Phildelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Injuries- PHI- Probable- Tackle Tra Thomas, OLB Shawn Barber, WR Reggie Brown, FS Brian Dawkins, CB Lito Sheppard, TE L.J. Smith, Questionable- RB Brian Westbrook, DE Darren Howard, WR Donte Stallworth Doubtful- CB Roderick Hood
TB- Questionable- CB Brian Kelly, MLB Shelton Quarles, DE Simeon Rice, WR Maurice Stovall
Outlook- Phildelphia is coming off a close lose to New Orleans in the Super Dome. They managed to get it close, but the Saints went on an 8 minute drive in the 4th quarter to seal the deal with a John Carney kick. Tampa Bay got its first win last week at home against Cincy. Cadalic Williams played a major role in that. They will have to continue to do that if they want to contend this season. Bruce Gradowski has played very good for a rookie QB. It looks as though Philly will be getting WR Donte Stallworth back from injury. The Bucs traded away Anthony Mcfarland to the Colts earlier this week for a 2nd round draft pick. I see McNabb being too much for the banged up TB defense to handle. Philly wins, 28-13.
Minnesota Vikings @ Seattle Seahawks
Injuries- MIN- Probable- OLB Ben Leber
SEA- Out- RB Shaun Alexander, WR Bobby Engram, G Floyd Womack
Outlook- Seattle is coming off a hard fought win in St Louis, while Minnesota is well rested and has had plenty of time to prepare for the defending NFC champs. There is the threat of a letdown after such a close victory, but Seattle plays in Qwest, the loudest stadium in the NFL. Shaun Alexander wont be playing in this one, and 2nd year man Chris Spencer will get the nod at Guard as Womack will be out for this game. Nate Burleson plays his former team, while Hutchinson returns home. I expect the Vikings to give the Seahawks a close game, but in the end, Seattle/Matt Hasselbeck will pull this one out. Seattle wins another close one, 24-17.
New York Giants @ Dallas Cowboys
Injuries- NYG- Probable- OLB Brandon Short, WR Amani Toomer Questionable- OL Carlos Emmons, SS Gibril Wilson Doubtful- WR Sinorice Moss
DAL- Probable FS Keith Davis
Outlook- I guess it’s a “shame” I don’t live on the East Coast, cause I am not hyped for this game. I could care less about both squads. Anyways, the Giants are coming off a come from behind win in Atlanta in which they sacked Michael Vick 7 times. If they cant get to Bledsoe, I’m gonna die of laughter. The Cowboys are coming off a route of the Texans, in which they made David Carr (then the NFL’s #1 rated passer) have a very bad day. The Cowboys are good, but are not playoff worthy. You don’t have to worry about the Giants having a letdown, THEY ARE PLAYING THEIR RIVALS THE COWBOYS! I expect the Giants to go into Texas Stadium and beat the Cowboys in a hard fought victory. Giants win it, 20-17.
Detroit Lions @ New York Jets
Injuries- DET- Questionable- OLB Alex Lewis, T Rex Tucker, G Ross Verba OUT- NT Shaun Cody, SS Kenoy Kennedy
NYJ- Probable- DE Dave Ball, RB Kevan Barlow, OLB Matt Chatham, G Pete Kendall, QB Chad Pennington, FS Kerry Rhodes, WR Brad Smith, DT Kimo Von Oelhoffen, T Anthony Clement Questionable- FB G.J. Askew, CB David Barrett, WR Laveranues Coles, WR Tim Dwight, RB Cedric Houston, C Trey Teague
Outlook- The Lions are coming off their first win last week against the rapidly declining Bills, while the Jets are coming off a victory over Miami, after almost blowing a 20-3 lead in the 4th quarter. The Jets are a surprising 3-3, and should get ABOVE .500! Holy Crap! The Lions hope to keep that from happening, but will probably have to do it without Rex Tucker and Ross Verba. The Lions will probably try and pound at NY with the run. Expect a lot of offense in this one, as Pennington leads the New York Jets past the Lions, 35-31. THE JETS WILL BE ABOVE .500! J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!
Arizona Cardinals @ Oakland Raiders
Injuries- ARI- Probable RB Marcel Shipp Doubtful- NT Kendrick Clancy, WR Larry Fitzgerald, G Milford Brown
OAK- Probable RB Lamont Jordan, DE Lance Johnstone, OLB Sam Williams Questionable- T Langston Walker, CB Fabian Washington, RB Justin Fargas, Out- QB Aaron Brooks
Outlook- What is there to say about this game? Both teams can’t win for crap this year. The Raiders are still winless, the only team in the NFL without a win, while the Cardinals are too stupid to figure out how to win. I’m frustrated for them as I’m typing this, cause there was no way they should have lost the game against the Bears. The Raiders and their fans get to see what they are missing out on since Leinart will be starting. Maybe Michael Huff will pick off Leinart 5 times and the Raiders will route the Cardinals. Hey, it’s the Cardinals, anything can happen. I doubt that will happen though. Leinart and the Cards will have a lead that even they can’t blow. Cardinals route the Raiders, and leave Oakland hearing boos and seeing 31-10 on the scoreboard. Andrew Walter stinks up the joint.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Atlanta Falcons
Injuries- PITT- Probable- G Kendall Simmons, C Jeff Hartings, FB Dan Kreider, CB Deshea Townsend Doubtful OLB Joey Porter, WR Willie Reid Out- OLB James Harrison
ATL- Probable- QB Michael Vick, NT Grady Jackson, DE Patrick Kerney Questionable- DE John Abraham, DT Roderick Coleman
Outlook- The Atlanta Falcons wish they could go back to week 2, after they gashed the TB run defense, and were viewed by some as the best team in football. Since their 2-0 start, they are 1-2, and could fall to .500 if they don’t get things straightened out this week against the Steelers. I think Ben’s performance last week was a fluke. Fortunatly for him, Atlanta is not very good at stopping the run. That should be the Steelers’ main focus this week. I really don’t see a way Atlanta can win this game. The Pittsburgh defense will be able to stop this offense, and the Steelers should be able to gash the Atlanta run defense. Steelers win, 24-13.
Carolina Panthers @ Cincinnati Bengals
Injuries- CAR- Questionable- G Mike Whale, OLB Thomas Davis, DE Al Wallace, SS Shaun Williams Doubtful- RB DeAngelo Williams
CIN- Probable- DT Sam Adams, WR Chad Johnson Questionable- MLB Brian Simmons, SS Dexter Jackson, CB Greg Brooks Out- C Rich Braham, T Levi Jones, WR Kelley Washington
Outlook- This is in my opinion the game of the week. Cincinnati will be looking to get out of a two game skid, while the Panthers will be looking to continue their 4 game win streak. The Bengals are banged up. Veteran LB Brian Simmons is questionable with a nose….what the heck?! Anyways, LT Levi Jones is out indefinatley after undergoing knee surgey, and they wont have C Rich Braham for the 5th week in a row, as he nurses a knee. The Panthers too have injury problems. Their best G Mike Whale is questionable with an illness, and the defense has someone injured at every level (DL, LB, DB.) Sam Adams appears to have made no difference in the Bengals run defense, as they have been gashed repeatedly. That will no doubt be the Panthers main game plan. They will also look to give the NFL’s MVP Steve Smith plenty of touches. If the Bengals offense is going to come alive, now is the week. This is a must win for the Bengals. They cannot afford to fall any further behind Baltimore in the AFC North. Even though this is a must win for Cincy, I don’t see them pulling it off. Carolina’s tough defense leads them to a 28-20 victory. Julius Peppers will dominate whoever replaces Levi Jones. Cincy’s offense finally wakes up, but it is not enough.
