By Bob Bonett
First of all, thank the heavens it is a bye week for the Jets. For the first time in six weeks, I can go to sleep Sunday night without crying into pillow.
Second of all, the Patriots are going 19-0, save one condition—which I’ll get to in a second. I know they weren’t overly impressive in beating the Colts with Brady proving he is human and some holes showing themselves on the defensive side of the ball. The fact of the matter is, though, that this team will be so afraid of losing after witnessing the wrath of Bill Belichick this week that no other team will come close to beating them this year.
Unless the Pats draw the Chargers in the AFC Championship game.
Before you all go ballistic, telling me how Philip Rivers has looked putrid behind center, their wide receiving corps is well overrated, they just loss the Vikings and LaDainian Tomlinson is a shadow of his old self, here me out.
The SuperChargers are sitting pretty right now. Any pressure on them to perform well this year has completely vanished. They are considered an average team whose defense is sub-par and offense is on the decline.
Wait a second, though. These two units worked together last year to the tune of the best regular season record in the NFL. Not only that, but the anti-playoff, Marty Schottenheimer, is no longer their head coach.
Am I suggesting Norv Turner, of all people, is a savior? Absolutely not. The chips on the shoulders of San Diego are growing weekly, though.
Even though Rivers has looked like a mediocre quarterback this year, he is capable of performing well. I know he is knocked as a guy who can’t play in big games, but if his team is an underdog, there will be little pressure on him.
Chris Chambers, meanwhile, was just added to the arsenal.
Perhaps the Dolphins’ sick, twisted way of trying to beat the Patriots by sending their talent to other AFC contenders, once Chambers is on the same page as Rivers and the rest of the offense, he, Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates will be putting up similar numbers to Terrell Owens, Patrick Crayton and Jason Witten.
Let’s not forget about LT, either. Tomlinson is going to obliterate every touchdown record and go down in history as one of the five greatest running backs of all time—a prediction that I would say is pretty conservative at this point—and people have the nerve to suggest that Adrian Peterson is already better than him!
I am a self-admitted Peterson bandwagon rider. I loved him coming out of Oklahoma, I swore that he would have a huge rookie season and he is on every one of my fantasy football teams. (By the way, Adrian, thanks for last week’s
40-something point output).
The fact of the matter is, though, that so-called NFL “experts” have coined a running back on a terrible team the next Barry Sanders eight games into his career.
EIGHT GAMES!
How quickly can people possibly forget about Tomlinson’s last couple of years, specifically 2006, when he put together arguably the greatest offense season of all time.
Yes, the mantra of the Patriots is that they perform best when a chip is on their shoulder. However, when one of their top competitors is disrespected across the board, New England might be in trouble.
I’m not guaranteeing a championship for the Chargers. I can’t
promise they will even reach the playoffs.
However, if any team in the NFL can actually beat the Pats, it is LT and San Diego.
Anyway, on to the picks…
BEST BET
Detroit (-1) at Arizona: This has to be some sort of joke. The Lions beat a legitimate AFC contender by 37 points, and the next week are given points against a team quarterbacked by Kurt Warner!! Big win for the soon-to-be 7-2 Detroit Lions. Pick: Lions
GAME OF THE WEEK
Indianapolis (-3.5) at San Diego: I can’t pick against Chargers in this game after betting the house on them, but this is still going to be a thriller. I’ll go as far as to say that the Colts and San Diego will put together a more exciting game then last weekend’s Indy/New England game. That being said, San Diego will continue their rollercoaster season with a win over Peyton and company. Pick: Chargers
J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS
Quick rant: WHY IS THOMAS JONES NOT GIVEN THE BALL MORE!!!!!! Phew, feels good to get that out of my system.
THE REST
Jacksonville (+3.5) at Tennessee: That was a complete brain fart picking against Tennessee and for Jacksonville last week. I must have been on some sort of high after hearing Kellen Clemens was name the Jets’ starter. Anyway, Vince Young and company big. Pick: Titans
Denver (+4.5) at Kansas City: This is going to be an ugly game. The Broncos look terrible, and Priest Holmes—yes, that Priest Holmes—is the starting Chiefs’ running back. Let’s take the points here. Pick: Broncos
Buffalo (-3) at Miami: Somebody needs to give Losman, Lynch and the Bills more respect than three points against possibly the worst team of all time. Pick: Bills
Cleveland (+9) at Pittsburgh: This one will be fun. And by fun, I mean amusing watching Big Ben throw six touchdowns instead of just five in the first half. Pick: Steelers
St. Louis (+11.5) at New Orleans: Watch out, NFC. The Saints are as much of a contender as last year. Pick: Saints
Atlanta (+4) at Carolina: The Panthers have been laughable this year, but won’t lose to the Falcons. Pick: Panthers
Philadelphia (+3) at Washington: As always, I’ll take the Eagles to bounce back with a victory. Pick: Eagles
Minnesota (+6) at Green Bay: The Vikings schlump the Chargers, and then get six points against the Packers? I’ll take my man-crush. Pick: Vikings
Cincinnati (+4.5) at Baltimore: Here’s my guarantee of the week: Chris Henry will catch a touchdown pass in his first game back since a half-season ban. Pick: Bengals
Chicago (-3) at Oakland: Don’t watch this game. Seriously It’s going to be ugly. Pick: Bears
Dallas (-1) at New York Giants: Guaranteed to be a close game. I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that Eli might choke late, though, in the battle for the King of the NFC. Pick: Cowboys
San Francisco (-10) at Seattle: How bad are the 49ers? They are giving 10 to the Seahawks, yes, those Seahawks. Pick: Seahawks