The NFL is Poop - Week 2

Don't Call it a Comeback
Usually we only talk about runs when it comes to the NBA but this week in the NFL was characterized by a series of runs, which led to some exciting finishes.

Indianapolis Colts 18 Minnesota Vikings 15
The Vikings started this game on a 15-0 run, but their failure to score touchdowns (5 field goals) cost them as Peyton Manning got hot at the right time and led his team back by putting up 18 points in the last 19 minutes of the game.

Carolina Panthers 20 Chicago Bears 17
The Bears took a 17-3 lead early in the third quarter. After that, their offense went in the tank. On their last 7 drives of the game they got a Greg Olsen fumble on first down, 5 three-and-outs and their most successful drive lasted 6 plays and covered 15 yards. Meanwhile Jake Delhomme led his team to a come-from-behind victory for the second week in a row.

Green Bay Packers 48 Detroit Lions 25
After starting the game with a three-and-out the Packers put together 3 long touchdown drives to take a 21-0 lead with 7 minutes left in the second quarter. But then the Lions got hot, going on a 25-3 run to actually take the lead in this game with 7:50 left. Then it all went to hell. Kitna got intercepted and the Packers scored 4 plays later. Then Kitna got intercepted two more times, both returned for touchdowns giving the Packers 3 touchdowns in a minute-thirty and making this one look like a blowout.

Onions!
Mike Shanahan definitely gets the onions! award for his gutsy, albeit foolish call to go for the win instead of the tie. After scoring a touchdown to cut the Chargers lead to 38-37, Shanahan ordered his troops to go for the 2-point conversion with 24 seconds left. Seeing as how they used the exact same play on the conversion as they did on the touchdown, maybe Shanahan saw something in the Chargers defense he thought he could exploit. But even so, he put his team's chances on a play that succeeds only about 40 percent of the time.
Honorable mention for this game goes to Brandon Marshall whose 18 catches are the second most all-time.



Game of the Week
Dallas Cowboys 41 Philadelphia Eagles 37
So much happened in this game that I won't even bother to recount it but there were big plays (Owens TD catch, Felix Jones punt return), turnovers (Romo's interception and fumble which led to 14 Eagles points in 13 seconds) and even the absurd (DeSean Jackson's premature celebration). A very exciting and enjoyable game to watch. Unfortunately because I like Donovan McNabb he was unable to lead his team on that final game-winning drive.
And one more note, with all the scoring that was going on in this game, Andy Reid absolutely made the right decision to kick the extra point at the beginning of the 4th quarter that gave the Eagles a 6-point, instead of 7-point lead.



Game of Next Week
Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers
This should be another game with a lot of offense on display. Aaron Rodgers has looked good through 2 weeks so far but this could be his toughest test yet. Not because the Dallas defense is so tough, but because he's going to need to put up a lot of points to outscore their offense.

I Need This Like I Need a Hole in The Head/Roof
The Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens got an early bye week this year when Hurricane Ike tore several panels off the roof of Reliant Stadium. That game will be rescheduled for Week 10. The Bengals-Texans game scheduled for that day moves to Week 8.





Blowin in the Wind
The effects of Hurricane Ike were felt across the Midwest, especially in Ohio where the Bengals game was disrupted by unusually strong winds, in one case blowing what seemed like a good field goal, sharply wide right. The Browns and Steelers also dealt with gale-force winds.




A Brief Rant About the Redskins
Huge victory for the Skins especially because Jason Campbell came through to make the plays they need to win, including the game-winning 67-yard bomb (on first down) to Santana Moss.



My biggest question about Campbell is whether he can make those key plays to win games. One week doesn't satisfy all my doubts about him but I'm duly impressed. Especially compared to the first half when the Redskins absolutely dominated on offense but settled for 5 field goal attempts (2 misses) and took a 10-9 deficit into the locker room at halftime. The Saints scored a field goal on their last drive of the 1st half thanks to a defensive strategy that allowed them to go 59 yards in 5 plays (completions of 9, 7, 9, 22 and 12), with only one timeout. And that lax style of defense carried over to the first drive of the second half when the Saints drove right down the field again.

But after that the Redskins defense tightened up (they can't be blamed for the Reggie Bush punt return TD) and the offense led by Campbell and some good running from both Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts put up 3 touchdowns to seal the victory.



While Jim Zorn screwed up by going for a 2-point conversion too early, he did learn from one mistake he made. After conservative play-calling stifled the offense in the first half they really opened it in the second half and that led to great numbers for Jason Campbell. And of course, the victory.

Cheerleader of the Week
Kaitlin Ilseng of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders
The 19-year-old is a DCC rookie. She bills herself as the typical Texas girl and seems to fit that as all her favorite artists are country singers. Among her favorite books are "Catcher in the Rye" and "To Kill a Mockingbird" which makes sense considering she probably read them last year in high school English class.




If the Super Bowl Were Played Today
New York Giants 38 Pittsburgh Steelers 10
I guess I was a little too quick to jump off the Giants bandwagon. They have a great offense, and even without Osi Umenyiora and Michael Strahan, their defense has to be better than the unit Dallas put on the field against the Eagles.
As for the Steelers, they look good, but not great. Since I don't believe in the Bills, or the Broncos defense and the Patriots and Titans are both using backup QBs, I'll stick with the Steelers to represent the AFC for now.