Browns Have New Ownership: The Cleveland Browns have a new owner, and I guess the best thing we can say is he can't do any worse than the last one. The late Art Modell took the original Browns to Baltimore and with it the last semblance of sound management of an NFL team in Cleveland. The best thing an owner can do these days is provide the leadership and money and then get the hell out of the way of the football guys. See Jerry Jones, see Dan Snyder, see Randy Lerner. Jerry Jones has no clue how to manage free agency. Neither does Dan Snyder. Lerner was just not very good. Robert Kraft is the best example of the consummate owner in this environment. Bob Irsay, his tweeting aside, pretty much follows the same philosophy. Arthur Blank in Atlanta has surrounded himself with excellent football minds and lets them do their thing, and pretty successfully. And the Steelers have 6 Super Bowl wins with one ownership team and three coaches in the last 45 years. Continuity at the ownership, management and coaching levels is the key to success in the NFL.
Manning is Such a Pain in the ***: I love Peyton Manning, but for fans of the other 15 teams in the AFC, your sentiments are probably in agreement with the title of this segment. His ability to rally the Broncos from a twenty-four point deficit last night on the road against the Chargers was one of the great Monday Night accomplishments of all time, and I've been watching it since the beginning. Although their record is only 3-3, the Broncos sit atop the AFC West, tied with the Chargers but with a head to head win giving them the edge.
RGIII Looks Like He's For Real: That 76 yard run was terrific. As a Redskin fan, I still want him to avoid the big hits, which he did successfully on Sunday. On a little different note, I love Sonny Jurgensen, but he's getting pretty long in the tooth and his comments on the Redskin radio broadcasts border on the ludicrous. But right before RGIII's big run, when asked what he would call, Jurgensen said "Keep it in the rookie's hands. That's why you traded up to get him." And just like that, the kid takes it 76 yards to the house. I guess that's why Sonny, along with Sam Huff, is still doing the games. Lightning in a bottle!
Don't Look Now, But It's a Four-Way Tie in the AFC East: Can you say "parity"? All four teams in the AFC share a 3-3 record. For now, the Jets own the first tiebreaker with a 2-0 division record, but that will change, of course. You still have to figure the Patriots will pull it out, but who knows? Maybe the Tebow-led Jets will pull a big surprise...Oh, wait, sorry. It's the Sanchez-led Jets, right? It is Sanchez, right?
Ravens Looking Good, But What About the Steelers? Baltimore is in a great position at the one-third point, but Pittsburgh hasn't played a division game, so who knows what the AFC North will look like in a few weeks. The Browns have way too much internal turmoil to be a factor. I still like the Ravens, even with Ray Lewis out for the season. My opinion, Lewis' impact has been more emotional than physical anyway. He's nearing the end and this just gives Baltimore a chance to groom his successor.
Pack Still In the Running: Green Bay is still in the running, thanks to a big victory over the Texans on the road Sunday night. Are they 15 - 1 good? No way. But with the parity in the NFC, they have a great shot to get at least a wild card slot. I still like the Bears in that division. Balanced running and passing and pretty good defense, even if it's a little older at some key positions.
Falcons Clinch a Bowl Berth: Oops, I just assumed we were talking about college football with a team in Georgia that perennially plays one game in the postseason. Okay, maybe that was a bit harsh, but you have to admit, the Falcons have really sucked in the postseason. They won't be challenged on their way to the division crown and have a really good shot at home-field throughout the playoffs, which for them means one game. Oops, sorry, there I go again.....
Speaking of College: How many games would Kansas City win if they were in the SEC West? Just askin'!!
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