The "Sports Reporters" Chime In

Week 2 Preview:

The best news coming out of Week 1 is the optimistic prognosis for Kevin Everett’s recovery. Let’s hope and pray the young man walks out of the hospital as his health allows. Throughout New England all the rage this week has been the “Videogate” controversy. There have been those who pooh-poohed the whole thing while others have been calling for Belichick’s scalp. An investigation and hearing on the matter determined that a clear-cut violation of the rules occurred, so the new Commissioner exacted his pound of flesh.

Late Thursday the Commissioner determined the following punishment:

Belichick fined $500,000.00
Team fined $250,000.00
Patriots lose their #1 pick if they make the playoffs –or—2 d & 3d Round picks if they don’t.

So there you have it. Of course, that’s not enough for the ESPN Talking Heads, who were looking for blood. Before moving on however, Patriots’ fans cannot feel but troubled by this “episode”. It simply makes no sense that an organization that prides itself on out-thinking the opposition would do something so blatant or so stupid. It just doesn’t add up. Sure, people and corporations make mistakes all the time, but to knowingly violate a rule without regard to the consequences? This wasn’t a “mistake” like jumping ahead of the snap count, this was deliberately stupid, and fans of the team are not accustomed to the team behaving that way. The PR fallout resulting from this has done nothing positive for the team. Ordinarily insightful commentators have gone over the edge talking about a “tarnished legacy” and how the team should “forfeit the game” (or how Belichick should be suspended or the team lose all its draft choices next year). People need to get a serious grip on reality out there. Fans are taking things way too seriously, and personally. By the sound of things, you’d think that Armageddon is right around the corner. Serious is what happened to Kevin Everett and a solemn remembrance of 9/11 as well as for those who sacrifice their lives so you and I can talk about silly football games. Serious is your family, not Bill Belichick. It’s just a story for the media to burn up some dead space until the next piece of fresh meat arrives for the killing. Last month it was Vick, this month Belichick, next month? So much for that, it’s over and done with.

The primary factor heading into Week 2’s games is how injuries will affect each team.

At Pittsburgh -9 Buffalo 38
Much as I hate to say, it’s going to be a long year in Western New York. Last week, a pretty large piece of the Bills’ secondary went down for the count. A trip to Pittsburgh can only multiply their woes. Meanwhile, Coach Tomlin’s tenure began in high style as the Steelers clubbed the Brownies into submission. Oh, can’t you hear the voice of Bobby “Blue” Bland from that ol’ jukebox in the corner singing, “I Pity The Fool…”

Projected Final Score: Pittsburgh 24, Buffalo 13.

Cincinnati -5.5 At Cleveland

Now that Charlie Frye has been shipped out of town, the stage is set for Brady (“Wonderboy”) Quinn to carry on in the great tradition of Otto Graham, Milt Plum, Jim Ryan, Brian Sipe and Bernie Kozar. Unfortunately, Wonderboy lacks the depth of quality offensive linemen the aforementioned stars had to support them. Across the line will be a Cincinnati team that comes in with all the momentum from Monday Night’s win at home. It’s a tough way for a kid to break into the big leagues. Last week the Browns were butt-ugly in their 34-7 drubbing by the Steelers. The real crime in all of this will be when Coach Crennel is shown the door.

Projected Final Score: Cincinnati 31, Cleveland 10.

Indianapolis -7 At Tennessee 46
On the surface, this one looks like a no-brainer, Indianapolis was simply overpowering in their victory over New Orleans, plus they have the benefit of three additional days of rest and preparation. On the other hand, the Titans played a tremendous game on the road, with Chris Brown picking up 175 yards on the ground against what is supposedly a tough defense. Indy’s defense held the Saints’ runners in check last week, and the pick here says that the trend continues.

Projected Final Score: Indianapolis 34, Tennessee 20.

At Carolina -6.5 Houston 38
The Panthers just might be back in the thick of things in the NFC South after an injury-plagued season in ’06. They had a nice win on the road last week and look to keep things going against the Texans, who had a surprisingly easy win last week. They held Larry Johnson in check and held KC to 219 total net yards. The Panthers will present some problems for the young Texans. It appears as if the high-flying Delhomme-to-Smith connection is working again and DeShaun Foster had a nice afternoon running the ball. Look for the Panthers to come out on top here.

Projected Final Score: Carolina 23, Houston 14.

At St. Louis -3 San Francisco 44

Neither team covered themselves in glory last week, but at least the ‘Niners were able to eek out a win at home. They travel East with one day less to prepare, and the Rams are bound to be steaming mad after their poor showing last week. Bulger and Steven Jackson had really lousy afternoons and they'll be looking to atone.

Projected Final Score: St. Louis 24, San Francisco 17.

At NY Giants -1 Green Bay 38

Last week, the G-Men went down to Big D and played valiantly, despite what the final score read. This week, they enter the game bruised and battered without a legitimate running back and most likely without their quarterback. DE Osi Umenyiora may also be out of the lineup as well.

Meanwhile, the Pack were beneficiaries of a win gift-wrapped with a big ribbon, courtesy of an Eagle group that couldn’t hold on to the football. While they’re certainly not to be considered contenders, the fact is they’re hungry and looking to prey on a wounded opponent.

Projected Final Score: Green Bay 20, NY Giants 6.

At Jacksonville -10.5 Atlanta 34.5

The simple question is how bad are the Falcons? 10 ½ bad? Joey Harrington bombed in his debut, was sacked six times and threw two interceptions. Jerious Norwood and Warrick Dunn were held to under 100 yards rushing. You’d have to believe that Coach Del Rio’s boys will come out of the tunnel snorting steam after last week’s loss. Even though David Garrard doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence, there is great motivation for the offense to perform well.

Projected Final Score: Jacksonville 23, Atlanta 10.

New Orleans -3.5 At Tampa Bay 42

Either the Saints 2006 season was a complete fluke or last Thursday’s game at Indy was an aberration. Don’t know about you, but I’m going with the latter. Every team can have a real stinker now and again. There is simply too much talent on the Saints for a repeat performance against a division rival (and a lousy one, at that). The Bucs are in line for another 4-12 year in what is most likely Coach Chucky’s final season by the Bay. The Saints have something to prove while the Bucs are trying to survive.

Projected Final Score: New Orleans 21, Tampa Bay 16.

At Detroit -3 Minnesota 42.5

Are the Lions finally ready to roll or was last week just a tease? Their offense took advantage of a normally strong Raider defense to the tune of 392 yards on offense. Kitna had 3 TD’s and 2 INT’s and he will be chuckin’ the ball all afternoon long. While it was a nice win, it also came at the hands of an also-ran. Similarly, it’s difficult to get a good read on the Vikes because of their easy win over Atlanta. The Lions will definitely be a better test. The Vikes pretty much stuck with the ground game and did well. These are two different offenses, the only difference is that the Vikes’ D-Line is much better than the Lions’ O-Line.

Projected Final Score: Minnesota 23, Detroit 21

Dallas -3.5 At Miami 40

Teams who travel to Miami in September do so at their own peril. It’s always 95º and humid as all get-out and by the fourth quarter, the opponents are sucking wind and on the losing end. It remains to be seen if Cam Cameron’s bunch can take advantage of the South Florida heat. Last week, they lost in overtime to the ‘Skins while “Them Cowboys” were in the process of pasting the G-Men, though they did allow five touchdowns. The Dolphin defense allowed 400 net yards last week, almost half of it on the ground. In a shootout, that’s one thing; but in a 16-13 loss? The Cowboys won’t score 45 on Sunday, nor will Miami score 35.

Projected Final Score: Dallas 24, Miami 20.

Seattle -2.5 At Arizona 43

Seattle had a quiet win at home while about the only thing the Cardinals did well was running the football (and getting victimized by an atrocious call at the end of the game). Matt Leinart didn’t do a whole lot to impress, while the Seahawks are in pretty good health offensively. Seattle’s defense had five sacks while Leinart was intercepted twice. If he keeps handing it off to The Edge, maybe they have a chance. Hmmm…looks like a close one in the Valley of the Sun.

Projected Final Score: Seattle 24, Arizona 21.

At Baltimore -7.5 NY Jets 33 ½
Talk about a matchup between the walking wounded, this is it. If Pennington’s healthy, there’s no way the Jets are as awful a team as they showed against New England. As far as the Ravens, who knows if Ray Lewis will be able to play this week? Same thing’s true with McNair. So it may come down to a battle of the backups in what will prove to be a nasty fight.

Projected Final Score: Ravens 17, NY Jets 14.

At Denver -9.5 Oakland 38.5

The Raiders will quickly discover that the Bronco defense is slightly better than the one they faced at home on Sunday. Denver’s offense is a work in progress with Jay Cutler. Oakland had far better going with the pass than on the ground. Meanwhile, Denver’s D held Buffalo to 184 total net yards. This is not going to be one of those old AFL Wild West barnburners.

Projected Final Score: Denver 27, Oakland 17.

At Chicago -12 Kansas City 34.5
Trying to figure Coach Herm and KC is like trying to interpret a black hole. Last week, they were putrid, boy, I said putrid (best Foghorn Leghorn imitation). Meanwhile if the Bears had even a journeyman behind the controls, they could’ve won in San Diego last week. The defense played well enough to win but Grossman? (sigh) Jason Whitlock from the KC Star put it out there as plain as day: (Paraphrasing) “Why aren’t they on the phone with Byron Leftwich’s
agent…right now! He’d be a perfect fit in their offense.” All the Bears need to do is put a tough, ball-control quarterback in place and they’d be on their way to the Conference Title game.

The problem with this one is the –12. With Rex throwing the switches…uh…no can do.

Projected Final Score: Chicago 20, Kansas City 10.

At New England -3.5 San Diego 47

Instead of video cameras with which to steal signs, staff will be outfitted with high-powered rifles in the event that the visitors get anywhere close to the red zone. The Cheatin’ Patriots under their tarnished coach will use every illegal, dirty trick in the book to defeat their unworthy opponents. The defensive linemen will be furnished with brass knuckles and the “ball boys” have been instructed to liberally apply a greasy foreign substance to the football every time San Diego gets their hands on it. All the stops have been pulled out for this one; they’ve even brought back the infamous “snow plow guy” from the eighties, just in case. Nothing is being left to chance as Coach Machiavelli prepares his sinister game plan sitting alone in a dark room with nothing but his devious thoughts.

…anyhow, that’s how the mainstream media is trying to spin it.

The last time these two teams hooked up, things didn’t go so well for the Chargers, who had their bags already packed for the AFC Championship. Tomlinson didn’t appreciate how the Patriots celebrated (Shawne Merriman imitation) and has vowed revenge. Spare us the drama, please. He was among the more vocal critics of Belichick this week. He’d be better served to shut his mouth and play football, as his team was lucky to come out with a win last week. Actually, his team didn’t “win” the game as much as the Bears “lost” it.

The Patriots have been seemingly oblivious to all the drama swirling around their coach, as they’ve pretty much been in full-bunker mode all week in preparation for what promises to be a big game. They completely dominated the Jets last week on both sides of the ball, but on Sunday they face one of the AFC’s elite. It’s a pretty good bet that San Diego is going to do more offensively than they showed against a tough Bear defense. However, after a team plays Chicago, it generally takes more than a week to get unscrambled.

New England probably won’t put up five touchdowns without the benefit of sophisticated eavesdropping equipment, so they’ll have to do things the hard way. They’ll be focused and ready to play (straight up). And don’t think for an instant that Machiavelli won’t spin this to the Patriots’ advantage. It’ll be “Us v. The World” from here on out.

Projected Final Score: New England 27, San Diego 21.