Wednesday Morning QB (NFL Week 4)
The week in the NFL was an interesting one as teams that were not supposed to win did and teams that should have won didn’t. The defending champions would take a loss while the Cleveland Browns would get their first win. It was a weekend where nothing could be predicted as there were plenty of strange moments and big wins for teams. That including the Minnesota Vikings who would pick up their first win of the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers in unfamiliar ground. The Vikings would get the win in London, England as they would help to kickoff the 2013 International Series at Wembley Stadium. It would be a big game for both teams as they looked for their first win and for the league as a whole with yet another game in a new market. The NFL international series would begin in 2005 as the NFL would travel to Mexico City for their first game outside of the USA. The game would be the start to what has become an annual event for the league and the games do not seem to be close to ending. The NFL would add Toronto to the rotation when the Buffalo Bills signed a deal with Rogers Communications to play games in Canada for 5 years. The deal would be renewed and this year the Bills will be back in Week 13 when they take on the Atlanta Falcons. The Vikings and Steelers would mark the first of two games in London this year as the Jacksonville Jaguars take on the San Francisco 49ers during Week 8. The Jaguars will be the defacto home team for London as they have signed a deal to play one home game in London through the 2016 season. It is another step in the International series as the NFL continues to explore new markets in more than the USA. The International Series would begin as a special game that was almost a gimmick to begin with. The games would quickly evolve to be much more than just a gimmick game as the NFL would begin to use the game as a way to gage interest in new markets. The NFL is the most popular sport in the NFL and is making more money than any other league in North America. Yet, like any good business, they are hoping to continue their growth but there are limited opportunities in the USA. Beyond the potential of Los Angeles there are no other cities looking for a team or cities that can support a team. Meanwhile a handful of teams continue to struggle and may be looking for a new home. With all of this in mind the NFL is using these international games as a way to determine if another city outside of the USA has the potential to be an NFL city. London is leading the way as there are a group of NFL owners who believe that England could be the next frontier for the league. England is a great sports country with plenty of love for their games and TV Deals waiting for a league that can do things right. There is no question that there is money in England and enough to support an NFL franchise but there are even more ways to lose money. There is a group of owners in the NFL who believe it would be a great idea none of them will have to put up the money to hold a team in England. An NFL team is expensive enough to run with rising player salaries and bigger and better team facilities but add all of these costs to the fact that a team in London would need to pay for 8 cross-Atlantic flights a year and there is a massive cost to bear. The league needs to consider that NFL players will also be hesitant to uproot their lives in the USA to move to a new country even with the opportunity to play NFL football. A team in London may have support from those in the league but the fact is that it would be a logistical nightmare for the team and for the league. The International Series will continue and will be successful but the NFL is not known for making rash decisions as if there will be a team in London it will take a while for it to happen and it will mean that they have done all of their research to ensure that it is possible. The NFL is looking to expand in the future but London is not a great spot as teams on the continent are a better and more legitimate option if they want to move outside of the USA.
Fifth Quarter:
(Four Quick Thoughts on Week 4)
Jets’ QB Questions over
Geno Smith will likely be the starting QB for at least the next few weeks as he will not be challenged by Mark Sanchez this year with the Jets old starting QB opting for surgery on his shoulder that will keep him out for the rest of the season
Ravens Conspiracy
Terrell Suggs would make headlines later this week when he would say that Roger Goodell had a hand in the blackout at Super Bowl XLVII because he and the league did not want the Ravens to win the game in a blowout
Freeman’s Problems Continue
Josh Freeman continues to have a rocky season as he would be benched this week and reports would surface that he was involved in the NFL Drug program as a Stage 1 participant meaning he may have never tested positive for using PEDS but nevertheless his season keeps getting worse
Raiders Pushed
With the MLB postseason beginning this week the NFL would take a back seat for once as the Oakland Athletics would push the Oakland Raiders game this Sunday to an 11:35 pm ET start as the playoff clinching A’s would take precedence over the Raiders
NFL Standings
American Football Conference
AFC East:
1. New England Patriots (1.00)
2. Miami Dolphins (.750)
3. New York Jets (.500)
4. Buffalo Bills (.500)
AFC North:
1. Baltimore Ravens (.500)
2. Cleveland Browns (.500)
3. Cincinnati Bengals (.500)
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (.000)
AFC South:
1. Indianapolis Colts (.750)
2. Tennessee Titans (.750)
3. Houston Texans (.500)
4. Jacksonville Jaguars (.000)
AFC West:
1. Denver Broncos (1.00)
2. Kansas City Chiefs (1.00)
3. San Diego Chargers (.500)
4. Oakland Raiders (.250)
National Football Conference:
NFC East:
1. Dallas Cowboys (.500)
2. Philadelphia Eagles (.250)
3. Washington Redskins (.250)
4. New York Giants (.000)
NFC North:
1. Detroit Lions (.750)
2. Chicago Bears (.750)
3. Green Bay Packers (.333)
4. Minnesota Vikings (.250)
NFC South:
1. New Orleans Saints (1.00)
2. Carolina Panthers (.333)
3. Atlanta Falcons (.250)
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (.000)
NFC West:
1. Seattle Seahawks (1.00)
2. San Francisco 49ers (.500)
3. Arizona Cardinals (.500)
4. St. Louis Rams (.250)
Key Scores:
Buffalo Bills 23 – 20 Baltimore Ravens
– The Bills would be up against a tough test this week when they would take on the defending champion Baltimore Ravens as they would look to take their good season to another level and they would do just that getting past the Ravens
Minnesota Vikings 34 – 27 Pittsburgh Steelers
– The Vikings and Steelers would go to London looking to get their first win on the season as the NFL would send two of the worst teams in the league to open the International Series that would result in the Vikings getting the win
Cleveland Browns 17 – 6 Cincinnati Bengals
– The Browns have continued to get better but it has not been very fast as they have slowly increased wins but they would show that they are still no pushovers beating the Bengals who are going for the division title this year
New Orleans Saints 38 – 17 Miami Dolphins
– The Dolphins and Saints went into the Monday nighter as two undefeated teams with everyone watching the Dolphins to see if they could compete with the best teams in the league and they would show that they were not up to it being dominated by the Saints
Next Week:
Buffalo Bills vs. Cleveland Browns (Thursday October 3rd; 8:25 pm ET)
– The Bills and Browns are both coming off of two of the biggest wins from week 4 and they look to continue that momentum into the next week as they look for a win against a team that has been known for losing
Baltimore Ravens vs. Miami Dolphins (Sunday October 6th; 1:00 pm ET)
– The Ravens and Dolphins are coming off of tough losses from Week 4 and they are hoping that it does not become a trend as the Ravens look to get back on track while the Dolphins try to show that they do belong among the best teams in the NFL
Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Giants (Sunday October 6th; 1:00 pm ET)
– The NFC East has not been a great division this year as teams continue to struggle but for the teams in the division it means that the top spot is wide open and the Giants and Eagles are looking to take advantage and get an important division win
Houston Texans vs. San Francisco 49ers (Sunday October 6th; 8:30 pm ET)
– The Texans and Niners were expected to be two of the best teams in the league this year but they have not dominated like many expected and they will go into the Sunday nighter trying to get on track
The Sport Addiction 