Sunday Countdown online: Your weekly NFL guide
Weekly Picks |
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| Ditka | Johnson | Carter | Jackson | ||
| Houston @ Tennessee | Tennessee | Tennessee | Tennessee | Tennessee | |
| Carolina @ Atlanta | Atlanta | Atlanta | Atlanta | Atlanta | |
| New Orleans @ Philadelphia | Philadelphia | New Orleans | New Orleans | New Orleans | |
| Minnesota @ Detroit | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota | |
| Oakland @ Kansas City | Oakland | Kansas City | Oakland | Oakland | |
| New England @ New York Jets | New York Jets | New York Jets | New York Jets | New York Jets | |
| Cincinnati @ Green Bay | Green Bay | Green Bay | Green Bay | Green Bay | |
| St. Louis @ Washington | Washington | Washington | Washington | Washington | |
| Arizona @ Jacksonville | Jacksonville | Jacksonville | Arizona | Jacksonville | |
| Tampa Bay @ Buffalo | Buffalo | Buffalo | Buffalo | Buffalo | |
| Seattle @ San Francisco | San Francisco | Seattle | Seattle | Seattle | |
| Pittsburgh @ Chicago | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh | |
| Baltimore @ San Diego | Baltimore | San Diego | San Diego | Baltimore | |
| Cleveland @ Denver | Denver | Cleveland | Cleveland | Denver | |
| New York Giants @ Dallas | New York Giants | New York Giants | New York Giants | New York Giants | |
| Indianapolis @ Miami | Miami | Miami | Miami | Indianapolis | |
| Week 1 Record | 13-3 | 14-2 | 12-4 | 13-3 | |
| Overall Record | 13-3 | 14-2 | 12-4 | 13-3 | |
| More picks: Our other experts' selections | SportsNation: Pick Week 2 games | |||||
Countdown Confidential
Eagles playing QB musical chairs: When you walk into the Eagles' locker room, the stalls where the quarterbacks dress are just to your left -- and, these days, those stalls are a very unsettled scene.
Start with Jeff Garcia. He now gets dressed in a locker once occupied by Michael Vick. Vick has moved into the locker once owned by A.J. Feeley, who has joined the Panthers to back up Jake Delhomme, who was benched last Sunday after coughing up five turnovers in a nasty loss to the Eagles.
Donovan McNabb is walking around with a muscle-stimulating machine attached to his hip, hoping that the fractured rib he suffered last week will heal enough to allow him to start against the Saints on Sunday. But that's unlikely.
Bob Donnan/US Presswire
Can Kevin Kolb step up and lead the Eagles in Donovan McNabb's absence?
Vick is not eligible to return from suspension until Week 3, and Garcia just arrived from the West Coast on Tuesday.
So, it looks like when this odd episode of Quarterback Roulette finally ends, Kevin Kolb will be making his first NFL start on Sunday in the Eagles' home opener. He could not be under more pressure -- and he knows it.
Kolb is in his third NFL season, and he's 25 years old, but he's had two shaky outings in relief -- against Baltimore last year and in Charlotte in Week 1. In those two games, he's had 18 offensive possessions. Six have resulted in turnovers, and the team has scored zero points.
"I've gotten opportunities and haven't done the best job with them," Kolb said. "No excuses. If I'd come out and had five touchdowns and zero fumbles, this wouldn't be an issue."
But it is. If Kolb falters early, watch for Andy Reid to spin that roulette wheel again and call Garcia's number. By the way, he's now wearing No. 9. The last time he was here, Garcia wore No. 7. But that number now belongs to Vick.
-- Sal Paolantonio
Is Sanchez ready for Belichick, Pats? Jets coach Rex Ryan is … Rex Ryan, so when asked how he thinks young quarterback Mark Sanchez will fare "going against" Bill Belichick this Sunday, he joked, "We hope Belichick plays because I don't think we'll have a problem with that, to be honest with you." Of course, Ryan knows that Belichick's defensive schemes are hardly a laughing matter -- and that the Patriots' coach has a particular talent for confusing rookie signal-callers.
"He comes up with some great schemes," Ryan said. "I've stolen from him in the past -- we have a Patriot coverage we've played for years."
Still, Ryan is not giving Sanchez too much extra homework this week, and Sanchez too is trying to just keep things as normal as possible. After all, he knows its unlikely he'd be able to predict what Belichick is going to come up with.
"We can see anything," Sanchez said. "There are plenty of routes that they can go. Whether it's trying to confuse us with a bunch of blitzes or overloading one side and leaving one side free, whether it's games up front, they have it all and they've shown it. Or, they might just play coverage and make me check the ball down and not throw it down the field or man-to-man."
The one thing Sanchez does know for sure? How big a deal this game is. He said: "This rivalry, when you talk to fans, all you hear -- 'Oh, just beat the Patriots.'"
-- Rachel Nichols
Week 2: Numbers Crunching
Patriots at Jets, 1 p.m.
The New England offense is happy to travel. The Patriots were second in the league in road DVOA despite placing only 17th at home.
Teams usually perform better in the shotgun, but the Jets' offense had a 15.4 percent DVOA under center a year ago (fourth-best in the league) and a -14.9 percent DVOA in the shotgun (26th). The Patriots' defense might find that to be a problem; they were 26th in the league themselves at stopping teams under center, but 10th against teams in the shotgun.
• More Patriots-Jets Intel Report
Saints at Eagles, 1 p.m.
If you're gonna try and stop the Saints' offensive juggernaut, do so early. Drew Brees and company only had the 12th-best offense in football in the first quarter of games in 2008, but were second-best in the league during both the second and third quarters (before falling to ninth in the final period).
Philly's offense loves to be home. The Eagles' pass-heavy attack was seventh in the league at home a year ago, but only 20th in the league on the road.
• More Saints-Eagles: Intel Report
Giants at Cowboys, 8:20 p.m.
This game is sure to feature plenty of pass pressure. The Cowboys led the league in Adjusted Sack Rate in 2008; the Giants ranked seventh, but led the league in 2007. In addition, both defenses sacked the quarterback even more often on third down than they did on first or second down.
One big difference between these offenses will likely be yards after catch. Last year, the Dallas offense averaged 5.4 yards after catch (fifth in the NFL) and the New York defense allowed 5.4 yards after catch (29th). On the other hand, the Giants' offense gained just 4.1 yards after catch (31st) while the Cowboys' defense allowed only 4.3 (fourth).
• More Giants-Cowboys: Intel Report
Fantasy Corner
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| Peterson |
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Week 2 projections
After a dominating 180-yard performance against the Browns, the Vikings' Adrian Peterson is expected to be the top RB in Week 2.
On This Week
- Rookie QB Mark Sanchez had a "coming out" party in Week 1. How will he hold up to the glare of being a New York QB? We asked other Jets QBs of the past. Jeremy Schaap reports.
- Drew Brees has become known for his pregame speeches -- a role he approaches quite passionately. What are the motivations behind Brees' chants prior to kickoff? Ed Werder finds out.
- The NFL put the clamps on many players with some recent bans on Twitter, but in this week's "Mayne Event," Kenny Mayne discovered a few Patriots found their way around it.
- Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter team up on Sunday Headlines and report all the latest news from the stadiums.
- Follow all the happenings on Sunday Countdown on Twitter here.
Video
Chat Wrap
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| Williams |
Carlos (Panama City, PA): Mort, what did you think of Caddy in his first game back from his second major knee surgery? Did he not look as good, if not even better than his rookie year?
Mort: Perhaps the most revealing thing I learned on the training camp tour is how excited the Bucs were about Cadillac Williams. I assumed, like many people, that Derrick Ward's free-agent signing meant he was the guy. But Williams looks to me like he is the same guy they drafted as a top-5 pick and after two major knee injuries, that's a tribute to Williams' love of game. Yeah, I think he looks even more powerful than he did as a rookie.
Lee (New York): Chris, what are your thoughts on the Giants' defensive line, specifically the return of Osi Umenyiora?
Mort: Umenyiora clearly is one of the league's best DEs and a great guy, too, so it's good to see him healthy and as good as ever. I felt the offseason pickups of Rocky Bernard and Chris Canty meant the Giants' D-line rotation would be able to sustain over the long season. Those guys were injured all summer -- that made a lot of people in the building nervous -- but that's not a concern now. The Giants' O-line and D-line probably is best as a combo and that usually bodes well.
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| Sproles |
Matt (Chicago): Hey Mort! Darren Sproles is more effective than even a healthy LT. I'm selling it, you buying? More importantly, is Norv buying?
Mort: I might be buying, especially seeing that LT is not a game-time decision with an ankle injury. More injuries is a sign of age and I know LT has to be frustrated because he takes such good care of himself. I think you go with the hot hand on a per-game basis.
T.J.'s Take
New England at New York Jets: This week's best matchup is Patriots-Jets, a Super Bowl contender against a team with a new coach and a rookie quarterback. The game got a lot more interesting because of what happened in Week 1. The Jets looked great on the road in Houston and the Patriots barely pulled out a win at home against the Bills.
In Houston, the Jets ran the ball very well which allowed them to protect QB Mark Sanchez. Sanchez's debut was impressive, as he used the whole field, hitting passes at every level of the defense.
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| Sanchez |
Still, the story for the Jets was on defense as they dominated a talented Texans offense. Rex Ryan's trademarks were all in place as the Jets were aggressive, stopped the run and got to the passer.
This is the key to the game with the Patriots. If the Jets can stop the run and put the Pats into must-throw situations, then they should be able to put a lot of pressure on Tom Brady. But it can't be token pressure. It must be real. The Jets must also finish the game. The Patriots showed in Week 1 that they will play hard until the clock reads triple zero.
Complete Week 2 coverage