Turkey week. Here are the rankings . . .
#32 Arizona Cardinals (2-8-0, -103, LW: 31)
When the Steelers were forced to put Ben Roethlisberger into the starting lineup as a rookie in 2004 the football world was amazed that they were able to run off 14 straight wins and just how a rookie quarterback could do this. In yet another example that the Steelers are a brilliant organization and the football world is just plain stupid, it was easy to figure out why they were successful: They didn’t put the game on Roethlisberger’s shoulders. In those 14 starts the Steelers averaged 24 pass attempts (sacks included) and 40 rushes per game. I bring this up because as we watch teams throw young guys to the wolves and hope that they succeed since you have to win right away, smart franchises build accordingly. My guess is that the Arizona will continue to be a terribly run franchise with moments of moderate success in spite of themselves. Especially if they insist on 35 pass attempts per game to 24 rushing attempts per game.
#31 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-7-0, -62, LW: 29)
#30 Oakland Raiders (2-8-0, -123, LW: 32)
#29 Buffalo Bills (3-7-0, -114, LW: 30)
#28 San Francisco 49ers (2-8-0, -36, LW: 28)
#27 New York Jets (3-7-0, -46, LW: 27)
#26 Jacksonville Jaguars (3-7-0, -43, LW: 26)
#25 New York Giants (3-7-0, -48, LW: 25)
#24 Philadelphia Eagles (4-6-0, -26, LW: 17)
#23 Cincinnati Bengals (5-5-0, -56, LW: 23)
#22 Detroit Lions (4-6-0, -41, LW: 24)
#21 Miami Dolphins (5-5-0, -57, LW: 22)
#20 Tennessee Titans (5-5-0, -11, LW: 15)
#19 Cleveland Browns (3-6-1, -45, LW: 20)
#18 Atlanta Falcons (4-6-0, -13, LW: 19)
This team did have a 28-3 lead on the Patriots in the Super Bowl just a year and a half ago, right? Their defense remains atrocious, giving up 50.2 completions and rushes per game (26th in the league), while the offense is a classic team that can’t play outside of their dome. Ah, mediocrity . . .
#17 Denver Broncos (4-6-0, -7, LW: 21)
#16 Green Bay Packers (4-5-1, +4, LW: 16)
#15 Dallas Cowboys (5-5-0, +13, LW: 18)
#14 Minnesota Vikings (5-4-1, +12, LW: 12)
#13 Carolina Panthers (6-4-0, +8, LW: 10)
Dr. Jeckyl, Mr. Hyde. Hyde, Jeckyl. I’m starting to get the feeling that inconsistency is exactly what the league wants. Ugh.
#12 Baltimore Ravens (5-5-0, +56, LW: 13)
The Ravens ran the ball 54 times on Sunday, an unheard of number in today’s Arena Football world. Yes, Lamar Jackson had half of those carries, which makes one wonder about what the Ravens are thinking. Lamar Jackson isn’t built like Cam Newton – really, who is? – and those extra hits are not what the league wants for their beloved quarterbacks. Harbaugh clearly wants to win right away, and this is probably his best chance of squeaking into the playoffs.
#11 Indianapolis Colts (5-5-0, +49, LW: 14)
#10 Seattle Seahawks (5-5-0, +30, LW: 11)
#9 Washington Redskins (6-4-0, -1, LW: 9)
#8 Houston Texans (7-3-0, +34, LW: 8)
#7 New England Patriots (7-3-0, +44, LW: 7)
#6 Los Angeles Chargers (7-3-0, +53, LW: 5)
#5 Pittsburgh Steelers (7-2-1, +74, LW: 6)
#4 Kansas City Chiefs (9-2-0, +110, LW: 2)
#3 Chicago Bears (7-3-0, +99, LW: 4)
#2 Los Angeles Rams (10-1-0, +107, LW: 1)
#1 New Orleans Saints (9-1-0, +139, LW: 3)
Today let’s just remember that there is another meaningful professional football game being played this weekend as the 106th Grey Cup takes place in Edmonton on Sunday. It what is becoming a familiar scene, both the Ottawa Red Blacks and Calgary Stampeders are making their third appearance in the last four seasons. In 2016 Ottawa won a 39-33 overtime thriller in Toronto and this year should be no different.
Well, this year I’m taking the Stampeders to win going away. They were the team who scored the second most points and gave up the fewest this season and took both games against Ottawa this season (24-14 in Ottawa, 27-3 in Calgary). My prediction: Stampeders 31, Red Blacks 21.