Week 3 of the young football season was a very interesting week. The suspense this season has been so intense, because of the preschool referees and their lack of knowledge of how to operate a NFL game. Though the refs have taken the spotlight of the early part of the season there have been some great moments on the field. Here are a few things that we learned in week 3 of the NFL season. Feel free to chime in on our choices, and a few comments if you like. Enjoy!
Are finesse teams being effected by the referees Teams that rely on the pass such as New England Green Bay, New Orleans, Denver, and Detroit are under 500. Maybe I am over my head, but I think it has a lot to do with the NAIA referees. The dumbfounded refs are letting the players play, but they are also missing several calls. I’ve seen several roughing the passer plays that should have been called as well as pass interference calls. I don’t know if it is a strange coincidence, but hell why not blame it on the zebras.
The improvement of the NFC West– The Seattle Seahawks, Arizona Cardinals, and San Francisco 49ers are all over 500. in the early part of this NFL season. I don’t know how things will end up in the division, but compared to last season the level of competition has improved. Even the sitting at 1-2 have shown toughness and more discipline as a team compared to last season. All of the teams in the division rely heavily on their stout defenses and will look to improve as the season goes on. It will be interesting how things shape up in the NFC West.
Chris Johnson’s pockets are weighing him down – CJ2K has looked awful this season and is averaging a pedestrian like 1.4ypc. After CJ2K cashed in on his big contract prior to last season it seemed as if he lost his burst and play making ability on the football field. I hope C.J. can return back to form sooner rather than later.
Torrey Smith is a beast– Torrey Smith often gets lost in the shuffle when talking about young and rising wide receivers. There is nothing wrong with A.J. Green and Julio Jones getting all of the attention, but please don’t forget about Torrey Smith. In amidst of a tragedy on Sunday (Brother killed in motorcycle accident) he lit up the Patriots for 6 receptions to go along with 127 yards, and two touchdowns. Smith’s numbers will only continue to improve since the offense has become more aggressive this season. The sky is the limit for this young man.
The Saints need Sean Payton– Who would have thought that the Saints would be 0-3 at this point in the season. Drew Brees has not looked like himself at times, and the defense could probably let Betty White go for a cool 100 yards on them. Many thought that Brees & Co. would be fine without Sean Payton, but it has been a nightmare start for the Saints. They have time to turn around their season, but with the Packers as their next game it will be hard to get back on track.
Carson Palmer is alive– I couldn’t believe my eyes when I watched how Palmer performed against the Steelers. Palmer was very efficient and did not turn over the ball. Palmer won the game for the Raiders by leading them down the field in crunch time which was something that we had not seen in quite some time. In this game Palmer showed flashes of his early Bengals days the way he looked on the field. Will this game be a stepping stone for Carson and regaining his confidence?
Last but not least….. The Referees still SUCK– If you watched football this weekend it felt as if it were a full-time job by the games being so long. Watching the Raiders and Steelers game was like watching the movies Inception and Schindler’s List in one setting. I don’t want to even touch base on the horrible calls, potential injuries, and so forth. Like my homie J.T. said, Mr. Goodell can we please have our old referees back?
P.S. I send my condolences to the Packers fans.
