It’s our Tuesday time to reflect on the lessons of Week Eight of the NFL season.
London finally gets a good game and it’s a tie
It’s been a rough season for fans on the other side of the pond. They had a shootout between shitty teams when the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Indianapolis Colts 30-27, then they had a turnover filled nightmare game in a 17-10 New York Giants win over the hapless Los Angeles Rams.
It was a bad scene, man. But then Sunday UK fans were blessed with two teams actually contending for playoff spots in the Cincinnati Bengals and Washington Redskins. And befitting the perfect ending for a culture that loves soccer, the game ended in a 27-27 tie. Or, as EIC E.J. Garr told me, “a draw.” Like that is even a thing.
The Brits got a ridiculous performance form Kirk Cousins who completed 38-of-56 passes for 458 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Jamison Crowder caught nine passes ofr 107 yards and a touchdown, Jordan Reed had nine catches for 99 yards and a touchdown and Vernon Davis had five catches for 93 yards.
On the Bengals side, Andy Dalton was 27-of-42 for 284 yards, a touchdown and an interception. A.J. Green caught nine passes foe 1201 yards and Tyler Eifert, in his first significant action of the season, had nine catches for 102 yards and a touchdown.
It was a fun, exciting game, which soccer fans probably aren’t used to, but with a result that they are. It was a fitting end for a three-game London stint.
The NFL finishes up its international slate on Monday night, Nov. 11 with the Houston Texans taking on the Oakland Raiders.
The Patriots have an easy path to home field in the AFC
The Buffalo Bills were in no real danger of being a legitimate threat to the Patriots with Tom Brady at QB, but getting past the Bills is a milestone in itself for New England. Looking ahead at their schedule, there are only two teams that will be within a touchdown against the Pats when the lines come out. And there’s not a team, even the Denver Broncos at home, that will be favored over New England.
The only two realistic tests the Patriots have are the Seahawks next week at Foxboro, then Denver on Dec. 18 at Mile High. They could lose both those games and still finish the season 13-3.
Now, the Pats usually drop a game or two to an AFC doormat, so they might lose at the New York Jets on Nov. 27, but the road is still wide open. A victory over Seattle Sunday all but guarantees a 13-3 record in a year where Tom Brady missed the first four games. That’s pretty damn impressive.
0-16 gets more real for the Browns every day
While it’s easy to see the Patriots closing out the season strong, that can’t be said for the Cleveland Browns. Just as the Pats will be favored in every game by at least six, the Browns are looking at the exact opposite sportsbook odds. The opening line for the Cowboys’ game Sunday is +7 and by gameday, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it at +9.5.
Just looking at Cleveland’s remaining schedule, it’s hard to see a win barring a fluke play or bedshitting by their opponent. Their best chance is probably at Baltimore on Nov. 10, which I would imagine the fanbase would find pleasing. Plus, the Browns were up 20-0 on the Ravens in the first half the last time they played. The Chargers on Christmas Eve is another possibility, but games against the Giants, Bengals, Bills and two against the Steelers with Ben Roethlisberger back don’t look promising.
And that final game, Jan. 1 at Heinze Field with a Steelers team fighting for playoff positioning is a guaranteed ass kicking. If the Browns come in 0-15, it’s happening.
It makes you wonder, if the 1972 Miami Dolphins pop a bottle of champagne when the last undefeated team loses, do the 2008 Detroit Lions shotgun a Pabst Blue Ribbon when the final winless team gets a victory? They should.
