Tag Archives: Football

Red’s 2024 NFL Weekly Rankings – Week 7

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Red wrote this much earlier in the week. He posts it just in time for it to not be completely meaningless.

Trivia Question:  Which team has more playoff wins since the Texans joined the NFL in 2002, the Cowboys or the Texans?

  1.  Kansas City Chiefs –  Red has one hard and fast rule, a team cannot lose the No.1 spot when it doesn’t play.
  2. Minnesota Vikings – Corollary to Rule No. 1. A team cannot lose the No.2 spot when it doesn’t play and the team in the No. 1 spots stays put.
  3. Detroit Lions – The Lions delivered the Cowboys an ass whupping for the ages on Jerry’s 82nd birthday.  Clicking on all cylinders and using trick plays to embarrass the opponent.
  4. Baltimore Ravens –  Four straight wins equals 4th place.
  5. Houston Texans – Beating the Patriots is like kissing your aunt – make that your great aunt.  There actually are some fine looking aunts out there.
  6. Buffalo Bills – Smarter than the average team.
  7. Washington Commanders – Still don’t like the name. Hard to argue with the results so far this year.
  8. Chicago Bears – Caleb Williams went to London riding on pony. Stuck a big loss on the Jags and called it Macaroni.
  9. Atlanta Falcons – Made medium work of the once again hapless Panthers.
  10. Green Bay Packers – The astute reader will note that the NFC North has placed 4 teams in Red’s top ten this week.   Do you see that astute reader? Astute reader? Astute Reader? Bueller? Anyone?
  11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Bucs led 17-0, then trailed 27-17, then ripped of 34 straight to gobsmack the reeling Saints in New Orleans.
  12. Pittsburgh Stealers  – Next up for a good old fashioned thrashing by the Stealers – both New York teams have western PA on their itenerary.  
  13. Los Angeles Chargers – The best 3 win team is about all Red can say right now.
  14. Indianapolis Colts – The second best 3 win team is about all Red can say right now.
  15. Philadelphia Eagles– The third best win team is about all Red can say right now.  Are you sensing a pattern?
  16. San Francisco 49ers –  3 win team, blah, blah, blah. . .
  17. Seattle Seahawks – Could not beat the crippled 49ers. Losing to the Giants makes more sense now.
  18. Denver Broncos –  Red is really tired of trying to rank 3 win teams at this juncture of the season.
  19. Dallas Cowboys –  Without a doubt the worst 3 win team in the NFL.  The Cowboys are only a couple of plays away from being 1-5.  It’s hard to see more than another 3-4 wins for the Cowboys right now.
  20. Cincinnati Bengals – Well, someone had to be the best 2-win team.  A likely season saver in an ugly win over the Giants on Sunday.
  21. New York Giants – Speaking of the Giants. . .
  22. New York Jets –  Teams that play together (at least in the same stadium) should be ranked together.
  23. Miami Dolphins – Talk about a team that needed a week off.
  24. Arizona Cardinals – Beat the 49ers one week, get stomped by the Packers the next.  Welcome to the NFL.
  25. New Orleans Saints –  Red thinks he heard the death rattler on Sunday.  It takes real bad play to give up 34 points in a row.
  26. Las Vegas Raiders – Red has it on good authority that there were more people in the sports book at the Wynn than in the stands on Sunday.
  27. Tennessee Titans – Oh where to begin in ranking the dregs of the league.  Why in Nashville you say.
  28. Cleveland Browns – Would that every team could play the Browns each week. 
  29. New England Patriots – Texans finally win in Foxborough. Get used to it.
  30. Los Angeles Rams – Red reserves the right to rerank shitty teams even when they don’t play.
  31. Carolina Panthers – Sad!
  32. Jacksonville Jaguars – Never has a team expected so much and delivered so little. Well almost never.

Red’s 2024 NFL Rankings – Week 6

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This week featured quite a few exciting down to the wire games, but for a change – Red posts his weekly rankings early.

  1. Kansas City Chiefs – A bit of a grind to dispatch a very game Saints team, but they were ground down fine enough.
  2. Minnesota Vikings – Probably deserve to have the top ranking, but Red has his rules. Plus a bit of the shine came off Darn Old Sam as the offense struggled.
  3. Detroit Lions – The next 5 weeks will tell us if the Lions are really real.
  4. Baltimore Ravens – Derrick Henry takes the team on his back and carries it to an OT win. His run on the Ravens’ first possession in OT will be featured in his Hall of Fame highlights.
  5. Washington Commanders – We will see after the Commandos play the Ravens.
  6. Houston Texans – Red unimpressed by the H-Town logo, helmets and end zone paint and almost coughing up a 3 score lead. Somewhat more impressed by holding off the Bills in crunch time.
  7. Buffalo Bills – The defense is teetering. You can’t expect Josh Allen to pull a win out of the hat week in and week out. Weak out!
  8. Atlanta Falcons – Flying high now. Cue the music. Cue the dancers. Cue the balloons.
  9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – OT loss in Atlanta does not bode well. It bodes bad -sad.
  10. Denver Broncos – Bo Nix, go fix, no picks, so licks – and it suddenly it falls apart.
  11. Seattle Seahawks – A 102 yard fumble return should win you the game. But the Lions are good enough to overcome such nonsense.
  12. Dallas Cowboys – Don’t get too excited over a very ugly win in Pittsburgh.
  13. Chicago Bears – You beat the Panthers, Little Whoop!
  14. San Francisco 49ers – Having yet to win a division or conference game is not what we would call a particularly good look.
  15. Los Angeles Chargers – Bye, bye, bolts. Huh, you say?
  16. Arizona Cardinals – Beating what figures at some point to be a real 49ers team was a big lift and a big lift.
  17. New York Giants – Red is betting on the come here. And expecting snake eyes any moment.
  18. New Orleans Saints – are marching out.
  19. Las Vegas Raiders – Does anyone really know what time it is? You know they don’t put clocks in the casinos for a reason.
  20. Miami Dolphins – Unfortunately, they cannot play the Patriots every week.
  21. Indianapolis Colts – Can’t blame Flacco Joe for losing to the a formerly winless Jags team. The defense stunk it up.
  22. New York Jets – Adios Coach whatever your name was.
  23. Philadelphia Eagles – Red is certain that this week’s lowly ranking will stimulate the Eagles to better things.
  24. Pittsburgh Stealers – Maybe everyone is focused on the election?
  25. Los Angeles Rams – Taking top spot in the shitty teams section of this post.
  26. Cincinnati Bengals – Sometimes it just aint your year.
  27. Tennessee Titans – This team may not be as bad as Red suspects. But talk to Red after trips to Buffalo and Detroit.
  28. Cleveland Browns – Is Deshaun Watson the black Johnny Manziel?
  29. Jacksonville Jaguars – Sucking just a little bit less last week.
  30. Los Angeles Rams – You cannot believe how satisfying it is for Red to type “30” and then put the Rams next to it.
  31. Carolina Panthers – Red Rifle backfires.
  32. New England Patriots – Red has waited a long time for this.

Red’s 2024 NFL – Week 5 Rankings

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A bit late but here goes.

  1. Kansas City Chiefs – Still winning, still top of the heap.
  2. Minnesota Vikings – It’s kind of sad that there are only two undefeated teams after 4 games.
  3. Detroit Lions – Goff going 18 for 18 passing is going to get a W.
  4. Buffalo Bills – Rather a large hiccup against the resurgent Ravens last week. First loss by more than 10 points in 43 games.
  5. Baltimore Ravens – Better than the Bills right now, but still 2-2.
  6. Houston Texans – CJ Stroud leads big comeback to push the Texans back up in Red’s rankings. AFC South is there for the taking.
  7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Serious bay beat down off the Eagles.
  8. Washington Commanders – Red can scarcely believe his lying eyes. Will it last in DC?
  9. Pittsburgh Stealers – The curse of Flacco Joe holds steady in Steal Town.
  10. Seattle Seahawks – Losing to the Lions is not the end. Geno is playing lights out even in defeat.
  11. Green Bay Packers – Ready to Pack it in? Did you see what Red did there?
  12. Philadelphia Eagles – Trending in the wrong direction without their big talent.
  13. San Francisco 49ers – Beating the Pats. BIg Whoop!.
  14. New Orleans Saints – Trending in the wrong direction with their big talent.
  15. Indianapolis Colts – Sing it with Red – Flacco Joe, Flacco Joe, Flacco Joe – he’s got the Mo. Everybody!
  16. Los Angeles Chargers – Lots of injuries, but really should be better than 2-2.
  17. Atlanta Falcons – Always good to beat the Saints.
  18. Denver Broncos – Maybe there is life after death?
  19. Dallas Cowboys – Maybe there is death after life?
  20. Cincinnati Bengals – One day Red hopes to spell Cincinnati correctly the first time. Losing to the Panthers and the Red Rifle is a harbinger of doom.
  21. New York Jets – What a sad excuse for an offense right now.
  22. Chicago Bears – Caleb Williams handled Rams’ blitzkrieg. But will the Bears ever score a TD in the 1st Q?
  23. Las Vegas Raiders – The most inconsistent team at the quarter pole.
  24. Arizona Cardinals – Give me D! Give me an E! Give me an F! And stop there because the Cards defense deserves an F.
  25. Tennessee Titans – Defense shuts down an overmatched Dolphins offense. T. Hill frustrated.
  26. New York Giants – It seems having a supersized human as your team mascot is not a good look this season. See No. 25.
  27. Cleveland Browns – Red is taking a pass. Which is more than the Browns can do right now.
  28. Carolina Panthers – Red, Red, Rifle.
  29. New England Patriots – Week 1 win over the Bengals would look curious but for the Bengals sucking.
  30. Cincinnati Bengals – Speaking of sucking . . .
  31. Miami Dolphins – Making lots of pundits look bad.
  32. Jacksonville Jaguars – The Jags lick the sweat off a dead man’s balls.

Red’s 2024 – NFL Rankings Week 4

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Red was undecided about the title. Should it be Week 3 because that is the week have just finished and rankings are based on those results or Week 4 because that is the week that is coming up. Not that it matters, but the consensus is this is Week 4.

  1. Kansas City Chiefs – The Chiefs seem to be living on borrowed time. They are not scoring in the red zone, relying on field goals and where the hell is Mr. Kelce? But as noted until they lose the defending champs hold on to No. 1 spot.
  2. Buffalo Bills – The Bills offense is just playing better than any other team in the league right now.
  3. Minnesota Vikings – Surprise, surprise, surprise. With apologies to PFC Pyle. And if you don’t get that reference – well good for you. Total domination of the previously undefeated Texans.
  4. Seattle Seahawks – Seahawks will be hard pressed to stay undefeated unless the offensive line plays better.
  5. Pittsburgh Stealers – Red zone offense is horrible, yet they are 3-0. Red doesn’t argue with success.
  6. Philadelphia Eagles – Injuries and turnovers by Mr. Hurts abound. Eagles need to right the ship before division play.
  7. Detroit Lions – Another team with red zone troubles. Red senses a trend here.
  8. San Francisco 49ers – Injuries to the big playmakers (Deebo, McCaffery and Kittle) are a major cause for worry in Santa Somewhere.
  9. New Orleans Saints – Tayson Hill makes this offense very hard to defend against. Saints fans hope for a quick return.
  10. Los Angeles Chargers – Without Herbert look for a quick drop in the rankings next week.
  11. Green Bay Packers – Red doesn’t believe. But then again who cares what Red thinks?
  12. Houston Texans – Last week the Texans were . . . um . . . pummeled . . . yes pummeled is the word Red was looking for. And they get the biggest drop of the week as a reward.
  13. Baltimore Ravens – Ravens got a desperately needed win against the sagging Cowboys. They were swirling the drain in the 4th quarter but managed to hang on in what could be a season saver.
  14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Lack of rushing yards, not a problem as yet.
  15. New York Jets – Beating up on the weak sisters of the league only gets you so far.
  16. Washington Commanders – Moving in the right direction. Win over the Cardinals would be big right now.
  17. Arizona Cardinals – Trouble on the O line gets the Cards top spot as mediocre team of the week.
  18. Los Angeles Rams -Being down your top two wideouts usually spells trouble in this league.
  19. Atlanta Falcons – A credible showing against the Chiefs. NFC South looks to be a dog fight between 3 teams right now.
  20. Dallas Cowboys – Cowboys defense has been wretched in first 4 games. Barely beating the Giants on Thursday was not a good look.
  21. Cleveland Browns – Is Flacco Joe still available? No. Hmmm.
  22. Miami Dolphins – Is Flacco Joe still available? See above.
  23. Las Vegas Raiders – An unbalanced attack forced by having to continually play from behind spells trouble in the desert.
  24. Indianapolis Colts – Should not be this bad. Anthony Richardson needs to step up or step down.
  25. Chicago Bears – Untapped potential so far this season.
  26. Denver Broncos – Red always manages to end up with a worthless Bronco running back on his fantasy team.
  27. New York Giants – Credible effort against a sagging Cowboys squad.
  28. Jacksonville Jaguars – “I’ve seen teams suck before, but they were the suckiest bunch of sucks that ever sucked.” H. Simpson. A useful quote likely to be heard again this season.
  29. Carolina Panthers – Who needs Flacco Joe when you have the Red Rifle? Very impressive, but can he keep it up?
  30. New England Patriots – How the mighty have fallen. Flat on their face apparently.
  31. Cincinnati Bengals – On life support right now.
  32. Tennessee Titans – Someone pull the plug, please.

Red’s 2024 NFL Preseason Picks Returns and the Dead Man of the Year Award

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Red has been missing in action for quite some time now.  Normally the season recap goes here, but it is hard to recap a season that you sat out.  However, a hurricane and a bout of COVID have convinced Red to get off of his duff and start embarrassing himself with NFL predictions yet again. 

But first, the Annual (sort of) version of Red’s NFL Deadman of the Year Award.  As readers may (or may not) remember, this award goes to the NFL player who contributed about as much to his team’s success as would have a Dead Man.

Drum Roll please.

Readers should first note, however,  that  injury does not factor in to the official Dead Man rankings.  Thus for example, as much as you might want Red to consider the utterly miserable season of – say – Aaron Rodgers – the fact that he finished the season with one pass attempt, no completions, no yardage and one sack would otherwise qualify him for consideration. But the fact that this was all due to injury puts A-Rodg out of contention.   See also, JK Dobbins,  Nick Chubb, Deshaun Watson,  Jack Conklin and others.

There were some worthy candidates.  Players like Michael Gallup (Cowboys), Dameon Pierce (Texans), Bryce Young (Panthers), Jerry Jeudy (Broncos) and Derek Carr (Saints) come to mind, but they all did something that barely contributed to the success of their team.  So we look elsewhere.

And where else to look but to the franchise that was in very recent memory the standard by which all others were judged.  That of course means the New England Patriots.  After leading the Pats to a 10-7 season in his rookie year and then falling off considerably in 2022, Quarterback Mac Jones was nothing short of dreadful last season.  He was benched in week 4 in a 38-3 loss to the Cowboys.  Given another chance in week 5 he was benched in a 34-0 loss to the mediocre Saints.  He would get yanked again in week 10 in a slightly more respectable 10-6 loss to the Colts, before his season finally ended a week 11 loss to the Giants (10-7) with redoubtable Bailey Zappe taking the helm.  Jones would not play in another game and was inactive for the season finale. The high point Mac’s season was a rather inexplicable 29-25 win against the Bills.  Overall, Jones lost 9 of his 11 starts, ended with 12 INTs and 10 TDs, had one 300 yard passing game (week 1) and passed for under 200 yards 5 times.  After week one, he had a meager 7 more TD tosses in the next 10 games.  On the bright side he only fumbled 3 times. How all of this added up to a 77.0 QB rating is something of a mystery to Red.  

CONGRATULATIONS (or condolences) – Mac Jones you are Red’s 2023 NFL Deadman of the Year.

P.S.  I hear that Jacksonville is lovely in the Fall.   

Red’s 2024 NFL Preseason Picks (sort of)

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AFC West

The AFC West is the old AFC East in the prediction game  – it’s  the easiest pick in football.

Kansas City –  Red has been on the KC bandwagon for a while now, but is thinking about getting off at maybe the next stop – or the stop after that.  As he used to say about the AFC East it was spineless and weak to continue picking the Patriots year after year, but it only made sense to do that.  The AFC West is now exactly like that.  It is spineless and weak to pick the Chiefs year after year, but Red will probably do just that until proven wrong.  But if Andy Reid goes, Red probably goes with him.  Until then, pick the Chiefs and don’t look back.  With road losses to Niners, Bills and Stealers and a home loss to the Saints the Chiefs are 13-4   How’s that for specificity?

Los Angeles (Chargers) – A dismal 2023 season was capped off by a 63-21 drubbing at the hands of the Raiders who had already fired their head coach and general manager.  But things are looking up at SoFi.  Justin Hebert snaps back and is in the conversation for some kind of award.  He shines under the guidance of new Head Coach Jim Harbaugh.  But the real key for Harbaugh is breathing some life into the Chargers’ listless running game.  A damn good offensive line finally has a quality back in Gus Edwards (13 TDs last season for the Ravens).  He looks primed to break 1000 yards and score when inside the 10 yard line.  Harbaugh and the front office look for an improved defense under new DC Jesse Minter.  Chargers have a real shot at the post-season with the 5th easiest schedule in the league. Chargers storm into contention at  10-7.

Las Vegas-  You know it would be nice if the Raiders found a place to stay.  I hear that Honolulu is nice just about year round.  Antonio Pierce is the new head coach who performed admirably in an interim role last season.  Gardner Minshew has been named the starting quarterback before the season.  That’s a new role and he has typically been the backup who gets a fair number of starts after No. 1 guy goes down.  That was the story last season in Indy when he posted a 7-6 record in 13 games after Anthony Richardson was lost.  His overall 15-23 record as a starter is unimpressive, but his 60 TDs to 25 INTs is not horrible.  It is at about this point that Red is losing interest in writing about the Raiders.  A quick wrap is in order. Raiders are just under .500 at 8-9 and Minshew is gone by mid-season.

Denver –  Talk about a team in the wilderness for a good long while.  The term “laughingstock” is bandied about when discussing the Broncos recent efforts. Not much is likely to change this year.  The Broncos will have the benefit of being the underdogs in just about every game this season.  The curiously named Bo Nix is the latest rookie QB sensation poised to lead the Broncos to the promised land.  RB Javonte Williams needs to improve on a nice rookie season to take some pressure off of Nix.  But the real problem is up front on defense.  The defensive front got its lunch money stolen early and often last season.  The secondary is good but without a run defense or a quality edge rushing attack it probably will not matter.  No hope in Mile High.  Broncos are 6-11 if they get lucky.

Red’s 2024 NFL Preseason Picks (sort of)

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AFC South

At one time the division of excellence.  Who knows now?  The TV schedulers don’t seem to think much of the divisions as it is the only one without a division matchup in prime time in 2023. 

Houston –  Disclaimer – the Texans are Red’s favorite team despite their record of tepid mediocrity.  And here is a good stumper: Since the Texans came into the league, which team has won more playoff games – the Texans or the Cowboys?  I think you can guess the answer.  But on to this season.  Texans fans have a lot to look forward to this season.  Second year QB (and 2023 Offensive ROY) CJ Stroud has every appearance of being the real deal and with new found help from pickups Stefon Diggs and Joe Mixon, there are now legitimate A-players at RB and WR.  Beyond Diggs there are a solid possession receiver in Nico Collins and Tank Dell who can stretch the field.  This takes a lot of pressure off CJS and if the O Line holds up, this could be a very dynamic offense.  On the other side is at least a mid-pack defense who should be able to hold most teams to the twenties and give the offense a chance to win games.  And the defense could be better if top notch players like Derek Stingley, Jr., Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter don’t have to carry the load.  It seems that good players want to come to Houston to play for an up and coming coach in DeMeco Ryans.  The schedule has some legit opponents and time will tell if the Texans are able to compete with the likes of the Bills, Lions, Cowboys, Dolphins, Chief and Ravens.  And moving into the spotlight has its challenges, in the  second half of the season, the Texans will be playing on short rest several times.  But on a positive note, they have 3 primetime games in a row in weeks 9 to 11 including the Cowboys on MNF. Closing out the season with the Chiefs and Ravens (on Christmas Day) in weeks 16 and 17 is a tall order.  The Texans better have 10 wins under their belt by then.  Texans go 11-6 to take division.

Jacksonville –  Red has nothing really bad to say about the Jags.  A late season collapse in 2023 cost the Jags a playoff berth – which the Texans happily filled. Is Trevor Lawrence truly the franchise quarterback that his $275 million deal says he is?  The Jags may have the second best defender in the division in Josh Hines Allen who had 17.5 sacks in 2023.  But this does not look like a playoff team right now?  Hey, it could happen if the Jags can beat at least 3 of the 5 very good teams they will face (Texans twice, Bills, Eagles, Dolphins).  That’s a tall order.   Jaguars go 9-8 and are on the bubble. .

Indianapolis –  The Colts have talent, they have a good quarterback (we think) in Anthony Richardson who has only played in a small sample size of  4 NFL games.  The Colts also have a good coach, good stadium and loyal fanbase.  Red never discounts any team that has Flacco Joe on the roster.  FJ had the greatest start of any quarterback in NFL history leading his team to playoff wins in each of his first six seasons with a Superb Owl victory in the 2011 season.  Of course he got smoked by the Texans in the playoffs last year, but still won Comeback Player of the Year.  All in all, and despite the magnificent presence of FJ, it  adds up to another losing season.  Colts are 7-10.

Tennessee – Steady decline best describes the trajectory of this franchise as of late.  Just a few years ago, this team had Super Bowl pretensions that seemed credible.  Breaking out the Oilers throw-back jerseys against the Texans in Week 16 last season pretty much backfired with the Titans losing and none other than JJ Watt claiming that the Texans “get the uniforms back.  That’s how this works.  Sorr, not sorry.  Too bad, so sad.”  Which probably sums up the Titans’ 2024 effort.  6-11.

Red’s NFL Weekly Ratings 2020 – Week 16

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Red’s long held dream of a 6-10 team making the playoffs is still alive thanks to the pathetic excuse for a professional football division that is the NFC East. If the 6-9 Washington FTs lose to the we-can’t-believe-we-are-out-of-it Philadelphia Eagles and the 5-10 New York Football Giants beat the 6-9 Dallas Cowboys then all three teams will finish with 6-10 records and the Giants will make the playoffs on a tiebreaker. Sadly, however, there appears to be no chance for a blizzard game in New Jersey on Sunday. You can’t have everything. But on a positive note, we did have Steve Kornacki breaking down the playoff picture on Sunday Night Football for NBC – wearing the Kornacki Khakis of course. Onward through the fog.

Red’s Top Ten:

  1. Kansas City Chiefs (14-1). Having clinched the top seed in a sloppy game against the Falcons, the Chiefs will not play on the road until either the Superb Owl or next season. Red thinks the BIlls are the only AFC team that can beat the Chiefs.
  2. Buffalo Bills (12-3). Bills fans celebrate the first AFC East Championship since the days of Jim Kelly. That a complete dismemberment of the Patriots on MNF makes for a glorious season. Only the Chiefs stand in the way of another Superb Owl loss (or possibly victory).
  3. Green Bay Packers (12-3). Packers were certainly impressive in dispatching the Titans as if they were a Trump lawsuit challenging the election results.
  4. New Orleans Saints (11-4). Four straight NFC South Division Titles and a dollar will get you a Jack-in-the-Box taco. That said, Red doesn’t think that Alvin Kamara is going to rest on his record tying 6 rushing touchdowns against the Vikings on Christmas Day. AK tied Ernie Nevers who had 6 for the Chicago Cardinals in 1929. Red isn’t sure but that probably was the longest standing single game record left in the books. That probably leaves Norm Van Brocklin’s single game passing yardage record as the longest outstanding single game record.
  5. Pittsburgh Stealers (12-3). The Stealers rebounded with a big come-from-behind victory against the chocking Colts. Red still wonders if the Stealers will make it out of the first round of the playoffs against the Dolphins, Ravens or Titans.
  6. Seattle Seahawks (11-4). Give the Seahawks their due, they punched the Rams to the brink of playoff elimination while securing the NFC West title. That may be as good as it gets for the Seahawks.
  7. Miami Dolphins (10-5). Is there another miracle finish in store for the Dolphins? The Dolphins are Just a victory over the Bills away from the playoffs. And Red is just a few hundred million short of being a billionaire. Miami will be a hot pick for the Superb Owl next season with oodles of draft picks and cap space.
  8. Baltimore Ravens (10-5). The Ravens have righted the ship and trimmed the sails with four consecutive wins over weak competition (with exception of the Browns). Can the Ravens beat a good football team?
  9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-5). The reward for what Red views as an entirely mediocre season (the Bucs will likely finish with exactly one win over a team with a winning record (how this team beat down the Packers is a mystery) probably will be getting to play the winner of the NFC East and an almost assured second round playoff game against more formidable competition. If they win against the Falcons on Sunday, the Bucs might just be the worst 11-5 team in NFL history.
  10. Chicago Bears (8-7). Bears will clinch a playoff spot with an upset win over the Packers at Soldier Field.

Still in the Hunt:

11. LA Rams (9-6). A win against the Cardinals and they are in the playoffs. Sounds exciting.

12. Arizona Cardinals (8-7). A win against the Rams and they are in the playoffs. Sounds exciting.

13. Tennessee Titans (10-5). Red has been on the Titans’ bandwagon all year. His horn was ripped out of his hands this week by the Packers – who exposed all the flaws in the Titans. Titans still have a clear path to the playoffs if they can beat the Texans. And if they cannot, then the Titans deserve to sit and watch.

14. Cleveland Browns (10-5). Red can’t really blame the crippled Browns for losing to the Jets but it was about the most Browns’ thing yet this season. Red still thinks they can beat the Stealers at home and make it to the dance.

15. Indianapolis Colts (10-5). On life support now despite a pretty good season.

15. Washington FT’s (6-9). See above.

16. New York Giants (5-10). See above.

17. Dallas Cowboys (6-9). See above. Is Andy Dalton better than at least 10 other current starting quarterbacks in the league? Let’s see – Newton, Bridgewater, Cousins, Jones, Fitzpatrick (sort of) and whoever is starting for the Jaguars, Bengals, Broncos, Jets and Bears.

The Dogs of the Downs:

  1. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-14). Nobody does football worse.
  2. New Jersey Jets (2-13). Red is rooting for a 3 game win streak to finish the season. Watch out 2021.
  3. Houston Texans (4-11). It’s not a dumpster fire on South Main – the entire dump is ablaze. Is Urban Meyer really interested in this franchise?
  4. Atlanta Falcons (4-11). Never have so many done so little with so much.
  5. Philadelphia Eagles (4-10-1). A truly pathetic season all around. And the prospects are not looking good.

Top Ten NFL Players? Always a Lively Debate – Red Weighs In

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Red thinks that a little diversion from the Reality TV Show Joke of a President, his inept response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the GOPs relentless voter suppression campaign and forced togetherness couple with boredom is in order.  So  looking ahead to an NFL season that may or may not happen as planned, Red offers the following:

Numerous sports writers like to put out their top player lists.  So even though Red is not a member of the scribe tribe, he will put out his top ten list for the coming season and maybe compare to a couple of others.

Red’s Top Ten NFL players for the 2020 Season;

  1. Patrick Mahomes – can there even really be a debate about this one?  Mahomes led his team to come from behind victories in three consecutive playoff games to cap the 2019 season with the Chiefs first Superb Owl win in 50 years.  More of the same in 2020.
  2. Lamar Jackson – the reigning MVP (a unanimous choice) had a breakout season leading the league in a number of categories including passing touchdowns, touchdown percentage and rushing yards for a quarterback.  He has all his offensive weapons back and another year to adjust to Harbaugh’s scheme.  And he has the sting of consecutive first round play-off exits as motivation.
  3. Derrick Henry – Led the league in carries, rushing yards, touchdowns and yards per game.  He has size, speed, toughness, vision and will be playing for a big contract.  If he becomes a pass catching threat out of the backfield, Katy bar the door.
  4. Christian McCaffery –  Mr. All-around. The league leader in total offense with 2392 yards.  What is not to like.  A new quarterback is going to rely on this guy even more.
  5. Khalil Mack – the best defensive player in the league needs to be in the top ten.  His stats are not that impressive because he is always a target for the offense.
  6. Michael Thomas – A tough call, but Red has him as the best wide receiver in the game.  149 receptions, 1725 yards!!  The only question is can he get to 2000 receiving yards in a season before Drew Brees expires in the huddle.
  7. DeAndre Hopkins –  There is a decent argument for him as the best receiver based on a slightly longer resume than MT.  But he was nowhere close to MT last season.  Don’t be surprised if he lead the league in multiple categories in Kingsbury’s offense.
  8. Russell Wilson – Never a favorite of Red’s but he has to give him his due.  He has missed the playoffs once in his career and won at least one playoff game in every other season except for 2017 when the Cowboys and refs robbed him.  He is still in his prime and very dangerous.
  9. Aaron Donald –  The offense must account for this guy on every play – usually with a double team.  Toss-up between him and Mack for best defender in the league.  Lots of folks think he is the best player in the league bar none.
  10. Travis Kelce – A defensive coordinator’s nightmare.  He beats you short, long, in, out and when he doesn’t even appear to be trying that hard.  The best tight end in the game as modern tight ends go.  He doesn’t get near enough credit for making the Chiefs offense the juggernaut that it is.

Other Guys Picks:

Pete Blackburn – CBS Sports

  1. Patrick Mahomes
  2. Aaron Donald
  3. Russell Wilson
  4. Michael Thomas
  5. Christian McCaffrey
  6. Stephon Gilmore
  7. Lamar Jackson
  8. Chandler Jones
  9. Khalil Mack
  10. Aaron Rodgers

Pete Prisco – CBS

  1. Patrick Mahomes
  2. aaron Donald
  3. Russel Wilson
  4. Michael Thomas
  5. Christian McCaffery
  6. Stephon Gilmore
  7. Lamar Jackson
  8. Chandler Jones
  9. Khalil Mack
  10. Aaron Rodgers

NFL Players Rank – 2019

  1. Aaron Donald
  2. Drew Brees
  3. Khalil Mack
  4. Patrick Mahomes
  5. Todd Gurley
  6. Tom Brady
  7. Antonio Brown
  8. Aaron Rodgers
  9. Julio Jones
  10. Von Miller

 

 

Bill O’ the Clown Triumphs in First Round of 2020 NFL Draft

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All you Texans’ fans can be proud of what Head Coach/GM Bill O’Brien did in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft.  Absolutely nothing.  Red was expecting Bill to trade away some more draft picks and All-Pro talent to pick up a player in the first round that the experts had going in the third round at best.  So Kudos to Bill for sitting on your hands.

It won’t last.