Week 5 Recap

Mike the Ace and D.K review two nail-biting games from NFL Week 5.

Minnesota Vikings @ Seattle Seahawks (27-28 Seahawks)
Mike The Ace @TheAceWriter

The Minnesota Vikings have had a rough start to this season. Losses to the Packers, Colts, and Titans left them with an 0-3 record to start the year. Minnesota was able to grab their first win in week 4 against the Texans, but faced one of the best teams in the league in week 5.

The Seattle Seahawks have started the season on the opposite end of the spectrum. The Seahawks had been able to grab wins in all four of their games, scoring over 30 points in each victory.

The Vikings defense came out strong in this football game, holding the Seahawks scoreless through the first half. Their pass rush was able to generate pressure, sacking QB Russell Wilson 4 times. Offensively, the Vikings were poise and methodical, using the running game to control the line of scrimmage.

All of Minnesota’s defensive success absolutely fell apart at the start of the second half. The Seahawks were able to score 21 points in just 10 offensive plays. The Vikings were able to stay afloat offensively in the 2nd half, and the game was decided on one final Seahawks’ drive.

Down 26-21, Russell Wilson drove the Seahawks offense 94 yards for the game winning score. Wilson was fantastic on this final drive, taking care of the football and converting in clutch situations. The biggest conversion was on a 4th & 10, where Wilson found WR D.K. Metcalf for a 39 yard gain. Wilson would end the drive finding Metcalf again for a 6 yard score.

The Seahawks have been one of my favorite teams to watch this season. Their defense is very poor at times, but their offense has been really explosive. If they can get healthy and tighten up on defense, I think they have a great chance to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.

San Diego Chargers @ New Orleans Saints (30-27 Saints)
D.K. @ayeyoo_biggs

The score of the game was 30-27 the Saints way and they were in a battle pretty much start to finish. We have seen steady improvement from Justin Herbert every week, while on the same hand watching Drew Brees will the Saints to another win without Michael Thomas.

In only his 4th start Justin Herbert continued to prove that the Chargers were right in making him the #6 pick in the 2020 draft. Herbert went 20 for 34 with 264 yards. What I really like about the game was the way he was distributing the ball. He completed a pass to 8 different receivers, with Mike Williams leading the way with 5 catches, 109 yards, and two touchdowns. I think this is key because there are times in a young quarterbacks career where he might try and force it to the main threat on the offense. Something else they might do, is only go to a guy they have good chemistry with in practice. This game showed that he was good at going through his progressions and can make the right throws when needed.

Drew Brees had a Drew Brees game going 33 for 47 with 325 yards and a TD. The offense was a little choppy at the beginning of the game. Brees was under pressure even throwing an interception in the first half. They couldn’t get the run game going and the Chargers have an above average defensive line with Nick Bosa. Slowly but surely, Brees willed them to a win, feeding Emmanuel Sanders for 15 catches and 122 yards. Sanders doing his best Michael Thomas impression. Alvin Kamara also made some great plays with 119 all purpose yards.

The Saints won the game but I was more impressed with the Chargers. I like the development of Herbert and I’m excited to see what he does this season. Drew Brees and Co. did win the game, but Father Time is catching up to him and I’m not sure how much magic he has left in that arm.

Week 4 Recap

Mike the Ace and D.K. review two games from some questionable performances in NFL Week 4.

Cleveland Browns @ Dallas Cowboys ( 49-38 Browns)
Mike The Ace @TheAceWriter

Bad tackling, coverage busts, and mental lapses have plagued a decent amount of NFL teams so far. Through the first four weeks of the season, defenses league wide have struggled. However, none of these defenses may have struggled as badly as the Dallas Cowboys .

It seems to be the same story every week for Dallas. They start by exchanging scores with the opposing team on the first few drives. At some point they end up turning the ball over, and the other team almost always capitalizes. After building up a deficit, they storm back with a high octane passing offense. This script has played out in all four of their games so far. They have only been able to complete the comeback once, leading them to a record of 1-3.

Their defense wasn’t expected to be the best, but it has been awful. They have injuries at all three levels of their defense, and critics are now beginning to blame the complex scheme for their early problems. I believe a lot of their problems are due to a lack of effort. As highlighted in this breakdown here. In my opinion, stopping the run is the top priority for any defense. They have been unable to do so through the first quarter of the season.

On the flip side of things, you have to love what you’re seeing from Cleveland and their offense. They have been able to run the ball well, and have scored over 34 points in their last three outings. Odell Beckham Jr. went ballistic this past weekend, catching 8 passes for 81 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also sealed the game on a reverse play that went for a 50-yard touchdown.

Cleveland looks like they are on a roll. They are in a tough division, and will need to keep this focus and intensity in order to compete. Baker Mayfield has to limit his mistakes, and they will continue to bully teams on offense. On the other hand, Dallas is in the worst division in football and has a great chance to make the playoffs. They will need to find some kind of answer defensively.

Atlanta Falcons @ Green Bay Packers (30-16 Packers)
D.K. @ayeyoo_biggs

The Packers came out and dominated from start to finish at Lambeau on Monday night. Aaron Rodgers is continuing to have an MVP year even with a weak WR core, not having Allan Lazard and Devonte Adams.

Matt Ryan was 28/39 for 285 yards and with no touchdowns. He was under fire from the Packers defense all game. He was sacked 4 times, but it was the QB hurries and getting him off his spots, which allowed for a bad offensive night from the Falcons. It also didn’t help much that Atlanta could not establish the run game. With Julio hampered by a hamstring, Green Bay stacked the box and dared Matt to throw, but there was unfortunately no time given by the offensive line.

Aaron Rodgers went 27/33 for 327 yards and 4 touchdowns. With his top two receivers out, he went to his best threat left, tight end Robert Tonyan. He racked up 6 catches for 98 yards and 3 TDs. He does have 5 TDs on the season and is slowly turning into one of Rodgers favorite red zone targets. Aaron Jones also added 15 rushes for 71 yards and backup RB Jamal Williams added 105 all purpose yards.

Aaron Rodgers is putting together another MVP caliber year for the Packers and with the rest of the WR core coming back from injury, there is no reason why the offense won’t get even better. The defense also stepped up in a great way and used their pass rush led by Za’darius Smith. This loss puts Dan Quinn in an extremely hot seat, and it could be any day now that he’s fired with an 0-4 record on the season.

Week 3 Recap

Mike the Ace and D.K. review two exciting match ups for NFL Week 3.

Los Angeles Rams @ Buffalo Bills (35-32 Bills)
Mike The Ace @TheAceWriter

On Episode 6 of the TFINS podcast, we reviewed the offseason moves of the NFC West. Toward the end of the podcast, we also predicted where each team in the division would finish.

I was very critical of the Rams, and I had them finishing last in the NFC West. Through the first three weeks of the season, they have certainly proved me wrong.

This matchup was one of the best games this weekend. The Bills and Rams both had something to prove, as their first two wins were against teams that are far from powerhouse. In my opinion, both the Bills and Rams will make some noise this season if they can stay healthy.

The Bills jumped out to a fantastic start, dominating the first half and snatching a 21-3 lead. The lead ballooned to 28-3 after a Stefon Diggs touchdown catch with 8:05 left in the 3rd quarter. From that moment on, the Los Angeles Rams snapped back to life.

The Rams offense immediately got in rhythm, carving up the Bills respected defense. Los Angeles put together four straight touchdown scoring drives, and suddenly took the lead 32-28. With 4:30 left in the 4th quarter, Buffalo had their chance to answer.

Bills Quarterback Josh Allen put together an impressive scoring drive. Moving his team down the field before throwing a 3-yard TD to tight end Tyler Kroft with 15 seconds left in the game. After nearly blowing a huge lead, it was impressive to see Allen keep his composure and put the ball in the end zone to seal the game.

Both the Rams and Bills showed the type of fight and resolve you like to see in a football team. Both teams played at an elite level, and put pressure on the other. It was truly a great game, and I will have an eye on both of these squads going forward.

Las Vegas Raiders @ New England Patriots (36-20 Patriots)
DK @ayeyoo_biggs

This game was about what the Patriots do best, take away your best chance of scoring points, and forcing you to find another way to win. The Raiders came into this game with one of the top young TEs in the league in Darren Waller. The game before, Waller had a stellar game with 12 catches for 102 yards. New England held him to 2 catches and 9 yards.

Derek Carr went 24/32 for 261 yards with two TDs. The main issue with the Raiders this week were their turnovers. Derek Carr fumbled twice, the first led to a field goal and the second was in his own end zone, resulting in a recovered touchdown for New England. Josh Jacobs also fumbled as well in this game. These types of plays just gave the ball back to New England, in which they were able to capitalize.

Cam Newton had a good game, going 17/28 with 162 yards and a TD. The story of the game for the New England offense though, was Rex Burkhead. He had a day, having 6 carries for 49 yards and 2 TDs and 7 receptions for 49 yards and a TD. Sony Michel also had 9 carries for 117 yards. The Patriot Defense did Patriots things as well , like the fumble recovered for a TD by Deatrich Wise and only allowing 2 catches for Carr’s favorite target Waller.

I still actually like the Raiders and think they will have a great season. For the first time in a long time they are playing competent football on offense and have great young defenders like Maxx Crosby and John Abram. I was also extremely impressed with the rookie out of Ohio State, cornerback Damon Arnette. The Patriots play the Chiefs next and will be a great showdown between QBs Cam Newton and Patrick Mahomes, and the Coaches Bill Belichick and Andy Reid.

Week 2 Recap

Mike the Ace and D.K. review two wild games from NFL Week 2.

New Orleans Saints @ Las Vegas Raiders (34-24 Raiders)
Mike The Ace @TheAceWriter

The Raiders hosted their very first home game in Allegiant Stadium on Monday night. Nobody wants to be *the* team that starts a stadium’s history off with an L, and the Raiders played like it.

The Silver-and-Black brought it to the Saints in this football game. Vegas is a run heavy, smash mouth team. Everything on their offense starts with running back Josh Jacobs, but the star of the day was tight end Darren Waller. Waller had 12 catches for 105 yards and 1 touchdown.

The Saints defense did well against the run, holding Jacobs to just 3.0 yards per carry. The issue was in the passing game, as Waller and backup Foster Moreau were both able to make big plays in this game. The Saints brought in safety Malcolm Jenkins this offseason to help defend against tight ends. He’ll need to improve his pass coverage, as he was picked on multiple times by Vegas.

The Saints leaned heavily on running back Alvin Kamara. This will likely be a necessary strategy for them, as star receiver Michael Thomas recovers from an ankle injury. New Orleans will need much more production from their other veteran receiver, Emmanuel Sanders. Brees will also need to be sharper as well. Both of these teams will be very interesting to watch, moving forward.

Atlanta Falcons @ Dallas Cowboys (40-39 Cowboys)
DK @ayeyoo_biggs

The Cowboys had 4 first half fumbles and were still were able to somehow come out with the victory on Sunday.

Matt Ryan had a great game on Sunday going 27/36 with 276 yards and 4 TDs. I really liked the way the offense operated, with 7 receivers getting targeted. Calvin Ridley continues to impress 7 catches for 109 yards and 2 TDs.

The Dallas offense really had a tale of two half with first half fumbles and struggles. They came back in the second half and slowly chipped away at the Atlanta 29-10 halftime lead. Dak Prescott went 34/47 with 450 yard and 4 total touchdowns in the furious comeback. Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb both went over 100 yards receiving with Zeke Elliot adding 122 all purpose yards.

Even after allowing 13 points in the 4th, Atlanta was still in a position to win the game. All they had to do was recover an onside kick. Dallas kicker Greg Zuerlein kicked the ball and as it rolled towards the needed 10 yards for them to recover, no Falcons players decided to fall on the ball. Dallas then recovers the kicks and drives down the field for a game winning field goal.

This was the Falcons game to lose and unfortunately they did. Dan Quinn is on a seriously hot seat. These next few weeks will tell if he is in Atlanta beyond this season, if not the bye week.

Week 1 Recap

Mike the Ace and D.K. roll out our 2020-2021 NFL Season Weekly recap with their reviews of two games in the opening week of the season.

The 2020-2021 NFL Season finally kicked off after an offseason filled with uncertainty due to the current worldwide pandemic. While having football return brought back a sense of normality, things weren’t exactly back to normal as many teams played without fans in the stadium. The noise was authentic, but it was not live as it was prerecorded fans from previous games. Nonetheless, the NFL is back and the TFINS team is here to bring you a quick recap of a couple games in Week 1 of the 2020-2021 NFL Season.

Philadelphia Eagles @ Washington Football Team (17-27)

Mike the Ace @TheAceWriter

I know you all want to get my take on this game, so here you go. The Eagles played a good offensive game for almost two full quarters. One good half of football usually won’t cut it in the NFL, and it didn’t on Sunday against Washington.

Carson Wentz got off to an incredible start, completing 14 of 17 passes, for 182 yards, and 2 touchdowns. Right before halftime, Wentz and the Eagles’ offense completely unraveled. The Eagles QB would finish the rest of the game going 10 of 25, for 88 yards, with 2 interceptions.

Wentz and Pederson had one of their worst halves together on Sunday. With a series of injuries along the offensive line, Pederson continued to call deep shot plays, looking for big yardage down the field. These types of plays genuinely take a long time to develop, and that worked perfectly for Washington’s defense.

Washington’s defense dominated the Eagles beat up offense, sacking Wentz 8 times on Sunday. Chase Young and Washington’s defensive line will be one of the league’s best units, if they can stay healthy. The secondary was also a pleasant surprise for DC, as both interceptions were great plays by their defensive backs.

Pederson will have to slow down with the deep shots until the Eagles get better play out of their offensive line. It was surprising to see him so hell-bent on launching it deep, especially when the Eagles rarely took deep shots last year. This offense will welcome the return of runningback Miles Sanders and offensive tackle Lane Johnson, if they are able to play next week.

Tennessee Titans @ Denver Broncos (16-14)
DK @Ayeyoo_biggs

The score is not indicative of what happened on Monday night. The Tennessee Titans played like the superior team but special teams and new Kicker Stephon Gostkowski left 10 points on the field by going 1 for 4 in field goals and missing an extra point. This was an issue for Tennessee last year, who had the worst kicking core in the league going 44% as a team using four kickers. This needs to be addressed in the next few weeks, or we can’t take the Titans seriously as a contender.

Drew Lock went 22/33 with 216 yards and a touchdown. I really like how they used play action and rollouts to get him moving. It seems like it allowed him to get into a better flow in this game. The two headed monster of Phillip Lindsey and Melvin Gordon got off to a good start until Lindsey sustained an injury in the first half. This led to Gordon taking over in the second half and having a decent showing having 78 yards but also had a costly fumble early in the game (which led to a Derrick Henry touchdown).

Ryan Tannehill also has a good game going 29/43 for 249 yards and two touchdowns. He made plays when they needed to happen at the end of the game to seal the victory. Derrick Henry added 131 all purpose yards and assisted with clock management in the game winning drive. He and Tannehill have and will continue to use the play action/ running game to file the Titans offense this season.

Another interesting storyline in the game was Denver head coach Vic Fangio not using any of the team’s timesouts as the Titans ran the ball, and ran the clock on the final drive. The Titans, down two, had 3:05 left on the clock. The Titans proceeded to go on a 12 play 83 yard drive and Fangio did nothing to stop the clock, so just in case the opposing offense scored (which they did), you’d give your team a chance to move the ball down the field. After the made field goal by Gostkowski, Drew Lock and the offense only had 00:17 left on the clock to move the ball into field goal range.

Denver young core looks like a very fun team to watch going forward. Drew lock will have to continue learning and developing his game and reading coverages, he left a few plays on the field that could have helped them increase the lead at the end of the game and halt the comeback. The Titans look like they are building on what they did last year: run Derrick Henry and allow Tannehill to work off of the play action. With these two, along with a stout looking defense with Jadeveon Clowney being added into the mix, they are looking to make another deep run this year.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly – Week 17

Michael Lipscomb

My weekly review of the games around the league. Recognizing greatness and talking a little trash! Got a problem with it? Hit me up on Twitter: @TheAceWriter or tweet at the website’s page @TFINS_

Follow the site on Instagram for debates, updates, and post notifications. IG: thefutureisnowsports

Check out the Underrated Performance of the Week at the bottom of the page too!

The Good – Philly clinches 4th seed in NFC. Will host Seattle during wildcard weekend.
Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants. Eagles win 34-17.

The Eagles were able to control their own destiny to earn their playoff spot. After conquering the Dallas Cowboys in week 16, Philly had to win their final game against the New York Giants to clinch the 4th seed in the NFC.

This game wasn’t a cakewalk by any stretch of the imagination. The Eagles didn’t take command of this game until late in the 3rd quarter. The Giants were down 20-17, and had possession of the ball.

Quarterback Daniel Jones was unable to handle a low snap, and the Eagles recovered the ball on the Giants 2-yard line. Philly would punch the ball into the end zone on the following play. The lead would balloon to 34-17 by the end of the game.

The Eagles have been one of the most up and down teams this season. It was good to see them step up and dominate the most crucial quarter of their season.

Carson Wentz completed his first full season this year. He reached 4,000 passing yards, and broke the single season Eagles passing yards record. Wentz is also the first player to record 4,000 career passing yards without having 500 yards to a single wide receiver.

Wentz and coach Doug Pederson have battled injuries and adversity all season. This offense has struggled for sure, but this tandem was able to get the job done over the month of December.

I believe Philly will be able to win their matchup with Seattle over wildcard weekend.

The Bad – Seattle Seahawks lose division title game, drop to 5th seed in NFC.
San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks. Niners win 26-21.

<img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/4gD6FVED_oFSBPxkOkgKyqtP3zOjQIF7gwIOrjwTQLZxTGbs8ARTYGiwFDEUJDZpmoa_MmEH9ahRuMl2ijybDKKtqA1e1uWXGeBKi9SFJRtUas_41nEkWdajunE9N0C3tcG774FC" alt="<p>Seattle Seahawks' John Ursua, left, makes a catch at the one-yard line to give the team a first down with less than a minute left as San Francisco 49ers' K'Waun Williams tackles during the second half of an NFL

Stephen Brashear, AP

The NFC West has been a war zone the entire season. The third best team in this division is the 9-7 Los Angeles Rams. The Rams won’t be making the playoffs this year, after losing in the Super Bowl just last season

The two big dawgs in this division are the Niners and the Seahawks. Both teams have had outstanding performances from their respective players and coaching staffs this season.

The Niners were able to travel to Seattle and claim the division title. They played a well-rounded game, and Jimmy Garrapolo made plays in the passing game to get them out to an early lead.

The Seahawks offense took forever to get going. They were down 13-0 until Tyler Lockett found the end zone late in the third quarter. As usual, Russell Wilson still found a way to rally his guys late.

Wilson and the Seahawks were able to scrap back into this game, and give themselves a chance to win on the last drive. With 2:18 left in regulation, the Seahawks worked their way down the field, but were ultimately stopped in the red zone.

The drive would end up covering 72 yards over 15 plays, but the Seahawks were denied on the 1-yard line.

In the red zone, the Seahawks made life difficult for themselves by having a delay of game on 2nd & 1, from the 1-yard line. After two incomplete passes, the Seahawks were faced with 4th & 5.

Seahawks tight end Jacob Hollister was able to make the catch, but was stopped short of the end zone on 4th down. The ball was turned back over to the Niners with just 9 seconds left, and the game was over.

The Seahawks had the chance to host a home playoff game and win their division. As a 5th seed, they will be traveling to Philadelphia during wildcard weekend.

The Ugly – Patriots lose home game against Miami. Finishes with the 3rd seed in conference, missing chance for wildcard bye.
Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots. Dolphins win 27-24.

The Patriots will be hosting a home wild card game for the first time since 2009. New England has been to 11 straight playoff appearances, and they are a team that usually has the first round playoff bye.

Going into week 17, New England was scheduled to earn the 2nd seed in the AFC if they could beat the 4-11 Miami Dolphins. The Patriots were treating this game as a must-win situation and played all of their healthy starting players.

The Dolphins were able to take care of the defending champions on the road. The Patriots offense started out flat, and the defense kept them in the game. As the New England offense got itself together, their defense began to unravel.

Tom Brady and the Pats offense gave the team a 24-20 lead with 4 minutes left in the game. The Dolphins had nothing to play for in this game, but were determined to get this win.

The Dolphins maneuvered their way back down the field. Dolphins QB Ryan Fitzpatrick found tight end Mike Geisecki in the back of the end zone to retake the lead with 24 seconds remaining in the game.

Geisecki did a good job of winning his route against a safety in man coverage, on the 5-yard touchdown catch. The skinny post route from the 6’6” tight end would seal the deal on the regular season, for these two teams.

As the 3rd seed, New England is scheduled to face the Tennessee Titans in the wildcard round. The Titans are a surging team that has found their offensive stride since making Ryan Tannehil the starting quarterback. The Titans defense is also elite, and they threaten to knock New England out in the first round.

The Patriots could have avoided this wild card matchup by beating the worst team in their division. Instead, they have to try and stop the strong running game that the Titans present. I predict the Titans win this game in Foxborough.

No Underrated Performance of the Week this week. Instead here are my wildcard weekend predictions!

Bills over Texans
Titans over Patriots
Saints over Vikings
Eagles over Seahawks

This will be a GREAT weekend of football.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly – Week 16

Michael Lipscomb

The Good – Packers’ defense stands up on Monday Night Football. Green Bay solidifies themselves as elite team of NFC North.
Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings. Packers win 23-10.

The Green Bay Packers are the least respected 12-3 team in the NFL. It’s not difficult to understand why. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has shown signs of regression. They have a lack of explosive offense weapons on offense, and their defense has struggled to stop the run at times this season.

With all of that being said, this team is still 12-3, and will clinch a first round bye in the playoffs if they can win in Week 17.

Green Bay held strong against the 10-5 Minnesota Vikings on Monday night. This win secured the divisional crown, and put them in a prime position to make a deep playoff run.

The Packers defensive line overwhelmed the Vikings offense. Vikings’ Quarterback Kirk Cousins was sacked five (5) times in this game, and the Vikings offense totaled a measly 132 yards for the game.

The Vikings were without star running back Dalvin Cook, but they did have their two star receivers available to them in this game. Adam Thielen was targeted four (4) times and did not make a single catch, while Stefon Diggs only had three (3) catches for 57 yards.

The Packers defense has continued to play at a high level late in the season. They have not allowed more than 15 points in any game, during the month of December. If this team can keep that momentum on defense, they will be a dangerous opponent to play against, come playoff time.

The Bad – Wounded Seahawks can’t get going against Cardinals. Hawks fall to 5th spot in NFC playoff seeding.
Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks. Cardinals win 27-13.

The NFC playoff picture will be a toss up until the last week of the regular season is played. The Seahawks are in the middle of a heated race with the 49ers for the divisional crown. After week 16, the Saints, Packers, and 49ers all have a record of 12-3.

The Seahawks missed their chance at getting to 12-3, after losing at home to the Arizona Cardinals. This loss drops them to a wildcard spot in the NFC playoff bracket, which means they would be looking at an away game against the winner of the NFC East as the 5th seed.

The Seahawks still have a chance to win their division, but this loss probably cost them their chance to grab the top seed in the conference. With the amount of injuries they currently have, they would have benefited from having a first round bye in the playoffs.

The Cardinals pass rush gave Russell Wilson problems all game, as he was sacked five (5) times. The pass rush, along with good coverage from the Arizona secondary, limited the Seattle passing attack. Wilson completed just over 50% of his passes and gained just 169 yards through the air. He ended the game averaging just 5.5 yards per attempt.

Running the ball wasn’t an option either for the Seahawks. During the second quarter, running back Chris Carson suffered a hip injury. Later in the same quarter, backup running back C.J. Prosise exited the game with a broken arm. After the game, Pete Carroll announced that both players were done for the season.

The Seahawks run defense was also exposed on Sunday. The Cardinals ran for a total of 253 yards on 40 attempts in this game. The Seahawks will have to stop the run, no matter which team they face in the playoffs.

Seattle has a chance to bounce back after a subpar effort against Arizona. They have signed running back Marshawn Lynch in hopes of replacing the injured members of the backfield. They face the 49ers next week, and the winner takes the division title. The Hawks need to win this game and save themselves from a road trip, on wild card weekend.

The Ugly – Cowboys come out flat in battle for NFC East. Prescott and the offense gets grounded in Philadelphia.
Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles. Eagles win 17-9.

Cowboys fans set themselves up for heartbreak if they had hope in this football team. The team suffered its 8th loss of the season at the hands of their bitter division rivals in Philly.

The Cowboys continued their trend of not showing up in big games. The team looked unmotivated, uninspired, and most importantly, unprepared.

Compared to Philadelphia, Dallas was relatively healthy in this football game. Their quarterback, Dak Prescott, was injured last week during their win to the rams and was clearly affected in this game. Outside of Prescott playing injured and an injury to linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, Dallas had most of their star players available.

I predicted that Dallas would win this game, and I wasn’t confident that it would be a close game, either. The Cowboys had just come off of a strong performance against the Los Angeles Rams, and racked up 44 points in the blowout.

They must’ve left their offense in Dallas, because they were unable to find the end zone against the Eagles. This same Eagles defense had trouble stopping Redskins’ rookie QB Dwayne Haskins, the week prior.

The Eagles played with a different level of intensity than the Cowboys in this game. Credit Eagles’ head coach Doug Pederson, for having his guys ready to play. The winner of this game was most likely making the playoffs, and the better coached team came away with the win.

How many more seasons will Cowboys’ fans have to endure the Jason Garrett era?

Underrated Performance of the Week – Daniel Jones, Quarterback, New York Giants

From a national standpoint, I’m sure no one was paying attention to this lousy game.

The two basement dwellers of the NFC East faced off on Sunday afternoon, but the Giants rookie quarterback was able to catch fire.

Daniel Jones finished the game completing 28 of 42 pass attempts, for 352 yards and five (5) touchdowns. The biggest takeaway was the lack of turnovers! No fumbles, no picks thrown.

Watch all five of his scores, here!

Daniel Jones 28/42 352 yards
5 TD 0 INT

All 5 TD’s including a walkoff win for Daniel Jones! pic.twitter.com/guXBIsD7Rd
— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) December 22, 2019

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly – Week 15

Michael Lipscomb

The Good- Drew Brees becomes the NFL all-time leader in passing touchdowns. Saints get big win at home.
Indianapolis Colts at New Orleans Saints. Saints win 34-7

Congratulations to Drew Brees for breaking another NFL record. Brees broke Peyton Manning’s touchdown record with a 5-yard throw to tight end Josh Hill, in the third quarter of Monday night’s game. It was the 540th touchdown pass of his NFL career.

I used to hear a lot of conversation about Brees being considered a second tier quarterback to Manning, Rodgers, etc.

With the Saints having so much success in recent years, I’ve noticed Drew Brees get a lot more respect from casual fans.

Good for Brees, who has had one of the most interesting and inspiring careers in NFL history. He’s got a chance to add to his resume this season, if he can bring home another Lombardi trophy.

It’s almost impossible to win a Super Bowl without a tenacious defense, and the Saints definitely have that. The Indianapolis Colts were held to just 46 rushing yards against New Orleans.

The Colts entire offense revolves around their strong rushing attack. The Saints shut that all the way down, and caused problems all night. The Saints dominated this football game on both sides of the football.

The battle for NFC supremacy will be a good win. The Saints, Packers, 49ers, Seahawks, etc., have strong coaching, talented rosters, and respectable quarterback play. This may end up being one of the best playoffs in recent memory.

The Bad – Niners fall to Falcons on miraculous last play. Miss opportunity to hold No. 1 seed in NFC.
Atlanta Falcons at San Francisco 49ers. Falcons win 29-22.

I want to start of by giving respect to the Falcons. They played a great game, and gave the Niners everything they had. The Niners didn’t play great, but they didn’t play poorly either.

This game is a bad loss because of the war the 49ers are currently in at the top of the conference.

The Seahawks (11-3), Packers (11-3), and Saints (11-3) are all fighting for the No.1 seed and every loss hurts a chance at claiming it. The first seed gets home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Niners had the opportunity to move to 12-2, but came up short against the Falcons. I believe a young team like this needs to get home field advantage if they’re going to get to the Super Bowl.

With star cornerback Richard Sherman missing this game with an injury, the Niners had trouble defending Julio Jones. Jones ended the game with 13 catches, 134 yards, and two touchdowns.

The superstar receiver was able to convert several 3rd downs opportunities, into 1st downs. Jones also drew a key pass interference call late in the 4th quarter. That flag lead to a touchdown on the next play, and the score was 19-17, 49ers.

The Niners would drive down on the ensuing drive and get a field goal. The score was 22-17 with under two minutes left.

Matt Ryan drove his offense down the field and the drive came down to one play. With 5 seconds left on a 3rd & Goal. Ryan was able to find Jones who barely crossed the plane of the goal line. It was one of the most incredible plays that you will see all season.

The 49ers have a huge game coming up next week. They battle their divisional rivals the Los Angeles Rams. I want to see the Niners go out and dominate this game. This team can’t afford to let up if they want to end the season as kings of the NFC, and champions of the NFL.

The Ugly – Browns get floored by Cards. Freddie Kitchens has to go.
Cleveland Browns at Arizona Cardinals. Cardinals win 38-24.

I’ve always been a fan of the “wait-and-see” approach when it comes to head coaches. I believe that too much organizational turnover can be just as bad (or worse) than doing nothing at all.

With all of that being said, the Cleveland Browns need to show Freddie Kitchens the nearest exit. The Browns lost another game to a team with lesser talent.

The Arizona Cardinals jumped out to a fast start, and the Browns simply had no answer. Cleveland’s defense looked lost. The offense looked stagnant. The entire game was a mess. This was a below average performance, all the way around.

The Cardinals snapped a 6-game losing streak against the Browns. Prior to this game, Cleveland was still “in the hunt” for the playoffs. With this loss, it appears that their season is all but over.

The Cardinals have some talented players, but the Browns have more talent and should be competing at a different level. They should have dominated this game from start to finish. The way the players failed to respond in a do-or-die situation, tells me all I need to know about the head coach.

The Browns risk losing their locker room if they don’t replace Kitchens. There are a lot of rumors that players on the team are requesting trades to other destinations.

There is a simple solution to getting the Browns back on the path to success. Keep the players, get rid of the coach.

Underrated performance of the Week – Joe Mixon, Running back, Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals predictably got blown out by New England, but it wasn’t because of their running game!

Mixon had a fantastic game against the defending Super Bowl champs, rushing for 135 yards on 25 carries. He also caught three passes for another 20 yards.

Hopefully we get to see him play with LSU Quarterback Joe Burrow, in 2020…

MY OH MY @Joe_MainMixon #NEvsCIN | #SeizeTheDEY pic.twitter.com/K3gG572JYF
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) December 15, 2019

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly – Week 14

Michael Lipscomb

The Good – Shootout in the SuperDome. Niners win a high scoring game to claim top spot in NFC.
San Francisco 49ers at New Orleans Saints. Niners win 48-46.

I’ll get straight to the point. This game was amazing! Two of the best offensive minds in football faced off in a war, and there were fireworks everywhere. Kudos to head coaches Sean Payton and Kyle Shannahan.

If you like big plays, this was a game for you. These two teams combined for 981 yards in this battle! These head coaches did a masterful job of getting the football to their playmakers in space.

Both teams received strong performances from multiple players, at different offensive positions. The play calling was outstanding from both teams, and the offenses went berserk.

I was very impressed with what I saw from San Francisco’s quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo. The 49ers have been one of the most well-rounded teams this season, and the passing game has consistently been identified as the weakness of this team.

Jimmy Garoppolo isn’t Peyton Manning, but he showed that he can produce against an elite defense. He completed 26 of 35 passing attempts for four (4) touchdowns, with 1 interception. He also made the right throws on the game winning drive, which ended in a 30 yard field goal.

Both of these teams are talented on both sides of the football. These teams have built through the draft and have young, exciting players on their rosters. I would not be surprised if this game ended up being the NFC Championship. If this rematch ends up being one of the final four contests, we’re all in for a show.

The Bad – Texans get ambushed by Broncos. AFC South tied at 8-5.
Denver Broncos at Houston Texans. Broncos win 38-24.

The Texans had one of the biggest wins of the season in Week 13. I actually highlighted them as The Good for their big time win against the New England Patriots.

The win against the Pats looks like it may have went to their heads, as the Texans were completely caught off guard by the Denver Broncos.

The Broncos came out with an admirable intensity, led by veteran defensive back Kareem Jackson. This was a homecoming game for Jackson, as the corner was drafted by the Houston Texans back in 2010. Jackson had played all nine (9) seasons of his career in Houston, before signing with Denver this past offseason.

Kareem Jackson played like an absolute maniac against his former team. He recorded 11 total tackles, 3 pass deflections and an interception. He also returned a fumble recovery 70 yards for a touchdown, after the ball was lateraled to him by a teammate. This man was all over the field, making big hits and attacking the football. He had a major impact on this game.

The Texans can’t afford to have let ups like this going forward. They seemed to be sleepwalking through the first two quarters, as the Broncos jumped out to a 31-3 lead at halftime. The lead would balloon to 38-3, before the Texans had their first touchdown midway through the 3rd quarter.

Their defense was picked apart by rookie quarterback Drew Lock, who threw for over 300 yards and three (3) touchdowns.

If the Texans want to be considered one of the top teams in the league, they will have to avoid outings like this in the future. They now tie the Tennessee Titans for the AFC South division lead.

The Ugly – Jaguars look sloppy in loss to Chargers. Jags fall to 4-9 after an awful game.
Los Angeles Chargers at Jacksonville Jaguars. Chargers win 45-10.

I want to start this off by saying that I feel really bad for whoever had to sit through this game. There were flags, missed tackles, blown coverage assignments, dropped passes, and more from BOTH teams in this dreadful game.

This is a familiar sight for Jacksonville Jaguars fans. The team is floundering at 4-9, and is seated firmly at the bottom of the AFC South.

Quarterback Gardner Minshew finished the game completing 24 of his 37 pass attempts, for 162 yards, and one (1) touchdown. He also ran the ball six (6) times for 31 yards.

Minshew wasn’t the biggest reason for the Jags lackluster offense, but he didn’t do much to help, either. At this stage of his career, Minshew is a game manager, and can’t operate when the rest of his team is not playing well.

The Jaguars offensive line was MISERABLE. Holding calls left and right. Poor pass protection. Even worse run blocking. It was just a bad game all around, for this unit.

The defense was even worse than the offense. The tackling was horrendous. There were blown coverages all over the field, and they didn’t get pressure on the quarterback.
I was under the impression that this was a Tom Coughlin built team. I didn’t see any of that from the Jaguars performance on Sunday afternoon. What a disappointing performance in front of their home crowd.

Underrated performance of the Week – A.J. Brown, Wide Receiver, Tennessee Titans

The Titans have been scraping and fighting for the playoffs this season.

Quarterback Ryan Tannehill had the offensive in rhythm against Oakland and he got a lot of help from his rookie wide receiver!

Brown got busy against the silver & black. Have a look at his 91 yard touchdown this past weekend!

Ryan Tannehill throws a BOMB. AJ Brown does the rest.

Touchdown Titans.pic.twitter.com/99ZX2Vci0O
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) December 8, 2019

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly – Week 13

Michael Lipscomb

The Good – Texans maul Brady and Patriots, maintain control of AFC South.
New England Patriots at Houston Texans. Texans win 29-22.

Deshaun Watson is a baller, man. Watching this guy play quarterback is a treat, and I hope the fans are appreciating his talents.

Knocking off the Patriots is no easy feat. The Pats have the best pass defense in the league and are coached by defensive mastermind Bill Belichick. This defense strikes fear in the hearts of opposing quarterbacks, as they should.

Watson clearly has no fear, throwing for three (3) touchdown passes and no interceptions against New England. He also scored a receiving touchdown on a cool trick play.

The Texans played a really good game, all around. They committed a few penalties, but did not turn the ball over all game. The Texans defense also forced an interception early in the game. The interception setup Watson and the offense in the red zone, and they were punch the ball in for a touchdown.

Although the final score was a 6 point differential, the Texans dominated this game. Houston was up 19 points until their were about 4 minutes remaining in the game. Their defense fell asleep towards the end, which is a habit they will have to break if they plan on going deep into the playoffs.

Sunday’s game was a great win for Watson and the Houston Texans. They lead the AFC South with an 8-4 record.

The Bad – Carolina gets jammed up by Washington. Carolina loses another game following a goal line stand.
Washington Redskins at Carolina Panthers. Panthers win 29-21.

Kyle Allen and the Panthers offense came out firing against the Redskins. They immediately orchestrated two strong scoring drives, and flared out to a 14-0 lead.

The offense never seemed to get back into a rhythm after the hot start. Washington has had an average-to-below average defense this year. It’s inexcusable that the Panthers were completely shut down for the remainder of the game.

Carolina’s offense was atrocious to watch for the majority of this matchup. They had plenty of opportunities, as Washington had trouble generating offense themselves.

The Panthers defense deserves some blame for the loss. Redskins’ running backs Adrian Peterson and Derrius Guice combined for 228 yards rushing and scored three (3) touchdowns. The Panthers run defense has been a problem a few different times this season. There’s no reason Washington should have been able to run the ball with that much success.

Carolina still had an opportunity to come away with a victory. After scoring a touchdown to pull within 8 points of Washington, the Panthers kicked an onside kick and recovered it!

Kyle Allen worked the ball down the field, and the Panthers had a 1st & Goal from the 1-yard line. The Panthers gave the ball to their best player, running back Christian McCaffrey, who was stopped on first and second down. The Panthers tried passing plays on third and fourth down. No dice.

This was the fourth time the Panthers had a chance to win, with the ball within 5 yards of the end zone, in the final minutes of the game. They’ve failed on all four situations, this season. That’s bad football, to say the least.

The Ugly – Philly flops against Fins. Miss opportunity to tie for NFC East lead.
Philadelphia Eagles at Miami Dolphins. Dolphins win 37-31.

It’s very clear that no team wants to win the NFC East. The Giants are at the very bottom of the division with a terrible record of 2-10. The Redskins beat the Panthers this weekend to move to 3-9.

The Eagles entered Sunday’s game with a chance to move to 6-6, which would have tied the Cowboys for the division lead. Just beat the 2-9 Miami Dolphins…

Nope. Too easy. Too simple. The Eagles defense absolutely collapsed against Ryan Fitzpatrick. Fitz carved the secondary up for 365 yards and three (3) touchdowns. He got comfortable with wide receiver Devante Parker, who looked like a man amongst boys in this game.

Parker is a big, 6’3” target at wide receiver. The former Louisville Cardinal is a great athlete, and has the ability to jump up and “high-point” the football to make contested catches. That skill was on display all game, against Philadelphia.

Until this game, the Eagles defense had been playing its best football of the season. Eagles cornerbacks Jalen Mills and Ronald Darby had returned from injury, and were a major reason for the defense’s success over the past couple of weeks. Their atrocious play against the Dolphins was surprising, to say the least.

The Eagles still have a chance to make the playoffs. They have games against the Giants (twice), Washington, and Dallas. If they win all of those games, they’re in.

The problem with Philly is that they have been one of the most inconsistent teams in the entire league. You don’t know which team you’re going to see from week to week.

This seems to be a common theme with every team in the NFC (L)East. The Eagles have the clearest path into the postseason. They won’t be getting there, if the team continues to play at such a low level.

Underrated performance of the Week – Devin White, Linebacker, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

White was the fifth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He’s got speed, and a lot of it!

We covered the playmaking potential of Devin White as a draft prospect, here in his Quick Profile.

Watch him record his first career interception!

Foles throws a pass right to Devin White, who comes away with his first career interception https://t.co/6SIEzAn9Ly
— Main Team (@MainTeamSports) December 1, 2019

Cleveland Browns @ Dallas Cowboys ( 49-38 Browns)Mike The Ace @TheAceWriter

Philadelphia Eagles @ Washington Football Team (17-27)

Mike the Ace @TheAceWriter

Michael Lipscomb

Michael Lipscomb

Michael Lipscomb

Michael Lipscomb

Michael Lipscomb

Cleveland Browns @ Dallas Cowboys ( 49-38 Browns)
Mike The Ace @TheAceWriter