Pyle of List

Every Monday, our very own DLamp will be taking a look at what just happened the day before in the NFL, and looking ahead to the Monday night game(s).

My favorite commercial running right now (besides the Fidelity and Bud Light ones with that really handsome guy in them…) is the one for the United Way where Texan Mario Williams runs up in slow motion and grabs a kid that’s running through some grass.

Every time it comes on I pretend to be the kid and scream “noooooooooo!”. Can you imagine how different that commercial would be if his eyes just flashed red real fast at the end? (I couldn’t find a screen cap from that commercial, if one of you guys can find it I would love to do some photoshop with it).

On to the games!

Is Bill Belichick an egomaniac?

Yes. That’s the only reason he would have gone for it on 4th and 2 yesterday. Here’s what I mean: most coaches don’t make that move because they are afraid of getting second guessed if it goes wrong. No one will second guess them for kicking it, even if Manning still drives down for the winning TD. But Belichick doesn’t coach that way. He coaches to look like a genius. He saw that as an opportunity for pundits to gush about his bravery and thinking outside the box nature, and that’s why he went for it. Does he care that it didn’t work? Absolutely not.

What happened to the Broncos?

The Denver Broncos were on the wrong side of the biggest upset this week, losing to the putrid Washington Redskins. What happened? They were absolutely cruising! Well, their QB spent the second half on the sidelines on crutches. That’s usually not a good thing. But that doesn’t get their defense off the hook. They let a backup (Ladell Betts) run all over them and lead the Redskins to victory. But as shocked as I was when I saw the score scroll across the bottom of my TV, the more I thought about it the more it made sense. The Broncs were the worst team against the run last year. Even though the defense has a lot of new pieces and is much improved, you can’t pull a complete 180 in one season. Also, teams now have a lot of film on this new defense and they can find holes in the scheme and exploit them. So, to sum up: broken QB and other team’s adjustments are what caused the Broncos to slip this past week.

Did anyone outside of Florida care about that Dolphins/Bucs game?

No. Well, I’m sure some fantasy owners cared about the stats. But the game itself? Not in the slightest. In fact, I’m sure some people in Florida didn’t even care about that game. Both these teams are going nowhere fast, and are both already planning for the draft.

Where is your sense of pride, Green Bay defense?

You had the Cowboys, one of the hottest teams coming into week 10, all lined up for the shutout. A shutout! No Romo, no Barber, no Austin, no Witten, zippo! But then you let up off the gas (or would that be the breaks?) and let them get a garbage time TD. For shame! It’s so rare for a D to actually shut out an opponent in the NFL, I would have hoped that the defense would have been really excited about pulling the feat off. PS - can you tell who my fantasy defense is?

Worst injury this weekend?

Brian Westbrook’s. There were a lot of significant players on the sidelines this Sunday (Turner, Benson, Orton) but Westbrook getting hit with his second concussion in three weeks is really scary. Blown out ankles and knees are one thing, but when someone hurts his brain, it really gives me the heebie jeebies. With all the focus on head injuries and the NFL right now, this is going to get someone in trouble.

Fantasy Question of the Week

Which injury replacement is the best option?

I know that I went out and put in claims on Snelling, since he actually produced once Turner was out. He and whomever replaces Benson (reportedly Larry Johnson) should be the two people to target, since they are stepping into a lead role and the lion’s share of the carries.

Un-Perfect Season Watch ‘09!

Each week we will hilight the lowliest of the NFL landscape. Why? Because it’s fun to laugh and point at other people’s misfortune.

Bottom of the barrel (teams that failed to score an offensive TD in the past week): Bengals, Steelers, Bears

Race for the #1 pick: If the 2010 draft was held today, here is how the top 10 would be layed out:

1a. Browns

1b. Rams

1c. Lions

1d. Bucs

5a. Chiefs

5b. Raiders

7a. Bills

7b. Titans

7c. Seahawks

7d. Redskins

Monday Night Sneak (Preview) Attack

Bal @ Cle: Yikes, I feel bad for the Browns. The Ravens are coming off an embarassing game against the Bengals last week and looking to exact some revenge. Enter the worst team in the league, who just switched QBs for the second time this season. The goggles, they do nothing!

2009 Sneak attack record: 9-1