Week 6 in the NFL has been and gone just like that, each week seems to fly by like a pass from Eli Manning to one of his receivers! How have the Giants ended up being 0 – 6 for the first time since 1976? The last time they started this badly, they went 0-9 before their first win. On Thursday night the New York Giants lost again, this time to the Chicago Bears 27 – 21.
Manning threw another three interceptions taking his total for the season to 15. At this rate he is on course to break his own career record of interceptions thrown in a season, set in 2010 when he threw 25. Maybe he should stick to making adverts like below:
To be fair to poor old Eli, the blame must not all be put on his shoulders, his offensive line looks a shadow of the Superbowl winning team and the defence appears to be on a permanent vacation. Like most teams in the NFL they are suffering with injuries but their senior players really need to step up and make plays, not just for themselves but for Tom Coughlan who will probably be out of a job at the end of the season if this slide continues.
Onto something more positive now and that is the back-ups who were thrown into action this week but still managed to come up with some great plays. Let’s start with the Green Bay Packers who lost both James Jones and Randall Cobb to injuries this week in their game against Baltimore. Green Bay were down to two receivers in Jordy Nelson who is pure class and the young Jarrett Boykin. Boykin managed to pull in a 43 yard catch not long after being thrust into action and helped Green Bay to a much needed win over Baltimore.
We also had Thad Lewis in Buffalo who was promoted from the practice squad straight to the starting role for the game on Sunday versus the Bengals. I wasn’t sure what to expect but I was very pleasantly surprised. After the Bengals took the early 3 – 0 lead, Lewis drove the Bills 73 yards in six plays resulting in him scoring a touchdown on a three yard run. This was impressive not only because it was his first competitive drive this year but also because it was the first time the Bengals had conceded an opening drive touchdown this season.
I could talk for hours on how great the rest of his performance was but let’s just say I was very impressed with him and despite the loss, all our games this year seem to be very close. Let us now take a look at the all of the scores from the week:
Chicago 27 vs 21 New York Giants
Cincinnati 27 vs 24 Buffalo
Detroit 31 vs 17 Cleveland
Kansas City 24 vs 7 Oakland
Carolina 35 vs 10 Minnesota
Pittsburgh 19 vs 6 New York Jets
Philadelphia 31 vs 20 Tampa Bay
Green Bay 19 vs 17 Baltimore
St Louis 38 vs 13 Houston
Denver 35 vs 19 Jacksonville
Seattle 20 vs 13 Tennessee
New England 30 vs 27 New Orleans
San Francisco 32 vs 20 Arizona
Dallas 31 vs 16 Washington
To Be Played:
Indianapolis vs San Diego
Chicago 27 vs 21 New York Giants
Cincinnati 27 vs 24 Buffalo
Detroit 31 vs 17 Cleveland
Kansas City 24 vs 7 Oakland
Carolina 35 vs 10 Minnesota
Pittsburgh 19 vs 6 New York Jets
Philadelphia 31 vs 20 Tampa Bay
Green Bay 19 vs 17 Baltimore
St Louis 38 vs 13 Houston
Denver 35 vs 19 Jacksonville
Seattle 20 vs 13 Tennessee
New England 30 vs 27 New Orleans
San Francisco 32 vs 20 Arizona
Dallas 31 vs 16 Washington
To Be Played:
Indianapolis vs San Diego
Okay so we now move onto Pittsburgh getting their first win on Sunday, and in New York of all places. This was a bit of a shocker for me as Pittsburgh have been really bad this season with the exception of a brief fight against Minnesota here in London. It would seem that the week off has done them the world of good, the question is can they make it two wins in a row as they face off against their bitter rivals the Ravens?
Before I finish off this week I just wanted to talk about just how good Jamaal Charles is playing this season and how I think he is such a key part of what Andy Reid is trying to do in Kansas. So far this year Charles has had 775 yards from scrimmage and seven touchdowns. This weekend whilst I was watching redzone it always seemed to be him making the big plays as they struggled to overcome Oakland Raiders. Although the final score may not look close at 24 – 7, it took a long time for the Chiefs to pull out that lead.
Don't forget to check out our podcast coming up later in the week were I am joined by Marcus Henson and a special guest!
Finally to finish off this week I would like to offer my thoughts and prayers to Adrian Peterson and family who sadly lost his two year old son this week. May you find the strength and courage and deal with this tragic event.
Until next time football fans stay safe, take care and ‘Thanks for Stopping By'