Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Tuesday Early Evening Cliboard-holding Quarterback: One crazy autumn Sunday

"I'm kind of, like, blank. I don't know if I want to cry or laugh." -- Rams linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa, after the Rams got their first win of the season by beating the Redskins.

During a manic 15 minutes or so, four of eight 1 p.m. ET Week 6 games were decided in the final 10 seconds. NFL.com veteran Gil Brandt said that was the first time since the merger in 1970 that as many as four games have been decided in that fashion. Brandt's been in the game for a long time, so we'll take his word for it.

In all, there have been 27 fourth-quarter comebacks this season in 81 games, an impressive 33 percent of the matchups.

That's a good percentage of games that go down to the wire.

Let's recap the mayhem of Week 6 ...

The Falcons gave up what appeared to be the game-winning touchdown with 11 seconds remaining, only to kick a game-winning field goal as time expired.

In snapping an eight-game losing streak dating back to last season with a last-second field goal by Josh Brown, the Rams won despite being held to eight first downs and 200 total yards of offense.

Matt Schaub's game-winning touchdown with three seconds remaining gave the quarterback his second career fourth-quarter comeback victory. Both of those comeback wins have come against the Dolphins.

Sure, the Vikings won with a field goal with nine seconds remaining, but much of what transpired in the previous 59-plus minutes wasn't as appealing. Both teams combined for 11 sacks, 17 punts and just a 5-for-28 conversion rate on third downs.

Later, the Cardinals beat the Cowboys in an overtime thriller.

Those results profoundly affect this week's Just-Totally-Made-Up NFL BCSTM rankings. Let's take a look ...

1. Tennessee Titans (Previously: 2) -- Manhandled bye week, overtook Giants for top spot.

2. New York Giants (Previously: 1) -- Sure didn't look like a defending Super Bowl champion while getting roughed up by the Browns.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers (Previously: 5) -- Bye week made Steelers look much better than they looked a week ago.

4. Arizona Cardinals (Previously: NR) -- Became first team ever to win in overtime on a touchdown scored on a blocked punt. More importantly, Cardinals did it against the Cowboys, which would explain this rapid rise up the Just-Totally-Made-Up NFL BCSTM rankings.

5. Buffalo Bills (Previously: 8) -- Move up significantly without playing ... are you beginning to sense a trend?

6. Washington Redskins (Previously: 3) -- Tough to pick winner in Redskins' next game, at home versus the Browns, who are coming off an impressive win against the team that sent the 18-0 Patriots to the abyss of Super Bowl losers. The Redskins, on the other hand, lost to the previously winless Rams at home after beating three tough division opponents on the road.

7. Dallas Cowboys (Previously: 6) -- Pulled off something football fans don't see too often. No, we're not talking about that loss to the Cardinals, silly. Dallas pulled off the rarely seen blockbuster deal at the NFL's trading deadline by acquiring Roy Williams from the Lions.

8. Denver Broncos (Previously: 4) -- How much longer can the Broncos hold off the Chargers for that top spot in the AFC West?

9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Previously: 11) -- Pushed around the Panthers, a team not known as being pushovers. They might not be really grumpy about that ... watch out Saints!

10. Carolina Panthers (Previously: 7) -- Could have made a real statement last week against the Buccaneers. Instead, the Panthers made the wrong kind of one, scoring their fewest amount of points since a 37-3 loss to the Steelers on Dec. 7, 2006.

11. Atlanta Falcons (Previously: 12) -- Yogi Berra used to say, "It ain't over till it's over," and the Falcons put that expression to good use Sunday in an alarming turnaround of epic proportions. You can watch highlights here of the absolute madness that took place in Atlanta.

12. Indianapolis Colts (Previously: NR) -- Were rude hosts of the Ravens on Sunday, racking up 334 total net yards against a supposedly great Ravens defense.

Teams in danger of relegation if the NFL were like European soccer ...

30. Kansas City Chiefs -- Didn't give up on season by trading Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez.

31. Detroit Lions -- Totally just gave up by dealing Pro Bowl receiver Roy Williams to the Cowboys. Thankfully for my fantasy team, that can only mean more balls being thrown in the general direction of Calvin Johnson.

32. Cincinnati Bengals -- Play Chiefs in Week 17 for what could be a showdown for the No. 1 overall pick.

Week 7 picks

Ravens over Dolphins
Chargers over Bills
Panthers over Saints
Steelers over Bengals
Bears over Vikings
Giants over 49ers
Cowboys over Rams
Titans over Chiefs
Texans over Lions
Jets over Raiders
Redskins over Browns
Colts over Packers
Buccaneers over Seahawks
Patriots over Broncos

Week 6 record: 7-7
Overall record: 54-34

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