The Good Sports: November 2007

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ASIDES

PHEW! Finally a respite this week. We can watch some football for a change without having to hear about the "best team ever" (NE Patriots). Imagine that... we'll actually get to see the highlights of the other teams. What a glorious concept! SO, since we're getting a week off from having to hear about Super Bowl 42 winners-to-be... LET'S TALK SOME FOOTBALL SHALL WE.

Hard to believe that this season is already half over. We've passed the midway point and are now approaching the final stretch. The pace picks up... Momentum is building. Teams are gelling, or falling apart... Health is a big issue as teams struggle for position. SO, what does the landscape look like? What's important about the games this week?

Last week we had TWO division battle... This week we have TEN head-2-head division battles...

Week Ten will paint the first stroke of what the playoff picture will look like... Let's take a look:

(1) Biggest game of the Week is the battle for supremacy in the NFC East (Dallas Cowboys vs. NY Giants). What's at stake? A win for Dallas puts them in a virtual cruise control... Basically afford them a THREE game lead over the Giants, and puts them in a position to grab on to the #1 or #2 seed in the conference come playoff team. A win for NY means they are right back in the hunt for top spot in the NFC and puts them in the lead in the division.

The Giants are out to prove that they are for real. I believe they are not as good as they seem or have shown over the last 6 games though. I don't think they're as bad as they were the first two weeks... BUT... I do think Dallas is that good. This game appears like it's Romo vs. Lil Manning. BIG-BIG-BIG game for both... Eli could really use a big win to announce to the league that he is growing (and might be the best in his draft class, even better than Big Ben and P-Rivers)... Romo could place himself on ta\hat short list of top QBs in football.

I think Dallas learned a lot the last two years, with their December swoons... They weren't ready to win on the road last year, as the young team struggled to exude confidence. I think the last two years have prepared them for a game like this (see what they did to Philly last Monday)...

I feel as though this game will boil down to which defense can disrupt the opponent more than the other. It starts with the D-line... the Pass Rushers... Giants owned Dallas last year in NY... Really got after Romo. They'll have to do the same to have a shot this week. On the other hand... Ellis-Ware-Tank and the boys will be coming as well. ALSO... which secondary will have fewer big plays allowed? Burress or TO... who will flex their wings?

New York is a playoff team... but... like the Lions they'll have to settle on the Wild Card. Dallas is that good. They'll show it Sunday afternoon!

(2) The battle for top dawg in the AFC Wild Car hunt: Jags-Titans. YES, here it is... We know NE-INDY-PITT will battle for that week off come playoff time... BUT... Jags-Titans are fighting here to avoid one of those big three in the first round. The winner will be in a sweet position to lock up the #5 seed, which means it'll be playing the winner of the AFC West (if you can call it that!)... Jags are coming off a bad loss to new Orleans, while the Titans seem to be sneaking out wins. I expect the Jags to make things a mess... pull Titans back to them and make the AFC playoff Wild Card picture a mess.

(3) The 'are the for real' Bowl: Indy vs. SD. We know the champs are legit but they are coming off an emotional letdown last week. They had the #1 spot locked up and blew it. will there be a hangover? Will they respond? Pitt is right on their heels folks and another loss might mean NO BY WEEK come playoff time. AND... SD is looking to make a statement. They were just on the cusp of being "BACK" and in contention as being considered a real player, but then AP ran all over them for an NFL record. Will they bounce back? They can make a big statement with a win this week. Game is in their building... They need a win... a loss will mean they'll be in a battle to win their own division.

The Chiefs play the Broncos... One of them will win (unless they tie of course 0-0)... SO... If KC wins and SD lost... they are now in second place (and have already lost to KC once). If DEN wins and SD lost... Then there's a three way tie... GULP... With 7 games left... They have 4 common opponents (3 more AFC West games + TENN). SO, SD needs to win this week otherwise they'll an afterthought and not a real player... in my book.

(4) The rivalry-is-back Game! CLE vs. Pitt. This is going to be exciting! If Browns win, they are right in the mix to win the division... If Pitt losses... They fall out of pace for the #2 seed. Pitt gets to play NE... They might even have a shot at the #1 seed (NAH!)... STILL, this is a huge game for them. A win means they have like a 3 game lead on CLE... This is like the NY-Dallas game. HUge ramifications!.

(5) One game to watch: Bills vs. Miami. Actually, do not watch it but check the score afterward. WHY? Well, if Buffalo wins (and JAX beat Titans) then the BIlls are serious players for a wild card spot. Give them all the credit... They play hard and if it weren't for two last second FGs to DEN-DALLAS... they might be paying for a 7-2 record... At least giving NE a scare.

That's it folks... ENJOY!

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