SportsBoner.com

As the cream of the divisional crop start to rise, aka the New England Patriots, Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings and the Arizona Cardinals, other teams are starting to sputter and desperately need to assert themselves with a win to get back into the thick of the playoff race. Ironically, two undefeated teams like the Indianapolis Colts and the New Orleans Saints have particularly struggled with perceived “lesser” opponents the last couple of weeks but nevertheless have squeaked out wins to remain unblemished. The Colts this weekend will have a premier matchup on NFL Sunday Night Football versus their bitter rivals in the Patriots who are riding high with 3 straight wins. I would venture to say the winner of this game will have the early inside track for home field advantage throughout the playoffs. On paper it looks like New England would come out as winners considering the way they have been playing on both sides of the ball and the injuries ravaging the secondary of the Colt’s defense. Thanksgiving seemed to have come early for Tom Brady who looks to carve up the pass defense with his electric turkey slicer. Yeah, that made no sense but what can I say, I have turkey on my mind! My brain’s basted and cooked the way Miguel Cotto’s was during one of Manny Pacquiao’s flurry of shots.

Speaking of gravy that weighs you down, the Denver Broncos all of a sudden have lost two in a row and have opened a wide door for the San Diego Chargers to step on through and take command of the weak AFC West. While their defense have been the hallmark standard for their 6-0 start, their offense as expected has sputtered under the management of Kyle Orton. While he has been relatively effective, putting most of the offensive responsibilities on his shoulders have proven to be futile especially as he has received very little help from the running game. Aside from Orton’s 3 INTs against the Steelers last week, 66 and 27 total rushing yards in the last two games will not get the job done against tough opponents like the Baltimore Ravens and the Steelers. As I have mentioned before, I expect to see the Broncos continue to fizzle down the road as most teams will continue to expose their offensive troubles.

What it comes down to this weekend is early playoff and divisional footholds to be won. The winner between the Patriots and Colts will establish who to chase for home field advantage throughout the playoffs, the winner between the Bengals and the Steelers will establish the leader of the AFC North. A Bengals win will solidify this as they have already beaten the defending champs earlier in the year. Pittsburgh winning would split the series and leave the race open to interpretation through later wins/losses to be determined. The Cowboys can take a bigger lead in the NFC East and helping the Viking’s cause by disposing of the Green Bay Packers, while if San Diego can take care of the Philadelphia Eagles, they in turn will be helping Dallas and themselves by racking up the wins and taking a step closer to catching up to the Broncos.

I could actually say that my Sportsboner bump while effective in some doses, is not as strong as my Sportsboner critical remarks as after last week’s article, Orton was jinxed enough to turn in a dismal game. Although I went on record as saying I would rather have a gun-slinging QB, Jay Cutler was never particularly endorsed by yours truly. That however didn’t stop him from proverbially crapping the proverbial bed with 5 very literal interceptions in one game versus a San Francisco 49ers team that was giving the Chicago Bears every chance to win it.

It’s shaping up to be an exciting push for the playoffs, as long as there are still matchups like Patriots/Colts to be played instead of ones like Buffalo/Tennesee, or Kansas City/Oakland. With my sentiments to fans of those teams, I encourage you to inebriate and plow into some turducken to ease the pain as you take in those games.

Last week: 5-8-0
Year to date: 54-57-1

Jacksonville Jaguars @ New York Jets -6.5

Denver Broncos @ Washington Redskins +3.5

Cincinnati Bengals @ Pittsburgh Steelers -7

Buffalo Bills +8 @ Tennessee Titans

Detroit Lions +16.5 @ Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints @ St. Louis Rams +14

Atlanta Falcons -1.5 @ Carolina Panthers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Miami Dolphins -10

Kansas City Chiefs @ Oakland Raiders -2

Seattle Seahawks +8.5 @ Arizona Cardinals

Philadelphia Eagles pk @ San Diego Chargers

Dallas Cowboys -3 @ Green Bay Packers

New England Patriots @ Indianapolis Colts -2

Baltimore Ravens @ Cleveland Browns +11