Plenty of drama in a weekend that saw one team break a 19-game losing streak and another keep their undefeated streak going. Let’s start the Final Drive of week 3!
(1-2) Detroit Lions 19 (1-2) Washington Redskins 14
The Lions had to win eventually. Though it would be an unfortunate day for whatever unlucky team they defeated. Jim Zorn will keep his job… for a while longer. Congrats to the Lions and the fans that actually showed up to see it.
Get ready to lose next week.
(3-0) Minnesota Vikings 27
(2-1) San Francisco 49ers 24
We’ve all seen or heard of Favre’s late game heroics. I blame Mike Singletary’s defense, which put only two players on the endzone. There were five Niners in the middle of the field! Everyone knows when they need a touchdown on the final play of the game you stack men in the endzone so they can bat the ball down. Horrible call from a good coach.
Bunk.
(2-1) New England Patriots 26
(2-1) Atlanta Falcons 10
Regardless of their wide receiver troubles (Brady yelling at them was fun), New England racked up plenty of yards on the ground on their way to beating a solid Falcon squad. Moss caught another ten passes for 116 yards while veteran Fred Taylor rushed for 105 yards. If this Patriot offense can find balance, look out.
(3-0) New York Jets 24
(0-3) Tennessee Titans 17
Huh. The Jets are still undefeated and the Titans are still winless. Both shockers. Jeff Fisher needs to stop the wheels from falling off in Tennessee. Also, can we stop it with the throwback jerseys? Those NY Titans uni’s are fugly.
(3-0) Baltimore Ravens 34
(0-3) Cleveland Browns 3
Baltimore could be the best team in the league. Cleveland could have the worst offense in the league. The crazy part came when Eric Mangini benched Brady Quinn in the second half for Derek Anderson only to see Anderson throw three interceptions. Stick with Quinn.
(3-0) New Orleans Saints 27
(1-2) Buffalo Bills 7
It wasn’t a complete blowout by halftime, but this could have been the most impressive Saints win so far. Their defense came up with four sacks and two turnovers and gave up only seven points. The offense rushed for 222 yards and didn’t need Drew Brees to throw a touchdown. Now that’s impressive.
(2-1) Cincinnati Bengals 23
(1-2) Pittsburgh Steelers 20
Easily the biggest surprise of the weekend. Carson Palmer led a comeback drive late to put his Bengals at 2-1. Without that freaky play in week one, they would be 3-0. Think about it. It’s painfully obvious that the Steelers are not the same without Troy Polamalu and can’t simply rely on Ben Roethlisberger to drop back all day.
(3-0) Indianapolis Colts 31
(1-2) Arizona Cardinals 10
What primetime hangover? Peyton Manning, destroyer of worlds and crusher of dreams, left another team in his wake as he tore apart the Cardinals secondary for 379 yards and four touchdowns. Kurt Warner was harassed all night looked older than he really is.
(2-1) Dallas Cowboys 21
(0-3) Carolina Panthers 7
I guess the Cowboys didn’t need Jon Kitna to start after all. After 0 turnovers and sacks combined in their first two games, the Cowboys rebounded with three of each against the Panthers. Dallas ran for over 200 yards for the second straight game, giving the fans in their massive stadium something to cheer about. (But does anyone watching the game on TV in a non-Dallas market give a crap about the stadium?) Jake Delhomme and the Panthers are in for a long season.
Alright everyone, keep an eye out for my Opening Drive and Bears previews later in the week!
Keywords: Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Ben Roethlisberger, Brady Quinn, Brett Favre, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Derek Anderson, Detroit Lions, Drew Brees, Indianapolis Colts, Jake Delhomme, Jim Zorn, Joe Anello, Kurt Warner, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, NFL, Peyton Manning, Pittsburgh Steelers, Randy Moss, San Francisco 49ers, Washington Redskins
