Views from the Nosebleeds: 2016 NFL Regular Season, Week 9

In another superb sports week, everyone else took a back seat to Major League Baseball and perhaps the best Game 7 in a World Series of all time.  Storming back from three games down, the Chicago Cubs broke their 108-yard curse with a thrilling 8-6 win over the Cleveland Indians, who now have the longest championship drought in baseball and the second longest drought in pro sports behind the Chicago/St. Louis/Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals NFL franchise.  Perhaps the next most interesting storyline was the long-awaited matchup between former teammates Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook in which KD's new team won convincingly over his old team, 122-96, and the 2014 MVP chipped in 39 points including seven three pointers.  Outside of Bill Belichick shipping Jamie Collins to the now 0-9 Browns, the biggest NFL news was the sudden departure of Vikings offensive coordinator Norv Turner, who had to contend with a change in direction of the offense reportedly including Pat Shurmur and Tony Sparano--two former NFL head coaches.  So while pro football wasn't king of the hill this week, the midway point of the 2016 season is  intriguing nonetheless as we'll see contenders and pretenders rise and fall...

THE PLUS/MINUS TAKE OF THE WEEK: "HERE WE GO, YO!  HERE WE GO, YO!  SO WHAT, SO WHAT, SO WHAT'S THE SCENARIO?!?!" (PART 1) (+12).  Since it's the midway point, I've decided to do a "If the Playoffs Started Today" Take combined with an early Super Bowl prediction.  Using NFL.com's "If the Season Were to End Today" playoff picture, here's how I see it.  In the AFC Wild Card Round, both AFC West teams go on the road and win as the Broncos' defense and their running game rejuvenated with the expected return of C.J. Anderson being enough to beat Brock Osweiler and the Texans while the Chiefs steal a victory against a suspect Ravens team.  In the Divisional Round, Bill Belichick takes away the run and Trevor Siemian won't be enough to win in a head-to-head with Tom Brady as the Broncos get manhandled in Foxboro while the Raiders exact revenge on the Chiefs, who beat them 26-10 in a muddy Oakland in Week 6. In the AFC Championship, the Raiders offense might hang with the Patriots, but their defense will be their undoing as New England makes their seventh Super Bowl appearance in the Belichick-Brady era and their ninth in franchise history.

In the NFC Wild Card, the Skins go to CenturyLink Field and drop to 0-4 all-time against the 'Hawks in the playoffs while the Giants avenge their 24-10 loss against the Vikings in Week 4 with a much better offensive showing.  In a revenge-filled Divisional Round, the Cowboys reverse field from a narrow Week 1 home loss to the G-Men and the Seahawks won't get help from the refs this time around against the Falcons as Julio Jones will once again reek have on Richard Sherman and The Legion of Boom.  In the NFC Championship, the Falcons high-powered offense will give the Cowboys all they can handle, but so will Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott and the Cowboys offense and I'm more of a believer in the Cowboys defense than the Falcons defense as the Cowboys go to their first Super Bowl in 21 years and vie to tie the Steelers with the most amount of Super Bowl wins in league history. 

In Super Bowl LI, neither defense is intimidating, but Bill Belichick's roots in defense still reign supreme over Jason Garrett's offensive pedigree.  Granted, Belichick will have a more difficult time taking away what the Cowboys do best because they have arguably the best O-line in football, the early favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year in Ezekiel Elliott and a solid passing game via the dual threat of Dak Prescott--and that's with or without a good game from Dez Bryant.  However, as far as the Cowboys defense, you may be able to take away LeGarrette Blount in the run game, but who's going to check both Marcellus Bennett and Rob Gronkowski?  Who's going to handle Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola?  How do you slow down a red hot Tom Brady who's been playing with a chip on his shoulder since 2001?  In the end of what should be a close Super Bowl, Stephen Gostkowski channels his inner Adam Vinatieri and boots the Patriots to their fifth Lombardi trophy in franchise history and tie the Cowboys and 49ers for the second most Super Bowl wins in NFL history behind the Steelers.  So to the Lions, the Saints, the Packers, the Eagles, the Dolphins and the Steelers, don't fret as you still have eight games to make a second-half run.  Unfortunately, it won't matter because 1) I don't believe half of you would get past the Wild Card Round and 2) Belichick and Brady will win again and piss everyone else in the league off again.  Nothing beats a failure but a try though, right?  Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight...

SCRIBBLER'S GAME OF THE WEEK: SEATTLE SEAHAWKS 28, BUFFALO BILLS 25 (MNF).  Despite low expectations and the appearance of a potential blowout based upon the halftime score, this was perhaps the most entertaining Monday Night Football game I've seen in years.  By the end of the first quarter, the Bills seemed poised to steal a road win as Jerry Hughes blocked a punt which led to a Tyrod Taylor three-yard TD run on their first offensive play of the game and Taylor threw a five-yard TD to Titans outcast Justin Hunter.  Then some guy named Jimmy Graham happened, who hasn't been utilized properly and consistently since arriving in Seattle from New Orleans last season but manifested why he's still one of the best tight ends in football with two amazing one-handed TD receptions from Russell Wilson in a 21-point explosion which helped to make the score look so lopsided at halftime.

Despite the Bills' domination in time of possession (40:17 to 19:43), rushing yards (162 to 33) and third-down percentage efficiency (70.6 to 28.6), two key plays made this more about what the Bills did to lose versus what the 'Hawks did to win.  First, the Bills incurring a five-yard penalty hurt Dan Carpenter as he missed 54-yard field goal at the end of the first half, which loomed large in the final score.  Second, Tyrod Taylor throwing the game's lone turnover deep in Seattle territory via an inexplicable interception to Richard Sherman, who stared down Rex Ryan after he made the pick.  Though a Mike Gillislee goal-line TD and a successful Taylor two-point conversion run pushed the score to 28-25 and the team's final two drives were nail-biting worthy, The Legion of Boom bended but never broke as Taylor couldn't thread the needle on a pass to Robert Woods into double coverage with 13 seconds remaining in the game.  The Bills gave an impressive showing, but like many of their games in the Rex Ryan era, they find a way to give away games against quality opponents.  Meanwhile, the Seahawks are breathing a sigh of relief and probably wish they wouldn't have tied the Cardinals a few weeks ago because this narrow victory would have placed them in better position for the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

SCRIBBLER'S CHECKDOWNS:

• ATL 43, TB 28 (TNF): two turnovers and a struggling rushing attack without Doug Martin hurt the Bucs and Matt Ryan made them pay to the tune of 344 passing yards and four TDs--111 yards and one of those TDs going to partner-in-crime Julio Jones--while completing nearly 74 percent of his passes.  So much for Famous Jameis staying undefeated against the Falcons;
• BAL 21, PIT 14: no shade to one of my favorite head coaches in the NFL in Mike Tomlin...but if only the Steelers had Andy Reid on their sidelines coming off of that bye week, then maybe they wouldn't have made mistakes at every level--including the nail in the coffin via a Buck Allen punt block leading to a Chris Moore 14-yard TD return and the biggest botched onside kick perhaps in the history of the NFL from Chris Boswell. As the Ravens get a much-needed win and ascend in one of the weakest divisions in the league, the AFC North will be up for grabs come December;
• DAL 35, CLE 10: with Dak Prescott's three TD passes and a 78 percent completion rate and Ezekiel Elliott's two rushing TDs, the Cowboys offense dominated as expected.  Meanwhile, managing only 45 yards on the ground, the Browns have little to no running game, which puts your rookie third-string QB between a rock and a hard place.  I don't know, Jamie Collins...I think I'd rather sit and win than play and be 0-9;
• KC 19, JAX 14: despite significantly winning the total yardage battle, especially behind Chris Ivory's 107-yard rushing contribution, the Jaguars lost four turnovers to one of the most opportunistic defenses in the league.  Meanwhile, the Chiefs may have won another game after their bye under Andy Reid, but their offense can't struggle like this if they hope to gain ground in the super-competitive AFC West;
• MIA 27, NYJ 23: in a back-and-forth contest which included the 30-year-old Matt Forte showing he has plenty left in the tank with an untouched 32-yard TD run, what hurt the Jets in the end were 1) two Ryan Fitzpatrick INTs, 2) 111 yards and a TD from Jay Ajayi and 3) a 96-yard Kenyan Drake kickoff return for a TD to seal the deal.  The only reason this wasn't my game of the week because neither team is catching up with the Patriots in the AFC East and only the Dolphins have a slim chance to make the playoffs, but it was entertaining nonetheless;
• DET 22, MIN 16 (OT): although the MNF thriller bounced this as the game of the week, Matthew Stafford continued his late-game heroics with an impressive drive to get Matt Prater in field-goal range to push the game to overtime and the game-winning throw to a super-agile Golden Tate.  If both the Vikings and the Packers don't get back to their winning ways, then the Lions could leapfrog into the top spot and possibly win the NFC North by season's end;
• NYG 28, PHI 23: Carson Wentz looked more like a rookie as the Eagles couldn't overcome two early INTs or Eli Manning's four-TD performance--two going to the birthday boy Odell Beckham, Jr.  The Giants were already up on the Eagles for the No. 2 spot in the NFC East, but this loss officially made the Eagles the only team in the division without a winning record as well as the new basement dwellers;
• CAR 13, LA 10: this game was all about defense as both teams managed only 59 rushing yards a piece and only the Rams broke 300 yards of total offense.  However, the Panthers benefited from having the ball longer (34:12), converting third downs better (40 percent compared to 28.6 percent), winning the turnover battle by one and a Greg Zuerlein missed FG.  Although neither team is looking like postseason competitors, at least Carolina avoided being on the wrong side of history as no NFL team has ever started a season 2-6 and made the playoffs;
• NO 41, SF 23: unlike the previous game, neither defense showed up as these two teams combined for 1,057 yards of total offense.  However, despite Colin Kaepernick's 398 passing yards and two TDs in clearly his best game since taking the reins from Blaine Gabbert, four turnovers are the reason why the Niners are now 1-7.  Despite beating a bad football team, the Saints are becoming a better road team as this is a game they would've blown last year no matter who their opponents were;
• IND 31, GB 26: although Andrew Luck lost the touchdown, passing yards and turnover battle to Aaron Rodgers, Mr. Discount Double Check is the offense as he and Ty Montgomery--neither of whom are running backs--contributed 95 or the Pack's 116 rushing yards.  Meanwhile, the Colts won this game with a 99-yard kickoff return from Jordan Todman running at over 21 MPH and two Frank Gore TDs in an otherwise modest ground attack.  If Green Bay isn't careful, then they could lose ground in the NFC North and miss the playoffs for only the second time in the Rodgers era;
• SD 43, TEN 35: memo to the Pro Football Writers of America: with over 260 all-purpose yards on the day--including nearly 200 yards rushing and another TD--Melvin Gordon needs to be the runaway favorite for your Most Improved Player of the Year Award.  Meanwhile, Marcus Mariota is gold when he's on, but when he's off, he does things like gift wrap two defensive touchdowns for his opponents and widen the gap between his division rivals in the league's weakest division; and
• OAK 30, DEN 20 (SNF): behind one of the best offensive lines in the league, Latavius Murray took advantage of the Broncos' susceptible run defense to the tune of 114 of the team's 221 rushing yards and three TDs as the Raiders gained necessary ground in the winningest division in the league.  Starting the game with four consecutive three-and-out offensive series and a paltry 33 rushing yards until Kapri Bibbs' 65-yard TD run, the Broncos played from behind the entire game, couldn't get it going when it counted and dropped to third in the division--though they're still in good standing for the playoffs for now.

SCRIBBLER'S CHOP LICKERS FOR WEEK 10:

• DEN (6-3) @ NO (4-4), 1 p.m.: when the Broncos' vaunted defense faced another NFC South team with a potent offense, the substituting Paxton Lynch didn't help their cause and they stayed on the field longer than necessary.  Now they have the tall task of facing Drew Brees and the Saints in the Superdome and it will be interesting to see if Denver's offense can keep pace with a team desperately looking to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2013 and avoid a third straight 7-9 season;
• MIN (5-3) @ WAS (4-3-1), 1 p.m.: despite sliding from nearly 24 points per game in their first five games to half of that in their last three, the Vikings are still amazingly leading their division.  If Kirk Cousins can play mistake-free football against one of the league's best defenses and if the running game is effective, then this could be a critical win for a team who wants to keep pace in the NFC East and the playoff hunt; 
• DAL (7-1) @ PIT (4-4), 4:25 p.m.: if Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott and the Cowboys can go into Heinz Field and beat Big Ben, Antonio Brown and the Steelers, then not only would they be even more for real, but the road to Super Bowl LI is looking more and more like it has to go through Arlington in the NFC.  Meanwhile, the Steelers need this win to keep pace with the Ravens in the AFC North and keep their dwindling playoff hopes alive; and
• SEA (5-2-1) @ NE (7-1), 8:30 p.m. (SNF): in a rematch of Super Bowl XLIX, the 'Hawks will have to muster a more consistent ground game and look to build on the momentum of the Russell Wilson-Jimmy Graham connection in order to keep up with the Brady Bunch.  I'm sure the Legion of Boom is up for the challenge, but New England is clearly looking like the better team between these two division leaders.