Fifth Down

It’s time for my favorite weekend of all of sports! The Divisional round! Here are the top 10 things to watch for this weekend.

10. What book AJ Brown is reading this week.

Authors across the country are hoping it is their book after “Inner Excellence” sales sky rocketed on Amazon.

9. How many 4th downs will Dan Campbell go for?

It seems like there are some drinking games and gambling bets that are meant to happen around this. My guess is 3.

8. Which quarterback will choke in the divisional round?

Both Josh Allen and Lamar have struggled to make it the AFC championship with each of them only making it 1 time. Good news for them, at least one of them will make a second trip.

7. The amount of times the 2020 playoff game between the Texans and Chiefs is mentioned.

This was one of the craziest games ever when the Chiefs went down 24-0 with 10 minutes to go in the 2nd quarter and were up 28-24 before halftime. Chiefs fans love this story. Texans fans, not so much.

6. Will Jayden Daniels win again?

This young man has been clutch all year…if he can pull of this win it would be epic.

5. Snow games!

I love Snow Games. The Chiefs game will be cold but probably snow. The Bills game will be real cold and probably a little snow. The Eagles game it is supposed to start snowing around kickoff and go through the whole game. Meanwhile, in Detroit it will be 70 degrees according to the thermostat.

4. How will the Rams handle the cold

The Rams played great Monday night but they will have to be better this time around playing a snow game against the Eagles. Sean McVay is one smart coach but will he be able to coach around the elements?

3. Who will Nick Siranni get in a fight with and/or yell at?

It could be an opposing player or fan. Or his own fans. Or maybe AJ Brown if he is reading a book that Siranni didn’t recommend.

2. Chiefs football is back!

We haven’t seen real Chiefs football since Christmas Day. Which is fitting because divisional weekend is like Christmas. Everyone is healthy. Travis is well rested. Pacheco should be ready to go with more carries. Chris Jones is good to go. Hollywood is good to go. Even Jaylen Watson is back after breaking his ankle or whatever he did. The whole band is back together minus Rashee Rice.

1. Playoff Pat!

There is only one quarterback in the league better than Patrick Mahomes. And that is playoff Pat. The only thing better than Playoff Pat is specifically Divisional round Playoff Pat. Pat is 6-0, averages over 300 yards per game and has never thrown an interception while accounting for 16 touchdowns. I’m looking forward to watching the greatness on Saturday.

Tune in tomorrow for Five for Friday which will really be Four for Friday when I pick the winners for this round.

We are down to eight. Wild Card Weekend has come and go. This weekend, the Divisional Round, is my favorite weekend in all of sports. I can’t wait! Here are the rankings going into this weekend.

Nice win but I am pretty sure you are the worst team left: Texans

The beat up on the Chargers pretty good so good for them. But I think they are the least likely of all the teams to win the next 3 games. Also, the NFL sure does love to give them the Saturday afternoon slot in the playoffs.

Will probably lose this weekend but the future is bright!: Commanders

What a great win. Jayden Daniels is the real deal and for the first time in a long time the future is bright. Very bright. Beating the Lions isn’t out of the question, but no matter what happens this has been a great year for the Commanders.

Maybe the worst NFC team left but also might win it all: Rams

Despite all the distractions, the Rams took care of the Vikings with ease. They have been basically playing elimination games since week 13 and they got a veteran quarterback and a very intelligent coach.

Won big but something seems off: Eagles

The Eagles took care of the Packers due to creating turnovers and injuring receivers. But the offense looked shaky and AJ Brown is reading books on the sideline. It’s always something with this team.

Winner gets a shot at the Chiefs and MVP: Bills, Ravens

Both these teams have had great seasons and their quarterbacks have had even better seasons. The Ravens won the regular season match up big but this one is in Buffalo and matters a lot more. The winner gets a shot to finally go to the Super Bowl. The loser has yet another disappointing season.

Won a playoff game without playing one: Lions, Chiefs

Pat said it best, getting the bye is like winning a playoff game. These two advanced to the best round of all of sports without playing a game. Now they host match ups they should win at home and if they take care of business they get to host their perspective conference championships with all their fans cheering them on.

Tune in on Thursday for the top 10 things to watch for in the Divisional round.

It’s Wild Card weekend starting tomorrow. You get an extra game this week. Here are my thoughts and predictions for all the Wild Card Games.

The Triple H Game, Harbaugh, Herbert and Houston: Chargers @ Texans on CBS at 2:30 PM Mountain Time

Things kick off with a battle of two teams that didn’t meet expectations. The Chargers surpassed expectations and the Texans…not so much. The Texans were a hot pick for the Super Bowl in the preseason. This is not looking good after winning only 10 games and only beating two teams with a winning record. Playing in the AFC south saved them. They have struggled with injuries and the offensive line has been pretty terrible. CJ Stroud hasn’t been great and poor Nico Collins is the only good receiver left. No one thinks they will do anything in the playoffs and they are one of two home teams that isn’t favored and the other home team isn’t even playing in their normal state. Meanwhile, it is all good vibes for the Chargers. They beat all the teams they are supposed to beat and lose to all the teams they are supposed to lose too. John Harbaugh has been great despite looking like he doesn’t know where he is most of the time. Justin Herbert has been his normal solid productive self and seems primed for his first playoff victory. I remember this time last year, a hot Cleveland team headed to Houston and I thought the Texans would lose. They did not. I was all set to pick the Chargers but I am going against the grain in the last minute here. Give me the Texans in a surprise victory.

Texas 24 Chargers 20

Can the Steelers Steel a victory?: Steelers at Ravens on Amazon Prime at 6 PM Mountain Time

The answer is no. The Steelers are not good. They really haven’t been that good all year. They are boring and Russ sucks. I know it is a division game and the Steelers no how to play the Ravens tough and blah, blah, blah. The Steelers on a clear decline. Russ plays worse every week. Now George Pickens can’t catch and the Ravens are playing really well. I am tuning in solely for snarky Al Michaels comments. Besides, bad football is still better than no football.

Ravens 34 Steelers 13

The Happy Wife game: Broncos @ Bills on CBS at 11 AM Mountain time

My wife is happy the Broncos made the playoffs. She will be ecstatic if they pull the upset off in Buffalo. The Broncos have had their ups and downs throughout the season but overall they overachieved. Bo Nix has played well more than he has played bad. There is great hope in Denver and they are playing with house money in this one. There main issue is they don’t beat good teams. They have 2 wins over playoff teams by beating the Bucs early on in week 3 and then beating the JV Chiefs in the last week of the season. Can they go to Buffalo and get win number 3? The Bills have been the “it” team all year and have won some big games including beating the varsity Chiefs at home and the Lions on the road. But they also lost to the Rams and Vikings and got walloped by the Ravens. Still, the Bills have been very good in this round going 4-0 with Josh Allen at quarterback. I think this game will be closer than some think, but the Bills get the W and head to the divisional round once again.

Bills 27 Broncos 20

The I hope my son doesn’t get too mad game: Packers @ Eagles on Fox at 2:30 PM Mountain time

My wife has to leave for a work trip Sunday morning, so I will be handling the sibling game all on my own. My son is a die hard Packers fan. My daughter cheers for the Eagles because she needed her own team and she picked them when they won the Super Bowl. She doesn’t care that much about football but she does care about making her brother mad. And nothing will make him more mad then her bragging about her team beating his. “You can’t even name 5 players on your team!” “You don’t even care about football!” and my personal favorite “Shut up, Savannah!” will all be uttered during the game. If you were here you could also hear other classic Walker lines in the first quarter such as “We are terrible”, “We suck!” and “We are going to lose.” Anyway, these teams played a close one in the second game of the season when Jordan Love got hurt. This seems like a bit of a mismatch as the Eagles have the better roster, are healthier and are playing at home. But then there is the whole coaching side of things. What crazy shenanigans will Nick Sirianni do to try and screw this up? I can’t wait to find out. In the end, I got to go with the Eagles in this one. I just don’t have good vibes with the Packers going into this one. So I will spend much of tomorrow preparing for an angry son on Sunday.

Eagles 31 Packers 21

Touchdowns in Tampa: Commanders @ Bucs on NBC at 6 PM Mountain Time

This should be a shoot out with two great offenses and two not so good defenses. So the game will likely end 10-6. But assuming that it plays out as it should, this could be a really fun game. Jayden Daniels is a rookie but he seems to handle all the big moments well and doesn’t stress. He has played great and the team has gotten it done in big moment after big moment. On the other side, my boy Baker has been awesome in the playoffs and this Bucs team has learned to not just survive, but thrive without Chris Godwin. This team is a blast and they even have a running back named Bucky. There should be plenty of fireworks in this one, including the ones they shoot off on the boat at the stadium when the Bucs score. I am hoping this game lives up to the offensive hype. Jayden Daniels has been awesome. But I got to go with my boy Baker in this one.

Bucs 38 Commanders 30

The Relocation game: Vikings @ Rams (kind of) on ESPN at 6 PM mountain time

The game has been moved to Arizona but that is okay because the Rams are used to moving. They moved from LA to St. Louis and then back to LA. That’s how bad St. Louis sucks, the team would rather live in California. Prayers out to all those dealing with the fires in California. Hopefully it gets under control and everyone gets the help they need quickly.

I think both these teams are really good and extremely well coached. I’m not feeling great about Sam Darnold after last week but I think he bounces back and plays well. Kevin O’Connell has been so good that other teams are trying to trade for him. The Vikings come out ready to play and have a solid game. But the Rams are also tough and teams tend to rally around and win in these natural disaster sort of situations. I won’t be surprised if the Vikings win but give me the rallying Rams with a couple late scores to take the lead and the game.

Rams 33 Vikings 30

There you go…take these picks to Vegas…but if you lose money it’s not my fault. Have a great Wild Card Weekend!

6 games over 3 days, what more could you ask for? Here are the top 10 things to watch for this weekend!

10. No home field advantage?

Not to make light of the fires in LA. Prayers up to everyone there. But this is an odd situation where the Rams don’t really have a road game. That stadium is usually 50/50 for the Rams game anyway and the Vikings fans travel really well. This could turn into a very friendly Vikings crowd.

9. Does Herbert playoff drought end or continue?

Justin Herbert is a highly praised quarterback that has won absolutely nothing. Does that change this weekend against a struggling Texans team? The one playoff game Herbert has played in he was up big at halftime and then lost in the second half to a AFC south team. Will history repeat itself?

8. Does Josh Allen continue to dominate wild card weekend?

Allen has never lost this round going 4-0. Will he make it 5-0 against my wife’s Broncos?

7. Does Baker bake?

Baker has played 4 playoff games, going 2-2. But he has been solid in all of them. Can he continue to play lights out? He better, because the Bucs Defense is not good.

6. Does Lamar lose his playoff stigma?

Lamar has been awesome in the regular season. Not so much in the playoffs. This week he said he gets too excited when the playoffs come. Nothing is more boring than the Steelers playing so this should be a good game for Lamar.

5. Does Sam Darnold fold under the pressure?

Darnold has been awesome all year long…until the biggest of the game season last Sunday night. Can Sam redeem himself? Or we the Ghost of Sam Darnold past show up again?

4. Happy wife…stressful life?

If the Broncos win, my wife will be a very happy person and the number 2 seed will be eliminated. This should make me happy too, right? Well the bad news is if the Broncos win, then they come play at Arrowhead the following week creating perhaps the most stressful Chiefs playoff game yet at the Campbell house. Which is saying a lot because most of the Chiefs playoff games are stressful.

3. Road Rookie Quarterbacks break the streak?

Rookie Quarterbacks are 0-7 in the last 7 games that they have started on the road. Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix will try and break that streak.

2. Sibling Rivalry:

The Eagles host the Packers. My son is a die hard Packers fan. My daughter cheers for the Eagles although she would rather not watch football at all. However, she relishes in beating her brother in anything. This is a lose, lose as a parent. Here is hoping my son doesn’t break anything if the Packers lose…especially what will be his mouthy sister.

1. Who gets to lose in the divisional round to the Chiefs?

Pat is 6-0 in the divisional round. So I feel good about next weekend regardless. But we do have a lot of different options. Will it be the Chargers for a 3rd time? Or the Texans for a second time? Or the boring Steelers for a second time? Or to my wife’s delight, the Broncos for a 3rd time? Regardless, it will be familiar territory.

Look for my predictions tomorrow on Five for Friday!

We are down to the final 14 teams. So we will only rank the remaining teams going forward. Sorry to those teams who are eliminated. You now can get busy firing and hiring coaches and getting ready for the draft. And if you are the Bengals maybe work on not sucking for the first month of the season instead of blaming the Chiefs for sitting their starters, something they decided to do back when you were 7-8. Let’s dive into the teams that actually did what they needed to do to get in as opposed to those who didn’t get the help they needed from other teams.

Congrats you made the playoffs…for this weekend: Broncos, Packers, Texans

Making the playoffs is not small feat…unless you play in the AFC South. The Texans haven’t looked good for like 10 weeks now but they are hosting a playoff game. It will be their only playoff game. Congrats to the Broncos for making the playoffs for the first time since 2015. Your reward is going to Buffalo to play the MVP and the Bills in the round that the Bills always win in. The Packers can’t beat anyone good and just lost to a team they never lose to…at home…in a game that meant nothing for the Bears. Oh and they lost one of the best offensive players along the way.

Guess who’s back…back again: Steelers

The Steelers are in the playoffs yet again. All they do is win…enough games to have a winning record. Their season will be ending shortly.

Could win a game…maybe two…but probably just one: Chargers, Bucs, Commanders, Vikings

I’ll make my predictions for the games on Five for Friday. But I think the Chargers are going to win and they have played the Chiefs tough twice so you never know. Either the Bucs or Commanders are going to win at least one game and maybe they can win another but I don’t see either winning 3 in a row. Vikings are good but also one of the worst franchises ever when it comes to winning playoff games.

Either losing this round or going to the Super Bowl: Rams

I’m not sure if they get out of this round but they are dangerous and if they get on a roll look out. Plus, they were my NFC preseason prediction to make the Super Bowl so I got to keep hope alive.

Battling for second place in the AFC: Ravens and Bills

Both these teams are going to win. And then they will play each other for the right to go play the Chiefs. The teams/quarterbacks are a combined 0-4 against the Chiefs in the playoffs.

Battling to lose in the Super Bowl: Lions and Eagles

These are the two best teams in the NFC. They both have some questions at coaching. Dan Campbell goes on 4th down too much which may cost them and Nick Sirianni does a lot of ridiculous things. But they got lots of weapons and both team are coming into this post season hot.

Got to beat the Champs to be the champs: Chiefs

The Chiefs are the 1 seed once again. Patrick is a ridiculous 15-3 in the playoffs. He hasn’t lost to any quarterback or franchise that is in this thing in the playoffs. The defense since week 12 has created 11 turnovers. The Chiefs offense has no turnovers during the same time period. They have the best coach and the best quarterback and are hosting the Arrowhead invitational once again.

Tune in tomorrow for the top 10 things to watch for wild card weekend and then on Friday, tune in for my predictions for the games with Five for Friday Wild Card Weekend edition.

It’s week 18 already! Time has flown by. I know it’s been a few weeks but I wanted to get one more of these in before the playoffs start so here we go! Many of the games have significant playoff implications.

Home Alone vs Let’s Ride: Bengals @ Steelers on ESPN at 6 pm mountain time

The Bengals were left for dead despite their high scoring offense. Now they are just one win away plus a couple of team’s losses from clinching a playoff spot. Kevin McAlister has been playing lights out for most of the year and putting up insane stats. He is very good but I think people are starting to forget that he is throwing to Chase and Higgins. Apparently the entire league and especially the Chiefs is afraid of the Bengals despite the fact that they only have one win against a team with a winning record. They have also lost to the Chiefs the last 3 times they have played but who cares about those facts. They are peaking at a good time even if it is too little too late. The offense is humming and the defense is slightly less crappy then it has been most of the year. Meanwhile Russ and the Steelers have not been playing well. They have lost 3 straight, albeit to really good teams. But Russ looks more like “let’s ride” Russ and a lot less like Seattle Russ. Also, he and George Pickens are not vibing well which isn’t shocking because Russ is kind of annoying and Pickens doesn’t seem to get a long with anyone. One team seems on the rise…the other seems on the fall. Is this just based upon scheduling or is this legit where these teams are at? Let’s all find out by watching the NFL on Saturday night! I think the Steelers kind of suck. I don’t think the Bengals are good but I think they are good enough to win one more and make Sunday interesting.

Bengals 27 Steelers 21

Baker keeps baking!: Saints @ Bucs on Fox at 11 AM mountain time

Next year, I really want the Bucs to get to 13 wins so I can make Baker’s Dozen comments. But for now, this will have to do. You got to admit, Baker is darn likeable. I mean I have never really liked the Bucs but I am actively cheering for them now, simply because Baker makes me laugh. And they are now one win away from clinching the division. They are also 85 yards away from keeping Mike Evans 1,000 yard season streak alive. If you hear the team talk, I am not sure which is actually more important to them. Anyway, this team is pretty fun. I mean they got Baker and a running back named Bucky. I am not sure they are all that good but they are good enough to beat the aints. Especially since they are sending Spencer Rattler out there and Kamara isn’t playing. The Falcons might beat the Panthers but it won’t matter because Baker is going to bake up a victory.

Bucs 38 Aints 13

Tua less Dolphins vs the last ride of Aaron Rodgers: Dolphins @ Jets on Fox at 2:25 PM mountain time

The Dolphins need a win and a Broncos loss in order to get into the playoffs. All they have to do is beat the Jets and Aaron Rodgers who is coming off perhaps his worst game ever. The problem is Tua is still hurt and probably not going to play. The good news is it isn’t Tua’s head this time. It’s his hip or something. The Dolphins are rolling with Tyler Huntley who is better than the garbage QBs they were rolling out earlier in the year but he still isn’t good. Meanwhile, Rodgers very well could be playing his last game as a Jet and maybe his last game ever. This week Rodgers said this has been the best two years of his life. He and I have different perspectives on what makes a year good. Anyway, he is bringing all the good vibes to New Jersey. He surely can’t play as awful as he did last week. I think he brings his A game one last time and the team rallies around him. Meanwhile, the Dolphins with Tua on the road aren’t very good. Without Tua, I don’t like their chances. Give me the enigma for one last win.

Jets 24 Dolphins 17

JV Chiefs vs Desperate Broncos: On CBS at 2:25 PM Mountain time

I won’t be watching this one on TV. Instead, I’ll be attending the game. My wife bought me tickets for the game. I think she did this in order to get rid of me so she can yell and celebrate without any ramifications for our marriage. Savi and I will be bundled up due to the cold weather to cheer on Carson Wentz and whoever else is playing. This will be Savannah’s first NFL game so that is exciting. She did learn that Mahomes wasn’t playing and she was a little disappointed. She wanted to see him throw some crazy pass. I told her we might see that if we show up early enough for warm ups. This game for the Chiefs is simply a game to get out of there as healthy as possible. Meanwhile, the Broncos are trying to make the Playoffs for the first time since 2015. They have the second longest drought in the league to only the disaster that is the Jets. The Broncos have been pretty good all year and really should have beat the Chiefs earlier in the season but instead they got a kick blocked. Think about this, if that kick hadn’t been blocked and they made that FG, the Broncos would already be in the Playoffs and the Chiefs would need to win this game to lock up the 1 seed. This really is a game of inches. Anyway, I think this game will be closer than people think. I mean right now the spread is 10.5. That is an awfully big number. The JV Chiefs don’t suck. I mean they still got to play some guys who normally start. Plus Wentz isn’t terrible. I think the JV Chiefs come out strong and take a lead. After a while, Reid decides to let the 3rd string QB get some snaps and the Broncos mount a comeback. Late in the game, the Broncos are down 1 and Bo Nix leads a nice drive to give them the opportunity to kick a game winner. The blocked kick is mentioned 47 times on the drive to the annoyance of Bronco fans everywhere. This time, the Chiefs don’t block it or really even try to block it and the Broncos kicker kicks them into the playoffs. And Joe Burrow has to stay home alone during the Playoffs.

Broncos 26 Chiefs 24

Winner gets the 1 seed, the Loser gets the Rams: Vikings @ Lions on NBC at 6:20 PM

What a season both these teams have had. The Lions have overcome a plethora of injuries to a 14-2 season. Hard nose Dan Campbell has somehow created a culture of scoring a bunch of points and giving up just slightly less points. Jared Goff has been awesome and the Lions have weapons all over. Throw in offensive coordinator Ben Johnson who is know for his creativity and whatnot and you have a recipe for a fun team. I should like this team. However, I do not. I can’t tell you why but for some reason they rub me the wrong way. I don’t hate them or anything and I can’t pinpoint what my issue is but for some reason, I just don’t like them that much. On the other side you have the Minnesota Vikings. As a kid, the Vikings were my NFC team. I loved Chris Carter and Randy Moss and Jake Reed and Robert Smith on offense and Chris Doleman and John Randle and Joey Browner and others on defense. Then they had the boat incident and I didn’t feel like cheering for them after that. Then my son became a Packers fan so it was even easier not to cheer for the Vikings. But then they got Kirk Cousins. Everyone likes Kirk…especially opposing defenses recently. They moved on from Kirk and brought in Sam Darnold who has been a bust before this year. Granted that was for two teams who are arguably the worst run organizations in the league. Turns out if you give Darnold some weapons and some good coaching he is pretty awesome. He has the opportunity to lead his team to the 1 seed and a first round bye and I am not gonna lie to you, I am cheering for it. Besides, the bye is probably the only way the cursed Vikings make it out of the first round of the playoffs. Both these teams are really freaking good with a ton of talent. Normally, I’d say they were evenly matched but the Lions defense is a mess with all the injuries. However, the Lions are playing at home. This game is a coin flip, but give me the healthier team in a shoot out for the win.

Vikings 38 Lions 30

It’s a new year but I can still brag about my preseason predictions. Sure I was wrong on some stuff but here are 10 things I was absolutely right about.

10. Bills win the division.

The Dolphins and Jets were the popular picks but I stuck with the team with the best quarterback in the division and look who not only won the division but is probably going to win the MVP. I did predict that the Jets would be a wild card but we don’t need to talk about that.

9. The Eagles win the division keeping a 20 year streak alive.

No one has won the division back to back since 2003-2004. The Cowboys won last year but the Eagles took the division again this year. Go ahead and place your bets on the Commanders for the 2025 NFC East champs.

8. Rams win the division.

This one looked bleak at times but due to a weird strength of schedule thing, they have already clinched with a week to go. McVay said screw seeding…we are resting our guys! They will likely host the loser of Detroit and Minnesota…yikes.

7. 3 teams from the NFC north made the playoffs.

Sure I picked the Packers to win the division and sure I bought into the hype train of the Bears and disregarded the Vikings but math is math. I said 3 teams would make it and they did!

6. The 49ers would miss the playoffs and have a bunch of injuries.

Vegas favorite super bowl pick came up way short as I predicted. The 49ers cannot stay healthy for more than one season. This one seemed obvious.

5. How about those Chiefs!!!!

I predicted they would win the division again and they sure did…by like week 11 or 12.

4. Tampa and Atlanta would battle for the South.

I had Atlanta finishing a game ahead of the Bucs and it looks like it will go the other way but we still got a week left to find out. How was I to know that Kirk Cousins was going to play like complete crap for most of the season?

3. Texans win the AFC South

They didn’t win it by playing well but they won it none the less.

2. The Chiefs are the 1 seed.

Not only did I predict that the Chiefs would win the division but I also picked them to be the 1 seed…which they are.

1. Chiefs win the Super Bowl

Okay, this one hasn’t come true…yet. But we all know it’s inevitable.

Tune in tomorrow for the final regular season Five for Friday!

2024 is in the books but the NFL season isn’t quite over yet. This will be our final ranking of the year of all the NFL teams. Starting next week, I will rank the remaining playoff teams through the post season. In the spirit of the New Year, here is a New Year’s resolution for every NFL team.

32. Browns: Move on from Deshaun Watson. I know they just restructured his contract, so he isn’t going anywhere but not much has gone right for them since signing massage boy to a ridiculous contract. There only success came when Joe Flacco was playing quarterback.

31. Giants: Get rid of anyone who has anything to do with making decisions. This group decided to pay Daniel Jones and not pay Saquon Barkley. That is enough in itself. They also started Danny Devito over Drew Lock. And no one can ruin your chances of getting a high draft pick like Drew Lock.

30. Patriots: Lose to the JV Bills to get the number 1 pick. They can trade that pick for a bounty of tricks or fire their coach and hire Deion and then draft Shedur. I think the latter would be a disaster but it would be more fun than what they have been doing since Tom Brady left.

29. Titans: Sign Sam Darnold to a lucrative contract. Maybe Darnold isn’t that good and is just in a great situation but if he is good, the Titans can win the awful south for years to come.

28. Raiders: Don’t change a thing. You are doing great. Definitely don’t fire your coach or draft a quarterback.

27. Jaguars: Get Trevor Lawrence a haircut. As much as I hate to see those glorious locks go, the Jags need a change or lots of changes.

26. Jets: have someone run the team that isn’t acting like a teenager. Making decisions based upon video games and what a literal teenager thinks might not be the best way to succeed in the NFL.

25. Bears: For the love of all things, higher a good offensive coach!

24. Saints: Let go of everyone and start over. The salary cap is a mess. The team isn’t good. They keep trying to fix something that isn’t fixable. It’s time to start over.

23. Panthers: Draft well and keep doing what you are doing. The Panthers aren’t good but they are getting better. They are exactly where I thought they would be at this time of year. They need a lot more help but they are headed in the right direction but they are the Panthers so I am guessing they will screw it up.

22. Colts: Help Anthony Richardson learn football stuff like passing, staying in the game, and playing through minor injuries.

21. Cardinals: Figure out how to play more than 6 good games a year. The Cardinals are good for a stretch every season. The problem is that stretch is never more than 6 games. Let’s shoot for 7 or 8, Cardinals.

20. Cowboys: Teach Micah Parsons how football works. This week he said they made the Eagles earn everything besides 5 big plays and that the game was close. The Cowboys lost 41-7.

19. 49ers: Finally, and I mean finally…get some new trainers. This team has more guys land on IR every year than the rest of the league combined.

18. Falcons: Start Michael Pennix sooner…like the whole year instead of a still injured Kirk Cousins.

17. Seahawks: Win some games when it matters. The Seahawks have been pretty good all year…just not good enough.

16. Broncos: Beat the JV Chiefs. Win this game and you make the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

15. Dolphins: Get Bubble Wrap for Tua. This team isn’t amazing but they are significantly better with Tua than without.

14. Texans: Get CJ Stroud back from 2023. You remember when he was awesome and the Texans were fun? Those were the days.

13. Bengals: Not suck in September and beat winning teams. They are always so bad in September. And as much as everyone says the Chiefs and everyone else should be so scared of them, it took overtime for them to beat their first team with a winning record this season.

12. Steelers: Find a quarterback. This team wins every year but then loses quickly in the playoffs or just misses the playoffs. Russ does not seem to be the answer.

11. Chargers: Get predicted to win the AFC West and then not win it. Every season…every single season.

10. Bucs: Get some new defensive guys. Baker has this offense cooking (see what I did there? Baker…cooking). But the defense has issues. Time for a refresh on that side of the ball.

9. Packers: Beat good teams. Maybe it will happen in the playoffs. Maybe it won’t happen until next season but this team is close. Unfortunately they have 5 losses to the 3 best teams in their conference.

8. Rams: Find their offense again. The D has been playing really well of late. If the offense comes alive…my prediction of them making the Super Bowl might just come true.

7. Commanders: Make sure Jayden Daniels stays healthy. That dude can play and should get even better but without him they are not good.

6. Ravens: Keep playing defense like they have lately against good teams. The offense is great. The defense has been great lately but they haven’t played the stiffest of competition. Will it translate when they play elite teams?

5. Eagles: Not allow Sirianni make stupid decisions. This team has it all except for a stable coach.

4. Lions: Someone to tell Dan Campbell it is okay not to go for it on 4th down. We are who we are only gets you so far. Sometimes you have to adjust and make an actual smart decision.

3. Bills: Josh Allen finally wins something important. Maybe not this year but one of these years, he’s gonna get it done.

2. Vikings: Go to the Super Bowl because next year you are starting all over again. They aren’t going to pay Sam Darnold so that means you got to get the rookie up to speed. It’s not that they can’t or won’t but it seems like this is their best opportunity.

1. Chiefs: 3 peat baby!!!

It’s Christmas Eve and tonight Santa will be dropping off all gifts to all the good boys and girls. With that in mind, I rank all 32 teams with a gift for each of them, even the ones that haven’t been good like the Raiders.

32. Giants: the number 1 draft pick. They will probably screw it up but at least they would get a shot at it.

31. Jaguars: Doug Pederson from 3 years ago. Seriously, what happened to this guy?

30. Raiders: Their head coach keeping his job. Wait, that would be a gift for the rest of the league. How about a quarterback then.

29. Titans: player toughness. Just kidding. They need a quarterback too.

28. Browns: Deshaun Watson to retire so they can move on with their lives past this disaster.

27. Bears: an offensive minded coach. If they are going to be bad, they could at least be fun.

26. Saints: A larger salary cap…a much larger salary cap. This team is a financial disaster.

25. Patriots: Drake Maye to be legit. He looks pretty good so far but so did Mac Jones his rookie year.

24. Jets: An owner who doesn’t make decisions based upon Madden rankings.

23. Panthers: To keep things rolling into 2025. The Panthers have turned into a decent team.

22. Cardinals: To play two good halves of a season…in the same season.

21. 49ers: New trainers. How is this team decimated with injuries every other year?

20. Cowboys: An owner who actually wants to win instead of being the center of attraction.

19. Colts: Anthony Richardson to get better at passing and staying in the game when he is tired.

18. Dolphins: The same thing I wish for every game for the Dolphins, Tua to not die.

17. Bengals: To get their crap together before week 5 next year. Every year they do the same things. Maybe they should mix it up and win a game before October.

16. Falcons: To go back in time and bench Kirk Cousins sooner.

15. Seahawks: To be good on defense and offense at the same time. One of these days, they will put it all together.

14. Texans: To not lose any more receivers to injury. Their receiving room must use the same trainers as the 49ers.

13. Bucs: Some defensive guys to go with their awesome offense.

12. Broncos: A playoff birth for the first time since 2015. Only the Jets have a longer drought in the league but they can snap that with a win on Saturday.

11. Chargers: Justin Herbert to win a game that matters.

10. Rams: To combine the offense from a couple of weeks ago with the defense from the last two weeks.

9. Commanders: Jayden Daniels to stay healthy the rest of the year and beyond. He has a great future if he can stay on the field.

8. Steelers: Russ to play like Russ from 5 years ago for the next 5 games.

7. Ravens: Play well in consecutive games…preferably in the playoffs.

6. Packers: Jordan Love to continue not to turn the ball over. If he plays smart this team can beat anybody.

5. Eagles: For Jalen Hurts to get through concussion protocol quickly. Kenny Pickett is not good.

4. Bills: To play better defense. We all know what Allen can do but he can’t play linebacker or safety so that got to figure this thing out.

3. Vikings: For Sam Darnold to keep playing like…Sam Darnold? He is playing great…can he keep it going?

2. Lions: No more defensive injuries. Pretty soon they are going to have to give me a call to fill a roster spot.

1.Chiefs: That 3 peat, baby!

And here are 5 gifts for us NFL fans:

1. The first round of the NFL playoffs to be more competitive than the first round of the College Football Playoffs. That was atrocious.
2. The Broncos to win on Saturday. It will make my wife happy and me happy because she is happy and the Bengals will be eliminated.
3. No key injuries down the stretch. We got a lot of competitive teams in the hunt. We want as many healthy guys headed into the playoffs as possible because its going to be an awesome ride to the Super Bowl.
4. The Chiefs to win another game in some odd and ridiculous way. It’s entertaining during the game and entertaining after the game when all non Chiefs fans lose their minds.
5. History to be made. If the Chiefs 3 peat that would be history which is what I am cheering for. But if they don’t, let’s crown a champion that has never been crowned. I’m looking at you, Bills, Lions and Vikings.

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season with your friends and family.

We have wrapped up week 14 and now there are just 4 weeks left of the season. Also, for many of us it is the last week of the regular season for our fantasy teams. I have 4 and two are going great and two are going poorly. But hey, 2 out of 4 isn’t bad. Anyway, besides being Fantasy Football season it is also Christmas season. In the spirit of Christmas, I rank the teams this week based upon Christmas Movies and rank the Christmas movies as well.

Krampus: Giants

I just watched this movie and it is a Christmas horror movie. And it is indeed horrific. While I was surprised at some of the people in the movie that is the end of the excitement for this movie. The Giants are so horrifically bad that a fan paid to fly a plane over the stadium to request that they turn it around. Also, there is a rumor that a Giants player paid an only fans girl to flash the other team to distract them. This is how bad the Giants are. They are so bad that they are barely a football team.

I’ll Be Home For Christmas: Raiders

This movie stars Jonathan Taylor Thomas of Home Alone fame. I haven’t seen this movie in a very long time. I think the only time I actually saw this was on a Young Life weekend trip. One of my Young Life kids, Jason who is still a great friend to this day was on the trip and refused to going on any other weekend trips in the future based upon on how bad the movie was. The Raiders are equally bad and aren’t getting better anytime soon.

Jingle All the Way: Patriots, Titans, and Jags

Jingle All the Way is a movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger where he plays a terrible father that forgets to get the one toy he is supposed to get for his son. He desperately searches the city for the toy and gets in fights with Sinbad. He also tries to steal the toy from his creepy neighbor. This is a mess of a movie but it is a Christmas movie. These teams are technically football teams but they are all a mess and just like when Jingle All the Way is on, I am just hoping for the end of these teams seasons.

It’s a Wonderful Life: Jets

This supposed great movie is long, painful, depressing and overrated. Just like the Jets and their season.

Fred Claus: Browns and Panthers

Fred Claus is a poorly done, illogical film with lots of plot holes and bad story writing. But I’m not gonna lie I find it entertaining and fun. Both the Browns and Panthers are not good, poorly organized but they are entertaining.

White Christmas: Dallas Cowboys

White Christmas was the quintessential Christmas movie many, many years ago and not so much anymore. Just like the Dallas Cowboys were a great team many, many years ago.

Polar Express: Saints and Bears

I’m not sure how I feel about the Polar Express. There is something odd about a bunch of kids on a train without adult supervision. But I thought these teams were fitting for this movie because they don’t have supervision either after firing their coaches. And just like the train ride, I can’t wait for these teams seasons to be over.

Home Alone 2: Bengals

Home Alone is entertaining but over the top ridiculous in some ways. I mean how bad are these parents? You literally put yourself in the same situation two years in a row. I don’t think they are even fit to be parents. And then when Marv and Harry chase after Kevin they get tortured in new and even more ridiculous ways. I mean they wouldn’t have survived the first battle against Kevin but this second round is all sorts of brutal. I’m not one to show sympathy for the Bengals but this season has been painfully bad despite some outstanding play by Burrow and Chase. But their owner and GM are like the parents in the movie. They make the same mistakes over and over again abandoning their players. Plus, Joe Burrow looks like Kevin so I had to use a Home Alone movie. But I love the first movie so I obviously couldn’t use that one.

Family Man: 49ers and Dolphins

Family Man is a movie about a guy who has it all but his life gets flipped upside down when he runs into a guy who is some sort of spirit or something and he sends him into a different reality where he didn’t dump his college girlfriend and is now married to her and has some kids and sells tires. The 49ers and Dolphins started the year with big aspirations but then their seasons got flipped upside down with injuries and their season turned into something they did not expect. But the difference is there is no happy ending for their seasons.

Muppets Christmas Carol: Cardinals, Falcons and Colts

I love the Muppets Christmas Carol. One of my favorite parts of the movie is how Michael Caine plays the whole thing completely straight despite being surrounded by Muppets. While it is awesome it does make the whole movie a little uneven like the two things don’t quite go together. These teams seasons have all been uneven as well and they have all been visited by the ghosts of turnovers, bad losses and the Colts got visited by the Ghost of Christmas past also known as Joe Flacco.

Scrooged: Commanders

Scrooged is an okay movie made great by the always entertaining and exceptionally great Bill Murray. I don’t think the Commanders are really that good but Jayden Daniels makes them entertaining and fun and takes a pretty good team and makes them a solid playoff contender.

Die Hard: Rams and Bucs

I know some will debate that Die Hard is a Christmas Movie but it happens on Christmas Eve and their is Christmas music throughout and many Christmas references including the great line, “Now I have a machine gun, ho, ho, ho.” If that doesn’t say Christmas, I don’t know what does. Anyway, this movie is amazing with John McClane saving the day. Both these teams have had their struggles with their own terrorists in the building only their terrorists have been injuries. But their John McClane can still come to the rescue and lead their teams to playoff success. Matthew Stafford is playing great ball and you all know I love me some Baker! Lookout for these two teams in the playoffs if they win their divisions. Their records might not be great but if they yell yippee Kaya…look out.

The Santa Clause: Texans

We watch this every year. It’s a Christmas staple. It’s not great. It’s not bad. It’s just sort of okay with some really good parts and some not so good parts. But you can count on it at Christmas. Just like you can count on the Texans this year being in the playoffs. They aren’t great. They aren’t bad. They sometimes look good and sometimes look bad. But they play in the AFC south so they will be in the tourney.

Miracle on 34th Street: Chargers and Seahawks

This is the old movie that is actually good. It’s a little slow at parts and never extremely exciting but just a good solid story with a happy conclusion. It’s not a flashy movie but one you can count on. The Chargers and Seahawks aren’t flashy either. They are just solid teams that will likely make the playoffs and lose a close game in the first round.

Love Actually: Broncos

Every Christmas I throw this on because my wife loves it. There are many flaws to the movie that ignore out of true love. While there are a couple good love stories in there in the midst of some just awful stories that include but are not limited to; Hans Gruber attempting to cheat on his wife and getting caught. A loser British guy coming to America and having a sex fest with some American women. And my personal least favorite, Rick from the Walking Dead being the worst best man ever because he is love with his best friend’s wife and then inappropriately goes and tells her that he loves her with some signs. To add to the creep factor, I found out today that Kiera Knightly was only 17 years old when she filmed that and shouldn’t be married to anyone. Gross. Anyway, I do like the funny musician guy and the story of the prime minister and the writer guy’s love stories are pretty good despite being wildly inappropriate. What does this have to do with the Broncos? I don’t know, but I watch this because I love my wife and I watch the Broncos because I love my wife so there’s your connection. Also, the Broncos are pretty good.

Christmas Story: Ravens

Christmas Story is a classic must watch every year. Or at least that is what the world tells us. I remember watching it as a kid in school and I hated it. I actually like it more now as an adult although I still can’t watch when that kid gets his tongue stuck on the ice pole. It’s a pretty good movie actually. The problem is that is on stop and kind of overrated. The Ravens have been hyped up all year and even when they are losing we are supposed to believe they are one of the top teams. They are pretty good but they aren’t great so let’s stop pretending like they are.

The Grinch: Packers

There has been a few renditions of the Grinch story over the years. This most recent one in cartoon form with Dr. Strange voicing the grinch is one of my favorites. It is fun and light hearted but still stays true to the original story and hey who doesn’t think a screaming goat isn’t funny. The Packers are fun and entertaining. I’m not sure how good they really are but I like to watch them and if they lose, my son turns into a grinch.

Christmas Chronicles: Vikings

If you haven’t watched this newer classic on Netflix then you are missing out. This a fun and entertaining adventure that tugs at the heart and is funny throughout. And Kurt Russell as Santa Claus…I bet your thinking that can’t work but it absolutely does. It has become one of our favorite Christmas movies at the Campbell house. Just like Kurt as Santa, it doesn’t seem like it should work for Sam Darnold to be awesome with the Vikings but he is. This team is legit and if they weren’t the Vikings, I’d think that they could make it to the Super Bowl.

Gremlins: Eagles

We watched Gremlins recently. It’s ridiculous and dumb and cheesy but darn is it fun and because it is ridiculous it is funny too. It’s a wonderful mess of a movie involving cute things that become ugly real quick. In case you haven’t seen it in a while, there are just three rules from keeping that from happening. Keep them out of the sunlight, don’t expose them to water and don’t feed them after midnight. It’s an 80s movie so of course all 3 of those things quickly happen. The Eagles can be fun despite their often ridiculous behavior. Nick Siranni is the leader of the pack that often makes terrible decisions and yells at his own fans. The Eagles truly are the team that can turn good things into bad things. AJ Brown is now upset because he isn’t getting the ball enough during the 9 game win streak. They just can’t have nice things and I am sure they will gremlin this thing up sooner rather than later.

The Grinch Who Stole Christmas: Steelers

The original movie is a tried and true Christmas classic. You can’t have Christmas with watching this. It’s short but great and the grinch is an incredible character. The Steelers have been having winning seasons since basically this classic first aired. They are a little grumpy but just like you can’t have Christmas without the grinch, you seldom have the playoffs without the Steelers. And just like the grinch is short, the Steelers time in the playoffs is usually pretty short too.

Home Alone: Bills

Home Alone is a great movie that we kick off the Christmas season every year with on Thanksgiving night. Even though it is ridiculous to not realize you are missing a kid until you are halfway across the world, it sets up a wonderful and funny plot. McCauley Culkin is amazing in it. The robbers are great. The supporting cast is wonderful and John Candy shows up for one of the best cameos ever. Sure the end is ridiculous. I mean, how does he set up all those traps in less than an hour? Also, the robbers would have died about halfway through the traps. But it makes for good slapstick humor and you can’t beat that. The Bills are fun and lovable and everyone cheers for them and wants them to win. They are an NFL classic. And their season always ends in some ridiculous way too. The problem is that it never ends with a happy ending. On a side note, anyone else notice that the whole family comes home, celebrates Kevin for about a minute and a half and then they all just walk away and ignore him again? If that was my family, I’d want them to disappear too.

Elf: Lions

Elf is one of my favorite Christmas movies. Will Ferrell is amazing and Bob Newhart is so good as Papa Elf. It is so well casted and executed. When Will Ferrell gets hit by the Taxi and then pops back up, I laugh so hard, I usually cry. It’s got heart and is a strong humorous movie through out. The Lions are a great team. Right now they are probably the best team. They have heart. The execute exceptionally well. They are great across the board and don’t have any glaring weaknesses. So why aren’t they number 1. It’s simple, with the game on the line, who do you trust? Dan Campbell and Jared Goff or Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes?

Christmas Vacation: Chiefs

This is the best Christmas movie ever. It has no weaknesses. A Dad trying to pull off a ridiculously perfect Christmas. Parents and in laws that are polar opposites. A wife trying to hold it all together. Two kids trying to avoid everyone. Hilarity ensues throughout. And then Cousin Eddie shows up. The interaction with the neighbors and really just from beginning to end it is smart funny at times, ridiculous funny at times and then just physical humor at times. It’s an exceptional perfect Christmas movie even though the ending is ridiculous. Speaking of ridiculous endings…The Chiefs know no bounds. Toe just out of bounds, late PI call, overtime coin toss win, blocked kick, fumbled snap by the opponent to lose the game, and now the doink for the division. This team is ridiculously perfect. Everyone says their luck will run out. What if it doesn’t? I sort of don’t think it will. You can ask my family, I literally was laughing out loud at the end of this week’s game. I think there are 4 or 5 teams that are probably better than them right now. But do I think any of them will beat the Chiefs with everything on the line? I do not. And that is why they are the best.

It’s time for 5 for Friday! I’m a day late but I don’t get paid to do this so you will get over it. It’s already week 14 and 6 teams are on bye but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any games to watch this weekend. But it will be stress free Sunday afternoon. The Packers already lost, the Broncos are on bye and the Chiefs don’t play until the night. So let’s dive into the action.

Much Watch Winston: Browns @ Steelers on CBS at 11 AM mountain time

If Jameis Winston is playing then I am watching. The often boring Browns and Steelers just got real exciting. I haven’t checked the weather but maybe we will have another snow game and George Pickens can blame the loss on the elements that favor the Browns for some unknown reason. We know Winston is going to throw lots of touchdowns. We just don’t know which team he is going to throw them to. If his prayers are answered it then it will be the Browns. But I am not sure how important delivering Winston from pick sixes is to Jesus. I mean he gets a lot of requests and I am not sure a bad football player playing poorly is high on the priority list. Meanwhile, the Steelers are slightly less boring than usual at least when they play the Bengals and put up a bunch of points. I am still waiting for a clever catch phrase from Russ. “We are here to steel a victory and your hearts”. “Playing us must be the Pitts…burgh.” But I’ve got nothing from him yet. Until I do, I refuse to cheer for him. Winston will surely give some rousing speeches as well as pre, mid and post game interviews. Unfortunately being fun and giving good speeches does not equal wins. I don’t see the Steelers going 0-2 against the Browns so give me Russ and the gang in this one but I’ll be cheering for Winston and his pick sixes to be delivered and deliver a victory.

Steelers 31 Browns 20

Kirk’s return home: Falcons @ Vikings on Fox at 11 AM mountain time

Kirk spent several years playing pretty good football in Minnesota. He hopes that a return back will help him play pretty good football again because he has been awful this year except when he is playing the Bucs. He threw 4 interceptions last week and doesn’t seem to be able to move. People are beginning to say they should put in the rookie and bench Kirk. Not exactly a ringing endorsement for quarterback whose team is currently leading their division. They have lost 3 in a row and have not looked great. To make matters worse for Kirk, the guy who took his place who had been awful everywhere is all of the sudden awesome and tearing it up with the coaches and players that used to make Kirk look good. Perhaps, just maybe neither of them were or are that good and instead Kevin O’Connell is just a really good coach and throwing to Justin Jefferson makes things a lot easier. Regardless this should be a good game. The Vikings are playing well especially defensively. But they have also escaped some close ones. This is an 11 am road game so Kirk should play pretty well. The Vikings are clearly better and the Falcons are desperate for a win. Maybe I am just a softy for good natured Kirk but I think he pulls the upset.

Falcons 27 Vikings 20

Battle of the Western Birds: Seahawks @ Cardinals on CBS at 2:05 PM Mountain time

The Seahawks are one game ahead of the Cardinals in the lead of the NFC West just like everyone expected. Most assumed the 49ers were going to win it again. But smart people like me assumed their injury woes would return and picked the Rams. The Rams are just a game out and have a shot but it would be helpful to them if the Cardinals won. I did pick the Seahawks to make the playoffs as a wild card and that could still happen but is unlikely because of the Commanders record and the NFC North being so good. The Cardinals came out of nowhere and I did not expect them to be good but they have been pretty solid. They almost beat the Vikings last week but almost doesn’t count when you are trying to win a division. Both teams have been up and down and last time they played it wasn’t a very exciting game as the Seahawks won 16-6. Hopefully this one will be a little more entertaining. I’ll be cheering for James Conner and Kenneth Walker since I have both of them on a fantasy team. Kyler Murray is trying to overcome his shortness and Geno Smith is trying to overcome being Geno Smith to try and win the division. If Seattle wins they don’t clinch but it could be tough for anyone to catch them. This seems like a division that someone is going to win at 9-8 and will go down to the wire. So give me the Cardinals in a little more high scoring game this time.

Cardinals 27 Seahawks 24

The AFC West title game: Chargers @ Chiefs on NBC at 6:20 PM mountain time

Okay so only the Chiefs have a chance at clinching the AFC West but only the Chargers really have a shot to catch the Chiefs. The Broncos are right there and already have two division losses. The Chiefs have a big lead because of overall record and can wrap things up. The Chargers have been playing better ball this year by not making all the dumb mistakes they made last year. They are the classic pretty good team that beats everyone they should and loses to everyone they should. There is nothing wrong with that in this stage of the Harbaugh era. Also, does something seem off with Jim Harbaugh like he isn’t all there? Dude seems like he aged 15 years in the last 2. Watching his press conferences is a little like watching Biden press conferences. But whatever is going on with him, it’s working as the Chargers are much improved. According to the Sports media world, the Chiefs are terrible and the worst 11-1 team in history and will lose in the first round of the playoffs. Of course most of the people saying that spent most of their careers as coaches and players not making the playoffs but hey they have been around football their whole lives so that makes them an expert. I’ve been around pizza my whole life, that doesn’t make me an expert on Italy. The Chiefs do look a bit flawed but which Chiefs team do you feel better about in week 14? This year’s team or last year’s team? I feel significantly better about this year’s team. The new guy is going to start at left tackle and he can’t possibly be worse. They will take the training wheels off Pacheco this week. Kareem Hunt is a great story and he helped one of my fantasy teams win a bunch of games when my other players got injured but he is slowing down. They should still use him in short yardage and goal line situations but I think Pacheco has a big game on Sunday night. Mahomes has been playing well and has just been a hair off on some deep balls that I think he will hit now that he is not scared for his life of getting blasted by whoever is rushing against the left tackle. I think we not only win but win big…well big for the us.

Chiefs 31 Chargers 20

The elimination game of teams I hate: Bengals @ Cowboys on ESPN at 6:15 pm Monday night

Both these teams are barely hanging on to playoff relevancy. It has mostly to do with the rest of their respected conferences being just awful after the first 7 to 8 teams. But they are both technically in it. The Bengals average like 50 points a game but unfortunately for Bengals fans their defense gives up 55 points a game. The Cowboys have been a little bit more up and down besides when they play at home and get trounced by every team that isn’t starting Drew Lock at quarterback. Cooper Rush hasn’t been terrible and that Bengals defense will surely make him look like Joe Burrow in this one. This should be a high scoring affair which is partially why it made my list this week. But also no matter who loses we all win. If the Cowboys lose again at home it is hilarious and if the Bengals lose again then they are 4-9 and officially done. And it is always fun when the self proclaimed “team to beat” always gets beat. The hardest part is predicting who will win because both of these teams have been so awful at winning this year. I’ll go with the Bengals since the Cowboys are at home. And Joe Burrow’s bad luck has to run out at some point…right? Let’s hope not but I think it does.

Bengals 107 Cowboys 102

The Lions play the Packers tonight. I’ll be cheering for the Packers because my son is a huge fan of the Pack and he is very fussy when they lose. So Go Pack Go. But the Lions are finally good and like legitimately good for the first time in my life. So I thought it would be fun to remember some of those Lions you likely forgot.

10. Jeff Campbell

Yes that is right, they had a guy named Jeff Campbell. He played wide receiver for 3 or 4 years in the early 90s. The best part of his game was that he was on Tecmo Super Bowl so I could play with the Lions and see my name on the game running around. Of course I rarely got to play because I didn’t have video games as a kid. So I only got to play when I went to a friend’s house and I was always get crushed because they played all the time and I didn’t. That wasn’t as bad as when we played super mario brothers though and my turn took 3 minutes and their turn took an hour and half. Anyway, I am sure my lack of playing video games allowed me to use my imagination and become such a great writer. So your welcome and you should thank my parents.

9. Rodney Peete

Rodney was an All-American at USC and then was drafted by the Lions. He did quite well at handing off Barry Sanders. He also married Holly Robinson of 21st Jump Street and hanging with Mr. Cooper fame and she is also easy on the eyes.

8. Andre Ware

Ware was a Heisman winner and the idea was to pair him with another Heisman winner Barry Sanders. The problem was that Ware barely saw the field. Ware threw a whopping 161 passes in his career.

7. Herman Moore

Herman was Calvin Johnson before it was cool to be Calvin Johnson. Moore absolutely tore it up in the NFL. He had over 100 receptions 3 years in a row including 123 in 1995 including 14 touchdowns. And he didn’t have Matthew Stafford throwing to him, he had Rodney Peete and Erik Kramer throwing to him. And also the next guy on the list.

6. Scott Mitchell

Scott Mitchell came in for Dan Marino when he got hurt and played really well for 4 or 5 games. So the Lions decided to give him a bunch of money to be their starter. Mitchell got hurt his first year with Detroit. The second year he played pretty well and then after that he threw about as many interceptions as touchdowns. The Lions wanted their money back.

5. Dan Orlovsky

Dan only started 7 games and now is famous for his solid takes on ESPN. But he makes the list for famously running out of the back of the end zone for no apparent reason.

4. Joey Harrington

The Lions picked Joey 3rd overall and their bad luck with quarterbacks continued as he was not good. He started for a few years until the Lions gave up on him and then he bounced around the league for a while. He seems like a pretty good guy. He was not a pretty good quarterback.

3. Bennie Blades

Bennie was a baller. He could cover and he could tackle. He was a physical safety who was part of the crazy good teams of the University of Miami. He didn’t win nearly as much with the Lions but it wasn’t his fault. Also, as a side note, his brother Brian played receiver for the Seahawks.

2. Chris Spielman

Spielman was a very good linebacker that was a force to be reckoned with. He was often a league leader in tackles. He was also a pretty terrible commentator for Fox for a while. Now he works in the Lions office and now finally gets to be a part of the Lions winning some games.

1. Mel Gray

Gray was quite the return man. He returned 9 kicks for touchdowns and he was named to the all 1990s team. He also played at Coffeyville Community College and shared the backfield with Mike Rozier who went on to play at Nebraska and in the pros with the Houston Oilers. He gets to be number 1 because my Dad wrote 2 books about the Coffeyville football program and Mel gets mentioned in there. I don’t remember if he is in volume 1 or 2 or why there is two volumes but copies are available if you are interested.

Tune into tomorrow for 5 for Friday!