The Crystal Ball 2012 Week 3

Just about every team slated to be fitted for Super Bowl rings after Week 1 lost in Week 2. Conversely, almost every team left for dead after Week 1 kicked butt in Week 2. What have we learned? The first month of every NFL season is rife with overreaction. Just wait until after this weekend.

Opening Kickoff

If Warren Sapp can have a segment on NFL Total Access called Sapp's Dapp (you got me what that means), then shouldn't Dennis Green get one called Denny's Crowning Moment?

The Way It Was

The Chargers honored the late Junior Seau before their home opener last week. It was a nice, touching and bittersweet ceremony. I hope we don't see more like his in the future.

RGIII lost his first game as a professional, and the Redskin defense lost Brian Orakpo and Adam Carriker for the season. Does this mean I won't be subjected to anymore of Brian's lame Geico commercials?

Tampa Bay had the champs on the ropes several times, but couldn't seal the deal. Of course then they showed bad sportsmanship by going full speed during New York's end of game kneel down. Yes, I know there's no rule against it, but it's disrespectful. And more importantly, show me once instance of a turnover occurring by blasting a team in victory formation. Just show me one then I'll buy Schiano's lame explanation.

Hey, Philadelphia, thank you! I mean that sincerely. Two weeks, two wins by 1 point over two AFC North teams. Call me pleased.

Wow, the Browns showed some life. I guess not getting caught under the flag helps Weeden's concentration.

Looks like we're in store for another season of trying to figure out which Bills team will show up each week.

I amend what I said last week. Bills fans, you have a shot. Chiefs fans, go ahead and schedule vacation plans for early February.

What did Miami just do? Oh wait, I keep forgetting Oakland is awful. Sorry, I got confused.

I wonder if Tom Brady was distracted by his injured nose. Although you couldn't tell he was even injured. He must have gone home everyday last week and just slathered on the handsome sauce.

Fun fact, the last time the Patriots lost a home opener was 2001, in the same game that ended the Drew Bledsoe era and ushered in the Tom Brady era. Could this mark an official changing of the guard in AFC powerhouse teams? If the Pats keep losing to the likes of Kevin Kolb it will.

The Steel Pit

Steelers 27 - Jets 10

Well, so much for that juggernaut Jet offense. Not even Tebow could save them this time. Although I'm pleased the Steelers sent New York fans on the path to demanding Tebow be named the starter. This should be fun.

It does not need to be said, but the officials were awful in this game. Pittsburgh got away with a Redman fumble, even though he was down by contact 8 yards earlier. And the Jets got away with a pass interference call on Ike Taylor when Taylor never even touched the receiver. Plus, for a stretch at the beginning of the 4th quarter there was a flag on almost every single play. And on each flag, we had to have a full on conference to discuss the infraction. The pace of the game just dragged on. I'd be willing to accept this slow pace if they got the calls right, but most of the time they were far off the mark.

Despite the win, more than a few things bothered me. The run defense is lacking, the corner play can be exploited and the running game is atrocious. I for one think it's time to give Jonathan Dwyer a crack at starting. Isaac Redman, while excellent in short yardage, goal line and pass blocking, is not a starting running back. Dwyer at least hits the hole, give him a shot.

Ok, enough complaining a win is good no matter how it comes. And a win means.....

Win Watch: Ok, not terribly creative, cut me some slack. With the Steelers victory, the team's overall total victory total stands at 592, 8 shy of 600. I say we're there by Thanksgiving, although I may be biased. But hey, we have another record to track.

Ben Bonus: Better? Eh. Let's move on. Roethlisberger currently has 27,099 career passing yards He needs only 800 yards to pass Terry Bradshaw for the all time team record. He could play 5 years more after this at an elite level. I can't imagine what the record will be when he retires. At the moment, we'll concentrate on this record, which should be surpassed in 2-3 games realistically.

Only In Faux NFL Reality…

Falcons running back Michael Turner was arrested hours after the team's victory over Denver for DUI. Seriously? Come on guys, quit acting like morons. Call a cab!

Charlie Daniels tweeted criticism of the referees over the weekend Two questions come to mind. One, will he get fired from the opening of MNF for his comments like Hank Williams Jr, and who knew Charlie Daniels even knew how to use Twitter?

The Patriots became the latest team to install Wi-Fi in their stadium. Yep, that's just what we need something to give fans in attendance another reason to not pay attention and instantly complain. What happened to just watching the game?

DJ Moore called out teammate Jay Cutler for his ridiculous antics and crappy play. Guys, settle down; it's a little early in the season for team in fighting. Save that for November.

Chad Johnson has been put on probation for his domestic battery case involving his soon to be ex-wife. Chad, I'm urging you, go back to being Ochocinco. This stuff never happened when you were Ochocinco.

ESPN ranked the best athletes to appear on Dancing With The Stars. And no, I'm not surprised that Hines Ward was ranked number one.

Vince Young is out of work. No NFL team has called him for a job since he was cut in the preseason by the Buffalo Bills. And now, he's broke. Young is suing his former financial handlers for bilking him out of money. Young, in his short NFL career, has managed to make and lose $26 million.

I have to ask, does this sound like a case of athletics over academics? Because it sure seems that way to me. Sadly, Young's story is not new or unique, for an example see JaMarcus Russell. This is the unfortunate result of giving young men too much money, fame, responsibility and expectations at too young an age with not enough guidance and support behind them.

I wonder if of all the people who made money off of Vince Young's athletic gifts, The University of Texas, The Tennessee Titans, The Rose Bowl, the NCAA, the BCS and the NFL, one of those organizations or individuals involved with them will step in and help Young pull his life together. They happily were there when he could help them. Will any of them be there when he could use their help? Something tells me Vince will become yet another sad statistic.

Upon Further Review

NFL Films president Steve Sabol died last week at the age of 69 of brain cancer. Sabol's passing casts a shadow over the NFL this weekend as Sabol's death marks the passing of a true giant of the NFL.

When Steve's father Ed created NFL Films in 1962 and hired Steve, professional football was still trailing baseball as America's favorite past time. However, before the small company father and son built was 20 years old, the NFL passed MLB and has never looked back. The Sabols are directly responsible for this.

Steve used his endless energy and overwhelming creativity to craft films that showed the splendor, drama and grandeur of football. Steve's innovations, such as an orchestral score, dramatic voice over, slow motion filming, rapid paced cuts, elements of sports videography we take for granted today, completely changed peoples perceptions of the NFL and professional football. He turned men playing a game for a living into larger than life athletes locked in epic battles of survival. He created a mythology around great players, portraying them with the proper filmic elements as gods amongst mortals. He showed fans new ways to look at a simple game and new perspectives of how to view the participants.

Sabol did not just film football games or edit together a montage of plays or game summaries. He created grand short films, applying the type of cinematic treatment reserved for the epic stories found in the legends of mythology and Greek and Roman immortals. Every element of his films were crafted with the care and passion of a man who loved his profession and subject matter with incredible zest.

I cannot put too fine a point on it. If it weren't for Steve Sabol and his creativity and innovations, the NFL would never have enjoyed the success and popularity it now takes for granted. Steve's contributions to growing the popularity and mythology of football are immeasurable.

Most fans owe their love of football and of the NFL to Steve Sabol, myself included. I remember being young and loving to watch NFL Films specials, everything from weekly highlights and team specials to the goofy and funny blooper episodes. I loved hearing the booming voice of John Facenda and hearing the orchestral strains of the music that accompanied each piece. To this day before and during each season, I immerse myself with the strains of Autumn Thunder, the Music of NFL Films. Actually I listen to it all year round, whenever I feel the desire to be inspired and driven toward accomplishing something great. The music, just one element of Steve's work, holds such a lasting impact upon me that I think it shows the far reaching effects of Steve's amazing work. That is a true legacy.

Last year Ed Sabol was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I believe Steve will be there one day too and we can immerse ourselves once again in the wonders of his work. Until then, rest in peace Steve, I'll play "Drive to Glory" just for you.

Personal Foul, Excessive Stupidity

Players got into scrums during the Ravens/Eagles game and the Broncos/Falcons game. A side judge was pulled from the Saints/Panthers game for being a Saints fan. An official told Eagle LeSean McCoy he needed him for his fantasy football team. Defensive backs are openly holding and interfering with receivers and linemen are scuffling with each other to see how much they can get away with. NFL games are turning into Thunderdome.

The replacement officials have lost control.

Now, the replacement officials did make a few correct calls last week and still took heat. Jim Harbaugh berated an official when Harbaugh didn't know the proper down. Harbaugh was wrong. John Fox screamed at an official for a 12 men on the field penalty. Fox was wrong. Unfortunately, these examples are few and far between.

Mind you, I do not blame the replacement officials; it's not their fault. They're doing the best they can in an unwinnable situation. The problem is, their best is not Pro Football quality, and in some cases they may never be.

Now, I'm not looking at this through rose colored glasses. The real officials miss stuff all the time. That's a favorite past time of armchair quarterbacks during every NFL season, complaining about officiating errors. However, the real officials have earned the respect of the players and coaches. They carry the gravitas to maintain control of the focused violence of an NFL game.

Right now, the NFL is like a well behaved class of 5th graders turning into a wild animal park when the substitute teacher comes in. They know they can get away with something, so they're gonna do it. Welcome to the 2012 NFL.

Roger Goodell and his cohorts felt good after Week 1 when nothing catastrophic occurred. But he can't feel good now. Public ire has grown exponentially. It's only a matter of time before a blown call decides a game.

More importantly, the longer Goodell remains a stubborn fool, the less traction and believability his "player safety" initiative gets. Already I've seen players laying questionable hits knowing the referees will probably miss it. Hey Roger, are you waiting for someone to get seriously hurt before you back down?

if I were real referees, I'd keep standing firm. With each week this continues to be a growing embarrassment to the NFL and Goodell personally, and eventually he's going to have to accept defeat at the hands of the NFLRA, or the public and the former players suing the league. My guess is Goodell is smart enough to pick which battle to lose in order to win a war. Come on Roger, it's time to reinstate the regular teachers, before the classroom is trashed beyond repair.

He Said He Said

“It would affect me if a guy came in and lowered the boom on me like that. I think when quarterbacks start getting hit, they’re different people. That’s why they play quarterback.” - Steelers safety Ryan Clark on teammate Lawrence Timmons' hit on Mark Sanchez

Was that a dig on quarterbacks? I think so.

"I feel the legitimacy of the NFL is at stake." - Si.com's Peter King on the NFL officiating situation

I couldn't agree more. I just wish Heir Goodell saw it the same way.

“When we’re not doing the little things or things the right way consistently, I’m going to say something. If they want a quarterback that doesn’t care, they can get someone else.” - Bears quarterback Jay Cutler

From his actions it appears to me like Cutler is the one who doesn't care. Hey Jay, how's the knee?

"They talk about the integrity of the game, and I think this is along those lines. The fact that we don't have the normal guys out there is pretty crazy.'' - Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco on the replacement officials

Yikes, that's the second Raven I've agreed with this season. What is going on around here?

''I think us not converting on third down was a big hit today. We weren't our best. The throws weren't there at times. The catches weren't there at times, so we just need to be on the same page with that." - Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez

I can't wait to hear what he has to say when the season starts going into the tank and he's holding off Tebow for his job

"I bought a pair of Uggs, to be just like him." -- Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, on Tom Brady

(sung) I want to be like Tom!

"I don't know if that's not something that's done in the National Football League, but what I do with our football team is we fight until they tell us the game is over. .....We're not going to quit. That's just the way I coach and teach our players. Some people were upset about it. I don't have any hesitation. That's the way we play: clean, hard football until they tell us the game is over."

-- Buccaneers head coach Greg Schiano, on his players crashing the Giants victory formation

Greg, I have one word for you. Karma. Remember that word and your little speech when a superior team later this season does not play as sportsmen and mercilessly runs up the score on you. Because I guarantee after your little performance, it will happen.

"I said as I walked up, 'Hey we're taking a knee' but obviously they were down and ready and had a feeling they were about to fire off. There's nothing I can really do about it. I have to make sure I get the snap and the only thing I'm worried about right there is securing the ball and making sure we get the win." - Giants quarterback Eli Manning

See kids, it's called sportsmanship.

"We are not journalists but romanticists. Renoir would never have painted an execution. He left that to Goya." - NFL films president Steve Sabol

That says it all. Thank you Steve.

Idiot of the Week

My goodness, I love it when people just line up to be crowned idiot. It's like it's my birthday or Christmas!

Well this week our nominees include:

Buccaneers head coach Greg Schiano and his "play to the whistle" mentality which means go full speed on a victory formation. Bad sportsmanship for sure, but too easy.

The replacement referees: Way too easy

Warren Sapp: For the second week in a row, Sapp made a ridiculous prediction that failed miserably. This week, he predicted Tom Brady would throw for over 500 yards against the Cardinals defense. Wrong. I'd love to give him the award, but I may just start a new segment called Sapp's Derp for his horrible predictions.

This week, we give the award to Redskins wide receiver Josh Morgan. Morgan, with his team down by 3 points holding no timeouts in the waning seconds of the 4th quarter, turned a 4th and 1 situation within field goal territory into a 4th and 16 by drawing an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for throwing the ball at Rams defensive back Cortland Finnegan. Morgan's boneheaded move turned a 47 yard field goal attempt, long but possible, into a 62 yard desperation attempt that predictably missed badly. This cost the Redskins a chance to tie the game and sent the team home with their first loss.

I can understand that Morgan was frustrated with Finnegan. Finnegan has made a career out of frustrating wide receivers. However, you have to maintain your composure no matter the situation. Defensive players are paid well to frustrate offensive players, that's their job. If Morgan wants to become a top flight performer at his chosen profession, he must learn to do a better job at harnessing his emotions.

This week he didn't. And for that, drawing a dumb penalty and costing his team a chance to win the game, I dub him Idiot.

An alternate idiot award goes to the terrible people who call themselves fans who have been threatening Morgan and his family because of his gaffe. Look people, Morgan made a mistake and hopefully he will learn from it. Yes, I'm poking some fun at him because of it, but I wish him no ill will. If anything, I hope the strife he faces from this situation helps him grow as a professional. The world of sports is rife with stories of athletes facing adversity on the field of play only to grow from the experience and emerge later as a champion. That's the prototypical feel good sports story. We as the viewing public eat that up. I hope Morgan becomes one of those stories. But to threaten him because he made a bad mistake? You are far more than an idiot. You are a dangerous individual who should seek therapy. Shame on you.

On Tap This Week

Full disclosure. I got suckered into the "a third of the Giant offense is out for the game" and changed my pick to Carolina on Thursday night. That didn't work out so well.

Last week: 8-7

Thursday: 0-1

Season to Date: 18-15

It would seem I made a critical error to start this week. It's cool, I can still go 15-1, right? Right, so enough goofing around. Let's get on the winning track.

Sunday

St. Louis (1-1) at Chicago (1-1)

I'm very impressed by St. Louis' performance last week. I was not impressed, or surprised, by Chicago's melt down. However, I have a slight bit more faith in the home team. I don't know why, but I suppose it's just old habits dying hard.

Bears over Rams

Buffalo (1-1) at Cleveland (0-2)

Well, both teams showed some life and fight last week. This week, I think the aging rookie gets his first win.

Browns over Bills

Tampa Bay (1-1) at Dallas (1-1)

One team will find their way, and one will pay for their hubris. Yes, that could go either way, but this week I believe it will be....

Cowboys over Buccaneers

Detroit (1-1) at Tennessee (0-2)

Yes, I was disappointed there were no fireworks after the Lions/49ers game last week. Come on Schwartz and Harbaugh, no one likes either of you unless there's drama.

Lions over Titans

Kansas City (0-2) at New Orleans (0-2)

New Orleans is desperately missing the leadership of Sean Payton. However Kansas City is just desperately missing leadership. Apparently, Scott Pioli didn't look at Romeo Crennel's Cleveland record before appointing him head coach.

Saints over Chiefs

San Francisco (2-0) at Minnesota (1-1)

Barring an officiating gaffe of epic proportions, or some sort of cosmic luck, I think San Francisco has this one in the bag.

49ers over Vikings

New York Jets (1-1) at Miami (1-1)

Not that I'm convinced of anything I saw from Miami last week, but New York has often in recent years found a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

Dolphins over Jets

Jacksonville (0-2) at Indianapolis (1-1)

Fortunately for Andrew Luck's burgeoning career, Jacksonville is a hot mess.

Colts over Jaguars

Cincinnati (1-1) at Washington (1-1)

Despite the loss of key defensive personnel, I think RGIII will not let another winnable game slip away. This week, he finds a way to overcome a hamstrung defense, subpar skill position players and overrated coaches.

Redskins over Bengals

Atlanta (2-0) at San Diego (2-0)

Odd, yet unsurprising, fun fact: San Diego has never started a season at 2-0 under Norv Turner before this year. I imagine it's because they always had the pressure of expectation until this season. Atlanta after a big home win and Turner's bogus journey are primed for a letdown. But San Diego will not go far past this weekend.

Chargers over Falcons

Philadelphia (2-0) at Arizona (2-0)

The last time the Cardinals started the season 2-0, they were based in St. Louis and Dan Dierdorf was in the third year of his Hall of Fame career. I find Philadelphia shaky at best, but far less questionable than Kevin Kolb, starting quarterback.

Eagles over Cardinals

Pittsburgh (1-1) at Oakland (0-2)

Marcus Allen will light a ceremonial flame in honor of the late Al Davis before Oakland faces long time nemesis Pittsburgh on Sunday afternoon. Excellent. In honor of Al, Pittsburgh will once again, as they have so often in the past, kick Oakland's butt. It'll make Al feel right at home.

Steelers over Raiders

Houston (2-0) at Denver (1-1)

The question of the day, can the Denver brain trust come up with a game plan in time to cover up Manning's diminished arm strength? If not, at least we still have some funny commercials. More on that coming soon.

Texans over Broncos

New England (1-1) at Baltimore (1-1)

Yes, this may seem foolish. But I trust a diminished Tom Brady to not lose two games in a row more than I do the idea of Joe Flacco, elite quarterback.

Patriots over Ravens

Monday

Green Bay (1-1) at Seattle (1-1)

Nice win last week by Seattle over Dallas. However, I think Green Bay is starting to feel its oats.

Packers over Seahawks

Thursday

Cleveland at Baltimore

Unfortunately, even without the results of Sunday this is a pretty clear pick.

Ravens over Browns