Week 5 thoughts:
- On any given Sunday any team can beat any other. So goes the old saying. But what I’m seeing this year is that on any given Sunday, any team can BLOW-OUT any other team. It really weird seeing really good teams like New England, Kansas City and Carolina get blown-out one week and then turn around and blow-out another, better team the next week.
- Teams that get blown out have a tendency to bounce back the following week. The embarrassment of being blown out serves to motivate the players to get it together the next week, while the blow-out tends to decrease the work that their next opponent feels is necessary.
- Pittsburgh after losing to the previously winless Tampa Bay and struggling to overcome the Jaguars this week (due to their own mistakes) are looking like the worst team in the AFC North. That still puts them in front of about a half a dozen other teams in the AFC.
- The Dallas Cowboys are really good. I saw a hint of this in the opening loss to SF (where they turned the ball over 3 times in the first quarter and were losing badly before totally outplaying the Niners in the second half), but they are much better overall than I thought even then.
- Atlanta and New Orleans don’t seem able to beat anyone on the road. Baltimore is also road-challenged.
- The Giants have somehow turned things around. Again. They seemed to have a lot of difficulties in learning OC Bob MacAdoo’s new offense, but are executing it beautifully, now.
- Andy Reid (KC) and Mike Smith (ATL) continue to make poor game-time decisions that cost their teams games.
- Chip Kelly either is a master at making half-time adjustments or a dunce at responding to opponents’ half-time adjustment. Most likely both. The Eagles have yet to play more than a half a game in any game this season.
- As expected, Redskins QB Kirk Cousins is neither the savior we saw in week 3 nor the incompetent we saw in week 4. This week – as in past seasons – he showed some good abilities, while not having the ability to consistently win games by himself.
- Detroit started out with a bang but has not been showing up the last few weeks. Seems like I’ve seen this before with Jim Caldwell coached teams.
- St Louis continues to hang tough under dire circumstances. Kudos to Jeff Fisher (again!).
- The Titans were up big before Jake Locker was knocked out of the game (expect big fines for Buster Skrine) this week, yet crumpled again with Charlie Whitehurst as QB. Different Head Coach, different back-up QB, same results.
- Seattle played as expected for a couple of drives, but had NINE 3-and-outs against Washington. Russell Wilson gouged Washington for 122 yards rushing. The Redskins defense seemed completely unprepared for a QB who is known as an excellent runner.
ktrimbach42 