It’s not too early for teams and fan bases to panic. It’s never too early for panic. Football – all of life – is played out on that portentous, primitive plane where all decisions ultimately come down to fight or flight. Panic doesn’t always lead to flight; sometimes it crystalizes as bravado. As someone who was looking certain defeat straight in the eye once said, lost causes are the only ones worth fighting for. If that’s the case, Go Dolphins!
I won’t deny it. The 9½ points the Patriots are giving is reassuring. The House sets those lines to make money and they want you to bet on the Jets. Still, this game means so much more to the NYJ than it does for the NWE. A Jets loss drops them to 2-3 and pushes the Pats to 4-1. I fully expect the Jets to play their best game of the year. Failing to bring their “A Game” would be a sign that Gang Green has lost their swag. It would beg the obvious questions. Has Rex’s act gotten old? (Didn’t he jump the shark when he went to get a goddamn snack?) Has he lost the locker room? (I’m pretty sure he hasn’t lost the cafeteria. The locker room can’t be that hard to find from there.) Could they pull five fat shirtless guys out of the stands and pass protect better than their starting offensive line? (Maybe.) Is Mark Sanchez the new Jay Cutler? (Okay, that’s a no. Cutler has a much better arm than Sanchez.) I think those questions will have to wait. If I was a betting man I’d be taking the Jets and the points.
Whatever the outcome, I do expect Rex will field at least one question about the Super Bowl in the post-game presser.
Philly Cheese Steak vs. Buffalo Wings
No more “Dream Team” talk, says Michael Vick. No more talk about the refs hating on him, either. Okay. Shall we talk about the 4th Quarter collapses? The fact that the Eagles have been outscored 9,746 to nothing in the 4th Quarter? I know, I know. 9,746 to 0 sounds crazy after just four games but I’m pretty sure that’s what I read somewhere. Whatever the case, everyone’s preseason Super Bowl faves shuffle off to Buffalo this Sunday sporting a 1-3-0 record, their lone win against the punchless St. Louis Rams, firmly entrenched in last place in the NFC East.
As desperate as the Eagles are (or should be) I don’t see them pulling the W in Buffalo. As noted above, Philadelphia has specialized in 4th Quarter collapses while Buffalo has specialized in 4th Quarter comebacks.
Expect TV sales to spike in Philadelphia next week following multiple gunshot to the flatscreen incidents this weekend.
Viking Funeral
The Cardinals are struggling to find their pigskin identity, but the Vikings have a positive dispositional affect that seems to have no relationship to their actual circumstances. Head Coach Leslie Frazier and QB Donovan McNabb have made a fetish out of maintaining an even strain. Isn’t it time for a locker room fight or a DUI arrest or a post-game outburst that requires apologies on Monday to the coach, the owner, the team and the fans; anything that might show there’s someone on the roster who feels like the 0-4-0 start hurts?
The Vikings should beat the Cardinals this Sunday. They should. They really should.
They won’t.
Not That It Matters
Assuming Peyton Manning does not play this year, there appear to be just three winnable games left on the Colts 2011 schedule and this Sunday’s visit by the Kansas City Chiefs is one of them.
If Peyton Manning does play this year, there appear to be just three winnable games left on the Colts 2011 schedule.
First Steve Jobs. Now Al Davis. Who’s got next?
The Dude Abides
I was going to link to the Eagles’ “Desperado” and then I thought…
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