Week 9 Recap

Week 9 in Review

It was a hard week. Not many games went in our favor. The Patriots, Rams, Bills, Chiefs, and Raiders. The Bengals-Titans game was not part of this pick process. However, the Falcons, Saints, Texans, 49ers, Ravens and Cowboys all won their games. This leaves us with a weekly record of: 6-5

The Arizona Cardinals ended the momentum of the St. Louis Rams. John Skelton managed to throw for 222 yards and a touchdown, to make up for their struggling rushing game. Early Doucet had 78 yards receiving, and Larry Fitzgerald scored their only touchdown. Sam Bradford threw for 255 yards, but no touchdowns. This game featured 2 safeties, two tackles of Skelton in the endzone. The game was won in overtime, by Patrick Peterson’s 99 yard kick return. Steven Jackson also had another great rushing game, rushing for 130 yards. 

The Miami Dolphins win! The Dolphins routed the Chiefs 31-3 and earned their first victory of the season. Matt Moore threw for 3 touchdowns and 244 yards. A great game for him, and his ranking as a quarterback becomes higher. Reggie Bush ran for 92 yards as a touchdown as well. Matt Cassel threw for 253 yards for the helpless Chiefs. This was a game which the Chiefs just struggled. There was no turnovers in the game, which is pretty interesting. The Chiefs’ winning streak comes to an end at 4 games after their loss to the Dolphins. 

What an offensive attack by the Falcons. Julio Jones had 131 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns. Michael Turner ran for 71 yards and a touchdown, and what a game by Matt Ryan. Matt Ryan threw for 275 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Falcons beat the Colts 31-7. Curtis Painter played one of his worst games. He threw for just 98 yards and an interception. Jerraud Powers returned an interception for a touchdown, the Colts’ only one of the game. The Colts’ loss makes 0-9. They remain the only winless team in the NFL. 

Take that Bucs. The Saints avenged their Week 6 loss to beat the Buccaneers 27-16. Drew Brees threw for 2 touchdowns, and Pierre Thomas ran for one as well. For the Buccaneers, Josh Freeman threw for 281 yards and a touchdown, and LeGarette Blount ran for 72 yards. The Saints wanted to win after their loss to the Rams last week. This win over their division rivals puts them in first place, while the Buccaneers’ loss puts them in third. 

When you lead 13-3 after the first half, the game is pretty much in your hands. For the San Francisco 49ers, it was indeed. The 49ers held on to their lead, and won 19-11 against the Washington Redskins. Alex Smith threw for 200 yards and a touchdown, and Frank Gore ran for 107 yards. For the Redskins, John Beck threw for 254 yards and a touchdown. Roy Helu had a fantastic receiving game, with 14 catches for 105 yards.The win gives the 49ers yet another W, for the second best record in the NFL. 

After a deadlocked first half, the Cowboys broke away from the Seahawks and won 23-13. Tony Romo threw 2 touchdowns for 279 yards, and Dan Bailey kicked 3 field goals. DeMarco Murray had a great rushing game for the Cowboys, rushing for 139 yards. Tarvaris Jackson had a great game, throwing for 221 yards, and kept his team in the game throughout the first half. Marshawn Lynch had a great game, after a horrible one last week, rushing for 139 yards and a touchdown. The Cowboys avenged their embarrassing loss last week to the Eagles. 

Well that’s ironic. Jake Ballard, who caught Eli Manning’s game winning pass over the Patriots wore David Tyree’s number. Even though he may not be playing football anymore, he’s still in the hearts of the Giants, as they won 24-20 over the Patriots. Tom Brady had a great game for the Patriots, throwing for 342 yards and 2 touchdowns. Manning threw for 250 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Patriots lose their second game in a row, as they head to the Meadowlands to play the Jets. The Giants win their second game in a row, and are in first place in the NFC East. 

Aaron Rodgers rolls on. The Packers are now 8-0, as they continue their dominance, by beating the Chargers 45-38, in a shootout. Rodgers threw for 247 yards and 4 touchdowns to 4 different receivers. Phil Rivers also had a great game of his own, throwing for 385 yards and 4 touchdowns of his own. Unfortunately for him, he also threw 3 interceptions. Vincent Jackson had a monster game for the Chargers as well, catching 7 passes for 141 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Packers prevailed as they took a lead in the first half from 2 interception return touchdowns. The Packers are still the only undefeated team in the NFL, while the Chargers lose their second in a row. 

Tebow wins it. Well, critics, please be quiet. Tim Tebow threw for 124 yards and 2 touchdowns, and ran for 117 yards as well. He helped the Broncos orchestrate a comeback over the Raiders after being down 17-7 after the first half. The final score of the game was 38-24 Broncos. Willis McGahee ran for 163 yards and 2 touchdowns to help the Broncos. For the Raiders, Carson Palmer had a fantastic game, throwing for 332 yards and 3 touchdowns. T.J. Houshmanzadeh, in his first NFL game in a year, caught 1 pass for 28 yards for the Raiders.

The Jets took an early 13-0 lead, and never looked back as they beat the Bills 27-11. Mark Sanchez threw for 230 yards, and Nick Folk kicked two 50 yard field goals. For the Bills, Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 191 yards, and Fred Jackson ran for 82 yards. The Jets’ victory puts the AFC East standings in chaos. The win puts the Jets, Bills, and Patriots in a 3-way tie for first place. The Jets take on the Patriots next week at home. 

The Houston Texans could be in the play-offs. Yes, you read that right. The Texans beat the Browns 30-12, to stay in first place in the AFC South. Arian Foster ran for 124 yards and a touchdown, and Ben Tate ran for 115 yards and a touchdown to help the Texans. Colt McCoy threw for 146 yards for the Browns. Chris Ogbannaya got his carries, 13 of them actually; unfortunately could not execute them well enough, garnering just 28 yards. The loss puts the Browns in last place, in a very, very hard AFC South. 

Go Bengals. The Bengals continue their dominance this season, as they beat the Titans 24-17. Andy Dalton threw for 3 touchdowns and 217 yards. A.J Green had a great game, catching 7 balls for 83 yards, and Cedric Benson, playing his first game in 3 weeks, ran for 78 yards. Matt Hasselbeck threw for 272 yards and 2 touchdowns. Chris Johnson continues to struggle, gaining just 64 yards for the Titans. 

It came down to the wire. The Ravens were beating the Steelers 16-6 at the end of the 3^rd quarter. That was before Roethlisberger went into dominant mode, and led his team to what should have been a 20-16 victory. With 2:17  left on the clock, Joe Flacco led a 92 yard drive to the endzone which culminated on a 26 yard pass from Flacco to Torrey Smith. Flacco finished with 314 yards and the one touchdown to Smith. Ben Roethlisberger had a fantastic game, with 365 yards passing. Antonio Brown finished with 5 catches and 105 yards receiving. The win for the Ravens makes it a season sweep for them over the Steelers. It also puts them in a first place tie with the Bengals in the AFC North. 

The Ravens showcased their status as one of the AFC’s best teams, beating the Steelers for the second time this season. The Packers yet again demonstrated their dominance, beating the Chargers. The Patriots continue to struggle, going on a losing streak. The Texans continue their play-off run in the dreadful AFC South. And the Colts….still haven’t won. Stay tuned for next week in the NFL! You never know what can happen.