Sports

[gardenman]

And we start off week ten with a less-than-thrilling matchup between the Falcons and Panthers. The Falcons are tied for the NFC South lead with a 4-5 record while the Panthers are in the basement at 2-7. The Panthers are the bigger train wreck right now, so I'll take the Falcons to get the win.

Early Sunday we have Seattle taking on Tampa Bay in Munich, Germany. Seattle's been dominating the NFC West while Tampa has been struggling. I think the real Tom Brady shows up for this game. I'll give the edge to Tampa. 

Minnesota plays Buffalo in a good one PM matchup. The Bills just lost to the Jets while the Vikings cruised to wins against everyone but the Eagles. This will be a good one. I don't think the Bills will take losing last week lightly and will look to punish the Vikings. Kirk Cousins does not respond well to the look of pressure and the Bills will show him blitzes from everywhere. I'll take the Bills in this one. It should be a good game though.

Detroit takes on Chicago. This should be a pretty close game as both teams are fairly evenly matched. Detroit's early season scoring-palooza has fizzled out a bit, but they did manage to wake up the defense. (Not pointing any fingers here, but is it just a coincidence that as warmer weather ended and Christen Harper had to put away her bikinis and don more clothes that the Lions scoring slowed?) The Bears finally figured out their kid QB could use some help and got him some in a trade. I think Detroit is the better team overall, but the field, or what remains of it at Soldier Field is a big deal this time of year. I'll give a slight edge to the Bears.

Jacksonville goes to KC in a big game for Jacksonville. This is one of those yardstick games for a young team on the rise. They'll want to go into KC and shock the world by getting the win. They're riding the momentum of last week's win. Doug Pederson will have a game plan in place that could get them the win. But I'll still pick KC. Mahomes is a magician and will find a way to win.

Cleveland goes to Miami as the countdown to Deshaun Watson's return in early December rolls on. The "We've just got to stay alive until he joins the team" plan isn't working out so well. The Ravens and Bengals are starting to pull away from the pack and the Browns may be too far gone by the time Watson joins them to make a difference. Miami's a good team and playing well. I'll take the Dolphins.

Houston heads north to "Tear Up Your Knee Field" in New Jersey to lose to the Giants. The Giants are starting to stumble a bit, but there's no better cure for a stumbling team than the Texans. This should be an easy win for the Giants.

The Saints take on the Steelers in PIttsburgh. Andy "Wait a minute? What team am I playing for?" Dalton takes on the young gun of the Steelers. The Saints are favored, but my gut says the Steelers get the win. 

Denver heads to Tennessee to clear the marijuana smoke from their lungs and fill their bellies with some good old Tennessee whiskey. They'll also get run over by the Titans. If the Titans had a good wide receiver like AJ Brown they'd likely be favorites to win the Super Bowl. Sadly, they don't have a guy like that any longer. The Titans should win this one in a romp.

The Colts and the Raiders battle it out to find out which team is the worst. The Colts made the bold move of hiring an interim head coach with no NFL or college coaching experience. There are some jobs you can learn on the fly. Coaching an NFL team may not be one of them. Josh McDaniels of the Raiders is a proven NFL head coach. (A proven bad one but proven all the same.) The winner of this game figures to move back a few slots in the draft order which will hurt them come May. So, losing could end up being a win this week. I'll take the Colts to lose the game but win the draft slot. (If the Raiders lose to the Colts, Josh McDaniels might as well not board the plane back to Oakland, LA, Las Vegas.)

The Cowboys and Packers face off in a game that looked to be a big one in the preseason. Now, not so much. The Cowboys are playing well. The Packers, well, not so much. Aaron Rodgers is throwing everyone on the team under the bus and driving back and forth across their bodies. The mood in Green Bay is not the best. Still, Aaron Rodgers is Aaron Rodgers and can pull a rabbit or two from his hat on occasion. I'm just not sure this will be one of those occasions. I'll take the Cowboys for the win.

The Cards and Rams face off to see which NFC West team is the worst. A combined six wins between the two entering week ten is not what anyone expected. The Rams are minus 42 in net points while the Cards are minus 38. (Both teams do know they're supposed to score more than the other guys right?) Pretty much everyone on the Cards hates everyone else and is fighting against one another more than for one another. The Rams are a bit more harmonious. (Not that it's hard to be more harmonious than the Cards. The Hatfields and McCoys had a more harmonious relationship than the Cards.) I guess I'll take the Rams.

The Chargers face off against the Niners on Sunday Night Football in one of the better games of the week. Neither team is atop their division, but both are hanging in there. Both could use a win to stay in the hunt. I think the Niners' defense will do enough to get the win for the Niners.

And on Monday night the Eagles try to remember what it's like to play football after a long, long layoff. Who the heck thought scheduling us for a Thursday night game in week nine then the Monday night game in week ten was smart? Eleven days with no Eagles football? The Eagles won the first matchup 24-8 and are arguably playing better now than then. The Commanders, well, they're still playing. Sort of. I guess. Things aren't going so well for them. The Eagles' net points are a positive ninety while the Commanders are at minus 33. That's a 123-point differential. That's kind of dramatic. Add in a very enthusiastic home crowd that has likely already started tailgating for the game, and this should be an Eagles win. NFC East games are often a problem, and the Commanders can put up a good fight, but I'll take the Eagles in this one.

[teganslaw]

The Colts promoted game pass specialist/assistant QB coach Parks Frazier to Offensive Coordinator. He will be calling plays. This was another unorthodox move, as others with more seniority were passed over for OC. 

I'm interested in seeing how this new coaching staff will work against the Raiders. They are inconsistent; one never knows which side of Las Vegas will show up. Will Devante Adams have a field day? Or will the team be like they were against New Orleans? 

I don't think that the Giants will have it so easy against Houston. The Eagles couldn't stop Dameon Pierce, and the Giants have injured players, so they might have problems, also. This game could be close. 

[Meowingkitty]

The Cards should never have given Kyler Murray 40 million dollars until another season or two if that. He hasn't proven himself yet. Every weekend it's the same story. 

[gardenman]

@Meowingkitty 

Yeah, the Cards did an interesting thing this offseason extending both Murray and Kingsbury for big money. One or the other made some sense, but both extending might not have been the smartest move. They don't seem to be overly happy with one another and the head coach/quarterback relationship is kind of important. By extending both guys they've tied up a lot of cash and that makes it hard to move on from either guy.

[gardenman]

NFL.com has their projected win totals for each team and I started down the list and was surprised not to find the Eagles among the top teams. When I got to the nine-win teams and still no Eagles (who already have eight wins) I took a fresh look and discovered they'd broken it into two halves, the AFC and NFC. I was looking at the AFC side. On the NFC side, the Eagles top the list at a projected 14.5 wins. That might be a tad optimistic, but we'll see what happens. There's no team on the schedule they can't beat, but there's also no one they can't lose to if they have a bad game and make a few mistakes. 

[Spurt]

Week 10---

Falcons vs Panthers ---😴ZZZZ--Another "thrilling" TNF matchup----It looks like Baker is being benched in favor of Walker......Ill take Mariota and the FALCONS for the WIN!

Cowboys beat sad sack Packers 

Seahawks vs Bucs----Tom Brady was RELIEVED to get that win last week, but the red hot Seahawks come to Tampa....remants of the hurricane should be gone....Im going with Geno Smith and the gang for another win---SEAHAWKS---anyone for Pete Carroll as Coach Of The Year???

Vikings vs Bills---awww how is Josh Allen's injured elbow, he's listed as day to day---not good news for the Bills.  Capt Kirk barely beat Washington---same ole Kirk, just a better HC.....Even without Allen if that becomes the scenario, Ill still stick with THE BILLS!!! 

Lions vs Bears---Well how bout those Lions finally got a win....the Bears keep improving week to week....Goff's girlfriend's change of attire wont help the Lions either.  I think Ill go with DA BEARS for a "W"

Jaguars vs Chiefs----What can you say...Mahomes gets it done---CHIEFS!!!

Browns vs Dolphins---Im going with TUA and the gang---DOLPINS for another WIN!  They are such a fun team to watch---my grandmother's fav team and she would be proud!

Texans vs Giants----H Town enjoy your World Series Astros because the Texans wont be winning anytime soon--Itwill be my sister's GIANTS for the win---which should make her happy!!!!  And with the cool weather we are expecting this weekend, she'll be donning her new Giant gear....

Saints vs Steelers---The Saints are struggling, Dalton isnt the answer at QB.....I'll take Mike Tomlin's team and the STEELERS at home for the VICTORY!

Broncos vs Titans----imagine not having faith in Russell Wilson vs Malik Willis, but the Titans just have a better team overall----In addition to this week's CMA Awards, the Nashville fans will be celebrating a Titans WIN!

Colts vs Raiders---Two teams with high expectations, but disappointing results----Jeff Saturday makes his deubt as HC....meanwhile the embattled Josh McDaniels tries to rally his troops.....Ill go with the better QB, Carr, for the Raiders WIN!

Cardinals vs Rams---or is that the lambs---both teams coming off close loses....A coin flip---Ill take the CARDINALS----

Chargers vs 49ers---WOW a DECENT game-finally!!! Should be interesting.....Im taking Justin Herbert over Jimmy G---CHARGERS with the "W"

Washington vs Eagles---An NFC East RUMBLE--sometimes there's surprises...but the EAGLES just have the better overall team......Heinicke will be running for his life and pressured by the Eagles D....and ya know that Eagles crowd will be in foul mood with the Phillies loss in the World Series....not cold enough for snowballs though....EAGLES ROLL ON FOR THE NFC EAST TOP SEED!!!

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! 

[gardenman]

Some Saints fans are still upset at trading away Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and now wish they'd gotten Gardner Minshew back in return for him. They aren't thrilled with their QB situation and think Minshew would have been an upgrade. I can't really argue there. Given a choice between Jameis Winston, Andy Dalton, or Gardner Minshew, I would take Minshew.

A lot of teams are going to have to sort out a lot of QB issues this off-season.  The AFC East, North, and West are pretty much set at QB (maybe not the Raiders,) but the AFC South is a big old mess at QB. The Jags are the only team that appears set at QB in that division for the long term.

In the NFC the Saints and Panthers are really desperate for a QB. The Bucs may need someone to replace Brady. The Rams might be looking at Stafford a bit more nervously. The Niners need Trey Lance to look a lot better. And the Packers will need Jordan Love to do something. The Giants will either have to overpay Daniel Jones or watch him walk. The Cowboys are entering the "Pay me or I'm gone" period with Dak again. 2023 will be year three of his four-year deal. If they don't work out an extension in 2023 then there's no incentive for him not to try free agency after the 2024 season and the Cowboys have no leverage as his deal means they can't tag him.

[soonersis]

@Spurt , no prediction for the Cowboys-Packers game?

[gardenman]

The poor Falcons, shocked at finding themselves in a tie for first in the NFC South, rolled over and played dead against the Panthers to slide back into second place. Sadly, their joy may be short-lived as the Bucs could lose Sunday morning to the Seahawks and force the faltering Falcons back into a tie for first place. Tragic! Some years you just can't lose your way out of first place. You'd think at 4-6 you'd be well back in the pack, but no. Not in the NFC South. You just can't lose enough games there to not be in first place. 

In what can best be described as a bad omen for how the locker room is going, Raiders linebacker Blake Martinez has decided to retire rather than finish out the season as a Raider. You tend to see this on teams where the locker room is in disarray. The Giants had I think three offensive linemen retire in the summer of 2021 during training camp. They saw the train wreck that the Giants were becoming and decided, "We don't need this!"

When a young veteran (28 years old) like Martinez says, "I've had it!" it's a sign that things are really, really bad in the locker room. He had his best game of the year this past Sunday and now decides to walk. It's hard to get football players to retire, so when a guy walks away voluntarily while still in arguably his prime, and coming off one of his best games, it's an omen for how bad things are in that locker room now. He's a team leader kind of guy and when your team leaders say, "That's it! I can't take this any longer!" and walk, yeah. Not good. Josh McDaniels may soon find himself out of yet another head coaching job.

[teganslaw]

The Colts-Raiders game will be interesting. Both teams are in disarray, so I have no expectations. Two top Raiders are on IR (Waller and Renfrow) and Blake Martinez has retired. This could help the Colts.

Then again, I don't know how either team will respond to their situations. I should prepare to be entertained (or not.)