"The Stack" 9-11-17
The Stack is back on this Monday and boy I know I went out on a limb with a few of my picks, but wow, did Sunday have some really surprising performances and overall games. Time for some reaction plus a preview of tonight’s MNF doubleheader in “the stack” for today, Monday, September 11th:
Bills 21 Jets 12
The Bills had a chance to put the Jets away in the first half, but a turnover and missed field goal kept the game closer. Bills fans must have felt nervous, but Tyrod Taylor and LeSean McCoy did what they needed to do to get the victory. Have we said before it’s going to be a long year for the Jets and their fans?
Falcons 23 Bears 17
Those that were predicting this game would be closer than most people expected were absolutely right. The Atlanta Falcons offense was never really in synch for most of the game even though Austin Hooper set an NFL record with his 88-yard touchdown reception, the longest ever by a tight end on opening weekend. The Bears had a chance to win at the end, but the Falcons defense didn’t break. They only bent a lot. They have some stuff to clean up before next week against the Packers who are seeking revenge for what happened in the NFC Championship game last year.
Ravens 20 Bengals 0
The Baltimore Ravens were talking about just how good their defense was going to be this year back in the preseason. Those that didn’t heed that warning got a glimpse of what they did the Bengals Sunday. Andy Dalton looked horrendous and the Bengals offense absolutely sputtered while the Ravens did just enough on offense to get the win. I think both teams are going to be middle of the pack, but with that defense, the Ravens may be able to go places.
Steelers 21 Browns 18
Pittsburgh’s offense was not great, especially Le’Veon Bell. Ben Roethlisberger got off to a slow start, but recovered. DeShone Kizer really impressed me for the Browns. He showed enough poise to make me believe that the Browns are going to be in most games this year. They were close to knocking off their biggest rival, but just didn’t have enough to pull it off on a day when the Steelers did not look like themselves. The Steelers escaped with this one.
Lions 35 Cardinals 23
How’s this for you to begin the new year (and you’re new contract) if you’re Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford? He throws a pick six on his first pass of the season. Fortunately for the Lions though, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer really didn’t want to do anything well for the offense either. He threw what, three interceptions which has to be concerning for the Cardinals, but the more alarming news is the health of running back David Johnson who left with a wrist injury. There are conflicting reports as to how much time he could miss, but it could be up to half of the season. A devastating blow to my fantasy team as well as everyone else who took him number one or two. Stafford by the way did come back to throw four touchdowns including two to rookie Kenny Golladay who looks really good.
Jaguars 29 Texans 7
Raise your hand if you saw Blake Bortles outshine the Houston Texans quarterbacks and lead the Jacksonville Jaguars to a blowout road win. Okay, I didn’t think so. The Jaguars absolutely took it to the Texans every which way. Their defense annihilated the Texans offensive line and Tom Savage looked so bad that Deshaun Watson started the second half and led the Texans to a touchdown right away. That was all the good that came out of this game though as the team lost four players to concussions. Not good. What was good though is rookie running back Leonard Fournette who ran for over 100 yards and a touchdown. If he keeps running like that and the defense plays like they did, the Jaguars may very well be a big surprise in the division and the AFC.
Raiders 26 Titans 16
Quite the impressive road win for the Raiders. Derek Carr played well, their kicker replacing Sebastian Janikowski kicked wonderfully and the defense wasn’t bad against Marcus Mariota and company. Tony Romo also did a very good job in his color analyst debut for CBS. Sweet music to CBS executives’ ears as Romo called the game in the Music City. I am not worried about the Titans. They will bounce back just fine.
Eagles 30 Washington 17
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz came out blazing hot with two touchdowns and 116 yards on 9-for-12 passing in the opening minutes of this game, but cooled down after that. Too bad Kirk Cousins and Washington played terribly and kept squandering opportunities to get the lead. The Eagles impressed me not quite a lot but definitely more than somewhat while Washington could be showing that they are not going to go very far this year.
Rams 46 Colts 9
The Indianapolis Colts should be absolutely embarrassed today. For them to think that Scott Tolzien was a suitable solution at the quarterback position is an absolute joke. I get that they traded for Jacoby Brissett, but Tolzien had no business being on the field Sunday in L.A. against a Rams defense that attacked him whenever they could. The Rams scored two touchdowns and Jared Goff was the better quarterback by leaps and bounds. It wasn’t even close.
Packers 17 Seahawks 9
I’m having second thoughts about the Seahawks being my Super Bowl champion today after that offensive performance. Russell Wilson absolutely needs to be play better. I see why Richard Sherman is so irate with him from time to time. The defense did their part to limit Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense, but they couldn’t stop them forever, especially after Wilson fumbled the ball and set up the Packers in the red zone in what the third quarter to set up their second touchdown that the Seahawks wouldn’t be able to recover from? At least Blair Walsh made all three field goal attempts.
Panthers 23 49ers 3
I went on a limb with the 49ers being able to upset the Panthers and it came back to bite me in the butt. That was a pretty pathetic offensive performance from them. The Panthers played well defensively and it was clear the 49ers offense was overmatched. Kyle Shanahan has his work cut out for him.
Cowboys 19 Giants 3
When it was announced that Odell Beckham Jr. wasn’t playing it seemed like a pretty safe bet that the Cowboys would win this game, but I didn’t expect the rest of the Giants offense not to show up. That was completely unacceptable. The offensive line that people were worried about coming in reared its ugly head. Perhaps once OBJ comes back, things will settle down, but the Giants need to go back to the drawing board and fast. At least the defense was able to make things somewhat difficult for Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott though they were able to have some success on offense.
New Orleans Saints @ Minnesota Vikings 7:10 PM ET ESPN MNF
Adrian Peterson makes his return to Minnesota for the first time since moving to the Saints. Granted that just happened in April, but still. He’s either going to go off for 200 yards and a couple of scores or he is going to struggle to gain more than 3 yards a carry and finish with something around the 12 carries for 30 yards mark. The Vikings defense has been wanting to hit him for years. They get their chance tonight and I will take the latter that Peterson doesn’t have a great game.
Prediction: Vikings 27 Saints 19
Los Angeles Chargers @ Denver Broncos 10:20 PM ET ESPN MNF
The final game of week one. The Chargers are now in Los Angeles. I think the Broncos still have some questions on the offensive side of the football as I don’t think Trevor Siemian is the answer at quarterback, but with their defense, they will be able to do enough to get by Philip Rivers and the Chargers Monday night.
Prediction: Broncos 23 Chargers 17
Coming up Tuesday: MNF reaction plus thoughts from the weekend in college football
