Foil in the Oven: Week 8 picks

Sam Gash is a badass.

I was 9-5 last week , which was a nice way to bounce back from my Week 6 debacle...............


Dallas over Tampa Bay: The Cowboys were so confident because of their talent and star power that they were lacking urgency heading into the season. Last week’s loss to St. Louis will serve as the smelling salts they needed to wake up and get focused. If they are able to navigate through this tough stretch with reasonable success, they could still be a major factor in the postseason.




Washington over Detroit: The league’s leading rusher heads to Detroit to take on the 31st ranked rush defense. This is the lock of the week.




Buffalo over Miami: I was hesitant to buy into the whole “Buffalo is for real” thing when the season started. I knew that they had the potential to be a good team, but I had to wait and see. There were too many question marks. Trent Edwards showed promise last year, but I didn’t know how he’d hold up as a full-time starter. It has always been obvious that Lee Evans was incredibly gifted, but I had spent too many seasons watching him be inconsistent. Well, things all seem to be falling into place for the Bills in 2008. Edwards looks extremely steady, and Evans has been torching the opposition. Notice was served last Sunday with their win over the Chargers. The Bills are legit.





St. Louis over New England: I really think the Rams are turning around. It’s not just because they beat Dallas. It’s that they steamrolled Dallas one week after beating Washington. Two consecutive wins against top tier teams gets my attention. Steven Jackson seems to have found his comfort zone, and up-and-coming speedster Donnie Avery (my newest fantasy acquisition) paired with Tory Holt gives them the ability to stretch the field. The Rams have built a lot of positive momentum. Meanwhile, the Patriots are dropping like flies.





San Diego over New Orleans: The loss of Reggie Bush makes this game, and the Saints in general, much less exciting. Apparently we’re trying to impress the British with these annual London games and there haven’t been many players more exciting and explosive this season than Bush. He's certainly been more exciting than the Chargers' running back.





New York Jets over Kansas City: This game sucks so much that I can't even think about it long enough to write coherently. There's the obvious Herm Edwards connection, but I'm quite sure that nobody gives a shit. We've seen Larry Johnson stand up and talk about improving himself as a person and a football player. To be honest, I hope he can sort out his personal life, but I don't expect him to improve as a running back. He was overworked early in his career, and players rarely make big improvements at this stage of their development. So, I don't really want to talk about that. Instead, I will offer up the fact that I've always felt he got screwed out of the Heisman Trophy in 2002. There. That's my thought on this game. Larry Johnson should have won the Heisman Trophy in 2002. Do with it what you will.







Philadelphia over Atlanta: The Eagles are coming off of a bye week, which has been a pretty reliable predictor of success in 2008. Matt Ryan has been great, but this is his first time facing Jim Johnson's defense.





Carolina over Arizona: The Cardinals have not looked good on the East coast.





Baltimore over Oakland: The Ravens currently have the best run defense in the NFL, which means that the pressure to win this game will be squarely on the large shoulders of number 2. I like him a lot, and I think he’s going to be a star someday. But, he’s not going to win this game. I like the Ravens at home.





Houston over Cincinnati: Looks like Carson Palmer will miss another week, not that it really matters.





Jacksonville over Cleveland: Derek Anderson’s QB rating thus far is an appalling 49.2%. As a Giants fan in my mid-20’s, I’ve witnessed some pretty pathetic quarterbacking. I suffered through the likes of Dave Brown, Kent Graham, and Danny Kanell. You can say what you will about Kerry Collins, Kurt Warner, and the early Eli Manning years. They were all bright beacons of hope to Giants fans that had suffered through what I like to call “the dark age”. The point here, which I clearly strayed from, is that I’m pretty sure Dave Brown, Kent Graham, and Danny Kanell never had seasons when their completion percentages were below 50%. Dave Brown did, however, wear a jersey that said “Dave Brown” on the back when he played for the Cardinals. He also shares a birthday with my mother. Anyways, this means that Browns fans have watched their quarterback play at a lower level than Dave Brown, Kent Graham, and Danny Kanell ever did. That must be horrible.

When does Brady Quinn see the field? I understand that Browns don't want to look foolish for giving Derek Anderson a big extension. But, by giving him the extension, don't they already look foolish for trading away a first round pick to draft Brady Quinn? Quinn was drafted for this job. Anderson was great during the first part of the year. But, he declined steadily during the second half of the season. He certainly didn't do enough to warrant the three year deal the Browns gave him. You can't just throw money at a guy. Remember Tommy Maddox? The 2002 comeback player of the year? He wanted a big new contract after his memorable season. The Steelers, a far more competent organization than the Browns, didn't give it to him. They needed to make sure this wasn't just a flash in the pan. As it turns out, he was painfully average after that. He lost his starting job to Charlie Batch! The Browns should have let Anderson walk. Plain and simple.







New York Giants over Pittsburgh: This is when things start to get real for the Giants, and it should be a great game. The Giants currently have the NFL’s second best offensive attack and are number 1 in rushing. The Steelers are the NFL’s top rated defense, with the Giants coming in at number 4. This is one of those games that is won in the trenches, and that's an area where the Giants have a clear advantage. The Steelers are weak on the offensive line, and I expect Ben Roethlisberger to feel a lot of pressure. I’m getting chills all over right now just picturing Brandon Jacobs steamrolling Troy Polamalu.





San Francisco over Seattle: The Niners are just too good to lose to the Seahawks at home. Seattle fans, this is rock bottom.





Tennessee over Indianapolis: I could be totally off base here. A couple of weeks ago I picked Baltimore to knock off the Colts, and I could not have been more wrong (the game was a blowout). But, all I can think of is that Tennessee will run all over Indy with Chris Johnson and LenDale White. These two looked unstoppable last week, and this Indy run defense is virtually non-existent. On top of that, Joseph Addai is out, which does not bold well against the fearsome front seven of the Titans. The Colts could certainly win. I just don't see how.






College Pick of the Week:


Michigan over Michigan State and LSU over Georgia:

Home field advantage pays huge dividends for the Wolverines and Tigers this weekend.