Rex Ryan’s brash talking and bold Super Bowl predictions finally came to a fitting end Sunday at the hands of division rival Miami as the Jets folded 19-17 to the Dolphins. The epic collapse began with three key interceptions courtesy of the increasingly inept Mark Sanchez and ultimately ended in a late game Santonio Holmes benching after an in-huddle altercation. Read the rest of this entry »

In one violent motion, Jeremy Mincey drove Matt Leinart into the ground. Leinart would walk off the field unassisted, but news that broke later in the day confirmed what Houston Texans fans feared most: Leinart would be out for the season. Now down to third-string caliber signal-callers, a dark cloud looms over Houston. Read the rest of this entry »

In case you blinked and didn’t notice, the NFL regular season is halfway over. Contenders are taking shape, rookies are no longer rookies, the talk of 16-0 and 0-16 seasons for the Packers and Colts, respectively, are bubbling and Bart Scott is still talking. And for that last item, the church can collectively say amen. Read the rest of this entry »

No man is an island, except Darrelle Revis. One of the league’s best defensive backs went one-on-one with Miami WR Brandon Marshall in last night’s Monday Night Football matchup. Revis ran back the first of his two interceptions 100 yards for a touchdown Read the rest of this entry »

The most ironic thing about modern day dynasties is that many of them begin from the most inauspicious beginnings. Perhaps that symbolizes the beautiful aspect about life; we never know when “that moment” occurs. Read the rest of this entry »

A trip to Dallas and immortality on the line, four cold weather franchises known for hard hitting defenses took to the field in frigid mid-January temps. The result—ugly if intense football and a matchup between franchises known for dynasties past come two weeks. Read the rest of this entry »

Photo via NFL

Consequence thinks the New “Jersey” Jets are going to the Super Bowl. Although their victory against the Patriots was unforeseen and highly commendable, a dubya against the Black & Yellow (repeat 18x to fade) doesn’t seem too likely. Still, you gotta root, root, root for the home team or look like a sellout so its “JETS! JETS! JETS! JETS!” from here on out. Read the rest of this entry »

The Divisional playoffs of 2011 will be remembered for some epic upsets, Aaron Rodgers’ coming out party and the precise moment when Patrick M. stopped caring about sports.

Ravens Vs. Steelers

Pre-Game Chatter: The division foes split the regular season series in two of the most physical games of the season. With both defenses chomping at the bit to back up their reps, there was no reason to expect anything different. Read the rest of this entry »

So here’s how the story goes, in a nutshell:

– Jets easily dispose of Patriots 28-14 in Week 2.

– Patriots channel inner Joe Jackson and beat Jets like an offbeat child 45-3 in Week 13.

– As fate would have it, the two are scheduled to square off in the rubber match this weekend for a trip to the AFC Championship. Read the rest of this entry »

The first round of the playoffs saw a mix of upsets and last second heroics. Below is the breakdown of the highs and lows of the weekend’s Wild Card Playoffs.

Saints Vs. Seahawks

Pre-Game Chatter: The defending champs lucked out with what was dubbed a bye week against the 7-9 Seahawks. Drew Brees and company were easily expected to overcome Seattle and the Qwset Field crowd. Read the rest of this entry »

Pic via Dirk

In the long and storied history of this country, it doesn’t get much more American than Thanksgiving and the NFL. And while John Madden isn’t around to give us the pigskin gospel, the combination still feels right. Plates are stacked as high as Phillip Rivers’ passer rating and positions on the couch are claimed at the crack of dawn to be in best view of the television. Read the rest of this entry »

It seems like the NFL’s power rankings become fleeting as each week winds down. I guess that’s the beauty of the NFL in that seemingly any team with a convincing track record deserves bragging rights. With that said, it’s usually at this point of the season where we see teams emerge for late season pushes. Tis the season for implosions as well with a few franchises looking sluggish. Turkey Day isn’t here yet but some of these clubs, namely the Giants, Chargers and Colts, look like they have a mean case of itis. Let’s see if they can shake off the malaise down the stretch. Read the rest of this entry »

We can champion the NFL for its parity all day long, but someone has to go to the playoffs at the end of the day. The cream will begin to rise to the top, the minute hand will tick faster towards midnight for Cinderellas & some teams will have to relish playing the spoiler & fighting for roster spots. Yet, on a week where things should begin to sort themselves out, many questions arose as opposed to answers. Read the rest of this entry »

C’mon Braylon. Let’s be serious here. There’s no way you could still be celebrating your 45 yard, one touchdown performance against the Patroits on Sunday. We know you have that rare skin condition where your fingers naturally produce Land O’Lakes and the probability of you securing a pass is equal to spotting Rex Ryan with a salad, but this is ridiculous. Read the rest of this entry »

There’s nothing better than the start of a new NFL season. Everyone’s in first place, hope springs eternal for fans the world over & it just brings a certain electricity to the air. Combined with college football, the weekends now have purpose and don’t require much planning on the entertainment front. While waiting for things to officially kick off, the Crew got together and brainstormed a few things that we thought warranted a closer look throughout the season. It’s definitely not an be-all, end-all list, but we definitely feel like they could have some impact on the league this year.

1. The Albert Haynesworth/Mike Shanahan Dynamic

We’re not Redskins fans. Yet and still, we feel somewhat sorry for their fans because this Haynesworth fellow pulled the football version of the Louisiana Purchase when he took $100M in 2009. In return, he’s given them essentially nothing except for more failed conditioning tests than sacks. He’s been everything but innocent this entire summer and, the way things are sounding, they’re going to get a lot worse before better.

2. “QB Or Not QB: That Is The Question”

So which rookie quarterback is going to be the next Peyton Manning? Or maybe the next Leinhart? With many college superstars entering the league this year, it looks like most of them will be riding the pine. This year’s class includes names like Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy and Jimmy Claussen, but number one draft pick Sam Braford seems to be the only one getting significant playing time under center. Unfortunately, most of that time he’ll be getting to know the league’s top tier defensive ends – on his back. While the other rooks wait to get promoted, we”ll be figuring out all the names of the new NCAA quarterbacks.

3. How Many QB’s Ndamukong Suh Will Decapitate By Season’s End

Can anyone remember the last time a defensive lineman had people this excited to watch football, let alone the Lions. Detroit likely won’t contend for the NFC Championship this season, but Ndamukong Suh will definitely be worth the price of admission. After seeing him tear Jake Delhomme’s head clean off his shoulders, best believe Jay Cutler, Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre are praying their offensive lines remain healthy. The over/under for Suh? Six. He’s definitely going to get Cutler though.

4. The Batman & Robin Show aka T.O. Joins The Cincinnati Bengals

Over the past five years, the Bengals have clawed their way from the depths of the leagues bottom feeders into a respectable franchise. Their success is due in large part to a couple of draft picks actually panning out and becoming the Midwest equivalent of the Oakland Raiders, rolling the dice and becoming a safe haven for talented, but troubled cast-offs. After Antonio Bryant didn’t work out, they decided to bring Terrell Owens on board with the blessing of both Chad Ochocinco & Carson Palmer. Now fighting for both ratings and catches, it’ll be interesting how friendly the dynamic duo will still be by season’s end, especially with Owens on field production directly affecting his bank account.