First off, I want to fill in that both James and I picked Tampa to win last night (James almost nailed the score, he guessed 24-10). Sorry I wasn't able to get it posted in time. Be honest though, none of you really cared about that game anyway (not even you, Trevor), especially with the ALCS Game 7 going on at the same time.
By the way, congratulations to the Tampa Bay Rays and their fans. Everything about it being a great story and feeling good for their fans and the empowering of small market teams has and will be beaten into the ground through all this, so I'll leave it at this... The Rays put together a very good baseball team this season and absolutely deserved the American League pennant. I'm just glad the Sox woke up and put up a fight. If the defending champs are going to lose, it might as well be in Game 7 of an exciting series.
Now... as for tonight...
Broncos @ Patriots (+2.5)
There's only one thing that keeps going over and over in my head going into this game, and it's this simple set of information:
Brandon Marshall: 6'4, 240 lbs, general freak of nature
Ellis Hobbs: 5'9, 195 lbs, made a tackle once in Pop Warner football
Deltha O'Neal: 5'11, 194 lbs, is still wearing a Bengals jersey in his ESPN profile page
The Patriots defense has looked downright awful lately. The defensive line, which should be our strong point, has failed to put ANY pressure on opposing QB's (7 sacks all season, 29th in the NFL). Without that pressure, wide receivers are getting more and more open, and making bigger and bigger plays.
The offense hasn't been much better... though I can't put this blame on Matt Cassel. He's obviously going to take longer to make decisions than Brady... but with the O-Line performing worse than they have in years... that's an extra second before the ball gets out, plus a second less of protection, and that leads to a lot of short drives. The Pats have given up 20 sacks, tied for 4th most in the NFL. So to recap... 4th least sacks, 4th most sacks allowed. I think the real issue with this team, rather than the glaring deficiency at QB, is that neither line is playing up to their billing. Throw in that the team is 22nd in the league in YPC and their longest rush of the year is 22 yards, and it becomes even more evident.
The Broncos have some problem of their own though. Despite their electric passing game and gaudy point totals, they have THE worst pass defense in the NFL. Yes, the team with Champ Bailey on one side and Dre Bly on the other is letting up 255 pass yards per game, and their 2 INTs are more than only Seattle and Detroit. Maybe getting rid of Mike Lynch wasn't such a good idea afterall? It doesn't get much better in run support, where Denver is 25th is yards allowed and gives up a gaudy 5.1 yards per carry. That's unbelievable when you think about it.
So what do I expect tonight? I expect a performance that will give Matt Cassel and company a lot of confidence. I expect to see Brandon Marshall bounce off defenders and have a near record-breaking game. I expect a shootout that eventually has the Patriots looking at a .500 record and another week at the drawing board.
Adam's Prediction: Denver wins, 45-38
Jame's Prediction: New England over Denver, 22-17
Fantasy Love: Brandon Marshall, by a long shot
Fantasy Hate: Sammy Morris
My word... we've entered a world where James picks the Pats and I don't. I don't know how I feel about that
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2 comments:
A. I can't believe you took the Broncos. I'm a better Patriots fan than you.
B. Sammy Morris fantasy hate? I'll give him to you for Greg Jennings right now. Don't even tell me that doesn't tempt you.
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