’t it funny how we witnessed a near-perfect QB play in the Green Bay-New Orleans game last Thursday, only to see a Romo/Sanchez slop fest last night? The Cowboys-Jets game was the exact opposite of Thursday’s show down, but the excitement was all the same. Mistakes clouded last night’s game big time, but those very same mistakes kept the game interesting. Down 24-10 in the 4th quarter, the Jets found a way to not screw it up when it counted to beat the Cowboys, 27-24. That’s the beauty of football. You can see a squeaky clean game and then see a sloppy, mistake laden game but the awesome levels are still the same. One of the reasons why football is so great.

 

 

OT: Tony Romo can’t catch a break.. mainly from the fans and the media. I’m not saying its not warranted, he’s given folks plenty of reason to criticize him. But the QB is always a position that gets held at a higher regard than any other position. The fact that he plays for the Cowboys makes it worse because his stage is much bigger than other teams. It’s recipe for disaster. As long as he continues to make critical mistakes, how good he is will be debated. Its the nature of the beast, whether you like it or not.

Donovan McNabb, SMH………… My, how the mighty have fallen.

Someone posted this on Twitter yesterday. In less than 140 characters it was quite simple yet the truest tweet of the day. In a sentence, it said, “The Harbaugh’s>>>>>> The Manning’s”. And as of right now, that’s exactly right.

I’m not a Bills fan, but I empathize with what they’ve been through the past few years, mainly because of my football sister Pigskin Loving Lady. I was happy for them in yesterday’s 41-7 shellacking over the Chiefs. Maybe my empathy is more so pity, because the Bills should have won at LEAST 2 more games last year (Ravens, Steelers). I’m not picking them to go to the playoffs or anything, but I do believe they’ll be better than we expect.

OT: this is only Week 1 but I’m gonna say it. Kansas City is overrated. Not that they can’t be good, they have a core group of youth on their team. But they continue to show me that they aren’t ready to take over the drivers seat in the AFC West. You have to dethrone the Chargers, who are a penciled in pick every year as long as my boo (Philip Rivers) is running the team. The Chiefs are young, so the experience will come. I just don’t see them repeating as AFC West champs.

Until the Falcons win a playoff game, they’ll always be regular season champs to me. Outside of Michael Turner, they didn’t show me much yesterday. I realize they’re a very good team on paper. People LOOOOOOOVE Matty Ice, so I get it. But until they can show me they are consistent and able to win playoff games (which they have yet to do since Ryan was drafted), they gets no love from me…. sorry.

Cam Newton looks like the real deal. Even in a losing effort, he did the damn thing, passing for 422 yards in his NFL debut. His confidence and poise is impecable, and that is the key to how far Carolina can go this season. I used to think Newton was a bit cocky, especially after seeing his smirks and facial responses at the draft this past April. Now I see it’s a bit deeper than that. He believes in himself and what he can do for his football team. And I can’t be mad at that!

And last but not least, the Redskins beat the New York Giants yesterday… the DC/MD/VA area is about to explode with Super Bowl talk….. pray for me!

Eagles QB Michael Vick did an interview with GQ magazine to discuss life as a changed man since going to prison, and how he wanted to be a Bill or a Bengal instead of an Eagle? Considering his career with Philly now, it sounds crazy. But it’s something Vick actually thought about. In the interview with the mag, this is what Vick said,

“I think I can say this now, because it’s not going to hurt anybody’s feelings, and it’s the truth. I didn’t want to come to Philadelphia. Being the third-team quarterback is nothing to smile about. Cincinnati and Buffalo were better options.” Vick says that he talked with commissioner Roger Goodell and other reps from the NFL. He was then convinced and granted league approval to sign with Philly.”And I commend and thank them, because they put me in the right situation.”

Vick going to Philly was definitely the best move for him. Being able to sit on the bench probably continued his haul-over process on being a better QB. If Vick goes to a place that he had a better chance at starting like Buffalo or Cincy, chances are his studying habits don’t change much and he’s still winging it based on his talent alone. Philly has a great mentor in Andy Reid so that was the perfect opportunity to learn how to put in the work needed to be a great QB.

Sorry Bills/Bengals fans………

Vick’s article also talks about his conviction and what situation scared him all the way straight. You can read the rest of the article by clicking here.

Another day in the lockout world, another player finding new hobbies. Players have WAY too much time on their hands when they should be thinking about training camp right now. SInce the lockout doesn’t allow them to, it’s open season on dumb stuff for them to do.

This time, it’s Bills WR Stevie Johnson, who created the, “Athlete’s Room”. The Athlete’s Room is a NFL version of “Marvin’s Room”, the popular Drake song that has been remixed a few times in the past few days.

I guess it doesn’t sound too bad, but I’m over players trying to be rappers. First it was Chris Johnson’s awful tone dial song, then Chad OchoCinco going to the studio with Lil Wayne and Birdman.

Let me know what you think about it

Congrats to my Ravens for going to the playoffs 3 straight seasons in a row. In this franchise’s short history, the Ravens have done so much in so little time. Playoff berths, division titles and a Super Bowl is quite a feat. The next step is another ring back to Charm City, but I’ll take it one week at a time right now. Ravens QB Joe Flacco also has a few accolades to go with this joyous occasion. He became the 6th fastest QB to throw for 10,000 yards, tied with 2nd most wins by a QB in his first 3 seasons with 34 regular and playoff wins, and last but not at all the least, joins Dan Marino and Bernie Kosar as the only QBs to go to the playoffs their first 3 years in the league. People always talk about my main man Joe, but you don’t make accomplishments like this being a mediocre QB. Ask Kyle Boller, who had a better defense than Joe did during his tenure in Baltimore.

XP: Dear Ed Reed…. we love you dearly, but if you lateral a ball one mo’gin………………..

Yesterday was a sad day for the state of New York. Buffalo got that azz beat skull dragged by the Patriots, the Jets gave up 38 points in a loss to the Bears and the Giants got mudd stomped by the Packers. The G-Men still look dazed from last week’s epic fail in the Eagles come-from-behind win, and Buffalo didn’t have a real chance in hell against New England this time around.

But if you’re looking for a silver lining, it’s simply this…. the Jets still earned a playoff berth due to Jacksonville’s loss to the Redskins. But going into the playoffs, you have to be concerned as a Jets fan. The Jets have one of the top defenses in the league, yet gave up too many points in yesterday’s loss. The Jets have also lost 3 of their last 4 games. Get it together Gang Green… and fast.

It’s Shout Out time! Let me show some players/teams some Week 16 love.

S/O to Tim Tebow for doing the unthinkable: Throwing for over 300 yards in his first NFL season. Tebow brought the Broncos back from a 17-point deficit at halftime to beat the Houston Texans, 24-23. I’m a Gators fan and a Tebow supporter, but even I didn’t think he would throw for 300 yards. I’m happy for him and even more so proud that he’s shown all the naysayers, myself included, that he can be a decent QB in this league.

S/O to the Detroit Lions for finally getting it. It may be a little late, but it’s a great confidence builder for 2011 and beyond. Detroit just made next year’s NFC North a competitive division again.

S/O to Peyton Manning for the most awkward, funniest run I’ve ever seen.

Dude looked like a bobble head out there. Fantasy football owners are beyond pissed that he didn’t score, but that slide was epic! I never knew you had it in you, Pey-Pey (yeah.. I just made that up. He needs a nickname for that play alone!).

S/O to the Bengals for knocking the Chargers out of the playoffs. Before I get swarmed with, “I can’t believe you” and , “You’re rooting against your boo, Philip Rivers?”, let me say this. Cincinnati did everyone else in the AFC a favor. No one…. and I mean just that… NO ONE.. wanted to see San Diego in the playoffs. My team included. The fact that Cincy wiped them out of contention is a football godsend. The Chargers would have been a problem. And I don’t feel bad about my thoughts at all.

XP: I hope my boo understands and isn’t mad………. it’s just business, not personal.

S/O to the Arizona Cardinals and the Dallas Cowboys for giving us a good game to watch on X-mas night. It usually works that way, 2 bad teams on paper making it interesting. Last year it was the Lions/Browns. this year it was the Cowboys/Cardinals. It must really suck, though, if you’re a Dallas native who dropped your Xmas plans to go to Arizona and witness your team lose to a team that’s badder than you…….

S/O to the Carolina Panthers for winning the #1 overall pick for the 2011 NFL Draft. If you’re gonna suck, you gotta be the best at it, and Carolina was without a doubt the worst team in the league this year. The beauty about parity in the NFL is you can go from garbage to a playoff contender in no time. But for now, it doesn’t hurt that you get first dibs on college’s best because you just can’t get right.

S/O to the NFL for wimping out and canceling last night’s Vikings-Eagles game. The NFL of old would have never canceled a game. I know it’s all about the fan safety and what not… but ask people that attended the Ice Bowl, the Snowplow Game or the Freezer Bowl if they wished they would’ve had the same courtesy. I’m just saying……………….

If you had to caption the fight between 49ers head coach Mike Singletary and QB Troy Smith on the sidelines during yesterday’s game against the Rams, what would you think it was about?

My guess is, it went like this:

Mike Singletary: If you keep throwing dumb ass INTs like that, not only will I bench you right now but I’m gonna cut your ass come tomorrow!

Troy Smith: Cut me?! How are you gonna cut me when your ass is on the chopping block your damn self?!

MS: This isn’t about me….. Right now, I HAVE THE POWER! (In He-Man voice). Don’t make me drop my pants to my knees again, boy!

TS: Old man, sitcho dumb azz down. I promise you, you’ll be gone before me!

Welp… guess which one was right? Bye Bye Singletary……….. It’s been real!

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday!

If ever a time my Ravens needed to step up and win big, yesterday was the day. The Saints were coming to town with their high powered offense (ranked 6th overall) and their intimidating, hard-hitting defense (which boasted 4th in pass defense). The Saints were on a roll, looking to win their 7th straight victory, while the Ravens were under major scrutiny after losing a big lead to the Houston Texans last week. Baltimore had yet to play a complete 60 mins of football and having New Orleans come to town was a major concern.

The Ravens, though, came out swinging and had control for much of the football game. After New Orleans went up 7-0 early in the 1st quarter, the Ravens took charge of the game and never looked back. Ravens RB Ray Rice was the star of the show, with a 233-total yards day, 153 of them on the ground. For the first time in a while, the Ravens played smash mouth football. It was a great sight to see and if the Ravens play the way they did yesterday for the rest of the season and even the playoffs, they can play toe-to-toe with just about anybody in this league.

After yesterday’s Eagles-Giants crazy game, how can you NOT love football and get excited about it?! The Eagles were pretty much left for dead in the 4th qtr, when the Giants went up 31-10 with 8:37 remaining. But the Eagles scored 28 points in the final 7:18 of the game, including the play that everyone is calling, “The Miracle In The New Meadowlands”

Not to take away anything from Michael Vick, he had a great game as well, throwing for 3 TDs while rushing for 130 yards and scoring another TD on the ground. But DeSean Jackson is AWESOME!!! Awesome is actually an understatement of how awesome he is. Dude is balling out of control… and Philly becomes more and more dangerous as the weeks go on.

OT: If you’re the Giants and their fans, you have to be drinking Pepto Bismol like it’s water. I can’t imagine trying to sleep after a gut wrenching loss like that. Giants head coach Tm Coughlin was seen going off on punter Matt Dodge for not kicking the ball out of bounds (which, is what EVERYONE wants to know right about now), but it shouldn’t have even gotten to that point. Giving up a 21-point lead midway that you had midway into the 4th qtr is unacceptable, PERIOD! This may be a hard loss to overcome. But the Giants are a veteran team, they should be able to move on… eventually.

XP: The Vick-Dog fighting references are old… real old! Stay classy NY!

All the Jaguars had to do was win against the Colts and they were in. The division would have been won and they would have been in the playoffs. But the Colts had other plans in mind. Even after being dismantled by so many injuries, Peyton Manning is still the captain of the horseshoe ship. They not only beat Jacksonville, they took over 1st place of the AFC South and all they have to do is win their final 2 games to secure their playoff spot. I knew I should have waited until the end of the season to show the Jags some love. You know the old saying, though. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice…………….

After everything that the Redskins have gone through last week with the McNabb benching and tasteless manner in which they handled it, is it safe to say that Rex Grossman didn’t look half bad? From a fantasy football standpoint, Grossman had a very good day, throwing for 322 yards and 4 TDs. But on the reality side of the game, he threw 2 INTs, one which sealed the deal in the Redskins loss to the Cowboys. I still believe that McNabb is a better option than Sexy Rexy, but in a fill-in role, Grossman did alright. Guess we’ve seen the last of McNabb in a Redskins jersey……..

Let me go through some shout outs of players/teams that have done the NFL and their respected fans proud this week:

Shout out to the Detroit Lions for finally winning a road game, after losing 26 straight. That’s a huge monkey to get off of their backs. They have also won consecutive games for the 1st time since 2007. The Lions are on the come up, and with consistency at QB (meaning, one that can stay healthy) and a few more pieces, the Lions can become relevant again. Yeah, I just said that………………. weird to read, wasn’t it?!

On the other hand, Tampa Bay has lost 3 of their last 4 games. Shout out to them for being better than most folks expected. But right now, the Saints and Falcons are still the teams to beat in the NFC South.

Shout out to Tim Tebow for doing well in his QB debut against the Raiders. Even though the Broncos fell short in a victory (what’s new.. the sky is blue, as well), Timmy had a good day, throwing for a TD as well as rushing for one. No one said that Tebow had all of the physical tools to be great. But his passion and leadership alone could get him far. Think about it like this: Would you rather have Tim Tebow, physical flaws and all… or a fat JaMarcus Russell who has all of the capabilities in the world but is lazy as hell and loves to floss fugly chains all day??

Shout out to the Buffalo Bills for finally finishing games and spoiling people’s playoff chances. I really could’ve used you a few weeks ago against the Steelers, but I won’t continue to hold that against you.

Shout out to the Jets for finally getting out of your slump and beating the Steelers in Pittsburgh. I’m here to tell the fans of Gang Green, the excuses will start to roll in. There was no Polamalu, No Heath Miller, no this or that.. But I don’t care and neither should you. A win is a win. It helped you solidify your playoff hopes and it made us Ravens fans happy as hell! Thank you for making a great football day epic in Bawlmer!

Shout out to the NFC West for being the laughing stock of the league. Those teams are a joke… Literally and figuratively.

Shout out to the fat stinky lineman Dan Connolly of the New England Patriots for giving me the biggest laugh yesterday. No one… and I mean NO ONE, wanted to tackle that dude and I don’t blame them. This play made my night complete!

Terrell Owens tore a meniscus in his knee during yesterday’s game against the Browns and will miss the remainder of the season. Vegas has now opened up bets to see what team Owens will be on next year, since it clearly won’t be with Cincy.

This has probably been the best football weekend of my life! Thanksgiving football, to college football on Friday and Saturday, back to the good ol’ NFL games we love on Sundays. If you’re a football fan, you were in heaven this weekend, like I was. Let’s take a look at what happened.

The Ravens beat the Bucs yesterday 17-10, something that I thought would happen but I won’t lie, I was nervous about the game, going into Sunday. I’ve said this week in and week out, I have no idea what team this is at times. But I finally came to the conclusion that the Ravens are a team that will not blow out anyone. They simply don’t know how to push the pedal to the medal and cruise through a win. They just win games. And at 8-3 in a tough AFC conference, I don’t see why I should cry, moan or even complain.

Would I like my team to show me some more? Yes, of course. Would I like to see a blowout of inferior teams? Sure, I’ll take it. But it’s not who they are. As long as they continue to win games, I’m okay. I’ll no longer complain about how they play games, as long as they win them. I am officially quiet, lock my lips and throw away the key!

Okay y’all know that won’t really happen, but I’ll do my best…..

Who am I kidding, no I won’t!

Dear Bears fans: I have doubted your team. I said they weren’t that good offensively, and that if it weren’t for the defense, you’d be nothing. And even if that was somewhat true earlier in the season, none of that matters now. What matters is that you are 8-3 and have beaten an Eagles team that was flying high coming into yesterday’s game. You gave Vick his first INT of the season and you beat them in your house. It’s time I start showing love….. You’re better than I thought!

OT: My condolences goes to the family of the Bears fan that lost his life at yesterday’s game. No ever expects to hear such awful news, especially after a Bears victory.

If you’re a Bills fan, you have to be sick to your stomach right now, after yesterday’s heart breaking loss to the Steelers. The Bills had a chance to win it in OT but Stevie Johnson couldn’t hold on to the possible game winning TD.

Bills fans have gone through the disappointment all year long. Just last week, I decided to jump on the unofficial Bills support wagon… you know, for support. I hate to see teams that play to win, fall short. I empathize with Bills fans right now.

OT: In case you missed it, I had to tell Johnson to sit his azz down. If you didn’t hear about his antics, check out my post here.

On the flip side, if you’re a Steelers fan, you can’t tell me you don’t think that the football gods have switched from being Cowboys fans to Terrible Towel waving monsters. You know the saying, better to be lucky than good sometimes. But as long as it comes with a win, who cares, right?!

The way Browns RB Peyton Hillis has played, fans have been looking for nicknames for this emerging beast of a back. Dude deserves recognition for carrying the Browns on his back (literally and figuratively). Based on fan forums and other sites, they think Hillis should be called the following:

“The Avalanche”- Because he’s white, runs downhill and is unstoppable (Ummmmmm………………)

Peyton “Pit Bull” Hillis – to go with the Dawgpound? (The SPCA nor the NFL would approve. Next!)

“White Rhino”. A white rhino is rare, as are productive white running backs (What the hell kind of explanation is this???)

Peyton “The Bull” Hillis- He reminds me of a 2500 lb Bison trampling over tourists in Yellowstone Park (Really?! Well, alright!)

Peyton “wha choo talkin bout” Hillis ( Okay this kinda wins in my book!!!)

In any event, give this dude a nickname, and STAT! When I first saw him against the Ravens Week 3 of the season, I kept calling him Fake Azz Brandon Jacobs, because of his ability to run any and everything over like Jacobs used to do. But Jacobs isn’t playing as high as level as Hillis is, so he needs to get his shine on.

The best part of the weekend was the KO of Titans DB Cortland Finnegan, by Texans WR Andre Johnson. If I look at Johnson, he seems to be a nice, quiet guy. Not one to get into a lot of fights. But he shocked the hell out of me when he decided to do something about Finnegan’s over aggressive play during yesterday’s game.

I’m actually surprised that someone didn’t start swinging and connecting on Finnegan sooner. He’s been voted one of the dirtiest players by 100 of his own NFL peers. To say you didn’t see this coming is foolish…. naive even. Andre Johnson just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Johnson is not only fined, but suspended. But in my opinion, he should get a heavy fine and be allowed to play. He only did what all of the other WRs around the league wanted to do anyway. Is my opinion extremely hypocritical? I’m sure it is, but I don’t care. I’m not a huge boxing fan, but it looks to me like Finnegan was on the brinks of being knocked the f@#k out!

Dwayne Bowe is BALLIN! If you have him on your fantasy team, you’re dancing a jig for his presence and points every week!

Can someone explain to me how the Raiders had only 16 yards of rushing yards yesterday??? SIX-TEEEEN! A 1 and a 6. Darren McFadden had 8 rushes for 2 yards in yesterday’s loss to the Dolphins. TWO!!! What the hell is Oakland doing? If it weren’t for Jacoby Ford the Raiders would have sucked worse than that. Just when you think Oakland possibly turned a corner, they find ways to prove everybody wrong……………………………..

If you needed a reminder, the Falcons are the team to beat in the NFC, without question. They continue to find ways to win and Matt Ryan continues his great run of winning at home. The Packers, Eagles, Giants and Saints are still in the mix, but they must bow down to Atlanta right now. None of them are playing as good as they are.

The Broncos are a sad bunch.

They were just caught cheating (a Spygate II, if you will), but no one cares, because they’re not even winning with the cheating. We were all over Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots 3 years ago with the original Spygate. But folks think Belichick is an evil genius and they almost went thru a perfect season, too. No one cares about Josh McDaniels, who has gone 5-16 since going 6-0 last season. If you’re gonna cheat, at least cheat AND win. They can’t even get that part right!

Once again, the Chargers have proven to have Peyton Manning’s number, picking him off 4 times as the Chargers D steamrolled past Indianapolis, 36-14. My boo Philip Rivers didn’t even have to do much work, he allowed his defense to pitch in with the winning. For whatever reason, the Chargers always give the Colts a fit, and last night was no different. If I’m the Chiefs, I’m concerned. This is exactly the time of year when the Chargers turn it on. They have yet to lose in December with Norv Turner as their coach. And with their fairly easy schedule the remainder of the season, the Chargers can end up with an 11-5 record. This will be interesting to watch how this plays out in the final weeks.

Does anyone care about tonight’s game??? Me neither……………………………………………………………

Buffalo Bills WR Steve Johnson has been a great asset to the team and stepped up big time for the Bills this season. He’s on pace to have over 1,100 receiving yards and 13 TDs. With the Bills playing hard nosed football every Sunday, Johnson has become the go-to guy for QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and deserves great praise for Buffalo fans to forget they ever had Terrell Owens.

But yesterday, Steve Johnson needed to sit his azz down!

The Bill faced the Steelers in what turned into a nail biting game that went into overtime. With 10:38 remaining in OT, Fitzpatrick threw, what would have been a 40-yard TD pass to Johnson and would have been the game winner for the Bills, their 3rd straight.
So what does Johnson do? He drops the ball…… literally…

The Steelers went on to win the game, 19-16.

After the game, Johnson said that he would never get over dropping the TD pass. But he took it too far when he decided to put his frustrations out on Twitter, blaming God for his struggles:

Ummm…. okay!

Okay, Mr. Johnson. Since you are a man of faith, I’ll go there with you for a sec.  You need to be thanking God that you are even in the NFL to begin with. Do you know millions of guys would LOVE to be in your position right now, win or lose? The fact that you were one of the few that actually had your dreams come true is a blessing within itself. To blame a higher power for your faults is immature. Accept responsibility, here. YOU dropped the ball. Own up to it, learn from it and move on.

Steve Johnson, Sitcho Blame-Everybody-But-Me Azz Down!!!

Without a doubt, Week 10 of the NFL was probably one of the best weeks in football in a while. Hail Mary passes, record breaking games and unexpected wins flooded our headlines this past weekend.

As you know, I usually give my Ravens first dibs on my blog space. I love my guys in purple and black and they deserve my fandom, but that game was damn near 7 days ago. Good game, but they lost. And as of right now, someone else has earned the floor. His name??? Michael Vick.

Last night, Michael Vick played like he was out of his freaking mind last night, becoming the first player in NFL history with at least 300 yards passing, 50 yards rushing, four passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns in a game. In a day that Donovan McNabb should have had reason to have a great game (He just signed a $78 million contract extension), it was Vick who stole the show. It was a great sight to see, from the first play of scrimmage until the very end. Andy Reid should be thanking the football gods for saving his fat behind, because now he looks like a genius. Even though McNabb was traded in favor of Kolb, Vick has taken full control of this Eagles team and looks like a different QB than the one that played for the Falcons. And to add to the great night, Vick has this to say on Twitter this morning:

So, so true. Oh sweet redemption! Good for you, Vick!

OT: With McNabb’s astronomical contract extension, one has to wonder how much Vick is actually worth?? As of right now, he’s the better QB than McNabb and he will be a free agent this offseason. Philly has a lot to ponder in what to do, since they extended Kolb’s contract. But if they don’t want to pay him, there are tons of other teams that could use Vick’s services right now. And I don’t even want to think about how much Peyton Manning will receive, all thanks to McNabb’s new contract. But Vick and Manning deserve it. The jury is still out on McNabb on whether or not he was worthy of the contract.

I’m loving the way the Browns are playing right now. Granted, they lost to the Jets at the end of OT on Sunday, but they lost to a very good Jets team and held their own thru 5 quarters. No longer a pushover team, the Browns have a lot to build from, for the future.

Dear Buffalo: It’s about damn time! I bet you made a Soul Train line all the way through the tunnel after that game, too!

You should have. You earned that win weeks ago. Congrats to you.

The Bengals are sad…………………………………………….. That’s all I got!

Was anyone else in awe- and shock- like I was when Tom Brady picked the great Steelers defense apart, piece by piece, on Sunday night? I picked the Pats to win the game, but never did I think they would win like that. Brady had 30 completions, 350 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, 0 sacks and a passer rating of 117.9. It’s no secret that Brady knows how to win in Heinz Field, winning 4 out of 5 at Heinz Field, but to embarrass a very good team, in similar fashion that Cleveland did to them just the week before, was poetic. This is why you love the NFL. Good teams know how to redeem themselves against a quality opponent.

Can someone explain to me how the Titans allowed the Dolphins to beat them with NO QB’s?? NONE? Did I miss something? Out goes Henne and Pennington, in comes the wildcat. Seven plays, 49 yards and that’s before the 3rd string QB came in.The Titans were hurting on the QB side as well, as Kerry Collins left the game with a calf injury. But Tennessee has Chris Johnson, Randy Moss and Kenny Britt. How they allowed themselves to lose to a team that went through a series of wildcats is a mystery to me.

XP: Chad Pennington, PLEASE retire! Now is the time, please and thanks.

Signed, The NFL and their fans…..

The Cowboys saw… the Cowboys came… and the Cowboys conquered.. in the Meadowlands. Congrats to Dallas and their win over the NY Giants after their controversial firing of Wade Phillips. They played with a purpose and looked good on all sides of the ball, the first complete game I’ve seen of Dallas all season. I just have one question though…. am I the only one that wonders if Jason Garrett set Wade Phillips up??? Just me?? Okay…………………………..

How petty is Todd Haley for not shaking Josh McDaniels hand? Very petty, but I have to say, I love it. The Broncos-Chiefs rivalry was on life support until the Broncos shellacked the Chiefs, 49-29.

“The Snub” handshake situation makes this even more interesting, and now the AFC West rivalries have some life again. Haley wouldn’t say what was said during their postgame chat, and he later apologized for not shaking his hand (he says his emotions got in his way), but Haley knows damn gooden well he’s not sorry. Don’t be petty AND fake. Be real in your underwear and leave it at that.

By-the-way, welcome back  Chiefs and Texans: