Rams Look To Go 3-0 Against Tampa Bay Buccaneers

By Zakary Haines

LOS ANGELES- After a close call against the Indianapolis Colts, the Los Angeles Rams are looking to stay undefeated in the 2021 season. This next match-up will not be easy. Their opponent are none other than the reigning Super Bowl champions, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This game will be a significant test for this Rams squad, as they hope to prove they belong in the Super Bowl conversation. It will be a clash of two of the best teams in the NFC and possibly of the entire league.

The Rams defense has one goal, distribute the offense. Tom Brady has had an outstanding season so far: nine touchdowns, 655 passing yards, and a 113.3 quarterback rating. Brady is on a roll the league has not seen since his first MVP season in 2007. If the Rams want any chance of slowing down the Buccaneers’ offense, they will need to go after Brady early and often. Expect plays to get Aaron Donald involved, and blitz plays to get hits on Brady. As for the secondary, they will need to lock down Rob Gronkowski. He has been outstanding on the offensive side. Gronkowski currently has four touchdowns, 129 receiving yards out of 12 receptions. Brady has relied on Gronkowski to be his bail-out option during passing plays. If the Rams can stop Gronkowski, it will be much easier to slow down Brady.

As for the Rams offense, the most significant factor will be how well Matthew Stafford plays. Stafford has had a tremendous start with five passing touchdowns, 599 passing yards, and a quarterback rating of 127.0. Stafford will have to play close to perfect against Tampa Bay’s defense. The Bucs’ defense is nothing to laugh at. Players like Vita Vea, Devin White, and Mike Edwards have been performing at a similar level to last season. However, the one weakness seen is the secondary. Tampa Bay has allowed 3rd most passing yards in the league. If Stafford can find lapses in the coverage, he will have no issues getting the ball to his targets.

As for the run game, it may not matter too much unless it is third down and short. The running back duties come down to Sony Michel and Jake Funk as Darrell Henderson Jr is dealing with a rib injury. Henderson is currently listed as questionable and will be a game-time decision. Do not expect a lot from the running game early on, but later in the second half. If the Rams can establish a balanced offense, Tampa Bay will have their hands full.

Finally, Sean McVay has proven to be a headache to coach against. McVay is known for causing mismatches and creating opportunities through confusing the opposing defense. So far, this has been the case against the Bears and Colts. McVay will give Kupp, and Woods plays where they can cause confusion and get wide open. Regardless, McVay will be up against Bruce Arians, who, in his own right, is a coaching mastermind as well. This will be one of the best games to watch in week three as FOX has this game as their “game of the week.” Kickoff is set for 4:25 pm est on FOX.

Lions vs Ravens Pre-Game 0-2 Record

By Mark Halpern

Last week the Lions faced off against their divisional rival, the Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers was completing passes through the defense, making them look like a slice of Swiss cheese. The Offense came out hot by scoring two touchdowns and a field goal before the half showing the NFL that they are contenders in this league. Then came the second half, and the Offense disappeared. The defense allowed Aaron Jones to run wild and catch passes in the flat. It was the 2 Aaron’s show this past weekend, and the Packers won 35-17.

This week is not a more manageable challenge for the Lions as they face the Baltimore Ravens. This Ravens team took down one of the most potent teams in the NFL, and that was the Chiefs. Lamar Jackson is a beast, plain and simple. I have said he would do better as a running back/wide receiver and not a QB. I was proven wrong as he not only rushed for 100+ he also threw for 239 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. This Raven team is showing the AFC that they are the top contenders.

How can the Lions beat the Ravens? Well, everyone will tell you that you must stop Lamar Jackson. That’s like telling Willi E Coyote he was going to catch the Road Runner on Sunday. The first is that the Lions need Deandre Swift and Jamaal Williams to have big days. The Lions must control the clock by gaining first downs a lot more than they have been. The Lions have always been a team known for going three and out on an average day.
Jared Goff must come out and play as he has been. Over his first two games with the Lions, he has thrown for 584 yards and five touchdowns to go along with two interceptions.

Goff must keep this going; however, the Baltimore defense is no slouch either. T.J. Hockenson has been Goff’s favorite target so far. Hockenson is in his second season and has found a grove with Goff at the helm. Goff also likes to throw the screen pass, and Swift and Williams are good pass-catching running backs.The Baltimore defense knows how to fly around the zone and pick off passes. They have an excellent defensive line and a good linebacking core. So don’t expect the Lions to put up huge numbers in this game. The Lion’s defense must come out and stop one of the best players in the league. You control Lamar Jackson; you control this game. So, the key to controlling Jackson is by getting constant pressure and forcing him into throws that he does not want to make, but if Jackson gets away from the blitz and gets a lane to run, you are in trouble.

The Lions can run and gun and score points, but they have been playing from behind in this season’s first two games, and I don’t see a change happening soon. I see the Ravens going into Detroit and again keeping the roar a meow yet again. Ravens win 31-17

Browns Bounce Back Beat Texans Host Bears on Sunday

By Lawrence Lang

The Cleveland Browns bounced back from their week one loss as they defeated the Houston Texans 31-21 in the Browns home opener.

Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield let the team victory, going 19/21 213 passing yards, one touchdown, one interception, and one rushing touchdown. The Browns running game was also on point. Nick Chubb had 11 carries, and 95 rushing yards, a touchdown, and even Fullback Andy Janovich joined the party by getting his first rushing touchdown of the season. This was a minor step up from week one as the defense got one sack, interception, forced two fumbles, and recovered one.

The big question coming out of Sunday’s victory was Mayfield’s shoulder condition after he attempted to make a tackle granted. After the missed tackle, the injury didn’t stop Mayfield from playing the rest of the game but still raised the question: was the injury severe or not? As of Wednesday, Mayfield did participate in full practice. The injury was his non-throwing arm, but Mayfield could still be a game-time decision depending on what transpires over the next 24 hours. If Mayfield is unable to play, Case Keenum will get the start.

Another big question for Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears is Odell Beckem Jr ready to go? All signs lead to yes Beckem Jr being ready to make his season debut after suffering a season-ending ACL injury in week 7 of the 2020 season. Before the injury accord, Becke, Jr was having a decent 2020 season with a 50% target completion 23 of 43 319 total yards and three touchdowns and one rushing Touchdown. With Beckem Jr back, it would help the Browns out in the wide receiver end with Jarvis Landry out with an MCL sprain.

Bears come into week three 1-1 and are coming off a close win in week two against the Cincinnati Bengals. With Andy Dalton out with a knee injury, Rookie Justin Fields will get his first career start, and the 11th overall pick in the 2021 draft will look to impress the Bears front office and Head coach Matt Naggy. If Fields can impress in their first career start, it could be a sign of change for the Bears as that their quarterback is ready to take charge in his first year in the league and not a later date in time.

Surprisingly enough, this is an excellent Quarterback matchup in Fields and Mayfield as they are the new generation of quarterbacks taking over in the league. Mayfield has been in the league for a few years now, but for Fields, this is a great first start matchup for him, and if he impresses and becomes the starter for a while, we can see Fields vs. Aaron Rodgers in Week 6. The Matchup would probably be his biggest test as a starter, going against the three-time MVP.

Kickoff for the Bears and Browns is slated for 1 PM with the weather being in the low 70’s and partly cloudy, which should make for a great Sunday fall game.

Back In Looking Like Significant Contenders

By Lawrence Lang

The Bills bounced back after week one as they routed the Miami Dolphins in the Dolphins home opener, winning 35-0 in what was a much-needed win for Bills after they lost last week.

The Bills got on the board early after forcing the Dolphins to punt. Quarterback Josh Allen would throw an incomplete pass, then on 2nd and 10, He would hand the ball off to Running Back Devin Singlerterry, and he would take it to the house for 46 yards to put the Bills up 7-0 after the extra point. Singletary would finish the day with 13 carries and 82 yards rushing, and one touchdown.

Allen would get it going again; It would only take seven plays for a touchdown pass to Wide Receiver Stefon Diggs (a five-yard pass) to make the Bills go up 14-0. Allen would finish the day 17/33 179 yards passing two touchdowns and one interception. Running Back Zack Moss added to the route, having eight carries for 26 yards and two touchdowns. In what was a significant improvement from week one, The Bills offense played like they should, and it proved when the offense is clicking, they are able to show they can be one of the top offenses in the league.

they also stepped up from week one, on the defense side , getting six sacks, two on Tua Tagovailoa, and four on Jacoby Brissett. Sacks came from Matt Milano (1), Taron Johnson (1), Justin Zimmer (1), Micha Hyde (1), and Greg Rousseau (2). Bills Defence also forced three fumbles, two of which they recovered. Ultimately The Bills Defence would force six punts, and when the Dolphins went for it on fourth down, they went four for four in stopping them. Thedefence proves just like the offense when this defense is on they are hard to score points on.

The bigger question to come out of this game is the status of Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. He would take a brutal hit that would knock him out of the game with a rib injury, and as of yesterday, September 22nd, he has been ruled out of Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raider, and Jacoby Brissett will get the start. Hopefully, Tagovailoa will be ready for the Dolphin’s week four against the Indianapolis Colts. We know a rib injury is brutal to come back from cause you are basically day-to-day every day and if team doctors feel you’re not medically cleared to play, you don’t play.

As for the Bills, they will head home to take on the 1-1 Washington Football Team in a 1 PM Sunday Game. Washington comes off a Thursday night win over the New York Giants 30-29 where Quarterback Taylor Heinicke Step up big time going 34/36 336 passing yards two touchdowns and one interception. So you are able to catch this game and watch it cause it could be a surprising game of the week.

Chiefs Look to Recharge

By Mike Rifkin

For the first time in his career Patrick Mahomes is coming off a loss in September. The Chiefs lost to the Ravens 36-35. Mahomes threw for 343 three touchdowns and an interception. Through two games Mahomes has thrown for 680 yards six touchdowns and an interception. The Chiefs will look to rebound against division rival Los Angeles Chargers. 

Last season the Chiefs and Chargers split their two meetings. The Chiefs won in Los Angeles in week 2 23-20 in overtime. The Chargers won at Arrowhead in week 17 as the Chiefs had rested their starters because they had clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. In five games against the Chargers Patrick Mahomes has a 61.2 completion percentage with 1,157 yards, which is an average of 231.4 yards per game 10 touchdowns and two interceptions. Tight End Travis Kelce has 60 catches for 583 yards and three touchdowns vs Chargers. Tyreek Hill is looking to rebound after a tough game against the Ravens where he had three catches for 14 yards. In nine career games against the Chargers Hill has scored eight touchdowns. 

The Chargers are also looking to bounce back after losing last Sunday to the Dallas Cowboys 20-17. Los Angeles is led by second year quarterback Justin Herbert, who in two games against the Chiefs last season completed 68.8 percent of his passes for 613 yards averaging 306.5 per game four touchdowns and an interception. Star receiver Keenan Allen averages 73.3 yards per game against the Chiefs with three touchdowns in 11 games played. On the other side Mike Williams has four touchdowns in seven career games against Kansas City. 

Last week in Baltimore Steve Spagnuolo’s defense had a hard time stopping the run, as the Ravens rushed for 251 yards including 107 from Lamar Jackson. The Chargers as a team have run for 185 yards so far. As great as Justin Herbert’s arm is, the plan should be to run the ball against this defense and keep Mahomes off the field. Throw records out the door when division rivals meet because anything can happen. 

Birds Fly South

By: Mike Rifkin

The Cardinals have started this season 2-0. This week they travel to Jacksonville to play the winless Jaguars. The Cardinals are coming off a 34-33 victory over the Vikings after Greg Joseph missed a game winning field goal. The Cardinals were in the same position in 2020 and lost in week 3 to the Lions.  This could be considered a trap game for the Cardinals after they played a tough game against the Vikings and next week they get into the meat of their schedule with their first meeting with the Rams. 

Kyler Murray has had a strong start to his season by completing 73.5 percent of his passes for 689 yards, seven touchdowns and three interceptions. Murray has added two rushing touchdowns. Murray is averaging 10.1 yards per completion. One of the bigger questions for the Cardinals this season was can someone opposite Deandre Hopkins step up? The answer through two games is yes, in week 1 Christain Kirk had two touchdowns and last week was a coming out party for rookie Rondale Moore who had 7 catches for 114 yards and a touchdown. The offense will try to continue it’s great start on Sunday.  The Cards defense struggled a little bit against Minnesota, expect them to rebound against the Jags especially the pass rush. 

The Jaguars are coming off a 23-13 loss against the Denver Broncos. In that game Trevor Lawrence the first overall pick was 14-33 for 118 yards a touchdown and two interceptions. Through two games   Lawrence has completed 50 percent  of his passes for 450 yards, 4 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. The Jaguars went in a similar direction this past offseason as the Cardinals did by hiring a head coach out of college and taking a quarterback first in the draft so there are going to be growing pains in Jacksonville. Last season undrafted running back James Robinson ran for 1,070 yards and seven touchdowns. Through two games this season Robinson only has a total of 16 carries and as a team the Jaguars have only rushed for 151, the Cardinals on the other side have run for 239 yards.  Receiver Marvin Jones Jr. leads the Jaguars with 11 catches for 132 yards and two touchdowns. 

The Cardinals can’t afford to look past the Jags Sunday. Last season the Cards started 2-0 and lost to the Lions at home.  After this game the Cardinals schedule gets difficult with games against the Rams, 49ers, and Browns coming up so they have to get the win this week. 

Jacksonville Jaguars Week 2 Post-Game

By: Noah Trombley

The Jaguars continued their disappointing season this past week with a loss to the Denver Broncos by a score of 23 to 13. There were not a lot of positives to take from this game and the struggles just continued. 

Urban Meyer just showed once again that he is not ready for the NFL level of coaching and he is more designed for a college system. Trevor Lawrence and the offense had one positive drive to start the game and it looked like they would turn it around. However after that drive the offense production plummeted and never was able to rebound the rest of the game. Lawrence went 14/33 with only 118 yards, one touchdown, and 2 picks. The rushing attack only produced 75 yards and no touchdowns as the coaching staff continued to not use James Robinson efficiently. Lawrence just couldn’t get anything going and so far in his pro career he’s had the worst two performances of his career and these are not just rookie growing pains, these are just pure awful performances and it just comes down to coaching. 

On the other side the defense just continued to struggle and no rhythm was to be found while battling the Broncos. Teddy Bridgewater absolutely carved up the Jaguars secondary for 328 yards and two touchdowns. 9 of those receptions went to Courtland Sutton who had over 150 yards receiving. He gave the matchups nightmares all game and the Jaguars coaching staff just couldn’t adjust to him all game. The rushing attack also added almost 100 yards between Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon. This defense needs a lot of work during this upcoming offseason and this includes getting a true shutdown corner as CJ Henderson was getting burned all game and couldn’t regain any momentum. The Jaguars did manage to nab three sacks during the game which is the only positive thing to take from the defense in this game, they were able to generate some pressure on the QB put not enough to account for the terrible secondary play. 

The Jaguars need to already think about changing up the coaching staff as Urban Meyer is clearly not designed for the pro game and needs to head back to college where he won’t lose. He is probably destined for a certain California team that just fired their head coach this past week. 

Murray Magic

By: Mike Rifkin

On Sunday the Arizona Cardinals defeated the Minnesota Vikings 34-33. Vikings kicker Greg Joseph missed a potential game winning 37 yard field goal as time expired to secure the win for Arizona. Joseph earlier in the game had missed an extra point. The win sends the Cardinals to 2-0 and puts the Vikings at 0-2.

Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray threw for 400 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. Murray also added a rushing touchdown. Murray found a new weapon in this offense as Rondale Moore, the rookie out of Purdue, had seven catches for 114 yards and a 77 yard touchdown catch. AJ Green, the big time free agent acquisition, had three catches 44 yards and a touchdown, his first as a Cardinal. The Cardinals as a team ran for 103 yards a week after running for 136 yards. Cardinals kicker Matt Prater connected on a 27 yard field goal to give Arizona the lead late in the fourth quarter. Prior to halftime Prater connected on a 62 yard field goal which is now a Cardinals record, but for Prater he hit a 64 yard field goal in 2013 while kicking for the Broncos. 

Kirk Cousins threw for 244 yards and three touchdowns. Dalvin Cook ran for 131 yards in the loss for Minnesota. In week 1 the Cardinals defense forced three turnovers, on Sunday they didn’t force any and only sacked Cousins once. Cousins was hit four times three by Chandler Jones who was coming off that five sack performance against the Titans. 

Arizona will now hit the road for three of their next four games starting on Sunday as they play the Jaguars in Jacksonville. This could be considered a trap game for the Cardinals because the game on Sunday was tough and the following week they go to Los Angeles and play the Rams before hosting the 49ers, the other 2-0 teams in the NFC West. In 2020 the Cardinals started 2-0 before losing to the Lions, if the Cardinals want to make the playoffs they can’t look past this game. 

Lamar Runs Wild

By: Mike Rifkin

For the first time in 2021 the Kansas City Chiefs were defeated by the Baltimore Ravens 36-35. For the first time in his career Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson defeated Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. Jackson had been 0-3 vs Kansas City in his career prior to Sunday night. Jackson had himself a night throwing for 239 yards and a touchdown, and added 107 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. With a little over a minute left in the fourth quarter on fourth down Ravens coach John Harbaugh asked Jackson if he wanted to go for it and ice the game, they did and the gutsy call paid off as Jackson used his legs like he had all night to secure the win for the Ravens. Baltimore got the ball late in the fourth quarter when Kansas City running back Clyde Edwards Helaire for the first time fumbled in the NFL. 

For Patrick Mahomes it was his first loss against Lamar Jackson, but it was also his first loss in the month of September in his entire career. Sunday night Mahomes went 24-31 for 343 yards three touchdowns and an interception. Tight End Travis Kelce had 109 yards and a touchdown on seven catches. Byron Pringle and Demarcus Robinson had the other two touchdown catches. Receiver Tyreek Hill who had almost 200 yards in week 1 vs Cleveland was taken away by the Ravens defense as he had 29 yards on four touches. 

The Chiefs run defense in this game was awful. They gave up 251 yards rushing to the Ravens. 18 of Baltimore’s 31 first downs came from their rushing attack. The Chiefs knew it was coming and still were not able to contain it. One situation the Ravens took advantage of was that the Chiefs were moving defensive tackle Chris Jones to the edge to get more pressure on quarterbacks, which begs the question why? Jones is the second best interior defensive lineman in the NFL and in this game there were times he was confused as to how to defend the zone read. The Chiefs defense did get back safety Tyrann Mathieu who had two interceptions, including returning one for a touchdown. The Chiefs will look to rebound on Sunday as they prepare for their first AFC West contest as they welcome the Chargers to Arrowhead.

Cowboys vs Chargers Post Game

Cowboys running game shows up

By Mark Halpern

So last week, the Cowboys run game was, as I said, was nonexistent; however, that wasn’t the case today. We saw an equally balanced offensive game plan established from the start of the game.

     Ezekiel Elliott returned to form today with the help of a tremendous offensive line. Zeke looked like he did in his first year in 2016; he burst through holes and showed off some speed that last year was an issue. He looked focused and ready to take every chance and turn it into a positive performance. Zeke took 16 carries and turned them into 71 yards and a score. He also chipped in the passing game with 2 receptions for 26 yards. He also did well in the blocking for Dak Prescott, picking up several vital blitzes and gave more time for Dak to throw.

    Now Zeke wasn’t the only one running the ball. Tony Pollard also had a significant day on both the running game and the passing game. Pollard has been Zeke’s back/change of pace runner; however, he showed why he deserves to be in the game more today. Tony took 13 carries and turned it into 109 yards and a score of his own. Pollard also had 3 receptions for 31 yards, and the duo was of Zeke, and Pollard was unreal as the two of them put up a total of 180 yards on the ground. This is the formula you need to win a football game.

    As for the Passing game, it wasn’t Dak’s best outing. Dak threw for 237 yards and one interception and no touchdowns. His passes were good except for the one that sailed on him and was intercepted. Cee Dee Lamb was his favorite target with 8 receptions for 81 yards. Lamb took a pass at the end of the first half and made a great move and turned the ball up field, Zeke was running right alongside him, and right before the Chargers caught up with him, he pitched the ball back to Elliot, who almost made it in the endzone and got pushed out at the 2. So, the passing game was not at its best but, they moved the chains well, and besides the one interception Dak looked good.

    The defense, on the other hand, had a mixed day. They missed some key players, moved around linebackers to play at the line, had an extra defensive back in at times, and stopped the run, which they accomplished last week. The defense also got 2 sacks and forced two interceptions. They failed again in the passing game, letting Justin Herbert throw for the tune of 338 yards and 1 touchdown, and the two interceptions. This has been a Cowboys weak spot for years now, and Mike Williams made Anthony Brown look worse than a rookie. Williams had 7 for 91 yards and a score, Keenan Allen had 4 receptions that went for 108 yards that was good enough to lead the team, and Austin Ekeler also had 9 receptions for 91 yards. The secondary got rocked again but, when passes were to the endzone, the “no-fly zone” showed up and took care of business.  

    This was an excellent win for the Cowboys and a much needed one because starting 0-2 is almost a death sentence in most cases. The Cowboys are home to take on division rival the Philadelphia Eagles in a battle that should be great as both teams are 1-1 and hungry for wins. The Cowboys are two different teams, and when the good and bad come together and start playing at the level I know they can be, it will be a very dangerous football team.