Sports

[gardenman]

We start out this week with Denver at Cleveland. Baker Mayfield is more than a bit dinged, so I'll take the Broncos in this one.

The Panthers go to play the Giants at Tear Up Your Knee Field. Uh, someone has to win. I guess I'll take the Panthers, but they're not playing good football right now. They may still be better than the Giants though.

The Jets go to New England in a showdown of the kid QBs. Mac Jones has looked very good lately so I'll go with the Patriots here.

KC goes to Tennessee. I'm not optimistic about KC's chances in this one. Their defense is a bit porous, and Derrick Henry is a beast. I'll go with Tennessee here.

The WFT go to Green Bay. Not a good matchup for the WFT. They've forgotten how to play defense and are going against one of the best QBs of all time. I'll take Green Bay.

Atlanta goes to Miami. Neither team is playing all that well, but I'd prefer Miami loses so I'll pick Atlanta.

The Bengals go to Baltimore. This should be a pretty good game. I'll take the Ravens as Lamar Jackson is pretty much an unstoppable force.

The Lions go to LA to be slaughtered by the Rams. I'll take the Rams.

The Eagles go to Vegas to take on the Raiders. Having last played on Thursday night, the Eagles had some extra time off and hopefully, they got their heads out of their nether regions and will play better football. I'm taking the Eagles in a close one.

Houston goes to Arizona. The Cards are arguably the best team in the NFC. The Texans, well, they're a football team. I'll take the Cards.

Chicago goes to Tampa Bay. (Seriously? Our 4:30 games are Houston/Arizona and Chicago/Tampa? Okay, so they're not the best games.) Tampa should roll over Chicago without much trouble. I'll take Tampa.

Sunday night has Indy taking on the Niners. The Niners are coming off a bye and should be rested and ready, but I'm going with the Colts. 

And finally, New Orleans takes on the Seahawks. I guess I'll take the Saints. 

Not the best matchups this week. The KC/Tennessee and Baltimore/Cincy games are likely to be the best.

[gardenman]

In the NFL circle of life, Eagles tight end Richard Rodgers got cut, had signed with the Cards, then they traded for Zach Ertz, so they cut Rodgers, so the Eagles resigned Rodgers. We're getting a bit tight end heavy with Dallas Goedert, Jason Croom, Jack Stoll, Tyree Jackson, and now Rodgers. 

Edited to add: And I forgot Noah Togiai is also back with the Eagles. So, that's six tight ends available. 

[Spurt]

WOW!!!  This NFL season is going by way too fast---Lets see what this weekend's games will hold---

BRONCOS VS BROWNS---With Baker Mayfield's injury status in question, it makes this game a bit difficult to pick.....Both teams need this game in their respective Divisions so as not to fall behind the current leaders.....The Broncos seemed to have put up more of a fight than the Browns did, and one reason is the injuries seem to be piling up for the Browns....Ill reluctantly go with the BRONCOS even though when healthy the Browns have more talent....

PANTHERS VS GIANTS---Both teams are struggling at the QB position in particular.....Ill go with the PANTHERS better defense and coaching staff!!

JETS VS PATRIOTS---The PATRIOTS are the better organization as a whole......The Jets havent had a successful season and haven't made the playoffs since 2010....The PATRIOTS seem to be the ones who are headed in the right direction!

CHIEFS VS TITANS----Beating the WFT shouldn't be considered much of a success.....The Titans ended up with a win against the Bills, one of the top teams in the NFL!!! And the Chief's defense will struggle trying to stop Derrick Henry.....Looks like another WIN for thoseTITANS!!

THE WFT VS THE PACKERS! ---What can I say--- the WFT continues to struggle along the D line and in the secondary....and injuries on the offense are taking their toll----Heinicke needs to use his mobility more thats his strength!!!  And the WFT needs to play smarter and  STOP all the penalties and learn how to tackle   .....Meanwhile the Packers continue to R*E*L*A*X, and rely on Aaron Rodgers and will pick up another win...PACKERS roll!

FALCONS VS DOLPHINS----Getting beat by the lowly Jaguars says it all.....Falcons aren't much better beating the Jets BUT they have the better QB---FALCONS should win!

BENGALS VS RAVENS----This should be an interesting game...QB Burrows is the real deal.but the Bengals need a few more tweaks to their roster to match the RAVENS who I pick to win---Lamar is on a mission!

LIONS VS RAMS----The Lions have tried and come close but still no wins---The Rams need a win to stay close to the Division Leader, the Cardinals.....RAMS all the way!

EAGLES VS DA RAIDERS!!!  A change in the head coach can result in a team either falling apart or taking an us against the world attitude and last week the Raiders took the positive road and put the "scandal" behind them and moved forward with a WIN!......The Eagles followed the pattern of the rest of  the teams in the NFC Least and lost (except for the Cowboys) although the Eagles did make a comeback and kept the game close....But I gotta go with THE RAIDERS at home!

TEXANS VS CARDINALS---The Cardinals are HOT, the Texans are NOT!!!  CARDINALS for the WIN!

BEARS VS BUCS---As Aaron Rodgers said "He owns Da Bears" and I think Tom Brady OWNS rookie QBS---The BUCS!

COLTS VS 49ERS--- It looks like Wentz may finally be getting acclimated to his new team....meanwhile the 49ers seem to be sinking further behind in their Division....Im going with the COLTS!

SAINTS VS SEAHAWKS---Without Russell Wilson the Seahawks have no chance especially with a poor defense.  Going with the SAINTS!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

[grandma r]

@gardenman   Thanks for your hardwork.  I appreciate your updates on the NFL.

As for the Eagles trading Zack Ertz.....Big mistake! Aside from his talent on the field, this trade leaves the locker room without leaders.  Fletcher and Jason are the only ones left.  Without Brandon Graham,  Malcolm Jennings and company who is going to fire up the team and call out those not doing their jobs???

Play calling is suspect.  Imo, the coach and QB aren't able to adapt; youth and inexperience, especially at this level.

Unless this team has a major overhaul, I'd be surprised if they even win 2 more games.  Sad!

[gardenman]

@grandma r 

You're way more pessimistic than I am. The team hasn't played well. Hurts has missed a lot of open receivers. He knows it, the coaches know it. The play calling has not been great. It's easier to fix a QB not seeing an open receiver than having receivers who can't get open. Our receivers are getting open. Route design and concept have been okay, generally.

Hurts says we don't see what he sees. What he sees is a wall of very tall offensive linemen. Hurts is generously listed as being 6'-1" (he's probably between 5'-11" and 6'-0".) Jordan Mailata is 6'-8". Lane Johnson and Landon Dickerson are 6'-6". Kelce is the shortest o-lineman at 6'-3". When you've got a shorter QB you need to establish throwing lanes for him. He's not going to see over those guys. If he can't see a receiver, he can't throw the ball to a receiver. The o-line has to know where the ball is supposed to go and try to clear a throwing lane for the QB.

The upcoming schedule favors the Eagles also. We lost to the Super Bowl champion Bucs, the Cowboys who are on a roll, the Niners who are pretty good when they want to be, and the Chiefs. Those aren't pushover teams. We have the Raiders this week. That's a winnable game. Win that and then we've got the Lions. It's hard to lose to the Lions. The Chargers, Broncos, and Saints are up next. One to two wins are possible there. Then the Giants, Jets, WFT, Giants and WFT again. All five games are winnable. Then we finish with the Cowboys.

We're at 2-4 now having lost to four good teams. Let's say we beat the Raiders and Lions. We're then at 4-4. If we get one win out of the Chargers, Saints and Broncos we're 5-6. Let's say we take four of the five winnable games against the WFT, Giants, and Jets. We're at 9-7 heading for the Cowboys for the finale. The Cowboys will likely have a playoff spot wrapped up if they keep playing like they are, so they may sit their starters. We could end up 10-7. That's not a bad first year for a new coach and kid QB. Sneak in another win here or there and you're looking at 11-6 or even possibly 12-5.

I had this Eagles' team pegged for between 7-10 wins this year. I didn't really think the WFT and Giants would fall off the cliff like they have. I'd assumed they'd be as good if not better than they were last year. They're not. Right now, I'm kind of in the 8-9 to 11-6 range for Eagles wins. The Lions, Jets, GIants, and WFT are pretty beatable these days. That's six wins right there and gets us to 8-9. Sneak in a win against the Chargers, Broncos, or Saints and we're at 9-7. Add in a Cowboy win and we're at 10-7.

Things aren't as bad as many would like you to think. Playcalling and play design need to be improved. Rolling Hurts out of the pocket gets the o-linemen out of his field of view. Designing plays to give Hurts a clear look at his receivers would help. Hurts also needs to trust what he sees more and just throw the ball. We need to get back to running the ball and punishing defenses. The things that could have been a disaster haven't been.

We've beaten the teams we were supposed to beat and lost to the teams we were supposed to lose to. All in all, I'm a little more optimistic about things going forward. 

As to leadership, the players love Hurts and Devonta Smith (who they call Smitty.) Kelce is a beast who will call out anyone not doing their job. The leadership is okay. We lost by six to the Niners and six to the Bucs. We were within one score of winning those games. Things didn't go as well with the Cowboys or Chiefs, but they're trampling everyone. Things aren't as bad as they look right now.  Win this week and next (Raiders and Lions) build some momentum going into the Chargers, Saints, Broncos. take one or two there and the media critics will be advising you to buy Super Bowl tickets. (Don't believe them. The Eagles can make the playoffs, but they won't last long if they do. They're not good enough yet, but in a year or two....)

[gardenman]

John McClain is saying he thinks a trade of Deshaun Watson to the Dolphins could happen this week. The Dolphins seem determined to get him and attempts to get other teams bidding for him seem to have failed, so he could be right. We will have to see. The Dolphins have the Niners first-round picks in 2022 and 2023, plus their own 2023 pick, so the three firsts is doable. Supposedly the Texans turned down three firsts and three thirds not too long ago, so we'll have to see if the Dolphins offer up more.

[gardenman]

It sounds like Tua is going to Denver for picks that the Dolphins will then bundle with Dolphins' picks for Watson. That complicates matters and requires trust between GMs. The Dolphins won't want to trade Tua to have the Texans then back out. That gets messy. These three team trades get complicated and require trust between the GMs. As a rule, GMs don't trust one another. It's getting interesting.

[gardenman]

Whispers now have a bidding war breaking out over Tua between Denver and the WFT. Interesting if true. Tua has potential.

[grandma r]

@gardenman. I like your optimism.   I'd love them to win more games.  The O line is big; they're supposed to be.  I think Hurts takes a bit long to release the ball giving the defense to swarm.  In addition,  t hff e Birds do not have a decent running game.  Miles keeps running east/west because he doesn't have the blockers to turn the corner and race down field.  Smith has been a bright spot.

My biggest concern are the stupid, unnecessary penalties!!  Players need to be held accountable for their juvenile actions.  I think there should be monetary fines in the locker room. Repeat offenders should have their fines doubled or tripled.  The money can be donated to the charities that the Eagles support.  Sportsmanship starts with the peewee.  Kids are taught how to act.  Seeing these professional athletes taunting, taking cheap shots, etc is a black eye on the sport.

[gardenman]

According to some reports, the Eagles and Panthers have jumped back into the Deshaun Watson auction to keep the Dolphins company. How much of that is real and how much is being leaked to try and drive up Watson's price is still very much up in the air, but it now looks like Houston is trying to get things done before the trading deadline. I'm hearing more of Tua going to the WFT than Denver now.

The Eagles had reportedly made an offer in the offseason that would have moved Dallas Goedert along with multiple picks to the Texans for Watson, but Watson refused to waive his no-trade clause to come to the Eagles, He still seems to prefer the Dolphins, and I suspect the leaks are designed to try and get the Dolphins to up their offer. We'll find out more in the coming days.