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Tennessee is
finished. Yes, I am writing them off. I pretty
much wrote them off in the offseason, but Sunday night's
game was it. They got crushed at home in every aspect
of the game. Next week they host the Cincinnati
Bengals and could be 0-2 en route to an 0-7 start. The
wheels are falling off in Tennessee.
Was it me, or were there
hotties filling the television screen all day long? I
just don't remember seeing all these guys - Jeff Ogden
and Jonathan Taylor to name two - last year.
The fans in Buffalo
must be hating life right now. Not only did their team
let the heart of the organization, Doug Flutie, go,
but their Bills looked awful in their opener at home.
Eight wins for the Bills this season would be a miracle.
Those Bills lost, 24-6, to a
very good New Orleans Saints team. Both the
Saints and the Baltimore Ravens got off to slow
first-half starts on Sunday. But, in the second half,
both dominated on defense and looked strong on
offense. I'm still picking them for a Super Bowl
matchup.
The magic is alive and well
in San Diego. The Chargers are going to the
playoffs. Print your tickets now.
New coach. Same old
Chiefs. Same old choke. It seems every one of
the Kansas City's games in the last two years has
been a nail biter. Why can't this team just win?
Dick Vermeil got a good lesson about AFC West
rivalries on Sunday - one that he badly needed and one that
should help propel this team. They won't win the
division, but they will remain competitive.
Mike Holmgren's
"brilliant" protégé, Matt Hasselbeck, in
his first start: 20-34, 151 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT; the
veteran whom Holmgren could have had in a threeway trade
with Detroit, Mark Brunell: 15-26, 205 yards, 3 TD, 0
INT. Holmgren can't get out of the way of his own ego.
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It's always risky to read too
much into Week 1, but here is what stuck out to me:
Look for a long season,
Viking fans. Minnesota has a brutal schedule and
Carolina on Sunday was supposed to be a breather. Losing
24-13 at home is a bad omen. After the game, Randy
Moss said the Vikes took the Panthers lightly. A
team with no running game, a shaky offensive line and
horrid defense should take no one lightly.
The lack of scoring
threatens to make the league pretty boring, Eight teams
failed to score a touchdown and that is less brilliant
defense than inept offense. Imagine having paid to watch
Seattle 9, Cleveland 6. There's more scoring in an
Indians-Mariners game.
Loved Indy going to a
no-huddle for parts of their 45-24 win over the New York
Jets. "I like it because it's like
basketball," tight end Pollard said. "We're
playing fast-break football. We're like the Showtime
Lakers." For a league in need of some
excitement, the Colts may be just the tonic.
Play of the day easily was
the 95-yard fumble return by Chukie Nwokorie of
the Colts. Jets QB Vinny Testaverde was attempting a handoff when
David Loverne, a guard who was positioned in the backfield,
bumped him and knocked the ball loose into the waiting
arms of Nwokorie. Talk about rumblin', bumblin',
stumblin'.
Tennessee looked
disorganized on offense, but it's still too early to
push the panic button. They lost their opener a year ago
and play in a mediocre division, save for the Ravens.
Best game was the Raiders'
27-24 thriller at Kansas City. Rich Gannon is now
4-1 over the team that let him go via free agency after
the '98 season.
Buffalo fans must be
shaking their heads. The team keep Rob Johnson
and he throws three picks and the Bills manage two field
goals. Doug Flutie, the guy cut in favor of
Johnson, throws, runs and blocks as San Diego drills
Washington, 30-3.
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We
loved the shot in ESPN the Magazine of Charger receiver/returner
Tim Dwight shaving his body. We also loved
Dwight's brilliant 84-yard punt return against the
Washington Redskins that gave San Diego an early 7-0 lead
and set the tone for a 30-3 romp. The folks at Gillette
can smell an endorsement.