2012-13 NFL Week 1 Wrap Up

Dayum,....as excited as I was to get to week 1, the games just put my picks through the shredder.  Let's take a look at the carnage. 

Dallas @ New York Giants - How could the Giants lay an egg like this?  The vaunted Giants pass rush seemed more meek than anything.  They weren't able to get to Romo, but they did allow him to often move outside of the pocket (stay in your rush lanes fellas).  Romo showed some uncharacteristic leadership and toughness and willed his team to a win.  Great game for the Cowboys starting the year off beating the SB Champs in their house.  DeMarco Murray looked good and this Cowboys team overall looked good. Could this be the year that they rebound to make some noise in the NFC?  Inquisitive Mind 0-1 for the week.

Indianapolis @ Chicago - The Bears started this game out horribly with Cutler getting hit and not being able to move the ball.  I think the best thing that happened for the Bears in this game was the fact that Freeney got hurt and had to sit for the remainder.  I think his presence would have been greatly appreciated by the Colts had he been able to gut it out.  The Bears defense did what I expected, they made it tough for the rookie Luck, but he's pretty good.  He made the right reads and delivered the ball well on most occasions.  Cutler and Marshall looked good, but they have to sure up that offensive line to make it all work.  Inquisitive Mind 1-1 for the week..  

Philadelphia @ Cleveland - You have to be freakin kidding me!!!  Yes, the Browns defense played a helluva game, but Eagles,...you are playing the freakin BROWNS!!!!  This was supposed to be Run Up the Score 101 and you need a 4th quarter long drive to win the game?  Vick looked bad and there were decisions that I saw and said I wouldn't hae made that play on Madden13, but it starts with the Andy Reid.  Andy, you have a pro bowl running back in the game, give him touches,...lots of them.  If McCoy doesn't get at least 30 touches a game, your play calling duties should be taken from you.  I'm sorry, but that's the truth.  You already have your starting QB in a kevlar/storm trooper vest and you have him drop back 56 freakin times?!?! Inquisitive Mind 2-1 for the week..  

New England @ Tennessee - The only story out of this is the fact that Welker had 3 receptions for 14 yards.  Let that marinate.  Brady gets a bruised nose from a knee to the face and the Patriots roll on.  I know QB's need their vision but is it that bad that they can't get another bar on their facemasks that would keep a knee from coming in?  How many fantasy league adds did Ridley get after his 125yd performance? Inquisitive Mind 3-1 for the week.  . 

Atlanta @ Kansas City - Before the season started Damien Woody (@DamienWoody) tweeted that his pick for MVP of the league was Matt Ryan.  Oh the hell he took for that and then,.....obviously Matty Ice follows him because he came out throwing the rock on the Chiefs like the game was in practice mode.  He only had 299 yards, but he could have easily put up 500 yards in this game.  I've only seen him 'on' a few times in his career, but he was 'ON' on Sunday.  What makes this even worse is that the Falcons didn't even get 100 yards rushing, combined,..in the game.  Now, I think it's good to get excited, but the lack of a running game may hurt this team.  Write that down.  Oh, and the Chiefs,...well let's just say, I think they are still playing pre-season games.  Inquisitive Mind 3-2 for the week.    

Jacksonville @ Minnesota - HAHAHAHAHA,.....I'm telling you, these two teams would have been better off just flipping a coin and doing best 3 out of 5.  I will say two things, Blaine Gabbert looked ok out there with his 23 of  39 for 260 yards and 2 TDs.  Just a few too many attempts, but MJD getting back into the swing may make his job a little easier.  Thank God that Adrian Peterson didn't get re-injured and it seems as though he had no swelling/pain or issues with the knee.  His 84 yards and 2 TDs remind us of the old AP.  I hope they bring him along slowly.  Inquisitive Mind 4-2 for the week.      

Washington @ New Orleans - RGIII goes to New Orleans,...and wins.  This was one of those games that I thought would be entertaining and I picked the Saints, but the Redskins went in and shocked the world.  Is this a big win being the 1st game of the year, YES.  RGIII had a nice 19 of 26 for 320 yards and 2 TD performance which was highlighted by Garcon's 88 yard TD catch.  The rookie looked good the Redskins defense proved that they are a nice bunch this year.  They held Brees to less than 50% completion rate, something that has only happened 6 times and happened last back in 2006.  I hope people don't 'expect' this kind of game from RGIII on a regular, but this was one of those upside games.  He threw 26 passes, Andy Reid, you should be watching this, and he was effect in making great decisions all day long (8 receivers caught passes from him).  Inquisitive Mind 4-3 for the week.  

Buffalo @ New York Jets - What in the he77 happened here?  The Jets haven't showed a pulse for weeks and then all of a sudden, this?!?!?!  The Jets looked good and Tebow's grasp on the starting QB spot took 3 steps backwards.  Maybe it was the lack of first teamers during the preseason, but whatever it was, even Rex Ryan was surprised (although he did his best to not show it).  As well as the Jets played the Bills played even worse, with the exception of CJ Spiller who had his own YOLO moment with his 14 carries for 169 yards and 1 TD performance.  Mario Williams, um, bruh, where were you?  They didn't pay you all that money to play like that.  You could have sat on my couch and watched if that's what you were gonna do.  Funny thing is I got a note in my fantasy league that over 1600 people dropped the Bills defense after this game.  I am one of the only ones left,...they will be better.  Inquisitive Mind 4-4 for the week.  

St. Louis @ Detroit - I guess Megatron said to he77 with the _______________ jinx with his 6 catch 111 yard performance.  This game was ugly for both teams,..I mean ugly and the Lions were lucky to wrap this one up late.  As the saying goes, an ugly win is still a win.  I think the rust got worn off and hopefully the next game for the Lions is much better.  Inquisitive Mind 5-4 for the week. 

Miami @ Houston - The texans must have gotten Schaub his check (new contract check) before the game because he went out and didn't get hurt and played pretty well.  Congrats on that new deal, let a brother hold a few G's.  This game is probably known more for Arian Foster yapping at an unnamed Dolphins corner about his insignificance in the league.  I mean that's cold to tell a dude to turn around so you can read the name on his jersey because you not familiar with him.  I guess Vegans can be cold blooded.  Foster's 26 carries for 79 yards and 2 TDs are enough to keep the Texans happy.  Inquisitive Mind 6-4 for the week.

San Francisco @ Green Bay - Ok,...this game hurt me, actually caused pain for me.  The Packers got run on like they were an Olympic track and showed no signs of being able to stop the run when they needed too.  The Packer offense, well let me say this, the 49ers defense was just that dayum good.  There are good defenses out here, but this 49ers defense shut down one of the top offenses in the NFL in the past two years.  When I say shutdown, I mean all Rodgers could do was shake his head. Add to that, Randy Moss got his first TD catch in years and Alex Smith won his bet against Rodgers, so we will be seeing Rodgers rock a 49ers Alex Smith jersey for a day.  Inquisitive Mind 6-5 for the week.  

Seattle @ Arizona - Well, Kevin Kolb didn't start but he did finish the game against the Seahawks and that's how QBs are measured, in wins, right?  Skelton got hurt and enter Kolb and a few finely placed passes and the Cardinals survived a late comeback to beat the Seahawks.  With Skelton out a few weeks, Kolb will get a chance to play the Eagles in Week 3.  On the other side of the ball, Russell Wilson played decently.  He didn't have gaudy numbers (18 of 34 for 153 yards, 1 TD, 1 Int) but he played well enough to have his team win the game.  All he needed was an extra timeout and for his receivers to have some hands.  The funny thing is if you go back and watch the tape where Braylon Edwards dropped the ball for the winning TD (hit him in the hands too, guess that was the wrong place?), you'll see Sidney Rice waving his arms like 'you know HE wasn't gonna catch that ball,...you gotta throw it to me'.  The biggest question with all of this is as follows: Would TO have made that catch?  Inquisitive Mind 6-6 for the week.  

Carolina @ Tampa Bay - I wonder if they are still playing this game?  This game was halted for weather and finally finished with the Bucs winning a close one.  Big Cam (23 of 33 for 309 yards, 1 TD, 2 Ints) had a good day hooking up with Steve Smith (7 catches for 106) but they couldn't put it all together for the win.  How much money did they spend on this running game?  And they got 10 yards total?  Like buying lottery tickets, eh?  The Bucs played some good defense and had even Ronde Barber excited that this team is playing like some of those old Bucs teams on defense.  I won't go there with Ronde yet, but we'll see. Inquisitive Mind 6-7 for the week. 

Pittsburgh @ Denver - When it rains it pours and for the Steelers that means, ya'll gotta get a dayum running game.  Ya'll go ahead and have Big Ben (22 of 40 for 260 yards, 2 TDs, 1 Int) drop back 40+ times if you want, but he's not Drew Brees.  He already said his shoulder wasn't 100 percent at the beginning of the year, don't test that injury.  On the other side of the ball Peyton Manning looked like Peyton Manning (19 of 26 for 253 yards, 1 TD).  The Hurry Up offense is his weapon and he used it pretty well against a good (they didn't look great) Steelers defense.  What really stood out was this Denver defense.  They looked pretty darn good, but they will get tested next week against the Falcons.  Inquisitive Mind 6-8 for the week.  

Cincinnati @ Baltimore - Man, I'm just going to soak this in for a moment.  The Ravens looked like a dynamic team on offense, although it took them a little too long to get the running game going.  Joe Flacco (21 of 29 for 299 yards, 2 TDs) played his part last night and attacked a defense and had pretty good results.  I'm thinking that if you keep Flacco under 30 attempts, he's going to produce good numbers this year.  He just seemed very comfortable out there last night.  As usual, the defense had a lot to say in this game, good and bad.  The new and improved old Ray Lewis (11 Solo Tackles, 1 Sack, 14 Total Tackles) is in his 17th season, but he was out there hitting as usual.  As a side note, I gotta see that E:60 on Ray Lewis tonight.   Nevertheless the defense seemed to not miss T-Sizzle too much last night, but that may be an aberration.  Ed Reed made a great pic and TD but injured his hammy.  That's been the think with Ed, can he stay healthy and we already talking about a hammy that doesn't get better when you're out there running around ball hawking.  Inquisitive Mind 7-8 for the week.  .

San Diego @ Oakland - Just how important is your long snapper to your team?  That's not the question that I thought would be answered as a result of this game, but the botched punts by the Raiders gave me all the reason to mention it here.  People don't realize how 'special' that whole snapping the ball skill really is.  Guys that play offensive line and can alternate from guard to center are worth the price of gold.  You never really know what you're missing until it's gone.  Philip Rivers (24 of 33 for 231 yards, 1 TD) actually played a decent game last night by not gracing the other team with his passes.  The Chargers running game was noticeably absent (20 carries for 32 yards) with Mathews being injured, but somehow they won this game.  The Raiders didn't do themselves any favors by seemingly forgetting how to block last night.  McFadden looked less than average as he struggled to a terrible running game (he did have 86 yards receiving).  I'm glad that this game was the late game, so I didn't feel too bad by missing the majority of it.  Inquisitive Mind 7-9 for the week.

Not exactly how I wanted to start the season off, but hey, it's only 1 week.  Things will definitely get better from here.  You can check the guys at ESPN and see how well they did, but right now, I'm not enjoying my 7-9 start.