A great thing about being an NFL fan who is gay is getting to watch great players who are also bonus eye candy and it was three #87s that caught my eye in Week 1: New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski; Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and New York Jets receiver Eric Decker.
They combined for 13 catches and six touchdowns and are a combined study in hotness. How hot? Here is a sequence showing male Jets fans eager to touch Decker's butt after a touchdown. Can't say I blame them:
(Photos by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images.)
Then there's Gronk, with three touchdowns in the opener and a cover shot naked on ESPN's Body Issue. He's one guy who's got it and flaunts it. And finally there is Kelce, someone who is new to many football fans, but not for long. He is a self-proclaimed lover of "titty milk," and he simulated jerking off last year during a game.
Kelce's scored two touchdowns in the Chiefs' win at Houston and looks like he's about the burst into the top tier of NFL tight ends. Oh, and that body … and whatever he seems to be grabbing here:
(Photo by Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports).
There were a lot of hot players who did great things in Week 1, but none better than the combined efforts of the three 87s.
Body count: A brutal opening week for injuries. Major injuries to Terrell Suggs of the Ravens (out for the year); Dez Bryant of the Cowboys (four to six weeks); T.Y. Hilton of the Colts (possibly multiple weeks); Antonio Cromartie of the Jets (awaiting MRI); and Derek Carr (Raiders) and Demaryius Thomas (Broncos), both who have hand injuries of undetermined severity. On top of that, several players suffered concussions and one referee broke his collarbone. Injuries in the NFL are more severe, frequent and season-changing than any other major sport.
Short again: The Seahawks season ended in the Super Bowl when they threw an interception needing only 1 yard near the goal line. Their 2015 season began when they ran the ball for a loss on a fourth-and-1 in overtime against St. Louis, costing them the game. What weird symmetry. Whatever magic Seattle had in close games is gone and Sunday was a perfect example. I predict there will be no third straight Super Bowl appearance. The last time that happened was in 1993.
Flop: I picked the Colts to make the Super Bowl in the AFC and they looked like crap in getting thumped in Buffalo. They have a bad habit of falling behind big in games and waiting for Andrew Luck to bail them out, but that doesn't work when Luck makes poor decisions and their line play is shaky. Way too early to panic but a bad start for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
Looking old: Peyton Manning of the Broncos is my all-time favorite athlete but it really is looking like the beginning of the end. Against the Ravens Sunday he threw one touchdown, but it was of the wrong variety — a pick six. He led zero TD drives and has not led one at all in the preseason and one regular season game. The big issue is his lack of accuracy on deep passes. Twice Sunday he had receivers open deep and both time overthrew them, continuing a pattern going back to late last season.
I think he is trying to overcompensate by throwing as hard as he can without regards to touch, which results in an inaccurate pass. Defenses realize this and are now playing tighter short coverage. Only by hitting some deep passes will Manning get them to play off. Uncharacteristically for Manning, he will have to rely on his defense this season to keep games close and they bailed him out big-time in the Broncos' 19-13 win.
Beasts: The AFC East and West went a combined 7-1.
Leasts: The AFC North and South went a combined 2-6.
Remember the Titans: What a great win for the Titans and rookie QB Marcus Mariota, who threw four TDs in a rout of top draft pick Jameis Winston and the Bucs. This is the first time since 2008 that the Titans are all alone in first place in their division.
I watched the Cowboys-Giants game at my friend J.P.'s house. He grew up in Tennessee and he and his 6-year-old son Hayden were rocking their Titans' jerseys when my friend Jim Allen and I arrived. If Mariota keeps playing like this, they may be breaking them out daily instead of wearing bags over their heads.
