NFL Thoughts: Week 2 in the AFC

Since they're were no cross conference games this past week I'll post the AFC today and the NFC tomorrow or Wednesday.

Broncos/Chiefs
If the Broncos are 0-2 with the way Plummer is playing then I might be tempted to agree with the entire Denver area which is begging for Jay Cutler right now. But they're not winless anymore. They managed at least one win with Plummer reverting back to his Arizona form. You'll notice I said managed. That means you sucked donkeys but you still won. But hey you know, maybe Plummer will hit his stride soon. For his health and well being he'd better. I think I saw a crazed woman in the stands with a John Elway jersey and a sign that read "Jake I know where you live". She probably doesn't want a date. These people want a strong armed gun slinger and Plummer doesn't fit the bill. Unfortunately for Jake it doesn't get any easier as they play the Pats on the road next, then get a bye and a whole week to ruminate if things don't go well against Brady and co. , then they get the suddenly resurgent Baltimore Ravens. So cheers Jake. If he can survive that gauntlet Oakland comes to town in week 6 and then it's part-ay time. On another note, the Bell/Bell RB tandem is really bugging me. When stats are listed or the announcer says "Bell for 5 yards, I'm not exactly who they are talking about. I shouldn't have to deal with that kind of an inconvenience should I?
--As far as the Chiefs play in this game, I mean what can you say? Their offense was worse than Denver's. They have Larry Johnson and Tony Gonzalez. That's it. And if you only have two weapons and you don't or can't use one of them (Gonzalez, 2 catches 7 yards) then you're pretty much screwed. But at least their defense came to play. That's a bonus especially in K.C. where defense has been about as sharp as George Bush's vocabulary skills.


Bills/Dolphins
Speaking of QBs who are getting booed. How about Culpepper's performance in this game? The stat sheet says he threw for 250 yards. But man was that an ugly 250. Apparently some fans were even chanting Joey Harrington's name near the end. Please. Culpepper's been bad but believe me Miami fans you don't want any part of Joey Harrington as your starter. Still Culpepper is destroying many people's confidence and predictions of a successful comeback (hand raised) along with any hopes at a division title. On the bright side I thought Ronnie Brown played really well. He looks good running and catching the ball.
Maybe we should give some credit to a scrappy Buffalo team. Their offense hasn't looked great but it hasn't given the games away either. And their defense has been awesome so far. The Bills might just be that non-playoff team that nobody wants to play this year.


Patriots/Jets
Jet's WR Jerricho Cotchery hands down wins best catch of the day. His 71 yard TD reception is a little like my bedroom skills. Pure magic. Coles TD catch was pretty fun to watch as well. All in all a pretty entertaining second half. Brady rules though. I'm actually wondering if I ought to release some of my hate and anger for the guy and start to appreciate one of the best QBs to come around in a while. ..... Or not.



Bengals/Browns
The Colts comparisons are obvious. The Bengals throw the ball really well just like their Indy pals. Palmer to me is one of the top 3 quarterbacks in the game now. The Bengals and Colts are very similar in another more disturbing way. They're leaving their star QB in the game too damn long. Exactly what the hell are Marvin Lewis and Tony Dungy thinking? Both games are blowouts and yet halfway through the 4th quarter Palmer and Manning are still in there flinging it. Lewis especially is an idiot with Palmer coming off knee surgery. I could care less about running up the score. This isn't high school. Nobody cares about hurt feelings in the NFL. But what a smart head coach ought to be worried about is their franchise going into the toilet because of a stupid injury in garbage time. The only thing I can figure is Dungy and Lewis each have their own guy as their starting QB in a fantasy league. Other than that there is no reason for them to be playing at that point in the game. ....Well alrighty then. I'm glad I got that off my chest.



Chargers/Titans
I'm not sure what to think of the Chargers. The defense has obviously been great. And they will still probably be great when they actually play an NFL team this year. So far the Titans and Raiders don't qualify. But at least Rivers actually threw the ball this week. And he looked good doing it. Will he do it against better competition? I'm optimistic about it. I like the Chargers. Any team with a bolt of lightning on the side of their helmet is fun to root for.
As far as the Titans are concerned; what did Volek do to piss Jeff Fisher off? I mean it must be a real doozy. Like urinating in front of his wife or stealing Fisher's Snickers bar before practice (as if he didn't know you just don't steal something so satisfying). It can't be because he couldn't play better than Collins because of course he could. This is mystifying. Vince Young will probably be starting a little sooner than expected. All because Volek can't buy his own damn candy bar....or pee out of sight of the coach's wife....or well...you pick a theory.



Ravens/Raiders
The Ravens should have won this game by even more than they did. Because well....the Raiders are back to their old tricks. And it ain't David Copperfield stuff. It's more like those dumb ass David Blaine "look at me I'm in a block of ice for 80 days" type tricks. It's getting ugly in Oakland. Aaron Brooks' injury will be a good excuse to start Andrew Walter although there is absolutely no offensive hope in Oakland right now. Just read their team's post game comments. And boy does Art Shell looks clueless. Is it any wonder coaches turned this job down right and left. It's like asking someone if it would be alright to give them an STD. The answer should be "thanks for the offer but I'm currently virus/Al Davis free and I'd like to stay that way". You'd have to be crazy to work for this organization. Judging by Shell's in-game demeanor, he qualifies.


Colts/Texans
It's the same old story here. The Colt's kick the Texans' asses and Payton stays in the game too long. I've already ranted about this aspect in the Bengals section so I'll spare you. I will say that the Colt's running game looked better this week. After watching Addai have a decent game here I'm thinking the Colts need to start feeding him the ball more. I'm also thinking Payton Manning has entered Donovan McNabb Chunky Soup territory. In other words Payton we're sick of your goofy commercials and it's only two weeks into the season. Is this a preemptive strike to get us mesmorized by his acting ability and forget about his playoff ability? Damn he's a sneaky bastard.

Jags/Steelers
Prior to seeing this I thought it had the look of being defensive and ugly. It lived up to it's billing. I know it's early but this season so far has the potential to have a league populated with defensive powerhouses that will shut you down. The Jags and Steelers are on the list along with the Ravens, Chargers, and of course the Bears headlining the group. But the entire NFC East has the potential to dominate defensively along with Seattle, Buffalo and Miami. For an fan of unadulterated offense this does not bode well. Thank heavens for Manning, Brady, Palmer, Tomlinson, and all those who would break this evil wall down.