Week 4 in the NFL
Let me start by adding to yesterday's blog about the Bears' win, because I forgot to praise the outstanding effort of LB Lance Briggs, who gets overlooked a lot more than he should.
- I still can't believe it, but the Broncos might just be real. They have already exceeded the number of victories I picked them to finish with. Oops. Denver beat an overrated Dallas team 17-10 Sunday to move to 4-0, and its schedules been pretty easy so far. It doesn't mean their start isn't very impressive. Their defense is playing out of its mind, recording five sacks against the highly-touted Cowboys offensive line on Sunday. And if you thought CB Champ Bailey was regressing, go watch the end of the game, when the Cowboys inexplicably targeted him and he was very much up to the challenge.
- Falling into the might-not-be-for-real category are the Cincinnati Bengals. Sure, they're 3-1, with a win over Pittsburgh to their credit. Let's just say I didn't come away from the weekend with more confidence in them, as they waited until 4 seconds were left in overtime to defeat a terrible Cleveland team 23-20. Carson Palmer has stayed healthy, but the problem is that he's playing a pretty average quarterback. As for the defense, it has been impressive, but giving up 20 points to that Browns offense is like giving up 50 to an NFL team with a clue.
- It is too bad that the Game of the First Quarter of the Season came down to a Mark Clayton drop and some questionable calls. Baltimore lost 27-21 to New England in Foxboro, but not without the Ravens continuing to look like one of the very best teams in the NFL. I didn't watch the game, as it went head-to-head with the Bears and wasn't televised in Chicago, but now that the Patriots appear to be rounding into form, it well could end up being the same matchup we'll see in the AFC Championship Game.
- Don't look past Jacksonville, who were my surprise pick to be a big-time contender in the AFC. Not only did the Jaguars beat still-winless Tennessee, they destroyed the Titans. David Garrard had his biggest game in ages, going 27-for-37 for 323 yards and 3 touchdowns. He's a better quarterback than he got credit for last year, when he had no receivers to throw to and a bad offensive line in front of him. Given the bond he seems to be forming with third-year wideout Mike Sims-Walker, Garrard and the Jaguars could have continued success.
- I supposed I'd at least mention Brett Favre's outstanding performance in last night's 30-23 Minnesota win over his former team, Green Bay. I'd offer more, but I didn't see much of the game, since the MDH newsroom's cable completely went out early in it. I did listen on the radio, but hearing Boomer Esiason's gushing about Favre doesn't qualify me to break down his performance. Favre did outplay his Packers counterpart, Aaron Rodgers, though I wonder if that would have been the case had the two swapped offensive lines.
