Showing posts with label Sunday Night Football. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sunday Night Football. Show all posts

Sunday, September 14, 2014

NFL Week 2 Predictions

Last week: We went 9-7 with our prediction from last week, which amounts to a 56.25% win percentage. Clearly, we are hoping to do much better this week.

Ravens over Steelers: For the second straight week in a row, we correctly predicted the winner of the Thursday Night Football game. Our prediction to win the AFC North, the Baltimore Ravens, will be tied for first place in the division if Cincinnati loses their Week 2 game against Atlanta.

Bills over Dolphins: The Miami Dolphins managed to dethrone the New England Patriots last weekend from atop the AFC East by winning at home in a relatively dominant fashion. Yet the Buffalo Bills should not be taken lightly after defeating the Chicago Bears in Week 1.

Lions over Panthers: The Detroit Lions managed to thrash the New York Giants on Monday Night Football last game through the air, and will likely do the same this week against Carolina. While Carolina’s defense is much more talented, Detroit just has too many offensive weapons, and Detroit’s defensive line will also be able to pressure injured quarterback Cam Newton playing in his first game of the season.
Bengals over Falcons: Yes, the Falcons managed to beat their division rivals in Week 1, the New Orleans Saints, but now they will be travelling into Cincinnati, a place where the Bengals did not lose during the regular season in 2013. The Bengals have a much better defense than New Orleans, and the combination of Andy Dalton and AJ Green will be tough to beat.

Saints over Browns: Both teams lost in relatively close games during Week 1, but there is not doubt in my mind that the New Orleans Saints will be the better team on Sunday. Expect Drew Brees and Jimmy Graham to have big games.

Patriots over Vikings: Without star running back Adrian Peterson, this Vikings team will certainly have trouble getting anything going on offense. While the Patriots looked horrible in their season opener, I expect them to win this game in a dominant fashion. Mortal lock of the week.

Cardinals over Giants: The Arizona Cardinals managed to beat the San Diego Chargers, a playoff team last season, whereas the New York Giants looked horrendous offensively and defensively against the Lions. The Cardinals are one of the more underrated teams in football, and I expect them to win this game.

Cowboys over Titans: The Dallas Cowboys certainly looked bad in their season opener against San Francisco, but if Dez Bryant is able to play in the entire game this weekend, Dallas’ offense is sure to fair well against Tennessee; however, don’t take the Titans lightly, who defeated Kansas City in Week 1.

Redskins over Jaguars: After a poor showing against a strong pass rush in Houston, RGIII has a chance to prove himself against the Jacksonville Jaguars, a team not known for their defense. RGIII could very well have a great game.

Seahawks over Chargers: The San Diego Chargers have a very well rounded offense, but the Seattle Seahawks are possibly the most well-rounded team of the past 5 years. The Legion of Boom will likely be able to suppress Phillip Rivers and the San Diego passing game.

Buccaneers over Rams: Both teams have a massive hole to fill at quarterback, where St Louis’ second-string quarterback, Shaun Hill, is marked as questionable for Sunday’s game. This will be a tough game to predict, but I believe Tampa Bay has a reasonable amount of talent on this roster, enough to earn them the win.

Broncos over Chiefs: The Kansas City Chiefs looked horrendous in their season opener against the Titans, while the Denver Broncos played like Super Bowl contenders yet again. Plus, Wes Welker is set to return for Sunday’s game. Advantage Denver.

Packers over Jets: While the Jets managed to squeak by the Oakland Raiders in Week 1, they will be facing a much more talented team this week in Green Bay. Aaron Rodgers and Eddie Lacy both struggled on offense against Seattle, but I believe the will both bounce back to have above-average games.
Texans over Raiders: The Texans suffered an enormous loss last weekend in their victory over Washington, where defensive end Jadeveon Clowney is now expected to miss 6-8 weeks due to injury. Yet with Arian Foster back from his season ending injury, I believe they will be able to beat Oakland on the road.

49ers over Bears: The San Francisco offense was clicking on all cylinders last weekend against the Dallas Cowboys defense, and things are bound to continue into Week 2 with Chicago coming to town. Chicago did not play their best football against Tennessee last weekend, but even if they have a better performance against San Fran, it will be tough to defeat this 49ers team.

Colts over Eagles: While Peyton Manning and the Broncos got off to an early lead last Sunday Night, the Colts almost gave them a run for their money at the end, but to no avail. This week will be different, as Indy will dominate the Philadelphia Eagles defense throughout the majority of the game.

Last Week: 9-7 (56.25%)

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Sunday, September 7, 2014

NFL Week 1 Predictions

Seahawks over Packers: Even though this game already happened, our original prediction for the Seahawks-Packers was a Seattle victory by a score of 14-13. While we got the score wrong, getting the first game right is a great way to start off the season.

Falcons over Saints: Even though the Falcons are coming off of an off-season (which might be an understatement), games against the Saints are aways a different story. Julio Jones is returning from his season-ending injury, so expect the Falcons' passing game to be in full form to start off the season.

Ravens over Bengals: The Baltimore Ravens have many new weapons at receiver for quarterback Joe Flacco, and while Rice may be suspended at running back, receiver Steve Smith and tight end Dennis Pitta are sure to add a new dimension to this offense.

Bears over Bills: The Chicago Bears have an excellent passing game thanks to receivers Alshon Jeffrey and Brandon Marshall, while they are also able to offset the pass thanks to Matt Forte at running back. Also, their defense has many big names on the roster. Mortal lock of the week.

Redskins over Texans: While the Texans may have a lot of great talent on their defensive line, the offense has too many question marks for me to give them the win over RGIII and the Redskins. Washington has many offensive weapons, which leads me to believe that they will start off the season on a high note.

Chiefs over Titans: The Kansas City Chiefs are certainly the more talented teams, and seeing how they are at home, there is no way the Tennessee Titans can march into Kansas City and beat Alex Smith and the Chiefs.

Patriots over Dolphins: The New England Patriots' offense almost always starts off the season slowly, and away games in Miami can also be a trap game for the Patriots, yet I believe the Patriots have so much talent on this roster that they will manage to get the W to start off the year.

Jets over Raiders: The New York Jets have a young but extremely talented defensive line that can push around rookie quarterback David Carr. Geno Smith is not a great starting QB, but he has several weapons that can make him be a relatively above-average quarterback.

Steelers over Browns: Ben Roethlisbereger and the Pittsburgh Steelers did not have the start they would have liked last year, but they are most definitely going to get the victory over Brian Hoyer and the Browns. By the end of the game, Cleveland fans will be yelling for Johnny Football to be put in.

Eagles over Jaguars: Quarterback Nick Foles had a sensational season last year when he threw for 27 touchdowns with just 2 interceptions. The Eagles managed to win the NFC East, in stark contrast to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who missed out on playoff contention yet again.

Rams over Vikings: While the Rams took a big hit at quarterback this offseason by losing Sam Bradford, they were still in the hunt for a wild card sport last season without him. The defensive line will do a decent job shutting down AP, but they will most certainly bump around Matt Cassel in the pocket.

49ers over Cowboys: The 49ers did not play well during the preseason, which has led some people to doubt this team entering Week 1; however, they clearly have more talent on their depth chart than the Cowboys, so I expect Kaepernick and the 49ers offense to thrash Dallas' defense.

Panthers over Buccaneers: The Carolina Panthers may very well be without Cam Newton in today's game, so if in fact he does not play, I predict the Tampa Buccaneers to get the win. Yet if Newton is playing, Carolina's superior offense and defense will earn them the victory over Tampa.

Broncos over Colts: While Andrew Luck and the Colts managed to beat the Broncos last season, the Broncos are tough to beat at home due to the higher altitude. Just look at last season: the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens let Peyton Manning score 7 touchdowns on opening night.

Lions over Giants: The Detroit Lions will likely have the best passing game in all of football this season thanks to weapons like Calvin Johnson, Eric Ebron, Golden Tate, and Reggie Bush at running back. The Giants have been implementing a new offense, so it will certainly take a few games to get used to.

Chargers over Cardinals: The Chargers have a ton of weapons of offense, with quarterback Phillip Rivers, running back Ryan Matthews, and receivers Keenan Allen and Antonio Gates. The Cardinals are certainly this year's sleeper team, but I think San Diego gets the W.

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Sunday, November 24, 2013

Tom Brady-Peyton Manning Debate

As Tom Brady and the New England Patriots prepare to play Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos in a Week 12 matchup, it is inevitable that people start to argue over who the better quarterback is: Tom Brady or Peyton Manning? There is no denying that these two quarterbacks are first-ballot Hall of Famers, and one could argue that they are in top 3 greatest quarterbacks of all time, alongside 49ers legend Joe Montana. But since Peyton Manning and Tom Brady entered the league at around the same time, people have been asking themselves, who is the better quarterback? With very different backgrounds, the two quarterbacks are relatively similar on the field, as they are both able to entirely take control of their offense. In this post, we will analyze the two quarterbacks, and offer our opinion by the end of the post, all in anticipation of Sunday night's game between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots.

Tom Brady: Unlike Peyton Manning, Tom Brady was not drafted 1st overall in the draft; instead, Brady was selected 199th overall by the New England Patriots. In his second season with the Patriots, Tom Brady replaced an injured drew Bledsoe, and as we all know, he went on to win three Super Bowl within his first four years as a starter. Yet within that timespan, Brady's regular season statistics were not mind-boggling. Brady's passer rating averaged 87.7 per season within his first four years as a starter, as well as an average of 3,479 yards and 24 passing touchdowns per season. It is important to keep in mind Troy Brown and David Givens, where neither wide receiver ever eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards or over 6 receiving touchdowns within a single season. However, a solid running game and a dominant defense helped out Tom Brady in winning three Super Bowls with the Pats. Overtime, Tom Brady's regular season statistics improved, but everything changed when the New England Patriots traded for a 30-year old All-Pro wide receiver by the name of Randy Moss. Before traveling to New England, Randy Moss showed steady signs of decline, as he finished the 2006 season with 553 yards and 3 touchdowns. In 2007, Brady and the Patriots culminated an NFL Record 589 points on offense, where Tom Brady set the record for passing touchdowns with 50. despite their incredible season, Brady fell one game short of the perfect season after losing to the Giants in the Super Bowl. From that point onwards, Tom Brady culminated very impressive statistics, but a fourth Super Bowl eluded him, even after yet another trip to the Super Bowl in 2012. This year, Brady's receiving corp is clearly lacking talent after losing both Wes Welker and tight end Aaron Hernandez. The most used argument is that Tom Brady has two more Super Bowls than Manning, but there is also the fact that Brady's receiving corp is not nearly as talented as Manning's throughout both of their careers.



Peyton Manning: This year, Peyton Manning has a legitimate shot at breaking Tom Brady's single season touchdown record, which currently stands at 50. Since acquiring Wes Welker from New England, Peyton Manning and the Broncos offense is on track to clobber all kinds of offensive records, even though Peyton Manning has had two surgeries on his neck and is on the wrong side of 35. Despite all of this, Peyton Manning is currently leading the league in passing yards per game (357.2), passing touchdowns (34), and passer rating with a minimum of 200 attempts (118.3). Manning has a reputation of dominating the regular season, where his career statistics in the regular season are far superior to Brady's. As we enter the postseason, Manning's statistics see a decrease in productivity. Manning is 9-11 in the postseason, with a whopping eight one-and-done postseason trips. Manning and the Broncos have a legitimate chance at winning Manning his second Super Bowl, which would add a whole other dimension to this argument. A large portion of Peyton Manning's success can be credited to his highly talented receiving corp over the course of his career. In Indianapolis, Manning was able to throw the ball to the likes of Marvin Harrison, a future Hall of Famer, Reggie Wayne, another future Hall of Famer, and tight end Dallas Clark. This season in Denver, Manning's receiving corp consists of Demaryius Thomas, Wes Welker, Eric Decker, and running back Knowshon Moreno. Another augment against Peyton Manning is that he played inside a dome for the majority of his career, an environment that clearly favors the passing game; meanwhile, Brady has played in the hostile environment of New England, susceptible to any type of weather that comes his way. Outdoors, especially in very cold weather, we see Peyton Manning's numbers dip pretty significantly. To his credit, Manning has been able to rotate through several coaches throughout his career, but has still been able to produce great numbers.

Bottom Line: Like it says in the tweet above, Tom Brady is 9-4 in his career against Peyton Manning, but on Sunday Night, Manning and the Broncos are the clear favorites. As for the debate over the two quarterbacks, Tom Brady's three Super Bowls and 16-0 season in 2007 proves that he is a complete winning machine, and even though Manning has the better statistics, his environment was more suitable to the passing game. I take Brady over Manning in this one, but another Super Bowl for Manning and I would have to reconsider.

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