Nov

30

Pittsburgh Pummels Patriots 33-10

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Sunday may have proved to be a wake-up call for the fans at Gillette Stadium watching the New England Patriots commit five turnovers in the midst of getting beaten by the Pittsburgh Steelers 33-10. The Patriots may very well make the post season, they still could possibly (unlikely though) win the AFC East. However the team does not have the game to game consistency to go far in the playoffs. Pittsburgh also showed that while New England can still dominate teams like the Miami Dolphins, at this point of the season they can not stand toe to toe with the elite teams of the league.

The vaunted aerial game that Matt Cassel displayed during the fourth quarter in the loss to AFC East Division leaders the New York Jets, and last Sunday’s trouncing of the Dolphins never came close to showing up in this game. Cassel looked like an over matched NFL backup quarterback completing just 19/39 for 169 yards 0 touchdowns, 2 interceptions. The Patriots did not score a single point in the entire second half of the game, as the Steelers defense seemed to anticipate whatever New England was planning.

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Nov

30

Dolphins Hang On to Top Rams in St.Louis 16-12

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The Rams lost 16-12 to the Miami Dolphins in week 13 at the Edward Jones Dome. Considering the way the Rams have played over the past four weeks, the Rams played better.

The return of Steven Jackson helped the running game as Jackson ran for 94 yards on 21 carries. The return of Orlando Pace helped the offensive line which helped the running game and pass protection. For the first time in a long time, the Rams did not allow a sack.

That was especially a large task when facing off against Jerry Porter and the Miami defensive line. (Richie Incognito was on the sidelines in the second half in favor of rookie John Greco. Reports say that Richie was lightheaded, but I can’t see how that is any different than usual for Incognito.) However, even with the improved offensive line and good running game, the Rams were unable to find the end zone and settled for field goal after field goal.

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Nov

30

Botched Play a Key as Chiefs Beat Radiers 20-13

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It wasn’t the prettiest of ball games but the Chiefs will take it as they defeat the Oakland Raiders 20-13. The Raiders started hot out of the gate, after they held the Chiefs to a punt on their first possession, QB JaMarcus Russell led Oakland on a eight play three and a half minute drive highlighted by a hook and ladder from Ronald Curry to Darren McFadden that went for 20 yards.

The Raiders would end up settling for a 25 yard field goal that was partially blocked by DT Ron Edwards. The Chiefs would answer right back with a field goal of their own, pulling the score even at three all. The Silver and Black would move the ball again deep into K.C. territory only to set up for another field goal.

Unwilling to take another three points the Raiders went for the fake but when the exchange from holder to kicker was botched rookie Maurice Leggett scooped up the loose ball and went 67 yards to pay dirt.

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Nov

30

Giants Just Keep Winning; Top Redskins 23-7 in Washington

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No Plax. No Problem. That’s certainly going to be a theme in most papers tomorrow. But it proved true once again.

From the get go, on this cold, rainy day in Washington, it was apparent that it was going to be business as usual for the defending Super Bowl Champions. With RB Brandon Jacobs back in the fold, people thought that New York was going to do what they do best: pound the ball. But the Skins weren’t going to allow them to do this. Bringing eight and nine men into the box on probably 80% of the plays, the Skins challenged Eli to beat them through the air and that’s exactly what he did.

On the 1st offensive series, Eli hit Burress’ replacement, Domenik Hixon, on two crucial 3rd downs to pick up 1st downs and keep the drive going. And on 1st and 10 from the 40, Manning located Amani Toomer on a perfectly throw ball down the sidelines for a 40-yard TD pass.

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Nov

30

Denver Deals Farve and Jets a Big Home Loss 34-17

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Jay Cutler and the Denver Broncos may be a force to be reckoned with after all. The spunky quarterback completed 27 of his 43 attempts for 357 yards in tonight’s wet and windy win at the Meadowlands over the New York Jets.

Brett Favre, on the other hand, also threw 43 times, but only connected 23 times for 247 yards.

The leading running back for both teams had 100+ yard games. Both teams had two receivers with 60+ yards. Both teams had a terrible third down conversion rate of 3 out of 11 tries.

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Nov

30

49′ers Deal Bitter Loss to Bills in Buffalo 10-3

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When the San Francisco 49ers came to Buffalo this afternoon one would have assumed that the match-up would be an easy one for the Bills. Not only are the 49ers a poor team based on their record, but they had to travel across the country to a cold weather location with not a whole lot to play for. In comparison the Bills had a great deal to play for as they are still alive for the playoffs and they were in front of the home town crowd.

The game started poorly for the Bills, as the 49ers marched down the field on their first drive, taking 8:09 off the clock. The final result of the drive was a 12 yard TD pass from Shaun Hill to Isaac Bruce. The rest of the quarter was uneventful, as the teams essentially exchanged punts.

In the 2nd quarter the Bills started on their own 13 and drove all the way to the San Francisco 2 yard line, but the drive stalled and ultimately concluded with a missed 20 yard FG by Rian Lindell. The rest of the quarter was uneventful until Marshwan Lynch fumbled in Bills territory, which allowed the 49ers to kick a 50 yard field goal. The Bills had very little time remaining to work with and did nothing with that time, even though they got the ball with decent field position.

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Nov

30

Panthers Win Shootout in Lambeau Over Packers 35-31

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In every category on the basic statistic page, the Green Bay Packers lead. More first downs, more total yards. More passing yards, more rushing yards. Not surprisingly, more penalties. More third down conversions, more fourth down conversions. More turnovers, and a much greater time of possession.

The only statistic that really matters, however, is the final score. It was there that the Packers couldn’t quite deliver.

The 21-10 first half was not at all the start that the Pack needed. Carolina came out fast and scored first. From there, nothing seemed to go right, but the fourth quarter finally brought a turnaround. Aaron Rodgers led the Packers all the way to the Carolina 1 yard line, where the Panthers put a halt to any notions of a touchdown. Mason Crosby put three on the board to take the lead, but the special teams found a way to give the game away in spite of all odds.

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Nov

30

Tampa Bay Keeps Rolling as They Beat New Orleans 23-20

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The NFC South became a little clearer today as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat division rival, the New Orleans Saints, 23 to 20. New Orleans had taken the first game of the series in week one with a 24 to 20 victory in the Superdome but this time the game took place on a wet and windy day in Tampa.

Tampa Bay has been undefeated at home this season, now with six wins for a record of 9 and 3. New Orleans was hoping to grab a playoff spot after a decisive victory on Monday Night Football against conference rivals and playoff contender, Green Bay, but is facing three teams in their division alone who have better records than their 6 and 6.

The game in week one was not decided until the last 44 seconds when the Saints defense intercepted a Jeff Garcia pass, killing their chances for a comeback. It was the same story today as the Buccaneers defense intercepted two last minute drives by the Saints, the first one setting up their winning field goal and the second to kill the Saints potent offense with under two minutes to play.

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Nov

30

Anderson more than likely out for the year.

Filed Under Cleveland Browns, NFL | 1 Comment

It looks as if the Cleveland Browns fortunes weren’t bad enough they have probably lost Derek Anderson for the remainder of the year.

Anderson left late in the fourth quarter with an apparent MCL sprain of his left knee. This is the second quarterback in as many weeks the Browns have lost. Starting quarterback Brady Quinn was already out with a broken finger in his throwing hand. Anderson hurt the knee when tackle Kevin Shaffer fell on the quarterback’s knee on the last drive of the game for Cleveland.

Ken Dorsey who has been the third QB all year entered the game at that point and went 0 for 3 and was unable to drive the team for a score. The current starter had this to say on Anderson’s injury “It’s always hard to see any guy come off the field like that. Injuries are part of the NFL, but you hate to see it anytime it happens.” Dorsey will be the starter for the Browns as they take on the once beaten Tennessee Titans next Sunday.

“It didn’t look good with him coming off,” Browns coach Romeo Crennel said after the game. “I’m not encouraged by the way he came off the field.”

Nov

30

Colts Defense Saves the Offense w/ Late TD in 10-6 Win Over Browns

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The Browns fortunes were going so good on Sunday, that even the Indianapolis Colts was unable to find the end zone. Problem is, their defense did. And with that, the Browns lost another tough game at home, falling 10-6 to a Colts team that had everything to play for, while the Browns simply wanted to get a win for their coach and the fans.

The turning point and final nail came in the fourth quarter when the Browns, leading 6-3, had the ball on their own 45-yard line on a 3rd-and-8. Derek Anderson, who was mistake free at that point, went back to pass when the Colts pressure got to him, and when Dwight Freeney hit him, the ball came free, and Robert Mathis picked it up and went streaking 37 yards for the only TD of the day.

Anderson was 16-for-26 for 110 yards, and while he didn’t throw a TD or pick, the fumble that resulted in the Colts only score was the play that people will remember about this lackluster affair. The team came in wanting to run the ball, and Jamal Lewis did that, rushing for 77 yards on 24 carries.

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