Will Mark Sanchez Be The Next Big Thing?
On the surface it would appear that Sanchez has been the best in a landslide, but much of that has to do with the players around him. Sanchez is 3-0 as a starter in his brief NFL career, but his defense has as much to do with that as anything that he has done. Do not get me wrong – Sanchez has looked fantastic so far. The thing about Sanchez that is shocking to me is how poised he has been. The guy never looks rattled, and that is a sign of a future NFL superstar at such a young age. He has a quarterback rating of just below 90 which is great and has only thrown 2 picks against 4 Touchdowns. Again, that is impressive.
Stafford has had his moments as well. The problem that Stafford faces is that he plays for the Lions. This guy is already being thrown into situations that create character or destroys young quarterbacks. Thus far, he has stood up quite well though the stats do not seem like it. He is 1-2 with a quarterback rating of 57.0. He has also thrown two touchdowns and 5 picks. This is partly because they have played from behind all season with the exception of that lone win against the Redskins.
All in all, the competition is pretty darn close. I do give the nod to Sanchez for one reason. He has shown an ability to throw the deep ball as he has three passes over 40 yds so far. While not mind boggling, this is certainly respectable for an NFL rookie quarterback that is only now getting their feet wet.
Who will be the better quarterback in the end is anybody’s guess, but I have a feeling they will both be around for a very long time. These are two great young talents. Hopefully they are not snake bitten by their respective teams. They are for real.
Three weeks into the NFL football season and I am officially humbled. I have started the season about as good as a Brett Favre reunion in Green Bay. Still, I am not giving up. I am now entering the part of the season where I usually go on a long winning streak. The pattern has been this way for several seasons, so why change now? Week four is the week when everything changes for NFLpicksandpredictions.com. Mark my words. You will be glad you did. Here is the free week four NFL picks and predictions:
SUN, OCT 4
Detroit at Chicago
This game features two teams that are feeling pretty good about themselves. Chicago is riding high with Cutler getting comfortable, and Detroit because they got their first win in the last century this past week. The Bears will crash the party and send Detroit on another losing streak.
Winner – Bears
Cincinnati at Cleveland
The Bengals winning? What the blue blazes is going on here? At least the Browns are playing normally. (if you call what they have been doing playing, that is) The Bengals win this one going away.
Winner – Bengals
Seattle at Indianapolis
The Seahawks are hurting badly, and the Colts are among the worst possible teams for them to face right now. This one could get ugly.
Winner – Colts
NY Giants at Kansas City
The Giants will stomp all over the Chiefs. That is a given. The question is, can the Chiefs possibly get any worse?
Winner – Giants
Baltimore at New England
The Ravens will send notice to the Pats that their time is over in the AFC. Flacco is for real, and nobody doubts that. If Brady plays like he did last week, the Patriots will have no chance at all.
Winner – Ravens
Tampa Bay at Washington
Washington will look like supermen in defense of Zorn’s job. They better.
Winner – Redskins
Tennessee at Jacksonville
The Titans are really starting to make me look bad with my picks. They get one more vote of confidence and then I show them the door. Go Titans!
Winner – Titans
Oakland at Houston
The Raiders had a bad let down game against Denver and could be dangerous here. I think it is more likely that JRussell will self implode instead.
Winner – Texans
NY Jets at New Orleans
The game of the week by far, this one will come down to who has the better defense and who can score more points. The Saints will win the point battle, and barely hang in there on defense. Great game expected here.
Winner – Saints
Buffalo at Miami
The Dolphins reaaaalllllllyyyyy needed the Bills this week. Maybe they can right the ship with a new quarterback.
Winner – Dolphins
St. Louis at San Francisco
The Niners are a team that people had better watch out for. The Rams are a team that nobody even sees anymore. This one will be a blowout.
Winner – Niners
Dallas at Denver
Denver has slowly made me a believer. They are going to have a tough one here, but I think at home they will pull it out. I still am not sold on Orton though.
Winner – Broncos
San Diego at Pittsburgh
The Steelers are angry. Very angry. If this was in San Diego, I would go with the Chargers. At home, Pittsburgh will get back on track.
Winner – Steelers
MON, OCT 5
Green Bay at Minnesota
This is the football game everyone is waiting for. The coup de gras. The first time Favre faces his former team wearing the purple. What a game this is going to be. The Vikings have too much APeterson in the backfield. He will be the difference.
Winner – Vikings
Tiebreaker Score – Green Bay 21 Minnesota 28
Week Three Record – 9-7
Season Record – 27-21
Heinz Field Steelers Vs Titans
Now the preseason means nothing, and nobody knows that any more than me. Still, he seemed like an aging version of himself during the preseason. The pop in his throws were not there, and Collins is a man that depends on his arm at the quarterback position.
The Steelers on the other hand looked very much like the juggernaut that they are. Ben is recovered by all accounts, and opening night in Pittsburgh is sure to be a huge ticket. The Steelers are set for a very big night.
Though the game will likely come down to defense, I do think that the Steelers are going to be the ones to score early and often. Though the Titans defense is stout, the Steelers are known for finding a way to score the football. As noted in my NFL predictions here, I do think that the Pittsburgh Steelers will win this week one matchup.
Some side notes/predictions:
- Ben will throw for around 250 yds and a couple of Tds while not throwing an interception.
- The Titans offense will sputter with Collins at the helm, and even a decent running attack will not be able to pull them out.
- Willie Parker will have a better than expected game, and might make it through the game without getting hurt. (pun intended)
- The Steelers will win by at least two touchdowns.
The Tennessee Titans used a bit of trickery and a solid effort from the offense and defense in the first half to hold off a second half that was pretty much won by the Bills. Neither team played the starters for very long, and the game was pretty much what we expected it would be. The Buffalo Bills had only field goals, and was twice stopped at the goal line by the Titans defense in the first half alone.
Terrell Owens debuted as a Buffalo Bill and played only one series. In that series, he had two catches for 27 yds. Not a huge deal, but still Buffalo fans got to see their new wide receiver catch a few balls of the first time.
Another interesting storyline was the play of Titans quarterback Vince Young. He started off extremely shaky, but then did recover enough to make a nice pass for a touchdown to Paul Williams. Starter Kerry Collins was solid in limited action as was Patrick Ramsey.
Buffalo had little to feel good about on offense, with the lone exception of backup quarterback Gibron Hamden. He was extremely good under center completing 11/13 for 89 yds. Another bright spot was running back Xavier Omon. He was quite active with 36 yds rushing and 3 catches for 25 yds as well.
Preseason Season Pick Record -1 Win 0 Losses
You Must Watch The Play of The Game – The Punter Scores A Touchdown!
Tonight’s opening Hall of Fame game match up features two teams that are due to answer some questions. At the top of that list of questions is how Terrell Owens will fare in his Bill debut, and how the first team Titan defense will fare without Albert Haynesworth. Both of these questions will not likely be answered in the NFL Hall of Fame Game, but we might get a glimpse. Owens is slated to play.
Given that the teams will be using very sporadic first team players, one must look at the second units when determining the outcome. For this reason, I would go with the Titans here. The Titans do still have Vince Young at quarterback, and he is still quite talented. Not only that, he is the number two man on the totem pole now, and he will want to prove himself. Given this, he will be tough against Buffalo.
Buffalo will be facing an uphill battle with Ryan Fitzpatrick and others at the quarterback position the majority of the game. This is especially true against even the second team Titans defense. They are no slouch to be sure. It will be fun to watch Terrell even in limited action.
Prediction:
Titans will win.
Season Record: 0-0
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The NFC East has a long and storied history, so it seems appropriate that they be the first division that I predict. NFL picks and predictions specializes in picking NFL football games, but we would be remiss without predicting the NFL’s season as a whole. Since this is the case, I will be predicting each of the divisions day by day, and will finish it off with an overall pick for the year’s conferences and playoffs as well.
The NFC East is going to be very interesting this year. No less than three of the four teams have a legitimate shot at winning the division, and the Redskins could even surprise if the stars align right. You never know with the NFC East. Here are the four teams, and the order I think they will finish in during the NFC regular season:
The Dallas Cowboys – Dallas is far from my favorite team and they are entering a year that will be interesting to watch. They have some questions to be answered, such as their secondary and replacing the ever present Terrell Owens. They also have one of the finest running back tandems in the league. Tashard Choice, Marion Barber, and Felix Jones is a load for any team. I think Dallas will put it together this season, and Romo will have his finest season. Dallas goes as the running game goes, and they can not seem to miss with this group.
The Philadelphia Eagles - The Eagles are the en vogue pick this year in the NFC East, but the truth is they are still a bit unpredictable. The reason? Superstar running back Brian Westbrook is breaking down. He is just too fragile at this point to put them in the upper echelon. If the Eagles get a ton of production from him, however, this might send the Eagles to the top.
The New York Giants - Plaxico leaving the Giants will hurt much more than Giant’s fans had hoped. They are without a doubt a talented group, but they will be in trouble in the passing game. There is always that chance that they bring in someone, or somebody steps up on the roster, but I do not see it happening.
The Washington Redskins – Washington still suffers from the quarterback position and Clinton Portis has got to slow down. Portis amazes every year, and he certainly could do so again this season. Campbell is just not going to take the Redskins any further than he already has. He has some great qualities, but the inconsistant nature is killing the Skins. Defense is suspect in DC this year as well.
