Cultural Cuisinart

To quote my father, just when you think the Bills are going to do something right... While the Bills managed to lose, every other team in the AFC East pulled off a win, erasing the 2 game lead the Bills had on 2 and allowing the Patriots to pull even with them. They MUST win next week against the Jets, or things will start to look pretty bad for them.

On a purely selfish note, I need Peyton Manning to throw 450 yards and 4 TDs in order to squeak out a win in my fantasy league tonight. Since he is going against one of the toughest defenses in the league, I doubt that's going to happen. However, the Colts rose to the occasion last time they faced a ferocious defense (the Ravens) so you never know.

Sometimes when you lose you win. Certain clubs lost tough matches yesterday, but shouldn't come away thinking nothing was gained. For example, the Falcons put up a good fight against the Eagles. Right now, the Eagles are simply just a better team. However, the Falcons have to feel good about the continuing development of both Matt Ryan and Roddy White, and can look at their performances as yet another sign that this franchise has some key elements for future success in place.

Similarly, the Rams had a good game against the Patriots, coming up just short of a third victory in a row. Consider what might have happened if star running back Steven Jackson hadn't been injured. Meanwhile, the offense seems to be clicking, with Bulger connecting with Donnie Avery again (in a moment that brought back memories of the Greatest Show on Turf). The defense has staunched the bleeding (for now), with #1 pick Chris Long racking up 2 sacks on the day.

The Chiefs also almost stole a win from the Jets, and had to feel good about Tyler Thigpen's performance at QB. Their first rounder Brandon Flowers returned an INT for a TD as well, so perhaps there's hope for both Missouri teams after all, despite their wretched starts.

But sometimes you just flat out lose. On the other hand, sometimes a loss has nothing good that you can take away from it. If ever there was a better time for the Bucs to assert their command of the NFC South, this would have been it. You can't ask for a better chance to face the Cowboys than after they're reeling from losing several games in a row, with their star QB out of the game. The Bucs offense couldn't get anything going, unfortunately, and failed to pull off the win.

The Bills forgot that the Miami Dolphins, despite their record, are a dangerous team, particularly when Joey Porter is feeling inspired. They paid the price, and Trent Edwards showed poor decision making through the game, including stretching the ball out in the pile for a first down, which resulted in a costly fumble. The Bills are a better team than the Dolphins, but they sure didn't play like it. Also, who the hell let Ted Ginn Jr. rack up that many yards? Poor, poor showing from the Bills secondary this week.

The 49'ers had a miserable loss against the injury-wracked Seahawks, with the starting QB getting benched in the 2nd quarter, and their #1 draft choice from 2006, Vernon Davis, kicked off the field by brand new head coach Mike Singletary. I will commend Singletary for having the cojones to do that (plus, kudos for that brilliant post-game interview), because I love that old school football mentality. Too bad the rest of the team doesn't seem to share that commitment and passion.

Studs of the week. The Jets won, not on the back of Brett Favre (though he'll get the "comeback" credit anyway), but on the mighty little legs of Leon Washington, who had 274 all-purpose yards and 2 TDs. The Drew Brees show rolls on with a big performance (30/41, 339 yds, 3 TDs) in London. Ted Ginn Jr. made the Bills look like fools, with 13 catches for 175 yards. I'm sure the Eagles were glad to get Brian Westbrook back, who tallied up 167 yds rushing with 2 TDs, plus 6 catches for 42 yards. In the last 3 weeks, the Texans' Andre Johnson has caught 178, 141 and 143 yards. That's how you help your team recover from an 0-4 start to go 3-4, only 1 game away from .500 on the year.

Teams I like this week. The Giants are looking more and more like the team to beat this year in the NFC. Great win over the Steelers in Pittsburgh. The Ravens also recovered from their recent skid, with the young kid Joe Flacco turning in a sweet performance. Brilliant call to have second string QB Troy Smith come into a game and throw a huge reception to Flacco, who lined up as a receiver for the play. Good win by the Panthers at home, overcoming a tough Arizona offense with a little offensive razzle-dazzle of their own.

Teams I don't like this week. The Chargers offense looked pretty good, with Philip Rivers turning in a fine performance, and LT finally looking like his old self running the ball. But if their defense can't stop leaking like a sieve, they're not going to make it past the first round of the playoffs (which they will only make by virtue of being in one of the worst divisions in football). The Bengals and Lions are just hopeless. Lastly, the Bills squandered a golden opportunity and have forced themselves into a "must win" situation they didn't want to be in.