NFL 2007 Week 9: AFC Edition

AFC EAST: Unfortunately, the Patriots won their stupid mini-Super Bowl and are still undefeated, although they no longer look like a completely invincible team. This happened to Oklahoma this year, as well. They were putting up fifty and sixty points a week until they were beaten, and then they had to struggle to win. It wasn’t that they were necessarily a worse team; they were exposed. I don’t think teams like the Dolphins are going to contend with New England but, after seeing defensive and offensive schemes working against them, the best teams have to feel a lot better about facing them. It’s too bad they still get to run the scores up against their own division, who still remain some of the worst in the league. Mostly, I’m glad they’re on bye this week so I don’t have to look at their stupid faces for a full week. Unfortunately, they’ll probably be shoved down my throat anyway even though there’s no game to promote. Buffalo has made some good strides to get out of the doghouse of the conference with their three consecutive wins. At 4-4, laughably, there could still be playoff hopes for them. They’re playing Miami this week, who must be incredibly desperate at this point, so the Bills shouldn’t take that game lightly, but they could easily set themselves up with a lot of momentum coming into the final stretch of the season. The Dolphins didn’t get the chance to embarrass themselves further because of their bye, but they get the chance to continue the trend this week. However, with Jesse Chapman now more comfortable in the offense and a sure nothing-to-lose attitude, they have the opportunity to surprise any of their overconfident opponents. The only team in the AFC that shouldn’t be overconfident against them, though, should be the Jets. In fact, at this point, I’d probably pick Miami in a head to head matchup against New York. They’ve lost six in a row and, while Clemens didn’t completely humiliate himself in his start, he couldn’t bring them to a win, nor will they anytime soon. Miami could come tied with them this week if they can win, which would prove to be the nail in the Jets’ coffin if it comes out this way.

AFC NORTH: Last night’s Steelers game was exactly the right way to win a blowout. It’s true, the game after the first quarter was extremely boring, but if Rothlisberger was throwing downfield the rest of the game, as Tom Brady does, the score would have been similar to New England’s rout of Washington. However, the Steelers have a little class, and shut down the offense once the game was decided. Sure, if the Raven came back to within fourteen or so, they’d have ratcheted it up again, but they knew they didn’t have to and didn’t see the point of continued humiliation. A boring game, sure, but a respectable showing from the clearly dominant team. So now the Browns are in second place. Three straight wins and some incredible luck from Derrick Anderson have made the Browns look respectable. Has nobody sent the memo to Cleveland that we’re not in Bizarro-NFL anymore? Will somebody please do so to take these overblown chumps back off the playoff radar where they belong? I’m not sure who looked worse this week: Baltimore or Denver. Both had stunningly awful games but I think, in the end, the nod is going to the Ravens. They screwed up everything they tried to do. There was a lot of luck involved in those first few drives (if you can call them that) but they made a lot of stupid mistakes, too. The defense looked old and worn out; even the young stars like Ed Reed looked older than Ray Lewis, who looked older than Vinny Testaverde this week. They’ll be in a better position when their starting corners are back on the field but, in this year’s league, it is clear that a powerful defense will not win games. If a team doesn’t have the power to put 35 up on any given week, they’re lost. No team in the conference is quite as lost as the Bengals, however. How they turned back into the Bungles, I don’t know, but that’s exactly what happened. I’d be surprised if Marvin Lewis is around next year, but they’d be crazy to remove any of that talent from the field. Maybe they’ll improve with Chris Henry back in the lineup, but they’re way too far gone now for it to make a lot of difference, especially if Chad Johnson is unable to play after his injury scare.

AFC SOUTH: Too bad for the Colts, I really was rooting for them this week. It was a good game, and it was good to see the Pats behind for a little while but there was something missing that kept them from being able to put it away. Harrison could be done for good now, and Indy really has to start thinking about a top flight receiver to step into his place. Anthony Gonzales may be that guy, but he certainly isn’t yet. If there’s any team that actually has been able to ride their defense to wins, it’s Tennessee. Vince Young is playing terribly right now, both on the ground and through the air, and is a complete non-factor at this point. LenDale White is still chugging away, both on the field and on the gravy, and is now consistently racking up hundred yard games. But it’s an underrated defense that’s putting the W’s on the board. One slip or a couple of injuries could set them off quickly into a losing spiral, though, if Young can’t get back to even where he was this time last year. The Jags lost to a suddenly rising Saints team, but played well in the process. This is still the toughest division in football right now, and they’re staying right in the thick of it even with the loss. There’s only two games separating first and third right now, which has to give Tennessee and Jacksonville a whole lot of hope for their chances down the stretch. Houston, on the other hand, seems to be falling to the wayside, but they’re steadily improving and may be a real playoff threat next year. Gary Kubiak’s definitely wishing his team was back home in the AFC West, where the Texans would pretty clearly be in first place.

AFC WEST: Oh, what a poor division this is. The whole group lost, and have been basically outclassed by all the other divisions. The Chiefs are tied for first with the Chargers at 4-4 which is terrible as a first place team but, more than that, are looking really bad in the process. Now, with Larry Johnson potentially out for a while, they’re looking at Priest Holmes to take the reigns back. It may well be a great comeback story that they can make a movie of someday, but they’re going to have to change the ending which, in reality, is going to be about a 1.5 yard per carry average and a whole bunch of losses. It’ll be like Rudy, but without the inspirational message. The Chargers are obviously the best team in the division, but it’s kind of hard to tell based on their own 4-4 record. It’s pretty hard to win when your opponent’s running back breaks the NFL rushing record, but they can take a little solace in having the longest play in league history. It didn’t matter, but it’s nice for them, I guess. The last two weeks in Denver have been about as frustrating as any that I’ve seen in my many years as a fan. All the injuries, all the drops, all the penalties are making the Broncos look like one of the worst teams in the league. If I’d have known that the Steelers game a few weeks ago would be the bright spot of the season, I’d have quit watching by now but, for some reason, I continue to watch them suck. I’m something of a masochist, I guess, but I have to think that something is going to go right for them at some point. Unfortunately, with the scary leg injury to Cutler, even though it’s not broken, it puts his health into question for the rest of the year. Patrick Ramsey looked abhorable and, better yet, his backup was their long snapper who, according to him, threw his one and only pass in a game at William and Mary years and years ago. The pass was complete, which I suppose puts him in line for quarterback. It’s pretty funny, at this point, to think of Denver’s available signing options, because they have to sign somebody. I wonder what Kordell Stewart is doing for work these days. Finally, the Raiders. They lost to the Texans and looked bad doing it. They’re worse than Denver. When you’re worse than the 2007 Denver Broncos, I don’t see much to play for.