5 Bold Predictions: NFC North

This was a tough division to analyze because there is so much talent on each and every time.  All it takes is for the light to turn on for one individual and it could turn the conference on its head.  When I look for predicitions, I try to pinpoint consistencies and inconsistencies.  Without further ado, my 5 bold predictions.

1.  Out of Jay Cutler, Matthew Stafford and Christian Ponder, Ponder will play with the most consistency.

This doesn't mean week to week he will have the best stats, but will play a role such as Alex Smith did with the 49ers.  The addition of Greg Jennings provides him a talented target in the absence of Percy Harvin.  Security blanket TE Kyle Rudolph is coming off an excellent rookie season with every intention of improving.  The consistencies I know is that Jay Cutler will always throw interceptions as will Matthew Stafford.  All Ponder needs to do is play second fiddle to Peterson and play an "Alex Smith" role and control the game.  Look for consistency out of the young ponder.

2.  Aaron Rodgers will get sacked ALOT...again.

Last year Aaron Rodgers was sacked a league high 51 times.  In an attempt to plug that hole on Rodgers blindside, OL Brian Bulaga was moved to Left Tackle.  During a workout with Vince Young, Bulaga suffered a season ending knee injury.  Not to say that Rodgers will get sacked 51 times again.  But in a division with Suh and Peppers, look for Rodgers to be sacked often.

3.  Eddie Lacy will be good, but not great.

All offseason in regards to the Packers I have been pointed to the likes of second round draft pick Eddie Lacy.  This is most likely because everything else on the Packers seems to be running fairly smoothly (no surprise there).  Let's not blow things out of proportions though.  Lacy is a second round draft pick in a pass first offense.  Will he be better than past running backs in Green Bay?  Probably.  But let's not crown him that before he has even stepped on the field.

4.  Reggie Bush will be the best running back not named Adrian Peterson

In all honesty this isn't all too bold, he only has to be better than Matt Forte and Eddie Lacy.  But I do think that Reggie Bush will have a good year for the Lions helping create some space for Megatron by coming to a team that finished 23rd in rushing last year.

5.  The Lions will finish ahead of the Bears.

In my snap judgement preseason predictions I have the Lions finishing (8-8) and the Bears at (7-9).  The defenses are not too far apart as far as talent goes and in the skill positions I trust Stafford slightly more than Cutler and Bush more than Forte

#CaptainObvious

Packers win the division

Aaron Rodgers is the best quarterback

Adrian Peterson is the best running back

Vikings will be in contention for the playoffs again

A Bad NFL Lip Reading

Take a look at this video where the audio is taken from NFL interviews and replaced with new words.

The Best QB in the NFL

The Best Quarterback in the NFL can be defined in many different ways.  It can be defined as who has the better natural ability, or who wins the most Super Bowls; by who has the clutch gene and who doesn't.  The best way to determine the #1 NFL QB is by asking this question.  If you had one "do or die" NFL game, who would you choose to be your starting quarterback?

Initially 6 quarterbacks pop into my mind.  Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Eli Manning, Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan.

#6.  The first of which Matt Ryan has been a fairly productive regular season quarterback, as well as a consistent 4th quarter quarterback.  What Ryan did last Sunday against the Panthers is what he has done time and time again in the regular season.  But that is where the issue lies.  Ryan has never been able to perform under pressure in the post-season.  The Falcons are known as the team who goes 14-2 in the regular season and ends up losing in the playoffs.

#5.  The second is Peyton Manning.  Peyton is an interesting case.  In the past he would have been higher on the list, but as of this year he has not performed as well as the other quarterbacks on the list.  Granted, both of the Broncos losses have come against undefeated football teams.  Manning has been primarily a 2nd half quarterback this year, throwing 6 of his 8 touchdowns in the 2nd half.  The biggest knock against Peyton has been his tendency to underperform in the postseason.  He only has one Superbowl despite numerous playoff appearances.  Peyton comes in 5th on the list.

#3.  3A and 3B are Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees.  There is no easy way to decipher between Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees.  Every single year, Drew Brees proves himself as a 4th quarter scoring machine, keeping the Saints in football games they otherwise would have lost.  Rodgers is an interesting case, because it is hard to decipher whether or not he is clutch quart back, solely because he has not been in very many clutch football games.  Last year in the 4th quarter, Rodgers and Brees had quarterback ratings  of 108.5 and 108.7, respectively.  The only difference is that Rodgers threwe 5 of his 7 interceptions last year in the 4th quarter.  If question were most valuable player to his team, it is Drew Brees.  If it were most gifted quarterback, it is Aaron Rodgers.  Therefore, they tie.  

#2.  Tom Brady.  Brady has won 3 superbowls and 16 out of 22 postseason football games.  10 of those 16 postseason wins have been decided by a touchdown or less.  Tom Brady came on the scene during the 01-02 season by defeating the St. Louis Rams in the Super Bowl on a last second field goal.  He duplicated that clutch performance against the Panthers a couple years later.  Tom Brady was the definition of clutch.  He defined the word clutch for all kids from ages 10-18.  There would be nothing wrong with the decision to have Tom Brady lead a football team to win one game, except for one issue. 

#1. TONY ROMO....HA!  who am I kidding....

#1 Eli Manning.  The anti-Tom Brady.  The statement always goes, "They're the best until someone dethrones them (or something like that)."  Such as is commonly done in boxing, Eli Manning took the "championship belt" from Tom Brady.  Tom Brady defined clutch and Eli has redefined it.  Last year in the 4th quarter, Eli Manning's in-game completion percentage increased from 59% to 67%.  His accumulated yards in the 4th quarter equaled 2,054 yards, which is 500 more yards than any other quarter.  FInally, 18 of Eli's 28 touchdowns came in the 4th quarter.  There have been years where Eli has not performed in the regular season as well as he could or should have.  However, when the game is on the line, Eli Manning knows how to win.  He has a knack for it.  He's done it on the biggest stage in the NFL, winning two SUper Bowls with game winning drives.

The difference between these quarterbacks is very small.  You can't go wrong with almost any of them.  But with the game on the line, Eli is better.  ELi has beaten Tom Brady in two straight super bowls.  His 4th quarter numbers and ability are incredible two watch.  

If there was a "do or die" football game in the NFL, Eli Manning is the best choice to lead that team to victory.

NFL Picks

THE FLIGHT SPORTS TALK RADIO GAME OF THE WEEK

BEARS @ COWBOYS

The Chicago Bears are coming off a 20-6 win last week against the St Louis Rams.  The Bears are allowing 16 points per game and the Cowboys are allowing 18.  Needless to say, both teams defenses are pretty good.  This game will be a battle of "Joes vs Joes" at quarterback.  Tony Romo and Jay Cutler are both mistake and interception prone quarterbacks.  Look for a grinding, boring, but close Monday Night Football Game.

Bears 17 Cowboys 16

PANTHERS @FALCONS

Last week the Panthers began to worry me.  I picked them before the season to make the playoffs, but I am beginning to feel less confident in my pick as the season rolls along.  The Panthers offense has at times become stagnant.  Newton still has a lot way to learn at quarterback and needs to grow as a leader, which is his weakest trait.  

Falcons 23 Panthers 14

PATS @ BILLS

There is no way the Patriots lose a 3rd straight game.  From the sounds of it, TE Rob Gronkowski will return, while the Bills may be without C.J. Spiller and Fred Jackson.  

Patriots 31 Bills 20

VIKINGS @ LIONS

The Vikings are coming off their 2nd win of the season, where they trumped the NFL favorite San Francisco 49ers.  Detriot has one of the leagues worst scoring defenses, allowing 31 points per game.  However, their offense counters it by scoring 29 points per game.  The Vikings defense has performed well throughout the year allowing 23 points to Jacksonville, 20 to Indianapolis and 13 to San Francisco...which in a league highlighted by offense, is very impressive.  Christian Ponder has been very consistent and impressive, thus far.  However, the Lions stand just a tad too much. 

Lions 35 Vikings 30

CHARGERS @ CHIEFS

Jamaal Charles exploded last week, taking advantage of a very porous New Orleans Saints defense. In one week Jamaal Charles took over the league in rushing.  The Chargers have the 4th best rushing defense in the league, allowing only 67 yards per game.  The Chiefs will win if Charles plays well, but don't count on him to.

Chargers 23 Chiefs 13

SEAHAWKS @ RAMS

The Rams are coming off a week where they were stonewalled by the Bears defense.  The Rams have been and will be close in every game they play this year.  The Seahawks have the best scoring defense in the league, allowing only 13 points per game.  The Rams will fall just short.  

Seahawks 20 Rams 14

49ERS @ JETS
The Jets are coming off a very sneaky win last week in Miami and they just seem to be falling apart. Sanchez is proving that his week 1 performance was a fluke.  San Francisco won't be happy about losing last week against Minnesota and will rebound this week against the Jets
49ers 26 Jets 16

TITANS @ TEXANS
The Texans proved last week and looked like the best overall team in the NFL with their win over Denver.  They average 394 yards per game, which leads the NFL.  The Titans and Jake Locker have been surprising so far this year, but the Texans will continue to cruise.
Texans 40 Titans 24

RAIDERS @ BRONCOS
The Broncos finally get to play an easier team after playing Atlanta (3-0) and Houston (3-0) in their last 2 games.  Denver made their way back into both of those games late, but could not pull them out.  Both teams have bad defenses, but Peyton Manning is better than Carson Palmer, which gives Denver a slight edge.
Broncos 23 Raiders 21

DOLPHINS @ CARDINALS
Arizona has been the most surprising team of the NFL season thus far and doesn't look to be slowing down anytime soon.  Arizona has the 2nd yes scoring defense in the league (only trailing Seattle) allowing 13.3 points per game.  Reggie Bush is questionable for tomorrow and if he plays, will still be gimpy.
Cardinals 24 Dolphins 10

BENGALS @ JAGUARS
Last week Cincinnati edged out the Washington Redskins in a shootout while Jacksonville pulled together a last second drive to defeat Andrew Luck and the Colts.  The Bengals have the 2nd worst scoring defense in the league, but Jacksonville does not have a very high-powered offense.  Cincinnati outscores Jacksonville.
Bengals 30 Jaguars 24

SAINTS @ PACKERS
The Saints have the worst defense in the league and seem to be slipping farther and farther downhill.  The Packers on the other hand have a very good defense, which has proven to be vital, because of their recent offensive struggles.  The Packers will come out with a chip on their shoulder after last weeks loss and take down the Saints.
Packers 24 Saints 17

REDSKINS @ BUCS
The Redskins are both scoring and allowing 33 points per game, which gives the Buccaneers a chance to take advantage and score some points.  However, the Bucs offense has been week to week with their scoring ability.  The Redskins outscore the Bucs.
Redskins 30 Bucs 20

GIANTS @ EAGLES
The Eagles turnovers finally caught up to them last year, when Arizona absolutely clobbered them.  Eli Manning has begun to find his offensive rhythm, which has made him one of the top 3 quarterbacks in the league through 3 weeks.  Vick can't keep playing crappy football and win.  The Eagles will get destroyed by the Giants this week.  

Giants 34 Eagles 10

THEY'RE BACK!

Thank you for putting on your big boy undies Roger.  We all knew you could do it (well, most of us).  Officials will be on the field starting Thursday night.

CELEBRATE GOOD TIMES.

The Circus Has Come to Town

Never have NFL referees been under such a microscope.  Fans, players and coaches supremely attentive to their every call and detail.  Then came as Mike Tirico correctly put it,, "The most bizarre sequence you will ever see at the end of a game."  Last night, the NFL was rudely awakened to the fact that new, or in this case "the old" referees are necessary.

With 1 play left in the Monday night football game between the Packers and Seahawks, Seahawks QB Russell Wilson was flushed out of the pocket and heaved up  a throw to the end zone.  In between 7 Green Bay players and 2 Seattle receivers, Green Bay DB M.D. Jennings leaped up and brought the ball down.  On his way to the ground Seattle WR Golden Tate tried to pry the ball out of the hands of Jennings.

Two referees both within the vicinity of the catch signaled the end of the play.  However, one referee signaled a touchback, while the other ruled it a touchdown. (See picture below)

Upon initially seeing it, the ball was caught by both people at the same time, which would indicate a touchdown to Seattle.  However, once put into slow-motion and reviewed the replay clearly shows the ball was not pried from the hands of M.D. Jennings until he had reached the ground.  (See picture)

The referees went to the replay booth to review the play.  Meanwhile, Green Bay Packers players, furious, left the field to head to the locker room.

Upon further review the referees found no indisputable evidence to overturn the call.  Due to NFL rules Seattle and Green Bay both had to bring 11 men back out to kick the extra point.  This resulted in a 14-12 win, instead of a 13-12 win, which made a difference to nobody except a handful of gamblers.

This is the last straw for the NFL replacement officials.  Not only did the referees initially disagree on the call, but they did not even get together to discuss what their decision would be.  This is an example of egregious crew work by the referees.  Then, to make matters worse, the call on the field stood.  There was certainly enough evidence within the replay to overturn the call.  The referees just didn't have the guts to overturn it.  The replacement referees are scared, spastic, and extremely fallible.

Now there's no mistake about it; These referees are under the largest microscope any set of referees have been under, but they are revealing a sickly virus that is ruining the NFL.

They are even beginning to be taken advantage of.  In Sunday's matchup between the Vikings and 49ers, John Harbaugh talked himself into two extra challenges despite having no timeouts.  This is because THE NFL REPLACEMENT OFFICIALS HAVEN'T A CLUE OF THE ENTIRETY OF THE NFL RULEBOOK.  Sure, anybody can referee a peewee league football game, and anyone with experience can referee in high school.  However, to referee in college and in the NFL, at the highest levels of competition, you need to know what you are doing, down to the every detail.

They are disgracing the integrity of the NFL.  Not to mention last night 3 of the replacement refs previously refereed in the Pac-12 and were fired for poor officiating.

The NFL needs to act on this issue and act on it now.  End the lockout.  "Dear Roger Goodell, it's time to take off your pull-ups, put on some big-boy pants and end the lockout.  Sincerely, every NFL fan."  This has gone too far.  It has come to the point where an officiating crew, not only played a part in the outcome of the game, but decided it.  It makes it terrible to watch.

This also has an effect on the players of the NFL.  Last night after the game, the Twitterverse was abuzz with players from the Packers, and other NFL teams, completely furious and flabbergasted with what had just occurred.

It is summed up best by Tom Crabtree, a Tight End for the Green Bay Packers who tweeted, "13th man beat us tonight." (Read other tweets here.  http://www.espn.go.com/sportsnation/story/_/id/8422575/web-explodes-replacement-refs-call-packers)

When asked about the call after the game, Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers responded saying, "It was terrible."  He proceeded to say that he would probably be getting fined by tomorrow morning, but the officiating was terrible.

The Packers anger was likely strenghtened with comments made by Golden Tate.  The reporter-player conversation goes as follows,

 "Did he catch the ball? 

"Yes, I think so." 

But replays seemed to show Jennings getting to the ball first. 

"Maybe he did, but I took it from him." 

What about that push-off? 

"I don't know what you're talking about. I just went up and competed." 

Tate, like everyone else, initially had no idea what had happened. 

"I didn't know if they called touchdown, interception, incompletion," Tate said. "I didn't know what was going on." 

Even wide receiver Golden Tate, who has received glory for hauling in the winning touchdown pass, was clueless as to what the heck was going on.  

And it wasn't just the end of the game.  The referees were consistently bad throughout the game.  There were a total of 24 penalties resulting in 245 yards.  

This is not something that has only affected Green Bay, it is affecting every single team in the league.  

Even Seahawks Tight End Heath Miller (who might be a minority voice of reason after this game) said in a tweet that the officiating was sorry and he would do anything to have the old officials back.  

Numerous players have said that they would be fine if Goodell took the fines they will or would receive from complaints to pay the officials.

This goes beyond Green Bay and last night's loss.  It is affecting every team in the NFL, and putting a black mark on a very treasured American sport.  And if nothing changes, the black mark is only going to get worse.

Something needs to change.  Roger that Goodell?  Change the officials.  Put your pride aside and give the fans good football.  

The NFL circus has come to town, Goodell is the ring leader, and the officials are making one enormous joke of it.  

College and NFL Picks

My college picks I posted on Twitter go as follows

South Carolina 27 Missouri 17
Score was: South Carolina 31 Missouri 10

FSU 40 Clemson 31
Score was: FSU 49 Clemson 37

TCU 21 UVA 13
Score was: TCU 27 UVA 7

Michigan 33 Notre Dame 24
Score was: Notre Dame 13 Michigan 6

Georgia 31 Vanderbilt 21
Score was: Georgia 48 Vanderbilt 3

Kansas State 38 Oklahoma 34
Score was: Kansas State 24 Oklahoma 19

Oregon 54 Arizona 45
Score was:

Penn State 27 Temple 7
Score was: Penn State 24 Temple

NFL Picks for Today

Had Giants 28 Panthers 17 on Thurs

Rams 27 Bears 20

Bills 30 Browns 21

Bucs 35 Cowboys 27

Lions 26 Titans 10

Colts 24 Jaguars 17

Dolphins 20 Jets 14

49ers 30 Vikings 13

Saints 31 Chiefs 21

Redskins 30 Bengals 28

Falcons 24 Chargers 23

Texans 17 Broncos 13

Steelers 28 Raiders 9

Patriots 30 Ravens 27

Cardinals 27 Eagles 24

Packers 27 Seahawks 17

I am 17-14 on the year so far.

The Flight 09-14-12

Missed the first 3 minutes or so.  Still improving.  Click on the Blog post title above to listen.  Hope you enjoy it.  Feedback appreciated.

NFL Predictions 9-16-12

Bills 31 Chiefs 30

Saints 34 Panthers 17

Cincinnati 27 Cleveland 7

Colts 20 Vikings 17

Texans 37 Jaguars 6

Dolphins 23 Raiders 21

Patriots 27 Cardinals 14

Ravens 31 Eagles 17

Redskins 24 Rams 21

Chargers 17 Titans 13

49ers 26 Lions 17

Bucs 27 Giants 24

Cowboys 38 Seahawks 14

Jets 24 Steelers 23

Falcons 35 Broncos 31

1961 CHAMPS!

1961!  A wonderful football year.  The league was a solid 14 teams, capped off with a 37-0 Super Bowl win by the Green Bay Packers.  Unfortunately, for some reason the Houston Texans are living in the past.  Sorry Houston, you don't exist for another 41 years.

Nice try Houston.

Funny Video Friday

Guys, the circus has come to town.  The NFL has replaced referees in the NFL due to a strike.  Let's just say if this happens in the regular season as consistently it has in the preseason...alot of people are going to be ticked off.

The fun begins at 1:42.  You can hear the outcries of millions of fans based strictly off of the man recording and the fan's reaction.

The second video comes from a football game last night between Towson and Kent State.  This very well could be the future Not Top Play of the year, on ESPN.  I'll let the video speak for itself.

Talkin' Tebow and GQ

About a week ago an article was released via Yahoo Sports, with a story about Tim Tebow.  Now, if you know me at all you know I am a supporter of Tim Tebow as an NFL quarterback.  He is certainly not the most gifted NFL passer, but the man finished last year with a personal winning record, turned around a city, and won a playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.  Because of the drama he brings to the sport, ESPN has decided to have a love affair with Tim Tebow, forgetting about other sports such as baseball and even the Olympics at some points.  

As all sports fans know, Tebow is a very vocal supporter of his faith in Jesus Christ.  Now maybe that bugs you as a fan, maybe you are tired of hearing about it.  I myself am a Christian and that is part of the reason I enjoy seeing him do well.  However, avid supporters of Mr. Tebow have placed him on a pedestal, to where they are worshipping him almost as if he were God.  

Take a look at this Denver Broncos fan below in a picture from last year.  

I will be the first one to tell you that Tim Tebow is not Jesus, and no one should think that.  Just because Tebow is a Christian, and carries a good attitude around with him wherever he goes, does not mean he has everything together.  As I Christian I know it is impossible to lead a perfect life.  Everyone sins, Adam and Eve insured that in the Bible.  We have a nature to sin.  And by placing Tebow on this pedestal, we have created a gap for ourselves to be severely disappointed when he makes a mistake.  And I believe Tebow made a mistake when he posed for GQ magazine.  

Last week pictures were released from Tebow's photoshoot with the magazine GQ.  Now it's not that Tebow is shirtless, that's not my complaint.  I wouldn't care even if he were wearing a dress.  This is the photo that bothers me.  

Now for those of you who don't know, Tebow is posing in the same way that Jesus did when he died on the cross.  Jesus died with his arms out and feet crossed, nails through his hands and feet with a crown of thorns on his head.  I fear that this is a huge mistake for Tebow.  Tim Tebow, by taking this type of picture, is encouraging the fans who have compared him to Jesus.  Honestly, I find it a bit arrogant and selfish.  Yes, he is a popular player but to take the same pose as Jesus did when he died?  Where is the humility from all of the press conferences? The honor showed to his Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ?  In the Bible when Jesus' disciple Peter died and hung on a cross, he asked to be hung upside down as to honor Jesus.  

Now Tebow is not on a cross, and not being crucified, but then intention of the picture clearly was to put him in the same pose Jesus was in.  

I don't believe this was smart by Tim.  It has opened up for more criticism than he already has and needs.  As I stated earlier, everyone makes mistakes.  It was only a matter of time before Tebow made one.  I have not yet seen if Tebow has responded, but will be interested in reading his response to the picture.  

Everybody makes mistakes, I make mistakes, we are all sinners, whether Christian, non-Christian, gay, straight, black white, we are all sinners.  We all fall.  Nobody should be painted in the same picture Christ was.  Nobody has it all together, and Im afraid by taking these pictures, Tebow is encouraging the people who look up to him that way and setting himself up for failure.  

In all seriousness, I am still a fan, and hope he does well in the upcoming NFL season.