J-E-T-S Dumb Dumb Dumb!
You could set your watch on it, old dude! The regularly scheduled stupidity doesn't eliminate the criticisms I have of Matt LaFleur, but it was good to see that they didn't quit in the 4th quarter and took advantage of the breaks.
Know your opportunities, Seabiscuit!
As for the Badgers, the first quarter of the season wasn't great, but 2-1 is what I expected the record to be heading into Happy Valley.
Managing expectations is a big part of life.
So are cliches, apparently. What'd you do, swallow a self-help book instead your usual dose of Geritol? I am feeling the HYYYYYYYYYYYYYPPPPPPPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEE! and ready to pick some games. Watch me work.
Minnesota Golden Elite Rowers of the Boat (+9) vs. Washington Huskies First of all, why in the world is Fox starting this game at 10 Central time? I get that the Huskies and Ducks had to agree to some odd start times to get their life raft during the Pac 12 collapse, but this start time screws over Gopher fans. Also, Husky fans are going to be getting out of Husky Stadium between 11 and midnight Pacific time, which screws them over. The Gophers ended up winning a pretty comfortable MACrifice game against the Zips, and this should be interesting. A lot of folks think that the Gophers are a dark horse team in the Big Ten this year, but going to Husky Stadium is a tough place to visit, as traditional Big Ten schools are starting to figure out. As much as Washington is an equal opponent, teams traveling cross country in the Big Ten in football don't do well. Though I do love that Washington has a good boy as the mascot. Huskies 28, Row Row Row Your Boat Elitely 17.
I don't know that I agree with the premise. The Gophers got their doors blown off by a middling SEC team in their own building and the Huskies are better than middling. Peej and company may keep it close, but the Good Boy has the dog in him. Washington 31, Minnesota 20.
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| Must have been the dog in me |
Beloved Wisconsin Badgers (+10) vs. Penn State Nittany Lions It wasn't pretty in the first quarter, but thankfully the Badgers were able to get their MACrifice win. Going to Happy Valley is going to be a much tougher matchup. Penn State made a good hire in Matt Campbell, though he will be judged on if he can win those marquee games better than Big Game James Franklin did to satisfy the high expectations fanbase they have. The Badgers haven't beaten Penn State since Russell Wilson was the quarterback, and haven't won in Happy Valley since 2003. Should the Badgers pull off the upset, that would be a good sign for Fickell and give him some benefit of the doubt. However, this isn't going to be easy. That being said, I am a delusional homer. Badgers 32, Sad Valley 31.
Uh, no. Not gonna happen. The Badgers are showing signs of being a good defense, but, nah. Penn State 34, Wisconsin 19.
Minnesota Vikings (-1.5) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Mrs D. aka Mom believes that the Vikings being 2-0 and having 2 divisional wins gives them a lot of momentum going down to Tampa. And I am agreeing with her because trusting Mom is always smart, and she is right. While the Vikings win was overshadowed by Caleb Williams's injury, the Vikings made a lot of plays in the red zone and took advantage of the conditions at Soldier Field. The problem is that playing down in Florida early in the year means some heat. Also, Baker Freaking Mayfield is someone who thrives when he flies under the radar. I think the Vikings are going to win, but this is going to be a tougher game than people might be thinking. Vikings 34, Bucs 31.
Baker won't flinch against the blitz package, but Tampa just seems, well, off so far this season. Not sure what is going on, but Mayfield has been pedestrian and the the defense is vulnerable. Kyler Murray returns, but is he really ready? Minnesota 27, Tampa 20.
Hotlanta Dirty Birds (+4.5) vs. Glorious Green Bay Packers That was a narrow escape by the Packers, but props to Skyy Moore for that huge punt return. I also think that Evan Williams getting that huge pass breakup in the 4th quarter was the sneaky important play that helped get the game to overtime, where the defense took over and helped set Love up to get out of dodge with a win. The problem is that the offensive line depth is dangerously low, especially because ZBB is done for the year, and Banks can't go. I'm seriously worried that Love can't get any protection.
The Falcons are also not in a good spot, as they have had an offense that is very offensive. Michael Penix is going to come back, and what I would do if I was Jonathan Gannon is to sell out on stopping Bijan Robinson at all costs and make the passing game win the game. Also, the Packers somehow drew 2 Thursday Night games in around a month, combined with the dreaded Thanksgiving eve game that nobody asked for, and the Christmas Netflix game against the Bears that is going to turn a nice Christmas for me into a stressful Christmas. The NFL needs to understand that putting teams on short rest all of the time is bad for business, but they can't resist Bezos giving them sacks of money. This game is going to most likely be bad, and when a gigantic Packers fan like myself is saying that about my team you should be paying attention. Packers 17, Falcons 11.
I agree on the schedule - the NFL's greed is getting seriously out of hand and because the Packers have a national following, they are getting a bad dose of off-schedule football, which is particularly unhelpful for a team that's already suffered some season ending injuries. Atlanta is dismal so far and while Penix has a good arm, he's skittish in the pocket and the Packers seem to have a revitalized pass rush under Gannon. It'll be a long day for both quarterbacks, but the Packers are finally at home and are the more talented team. Packers 24, Falcons 10.
Enjoy your football this weekend. Ben out.
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