Monday, November 30, 2015
The Inevitable Failure of the Paris Climate Change Conference
Climate change demagogues focus on carbon dioxide when they should be focusing on adapting to whatever climate change is actually occurring. And the problem remains the actual data doesn't support the premise of climate change.
Saturday, November 28, 2015
Obama’s Intel Scandal
Obama’s dishonest treatment of intelligence analysis about Islamo-Arab imperialism reflects his stubborn refusal to face that he has always been wrong about it. And the dishonesty isn't limited to terrorism, as Iran was caught lying about its nuclear weapons even as the IAEA lets them off the hook.
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Whitewashing Woodrow Wilson
A reminder that college whitewashing of reality is wrong - the truth about Woodrow Wilson needs to be remembered. And of course leftism is never about truth - it's about lying.
Monday, November 23, 2015
Bernie The Bozo's Democratic Socialism Speech
Bernie Sanders made a major speech about democratic socialism - and it merely proves there's no case for it.
Among the lowlights -
"The great middle class in this country has been in decline." False - their incomes have risen 50% since 1985 and even the NY Times admitted by 2000 that the middle class was getting richer.
"The wealthiest people and the largest corporations must pay their fair share of taxes." False - it's none of government's business to begin with, plus the wealthy and corporations get hosed on taxes as the Tax Foundation has long shown.
Among the lowlights -
"The great middle class in this country has been in decline." False - their incomes have risen 50% since 1985 and even the NY Times admitted by 2000 that the middle class was getting richer.
"The wealthiest people and the largest corporations must pay their fair share of taxes." False - it's none of government's business to begin with, plus the wealthy and corporations get hosed on taxes as the Tax Foundation has long shown.
The 77-cent Myth Redux
The myth that women earn just 77 cents for every dollar earned by men gets punctured again.
Saturday, November 21, 2015
Al Qaeda Hasn't Been Neutralized
Liveshot Kerry credits Al Qaeda as being "neutralized" under the Obama administration, - except the way it is structured shows why it hasn't been neutralized at all. Then there is the reality that Obama was warned by intelligence agencies that he was wrong to withdraw from Irag because Al Qaeda was rebranding itself as something called ISIS and was waiting for US withdrawal to attack. And while all this goes on, Obama works to pretend to do something "while running out the clock until his successor inherits his mess."
Friday, November 20, 2015
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Remember That Diversity Is A Dead End
A forgotten 2012 study shows what the real world has always shown - diversity training doesn't work because diversity is a dead end. No one is supposed to care about diversity.
Paris And Islamo-Arab Imperialism's Voluntary Apartheid
Obama And His Cylon Raiders
Taking Careful Aim looks at the killing of an Islamic terrorist who was an American citizen, and also at the non-engagement engagement by Barack Obama with drone warfare - I nickname them Cylon Raiders - as a substitute (a poor one) to actual pursuit of victory.
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
CIA Admits Bush Defeated The Enemy And Obama Let The Enemy Live
The CIA's director made a huge admission - under George W. Bush Islamo-Arab imperialists - now rebranded as ISIS - were defeated, and under Obama they've been resuscitated and grown by 4,400%.
Contrast this with Liveshot Kerry insulting humanity with his moral equivalence rap at the State Department.
Contrast this with Liveshot Kerry insulting humanity with his moral equivalence rap at the State Department.
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Obama Lets Vlad Win Again
Vladimir Putin is not part of the solution in the Middle East, he's part of the problem. His is a foreign policy of aggression and conquest (in the Middle East, Ukraine, etc.) and he's taken advantage of Obama's fecklessness.
When To Close Borders
Thomas Sowell raises a valid point about France - what if it had closed its borders to Islamo-Arab infiltrators 40 or so years ago? It is a question with a superb counterpoint from Danielle Pletka.
Monday, November 16, 2015
Sunday, November 15, 2015
How About Actually DEFEATING Iran?
Iranian support of Islamic aggression in Iraq continues while resistance continues - and the US can help co-opt enemy militias and also step up defeating the enemy at its base in the Middle East.
Saturday, November 14, 2015
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Why Is Anyone Claiming Medicare Works?
Claims that Medicare works do not hold up to the truth of a typical entitlement - a multi-trillion dollar pyramid scheme.
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
NFL Week 10 Looks To Go Herb Alpert On Us
The NFL last week went all Herb Alpert on us - when they said come flay with me the footballs did just that, and when teams needed their game to Rise, they went Beyond and the result was a plethora of amazingly taut games. So now we enter Week Ten and suddenly things are not what they seemed. My picks -
NY JETS over Bills - Both teams are .500 or better (the Jets are 5-3) entering this game; the Jets have the better overall team though I give Tyrod Taylor a slight edge over Ryan Fitzpatrick; the biggest edge lays in coaching as Todd Bowles has made the Jets professional in contrast to the chaotic freelancing of Rex Ryan in Buffalo.
Saints over REDSKINS - The Saints have all the edges - quarterback, coach, team culture, etc. - and are smarting over a bitter loss last week even though they're still in the wildcard hunt even at 4-5.
EAGLES over Dolphins - Philly's rough start appears to be behind them while Miami's momentum from the promotion of Dan Campbell now looks gone.
RAMS over Bears - Jay Cutler pulled off a preposterous win at San Diego, but the Rams are made of sterner stuff than that; coordinator Gregg Williams got called out by the Vikings and by Rodney Harrison, and it looks to be firing up the Rams.
TITANS over Panthers - The Titans have owned the Saints since Jeff Fisher took over the then-Houston Oilers and have averaged 27 points scored in the last six games; they have Marcus Mariota back, their defense looks to be playing substantially better of late, and the change in head coaches paid immediate dividends. Now the Titans get the unbeaten Panthers, a team they've beaten three straight times and which has struggled to close out games of late while the Titans have played comeback football pretty much since the Bucs game.
Jaguars over RAVENS - This rivalry used to be about streaks - the Jags won the first ten meetings dating to the final year of the original Cleveland Browns. Now they've seesawed the last five meetings and the Ravens come off their bye still uncertain about what they are as the Jaguars have played better the last two games.
BUCS over Cowboys - Neither team is a playoff contender, but the Bucs are starting to establish some legitimate muscle under improving quarterback Jameis Winston as the Cowboys flail away with six straight losses.
STEELERS over Browns - Suddenly the Steelers may not know who their quarterback will be with Roethlisberger's latest foot injury; it won't matter against a Browns team still with a quarterback controversy in Johnny Turnovers.
PACKERS over Lions - The Packers got exposed the last two games but the Lions look to be imploding and the guy they thought would be their quarterback of the future looks more and more like their quarterback of the past.
RAIDERS over Vikings - Both teams are far ahead of where they were, and the Raiders under Derek Carr and an improving roster are showing they're for real. Expect something akin to the shootout in Pittsburgh here.
BRONCOS over Chiefs - The unbeaten season is now gone, so the Broncos get the Chiefs again, one of the teams Peyton Manning owns, bad arm or no bad arm.
Patriots over NY GIANTS - We know the recent history. We know the bitterness of the three straight losses by the Patriots. We also know the Giants remain the inconsistent team they've long been; they force turnovers except the Patriots generally don't give up turnovers; their defense has been speared (19th in points allowed) and Brady has elevated his game even as Eli Manning is now more comfortable in the offense installed last year.
SEAHAWKS over Cardinals - The Seahawks started slow last year and then raced to the Superbowl. The Cardinals remain a legitimate NFC contender, so this game should be a grinder to the end.
BENGALS over Texans - Cincinnati remains on a roll and Houston remains iffy on their quarterback and in general; their vaunted defense in particular is a joke now even at eighth in passing yards allowed per game. Look for Andy Dalton and his arsenal of pass-catchers to have another feast.
One more note - the injury to Andrew Luck may not change much for the Colts going forward, since Matt Hasselback showed he can still win in a relief role and a schedule that takes a turn for the better with perhaps five eminently winnable games left.
So we await.
NY JETS over Bills - Both teams are .500 or better (the Jets are 5-3) entering this game; the Jets have the better overall team though I give Tyrod Taylor a slight edge over Ryan Fitzpatrick; the biggest edge lays in coaching as Todd Bowles has made the Jets professional in contrast to the chaotic freelancing of Rex Ryan in Buffalo.
Saints over REDSKINS - The Saints have all the edges - quarterback, coach, team culture, etc. - and are smarting over a bitter loss last week even though they're still in the wildcard hunt even at 4-5.
EAGLES over Dolphins - Philly's rough start appears to be behind them while Miami's momentum from the promotion of Dan Campbell now looks gone.
RAMS over Bears - Jay Cutler pulled off a preposterous win at San Diego, but the Rams are made of sterner stuff than that; coordinator Gregg Williams got called out by the Vikings and by Rodney Harrison, and it looks to be firing up the Rams.
TITANS over Panthers - The Titans have owned the Saints since Jeff Fisher took over the then-Houston Oilers and have averaged 27 points scored in the last six games; they have Marcus Mariota back, their defense looks to be playing substantially better of late, and the change in head coaches paid immediate dividends. Now the Titans get the unbeaten Panthers, a team they've beaten three straight times and which has struggled to close out games of late while the Titans have played comeback football pretty much since the Bucs game.
Jaguars over RAVENS - This rivalry used to be about streaks - the Jags won the first ten meetings dating to the final year of the original Cleveland Browns. Now they've seesawed the last five meetings and the Ravens come off their bye still uncertain about what they are as the Jaguars have played better the last two games.
BUCS over Cowboys - Neither team is a playoff contender, but the Bucs are starting to establish some legitimate muscle under improving quarterback Jameis Winston as the Cowboys flail away with six straight losses.
STEELERS over Browns - Suddenly the Steelers may not know who their quarterback will be with Roethlisberger's latest foot injury; it won't matter against a Browns team still with a quarterback controversy in Johnny Turnovers.
PACKERS over Lions - The Packers got exposed the last two games but the Lions look to be imploding and the guy they thought would be their quarterback of the future looks more and more like their quarterback of the past.
RAIDERS over Vikings - Both teams are far ahead of where they were, and the Raiders under Derek Carr and an improving roster are showing they're for real. Expect something akin to the shootout in Pittsburgh here.
BRONCOS over Chiefs - The unbeaten season is now gone, so the Broncos get the Chiefs again, one of the teams Peyton Manning owns, bad arm or no bad arm.
Patriots over NY GIANTS - We know the recent history. We know the bitterness of the three straight losses by the Patriots. We also know the Giants remain the inconsistent team they've long been; they force turnovers except the Patriots generally don't give up turnovers; their defense has been speared (19th in points allowed) and Brady has elevated his game even as Eli Manning is now more comfortable in the offense installed last year.
SEAHAWKS over Cardinals - The Seahawks started slow last year and then raced to the Superbowl. The Cardinals remain a legitimate NFC contender, so this game should be a grinder to the end.
BENGALS over Texans - Cincinnati remains on a roll and Houston remains iffy on their quarterback and in general; their vaunted defense in particular is a joke now even at eighth in passing yards allowed per game. Look for Andy Dalton and his arsenal of pass-catchers to have another feast.
One more note - the injury to Andrew Luck may not change much for the Colts going forward, since Matt Hasselback showed he can still win in a relief role and a schedule that takes a turn for the better with perhaps five eminently winnable games left.
So we await.
Monday, November 09, 2015
NFL Week Nine Imperfectly Perfect
Week Nine of the NFL continued to prove that football came be an imperfectly perfect game, and it seems every season there is at least one week where more games than usual escalate to downright spectacular level. Perfection proved to be imperfect as we touch upon below -
Patriots perfect and Belichick won't have any of it - Belichick will likely stress that the Patriots on offense weren't that crisp, scoring only 27 points, coughing up two turnovers, and then losing utility back Dion Lewis for the year (torn up knee). A 17-point win isn't anything to be ashamed of, but it isn't good enough. The way the Patriots played at times won't reassure Belichick as they face the dragon that broke their heart twice in the Superbowl next week, so Belichick will make sure his guys understand they need to fix the mistakes.
Panthers have a problem closing out games - For two straight weeks the Panthers raced to a multi-touchdown lead, yet could not close the game out, blowing a 17-point lead to the Colts and needing overtime to win, then blowing most of a 23-point lead to the identically-overrated Packers before Aaron Rodgers once again failed on a comeback attempt, this time via a hot zone INT. This is Green Bay's second straight loss after starting unbeaten, and Rodgers stays stuck on just six true comeback wins with only two wins from down more than one score. Frontrunning fraud, thy name remains Aaron Rodgers, while Carolina had better address these blown leads.
Peyton Manning gags against his old team again - Peyton Manning still hasn't sealed the deal on an unbeaten season and for the third time in four meetings failed against the Indianapolis Colts. The play that killed his chances was so appropriate - needing three yards to become the NFL's all-time passing yardage leader, he threw a pick, and never saw the ball again as Andrew Luck's Colts won a taut affair 27-24. If Aaron Rodgers is a fraud, the vaunted Denver defense was exposed as a fraud also, and its season-long inability to handle good tight ends showed again - and has pending tight ends on Denver's schedule licking their chops.
For Andrew Luck, suddenly there's sign his game is changing, as his new O-coordinator appeared to have him apply that West Coast approach he seemed stubbornly refusing a week or two back. And it wasn't too soon for the Colts, because.......
The Titans pull off their biggest win in years - Sure, it's farfetched to think the Titans can overcome a 1-6 start, but Marcus Mariota kept fighting even in losses - the loss to the Colts remains the bitter pill of the season - and that fight translated into Tennessee's biggest comeback win in years, less in terms of the gap erased than in terms of beating a quality opponent and establishing teamwide confidence and momentum, especially after a coaching change that arguably was overdue. Mariota and the Titans proved they have real fight, now they've begun to translate it into success. The Titans may not reach 8-8 this year, but that or even better suddenly aren't implausible anymore; they're now building something.
The subplot for both the Titans and Colts is just how important coaching is - the Titans changed head coaches and win their biggest comeback in years; the Colts changed coordinators and suddenly Andrew Luck started playing smarter football.
The Forty-Niners win with Blaine Gabbert - for real - His reputation was perhaps as the worst mistake in NFL draft history since Ryan Leaf. Ryan Leaf, though, was too addicted to his illicit substances to try and get a second chance, where Blaine Gabbert took over a moribund Niners squad and did something stunning - he didn't just win, he showed some courage in doing so and beat a Falcons team considered a playoff contender. The playoffs look out of reach for the Niners, though the way Gabbert played there may be reason for short-term optimism in San Francisco.
As for the Falcons, that playoff contender reputation takes another hit; these may not be the rebirth of the Dan Reeves Dirty Birds, never mind of Too Legit To Quit, after all.
The Steelers beat the Raiders but the Raiders may win this latest war - Ben Roethlisberger was downed in the fourth quarter with a foot injury and is out for several weeks, this after just getting back onto the field from an earlier injury. His understudy Landry Jones watched Derek Carr whip the Raiders to the tying touchdown - this after a horrible endzone INT - and then lofted a gigantic completion to Antonio Bryant on his way to a Steelers-record 284 receiving yards. The winning field goal left Pittsburgh as 38-35 winners, but the Raiders' continued fight shows a team that's only getting better and leaves the Steelers once again uncertain going forward.
Have the Lions reached the point of no return? - They didn't play this week but the Detroit Lions still made news between some wholesale coordinator firings on offense and word that Matthew Stafford may get the axe himself between his cap hit and reported refusal to adapt to a new offense; he'd played noticeably more conservatively in 2014 and despite 11 wins his coaches admitted he played conservatively to a fault. His collapse this year became downright graphic in the loss to the Broncos and we've seen no sign of any turnaround.
The question now becomes - if Stafford gets the axe from Detroit, will any team want him? Talent-wise they should, but the coach killer rumor about him may now be true.
Eagles may now be back on track while the Cowboys put up with double jeopardy advocacy - The topsy-turvy NFC East became more of such as the Eagles fought off a determined Dallas Cowboys effort with a Sam Bradford touchdown in overtime. Philly's poor start was such that their recent surge has gone largely unnoticed, while the collapse of the Cowboys has been one of the stories of the year.
It got worse for the Cowboys when Deadspin did a lengthy piece on the Greg Hardy violence arrest with some 50 photos taken by police. It led to widespread media demand that Hardy be cut by the Cowboys or banned by the league - seemingly everyone oblivious to the fact they're advocating punishment to Hardy for something for which he was already punished because we now see photographic evidence as if it changed any fact. Last time I checked, double jeopardy is illegal.
We know what Greg Hardy is, but more armchair lawyering will solve nothing - on the contrary, the continued collapse of the Cowboys does Hardy more damage than media anger can.
You know your season is ruined when you lose to Jay Cutler - The San Diego Chargers' mediocre decade just got worse with an astonishingly disgusting loss to the worst quarterback in the game, leaving their season over at the halfway mark. To call the Chargers underachievers doesn't do justice to just how revolting this Monday Night loss is. Jay Cutler remains the same malicious retard that's cost his teams every year of his career; his fights with Philip Rivers when he was in Denver were a humorous subplot given Rivers' obvious superiority in talent, character, and career - and now it doesn't mean jack.
So the league now counts down to Week Ten.
Patriots perfect and Belichick won't have any of it - Belichick will likely stress that the Patriots on offense weren't that crisp, scoring only 27 points, coughing up two turnovers, and then losing utility back Dion Lewis for the year (torn up knee). A 17-point win isn't anything to be ashamed of, but it isn't good enough. The way the Patriots played at times won't reassure Belichick as they face the dragon that broke their heart twice in the Superbowl next week, so Belichick will make sure his guys understand they need to fix the mistakes.
Panthers have a problem closing out games - For two straight weeks the Panthers raced to a multi-touchdown lead, yet could not close the game out, blowing a 17-point lead to the Colts and needing overtime to win, then blowing most of a 23-point lead to the identically-overrated Packers before Aaron Rodgers once again failed on a comeback attempt, this time via a hot zone INT. This is Green Bay's second straight loss after starting unbeaten, and Rodgers stays stuck on just six true comeback wins with only two wins from down more than one score. Frontrunning fraud, thy name remains Aaron Rodgers, while Carolina had better address these blown leads.
Peyton Manning gags against his old team again - Peyton Manning still hasn't sealed the deal on an unbeaten season and for the third time in four meetings failed against the Indianapolis Colts. The play that killed his chances was so appropriate - needing three yards to become the NFL's all-time passing yardage leader, he threw a pick, and never saw the ball again as Andrew Luck's Colts won a taut affair 27-24. If Aaron Rodgers is a fraud, the vaunted Denver defense was exposed as a fraud also, and its season-long inability to handle good tight ends showed again - and has pending tight ends on Denver's schedule licking their chops.
For Andrew Luck, suddenly there's sign his game is changing, as his new O-coordinator appeared to have him apply that West Coast approach he seemed stubbornly refusing a week or two back. And it wasn't too soon for the Colts, because.......
The Titans pull off their biggest win in years - Sure, it's farfetched to think the Titans can overcome a 1-6 start, but Marcus Mariota kept fighting even in losses - the loss to the Colts remains the bitter pill of the season - and that fight translated into Tennessee's biggest comeback win in years, less in terms of the gap erased than in terms of beating a quality opponent and establishing teamwide confidence and momentum, especially after a coaching change that arguably was overdue. Mariota and the Titans proved they have real fight, now they've begun to translate it into success. The Titans may not reach 8-8 this year, but that or even better suddenly aren't implausible anymore; they're now building something.
The subplot for both the Titans and Colts is just how important coaching is - the Titans changed head coaches and win their biggest comeback in years; the Colts changed coordinators and suddenly Andrew Luck started playing smarter football.
The Forty-Niners win with Blaine Gabbert - for real - His reputation was perhaps as the worst mistake in NFL draft history since Ryan Leaf. Ryan Leaf, though, was too addicted to his illicit substances to try and get a second chance, where Blaine Gabbert took over a moribund Niners squad and did something stunning - he didn't just win, he showed some courage in doing so and beat a Falcons team considered a playoff contender. The playoffs look out of reach for the Niners, though the way Gabbert played there may be reason for short-term optimism in San Francisco.
As for the Falcons, that playoff contender reputation takes another hit; these may not be the rebirth of the Dan Reeves Dirty Birds, never mind of Too Legit To Quit, after all.
The Steelers beat the Raiders but the Raiders may win this latest war - Ben Roethlisberger was downed in the fourth quarter with a foot injury and is out for several weeks, this after just getting back onto the field from an earlier injury. His understudy Landry Jones watched Derek Carr whip the Raiders to the tying touchdown - this after a horrible endzone INT - and then lofted a gigantic completion to Antonio Bryant on his way to a Steelers-record 284 receiving yards. The winning field goal left Pittsburgh as 38-35 winners, but the Raiders' continued fight shows a team that's only getting better and leaves the Steelers once again uncertain going forward.
Have the Lions reached the point of no return? - They didn't play this week but the Detroit Lions still made news between some wholesale coordinator firings on offense and word that Matthew Stafford may get the axe himself between his cap hit and reported refusal to adapt to a new offense; he'd played noticeably more conservatively in 2014 and despite 11 wins his coaches admitted he played conservatively to a fault. His collapse this year became downright graphic in the loss to the Broncos and we've seen no sign of any turnaround.
The question now becomes - if Stafford gets the axe from Detroit, will any team want him? Talent-wise they should, but the coach killer rumor about him may now be true.
Eagles may now be back on track while the Cowboys put up with double jeopardy advocacy - The topsy-turvy NFC East became more of such as the Eagles fought off a determined Dallas Cowboys effort with a Sam Bradford touchdown in overtime. Philly's poor start was such that their recent surge has gone largely unnoticed, while the collapse of the Cowboys has been one of the stories of the year.
It got worse for the Cowboys when Deadspin did a lengthy piece on the Greg Hardy violence arrest with some 50 photos taken by police. It led to widespread media demand that Hardy be cut by the Cowboys or banned by the league - seemingly everyone oblivious to the fact they're advocating punishment to Hardy for something for which he was already punished because we now see photographic evidence as if it changed any fact. Last time I checked, double jeopardy is illegal.
We know what Greg Hardy is, but more armchair lawyering will solve nothing - on the contrary, the continued collapse of the Cowboys does Hardy more damage than media anger can.
You know your season is ruined when you lose to Jay Cutler - The San Diego Chargers' mediocre decade just got worse with an astonishingly disgusting loss to the worst quarterback in the game, leaving their season over at the halfway mark. To call the Chargers underachievers doesn't do justice to just how revolting this Monday Night loss is. Jay Cutler remains the same malicious retard that's cost his teams every year of his career; his fights with Philip Rivers when he was in Denver were a humorous subplot given Rivers' obvious superiority in talent, character, and career - and now it doesn't mean jack.
So the league now counts down to Week Ten.
Thursday, November 05, 2015
Wednesday, November 04, 2015
NFL Week Nine - Fratricide Follies and Football
The NFL trade deadline period came and went with one trade of note - the Denver Broncos got tight end Vernon Davis from the 49ers. But the week also saw some eye-popping coaching fratricide via several coaching firings and the benching of a starting quarterback only recently considered a star of the future, while the story of the weekend was the league's shakedown of New England Patriots employees in a futile search for nonexistent transmitting devices, a search instigated at the behest of the New York Jets. We predict winners for Week Nine amid midseason chaos -
Bengals over Browns - The Browns will start Johnny Fumbles on Thursday Night at Cincinnati, and it won't matter given Manziel's spotty skill set and dubious work ethic. The Bengals come in unbeaten - a club first for this late in the season - and coming off a clutch win at Pittsburgh one hesitates to ponder who could beat them before the playoffs. People seem to be waiting for some inevitable Bengals collapse and there's certainly been reason for such expectation, but we aren't there yet.
Jaguars over NY Jets
- Suddenly the Jets have a quarterback problem with Ryan Fitzpatrick and Geno Smith injured, while the Jaguars come in off their bye from their dramatic London win. Slowly but certainly the Jaguars appear to be establishing some level of respectability again.
Saints over Titans - Ken Whisenhunt was fired after Tennessee's pathetic loss at Houston, this a week after Zach Mettenberger blew a winnable game against a good Falcons squad. The move was certainly overdue given Whisenhunt's complete inability to develop anything out of Zach Mettenberger plus burgeoning O-line issues that contributed to Marcus Mariota's injury. Talk of bringing back Jeff Fisher ignores the need for new thinking and a fresh, analytical approach to the game, because the game is now won by acquisition and application of information. The sooner Mariota comes back the better, because he looks like he can make the Titans winners again, this as they presently face a Saints squad rejuvenated by their awe-inspiring 52-49 shootout win over the Giants.
Patriots over Redskins - The Redskins are better than expected, but the Patriots are the machine again.
Panthers over Packers - Green Bay and Aaron Rodgers got exposed again as frontrunning frauds; once they fell behind the Broncos 14-0 they were toast. Now they take on an unbeaten Panthers team that is fully Cam Newton's team and fully capable of winning the Lombardi Trophy. The only nits to pick right now are the receivers need to catch the ball, as shown by Ted Ginn's blown touchdown effort in overtime against the Colts.
Dolphins over Bills - This is not the same Dolphins teams beaten by Rex Ryan earlier this year, and the Bills are no longer as good as advertised with discipline - such as it is for a Rex Ryan team - appearing to be breaking down.
Vikings over Rams - The Vikings have advanced quite a ways from the start of the season, and while they've been pretty quiet about it they're nonetheless at 5-2 showing real growth. The Rams remain the team Fisher started with, basically 8-8, capable of some big wins but never good enough to go further.
Raiders over Steelers - Never mind that the Raiders are much better now than they've been since 2011 and the Steelers are not as good as they were last year; the Raiders have won four of the last five meetings with the Steelers and the games have usually been taut contests - cue Kenny Stabler vs. the Steel Curtain footage for this one.
Falcons over 49ers - The benching of Colin Kaepernick after increasingly poor performances and no sign the perceived improvement of Week One was in fact for real means Blaine Gabbert - nicknamed Blame Gabbert in Jacksonville for lack of accountability for useless play - has a chance to relaunch his career. He gets a Falcons team that may have been exposed by the Titans, as they were held to ten points in Tennessee and got embarrassed by the Bucs last week.
Buccaneers over NY Giants - The Bucs have started to show some growth with Jameis Winston as the season has gone on and they host a Giants team that can explode with points but hasn't stopped anyone, either. Even if they lose the Giants are in very good shape for a playoff push.
Colts over Broncos - The firing of coordinator Pep Hamilton amid continuing speculation about Chuck Pagano and Ryan Grigson would suggest a collapsing season - except Andrew Luck suddenly started playing his brand of Dan Marino football and erased a 17-point gap to force overtime in Carolina. That he threw the overtime pick that cost the Colts in the end doesn't change that Luck is a franchise quarterback, deeply flawed as he is. Earlier this year the reading between the lines suggested the Colts were swung over from the reckless Marinoball approach of Luck (and Peyton Manning) by the efficiency of Matt Hasselback's West Coast offense approach, and in the first half of the Patriots game Luck appeared to use more of a West Coast approach, but when the Patriots started putting the game away Luck and the Colts abandoned the conservative approach and reverted to Marinoball. The Carolina game suggests the West Coast is dead in Indianapolis, and the Colts now get a Broncos team that has a new tight end for Peyton and whose defense has gotten a lot of love - except the Broncos haven't held their own against good tight ends plus it's still a Wade Phillips unit as part of a Gary Kubiak team - not the most dependable of God's creatures, to coin a Spencer Tracy-ism.
Eagles overCowboys - The Eagles are substantially better now than they were in Week Two and the Cowboys are worse, shown in the serial refusal to hold players accountable by Jerry Jones to go with abysmal quarterback play.
Chargers over Bears - San Diego's season is over with continued bitter failure against quality opponents despite gaudy stats from Philip Rivers. They get a break this Monday Night as they get a Bears team chronically not ready for prime time and headed by the always-inept and stuck-up a-hole that is Jay Cutler.
And so it goes, hoping some teams down in the dumps can start a turnaround for the second half.
Bengals over Browns - The Browns will start Johnny Fumbles on Thursday Night at Cincinnati, and it won't matter given Manziel's spotty skill set and dubious work ethic. The Bengals come in unbeaten - a club first for this late in the season - and coming off a clutch win at Pittsburgh one hesitates to ponder who could beat them before the playoffs. People seem to be waiting for some inevitable Bengals collapse and there's certainly been reason for such expectation, but we aren't there yet.
Jaguars over NY Jets
- Suddenly the Jets have a quarterback problem with Ryan Fitzpatrick and Geno Smith injured, while the Jaguars come in off their bye from their dramatic London win. Slowly but certainly the Jaguars appear to be establishing some level of respectability again.
Saints over Titans - Ken Whisenhunt was fired after Tennessee's pathetic loss at Houston, this a week after Zach Mettenberger blew a winnable game against a good Falcons squad. The move was certainly overdue given Whisenhunt's complete inability to develop anything out of Zach Mettenberger plus burgeoning O-line issues that contributed to Marcus Mariota's injury. Talk of bringing back Jeff Fisher ignores the need for new thinking and a fresh, analytical approach to the game, because the game is now won by acquisition and application of information. The sooner Mariota comes back the better, because he looks like he can make the Titans winners again, this as they presently face a Saints squad rejuvenated by their awe-inspiring 52-49 shootout win over the Giants.
Patriots over Redskins - The Redskins are better than expected, but the Patriots are the machine again.
Panthers over Packers - Green Bay and Aaron Rodgers got exposed again as frontrunning frauds; once they fell behind the Broncos 14-0 they were toast. Now they take on an unbeaten Panthers team that is fully Cam Newton's team and fully capable of winning the Lombardi Trophy. The only nits to pick right now are the receivers need to catch the ball, as shown by Ted Ginn's blown touchdown effort in overtime against the Colts.
Dolphins over Bills - This is not the same Dolphins teams beaten by Rex Ryan earlier this year, and the Bills are no longer as good as advertised with discipline - such as it is for a Rex Ryan team - appearing to be breaking down.
Vikings over Rams - The Vikings have advanced quite a ways from the start of the season, and while they've been pretty quiet about it they're nonetheless at 5-2 showing real growth. The Rams remain the team Fisher started with, basically 8-8, capable of some big wins but never good enough to go further.
Raiders over Steelers - Never mind that the Raiders are much better now than they've been since 2011 and the Steelers are not as good as they were last year; the Raiders have won four of the last five meetings with the Steelers and the games have usually been taut contests - cue Kenny Stabler vs. the Steel Curtain footage for this one.
Falcons over 49ers - The benching of Colin Kaepernick after increasingly poor performances and no sign the perceived improvement of Week One was in fact for real means Blaine Gabbert - nicknamed Blame Gabbert in Jacksonville for lack of accountability for useless play - has a chance to relaunch his career. He gets a Falcons team that may have been exposed by the Titans, as they were held to ten points in Tennessee and got embarrassed by the Bucs last week.
Buccaneers over NY Giants - The Bucs have started to show some growth with Jameis Winston as the season has gone on and they host a Giants team that can explode with points but hasn't stopped anyone, either. Even if they lose the Giants are in very good shape for a playoff push.
Colts over Broncos - The firing of coordinator Pep Hamilton amid continuing speculation about Chuck Pagano and Ryan Grigson would suggest a collapsing season - except Andrew Luck suddenly started playing his brand of Dan Marino football and erased a 17-point gap to force overtime in Carolina. That he threw the overtime pick that cost the Colts in the end doesn't change that Luck is a franchise quarterback, deeply flawed as he is. Earlier this year the reading between the lines suggested the Colts were swung over from the reckless Marinoball approach of Luck (and Peyton Manning) by the efficiency of Matt Hasselback's West Coast offense approach, and in the first half of the Patriots game Luck appeared to use more of a West Coast approach, but when the Patriots started putting the game away Luck and the Colts abandoned the conservative approach and reverted to Marinoball. The Carolina game suggests the West Coast is dead in Indianapolis, and the Colts now get a Broncos team that has a new tight end for Peyton and whose defense has gotten a lot of love - except the Broncos haven't held their own against good tight ends plus it's still a Wade Phillips unit as part of a Gary Kubiak team - not the most dependable of God's creatures, to coin a Spencer Tracy-ism.
Eagles overCowboys - The Eagles are substantially better now than they were in Week Two and the Cowboys are worse, shown in the serial refusal to hold players accountable by Jerry Jones to go with abysmal quarterback play.
Chargers over Bears - San Diego's season is over with continued bitter failure against quality opponents despite gaudy stats from Philip Rivers. They get a break this Monday Night as they get a Bears team chronically not ready for prime time and headed by the always-inept and stuck-up a-hole that is Jay Cutler.
And so it goes, hoping some teams down in the dumps can start a turnaround for the second half.
Tuesday, November 03, 2015
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