What a strange day of games. It was a pretty solid collection of the weird, the wild and the inexplicable you can only find in the NFL. Let's discuss.
NY Giants 27, Buffalo 24: Fred Jackson got Buffalo's hopes up early, but then Ryan Fitzpatrick forgot to bone up on his Jim Harbaugh Secret Keys To Success With Foreword By John Clayton™ and threw two interceptions, one in the waning minutes of the game.
Philadelphia 20, Washington 13: Shannahan pulled Sexy Rexy from the game in favor of John Beck. Probably a smart move, Mike. Waiting until he threw four interceptions, even smarter.
Green Bay 24, St. Louis 3: AJ Hawk flipped off the world and the world responded "Right back atcha, Packers-Rams game. Right back atcha."
Pittsburgh 17, Jacksonville 13: Maurice Jones Drew must have looked across the field at some point and thought "Shit. I'm the Rashard Mendenhall of the Jaguars." Shortly thereafter he probably thought to himself "Shit. Nevermind."
San Francisco 30, Detroit 27: Jim Harbaugh and Jim Schwartz got into a bit of a tiff at the end of this one. Said the talking heads the next day: "It's unfortunate that such juvenile and violent behavior will overshadow a great game between two on-the-rise teams playing [a game where grown men essentially beat the shit out of each other] at a high level."
Atlanta 31, Carolina 17: Cam Newton only threw for 237 yards today. But the Panthers lost, so it's not like he wasted such a mediocre performance on a win or anything. He did trot out the Deion Dance after running for a touchdown on a day when Sanders was honored at halftime, though. He is nothing if not a showman.
Cincinnati 27, Indianapolis 17: Break up the Bengals. Just kidding, they played the Colts and needed a blocked 52 yard field goal attempt to thwart a Curtis Painter rally. Pierre Garcon fumbled and the Bengals returned it for a touchdown to seal the deal. I'm sure there's got to be something to do in Indianapolis rather than watch the Colts these days.
Your "Holy Smokes! That's Funny Tacklin'" Interlude
Funny tacklin' comes back to us this week, with a vengeance. In an effort to show his defense how it's done, Coach Jim Schwartz attempted to break through the line of defenders, waterboys, cameramen, officials, equipment managers and faceless other assistant coaches in order to take down the former quarterback Jim Harbaugh. Schwartz has a great motor and never takes a play off, but the tens of people between he and Harbaugh had him played just perfectly. He got a good push, but was never able to get in the face of Harbaugh and was eventually re-directed out of the play.
Tampa Bay 26, New Orleans 20: Sean Payton was involved in some more funny tacklin' of his own and suffered an MCL tear and a broken knee/tibia. Drew Brees threw three interceptions, the most in almost a full year. The Saints out-turnovered the Bucs 4-0 overall and according to the Jim Harbaugh Secret Keys To Success With Foreward By John Clayton™ that is not good.
New England 20, Dallas 16: Before the graves were cold on the early games, Tony Romo threw an interception. Let's see if I have to add anything to this three hours later. I'm guessing not...And the game ends on an interception. Maybe? I don't know what the official ruling was on that. Anyway, the 'Boys had to settle for field goals twice on their final two drives. This allowed for a "vintage" Tom Brady comeback with 25 seconds left.
Baltimore 29, Houston 14: Ray Lewis became the first player in NFL history with 40 career sacks and 30 interceptions. Ricky Williams, who is still playing apparently, got into the end zone today. So, yeah, Houston is a mess.
Oakland 24, Cleveland 17: Jason Campbell left the game early with a broken collarbone. Mmm..Mmm...Mmm. Bad. John Madden lit an eternal flame in honor of Al Davis today. When Madden passes, he will be honored by extinguishing the flame with a comically over-sized can of Tinactin.
Fictional Character Associated With the Region Game Simulator Results Show FCAWRGS had a slow start after the bye. Seems Sheriff Andy was too busy whistling or raising a son who will go on to direct The DaVinci Code to take this matchup seriously. It's as if he didn't even give a damn. the Crypt Keeper rolled in Cleveland, though. FCAWRGS was dead on with this one.
Philadelphia Eagles Exciting Play Of The Day: