Week eight is now in the books, and for some teams the season is half over. Some of those will be glad, some coaches are updating resumes and some fans have turned to basketball or hockey already. Others are doing as expected and look towards the second half with interest, if not enthusiasm. And still others have placed themselves unexpectedly in a position to hunt for a playoff slot.
Indy asserted themselves in an important divisional game. Oakland announced they were no longer a team that would only string together one great game in a row a few times a season. New England continues to prove there is life after Randy Moss…..something that might give the Vikings comfort except they are busy eating their own young.
Finally, the fallout from week 8 is almost as telling as the results of the week. Dallas stunk up the joint again against Jacksonville and press statements followed. Washington has front-page issues. And Minnesota, well, nobody has any idea what is going on there at a number of levels.
So stay tuned for week 9. It should be interesting.
Many thanks to the GBU contributors (Team Ugly): Any, Arj, Ben, BG, Geto, GFC, Hannah, Stig, and Ward.
The Good
Indianapolis – What can you say, this team just finds a way to win. The Colts gritted out an almost “must-win” game by beating the Houston Texans in their divisional rematch. This win put the injury-riddled Colts on top of the AFC South with 5 more home games left on the slate. Despite losing All-World tight end Dallas Clark, running back Joseph Addai, and WR Austin Collie, Peyton Manning kept up a brisk passing pace by connecting with backups Jacob Tamme, Blair White, and Mike Hart along with Mr. Reliable Reggie Wayne. The defense did what they always do; bend but didn’t break. Along the way, Dwight Freeney kept the defense attacking and Clint Session put a hit on Matt Schaub that he is likely still feeling today. The D even had its patented forced fumble by Dwight Freeney to seal the game late in the fourth quarter. This win continues the Colts 11-game winning streak for night games. Sitting at 5-2, Indy looks like they’re headed right back to the top of the pack.
New Orleans – The Steelers held New Orleans to 30 yards rushing on 21 attempts. Normally being made so one dimensional spells serious trouble but New Orleans was able to move through the air, and their own defense proved nearly as effective against the Steelers passing attack. A loss here would not have been devastating for them, but a solid win against a quality opponent showed the first flash all year of the magic that took them all the way in 2009.
Oakland – After the huge win in Denver, some were concerned the Raiders would suffer a let down at home against the Seahawks. The Raiders, however, continued their recent trend of playing to their potential, delivering a convincing and winning 33-3 performance. In the last two weeks the Raiders have scored 92 points, allowing just 17. Time of possession was dominated 75 minutes to 45. Total Net Yards for Oakland is 1053, with 402 for Denver and Seattle combined. That, my friends, is total domination. Jason Campbell put up 310 yards and two TDs in his effort to retain the starting position while Gradkowski heals from a shoulder injury. CB Nnamdi Asomugha went down late in the game and was helped off the field. Luckily the X-Rays and MRI were negative, leaving him to nurse a high ankle sprain. He’s questionable for Sunday when the division leading Chiefs come to Oakland for week 9. If the Raiders play like THESE Raiders, you’re going to see the top of the AFCW go black.
Tampa Bay – Three cheers for the Bucs. We’re not necessarily sold on the Cardinals, but for the Bucs to grab a win in Arizona and put up 400+ yards in doing so is worth noticing. They ran the bell well, they were efficient through the air and picked off four Cardinal passes, returning two for touchdowns. Interceptions aside, the pretty much played the Cardinals evenly in a lot of respects, but this is the type of game past Bucs teams probably would have put in the loss column.
The Bad
New York Jets – The Jets made the least of their bye week vacation, and came out looking like they were in week 1 form. Jets fans couldn’t expect their team to finish the season 15-1, the performance on the field against the Green Bay Packers was nothing short of pathetic. Coming off of a bye week, with your All-Pro corner proclaiming himself 100% for the first time this season, against a team decimated with injuries, not to mention playing at home, there needed to be more than a goose-egg. The bandaged Packers best facsimile of mid-season form was enough to get the job done even while settling for 3 FGs since the Jets offense could not get anything going to overcome turnovers, penalties and lackluster execution. This actually could have been much worse for the Jets but their defense performed adequately. The defense might have looked like its 2009 form, but the offense looked like it could have been outperformed by a random high school team. Drops, interceptions, sloppy play calling, the offense had it all. Gang Green fell to second place in the AFC East with the Patriots winning, so they need to right the ship on offense if Rex Ryan’s lofty preseason predictions come to fruition.
Washington – If it were not for the McNabb fiasco, the Redskins effort at Detroit would be hardly noticeable. They put up only 275 yards of offense, only 80 on the ground. All that en route to 13 first downs. So, they did a little of everything and nothing particularly well. The loss was made to look worse than it was by 10 late points off turnovers, but the fact is the Redskins were in a position to win and swirled down the toilet. Then, for all intents and purposes they waved the white flag in the last two minutes.
The Ugly
Dallas – Hopes were slim to none for the Cowboys heading into this game with Romo on the shelf an an oppressive W-L deficit to try and dig out of, even if they could get something going. The result of their end to end half-hearted effort here however smacked of formal surrender. What made it most painful for Dallas is that the Jags have spent a fair portion of this season under the lash of the ugly stick themselves so any Cowboy fans still clinging to the last vestiges of optimism might have expected an even match by default. Jerry Jones better bookmark “dumbfounded” in his thesaurus because this probably won’t be the last time he finds himself in such a state this season.
Minnesota – The on field performance is not worth an Ugly and doesn’t even warrant a Bad. They were, after all, on the road against the team with the NFL’s best record. Favre actually played a decent game, all things considered, and seemed to be in control of himself for maybe the first time this season. But what happened after the final gun is all-out Ugly. Who is in charge and when? Who is on the roster and when? Is the grand strategic plan really only about three weeks long? In other words, what on earth is going on here? Stay tuned.
Seattle – It was like Murphy’s Law applied directly to one team. Injuries, bad bounces, offensive and defensive line breakdowns… anything that could go wrong for Seattle did. The 4-2 start had lots of Hawks fans thinking playoffs (and in the NFC West, many of them still likely are), but if Sunday illustrated anything, it was that Seattle is in Year One of a rebuilding process. They don’t have all the players they want starting, and they’re still desperately trying to develop depth at all positions. Credit goes to Pete Carroll and John Schneider for keeping the team competitive this season (more so than many pundits expected), but it’s clear that this team is a work in progress. Hawks fans should expect a few more games like this – particularly on the road.
Honorable Mention
Miami Defense – Could not give the dolphins a full team Good this week as the offense continued to underwhelm by settling for FGs often and should have been able to put this one away earlier, however the defense deserves a nod. They surrendered one score on the opening scripted drive by the Bengals, but locked down tight thereafter. the Bengals second score came on a short field after a Henne INT…and a somewhat flukish tipped ball for the TD pass. but the Bengals got virtually nothing after that, with Miami holding them to 5 straight 3 and outs, another short drive with one first down, and then Sean Smith’s game sealing INT when the Bengals finally did get a sustained drive on their last attempt.
Dishonors
Mike Shanahan – I’ve heard many justifications for his decision to bench McNabb for the last drive, and on some level I understand the logic of it, but results sell in one of those philosophical coin toss decisions where if it works you are hailed as a genius, but if it fails you get ripped to shreds. If nothing else Shanahan failed the results test horribly when his “more competent in the 2 minute drill” backup QB came in and pissed away any slim chance they had of retaking the lead by fumbling a TD away to extend the deficit completely out of reach. Beyond that, lets look at Washington’s best case scenario out of this decision. Suppose Rex had driven for a game winning TD. You’d have an instant QB controversy, an incumbent starter with a known history of fragile psyche issues when being given such treatment, a backup who absolutely is not an NFL starter, and possibly a divided locker room and that to me is Shanahan’s biggest failure here. Part of an HC’s job is to see the big picture and at best, this will all blow over in a week or two and be forgotten, at worst he has polluted team chemistry and destroyed whatever fragile wild card hopes the Redskins had….all in the name of (ostensibly) upping your odds at one last low percentage shot of stealing a game.
Awards
Ciron Black best of the Good: Green Bay. The walking wounded managed a shutout win, albeit a drab one, against a quality opponent on the road. They need a drink. (Oakland receives a supplemental shipment to replenish last week’s supply)
Aunt Esther ugliest of the Ugly: Dallas, who could be permanently here.
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nfl week 8
NFL Week 8: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
November 3, 2010 - 11:51 am · 0 comments
by Zack Kelberman
in Community Commentary, Weekly Segments
Week eight is now in the books, and for some teams the season is half over. Some of those will be glad, some coaches are updating resumes and some fans have turned to basketball or hockey already. Others are doing as expected and look towards the second half with interest, if not enthusiasm. And still others have placed themselves unexpectedly in a position to hunt for a playoff slot.
Indy asserted themselves in an important divisional game. Oakland announced they were no longer a team that would only string together one great game in a row a few times a season. New England continues to prove there is life after Randy Moss…..something that might give the Vikings comfort except they are busy eating their own young.
Finally, the fallout from week 8 is almost as telling as the results of the week. Dallas stunk up the joint again against Jacksonville and press statements followed. Washington has front-page issues. And Minnesota, well, nobody has any idea what is going on there at a number of levels.
So stay tuned for week 9. It should be interesting.
Many thanks to the GBU contributors (Team Ugly): Any, Arj, Ben, BG, Geto, GFC, Hannah, Stig, and Ward.
The Good
Indianapolis – What can you say, this team just finds a way to win. The Colts gritted out an almost “must-win” game by beating the Houston Texans in their divisional rematch. This win put the injury-riddled Colts on top of the AFC South with 5 more home games left on the slate. Despite losing All-World tight end Dallas Clark, running back Joseph Addai, and WR Austin Collie, Peyton Manning kept up a brisk passing pace by connecting with backups Jacob Tamme, Blair White, and Mike Hart along with Mr. Reliable Reggie Wayne. The defense did what they always do; bend but didn’t break. Along the way, Dwight Freeney kept the defense attacking and Clint Session put a hit on Matt Schaub that he is likely still feeling today. The D even had its patented forced fumble by Dwight Freeney to seal the game late in the fourth quarter. This win continues the Colts 11-game winning streak for night games. Sitting at 5-2, Indy looks like they’re headed right back to the top of the pack.
New Orleans – The Steelers held New Orleans to 30 yards rushing on 21 attempts. Normally being made so one dimensional spells serious trouble but New Orleans was able to move through the air, and their own defense proved nearly as effective against the Steelers passing attack. A loss here would not have been devastating for them, but a solid win against a quality opponent showed the first flash all year of the magic that took them all the way in 2009.
Oakland – After the huge win in Denver, some were concerned the Raiders would suffer a let down at home against the Seahawks. The Raiders, however, continued their recent trend of playing to their potential, delivering a convincing and winning 33-3 performance. In the last two weeks the Raiders have scored 92 points, allowing just 17. Time of possession was dominated 75 minutes to 45. Total Net Yards for Oakland is 1053, with 402 for Denver and Seattle combined. That, my friends, is total domination. Jason Campbell put up 310 yards and two TDs in his effort to retain the starting position while Gradkowski heals from a shoulder injury. CB Nnamdi Asomugha went down late in the game and was helped off the field. Luckily the X-Rays and MRI were negative, leaving him to nurse a high ankle sprain. He’s questionable for Sunday when the division leading Chiefs come to Oakland for week 9. If the Raiders play like THESE Raiders, you’re going to see the top of the AFCW go black.
Tampa Bay – Three cheers for the Bucs. We’re not necessarily sold on the Cardinals, but for the Bucs to grab a win in Arizona and put up 400+ yards in doing so is worth noticing. They ran the bell well, they were efficient through the air and picked off four Cardinal passes, returning two for touchdowns. Interceptions aside, the pretty much played the Cardinals evenly in a lot of respects, but this is the type of game past Bucs teams probably would have put in the loss column.
The Bad
New York Jets – The Jets made the least of their bye week vacation, and came out looking like they were in week 1 form. Jets fans couldn’t expect their team to finish the season 15-1, the performance on the field against the Green Bay Packers was nothing short of pathetic. Coming off of a bye week, with your All-Pro corner proclaiming himself 100% for the first time this season, against a team decimated with injuries, not to mention playing at home, there needed to be more than a goose-egg. The bandaged Packers best facsimile of mid-season form was enough to get the job done even while settling for 3 FGs since the Jets offense could not get anything going to overcome turnovers, penalties and lackluster execution. This actually could have been much worse for the Jets but their defense performed adequately. The defense might have looked like its 2009 form, but the offense looked like it could have been outperformed by a random high school team. Drops, interceptions, sloppy play calling, the offense had it all. Gang Green fell to second place in the AFC East with the Patriots winning, so they need to right the ship on offense if Rex Ryan’s lofty preseason predictions come to fruition.
Washington – If it were not for the McNabb fiasco, the Redskins effort at Detroit would be hardly noticeable. They put up only 275 yards of offense, only 80 on the ground. All that en route to 13 first downs. So, they did a little of everything and nothing particularly well. The loss was made to look worse than it was by 10 late points off turnovers, but the fact is the Redskins were in a position to win and swirled down the toilet. Then, for all intents and purposes they waved the white flag in the last two minutes.
The Ugly
Dallas – Hopes were slim to none for the Cowboys heading into this game with Romo on the shelf an an oppressive W-L deficit to try and dig out of, even if they could get something going. The result of their end to end half-hearted effort here however smacked of formal surrender. What made it most painful for Dallas is that the Jags have spent a fair portion of this season under the lash of the ugly stick themselves so any Cowboy fans still clinging to the last vestiges of optimism might have expected an even match by default. Jerry Jones better bookmark “dumbfounded” in his thesaurus because this probably won’t be the last time he finds himself in such a state this season.
Minnesota – The on field performance is not worth an Ugly and doesn’t even warrant a Bad. They were, after all, on the road against the team with the NFL’s best record. Favre actually played a decent game, all things considered, and seemed to be in control of himself for maybe the first time this season. But what happened after the final gun is all-out Ugly. Who is in charge and when? Who is on the roster and when? Is the grand strategic plan really only about three weeks long? In other words, what on earth is going on here? Stay tuned.
Seattle – It was like Murphy’s Law applied directly to one team. Injuries, bad bounces, offensive and defensive line breakdowns… anything that could go wrong for Seattle did. The 4-2 start had lots of Hawks fans thinking playoffs (and in the NFC West, many of them still likely are), but if Sunday illustrated anything, it was that Seattle is in Year One of a rebuilding process. They don’t have all the players they want starting, and they’re still desperately trying to develop depth at all positions. Credit goes to Pete Carroll and John Schneider for keeping the team competitive this season (more so than many pundits expected), but it’s clear that this team is a work in progress. Hawks fans should expect a few more games like this – particularly on the road.
Honorable Mention
Miami Defense – Could not give the dolphins a full team Good this week as the offense continued to underwhelm by settling for FGs often and should have been able to put this one away earlier, however the defense deserves a nod. They surrendered one score on the opening scripted drive by the Bengals, but locked down tight thereafter. the Bengals second score came on a short field after a Henne INT…and a somewhat flukish tipped ball for the TD pass. but the Bengals got virtually nothing after that, with Miami holding them to 5 straight 3 and outs, another short drive with one first down, and then Sean Smith’s game sealing INT when the Bengals finally did get a sustained drive on their last attempt.
Dishonors
Mike Shanahan – I’ve heard many justifications for his decision to bench McNabb for the last drive, and on some level I understand the logic of it, but results sell in one of those philosophical coin toss decisions where if it works you are hailed as a genius, but if it fails you get ripped to shreds. If nothing else Shanahan failed the results test horribly when his “more competent in the 2 minute drill” backup QB came in and pissed away any slim chance they had of retaking the lead by fumbling a TD away to extend the deficit completely out of reach. Beyond that, lets look at Washington’s best case scenario out of this decision. Suppose Rex had driven for a game winning TD. You’d have an instant QB controversy, an incumbent starter with a known history of fragile psyche issues when being given such treatment, a backup who absolutely is not an NFL starter, and possibly a divided locker room and that to me is Shanahan’s biggest failure here. Part of an HC’s job is to see the big picture and at best, this will all blow over in a week or two and be forgotten, at worst he has polluted team chemistry and destroyed whatever fragile wild card hopes the Redskins had….all in the name of (ostensibly) upping your odds at one last low percentage shot of stealing a game.
Awards
Ciron Black best of the Good: Green Bay. The walking wounded managed a shutout win, albeit a drab one, against a quality opponent on the road. They need a drink. (Oakland receives a supplemental shipment to replenish last week’s supply)
Aunt Esther ugliest of the Ugly: Dallas, who could be permanently here.
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Tagged as: gbu, nfl week 8