NFL Sunday Round-Up: Week 8

These last few days I have been the sickest I've been in awhile (I'm a hand sanitizer freak, so I rarely get sick). I don't know exactly what's going on (it may or may not be Ebola), but I suffer from year-round sinus issues and I live in one of the worst states you could possibly live in when you have these issues (allergies are a bitch folks). Therefore, we will get another week with more pictures than words in this column because let's face it, when you're sick, the only thing you want to do is kick back in your bed, eat soup, hate life, and not do anything else at all. The fact that I'm posting anything today shows my devotion to this blog.

Anyway, enough with the bitching. Here's all the action that went down this past weekend in the National Football League.



San Diego - 21 (5-3) @ Denver - 35 (6-1)

San Diego went from one of those teams that everyone was hot on, to a team that everyone is bailing on. Don't worry Chargers fans, I still have faith in your team. The Chargers are just going through a rough patch in their schedule (division games are never easy in the NFL) and they will get it turned around and are still a playoff team in my mind. Denver is Denver and as of right now, they are the best team in the NFL. I don't know if this team will lose another game this season, but I'm kind of hoping they win it all so maybe, just maybe, Peyton Manning will finally call it a career before someone snaps his neck in half.

San Diego Offensive MVP: Antonio Gates (5 catches, 54 yards, 2 TD's) 

San Diego Defensive MVP: Eric Weddle (11 tackles)

Denver Offensive MVP: Emmanuel Sanders (9 catches, 120 yards, 3 TD's)

Denver Defensive MVP: Brandon Marshall (10 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 pass deflected)

Up next for San Diego: vs. @ Miami (4-3)

Up next for Denver: vs. @ New England (6-2)

Detroit - 22 (6-2) @ Atlanta - 21 (2-6)

This was a weird game for numerous reasons. One, it was in London, England so it started at like 6:30 AM Pacific time. Basically, the only people watching this game on the West Coast were people with newborn babies and meth heads. Secondly, the Falcons got off to a 21-0 lead and it looked like Detroit was finally going to "Detroit" themselves....but no. A weird pattern of events and some absolute horrible head-coaching mistakes by Mike Smith led to Detroit kicking a field goal in the last few seconds to win the game. Avid readers of this blog know my distaste for Mike Smith as a head coach in the NFL. Sure, he's a good guy, but when have good guy's succeeded in the NFL as head coaches? Very rarely. Most successful NFL head coaches are egotistical assholes and Smith is the exact opposite of that. Detroit lives on to fight another day as their march towards the playoff continues. I'm still not entirely sold on them, but they still have 8 more weeks to impress me. As for the Falcons and head coach Mike Smith? Well, I got a glimpse into your future.....

Detroit Offensive MVP: Golden Tate (7 catches, 151 yards, 1 TD)

Detroit Defensive MVP: Jason Jones (3 tackles, 1 sack)

Atlanta Offensive MVP: Matt Ryan (20 of 27 for 228 yards, 2 TD's, 1 INT, 108.3 QB rating)

Atlanta Defensive MVP: Kemal Ishmael (6 tackles)

Up next for Detroit: BYE WEEK

Up next for Atlanta: BYE WEEK

Houston - 30 (4-4) @ Tennessee - 16 (2-6)

Houston is a mediocre football team. Tennessee is a bad football team. This result shouldn't shock anyone. The good news for Titans fans is, even though your football team sucks, your new quarterback Zach Mettenberger not only looked decent in his first NFL start (he made some mistakes, but he's a rookie making his first start so those are expected), but he's got a great sense of humor and a look that would put any lady on her knees immediately.

Parents, lock up your daughters.

Houston Offensive MVP: Arian Foster (20 carries, 151 rushing yards, 4 catches, 22 receiving yards, 3 TD's)

Houston Defensive MVP: J.J. Watt (3 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 pass deflection)

Tennessee Offensive MVP: Zach Mettenberger (27 of 41 for 299 yards, 2 TD's, 1 INT, 93.4 QB rating)

Tennessee Defensive MVP: Avery Williamson (10 tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for loss, 1 pass deflection)

Up next for Houston: vs. Philadelphia (5-2)

Up next for Tennessee: BYE WEEK

Minnesota -19 (3-5) @ Tampa Bay - 13 (1-6)

These teams have a lot in common. By that, I mean they are both horrible. To be honest with you, they actually are pretty even keel teams. Both teams are working in new head coaches, both teams are playing with QB's that didn't start the season for them, and both teams have no shot at making the playoffs. Luckily for Minnesota, they have a bunch of young talent that looks to be putting it together. When these guys get more experience under their belts, they will have the potential to do some damage. Anthony Barr looks like a really special player and Teddy Bridgewater has shown that he can win football games as an NFL starter and can look good doing so. And luckily for the Bucs, they are still in the "Suck for the Duck" campaign and look to have a real good shot at landing Oregon QB Marcus Mariota (if they choose to....) in the NFL Draft next year. Of course, I still think the Philadelphia Eagles have a master plan up their sleeves to land Mariota in the draft next year as he's the perfect QB for the system that Chip wants to run in the NFL. It may not be long before we see this picture in Philly colors....

Minnesota Offensive MVP: Cordarrelle Patterson (6 catches, 86 receiving yards, 1 carry, 10 rushing yards) 

Minnesota Defensive MVP: Anthony Barr (8 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass deflected, 1 TD)

Tampa Bay Offensive MVP: Mike Glennon (19 of 28 for 171 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 81.1 QB rating)

Tampa Bay Defensive MVP: Lavonte David (14 tackles, 3 tackles for loss)

Up next for Minnesota: vs. Washington (2-5)

Up next for Tampa Bay: vs. @ Cleveland (4-3)

Seattle - 13 (4-3) @ Carolina - 9 (3-4-1)

You're back Seattle fans! Well, not entirely back, but this was a much-needed win to get the Seahawks fans to back off the panic button a little. The Seahawks are a good football team that was going through a little rough patch there. I think the problem with the Seahawks is that expectations were set too high after the tremendous season they had last year. The parity in the NFL is tremendous and just because you go 13-3 and win the Super Bowl one-year, that doesn't mean you are just given the trophy the next season. The schedule is always more difficult and because of the NFL's salary cap rules, precious pieces will go away (I think the Hawks miss Golden Tate more than you think). The good news is, whenever you need a win, you can just play a team from the NFC South. Seriously, that division sucks. Remember a few years back when Seattle won the NFC West with a 7-9 record and made the playoffs? That's probably what is going to happen in the NFC South unless the Panthers or Saints can get it turned around and I seriously doubt either team can at this point. Hey NFC South....

Seattle Offensive MVP: Russell Wilson (20 of 32 for 199 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 6 carries, 35 rushing yards, 77.5 QB rating)

Seattle Defensive MVP: Bruce Irvin (3 tackles, 2 sacks)

Carolina Offensive MVP: Kelvin Benjamin (4 catches, 94 yards)

Carolina Defensive MVP: Josh Norman (6 tackles, 1 interception, 2 passes deflected)

Up next for Seattle: vs. Oakland (0-7)

Up next for Carolina: vs. New Orleans (3-4)

Baltimore - 24 (5-3) @ Cincinnati - 27 (4-2-1)

ESPN's Bill Simmon's called this game a "kitchen sink" game for the Ravens (which basically means it's a game where a team that's the better team will actually lose the game because they just don't care as much....or something like that). He actually said if this wasn't a "kitchen sink" game for the Ravens, than he doesn't know his "kitchen sink" games anymore. GOOD NEWS BILL! You were kind of right! Anyway, the Bengals really needed a win here to get out of the rut that they were in, especially now that they have earned the season sweep of the Ravens. What Cincinnati does from here is what's important though. They just beat a really good Ravens team and need to capitalize on this momentum to avoid sinking back into the hole that they were stuck in the last 3 weeks. As for Baltimore, forget about it and move on. There's a huge divisional game coming up against the Steelers that's pretty important as far as your standings in the AFC North are concerned. Lose that game and there is legit cause for concern in Baltimore. 

Baltimore Offensive MVP: Lorenzo Taliaferro (7 carries, 27 rushing yards, 2 catches, 42 receiving yards, 2 TD's) 

Baltimore Defensive MVP: C.J. Mosley (13 tackles, 1 interception)

Cincinnati Offensive MVP: Mohamed Sanu (5 catches, 125 receiving yards, 2 carries, 27 rushing yards)

Cincinnati Defensive MVP: Emmanuel Lamur (5 tackles, 1 interception)

Up next for Baltimore: vs. @ Pittsburgh (5-3)

Up next for Cincinnati: vs. Jacksonville (1-7)

Miami - 27 (4-3) @ Jacksonville - 13 (1-7)

What happens when you wake up on Sunday morning and tune into your local NFL affiliate and it say's "Miami vs. Jacksonville" as the listed game?

I feel your pain.

Miami Offensive MVP: Lamar Miller (14 carries, 78 rushing yards, 3 catches, 21 receiving yards)

Miami Defensive MVP: Louis Delmas (2 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception, 1 TD)

Jacksonville Offensive MVP: Allen Robinson (5 catches, 82 yards, 1 TD)

Jacksonville Defensive MVP: J.T. Thomas (6 tackles, 1 interception)

Up next for Miami: vs. San Diego (5-3)

Up next for Jacksonville: vs. @ Cincinnati (4-2-1)

Chicago - 23 (3-5) @ New England - 51 (6-2)

Sometimes, you just need to get your ass kicked to turn your life around. It happened to the New England Patriots when they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 41-14 back in September. Since that loss, the Patriots are 4-0 and have put an absolute licking on some of those opponents. This week's game against the Chicago Bears was an ass kicking. Honestly though, these are two teams that are on different sides of the spectrum right now. The Patriots were a team with turmoil a few weeks back and people were ready to write them off, but they've turned things around and look like one of the top dogs in the AFC again. Now, the Chicago Bears find themselves in that exact same position. The Bears entire team could do themselves a huge favor and look at what the Patriots have done since that ass kicking from KC. The Bears are a playoff team that isn't playing like one on the field. There's still time for this team to get things turned around and a bye week next week is huge for them. The Bears will come off the bye and play a huge game in Green Bay that could ultimately define their season. A 3-6 record in November would be killer for a team with the playoff potential that the Bears had. 

Chicago Offensive MVP: Matt Forte (19 carries, 114 rushing yards, 6 catches, 54 receiving yards, 1 TD)

Chicago Defensive MVP: Christian Jones (10 tackles, 1 pass deflected)

New England Offensive MVP: Tom Brady (30 of 35 for 354 yards, 5 TD's, 148.4 QB rating)

New England Defensive MVP: Darrelle Revis (4 tackles, 1 interception, 2 passes deflected)

Up next for Chicago: BYE WEEK

Up next for New England: vs. Denver (6-1)

Buffalo - 43 (5-3) @ New York Jets- 23 (1-7)

Usually I like to charge people if I give them advice. Jets staff and upper management, I hope you're reading this because this one is on me. Here's what I recommend you guys do with your roster from top to bottom. I'm talking from practice squad members all the way to the general manager.....

You're welcome.

Buffalo Offensive MVP: Kyle Orton (10 of 17 for 238 yards, 4 TD's, 142.8 QB rating)

Buffalo Defensive MVP: Preston Brown (9 tackles, 1 interception)

NY Jets Offensive MVP: Chris Ivory (13 carries, 43 rushing yards, 2 TD's)

NY Jets Defensive MVP: Quinton Coples (7 carries, 1.5 sacks, 2 QB hits)

Up next for Buffalo: BYE WEEK

Up next for NY Jets: vs. @ Kansas City (4-3)

St. Louis - 7 (2-5) @ Kansas City - 34 (4-3)

Ever since that awful loss to Tennessee in week one, the Kansas City Chiefs have been one of the best teams in the NFL. Their only losses since that loss were close games to the Denver Broncos and the San Francisco 49ers and other than that, they've been just downright tremendous. Now, forgive me for a bit for drooling over the Chiefs, but I'm not used to drooling over my favorite team. More often than not, I'm talking bad about Kansas City, but I have to admit that this team looks legit. When the offense can run the ball the way they ran it on the Rams, there are very few teams who can compete with KC. At the beginning of the year, I picked the Chiefs to finish somewhere around 7-9 or 8-8 but it wouldn't shock me to see these guy's get to 10 or 11 wins and sneak into the playoffs as a wild card team. If that happens, this will be the scene around my house.....

St. Louis Offensive MVP: Austin Davis (15 of 25 for 160 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 75.4 QB rating)

St. Louis Defensive MVP: Robert Quinn (5 tackles, 2 sacks, 3 tackles for loss)

Kansas City Offensive MVP: Jamaal Charles (13 carries, 73 rushing yards, 4 catches, 44 receiving yards, 2 TD's)

Kansas City Defensive MVP: Justin Houston (5 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 QB hits)

Up next for St. Louis: vs. @ San Francisco (4-3)

Up next for Kansas City: vs. New York Jets (1-7)

Philadelphia - 20 (5-2) @ Arizona - 24 (6-1)

This was one of the most highly anticipated games of the weekend and for good reason. It featured two of the best teams in the NFC and the game held up to expectations. The Arizona Cardinals are easily the biggest shocker of this season next to the Dallas Cowboys. Some people had the Cardinals as a playoff team, but no one expected them to be the class of the NFC West and sitting at 6-1 through the halfway point of the season. The Cardinals are an interesting team for numerous reasons and I just don't know what their ceiling is. Does anyone else really have enough balls to go out and say that a team quarterbacked by an old Carson Palmer is a legit Super Bowl contender? It sure looks that way, but the remaining schedule is difficult. The Cardinals still have to go to Dallas, Seattle, Atlanta, St. Louis, and San Francisco and have home games against the Chiefs, Rams, Lions, and Seahawks. That's a tough slate for any team, much less one that's going to have high expectations after getting off to a hot start. As for the Eagles? Well, I don't even live in Philly and I can hear the bitching from that fan base at my home in Oregon. Andy Reid isn't walking through that wall anytime soon guys......

Philadelphia Offensive MVP: Jeremy Maclin (12 catches, 187 yards, 2 TD's)

Philadelphia Defensive MVP: Nate Allen (4 tackles, 1 fumble recovery)

Arizona Offensive MVP: Larry Fitzgerald (7 catches, 160 yards, 1 TD)

Arizona Defensive MVP: Antonio Cromartie (5 tackles, 3 passes deflected, 2 interceptions)

Up next for Philadelphia: vs. @ Houston (4-4)

Up next for Arizona: vs. @ Dallas (6-1)

Oakland - 13 (0-7) @ Cleveland - 23 (4-3)

Oakland Offensive MVP: Derek Carr (34 of 54 for 328 yards, 1 TD, 86.0 QB rating)

Oakland Defensive MVP: Sio Moore (9 tackles, 2 tackles for loss)

Cleveland Offensive MVP: Brian Hoyer (19 of 28 for 275 yards, 1 TD, 111.5 QB rating)

Cleveland Defensive MVP: Joe Haden (9 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 2 passes deflected, 1 fumble recovery)

Up next for Oakland: vs. @ Seattle (4-3)

Up next for Cleveland: vs. Tampa Bay (1-6)

Indianapolis - 34 (5-3) @ Pittsburgh- 51 (5-3)

"Big Ben" Roethlisberger came to play and when he comes to play, there's very few QB's in the NFL who can compete on his level. "Big Ben" had a career day en route to leading the Steelers to a 5-3 record and Pittsburgh is now on pace to make a return to the playoffs after whooping a pretty good Indianapolis Colts team. This was a fantastic win for Pittsburgh because there's a very realistic chance these two teams will meet again in the post-season and this was a nice confidence building win for the Steelers in case that scenario does happen. Don't look now people, but every team in the AFC North is at least one game over .500....yes, even the Browns! That's probably going to be the most exciting divisional race to watch as we enter the final stretch of the season. My money is still on the Ravens to take the division, but it's hard to not like what we saw from Pittsburgh and Roethlisberger yesterday.

Indianapolis Offensive MVP: T.Y. Hilton (6 catches, 155 receiving yards, 1 TD) 

Indianapolis Defensive MVP: D'Qwell Jackson (13 tackles)

Pittsburgh Offensive MVP: Ben Roethlisberger (40 of 49 for 522 yards, 6 TD's. 150.6 QB rating)

Pittsburgh Defensive MVP: William Gay (8 tackles, 1 interception, 1 TD)

Up next for Indianapolis: vs. @ New York Giants (3-4)

Up next for Pittsburgh: vs. Baltimore (5-3)