Thursday Night Football Afterword: Ravens vs Browns

It is becoming harder and harder to knock Joe Flacco. Despite a valiant effort on the part of Cleveland, Flacco improved to 9-0 when facing their AFC North rival. Last night was also Baltimore’s 10^th consecutive intra-division victory, and their 13^th straight home win.

The 23-16 final score is very telling of a hard-fought game, which it was. But almost everything came through the air. Trent Richardson had just 47 rushing yards for Cleveland while Ray Rice managed 49 on 18 carries. Meanwhile, both Flacco and Brandon Weeden threw for over 300 yards.

Ultimately, it was Baltimore’s defense that preserved this win and gave the team a 3-1 record after a quarter of the season.

Late in the third quarter, Cary Williams made a great play on an our-route, picking off Weeden and taking it all the way back. It was the first time in the game the Ravens had a real cushion.

Also important was stalling the Browns when they did get the ball moving. Phil Dawson attempted, and converted, field goals of 50, 51 and 52 yards (not in that order) and became the seventh player in NFL history to convert three 50+-yard field goals in a single game.

On the final Cleveland drive of the game, Weeden led them from their own 10-yardline with just over a minute on the clock into scoring range. Two desperation attempts into the end zone by Weeden fell incomplete, but it felt oddly similar to the end of Monday Night’s game between the Packers and Seahawks. This time both attempts fell incomplete, and we didn’t have replacement officials to make any boneheaded calls to affect the outcome of the game.

So how much does this say about the Browns? I saw a meme earlier, with photos of the last four Cleveland quarterbacks, including Weeden, reading, “Same s*** different day.” I think this game may be an indication that Weeden is not the “same s***.” Richardson didn’t get many yards, but I think Cleveland was too ready to abandon the run game when the Ravens built up a lead, despite only trailing by double digits only once in the game.

The Browns have big-play potential, but the Ravens defense is good enough to contain it, as are many NFL defenses. But I think Cleveland is better than their 0-4 record; maybe not much, but a little. This is the third time since 1998 that the Browns have started 0-4. They finished 2-14 the first time and 5-11 in 2009. I think this year could be more like 2009.

The Ravens, meanwhile, are sitting atop the AFC North at 3-1. The Ravens could tie it up with a win over Jacksonville on Sunday but the Steelers will sit at 1-2 through the weekend since they have a bye week (along with the Indianapolis Colts).

Baltimore certainly seems to be in the driver’s seat of the division through four weeks.

2012 NFL Predictions: Regular Season Week 4

NFL UPDATE: The NFL and NFLRA have come to an agreement and, according to Roger Goodell (per ESPN), the locked-out officials will return to the field, beginning with tonight’s Thursday Night Football game.

Last week I said, “I thought Week 1 was rough; Week 2 showed no mercy.” Week 3 was just unfair. It’s a new week, but I’m not holding myself to any crazy expectations. I have a feeling I’m still about even with most people’s picks this season.

Week 4 Byes: Indianapolis Colts & Pittsburgh Steelers

	Game	Puff’s Pick
Thurs., 8:20 pm	Cleveland @ Baltimore	Baltimore Ravens
Sun., 1:00pm	New England @ Buffalo	New England Patriots
	San Francisco @ NY Jets	San Francisco 49ers
	Seattle @ St. Louis	Seattle Seahawks
	Carolina @ Atlanta	Atlanta Falcons
	Minnesota @ Detroit	Minnesota Vikings
	San Diego @ Kansas City	San Diego Chargers
	Tennessee @ Houston	Houston Texans
Sun., 4:05 pm	Cincinnati @ Jacksonville	Cincinnati Bengals
	Oakland @ Denver	Denver Broncos
	Miami @ Arizona	Arizona Cardinals
Sun., 4:25 pm	Washington @ Tampa Bay	Washington Redskins
	New Orleans @ Green Bay	Green Bay Packers
Sun., 8:20 pm	NY Giants @ Philadelphia	New York Giants
Mon., 8:30 pm	Chicago @ Dallas	Dallas Cowboys

	Puff on the NFL
Week 4 Record	12-3
Current Season Record	32-31

Games to Watch (Predicted winners in Bold)

Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, 1:00pm – San Francisco 49ers @ New York Jets

The 49ers will be looking to get back in the win column while the Jets will try to slow down Alex Smith like the Vikings did, but without shutdown cornerback Darrelle Revis in the secondary.

Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, 1:00pm – Minnesota Vikings @ Detroit Lions

The Cardinals beat the Patriots in Week 2 before backing up that win with resounding victory over the Eagles. The Vikings will look to legitimize their win over the 49ers in Week 3 by beating a Lions team that is reeling after losses to the 49ers and Titans.

Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, 1:00pm – Tennessee Titans @ Houston Texans

In an AFC South showdown, Jake Locker is coming off a huge game against the Detroit Lions and Matt Schaub just had his best game of the season in playing the Broncos. With the crazy outcomes we’ve seen so far this season, don’t be surprised if this isn’t nearly a ‘gimme game.’

Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, 4:25pm – Washington Redskins @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Redskins are the league’s leading scorer this season, but they’ve lost to the Rams and Bengals after opening with a win in New Orleans. This will be their third road game in the first four weeks of the season. Meanwhile, this will be the third consecutive game for the Bucs against an NFC East opponent. They lost both of their lost two, blitzing their opponents’ victory formation at the end of both.

Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, 4:25pm – New Orleans @ Green Bay Packers

The Saints are 0-3, the Packers 1-2. Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers are two of the best quarterback in the NFL and both want to get their team into a better situation. There’s no telling whether the game will be close at all, but these two quarterbacks squaring off is reason enough to watch this game.

Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, 8:20pm – New York Giants @ Philadelphia Eagles

NFC East matchups are always a must-watch, no matter which two teams are slated against each other. The Eagles are 2-1, but could easily be 0-3. The Giants dropped their season opener against the Cowboys but game back with a comeback victory over the Buccaneers and a convincing thrashing of the Panthers.

Stay tuned for recaps of this week’s games. Thanks for reading and enjoy the fourth week of the season!

10 Things You Need to Know: NFL Regular Season Week 4

The Texans have dethroned the 49ers as the #1 team in the NFL
according to the NFL.com Power Rankings.

Don’t forget to listen to an all-new broadcast of The All-Sports Crew tonight at 7 p.m. on WMUC Sports. We had a special show last night, the podcast of which is currently on iTunes. The WMUC Sports server is currently back up and running, so we should not run into the same issues we did last week, not getting a show in or a podcast on iTunes.

10.         ‘Monday Night Fiasco’

I already wrote more than enough about this train wreck, but it was so horrendous that it’s worth me linking to it in this post. You can read my semi-rant here and check out our discussion on the topic by subscribing to The All-Sports Crew’s podcasts on iTunes.

9.            CJ”No”K

Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson is one of the fastest players in the NFL today. After running for 45 yards in 3 games he is on pace to gain only 240 rushing yards in 2012. Keep in mind that this is the same Chris Johnson who broke Marshall Faulk’s single-season yards from scrimmage record in 2009, rushing for 2006 yards and gaining another 503 yards through the air.

8.            Coaches Fined for Conduct

Denver Broncos head coach John Fox and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio have both been fined by the NFL for how they dealt with replacement officials in their Week 2 matchup with the Atlanta Falcons.

This week, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and Redskins offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan are both being reviewed by the league for their actions toward replacement refs. I’m sure we can expect some fines to be handed to some coaches and players from Monday Night’s game, too. In my own opinion, all of these fines are unwarranted.

7.            Major Injuries

Yet again, the Colts will be without Austin Collie for the remainder of the season. After having concussion issues the past few seasons, this year it is Collie’s knee that will keep him out for the final 14 weeks of the season.

Darrelle Revis tore his left ACL and will also be gone for the rest of the season, leaving the Jets playoff hopes all but shattered.

Darrius Heyward-Bey took a vicious hit in the end zone on Sunday. He was unconscious before he hit the ground but gave a thumbs-up to the crowd as he was carted off the field. He was released from the hospital on Monday. He sustained a concussion and a strained neck.

Fantasy standout running backs Reggie Bush and C.J. Spiller both went down with injuries this week. There was no structural damage to Bush’s knee, but the team has not definitively said how much time he may miss.

Spiller’s injury may be more severe. It was a shoulder injury, but the severity isn’t so much with the injury itself, which the Bills have said may not keep him out for too much time. The severity is with Fred Jackson scheduled to be back from his injury in the next week or two. With his injury, Spiller stepped into the starting role and had many people thinking he would keep it even when Jackson returned. Now, the future isn’t nearly so clear for C.J. Spiller.

6.            Fantasy Disappointments

Saints RB Darren Sproles had only 6 fantasy points in my PPR league.

Packers WR Jordy Nelson had only 2 fantasy points.

Patritos TE Rob Gronkowski laid a rare egg, scoring only 3 points despite Aaron Hernandez not being an option for Brady.

This one isn’t so much a disappointment because he played poorly, but because he wasn’t rewarded for how well he played. Eli Manning played a brilliant game against the Panthers, but only scored 16 fantasy points.

5.            Fantasy Surprises

Ravens WR Torrey Smith scored 27 fantasy points, playing hours after learning of his younger brother’s death in a motorcycle accident.

Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles scored 39 fantasy points! He said he finally felt like himself again after suffering a season-ending injury last year. He looked like himself, too.

Texans QB Matt Schaub scored 33 fantasy points.

Jaguars RB Maurice Jones-Drew scored 27 points as he finally hit his stride after his holdout.

Giants K Laurence Tynes scored 20 points, quite a high sum for a kicker.

4.            Games to Watch

Like last week, I’ll be more specific on why these are the biggest games to watch in my predictions post tomorrow.

• San Francisco 49ers at New York Jets (Sunday, 1:00 p.m.)
• Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions (Sunday, 1:00 p.m.)
• Tennessee Titans at Houston Texans (Sunday, 1:00 p.m.)
• Washington Redskins at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Sunday, 4:25 p.m.)
• New Orleans Saints at Green Bay Packers (Sunday, 4:25 p.m.)
• New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles (Sunday, 8:20 p.m.)

3.            Power Rankings

For the sake of space, I will list just the top 6 and the bottom 6 here. You can see the rest on NFL.com.

1. Houston Texans	27. Indianapolis Colts
2. San Francisco 49ers	28. Miami Dolphins
3. Atlanta Falcons	29. Oakland Raiders
4. Green Bay Packers	30. Washington Redskins
5. Baltimore Ravens	31. New Orleans Saints
6. New York Giants	32. Cleveland Browns

The Vikings made the biggest jump, ten spots from 26^th to 16^th. The Cardinals jumped eight spots from 15^th to 7^th. The biggest fall goes to the Redskins and the Saints, who each dropped eight spots from into the bottom six. The Steelers dropped seven spots from 7^th to 14^th.

2.            Arizona Cardinals

When John Skelton was announced the starter over Kevin Kolb and then went down with an injury in Week 1 against the Seahawks, I’m sure most people felt that any chance of winning games was gone for Arizona. Three weeks later, they’re sitting at 3-0, one of just three teams with that mark this season. Kolb has stepped in and, though he has not played like a phenomenal quarterback, he has not been a liability to his team.

“Not a liability” isn’t much of a vote of confidence, but when you have a defense like the Cardinals have put on display the last three weeks, not a liability is all you really need from your quarterback. Anything more is gravy.

The Cardinals backed up their comeback victory against the Seahawks with a win against the Patriots (granted, they needed a missed field goal as time expired to get that win) and a decisive victory against the Eagles.

I am not yet buying into this team completely, but with the 49ers a strong team, and the Seahawks with possibly the best defense in the National Football League, the Cardinals make the case for the NFC West being the best football division.

1.            Houston Texans

After a rough loss to the Minnesota Vikings, the San Francisco 49ers have fallen from the top spot in the NFL.com power poll for the first time this season. I was a little surprised that the voters weren’t more split between the Texans and Falcons, but the Texans were the unanimous #1 team. Matt Schaub is back from last season’s injury, and he had a huge game against Denver.

Arian Foster is a fantastic running back, Andre Johnson had a great game and appears to have regained his position as a top-5 NFL wide receiver, and the defense has picked up right where it left off last year.

Houston plays Tennessee this week, and Jake Locker had a huge game this past week. Listen to The All-Sports Crew tonight at 7 p.m. on WMUC Sports to find out who my co-hosts and I believe will win that game, and the other 14 games in Week 4.

Monday Night Football Afterword: Seahawks vs Packers

It certainly would appear so.

Words can’t even describe how frustrated and appalled I am at the events of last night. Well, I suppose they can, but what is the point when everything that can be said has been and has not made a difference? It really is getting to the point of near hopelessness. You know the feeling you get when you are so frustrated that all you can do is scream and cry because you don’t know any other way to vent those emotions? I’m so close to that point I’m not sure how I haven’t yet been pushed over the edge.

This game was one of the greatest defensive games I have seen in as long as I can remember. For what should have been an epic battle, exactly what the late Steve Sabol made even the blandest game appear to be, to be compromised by the incompetency of the officials the NFL is putting on the field is outrageous.

Adam Schefter said it well. We had the Immaculate Reception, which was and still is controversial because of the lack of video evidence; we had the Music City Miracle, which is less controversial because we have video evidence, but it is so close that people don’t have to accept one outcome or another; and now we have this. I don’t know how that pass is not an interception; I don’t know how there were two opposing calls on the field; I don’t know how this doesn’t make it a top priority for the NFL to get the real officials back, but I’m sure the NFL and Roger Goodell will figure out how.

My thoughts on the first half of last night’s game? It seemed to be well officiated. It was certainly very well played by both defenses, as the first score of the game ended the longest scoring drought to begin any game so far this season. Also, I finally saw why Russell Wilson beat out Matt Flynn for the starting job in Seattle with his ability to escape from pressure and deliver a flawless touchdown pass to Golden Tate. I saw a game, a legitimate game, a game the NFL could be proud of showing on national television.

How about the third quarter? Also pretty well officiated. We got to see Mike McCarthy outcoach Pete Carroll as the Packers not only continued to put good defensive schemes up against the Seattle offense, but Green Bay also began marching the ball by mixing more consistent running from Cedric Benson with terrific throws by Aaron Rodgers. Green Bay clawed their way back to a 7-6 deficit at the start of the 4^th quarter.

But that final 15 minutes, oh boy what a tragedy it was. But it wasn’t really the entire final 15 minutes. It was the final three drives in particular. Two Seattle drives and a Packers drive in between. Well, the Packers drive was fine, no officiating issues there.

First, there was the bogus roughing the passer call on Erik Walden that negated an interception that would have put the Packers in field goal territory with a chance to extend their lead to 15 (or even up to 20) to 7. Later on the same drive, on 1^st & 25 Sam Shields was flagged for pass interference. I saw so many tweets I was shocked the Twitter servers didn’t go down; but that was nothing compared to the end of the game, as I would find out.

Now, that Seattle drive would stall after a failed 4^th & 3 attempt. No harm no foul, right? Wrong! I already mentioned that the interception that was wrongly taken away would have almost certainly meant points for Green Bay. But even the pass interference was huge because without it, it would have been 2^nd & 25, very unlikely to be converted, and the Packers would have the ball in good field position. Even if they don’t convert a first down, Seattle has a much longer field to drive down for a chance at a last-second game-winning touchdown.

Fast forward to that final drive, the final play. 4^th & 10, eight seconds left in the game, it is the moment that every NFL fan loves! We’re on the edge of our seat, eyes glued to the television set, every muscle tensed, ready to spring up in excitement or grab the nearest object and fling it against the wall, whichever action the outcome of the play calls for. But what happened left me speechless. I already said what happened early in this post, so I won’t say it again. But I sat there, stunned, staring at the screen, head spinning, jaw dropped, not moving a single muscle, not even to shake my head in disbelief.

And here I am, in the same position of so many sports analysts, which is the same position as the ‘common fan.’ That is, I know what the problem is; I know that the replacement refs are not fully at fault and that the fault truly lies with Roger Goodell and the NFL. But what can I do about it? Absolutely (expletive) nothing!! I can choose not to watch the games, but what will that do? Enough people will watch that the NFL losing me as a viewer won’t matter; all that will do is put me at a disadvantage as I attempt to cover the sport. Yet I know that if this continues, and I keep watching, I won’t have any hair by the end of the season.

I will end with this: congrats to the players and coaches on a fantastic, well-played game. I am so, so sorry that the NFL, by placing these officials on the field, have called the legitimacy of the outcome into question.

I originally considered doing a video blog post, but The All-Sports Crew will have another special Tuesday broadcast tonight at 9pm. Eric, Saswat and I plan to talk about a lot of stuff, but no doubt the officials will be a main topic. If we don’t get to much else between tonight and tomorrow, we will get together and put another recording to podcast later in the week. Just ‘like’ us on Facebook and keep up with our updates. Thanks everyone.

Sunday Football Afterword: Week 3 Late Games

Torrey Smith hauled in two touchdown receptions
in an emotional game.

So if the 49ers loss against the Vikings moved them out of first in the NFC West, who took over their spot? Surprise, surprise, it’s the Cardinals! Kevin Kolb faced his old team and played a fantastic game as Arizona hosted Philadelphia. Michael Vick was 17/37; Kolb was 17/24. Vick had 217 passing yards, 28 rushing yards and no touchdowns. Kolb had 222 passing yards, 16 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The Eagles better miss him! But it wasn’t only Kevin Kolb who led Arizona to a big win and their first 3-0 start since the 70s; Arizona’s defense has been rock solid, and they came up huge yesterday.

The play that defined the game for me was the final play of the first half. With a few seconds left and the ball on the 1-yard line, Vick dropped back to try one more throw before settling for a field goal. Instead he was hit hard, fumbled the ball, and James Sanders returned for a score to put the Cardinals up 24-0 at halftime. Philly managed to hold the Cardinals down in the second half but only put up 6 points themselves in the 27-6 road loss.

Matt Ryan continues to shine as the Falcons beat the Chargers in similar fashion, 27-3. Ryan was 30/40 for 275 yards, 3 touchdown passes, and just his first interception of the season. A week after being arrested for a DUI after playing the Broncos, Michael Turner was back and carried the ball 14 times for 80 yards and a score.

Philip Rivers meanwhile continues to struggle early in the season. He threw for under 200 yards and after picking off Peyton Manning three times last week the Falcons defense picked Rivers off twice in San Diego.

Peyton Manning wanted to come back from that rough performance against Atlanta as the Broncos hosted the Texans, but for the second straight week, a big fourth quarter come back bid fell short. Houston led 31-11 heading into the final quarter. Manning finished the day with 330 passing yards and 2 touchdown passes, both coming in the final 15 minutes. But Matt Schaub’s 4 touchdown passes were too much for Denver to overcome in the 31-25 Houston victory.

Big Ben Roethlisberger had 384 passing yards four touchdown passes and no picks. That was the best statistical game for any quarterback so far this week, yet it wasn’t enough as the Raiders earned their first victory, 34-31. Carson Palmer played good, not great, but Darren McFadden is a beast. He carried the ball just 18 times but gained 113 yards and scored a touchdown. It took a 13-0 fourth quarter effort, but the Raiders earned their first win of the season.

The Sunday Night game was interesting. There were a lot of penalties, but the game moved at a quick enough pace that it didn’t lose my interest like many games over the past two weeks have.

Of course, the story of the night was Ravens receiver, and Maryland grad, Torrey Smith, who played despite his younger brother Tevin being killed in a motorcycle accident early in the day. Smith had 6 catches for 127 yards and two scores.

Flacco played well, as did Ray Rice. Baltimore’s defense, as always, was strong. But the Patriots did not look very good on offense. Brady had a decent second half as New England finally got Wes Welker involved in their game plan, but Brady has not looked like Brady this year when he’s throwing to just about anyone else.

With little time remaining, the Ravens were in range for a 27-yard field goal try. Last year Billy Cundiff missed a 32-yard field goal that gave New England the AFC Championship and a Super Bowl bid. This year, rookie Justin Tucker was the man to try and give Baltimore the win. His kicked sailed high over the uprights, but the official beneath said it went directly over, which constitutes a successful field goal attempt. The kick gave the Ravens a 31-30 victory and a 2-1 record.

New England drops to 1-2 with the loss. Their streak of consecutive games played without being below .500 ends at 145, a streak that spanned nine seasons. In 2003 they lost their season opener, 31-0 against the Chiefs. After that they won two straight games, lost to the Redskins, then did not lose again as they went on to win the Super Bowl against the Carolina Panthers.

Tonight the Packers take on the Seattle Seahawks. Expect the 12^th Man to go all out as Seattle tries to keep pace with the 49ers and not lose too much ground to the Cardinals. It will be a tough task against the Packers, but if there is nothing else the first three weeks have taught us, it’s that the NFL loves upsets and there is never a ‘gimme win.’

If you haven't already, be sure to check out my Afterword on the earlier Sunday games.

Sunday Football Afterword: Week 3 Early Games

Christian Ponder threw two touchdowns and ran for another
as he led his Vikings to a huge upset over San Francisco.

The Redskins hosted the Bengals in their home opener yesterday, so of course a lot of my attention was focused on that game. There was, however, too much madness going around the league to ignore it all completely.

As those of you who paid close attention know, I only correctly predicted two of the nine 1:00 games played on Sunday. I correctly predicted the Redskins game and the Bills game. The other seven didn’t go so well.

The Redskins went down early as the Bengals kicked the game off with a long touchdown pass, and it wasn’t Andy Dalton who threw it; he was lined up as a receiver. Instead, the opening score was a 73-yard pass from Mohamad Sanu to A.J. Green. The Redskins tied it when Rob Jackson picked off Dalton in the end zone for a touchdown (yes, you read that correctly, nothing I can ever remember seeing before in my life).

The Bengals then scored 17 unanswered points, after which the Redskins returned the favor to tie the game at 24 in the third quarter. When Dalton threw touchdown passes on the next two Cincinnati drives, the lead was just too much for RGIII and the Redskins to come back from. Instead the Bengals won their second game of the season and they are in a tie for first in the AFC North while the Redskins are all alone in the cellar of the NFC East.

Bradford wasn’t terrible, but Danny Amendola didn’t come close to the success he had against the Redskins a week ago and the Rams were not able to make much of a game out of their contest in Chicago. Cutler was a little better than last week against Green Bay, but the key was a huge defensive effort from the Bears. That carried them to a 23-6 victory.

C.J. Spiller went down in the first quarter of the Bills game in Cleveland. He already had 58 total yards and a score when he left. Right now the report is that he should miss only a couple weeks and that he avoided anything to severe. Ryan Fitzpatrick finally had a good game after struggling much of last season. He threw three touchdown passes in the game. With the 24-14 loss, the Browns are now on a nine-game losing streak dating back to last season.

I really thought the Buccaneers had a legitimate shot at beating Dallas, and they did. But apparently Tampa Bay plays their hardest when the other team is in the victory formation. It’s like running a six-mile race but only running hard the last quarter mile. It isn’t going to win you games.

I am having a difficult time explaining what happened to the Colts. They led 14-3 at halftime; Andrew Luck was playing very well (both 1^st half touchdowns came from him). But their defense is clearly still suspect, and Jacksonville shut down the Indy offense in the second half. The Jaguars outscored the Colts 19-3 in the second half for a 22-17 victory. The winning score came on an 80-yard touchdown pass from Gabbert to Cecil Shorts III with less than a minute left to play.

In a bizarre finish, the Jets beat the Dolphins in overtime. Last year it took the first installment of Tebow Time for the Broncos to beat the Dolphins; this year all it took for Tebow’s new team was Joe Philbin. With a few minutes left in overtime, Nick Folk lined up for a field goal to win the game. Philbin called a timeout just before the snap, but the Dolphins blocked the field goal. The attempt to ice Folk backfired and he knocked the next one in to win the game.

The shocker of the week in a Sunday full of them was the Minnesota Vikings. Christian Ponder had a fantastic game. I think most of us knew he’s a talented young passer, but to lead this team to a victory over the 49ers seemed too much to ask. After the 24-13 victory, apparently it wasn’t. Nobody gave Minnesota much chance, considering they lost to Indianapolis last week and the 49ers had already beaten two much more formidable NFC North teams in Green Bay and Detroit.

In another wild finish, Kansas City kept their matchup against New Orleans close through the first half. In the third quarter it looked like the Saints were finally pulling away until a 91-yard touchdown run by Jamaal Charles. The fourth quarter saw four scored, all by the Chiefs, to tie the game up and send it to overtime where a 31-yard field goal by Ryan Succop, his sixth field goal of the game, won it and sent the Saints to 0-3.

The third overtime of the day came in Tennessee where a rehash of the Music City Miracle gave the Titans a 10-6 lead in the first quarter. Jake Locker completed 29 passes for 378 yards, two touchdowns and no picks. Chris Johnson still looks like he’s sleepwalking, but the Titans overcame it for their first win of the season. Tennessee scored five times on plays of over 60 yards, an NFL record! They had a punt return TD, a kick return TD, a fumble return TD, and two passing TDs from Locker, all over 60 yards. And it still went to overtime despite Matthew Stafford going down with an injury and Shaun Hill, the Maryland grad, taking over. The final was 44-41.

Be sure to check in later when my afterword on yesterday’s later games is published, and of course keep an eye on the status of this week’s The All-Sports Crew show where we will talk more about Week 3.