Whaaaaa?

I don't believe it. Hours upon hours later, I still don't believe it. Did that game happen? Was it real? Did we really WIN? I'm told we did but I'm still in shock. The Pats-Colts matchup was one of the most emotional and insane experiences I have had in a long time. How?? How, Bill, how did you do it? Sunday was a roller coaster. I'd spent all week telling myself this game really didn't matter in the end. We'd still win our division with a loss, even several, and we could still even get home-field advantage in the playoffs with the right combination of events. One loss to Indy wouldn't cost us a Super Bowl. But when the game rolled around, all sense of logic went completely out of the window. Right around the end of the first half, the Boys and I had to stop ourselves for a moment. We realized that we'd never had to experience this feeling this season. The feeling of losing a game. The feeling of watching your team make, gasp!, mistakes. Coming down to earth, we laughed at how silly that concept was - how could we honestly think that we'd never have a game like this? However, as soon as the game started up again, I could barely watch. Luckily we were grilling and I could distract myself by helping to set up lunch. I needed to back up a bit. We were going to lose.


Then miraculously, the Pats started to come together. "Just throw the ball to Moss," one of the Boys kept saying over and over. And they did. And...it worked. A succession of passes to Moss, including one of the most incredible one-handed catches I have ever seen, got us down into scoring position and tightened up the score. The defense massively stepped up and forced the high-powered Indy offense to punt late in the game to get the ball back. Following another nasty bomb to Stallworth, Kevin Faulk punches it in. We're just about at two minutes left, but I fully believe that Manning can produce a score in that time, even with no timeouts. He takes the snap and out comes Jarvis Green (who isn't even a full-time starter always by the way), who sacks Manning and forces him to fumble, which we're later told is Manning's first fumble in the RCA Dome since 2005. We've got the ball and all Tommy has to do is kneel. We've won. We've won? It all went so fast. We won.


I'll hand it to the Colts - they are damn good. I think we could play them 10 times and at least 5 of those times they would win. Their defense is head and shoulders above any level its been in the current rivalry era. I honestly don't know what will happen if and when the teams meet again in what everyone expects to be the AFC Championship game. I certainly don't feel 100% sure that the Pats would win. The only thing that has changed now is that the Colts have one loss and Pats have none, and probably will get home-field for the next game. Important yes, but not a guarantee by any means. This win will of course, bump up the excitement of the possibility of going 16-0. Realistically, I am not one that believes this will happen, as much as I'd like it to. Though our most difficult test has been passed, anything can happen. We still play the Steelers and each of our division teams again. Any team can and does have bad days in the NFL and that can happen to us too. My guess? We drop one totally stupid game late in the season and end up 15-1.


Other teams did play this weekend, though I'm not sure anyone remembers, and one of them was my other favorite team, the Eagles. Watching them play last night made me remember why I am neglecting them....they stink. They just stink. They look distracted and completely lack chemistry. McNabb seems constantly nervous in the pocket and is taking too long to release the ball. They don't show the receivers on TV enough so I can't tell if this is his fault or if the problems is that his receivers can't get open. But he seems to just run away all of the time. The big Eagles story this week was Andy Reid's kids getting in trouble and a judge calling their home a "drug emporium." Now I like Andy Reid, I do. I think he's given Philadelphia nine great years and has been ultimately incredibly successful in a very hard division. However, I find it hard to believe that he can or should continue to coach this team. The team hasn't gelled and you can't blame that on anyone but the coach. The team had a pathetic offseason that didn't do anything to enhance the team. Bottom line is that as good as a coach as Reid is, I don't want him if he can't give the team 100% and its clear that he can't. Nor should he. In talking with my mom this week, she as a parent said that as tragic as this situation is, she can't help but feel like the Reid's parenting is to blame, and I agree. To have so many drugs and guns in your own home means that you aren't looking. They have younger kids in that house! To have your kids regularly traveling to the poorest and most dangerous part of a city to deal drugs means you aren't watching them. These kids are crying out for help and instead their father is running back to his team. It is just incredibly sad to watch.



On to happier things, my Favorite Things About the NFL:


1. Adrian Peterson sets the single-game rushing record. What a kid. I saw his post-game interviews and he was so humble, I was touched. We need more of him in this league.


2. Brett Favre (clearly a Favorite Things mainstay) joins Tom Brady and Peyton Manning on the 31 Teams Beat list, after another stunning game in one of the hardest stadiums to play in, Kansas City. The Pack is fo' real!


3. Cleveland and Buffalo. Two teams I am utterly enjoying right now. Cleveland is 5-3! This is a team that we thought might fire their coach mid-season. Buffalo was left for dead after being ravaged with injuries and are now 4-4. I think they'll give the Patriots a bit (only a bit) of a game when they play in 2 weeks. By the way, the best part? Brady Quinn won't play a down this year.

The State of the Babies

Ok, first thing, my big fantasy pet peeve - don't join a league if you don't want to keep up with it! The league I am in with my dad is a public league, and I won this week by playing against a guy who was starting Matt Leinart. Clearly he hasn't touched his lineup in ages. But then again, I got a win and am now tied for the lead in my division, which is always a good thing. I think I could have beaten almost anyone in the league anyway because Drew Brees had just a sick day (445 yards passing!) and a lot of them were to my man Marques Colston. Marshawn Lynch also had a high scoring day, and the Titans defense I picked up is going to definitely remain my starter. They didn't exactly have a challenge against the pathetic Panthers but they are a hard-hitting team. Going back to the Panthers, I think I might be considering sitting Steve Smith next weekend. I feel strange doing that, considering he's supposed to be a top 5 receiver, but with David Carr throwing to him, I don't know what else to do. I was completely right about Carr - he sucks no matter what city he's in. He might go down as one of the all-time draft busts. My other options are Dwayne Bowe, Kevin Curtis, and maybe Deion Branch. He'd been having a great season until he got hurt, but I am beginning to hear that he might be coming back soon.

Speaking of injured receivers, I really want Andre Johnson to come back. He'd been my star in the Boys' league and my receiving core has never recovered. Everyone I have has been adequate but not quite good enough to secure me weekly wins. This week I lost to Jon Kitna's Rabies, and pretty badly at that. Granted this team had Randy Moss, Derek Anderson, and I couldn't keep up. Peyton was average, my receivers were average, and I played Tony Scheffler at tight end while Jeremy Shockey was on bye and Denver got just slaughtered. Oh well, you can't win them all. I'm still somehow in second place but if I don't win again this week then I am in major danger of beginning to fall in the standings. A couple teams in the league are surging and I have to be able to hold steady. Come back Andre...

Random Thought of the Week

As I am sure many of you have seen or are experiencing, the film and TV writers have gone on strike. Folks, its not a good time in Hollywood. Everyone is angry and doesn't see a quick end in sight. My office is actually getting picketed. It is a very strange, depressing, and confusing experience to work in an office that is being protested. Personally, I'm angry at the situation. I'm watching people like Tina Fey go on strike. Do you have any idea how much money Tina Fey makes? A good friend of mine (and blog reader -wooo!) is from Detroit and comes from a GM family. She told me yesterday how her grandfather was part of the "sitdown strike" at GM many years ago. They were fighting for basic labor rights, i.e. to be able to receive livable wages, basic health care, and general safety in the factories. They were striking to not DIE at their jobs. Now decades later, people are using the union concept to turn their millions into more millions, ironically stepping on the little people to get it. People like me who will be paid less during a strike, or the production assistants on shows that will get shut down, just in time for the holidays. Everyone should be paid fairly for what they do, but I wish there could be a little more perspective on these issues from both ends.

I'll be pretty bored until the strike ends...maybe that means more posts...see you next time!