No player is more aptly named than Pat Angerer who left Sunday's game in the first quarter with zero tackles for my struggling Steak League team.
What does Victor Cruz's explosive breakout (3rd among WR this year, and barely behind Wes Welker and Calvin Johnson since he got regular work in Week 3) say about the quality of NFL talent evaluation? Had Domenik Hixon, a scrubby No. 3, not gotten hurt, Cruz would never even have gotten a chance. And the Giants are far from the worst team at drafting and developing talent. It shows you how seriously you should take the nearly unanimous assessment of NFL front offices that Tim Tebow can't succeed in the NFL. There are players right under teams' noses in practice about whom they have no idea.
Tebow surely benefited from blown coverages, but his passes could not have been more accurate, especially the 4th quarter drop by Demaryius Thomas in the end zone in the face of the blitz.
The Broncos have won five in a row despite being underdogs in all five games. Had you bet $100 on the first game and let your winnings ride, you would've won $23,940. (Hat Tip @RJinVegas). If Wesley Snipes ever makes Passenger 58, Mike Salfino will be the villain, and when they talk, Snipes will say: "Ever go to a sportsbook?" Salfino: "Yes." Snipes: "Always bet on Tebow." If I were a Hollywood exec, I'd green light that script, based on that scene alone.
Who knew Jay Cutler and Matt Forte were such important parts of the Bears offense?
Setting aside the disastrous fourth-quarter interception, Christian Ponder threw for 381 yards (8.1 YPA) and three TDS against a Broncos defense that had limited Philip Rivers and Mark Sanchez to 5.2 and 6.3 YPA, respectively in its two previous games. (Of course, Von Miller was out, but it was an impressive performance nonetheless, especially given the beating Ponder took in the first half).
It's amazing it took so long for the Vikings to make proper use of Percy Harvin, an elite talent when healthy.
While Drew Brees (4,032 yards) is on pace for 5,376, shattering Dan Marino's record of 5,084, the New England defense has allowed 3,720, on pace for 4,960 which would be third all time for a quarterback. In other words, the Patriots pass defense makes its average opponent into an all-time yardage great. That shouldn't be so surprising since it allowed 400-plus to Vince Young and Chad Henne and 353 to Dan Orlovsky Sunday. Somehow, though, the Pats are 13th best in points allowed, ahead of the Jets (16th).
Speaking of Orlovsky, why did it take so long for the Colts to turn to him? Don't they know he's the guy to turn to during an 0-16 season? Seriously, though, given the state of the Colts defense, Orlovsky might be useful down the stretch in a Matt Moore/Ryan Fitzpatrick kind of way.
Given how poorly blue chippers Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco and Sam Bradford have played this year, I'm not sure I wouldn't rather own futures in Ponder, Tebow and Andy Dalton.
Running backs are typically more consistent week-to-week than wideouts, but Chris Johnson has been the exception with four games with 25 yards or less and four games of 100 or more.
Jermichael Finley drops a lot of passes.
The Giants spent most of the season running when they should have passed, but finally when they were goal-to-go with over a minute left in the fourth quarter against the Packers, and they should have run to kill clock, they threw two incomplete passes, leaving a fatal minute for Aaron Rodgers. (The Giants also ran a play before the two-minute warning for absolutely no reason.) And the argument that the Giants needed to leave time in case they failed to make the two-point conversion isn't persuasive. There's a 20 percent success rate on onside kicks that are expected, and even if you do get it, you have to move the ball with limited time and make a field goal. Contrast that with the odds of Rodgers getting into field-goal range against your defense with a minute left, and you can easily see what the overriding concern should have been.