Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all 12 of my readers! Putting out an early edition of FMQB to take a break from talking to your awkward cousin for a few minutes.

 

Dwayne Haskins:

I feel like I need to address this since it’s the story of the week. Haskins was so excited after his first win that he was taking selfies with fans, but didn’t realize there was enough time on the clock to where the Redskins needed to run a victory formation play. So Case Keenum had to run in to do the play. I don’t know why, but I find this more funny than egregious. And I’m the person who gets upset when Moss walks off before halftime, or other similar instances. I just think he’s young, and enjoying the moment on a team where there’s been basically nothing to celebrate this year. Unprofessional? Yes. Immature? Absolutely. But crossing a line where people are incredibly upset about this? I think that’s too far.

 

Quick Hits:

• Watching the 49ers rout the Packers, it was unbelievable the difference in talent between the #1 and #2 teams in the NFC. You have to think if San Fran gets home field, they’ll nearly be a lock for the Super Bowl.
• If you’re not watching the Raiders, watch the Titans. They could very easily sneak into the playoffs
• The Cowboys tripping call was ridiculous
• In a house that comprises of Rams and Packers fans, our feelings after this weekend can be summed up as “Embarrassed.” That was on national TV, and the Packers were vying for a 1^st round bye and Rams were in the Super Bowl last year. We have been humbled
• Mason Rudolph has looked very good and just plain awful at times. Still a little surprised he was benched, he’s supposed to be Big Ben’s heir apparent

 

 

Stat of the Week:

Frank Gore passed Barry Sanders for 3^rd on the all time rushing list

 

Stat of the Week #2:

The Ravens have punted twice in their last 3 games, RGIII was the QB on both of those drives

 

Stat of the Week #3:

Russell Wilson has led his team to a winning record in each of his first 8 NFL seasons, which no other QB has done in NFL history

 

Stat of the Week #4:

The Cowboys are 0-4 against teams with winning records this season. Their 6 wins have come against teams that are a combined 16-46-1

 

Stat of the Week #5:

Watch for Michael Thomas to break the receiving record! He was already on pace, and had a 10 catch game on Sunday. If he averages 7.8 receptions, he’ll best Marvin Harrison

 

 

For the Record:

• The Browns and the Jets are both on 3 game winning streaks
• Panthers kicker Slye missed a go-ahead 28 yd FG and 2 missed PAT’s, in a dome. No wind, perfect conditions
• Apparently NFL Primetime is now titled NFL Rewind. I’m not on board with this

 

Pass Interference:

Other than the catch debacle, and roughing the QB, has there been a rule out there that is so blatantly bad as the Pass Interference challenge that we get reminded of it EVERY SINGLE WEEK? How does the NFL just sit back and watch this happen? I loved how the announcers in the Panthers game were flabbergasted at the overturned PI call. There are WAY more egregious calls that are not being overturned. It’s also rather amusing that the Saints were on the losing end of the call, since they were the ones that wanted the rule.

 

 

It’s Finally Back:

FMQB’s favorite prediction tool is back on ESPN! I tried looking for this back in Week 8 and every week since, so this is like Christmas to me!

http://www.espn.com/nfl/playoffs/machine

 

Things shake up quite differently when running through the actual schedule. A couple interesting tidbits with MY predictions, Ravens get top seed, Indy is the final wild card. On the NFC side, it’s Saints #1, then Seahawks, and the 49ers end the season 2-3 to get the 5^th seed (they’re #1 now).

 

Games of the Week:

49ers and Ravens: Could very easily be a Super Bowl preview!

 

Get ready for Week 14 though! We have 49ers vs. Saints (top seed tiebreaker), Bills vs. Ravens, Chiefs vs. Patriots, and Titans vs. Raiders (could decide final Wild Card)

 

Quota met?

Turducken, you’re 9 for 9 FMQB!

 

2pt Tracker:

 

Texans: +1

Redskins: +1

Jaguars: -1

Dolphins: -1

 

Memes of the Week:

FMQB: And People Say the Running game is dead

 

Comeback for the Ages:

Sunday was a weird day for me watching football. As usual, I’m stuck watching Minnesota vs. Denver. I got through the 1^st quarter and would have bet money even then that the Vikings were toast, they couldn’t do anything. I switched to the Texans vs. Ravens game and expected a shootout. Well it was on one side, and that game got out of hand quickly. I all of a sudden saw that the Vikes were within 10 in the 4^th Qtr, so switched back to watch. I’m not sure what happened in between, but it was like a completely different team was out there! The Vikings only had 4 possessions in the 2^nd half, with the Broncos milking 7 minutes off the clock in one drive, and yet they scored a TD on all 4 possessions which is unheard of after being shutout.

 

Quick Hits:

• I’m no doctor, but Turbisky was benched, not injured
• The Colts are officially leading their division (written before Thursday night)
• That Deandre Hopkins no-call is the ONLY reason the stupid new Pass Interference challenge should be allowed. And they didn’t even get that right.
• The Bills have to be the quietest team at 7-3
• I was pumped to watch Watson vs. Jackson, was kind of a disappointment
• Why does it seem like only a couple teams consistently have kicking issues? Matt Nagy must be banging his head against the wall
• The Falcons are looking impressive on their 2 game win streak
• It’s about time the Rams decided to give Todd Gurley the ball. He does NOT look like himself though, but still put up several decent plays
• Remember in the Ravens loss to the Chargers in the playoffs last year, how there was controversy that Lamar Jackson wasn’t benched for Joe Flacco? A lot has changed in 10 months.

 

Myles Garrett:

The fact that people are still talking about Garrett shows how egregious the helmet swing actually was. It was wise of the NFL to nail down a heavy handed suspension immediately afterwards. This was one of the faster processes, as within a week his appeal had already been heard and his suspension upheld. The rest of the season was appropriate, I don’t think it should go into next season and I’m sure the NFL doesn’t want this whole incident popping up and people talking about it next September yet. And then of course the race card got played, which is a touchy subject. If it happened: I can’t say I necessarily blame the guy. Should still have held in his temper, which maybe is unfair to ask of him, but IF it happened then I think you go 4 games AND give Rudolph a suspension too. However, it seems that the NFL found zero evidence of it happening, and I also find it very suspicious that in the postgame interview, Garrett wouldn’t have flat out said “he called me names” or “Rudolph used a racial slur.” That’s a heat of the moment answer, and you think that would have come out a week ago. Personally I think that he saw how people forgave Kareem Hunt for his outburst after a racial slur and was reinstated where Ray Rice wasn’t, and tried to use that to his advantage. Everybody is hypersensitive to this subject, as we should be, but if you’re lying you’re immediately taking race relations in the wrong direction (I’m talking to you Michael Bennett too).

 

Stat of the Week #1:

DeShaun Watson’s suffered his first loss by more than a possession for the first time in his 2 ½ year NFL career

 

Stat of the Week #2:

Michael Thomas has 5 more catches than Marvin Harrison did through 10 games, the year Harrison broke the record with 143 catches

 

Stat of the Week #3:

All 7 losses by San Diego are by 7 points or less

 

Stat of the Week #4:

The Ravens are the only team since 1978 to rush for more than 2000 yards through 10 games…. and people say the running game is dead!

 

Stat of the Week #5:

Teams that were losing by 20+ points at halftime had lost their last 99 games, until the Vikings comeback

 

Stat of the Week #6:

Your leaders in passing yards this season? Dak Prescott, Phillip Rivers, and Jameis Winston

 

Stat of the Week #7:

Through 11 weeks, we have 3 1000 yard rushers and only 1 1000 yard receiver… and people say the running game is dead!

 

Quote of the Week:

“Sell the team, sell the team, sell the team” Redskins fans

 

2pt Tracker:

 

Texans: +1

Redskins: +1

Jaguars: -1

Dolphins: -1

 

Memes of the Week:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FMQB: I’m sorry Miss Jackson, I am for real!

 

Game of the Year:

Seattle at San Francisco gave us the game of the year so far! I have missed much of MNF this year, mainly due to the quality of matchups, but this one was well worth the wait. There were 7 turnovers, defensive TD’s, a 10 point comeback by the Seahawks, followed by an 11 point comeback by the 49ers. Two struggling kickers that included a go ahead field goal and a game tying field goal in the last 1:45. Then 5 possessions in OT before an end of regulation game winner. Instant classic!

 

For the Record:

 

• Vinatieri missed another extra point, has missed 6 this season
• For the Record, Drew Brees is 2-2 this season while Teddy Bridgewater is 5-0, just sayin…
• The Steelers would be in the playoffs if the season ended today, and their final 8 opponents are a combined 17-37-1
• The Dolphins are technically only 3 games back from a Wild Card spot…The Browns only 2
• The Browns had 8 plays to make it in from the 1 yard line, and couldn’t do it…EIGHT!
• The Ravens with their triple Heisman option was one of the cooler things I’ve seen. Jackson, Ingraham and RGIII were all in on the run play.
• How do the Chiefs essentially botch 2 FG’s at the end of the game?!?!
• I’ll talk about Myles Garrett when I have time to write about it, but zero chance he sees the field the rest of this season. OH MY GOD, that was bad

 

Stat of the Week:

Marcus Peters has 3 INTs and 2 TD’s since being traded to the Ravens

 

Stat of the Week #2:

Falcons had 6 sacks on Sunday, they only had 7 the entire first half of the season

 

Stat of the Week #3:

This was the most 7 win teams through 9 weeks since 1990

 

Stat of the Week #4:

Minkah Fitzpatrick, 5 INT’s, most on the Steelers since 2010

 

Stat of the Week #5:

Most telling statistic: There is only 1 team with a negative turnover ratio that would be in the playoffs if the season ended today, and it’s the Bills at -1

 

Stat of the Week #6:

Through his first 16 games, Lamar Jackson has more wins than Patrick Mahomes, more rush yards than LaDainian Tomlinson, a better passer rating than Tom Brady, more yards per attempt than Aaron Rodgers, and a better completion percentage than Drew Brees.

 

Stat of the Week #7:

The Steelers had 2+ takeaways in 8 straight games for the first time in 30 years

 

Stat of the Week #8:

Lamar Jackson became the 2^nd player ever with 2 perfect passer rating games in the same season. Sure it was against Miami and Cincinnati, but still impressive

 

Stolen Stat

Saquon Barkley averaged 2.77 INCHES per rush on Sunday

 

More on Lamar:

Lamar Jackson’s TD run is going to be shown on highlight reels for years to come. Just like most of us remember Mike Vick’s OT 50+ yarder against the Vikings, despite handily winning the game, this was a better play than Vick’s

 

 

Quick note on Kaepernick:

I’m trying to stay away from this subject as much as I can, but if the reports and demands by the NFL on his Saturday workout are true, the NFL is looking 10 times worse than if they hadn’t done a workout at all. This felt like a PR stunt the entire time, and it’s turning from a gesture of goodwill to more ammo for Colin’s camp.

 

Quote of the Week:

“Who keeps puttin’ all the towels on the top shelf?” Tarik Cohen

 

For the Record 2:

Geno said Heads, period

 

2pt Tracker:

 

Texans: +1

Redskins: +1

Jaguars: -1

Dolphins: -1

 

Memes of the Week:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FMQB: Cat Scratch Fever

Week 9 is always the unofficial halfway point of the season, and it seems like we have an exciting playoff push to be watching for the end of the year!

 

Quick Hits:

• There are 3 QB’s with the last name Allen, they went 3-0 on Sunday
• The Gardner Minshew era is over ☹, and he only gets relegated one line in “Quick Hits”
• You have to wonder if Kyle Allen wasn’t rocking it if Newton would have come back this year, now they’re saying he may be done as a Panther!
• 49ers last unbeaten, Bengals last winless. I think even 2 weeks ago I would have been surprised to hear both of those
• I know nobody cares, but I made up ground in my office football pickem league by picking the Dolphins first win and the Ravens over Patriots
• The Ravens hadn’t beaten the patriots since the 2012 AFC championship game, the year they won the super bowl
• Tyreek Hill is super speedy, Williams runs a 4.45 40 and was chased down in basically 30 yards when Hill was 10 yards behind him
• Brandon Allen saw zero snaps in the preseason but beat the Browns
• The Patriots were daring Jackson to throw, they played Cover Zero a lot!

 

Black Cat:

Monday Night Football was utterly hilarious when 4 days after Halloween a Black Cat just happened to run out on the field and delay play. The announcers were going nuts, and thank you ESPN for actually showing it happen! The Giants were leading 9-3 while the Cowboys had an interception, missed field goal, and a fumble; UNTIL, the black cat arrived. Superstition took over, and the Cowboys went on to score 10 points in 52 seconds to take the lead before halftime! The Giants remained cursed and only kicked field goals from that point forward in the game.

 

Stat of the Week:

2 of the Vikings 3 losses came from playing teams with backup quarterbacks

 

Stat of the Week:

ESPN literally just showed a graphic showing that Dak Prescott had 13TDs and 0 INTs in the last 5 games against the Giants. Prescott proceeded to throw an INT on his first throw mere seconds later

 

Stat of the Week:

Steelers are 4-1 in their last 5 games, and their losses are to top notch teams; Patriots, Ravens, Seahawks, and 49ers.

 

Stat of the Week:

Vinatieri blew it AGAIN! The Colts have lost 2 games due to missed kicks, almost lost a 3^rd. If Vinatieri was an above average kicker, the Colts would be 7-1

 

Stat of the Week #:

The Patriots were giving up 7.6 points per game in their first 8 games, but gave up 37 on Sunday.

 

 

Chargers to London:

I love how Dean Spanos emphatically denied in a profanity laced statement that the Chargers are not going to London. Dude, 2 years ago you said the same thing about the Chargers not leaving San Diego. I have been against the London move for awhile, but I’m actually for this idea! It’s the right team and the right situation.

 

Position Change:

Marcus Mariota is reportedly taking reps at WR just 2 weeks after being benched for Ryan Tannehill. 1^st, wow that was fast. 2^nd, isn’t that a bit of a conflict of interest? Like all he has to do is drop a couple balls and say “dang, Tannehill’s stats are terrible, put me back in coach.”

 

Antonio Brown update:

In case anybody is counting, Antonio Brown posted a workout video trying to get teams interested in signing him, and then “re-retired” 36 hours later, then un-retired 6 hours later

 

 

Situational Awareness:

The Lions were driving, got to a 4^th and goal from the 1 yard line, were scrambling to get up and snap the ball as the clock was running, but at 8 seconds remaining the Raiders on defense called a time out; what?!?!?! Stupid call, but they did hold them out of the endzone.

 

 

Quote of the Week:

When asked why he shaved after the game, Baker Mayfield said “I didn’t deserve the handlebars”

 

Playoff picture:

I think the picture stays mostly the same, but can see the Rams overtaking either the Vikings or Seahawks for a Wildcard. In the AFC, same thing, we have our 1-4 set and I see the Raiders popping in over the Colts or Bills.

 

NFC Championship: Packers at Saints

AFC Championship: Chiefs at Ravens

 

Here’s what I’m excited for this year though. Can you imagine Brady-Mahomes, Brady-Jackson, or Mahomes-Jackson in the AFC Championship Game? Or Rodgers-Brees on the NFC side? Super Bowl matchups could be Brady-Brees, Mahomes-Rodgers, Brady-Garrapolo would be intriguing

 

 

Games of the Week:

Panthers at Packers

Vikings at Cowboys

Seahawks at 49ers (best MNF matchup of the year!)

 

 

*whispers* I’m telling you, WATCH the Raiders!

 

Black Cat Update:

Apparently the Black Cat is STILL ON THE LOOSE in the stadium! Hahahaha! They have not been able to find it for the last 4 days. The Giants and Jets play at MetLife this weekend, although both teams are so cursed it probably would have an opposite effect if it shows itself again.

 

2pt Tracker:

 

Texans: +1

Redskins: +1

Jaguars: -1

Dolphins: -1

 

Memes of the Week:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FMQB: Blame it on the Rain

 

Quick Hits:

• I think if the Bears could play without a Kicker, they would
• Hold onto the ball Jameis Winston. He had 4 more turnovers on Sunday and they have to be coaching him, this is a known problem
• Vinatieri has to be done after this year. He had another missed extra point that looked like it was going to cost them the game, then comes back and nails a 51 yarder to win it
• Mayfield’s interception was one of the worst I’ve ever seen. Threw it right to the guy 2 feet in front of him. Can’t even blame it on the rain
• The Texans barely beat the Raiders at home. I’m telling ya, watch the Raiders!
• If the whole Trent Williams cancer story is real, I think not only do the Redskins face a ton of backlash but potentially the NFL and team doctors.
• I missed the game of the week, but was absolutely shocked to come back and see Packers Chiefs tied in the 4^th quarter.
• Baker Mayfield is like 1 loss away from going Ryan Leaf on reporters!

 

Belichick:

Belichick became the 3^rd coach to reach the 300 win threshold. I’ve mentioned this years before, but I wasn’t around for the Shula years and curious how he was portrayed and if people hated/respected him as much as Belichick. It’s also crazy to think how dominant Belichick has been for 20 years, and know that another coach is still ahead of him. Granted Shula had 2 hall fo fame QB’s behind him, but only won 3 titles. Belichick is 47 wins shy of Shula, and probably has 1 solid year with Brady left. Best case scenario ends the season like 39 games shy. That’s easily 4-6 more years of coaching to break the record depending on Brady’s replacement. I think Bill wants it though, and that’s the only reason he came out this week saying he’d coach into his 70s.

 

Stat of the Week:

The Patriots have a 2 ½ game lead over the #2 team in the AFC. You NEVER see that in general, let alone this early in the season!

 

Stat of the Week #2:

A regular season football game had 61% higher viewership than Game 5 of the World Series. Proof of what America’s actual pastime is. Also, does anybody else remember when there was no SNF for a week during the year due to baseball? I sure do, around 2007 ish.

 

Stat of the Week #3:

Jared Goff is leading the league in passing yards, Derek Carr and Kirk Cousins are tied for 1^st in completion percentage

 

Non-Football Stat of the Week:

The World Series became the first time in major sports that road teams won the first 6 games of a series. Obviously football doesn’t do series, but this has never happened in MLB, NBA or NHL in the past. The Road team won game 7 as well, just for good measure.

 

NFL 100:

Never knew this until this week, but each week of games is supposed to have some meaning in regards to NFL history since it’s the 100^th season. The more you know:

Ruthless:

 

Double ruthless:

The Falcons released 44 year old kicker Matt Bryan after missing two 50+ yard FG’s on Sunday. Guy’s literally been with the team since 2009!

 

Triple Ruthless

The Bengals benched 9 year QB Andy Dalton on his birthday and 3 hours before the trade deadline essentially ensuring he won’t see a regular season down for another 11 months.

 

Scenario of the week:

Joe Flacco “our play calling sucked”

2 days later “Flacco out 4 weeks with injury”

Right…next thing you’re going to tell me is the world is flat

 

Reader Submitted Quotes of the week:

*Introducing KC WOLF!!!*
I turn to the guy next to me, I always thought that was a rat!

 

Guy in front of me- Great game.
Me- Yeah this is awesome I am just a fan of the game so I am loving this.
Guy in front- That is why I like Packer fan’s, not like the Raiders or Bronco fans, lol.

 

 

2pt Tracker:

 

Texans: +1

Redskins: +1

Jaguars: -1

Dolphins: -1

 

Memes of the Week: