Games I saw (some of):
Rams 26-17 Seahawks
The NFC West is gonna be a crapshoot every week. Rams floundered til halftime, looked ready to take over in the 2nd half. Then Russell Wilson banged his finger (let's just say, if I was in the grocery and I saw a carrot that looked like that, I wouldn't buy it, I would put it back and look for a different one), and in came Geno Smith. Geno Smith! Totally forgot that dude existed (makes me wonder about all the 2nd string QBs out there that will eventually appear this season--is Blake Bortles still around?) and he seemed to throw the Rams D off guard, because he marched right down the field on them, keeping the game alive. Felt like he was gonna do it again, but the WR fell down and it turned into an interception and FG and the comeback was done. Oh well, still kinda fun game. (So in the NFC West, always take the road team?) The Rams were better for longer stretches, they deserved the W. The Seahawks (like the Saints?) are an up/down team that can look good and then awful right quick.
Packers 25-22 Bengals
Fun game! I really didn't think this was gonna be the game I tell my grandchildren about but the "missed FG game" is gonna be an all-timer. Can't tell you how shocked I was to exclaim, 'Oh shit, he missed it' over and over and over (and over). Even when the teams bog down and can't get into the end zone (still waiting for the Packers to put a decisive drive together whenever they want, they have moments but they sputter a lot--and if their PK is gonna play like this, that might mean some L's!), this game still provided all the thrills and chills you're looking for in pro sports entertainment. (Killer Saturday followed by a killer Sunday, this is why God invented football)
Browns 42-47 Chargers
Fun game! (If this game had a hook-and-lateral, we'd be sending it to the Smithsonian) Non-stop action like a college game. I didn't even think the defenses played poorly, but neither D could overcome big plays. Baker Mayfield: he runs at exactly the right time, doesn't overdo it, deftly avoids sacks, turns losses into gains but knows that isn't what his game is built on; I like Mayfield, not top tier but probably top ten. Chubb and Hunt were both awesome in this game (think there's trade interest in Beckham? I think he's in 'change of scenery' mode)And Herbert is really quite the maestro, he just seems to know what he's gonna do at all times, patient like young Roethlisberger, moves around the pocket like Josh Allen or Mahomes, properly cautious with the ball like a smart backup, all-around kind of a more limber Andrew Luck, he's good, this guy's really good. The Browns have only lost to the Chiefs and Chargers (not bad); the Chargers have only lost to the Cowboys (and even that was a bit of fluke of penalties). I'd say after the Bills these are the next two best teams in the AFC, right?
Giants 20-44 Cowboys
I didn't have much faith in NYG's ability to hang with the Cowboys but after Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley both got hurt, it was set up for the Cowboys to run it up in the 2nd half. And, yeah, that's what happened. Another good W for the Cowboys, they continue to impress on both sides of the ball. Game effort from the Giants (hope they like moral victories, that's probably all they're gonna get this year).
Bills 38-20 Chiefs
Oh, as a Bills fan, this was a joy to watch--even the hour-ish rain delay didn't slow down the Bills momentum and I enjoyed every second of it. I was concerned about the Bills defense, which has looked really good all season but hasn't played anyone good, so for them shut down Tyreke Hill, lay some Longest Yard-type hits on Kelsey and Edwards-Helaire (oof, that dude got crumpled), and continually get after Mahomes in a game the Chiefs really kinda needed to win, I'm no longer concerned, I'm convinced: oh shit, this team is good. They even overcame dumb penalties to more or less dominate the 2-time reigning AFC champions. The Chiefs have now lost to the Ravens, Chargers and Bills (re: their three main competitors in the AFC), so they've dug themselves a hole here. I'm still convinced they're the best team, they just need to be a little more thoughtful about their play, get back to the boring basics to reestablish Tyreke and they'll get back to destroying everyone before you know it. The Chief D didn't look so hot but I'm chalking that up to the Bills playing with serious purpose, so just a bad beat, as far as I'm concerned. Standings-wise the Chiefs are falling to the middle of the pack but once their schedule loosens up and they tighten up their play, they'll still be really good come playoff time, I have no doubt. As for the Bills: this was a message game and the message was received all across the conference. The Bills get to feast on the Dolphins (worse than we thought), the Pats (up and down but occasionally kinda awful), and the Jets (the Jets Jets Jets), the AFC South (I'd say that's 3 wins and whatever the Bucs show up with), so feels to me like the path to Super Bowl goes through Rich Stadium, right?
Colts 25-31 (OT) Ravens
In and out of this game (man, Red Sox in 4, huh?), seemed the Colts moved the ball pretty well, while the Ravens tended to stall on 3rd down. Felt like the Colts PK was money but another day, another missed FG at a crucial moment. Really good patience from Lamar to bring 'em back to tie it up and then to take them home in OT; we got thoughtful mature Lamar tonight and that equals a W.
The rest of the slate:
Jets 20-27 Falcons. London games suck, Thursday games suck, I'm not into a 17-game schedule, NFL absolutely peaked about 10 years ago and we're well into the decadent decline. (May seem like a weird place to make that comment but...look at that game, man...am I wrong?)
Lions 17-19 Vikings. 4th quarter Lions, I'm telling ya, man. They won't win but they will cover spreads. (Imagine the Herm Edwards voice: 'You play to cov-er spreads!')
Broncos 19-27 Steelers. Nice W for the Steelers, the Broncos are nice but not ready to win games on the road (felt like they had a comeback in 'em but not to be).
Dolphins 17-45 Bucs. Yeah, man, the Dolphins suck. I'm not totally won over by the Bucs yet but running it up on terrible teams is definitely something they can do.
Saints 33-22 WTF. I dunno, man, the Saints are the better team and I think they're actually pretty good, but they don't necessarily play that way every week.
Eagles 21-18 Panthers. The Panthers really probably should've won this, good effort from the Eagles. Both of these teams are moving in the right direction, the Panthers let this slip away with an abysmal performance in the 2nd half.
Titans 37-19 Jags. Yeah, okay.
Pats 25-22 Texans. The Pats had to scramble, feels like they oughta be better than that, but the scramble was successful, so props. Is Davis Mills really the QB of the future for the Texans? Really?
Bears 20-9 Raiders. The Raider offense is sputtering. How on earth are the Bears 3-2?
Niners 10-17 Cards. NFC West is gonna be a crap shoot every week. Home team but felt like they were trying to gack it up at the end.
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