RESULTS Weekly NFL Related Humiliation (Week TEN)

That was a shockingly unhumiliating week of picking football. 4-1, woohoo!!! Better yet, since I picked exactly opposite My Nemesis Bill Simmons™ that means he was a miserable 1-4. Having a freshly hatched infant in the house must rattle the brains. Season totals so far, I sit at 23-24-3 while BS has slipped to a woeful 20-27-3.

As far as the games not covered in the five picks, 'where's the feet?' with regards to New Orleans? Just when I thought they were back on track they are handled easily by the previously winless St. Louis Rams. I still think the Saints will win their division, their schedule is pretty favorable the rest of the way out, and maybe this one bad game will help them sort things out the rest of the season. If they slip, and Tampa Bay slips, and Carolina continues to be mediocre (and how can you be better than mediocre when Vinny Testaverde is your QB?), then the Atlanta Falcons still have a chance to win that division?!? The NFC but for two teams, really, really sucks.

On to the semi-recaps:

Cleveland 28 Pittsburgh 31 (I picked Pitt -10.0) BS Picked Cle
D'oh! My only bad pick of the day, and it would have been a push if Pittsburgh hadn't given up that 4th quarter Kick Off return for a TD. Special teams defense has been a problem league wide this year. Makes the game more exciting, but I don't believe it's just that every team has decided to keep a Hester-like speedy small guy on their team that has accounted for the unprecedented success at KO and Punt returns this season, I think the defenses also kind of suck. As far as the rest of the game, Pittsburgh never seemed in doubt as to whether or not they would come back in this one. They looked sharp, and Cleveland is a pretty good team themselves. Seeing Big Ben rumble 30 yards for his TD was also pretty impressive, that was pretty unexpected. Pittsburgh actually dominated the game for the most part, just that they kept getting stalled in the red zone on offense. When your offense is playing well, you can't settle for field goals, I think it was more a matter of bad Steeler play calling in the first half rather than a really stiff Browns red zone defense. But even though they didn't cover the spread, they won, and that's all that matters (except where my pick was concerned, those bastards!)

Minnesota 0 Green Bay 34 (I picked GB -5.5) BS picked Minn
Woohoo! Not much to say on this one. Losing Peterson is a big blow to Minnesota, but they're hoping he's only out a short while. This loss effectively ends the Vikings playoff hopes, though, so they'd be foolish to rush back their franchise RB. Let him get healthy and don't jeopardize next season to struggle to 6-10 or 7-9 this one. Green Bay dominated this game on both sides of the ball. They have one of the best defenses in the league, and suddenly they have the semblance of a running attack to compliment Favre's passing. They'll keep the pressure on Dallas for the best record in the NFC the rest of the season, and you know Dallas doesn't want a possible NFC Championship game to be held on Lambeau Field in late January, that would bring back some bad memories from way back in the day. Hopefully that there Global Warming will kick in and game time temps will be above zero (assuming they meet in an NFC Championship game hosted in GB, which given my earlier predictions, I'm guessing won't happen).

Dallas 31 NYGiants 20 (I picked Dallas -1.5) BS picked NYG
Woohoo! The final score is closer than it should have been. Dallas dominated, but committed too many penalties in the first half, and would up tied 17-17 at halftime. They beat up their division rivals, and the NY Giants look on schedule to sputter in the final half of the season to either just grab the final wildcard spot, or to just miss the playoffs this year. Won't matter, though, as they'll be easy first round fodder for whichever team they face (assuming they make the playoffs, with given how bad the rest of the NFC is, should still be doable). Dallas is a very good team. I think Green Bay is slightly better, but they're both pretty close. Dallas has the more complete offense, but Green Bay has the better defense. Given their dismantling at the hands of New England earlier in the season, though, it's clear that Dallas would only be the 4th or 5th best team in the AFC.

Indianapolis 21 San Diego 23 (I picked SD +3.5) BS Picked Indy
Woohoo! After dominating the first half, causing turn over after turn over (Manning ended up throwing 6 picks in the game, that's unheard of for him), scoring off the opening kick-off, and a punt return within the first 7 minutes of the game, the Chargers still had to rely on two missed field goals by the normally automatic Adam Vinatieri to eek out this victory. There's something seriously wrong with that team. I still think they'll rise above the mess that is the AFC West and win their division, but they'll look as ugly as Norv Turner's face while doing it. Indy has suffered two tough losses in a row now, but they ought to get better fast with KC coming to town. Losing Freeney for the season is a crippling blow, though, and puts Pittsburgh on the inside track to be the 2 seed in the AFC and the team most likely to lose by at least 3 TDs in Foxboro come January in the AFC Championship game.

San Francisco 0 Seattle 24 (I picked Seattle -9.5) BS Picked SF
Woohoo! Meh, I said this would be unwatchable, and judging from the recap, it was. I don't care about either of these teams, and don't think either of them are going anywhere, other than SF has a chance of handing the already loaded Pats the #1 pick in next year's draft. Way to go 49ers!