JIM LANG’S 10 NFL THINGS: WEEK 10
Hi there, I hope everyone had a better week than Aaron Rodgers. Friday, Rodgers joined the Pat McAfee Show and explained that he is unvaccinated, and that he is allergic to the ingredients in the mRNA vaccine. Fair or not, Rodgers instantly became a major distraction for the rest of the season. Rodgers has every right to make his own decision, but the media has every right to ask him about it. Terry Bradshaw and the Fox NFL crew were extremely critical of Rodgers, and they had every right to be. We have not heard the last of Rodgers and why he won’t get the Covid vaccine. How the Packers deal with what is going to be an on-going distraction remains to be seen. Time now to take a look at week 9 in the NFL. And what a bizarre week that it was.
1 – Thursday night – Week 9 in the NFL kicked off in Indianapolis as the Colts hosted the New York Jets. Jets fans will point to the injury to quarterback Mike White as a big reason that they lost the game, they would be very wrong. The Jets lost because they were unable to stop Colts running back Jonathan Taylor. Taylor shredded the Jets for 172 yards and two touchdowns and averaged over 9 yards per carry. With the injury to Derrick Henry, Taylor is the player to beat in the race to be the top running back in the NFL. Credit where credit is due, Carson Wentz has only thrown three interceptions this year.
2 – Remember the Titans – First off, Denzel Washington is great in that movie. Sunday night, a banged-up Titans team, missing Derrick Henry, walked into LA and kicked the Rams ass. The Titans have won five straight games and they currently have the number one seed in the AFC. Their win over the Rams was another reminder that Ryan Tannehill is a solid NFL quarterback. It was also a reminder the Mike Vrabel is worthy of being mentioned among the better coaches in the league. Titans safety Kevin Byard was named the AFC’s defensive player of the month, then a few days later returned a Matt Stafford pass for a pick-six.
3 – The Patriots – Consider the following numbers, the Patriots have won three straight games and they have outscored their opponents 105-43 in that stretch. The Patriots win over the Panthers was another example that in the NFL there are coaches, there are good coaches and at the top of the food chain, there is Bill Belichick. He might wear his sweatpants like your grandfather on vacation, but the man can still coach circles around the rest of the NFL. While I liked the win, I didn’t like the dirty wrestling move Mac Jones pulled on the Panthers Brian Burns. At the bottom of the pile, Jones grabs the ankle of Burns and tries to twist it off his leg. At the very least, that is deserving of a hefty fine. There is no need for that kind of nonsense.
4 – Any Given Sunday – It is an adage as old as sports itself, on any given Sunday, anybody it capable of beating an opposing team. We saw a fitting example of that with the Jaguars win over the Bills. The Jags defence frustrated an ineffective Bills offence and produced some interesting history. It was the first time ever that a player sacked another player with the exact same name as Josh Allen of the Jags sacked Josh Allen of the Bills. The Bills have some of the most loyal fans in the NFL. Fans that are desperate to see Josh Allen (the quarterback) and the Bills go on a long playoff run. Well, the Bills better figure out their problems soon. In December, the Bills play the Buccaneers and the Patriots twice. And Bill Belichick LOVES beating the Bills.
5 – Wake up call – The Dallas Cowboys received a huge wake-up call Sunday when the Denver Broncos gave them a sound beating. The Broncos held the Cowboys scoreless for three quarters and snapped Dallas’ six game winning streak. The national media had been fawning over the Cowboys and the team played like it. The NFL is too good and the margin for error is too thin to think that you can just roll your helmets out there and win any game you want to. It doesn’t work that way. Even with all of their talent, the Cowboys learned the hard way what happens if you are not physically and mentally prepared to play.
6 – The Cardinals – Wow, Kliff Kingsbury and the Cardinals won another game nobody thought they could win. Despite missing Kyler Murray, DeAndre Hopkins AND A.J. Green, the Cardinals still took care of business in beating the 49ers. James Conner had a great game as the Cards not only won; they took over the number one seed in the NFC. Kingsbury has built a tight, cohesive, and mentally tough football team that play hard for each other. Doubt them all you want; but the Cardinals are for real.
7 – The Chiefs – My goodness, the Chiefs are a team that makes you shake your head. All that talent, and yet they still struggle to score. What is even more shocking is that Packers quarterback Jordan Love actually threw for more yards than Patrick Mahomes! Credit the work of the Packers defence, but this was another example of how off his game Mahomes is this year. Every time I watch the Chiefs this year Mahomes makes a throw that has me shaking my head. He is like a PGA golfer who all of a sudden can’t make a putt. I actually think Mahomes needs to work with a sports psychologist. He doesn’t have the same swagger and confidence that we are used to seeing.
8 – LaMar Jackson – Hashtag MVP, LaMar Jackson was a one-man wrecking crew in the Ravens over-time win over the Vikings. Yes, Jackson threw two interceptions. But the man also threw three touchdowns, and he ran for 120 yards. Jackson is sixth in the NFL in rushing, only 22 yards behind Ezekiel Elliott. Jackson ended up with more passing yards and than Kirk Cousins and more rushing yards than Dalvin Cook. At his current pace, Jackson will end up with over 4,000 yards passing and well over 1,000 yards rushing. Hashtag MVP.
9 – Odell who? – Disgruntled receiver Odell Beckham Junior is no longer a member of the Cleveland Browns. So that did the Browns do without him? They just went out and stomped the Bengals in Cincinnati. Nick Chubb shredded the Bengals defence for 137 yards on only 14 carries and we saw a much more confident Baker Mayfield. Call it addition by subtraction, but there is no question this is the best the Browns have looked since their win over the Bears in week 3. The Browns are also the first team since the Chargers in 1967 to have a passing touchdown, a rushing touchdown, and a defensive touchdown of 60 yards or longer in the same game.
10 – Monday Night Mayhem – Week 9 in the NFL wrapped up Monday night in Pittsburgh as the Steelers hosted the Chicago Bears. It wasn’t easy, but the Steelers put together a late drive to set up Chris Boswell for the game-winning field goal. A win is a win and now the Steelers have won four straight games. A few things to point out from Monday’s game. T.J. Watt is a special player who must driving opposing teams bonkers as they try to find a way to neutralize him. Justin Fields is slowly beginning to grow into the role as the Bears starting quarterback. The officiating in the NFL is getting worse, not better. The taunting penalty against Bears linebacker Cassius Marsh was ridiculous. He didn’t do anything! Officials are given a grade after every game. The officials who grade out the highest at the end of the year get the top playoff assignments and the Super Bowl. I can’t see any scenario that would have Tony Corrente (nice hip check!) or anyone from his crew working any key playoff games. While the Bears are still seething over the officiating, the Steelers will get ready to host the Lions in Week 10. Cue ‘Renegade’ from Styx!
That’s all for now, week 10 will kick off Thursday night in Miami when the Dolphins have to figure out a way to slow down MVP Candidate LaMar Jackson and the Ravens.
On Sunday, Russell Wilson will be back in the line-up as the Seahawks are in Green Bay to take on the Packers. It is expected that Aaron Rodgers will make his return to the lineup for that game. Keep eye on the Saints taking on the Titans and Patriots at home to the Browns. Nick Chubb tested positive for Covid and his availability for Sunday’s game is in doubt.
That is all for now, I will talk to you next week.
(Jim Lang is Canada’s foremost NFL expert. Follow him on Twitter at @JimLangSports)
