NFL In Review: Week 5

Cue the music, it’s time for another review of the weekend in the NFL….

The Terrell Owens road show returned to Philadelphia yesterday, and the Eagles were more than ready. T.O. played, and didn’t contribute much, but there were a lot of big plays on defense, especially for such a high-scoring game. The last series was particularly bizarre, as Drew Bledsoe threw a 50-yard pass on 4th and 14, and the Eagles were called for pass interference on Terry Glenn. This gave Dallas 1st and goal at the 6, down 31-24 with :34 to go. Two plays later, the Eagles’ Lito Sheppard intercepted a pass in the end zone and ran it back 102 yards for an Eagles touchdown, turning a potential tie game into a 38-24 Eagles victory. Bad for the Cowboys, good for my fantasy team.

The Colts nearly lost to the lowly Titans. Vince Young had a pretty good game, and the Colts needed two second half touchdowns to win, 14-13. Watching this, you’d never know one team was 5-0 and the other was 0-5.

The Washington Redskins went into the New Jersey Meadowlands, and played an ugly game against the New York Football Giants, losing 19-3. There’s not a whole lot notable about this game. I was more interested in the Colts game on CBS.

Break up da Bears! They’re 5-0, after whipping Buffalo, 40-7. They had the Bills skunked before a late-game touchdown by Buffalo. The NFC road to the Super Bowl leads through Chicago.

Don’t look now, but the Carolina Panthers have now won 3 in a row, after defeating the Cleveland Browns. The Panthers were helped by an interception return for a touchdown. Cleveland is looking competitive, but coming up just short on the scoreboard.

The Detroit Lions only gave up 26 points to Minnesota, after giving up 40+ points to the Packers and Rams. Problem is, they only scored 17. Word to the Lions: You’re supposed to break 30 when your defense improves its performance like it did.

Reggie Bush has been a factor for the Saints all year. Yesterday, he scored his first touchdown, on what proved to be a game-winning punt return against Tampa Bay. The Bucs have still not won a game. Maybe they should go back to the Creamsicle orange jerseys.

As I expected, the Packers had a little bit of a shootout with the Rams, but lost, 23-20. The Rams are 4-1. I’m not sure how legit that is, but you have to beat the teams you play, and the Rams are doing that.

The Patriots took care of business against Miami. The Dolphins are not a good team. They’re not as bad as the Raiders, but they’re not very good. The Pats will win the AFC East in a walk.

The Matt Leinart era has begun in Arizona. Unfortunately for him and the Cardinals, they continue their losing ways. Kansas City won its second game with backup QB Damon Huard, 23-20. The Cardinals were losers in Chicago, losers in St. Louis, and are losers in Phoenix. Maybe they should move to Bakersfield.

I thought the Jaguars would beat the Jets, but who expected 41-0? No NFL team should lose to another one by a score of 41-0. 41-0 in an NFL game is like 70-0 in college. The talent is supposed to be more spread out, and the coaches have an unwritten agreement to not run up the score. So, this wasn’t a matter of Jacksonville running up the score, but of the Jets being just plain awful yesterday. Yuck.

Speaking of yuck, the 49ers and the Raiders battled it out to see who sucked the most. The 49ers won the game, and the Raiders won the suck contest. The Raiders will win a game sometime this year, but they won’t be favored in any of them. The Niners would like to play the Raiders every week.

The Chargers broke out the AFL-era powder blue uniforms last night. The Steeler Nation invaded Qualcomm Stadium, with upwards of 25,000 Steeler fans in the house. Are there that many Pittsburgh fans in SoCal? Or, were all the flights from Pittsburgh to San Diego full? Those folks left disappointed, though, as the Chargers came up big for the win.

Tonight’s Monday Night extravaganza brings us the Ravens and the Broncos. The Ravens have been living large, winning their first 4 games, including comebacks against the Browns and Chargers. The Broncos are at home in the mountains, though. Who knows what we’ll get..