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By Mr. Destiny
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TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 14 @ JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS 41
BUCS: Chalk this up as the game where Raheem Morris officially lost his job. Morris’ Bucs continued to be one of the most penalized teams in the league, adding 12 penalties for 97 yards, often putting themselves in third and unmanageable situations. While the blame does not solely lay with him, the lack of discipline and poor execution of such basics as tackling does. Tampa was the first team to allow the anemic Jags more than 20 points in a game this season, allowing 6 unanswered touchdowns after leading 14-0 and turning the ball over 7 times. The curtain has closed on this team and it is now a question of who will be the next coach called upon to straighten this talented team out and reach their young potential. Will the Glazer family finally open their check book, or will they continue to funnel all their profits into Manchester United? With many big name coaches available this off-season, they will be under the microscope with easy to read results based on their selection.
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JAGS: Maurice Jones-Drew set the franchise scoring record behind a 4 touchdown, 136 total yard performance. The Jags were able to score in all three phases of the game, notching a touchdown on special teams off a Preston Parker fumble, one on defense off a Freeman fumble and the plethora of offensive scores. Blaine Gabbert was able to throw his second straight 2 touchdown performance, finishing with 217 yards passing along with 2 interceptions on the day. Marcedes Lewis led the way with 77 yards receiving, torching the Bucs on a 62 yard play with one catch alone. Coach Mel Tucker received his first win as interim head coach and looks to have this team focused on getting back to basics.
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NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 22 @ TENNESSEE TITANS 17
SAINTS: Drew Brees overcame a slow start in the first half, throwing two touchdown passes to Marques Colston in the fourth quarter when it mattered most. Brees was forced to look short for most of the game, taking what little the Titans defense would allow. As the game progressed, the Titans secondary seemed to tire mentally and physically. Brees connected with Colston on the first score after Colston was able to find a gaping hole in the middle of the field for a 35 yard strike. Brees seized the momentum and scored on the next drive with a 28 yard hook up to Colston. This marks Brees’ 40th straight game with a touchdown pass, placing him 2nd all time behind Unitas’ 47 straight. Brees finished with 337 yards and 2 touchdowns on the day with a 110 QB rating. Despite Mark Ingram not playing, the Saints rush unit provided enough to help move the ball. Chris Ivory led all rushers with 53 of the Saints 108 total yards on the ground.
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TITANS: Jake Locker was substituted for an injured Matt Hasselbeck in the first half after Hasselbeck injured his left calf. Locker responded by leading the Titans on two scoring drives and coming up just short of the upset, getting sacked on the New Orleans 5 yard line as time expired. Locker posted the Titans longest offensive play of the season without Kenny Britt, completing a 54 yard pass to Damian Williams which set up the Locker rushing score. Nate Washington played through his ankle injury, posting 130 total yards and scoring late in the 4th on a 40 yard pass. With father time catching up with Hasselbeck and Locker as heir apparent, now is the time Munchak needs to make the move and name Locker the starter. Locker was able to use his younger legs to extend plays and take advantage when the Saints defense gave him lanes. These intangibles make the difference in games and leaves to question how this game could have turned out if Locker had received the start.
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ATLANTA FALCONS 31 @ CAROLINA PANTHERS 23
FALCONS: Matt Ryan and the Falcons relied on the long ball all game and though it cost them early, it would eventually be the difference maker. Four different receivers had catches of 20+ yards, Julio Jones leading the way with a 75 yard strike and 104yards with 2 touchdowns on the day. The reliance on the long ball padded Ryan’s stats,finishing with 320 yards and 4 scores with no interceptions. Three of his scores came in the second half after trailing 23-7, leading the Falcons to 24 straight unanswered points.While the win keeps the Falcons Wild Card hopes afloat, they can’t buy into the idea this is a strategy which will get them far. It has been a boom or bust type of season for the Falcons, either exploding on offense or failing to get anything working. They will need to find a healthy balance if they wish to have any chance should they make it into the playoffs.
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PANTHERS: The Panthers were able to take advantage of Atlanta’s focus on Newton early, gashing them with a Deangelo Williams 74 yard touchdown run. Newton also added 2 touchdown passes to both Olsen and Shockey, all scores coming in the first half.Despite the lead, the game was prototypical of the Panthers season, living and dying withNewton’s strengths and weaknesses. Newton tossed two interceptions on consecutive drives which turned the momentum the Falcons way and eventually led to the loss. Forall which Newton does so well it is easy to forget he is a rookie and come down on him when he errs. The bottom line is he is the sole reason the Panthers are even competitive in every match up and though his mistakes are costly, they are things which will be corrected with a full offseason to prepare. If Carolina can add a few key components,we can expect them to make the common NFC jump from one of the worst to first next season.
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HOUSTON TEXANS 20 @ CINCINNATI BENGALS 19
TEXANS: TJ Yates recorded his first road win and helped Houston clinch their first divisional title. Yates is now 2-0 as a starter, showing great composure and accuracy despite playing from behind all game. His 300 yard, 2 touchdowns with 1 interception performance was defined in the final six seconds when he connected with Kevin Walter for the winning score. This game was all about “next man up” and the Texans depth was put on display. Arian Foster was keyed on by the Bengals defense, totaling only 74 total yards. Ben Tate took over in the second half, banging out 97 total yards and pounding the Bengals in the fourth quarter, leading the Texans on their final two drives. Despite Andre Johnson being held out with injury, Kevin Walter and Owen Daniels racked up 176 yards between them, filling the void. This was Houston’s 7th straight win and gives them time to prepare for the playoffs and let Johnson heal.
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BENGALS: The Bengals rode Cedric Benson’s 91 yard first half performance to a 16-3halftime lead. Andy Dalton had chipped in with 17 yard pass to Jerome Simpson and all was as it should be. Unfortunately for the Bengals, it was all that would be. Benson was not able to total positive yardage throughout the second half and Andy Dalton was never again close enough to sniff the end zone. Adam Jones certainly helped the Texans cause on a holding penalty with 12 seconds left which put Houston on the 6 yard line and led to the winning score. In his defense, the Bengals were getting pounded by Ben Tate and you could see the exhaustion taking a toll. The Bengals may be out of the playoff picture but they have solidified themselves as a very young team with a ton of talent. Pittsburgh and Baltimore are both getting older so it won’t take much before we see the Bengals rise to the top of this division.
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MINNESOTA VIKINGS 28 @ DETROIT LIONS 34
VIKINGS: In what has become the norm for Minnesota, two Ponder turnovers had the Vikings playing from behind early. Ponder was hit from the blindside early, fumbling the ball into his own end zone which would be recovered by the Lions for a score. He then was intercepted on the ensuing drive which spotted the Lions 14 points. After two more interceptions, Ponder was replaced by Joe Webb in an effort to spark the team. Spark he did, running for a 61 yard score and connecting with Toby Gerhart for a touchdown.Webb finished with 109 yards on the ground and 84 passing, participating in the latest trend of run first quarterbacks. Though Ponder is the better long term option, the Vikes are best suited to let Webb play at least one more game. First, they can see what they really have in Webb and secondly, they can gain trade value if he performs well.The running quarterback is here to stay and teams will not be so hesitant to take a risk on a player like Webb. This team is better suited with a pocket passer to compliment the likes of run savvy vets Harvin and Peterson so adding another run wrinkle to the mistakes away the added dimensions these players can contribute to the pass game and keep defenses on their heels.
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LIONS: Already down Kevin Smith, the Lions lost Maurice Morris early with a chest injury, leaving Keiland Williams to carry the load. There really wasn’t a load to carry given the Lions scored on a pick six and fumble recovery, two of 6 Minnesota turnovers.All totaled, the Lions scored 24 points off takeaways and were handed the game early.Matt Stafford executed well, completing 20/29 for 227 yards and 2 touchdowns. Titus Young finished as high man with 87 yards receiving, 57 of them coming on a first quarter touchdown connection with Stafford. Young has for all purposes taken over as the number two option out wide and adds an extra weapon to this offense as they fight fora Wild Card birth. If Kevin Smith can get healthy, the Lions will have one of the most explosive offenses not named Packers.
