Rookie QB's and Brett Favre

Before we discuss tomorrow's games, there's a hot topic that has been all over the nfl radio and tv waves this week. It was reported that the Rams called retired QB, Brett Favre, and asked him to come back to the game and play for St. Louis. Are some teams so desperate for a good quarterback that they are now begging retired players to return? This has led to the much talked about string of Rookie quarterbacks. Geno Smith. EJ Manuel. Andrew Luck. Russell Wilson. RG III. It seems to be the trend lately to draft a QB in the first round and throw them into the game at the start of the following season. For teams like the Colts and the Seahawks, the strategy to build and grow a team around a young, fresh new QB seems to be working. But others like Tom Tebow, Matt Leinart, Vince Young, and Chad Pennington (remember him?) haven't be as successful. Luck,  RG3 and Manuel were all first round picks. Smith and Wilson went in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. All of these rookies have had their ups and downs so far in their careers. College football is a different world from the NFL. Rookies need a transition time to learn and understand the game on the professional level, and to mesh with his new teammates. And yet each one of the rookie QB's playing this year have managed to do it, and do it with passion, class, and sophistication. It's not just about the ability of the QB. It's about his character and his maturity. He is the leader of his team whether he's 34 or 24 years old. Maybe that's why other first round QB picks don't make it. They didnt have those characteristics. But for the team that can find a quarterback like Wilson or Luck, who can come in and play with eloquence and strength while staying level-headed, those teams will be successful for years to come.
So is the first round draft QB pick a blessing or a curse? Peyton Manning was drafted as the #1 pick in the first round of his draft year while Tom Brady wasn't drafted until the 6th round of his. I want to hear what you think about this. Who do you think is the most successful first round draft pick QB? Of those who are no longer playing, who do you think should still be throwing TD's? Who do you this is the worst of the first round picks? And what current quarterbacks do you think deserved to go higher in their draft year? Weigh in. And come back for a breakdown of tomorrow's games. 

Are you ready for some football? I AM!

It's my favorite day of the week! And to make it even better, there are some great games on the schedule for today.

My Philadelphia Eagles host divisional rivals, the Dallas Cowboys at 1pm. Thanks to the horrible performance by the NY Giants this season, the number one spot in the division is still up for grabs. With the Redskins playing the Bears and both teams with a 3-3 record, who will take that #1 spot today? Not just because they're my team, and maybe I'll regret this by 4:30 today, but I'm going with the Eagles. Don't get me wrong, it will be a very close game, but Dallas has a lot of injuries and the Eagles' offense is on a roll after last week's win over the Bucs. Despite QB Michael Vick being out, backup Nick Foles can get the job done. He put up some solid numbers last week, completing 3 touchdown passes and running one in for a 4th. Tony Romo is having one of his best seasons, but his defense is struggling. With Demarcus Ware out, the Cowboys defense will need to step it up against the likes of LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson.

Also at 1pm, another divisional match up, the Buffalo Bills head to sunny Miami. The Bills have been shocking everyone this season. Despite their 2-4 record, rookie QB E.J. Manuel has been a great leader on the field. Unfortunately this week, he'll have to lead from the sidelines. Manuel suffered a knee injury in Cleveland and will sit out for today's game against the Dolphins. And I don't think the Bills can pull off a win without him. This is a perfect opportunity for Miami QB Ryan Tannehill to lead his team to a 4-2 record after today. The Dolphins look well rested coming off a Bye week. Their injury report is the smallest of any other team, with almost all of the previously injured players probable for today's game. It will be quite an upset is the Dolphins don't take the W at home today.

Also in the AFC East, the 5-1 Patriots head to the Meadowlands to tackle the 3-3 NY Jets. If you look at the numbers, these two teams, offensively and defensively, are surprisingly a pretty even match. Even Rookie Geno Smith's numbers rival veteran star Tom Brady. The one difference today, Gronk is back. The Patriots finally get Ron Gronkowski back on the field, which means more receiving yards and more TD's. Which means...a win. As long as Brady can hold on to the ball this week, the Pats will go home 6-1 after today and the Jets will have to bounce back from a losing record next week against the Bengals.

Now, let's have a brief chat about the 4pm games before we look to the big one tonight. Can the Chiefs remain undefeated? Yes they can. Andy Reid is doing a great job in Kansas City. They stay home to host the Texans this afternoon. Houston QB Matt Schaub is out with an ankle injury and Case Keenum will start. The former 3-string QB is taking over after 2nd string T.J. Yates face-plainted in Schaub's place last week. Even is Schaub was playing this week, the Chiefs would still take this one. 

The Packers host the Browns. Green Bay is only trailing the Bears and Lions by one win in their division. It seems they are taking on the mantra 'slow and steady wins the race' this season. Their ranked 2nd in overall yards in the league, 5th in average points, and #9 in the Power Rankings after Week 6. Three seasons laster, the former Super Bowl champs still look good; they're still putting up great numbers, they're keeping their injuries to a minimum and if they keep it up, you will without a doubt see the Packers go far in the playoffs.

A long time rivalry this afternoon, Steelers v. Ravens. Both teams are hungry. After coming off a Bye, the Steelers finally grabbed their first win last week against the NY Jets. The question is can they keep it up? It could be a close one for these AFC North teams, who's records are only separated by 2 wins and a loss, but the Ravens will take a win back to Baltimore with them.

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past 7 weeks, you know that Peyton Manning is heading back to Indianapolis tonight. With all the hype this week, many are comparing Manning and Andrew Luck. The truth is, there is no comparison. Peyton Manning is Peyton Manning. A Super Bowl MVP. A Pro Bowl MVP. A record holder. And Super Bowl Champ. And Andrew Luck is Andrew Luck. He came into Indy with big shoes to fill, but he's done a great job and is building his own legacy. In his first two NFL seasons, Luck is off to a 15-7 start. Who's to say he can't be where Peyton is in 15 years? He definitely has the potential. If anything, all this talk about Peyton returning to his old stomping grounds will only empower Luck to player better and harder, and a fire should be lit under the Colts to win. But I've said it before and I'll say it again. Peyton Manning is an incredible athlete. He is the best QB in the NFL now, and maybe ever. He has a great group of receivers and a strong defense. Luck and the Colts can certainly stand up to the Broncos, but Denver will take home a win and stay undefeated. Manning will add to his already astonishing stats, and make Jim Irsay eat his words. 

TNF: Battle of the Birds

Cardinals. Seahawks.

It's a short week for these divisional rivals as they go head-to-head tonight in Arizona. Seattle leads the NFC West with 5-1 record but they've had a difficult stretch the past few games. They have not been playing well on the road, as we saw with their one loss against the Colts in Indy two weeks ago. And despite their win on Sunday, it was much too close a game against the 3-3 Titans.
Will it be another nail-biter against the 3-3 Cardinals this week? Not if it looks anything like the last time these two teams met. Last year, the Cardinals suffered their biggest loss in franchise history against the Seahawks, 58-0.
Will the Cards be back with a vengeance tonight? Of course they will. This is definitely a game that was highlighted on every Cardinals' player's schedule. You don't forget a loss like that.  And with Arizona being undefeated at home so far this season, they could make it happen. WR Larry Fitzgerald is playing like he was never injured, leading his team in receiving yards and TD's, and accomplishing a season-high 117 yards last week. It will be interesting to see Fitzgerald and CB Richard Sherman go up against each other. Sherman has the ability to make game-changing plays, which will be very necessary tonight in AZ.
Good news for the Cardinals, defensive end, and my fellow UM friend, Calais Campbell, is expected back on the field tonight after suffering a neck injury last week against San Francisco. The Cards' defense will be key in tonight's game. Seattle QB, Russell Wilson, is tough to defend. He is not afraid to run the ball and gets tackled much less than other running QB's like RGIII and Michael Vick. But Wilson needs to throw the ball deep to complete more passes and score more points.

On the other side, Arizona QB, Carson Palmer, threw for 298 yards and 2 TD's last week but was intercepted twice. And 9 of his 11 interceptions this season were in the last 4 games. He can't afford to throw any tonight against the Seahawks or it's game over for Arizona. 

Seattle looks great on paper. They are 2nd in the league offensively, scoring over 26 points per game, but they need to be smart with the ball. Wilson has to trust his offense and deliver. I don't think it will be anything like last year's blowout win, but I do think Seattle will break their poor performance on the road tonight and take home a win.
Let Week 7 begin!


Don't forget to share your predictions, comments & questions before tonight's game. You can tweet me: @JenSomach.

Better late than never

So I realize I left you guys hanging last week and didn't post a new blogpost before the Sunday games. To make up for my mistake, this week we're looking back at Week 5 and looking forward to what's to come in Week 6.

Let's just take a quick look at who is still winless and who is still undefeated after last week, and then we'll move on:

                           0-5 teams                                                                   5-0 teams
                          NY Giants                                                            Kansas City Chiefs
                   Jacksonville Jaguars                                                       Denver Broncos
              Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-4)                                          New Orleans Saints
                   Pittsburgh Steelers (0-4)  


The Giants play tonight in Chicago (3-2) and Da Bears are feeling a lot of pressure to keep the Giants winless. After Aaron Kramer's offense fell apart in the first quarter last week against the Saints, the Bears really need to keep it together tonight to pull off a W. Do you think the Bears can tack another loss on to the Giants record? Or will Thursday Night Football be the start of something good for the G-Men?

The Broncos host the Jags on Sunday. The point spread for this game... 28 points! The largest point spread in NFL history. The Broncos will win this game; however, John Fox would be out of his mind to play Peyton Manning for more than a quarter. Save him for the rest of the season. What do you think the spread should be for this game if Peyton is benched and backup QB, Brock Osweller, is in?

Can the Saints stay undefeated in New England this week? Despite their  4-1 record, The Patriots suffered a 13-6 loss to the Bengals last week. Things may turn around for the Pats this week. TE Ron Gronkowski is expected to return to the field Sunday. With top RB's Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley still out due to injuries, the Pats offense has been struggling and desperately need Gronk back in the endzone. Even if Gronk comes back this week, is could still be a stretch for the Pats to put an end to New Orleans winning streak.

The Steelers are coming off a bye week, but will the week of rest be enough to revive Pittsburgh? They go up against the Jets who are coming off a big road victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Despite the Jets' 3-2 record, both AFC teams have had their share of obstacles this season. Rookie QB Geno Smith has already been sacked 18 times, and Veteran Roethlisberger has thrown for 1231 yards but only 5 TD's so far. According to Bleacher Report, the Steelers have lost their last 7 games when Big Ben has thrown for 300 yards or more. Oops! The Jets' defense has shut down the Bucs, Bills and Falcons, while the Steelers' defense has put up less than stellar numbers. The Jets' could pull off a win, sending the Steelers back to the Keystone State 0-5.

Two 3-2 teams go head to head in Ohio this weekend: Lions v. Browns. This should be another interesting game. The Browns are hot, having beat the Vikings, Bengals and Bills the last 3 weeks. But the Lions offense is averaging almost 100 yards more per game. However, the Browns are preparing for the possibility of playing without WR Calvin Johnson. Reggie Bush, Joique Bell and Nate Burleson will have to step it up in Johnson's absence, especially after the team scored a season-low 9 points against Green Bay last week. Since the Browns are at home, I'm going with Cleveland for this game.

Despite what some people are saying, Week 6 is shaping up to be another interesting week, full of upsets, injuries, and probably a couple more winless records. Don't forget to post your predictions, questions, comments and reactions. And check back next week for a recap and a look towards Week 7.

Kicking off Week 5: Browns v. Bills

First of all, is anyone else in disbelief that it's October? We are already a month into the NFL regular season! Before we know, it will be Super Bowl in freezing cold February. I know, I'm getting ahead of myself. One thing's for sure as the season continues, it may get colder outside, but things are certainly going to start heating up in the NFL.

Before we talk about tonight's game, let's look back at MNF. I predicted a Saints win, but a close win, against the Dolphins. Did the Saints win? Yes. Was it a close game? Absolutely not. But that's what I LOVE about NFL. Just when you think you know what's going to happen, you are proven wrong. It was a great game for the Saints, who are still undefeated. New Orleans had a mediocre season last year. They finished 3rd in their division with a 7-9 record, a stretch from the 13-3 season in '11 and  the Super Win two years before that. This year, they're off to a good start. And Drew Brees certainly still has it. He completed 413 yards, a quarter of those yards were complete thanks to Jimmy Graham, who I boasted about in the last post. We also have to talk about RB Darren Sproles. After coming to the Saints in 2011 from San Diego, he rushed over 600 yards. On Monday, he completed over 100 yards. He's putting up big numbers for the Saints; as long as he stays healthy you can expected the numbers to keep rolling. The Saints are a force to be reckon with. They face the Bears in Chicago on Sunday. That is going to be one goooooood game. Jay Cutler Despite being on the road, I think the Saints will remain undefeated after Sunday.

I know I got a little ahead of myself talking about Sunday when it’s still Thursday. So let's look at tonight's game: Browns v. Bills. This should be interesting. Both teams are coming into tonight's game with a recent win. The Bills beat the reigning super bowl champs last weekend. It was close, but since the Bill's were the underdog, I don't think anyone saw that coming. Rookie QB, EJ Manuel has a good handle on his team and a good connection with his receivers. The Browns looked good against Cincinnati, but they lost to the Ravens in Week 2 and the Dolphins in Week 1. The Bills will add another W to their record tonight.