NFL Football - Week Four Preview

Whew!

One of  the positive things for the Tampa Bay Bucs.

Heftyinfo really took it on the chin with last weekend's NFL game selections (going 5-11) as too many of the "upsets" picked were the wrong ones.
But that was last week and now it is on to Week Four around the National Football League.
There is a game "across the pond" this Sunday as the Pittsburgh Steelers face the Minnesota Vikings in the
first of TWO games in London, England this season.
Both squads are 0-3 and the Steelers have looked rather awful in their first three games while the Vikings don't seem to be the same team they were a year ago as they have stumbled out of the gate.
The Thursday Night Football game will feature the San Francisco 49ers at the St. Louis Rams in a NFC West contest. The Rams were blasted at Dallas last Sunday while the 49ers were blown by Indianapolis at Candlestick Park. Go figure.
The upstart Cleveland Browns, fresh off a road win at Minnesota, will host the suddenly surging Cincinnati Bengals, who rallied from 16 points down to defeat the Green Bay Packers.
Seattle at Houston should provide an intriguing matchup as the Texans were humbled big time at Baltimore last week while the 3-0 Seahawks drilled the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars in the Emerald City. Houston boasts a solid defense, just not quite as good as the Seahawks and both teams have been adequate on the offense in the first three games.
Two teams with somewhat surprising 2-1 records will face each other as the New York Jets travel to Tennessee to face the Titans, who barely pulled out a 20-17 victory against San Diego last Sunday. The Jets have been doing it with defense and some fortunate breaks in their two wins this year.
The Dallas Cowboys will go to San Diego and face the Chargers, who are 1-2 and have seen all three games decided by three points. Dallas looked real good at home last week in blowing the St. Louis Rams as running back DeMarco Murray had a big game along with the defense.
The scoreboard will get a workout when the Philadelphia Eagles, led by Head Coach Chip Kelly and his high octane, fast paced offense travels to face the Denver Broncos, the league's highest scoring team through the first three games.
The "prime time" games will feature the New England Patriots (3-0) at Atlanta on Sunday night while the Monday Night Football game will have two unbeaten teams facing each other with the Miami Dolphins playing the New Orleans Saints in the Louisiana Super Dome.

The short breakdowns below are followed by the Heftyinfo picks for Week Four, which hopefully will go better than last week's picks. (Green Bay and Carolina have the bye week)

San Francisco (1-2) at St. Louis (1-2) - Suddenly, the 49ers don't look so invincible any more.

Baltimore (2-1) at Buffalo (1-2) - The Ravens should roll this week, but you never know.

Cincinnati (2-1) at Cleveland (1-2) - The battle of Ohio... take the Bengals (in a close one).

Chicago (3-0) at Detroit (2-1) - This game will most likely go down to the wire, whoever has the football last.

NY Giants (0-3) at Kansas City (3-0) - Winless Giants? VS. Undefeated Chiefs? Yes, that is correct. Beware the trap game, Kansas City!

Pittsburgh (0-3) at Minnesota (0-3) IN LONDON, ENGLAND - Two teams playing poorly traveling across the Atlantic Ocean to play each other. Yawn!

Arizona (1-2) at Tampa Bay (0-3) - The host Buccaneers are a mess.

Indianapolis (2-1) at Jacksonville (0-3) - The Colts, fresh off their blowout win against 49ers, against hapless Jags. Sure thing, right? Maybe not.

Seattle (3-0) at Houston (2-1) - Super Bowl 48 preview? Too soon to tell.

NY Jets (2-1) at Tennessee (2-1) - Jets' fans are saying Mark who? Beware the Titans!

Philadelphia (1-2) at Denver (3-0) - Can any team stop Peyton Manning and the Broncos? Not the Eagles.

Dallas (2-1) at San Diego (1-2) - Once upon a time (back in 2006, '07, '08), this matchup was thought to be a potential Super Bowl game. My, how times have changed.

Washington (0-3) at Oakland (1-2) - RG3 gets it done for the Redskins this week.

New England (3-0) at Atlanta (1-2) - The Patriots just continue to roll along while the Falcons have struggled so far in 2013.

Miami (3-0) at New Orleans (3-0) - The Dolphins and Saints in "prime time" ... Ryan Tannehill vs. Drew Brees ... two solid defenses ... Take the Saints.

The Heftyinfo predictions for Week Four  . . .  (Home teams are listed in BOLD; Lock of the Week pick is listed in BOLD CAPS)

San Francisco over St. Louis
Baltimore over Buffalo
Cincinnati over Cleveland
Detroit over Chicago
NY Giants over Kansas City
Pittsburgh over Minnesota (Game is in London, England)
Tampa Bay over Arizona
Indianapolis over Jacksonville
Houston over Seattle
Tennessee over NY Jets
DENVER over Philadelphia
Dallas over San Diego
Washington over Oakland
Atlanta over New England
New Orleans over Miami

Last Week's Record:  5-11

SEASON RECORD:  27-21

Lock of the Week Record:  3-0

NFL Football - Week Three Review

This past weekend showed the old phrase, "That is why they play the games"  to be so true.
The Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland Browns and to a lesser extent, Miami Dolphins, pulled off surprising wins

in Week Three.
The Browns win was the real shocker as they went into Minnesota and beat the Vikings, 31-27 behind the big performance from third-string quarterback Bryan Hoyer (pictured upper right), the Heftyinfo NFL Player of the Week, who had 321 yards passing with three touchdowns (and three interceptions), including the game winning toss to tight end Jordan Cameron with just 51 seconds left in the game.
The Browns defense limited Vikings running back to Adrian Peterson to 88 rushing yards and one touchdown while QB Christian Ponder scored two rushing touchdowns in the losing effort.
Meanwhile, the Indianapolis Colts went out west and smacked the San Francisco 49ers in the mouth, rolling to a 27-7 upset win as three rushing touchdowns and solid defense (limiting the 'Niners to just 254 yards) paved the way for Indy. The 49ers have been outscored 56-10 in their last two games, both blowout losses.
The Chicago Bears won the Sunday Night Football game in Pittsburgh, beating the Steelers, 40-23 behind two defensive scores (interception return and fumble recovery return) and five turnovers to go with rushing touchdowns from Matt Forte' and Michael Bush and a TD pass from Jay Cutler to Earl Bennett to put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter. Steelers' QB Ben Roethlisberger passed for 406 yards with two touchdowns and two picks in the loss.
The Detroit Lions kept the host Washington Redskins winless with a 27-20 victory as Matthew Stafford threw for two touchdowns (along with 385 passing yards) and the defense came up with two turnovers to help make the difference in the win.
What is with the New York Giants?
They were blasted by the host Carolina Panthers, 38-0 as QB Eli Manning was sacked seven times (six in

Cam Newton

the first half) and totaled just 150 yards in offense. Meanwhile, Panthers' QB Cam Newton threw for three touchdowns and ran for  another to get his team their first win of the season. The Giants fell to 0-3 and have been outscored 115-54 for the season.
New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees got it going at home against the Arizona Cardinals in a 31-7 rout as he passed for  342 yards and three touchdowns while also running for another score to help his team improve to a perfect 3-0 record for the year.
The Miami Dolphins rolled to 3-0 for the season as well with a come-from-behind 27-23 home win against the Atlanta Falcons. QB Ryan Tannehill threw a one-yard scoring pass to tight end Dion Sims with 38 seconds left in regulation to provide the final score. The Falcons twice blew ten-point leads in the game.

      Elsewhere around the NFL in  Week Three  . . .

New England stayed a perfect 3-0 as well with a 23-3 win against  Tampa Bay (0-3) as Tom Brady had two TD passes . . . The Cincinnati Bengals stormed back from a 16-point deficit to beat the visiting Green Bay Packers, 34-30 as Terrence Newman returned a fumble recovery 58 yards for the deciding score. The Bengals defense intercepted Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers twice and also had two fumble recoveries . . .  Baltimore blasted the visiting Houston Texans, 30-9 by holding them to three field goals while getting a punt return TD by Tandon Doss and a 37-yard interception return for score from Daryl Smith. The Ravens defense limited Houston to just 264 total yards in offense  . . .  The Dallas Cowboys made quick work of the visiting St. Louis Rams in a 31-7 win as they rolled out to a 24-0 early in the third quarter. Dallas QB Tony Romo had three TD passes in the game . . . The Tennessee Titans pulled off a late-game thrilling win 20-17 over the San Diego Chargers as QB Jake Locker hit rookie wide receiver Justin Hunter with a 34-yard scoring pass with just 15 seconds remaining . . .  The New York Jets got two TD passes and a rushing score from rookie QB Geno Smith to outlast the visiting Buffalo Bills, 27-20 and improve to 2-1. Buffalo (1-2) allowed 513 yards in total offense in the loss . . . The Seattle Seahawks crushed the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars, 45-17 behind a balanced attack (156 rushing yards and 323 passing) and four touchdown passes from QB Russell Wilson . . .  The Kansas City Chiefs (3-0) went into Philadelphia last Thursday night and pasted the Eagles, 26-16 to give Head Coach Andy Reid a win over his former team as linebacker Justin Houston recorded 4 1/2 QB sacks . . .  The Monday Night Football game featured the Denver Broncos improving to 3-0 by crushing the visiting Oakland Raiders, 37-21 behind three more TD passes from QB Peyton Manning, who has thrown for 12 touchdowns in the first three games with no interceptions.


 

heftyinfo: IT'S FALL- Scenes of Autumn

heftyinfo: IT'S FALL- Scenes of Autumn

Wake Up Dude!

This is John Boehner, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and he says the American people do not want Obama Care.
Say what dude?
The American people re-elected Barack Obama based in large part that his opponent last year, Mitt Romney, ran on the agenda of repealing Obama Care.
So, John Boehner, put down the booze and wake the fuck up dude!
Obama Care is the LAW OF THE LAND AND IS HERE TO STAY!
Give it up already.

NFL Football - Week Three Preview

Week Three around the NFL gets started tonight with Thursday Night Football on NFL Network, as the Philadelphia Eagles welcome (former) Head Coach Andy Reid (pictured below) and the Kansas City Chiefs back to town.

The Eagles will look to outscore the Chiefs and improve to 2-1 while giving their opponents their first loss of the 2013 season. In fact, Kansas City has already equaled their win total for all of last season in the first two games.
Another "homecoming" of sorts will be Sunday when the Houston Texans
travel to face the Baltimore Ravens. Houston safety Ed Reed (who hasn't played yet in the regular season) left the Ravens after the Super Bowl season and is hoping to hit the field this week.
And how about the Indianapolis Colts going to San Francisco this week to face the 49ers? The Colts just traded for Browns running back Trent Richardson and face a team licking their wounds after being smashed by the Seattle Seahawks.
The Sunday Night Football game will feature the Chicago Bears at the Pittsburgh Steelers, with these two teams going in opposite directions early on. The Bears have pulled off two last minute (home field) wins while the Steelers haven't been able to get anything going on offense, losing their first two games.
There are some good matchups this week and the following capsule style previews give a hint of what to expect (or not) and are followed by the Heftyinfo predictions.

Kansas City (2-0) at Philadelphia (1-1) - Andy Reid back in Philly? This should be a good one.

Green Bay (1-1) at Cincinnati (1-1) - The Packers continue to roll.

St. Louis (1-1) at Dallas (1-1) - Tough game to figure out... could go either way.

San Diego (1-1) at Tennessee (1-1) - The 'Bolts woke up last week while the Titans let one get away on the road. Toss up game.

Cleveland (0-2) at Minnesota (0-2) - One of these teams has to win this week. Take the Vikings.

Tampa Bay (0-2) at New England (2-0) - Tom  Brady faces old nemesis Darrelle Revis once again.

Arizona (1-1) at New Orleans (2-0) - Drew Brees due to break out this week... Saints roll.

Detroit (1-1) at Washington (0-2) - The Redskins in an early "must win" game.

New York Giants (0-2) at Carolina (0-2) - One of these two teams will be in a big hole after this game.

Houston (2-0) at Baltimore (1-1) - Will former Raven Ed Reed play this week?

Atlanta (1-1) at Miami (2-0) - The unbeaten Dolphins will get a real test this week.

Buffalo (1-1) at New York Jets (1-1) - More late game magic from Bills rookie QB E.J. Manuel OR can fellow rookie QB Geno Smith lead the Jets to the win?

Indianapolis (1-1) at San Francisco (1-1) - Suddenly with the Trent Richardson trade, this game looks a lot more interesting aside from the reunion of former Stanford Head Coach Jim Harbaugh with former Stanford QB Andrew Luck. Take the 'Niners.

Jacksonville (0-2) at Seattle (2-0) - Why bother?

Chicago (2-0) at Pittsburgh (0-2) - Can the Steelers get it going against the Bears? This one could go down to the wire.

Oakland (0-2) at Denver (2-0) - The Monday Night Football tilt could be over in a hurry if Peyton Manning has anything to say about it and HE WILL. Broncos in a rout!

The Heftyinfo picks  . . .     (Home teams listed in BOLD...  LOCK OF THE WEEK listed in BOLD CAPS)

Philadelphia over Kansas City
Green Bay over Cincinnati
Dallas over St. Louis
San Diego over Tennessee
Minnesota over Cleveland
Tampa Bay over New England
New Orleans over Arizona
Washington over Detroit
NY Giants over Carolina
Houston over Baltimore
Atlanta over Miami
Buffalo over NY Jets
San Francisco over Indianapolis
SEATTLE over Jacksonville
Chicago over Pittsburgh
Denver over Oakland

Last Week's Record: 11-5

SEASON RECORD: 22-10

LOCK OF THE WEEK Record: 2-0 

NFL Football - Week Two Review

What a weekend of football it was as the Manning Bowl, the battle in the NFC West and several exciting  finishes punctuated the second week of the 2013 NFL season.

The Denver Broncos dominated the second half of the game against the host New York Giants in a 41-23 win that saw Peyton Manning throw for 307 yards and two touchdown passes while the special teams scored a touchdown (Trindon Holliday 81-yard punt return) and the defense intercepted Giants' QB Eli Manning four times in the third "Manning Bowl." The Giants are 0-2 while Denver improved to 2-0 this season.

Packers QB Aaron Rodgers dominated the win over Redskins

Green Bay rolled past the visiting Washington Redskins, 38-20 behind 480 passing yards and four touchdown strikes from Aaron Rodgers, the Heftyinfo NFL co-Player of the Week. Redskins QB Robert Griffin III had 320 yards with three TD and one interception in the loss as the Washington defense allowed 580 yards.

Philip Rivers had a huge game in win

The San Diego Chargers went into Philadelphia and stunned the Eagles, 33-30 as kicker Nick Novak drilled a 48-yard field goal to provide the difference. Chargers QB Philip Rivers, Heftyinfo NFL co-Player of the Week, passed for 419 yards and three touchdowns (all to wide receiver Eddie Royal) to offset Michael Vick's effort (428 passing yards and a rushing touchdown) as the 'Bolts totaled 539 yards in offense.





The Chicago Bears pulled off a late comeback as QB Jay Cutler hit tight end Martellus Bennett for a 16-yard touchdown pass with ten seconds left in the game to win, 31-30. The Bears rolled up 411 total yards in offense and kick returner Devin Hester accounted for 249 kickoff return yards.
Houston won in overtime 30-24 at home against the Tennessee Titans behind a balanced offense (172 rushing yards and 280 passing) and a game winning three-yard TD pass from QB Matt Schaub to rookie WR DeAndre Hopkins.
The Seattle Seahawks rode out the (lightning) storm and dominated the visiting San Francisco 49ers, 29-3 in the Sunday Night Football game. The Seattle defense limited the 49ers to 207 yards in offense and Marshawn Lynch (98 yards rushing) scored three touchdowns, including a seven-yard scoring pass from QB Russell Wilson.


Other highlights from around the league . . . 

The Atlanta Falcons held on for a 31-24 home win against the St. Louis Rams behind a pair of TD passes from Matt Ryan (374 passing yards) and a 68-yard interception return for score by Osi Umenyiora. St. Louis QB Sam Bradford had 352 passing yards and three touchdown passes in the loss . . .  Rashard Mendenhall scored on a one-yard run at the two-minute warning to provide the difference in a 25-21 home win for the Arizona Cardinals over the Detroit Lions . . . The Kansas City Chiefs edged the visiting Dallas Cowboys, 17-16 behind two TD passes by QB Alex Smith . . .  Buffalo won their home game late against Carolina, 24-23 as QB E.J. Manuel threw a two-yard scoring pass to Stevie Johnson with two seconds remaining. Bills defensive end/linebacker Mario Williams had 4 1/2 QB sacks in the win . . . The Baltimore Ravens won their home opener to improve to 1-1 with a 14-6 yawner over the Cleveland Browns as the defense sacked Browns QB Brandon Weeden five times . . . New Orleans got a game winning 27-yard field goal from Garrett Hartley as time expired to win at Tampa Bay, 16-14 . . . The Oakland Raiders beat the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars, 19-9 as their defense limited the Jags to 248 total yards while kicker Sebastian Janikowski made four field goals . . .  The New England Patriots won an ugly game last Thursday night, 13-10 against the visiting New York Jets as Tom Brady threw a touchdown pass and the Pats defense intercepted Jets rookie QB Geno Smith three times . . .  The Monday Night Football game saw the host Cincinnati Bengals top the Pittsburgh Steelers, 20-10 behind solid defense (limiting the Steelers to just 44 rushing yards and 278 in total offense) and two touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving) from rookie running back Giovani Bernard.

This Is PRO Football

Bart Starr and the Green Bay Packers dominated the 1960's.