I'm so confused.
I thought the goal in any football game is to score ... preferably touchdowns. But I was informed by the NY Giants running back that Eli Manning told him not to score with less than two minutes left to give the Giants a 10 point lead in the game at Dallas. WHAT? Either this game has left me behind, or Eli Manning is trying to invent a new scoring system before he retires from the game.
Not scoring a touchdown on purpose. Now, I have heard of everything. All of this, on top of throwing the ball out of bounds with the opponent having no timeouts left, and stopping the clock to give Dallas 1:30 left to come back, rather than 50 seconds. And this is a man who just signed an 84 million dollar extension on his contract.
Where do we sign up to be this dumb?
The New York Giants QB did both. He told his running back not to score a touchdown at the goal line of two straight plays that would have given his team a 10 point lead with less than two minutes to go, and then on a 3rd and one, tried a pass play, and throwing it to the back of the end zone for an incompletion instead of taking a sack and keeping the clock running. As a result, Dallas needed just a touchdown and scored with seven seconds left to go, and won the game. Stupidity reigns in the National Football League.
How about Pete Carroll, fresh off the stupidest play-call to end the Super Bowl, calling for an on-side kick to start the overtime in St. Louis. Carroll obviously didn't get any smarter during the off-season,
Those are just some of the dumb stories in the first week of the 2015 season.
Thursday: Denver at Kansas City
Peyton looks old. How about this for a stat? Denver did not run a play in the Red Zone until midway through the fourth quarter, ran one play, and immediately lost five to find themselves back out of the Red Zone. Obviously their game with Baltimore did not get much play on the Red Zone Channel. Kansas City is still trying to get a touchdown to a wide-out for the first time in 18 games. Game of field goals, and my prediction is 9-6 Chiefs.
Houston at Carolina
Texas is one of those teams that is already QB-less. Carolina is not flashy, but they play solid to stay in games. J.J. Watt needs to play QB, for the Texans to win. My prediction is Carolina 24-10.
San Francisco at Pittsburgh
The Steelers blew the game at New England ... should have won that one. The 49er's beat a bad Vikings team last week, but the Steelers have had since last Thursday to get ready for home opener. My prediction is Steelers 27-10.
Tampa Bay at New Orleans
The Saints already running on fumes, but the Bucs already running out of everything. They STINK! New QB Winston embarrassing in his debut, especially against Mariota who was picked after Winston in the draft. Saints come back from loss last week, so my prediction is 34-13.
Detroit at Minnesota
So much for Peterson return: Non-existent. Lions second in a row on the road, they should have won at Chargers last week. My prediction is the Lions in tight one 17-14.
Arizona at Chicago
Arizona another under the radar teams, and take tough defense to windy city, where Jay Cutler continues to under-perform. How long can Bear fans stay with this mess? Cards 24-13
New England at Buffalo
My love affair with Buffalo continues. I wish the Bills would continue to wear the old AFL helmets. They are sweet. Brady came out in support of a certain presidential candidate this week, so maybe his mind is elsewhere. Bills trump the Pats 26-24.
San Diego at Cincinnati
Somebody got to me and suggested that maybe Cincinnati isn't that good, and that Oakland has turned it around and would beat the Bengals this week. Got hammered for taking that advice. I can make the same mistakes on my own, thank you. Best game of the week from an offensive sort of way. Bengals 45-42.
Tennessee at Cleveland
One game does not make a great QB, but Marcus Mariota is off to a great start, while Cleveland would love to have Titans QB. Instead, knucklehead Manziel is working with the first team, and that gives Tennessee the edge right off the bat. Browns fans, who before the season put this game down as at least one of three wins for the season, can't even count on this one now. Also, Cleveland backers are already hoping for next seasons first round pick from Ohio State. You know what, Cleveland fans have no idea what they want. Even baseball scoreboard operator is confused, setting off fireworks when opposing team hits home run. NBA season can't start soon enough in the city by Lake Erie. Titans 24-21.
Atlanta at NY Giants
I thought I had seen it all before last Sunday night's Giants giveaway at Dallas. Not scoring a touchdown late on purpose, and and supposed elite QB not knowing the situation of how many time outs, and clock management. Despite the NFL attempt to make us think this is a thinking man's game, it is not brain surgery ... far from it. Just play the game, score touchdowns and know how to run the clock to your advantage. Is that too much to ask? The New York Field Goal Giants outlast Atlanta in the home opener. If not, Tom Coughlin could be toast. Giants 31-28.
St. Louis at Washington
Washington is another one of those lost causes ... while Rams playing well despite the threat of moving to a different city. I love the way Coach Fisher keeps his team focused and the win vs Seattle was really impressive. Rams go to dysfunctional DC and win 21-17.
Miami at Jacksonville
Fish won tough game at foreign swimming hole last week, tried to give it away and still won. Jacksonville is still in a funk, playing first two games at home. With the way this franchise is drawing fans, NFL thinking about Jags going on the road the rest of the year. Kidding, but not a bad idea. Dolphins 23-10.
Oakland at Baltimore
Ravens without LB Suggs for rest of season. That hurts. Not enough to derail this one with Oakland. Raiders still the same old Raiders. 17-6 Baltimore.
Dallas at Philadelphia
Have to think RB Murray is going to be all hyped up for this one. Wondering if the Eagles plan on giving the ball to Murray more than a few times. Only nine carries last week vs Atlanta. Cowboys going without Dez Bryant for at least six games. That may be optimistic. This is the same injury suffered by Thunder big man Kevin Durant, and he never fully recovered. Some NFL WR with similar injuries claims it takes a full year to recover from this sort of foot injury. Eagles 31-27.
Seattle at Green Bay
Waiting to see what ridiculous call Carroll will make for this one. Packers seemed to not miss a beat without Nelson catching passes. Rodgers is very good at this stuff. Hard to imagine defending NFC champs starting at 0-2, but that is what is going to happen. Packers 31-28
Indianapolis at NY Jets
Colts looked about as inept as you can be last week at Buffalo. QB Luck goes to New York with a chance for redemption ... and gets it. Indy with 17-14.
