By Zack Cimini
notjustagame23@gmail.com

Were getting almost to the mid point of the season. The past few weeks we’ve witnessed the teams that jumped out the gates come back to reality. The Chiefs, Buccaneers, and Bears have all dipped. Surfacing to the fore front as teams that will likely get bye weeks are only in the AFC. Pittsburgh and the Jets are playing fantastic football and look like the only clear cut teams that will solidify playoff berths. In the NFC it’s wide open. Divisions will likely flip upside down before years end with the current outlook. Track your teams and see where they fall in this weeks rankings.

1. Pittsburgh- For his first game back Big Ben brought some zeal and normalcy back to the lowest ranked passing offense in the NFL.
2. New York Jets- Sanchez threw some poor throws Sunday and was bailed out on fourth down. Great teams find ways to win and the Jets are looking mighty strong.
3. New England- Were not sold that they’re going to be able to do it in the playoffs. They’ve got a rhythm with their offense that’s just clicking well.
4. New Orleans- It was only a matter of time before this team re-awoke. Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas should be back within weeks.
5. Baltimore Ravens- Blowing a ten point lead in the fourth quarter cancels out their Steelers win. That type of loss just can’t happen to a team expecting to go deep in the playoffs.
6. New York Giants- They’re being overlooked as everyone assumed they were headed for disaster with their early season rust. Don’t look now but the Giants are rolling.
7. Indianapolis Colts- Peyton and the Colts squeaked out yet another ugly win.
8. Houston Texans- Two improbable fourth quarter rallies have the Texans at 4-2 instead of 2-4. They’ve got to find some consistency to their play to stay in the tough AFC playoff race.
9. Atlanta Falcons- Every team has had their ugly outing thus far this season. This past week was the Falcons. They’ll regroup.
10. Philadelphia Eagles- The play of their quarterbacks seems like a good thing, but will likely cause some in-house issues once Mike Vick is 100 percent.
11. Minnesota Vikings- The probability of the Vikings rolling off a four or five game win streak is looking pretty good.
12. Tennessee Titans- Here’s a team that is actually living more off their defense than their offense. The big games from Vince Young haven’t happened, and Chris Johnson’s had to earn every yard.
13. Green Bay Packers- Two straight overtime losses spells trouble.
14. Miami Dolphins- Gaining a victory either over the Pats or Jets would have the Dolphins in prime divisional shape. They’re a solid team but likely not playoff bound.
15. Chicago Bears- Fading quicker than the transition from fall to winter in Chicago.
16. Washington Redskins- Sixteenth bodes them perfectly. They’ll be right at 8-8 when the years done.
17. San Diego Chargers- When will they ever play a whole season up to the caliber of their potential?
18. Dallas Cowboys- A below .500 year is not acceptable for Mike Singletary and the 49ers. If it happens in Dallas who knows how closed door meetings will be.
19. Denver Broncos- An extremely tough game to lose. That’s what happens when you have no running game to close out victories.
20. St. Louis Rams- They’ve got a true quarterback. That’s saying something to around eight to twelve teams that absolutely don’t.
21. Kansas City Chiefs- They had two backs rush for nearly 100 yards each and faulted. Reason why is under center. Matt Cassel should be a backup.

Best of the rest
22. Arizona Cardinals
23. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
24. Cincinnati Bengals
25. Jacksonville Jaguars
26. Oakland Raiders
27. Seattle Seahawks
28. San Francisco 49ers
29. Detroit Lions
30. Cleveland Browns
31. Buffalo Bills
32. Carolina Panthers

Joe Lopat, Zack Cimini, and Jabbar Harris return once again to talk football hot topics, as well as their usual fantasy football segments. They’ll tell you who to start/sit and provide spread picks for week seven.

By Zack Cimini

notjustagame23@gmail.com

No undefeated teams left in we’re barely a month into the season. The parity of the NFL is at an all time high. Each week underdogs are covering at a much higher rate than years past. Adjustments will be made in Vegas and also on the field. Injuries are beginning to take their toll for some teams. How will they fend off the bug? Other teams off to rough starts will have opportunities to dig themselves out. There are no run away teams in either conference. It’s going to be a season long process to see which teams can gain proper momentum heading into the playoffs.

Rankings

1. Pittsburgh Steelers- Big Ben is back. This is a team that should gain steam and easily secure a home field advantage slot.
2. New York Jets- There’s no arguing the growth of quarterback Mark Sanchez. Talent is surrounding him and he took his offseason workouts and study sessions to a veteran level.
3. Atlanta Falcons- Quietly they’re 4-1. Matt Ryan’s getting back into the rhythm we saw a few years ago and the defense is playing solid. With the Saints playing sluggish and showing no signs of hope this could be the Falcons year.
4. Baltimore Ravens- If the veterans on this defense can stay healthy, Baltimore will fight neck and neck with the Steelers for the top seed.
5. Indianapolis Colts- They play defense in Indianapolis? Since when.
6. New Orleans- Still the defending champs and as bad as they’ve played they’re 3-2.
7. New England Patriots- Were all curious to see how the Patriots offense clicks without the deep threat of Moss out there.
8. Green Bay Packers- Injuries have mounted up. Aaron Rodgers may have to try to do it all with his arm comparable to the way Marino had to always.
9. Houston Texans- Fans are worried that they’re tinkering near .500 after their start. This is a pivotal point for the Texans to play above their talent and finally get over the .500 hurdle at seasons end.
10. Chicago Bears- You just can see that three to four game skid happening.
11. New York Giants- Just two weeks ago Tom Coughlin was on his usual proverbial hot seat. Coughlin constantly dodges it and got his team two quality wins. This team could shake up the NFC like they did out of nowhere a few years ago.
12. San Diego Chargers- At some point the Chargers need to settle their offensive game plans down and grind it out with their talent. They’re trying to do too much offensively which has led to careless turnovers and set their defense up to fail.
13. Tennessee Titans- This may be the highest the Titans get in our rankings for the rest of the season. We do not see Chris Johnson making it through the year with the amount of carries and hits he is taking. A year ago he was burning defenders, this year he is getting the yardage but they are of the power back angle.
14. Minnesota Vikings- Randy Moss, Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin, and Shiancoe. 1st seed or 6th seed at the end of week 17, no one wants to draw up those defensive assignments.
15. Dallas Cowboys- Mistake free football just is not a phrase in Dallas.
16. Washington Redskins- Mr. McNabb deserves the most praise of any player thus far this year. The way he is playing and delivering with the cast he has is truly amazing.
17. Philadelphia Eagles- The biggest difference maker can be tossed back and forth between Vick and Kolb. The true playmaker has been LeSean McCoy. He had a tough rookie year last season but has grown tremendously and been the catalyst of the Eagles offense.
18. Denver Broncos- Who would of pictured Kyle Orton of all people growing and maturing as a quarterback throughout his career? There may not be more of a jaw dropping turn around from a quarterback over the past fifteen years.
19. Kansas City Chiefs- If the Chiefs were not winning, Matt Cassel being benched would have been retested like last year. He is a serviceable quarterback that is proving incapable of providing a spark under center of the Chiefs.
20. Miami Dolphins- How will they bounce back after their bye week to the loss they had on national television?
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Winning games in the final minutes constantly does not make us a believer. They’re growing but need to upgrade at running back to become a playoff team.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars- All the Jaguars are doing now is teasing their fans. They’re a missed 58 yard field goal and a quarter of football against the Bills from being 3-2 to 1-4.
23. Oakland Raiders- When can the Raiders have two healthy backs in Michael Bush and Darren McFadden? They could suddenly have the best duel backfield and trade bait on their hands.
24. Cincinnati Bengals- We’ve been saying it for a good year that Carson Palmer’s career is spiraling downward. His play has become of backup quarterback caliber. Will the denouncement and change at quarterback happen this year?
25. Arizona Cardinals- Someone is going to win this division. Four of the teams in it are ranked 25th or lower in our rankings. If Arizona believes Max Hall is their guy than there will truly be a 7-9 division winner.
26. Seattle Seahawks- Trading for Marshawn Lynch gives them a true number one back that can be the offsetting difference maker in an extremely weak division.
27. Detroit Lions- They’ve been in so many tight games all year. It was good to see them pull one out. Shaun Hill may have earned himself another look as a starter with the way he has played in Stafford’s absence.
28. San Francisco- They’ve only played one game in their division. If this team approaches their division with the outlook of going 5-0, a turnaround could happen. It’s not an impossibility to envision them going at least 4-1 in the rest of their divisional games.
29. Cleveland Browns- Down to their third quarterback. How bad did Jake Delhomme hurt his ankle….goodness.
30. St. Louis Rams- Poor Sam Bradford. As most rookies would working with third stringers and practice squad teammates, he gets to throw to those caliber of players in live games.
31. Buffalo Bills- Fitzpatrick’s attempting his all on a weekly basis. Buffalo’s just at a rock bottom point for a franchise.
32. Carolina Panthers- It’s getting real ugly out in Charlotte. Their starting quarterback, Jimmy Clausen, and number one receiver, Brandon LaFell, this past week were the teams second and third round choices this year. Bye Bye, John Fox.