The Chiefs visit the Oakland Coliseum for a Week Nine match-up with the Raiders in what will be a surprise table-topping battle in the AFC West.

Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum

The Running Game

Both teams go against the grain of what many expect of successful teams in the modern NFL, with their powerful running game taking priority over the more favoured passing game of more heavily-fancied teams. They have done this so successfully that they have left two highly pass-oriented teams, San Diego - the no.1 ranked overall and pass offense in the NFL – and Denver, trailing in their wake within the division.

Darren McFadden, then a Razorback

The main reason both teams have been able to rely on the running game so heavily is that each has a pair of talented running backs with differing skill sets. In Oakland, Darren McFadden has finally shown some flashes of why he was drafted as the overall 4th pick in the 2008 draft. He currently sits 7th in rushing yards per game in the league despite sitting out two games with injury and has 668 yards on the season, going for over 100 in four of his six games and narrowly missing out on the milestone with 95 in the season-opener against the Titans. His only effort below that was in Week Four against the Texans, when he made up for a lowly 47 rushing yards by being an active player in the passing game and claiming 6 receptions for 82 yards. McFadden is ably assisted in the rushing workload by Michael Bush. He’s currently gained 307 yards rushing on the season, including 104 in the surprise win over the Chargers in Week Five when McFadden was out with an injury.

In Kansas City, the workload is spread more evenly between Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones. Coach Todd Haley surprised many observers by giving Jones the higher share of the workload through the early part of the season – much to the annoyance of many fantasy players, yours truly included – but has maintained this policy and swayed opinion amongst many, who now see the extra impact that Charles can make when he is more rested and not taking the battering that 20+ touches per game can bring. Charles is the only rusher to average over 6 yards per carry from 100 or more attempts on the season (6.5 yds) and is the only player with less than 120 attempts to have passed 550 yards on the season, with a total of 666 yards that places him 8th amongst all running backs. Jones has also impressed with 538 yards at a 4.6 yard per-carry average.

Jamaal Charles

The impressive work put in by the two rush-attacks sees them sit 1st (Chiefs) and 2nd (Raiders) in rushing yards per game in the NFL this season. The Raiders also sit in the top two for rush touchdowns (2nd with 9), rushes of 20+ yards (2nd with 12) and rushes of 40+ yards (1st with 4) while the Chiefs also rank in the top ten for touchdowns (10th= with 6) and top five when it comes to breaking off long gains (4th= with 8 of 20+ yards and 3rd= with 2 of 40+ yards). These stats are hardly surprising considering that both teams average over 34 rush attempts per game. Kansas average 36.6 attempts per game and Oakland 34.4. Again, they are ranked 1st and 2nd in this category.

Passing the Buck:

The reliance of both teams on the rushing game comes from the inconsistencies displayed by their quarterbacks. While Kansas has been settled with Matt Cassel under center, Oakland coach Tom Cable has switched repeatedly between Jason Campbell and Bruce Gradkowski as his starter due to indifferent performances and injuries.

Matt Cassel

Cassel currently has a 90.4 passer rating on the season that sits him 10th amongst quarterbacks in the league. However, he has passed for 200+ on only two occasions and has twice failed to pass for a touchdown, leaving heavy strain on the running game and defense. Quite how the Chiefs overcame the Chargers in the season-opener with Cassel throwing for just 68 yards is still a question asked by many, particularly in San Diego. Cassel currently has 10 touchdown passes for the season and only 3 interceptions. The offensive line that holds up so well in run blocking has also served Cassel well in pass protection. He has been sacked 8 times this season, second only to the Colts’ 7 for the least allowed in the league.

In Oakland. Jason Campbell began the season as the starter but was benched in just his second start after throwing a pair of interceptions against the Rams. Bruce Gradkowski came into the game and instigated a victorious comeback. He then played in successive defeats in Arizona and at home to Houston before going down with an injury against the Chargers that allowed Campbell back into the action. The former Redskin looked poor in the defeat to San Francisco as he threw two more interceptions but has lead the Raiders in successive victories against Denver and Seattle, throwing 4 touchdowns and no interceptions on his way to a combined 514 yards over the back-to-back blowout wins. The question now is whether he will retain his starting job with Gradkowski due to return to action this weekend.

Deeeee-fense:

This could be the key to this week’s match up. While both teams are similar on offense, they couldn’t be more different on defense. It’s in this difference that I feel the Chiefs will come out on top on Sunday.

Oakland’s defensive strength has been in stopping teams in gaining a lot of yards through the air but they rank 26th on rushing yards per game with an average of 127.4 yards. They do hold teams out of the end zone well against the rush, but have given up 14 passing touchdowns – something is definitely amiss in the red zone. Against a team that runs the ball as well as the Chiefs, the Oakland defense will have it’s hands full.

Kansas gives up less than 100 yards per game on average to opposition rushers and if they can continue that fine form on Sunday, it will take away a massive part of the Oakland game plan. They don’t rank quite as highly against the pass and the Raiders may decide to put trust in whichever of its two quarterbacks get the nod to start the game to get things done. It will go against the usual game plan, but may be what’s needed if they are to make it three wins in a row.

PREDICTION: Kansas to win and take a strong hold at the top of the AFC West.

Image Credits
Oakland Colisseum – Debra Roby
Darren McFadden – Mark Barron
Jamaal Charles – Barry Lenard
Matt Cassel – Jeffrey Beall

So with our final part of this year’s First Look series, we turn our gaze towards the AFC West. As well as the Chargers, who were part of the great entertainment at Wembley Stadium in 2008, NFL UK fans will also keep an eye on this division for the Broncos who will be visiting these shores at the end of October this year.

This was the division that I most accurately predicted last season, correcting stating that the Chargers would win and that the Broncos in second would not make the play-offs. I’d take some credit but really, who saw it any differently?

Let’s see if it’s as straight-forward this year…

San Diego Chargers

The Chargers have had the AFC West as their personal playground for a while now. Last year was their 4th consecutive divisional title, and even when they’re not so good (like 2008′s 8-8 record) the rest of the teams have fallen over themselves to let San Diego take the title.

LaDainian Tomlinson was released after 9 seasons with the Chargers. He was a joy to watch when at his peak, and though that’s clearly past he’ll be hoping to do well in New York with the Jets. It’s quite possible the Jets could meet the Chargers in the play-offs… I hope so, for the teams as much as the story with LDT. Darren Sproles, who was a solid third-down back in 2009 goes into 2010 with another short-term contract in place. 12th overall pick Ryan Mathews in expected to start and to get a lot of carries across the season… if his contract is sorted for training camp then he’s a good fantasy option for the lower rounds!

For the receivers, Vincent Jackson will miss the first few games with a suspension. Along with Sproles, Malcolm Kelly and Antonio Gates will be Philip Rivers‘ main targets.

Defensively, they need to improve a little everywhere. But it’s not a bad unit that has been augmented across the draft with Donald Butler, Darrell Stuckey and Cam Thomas who should all see playing time early – Stuckey in particular at safety.

With core successful parts of the team largely unchanged, this team carries good continuity over from last year. Their loss against the Jets was down to just a few key moments, and they’ll feel there is unfinished business. I can’t look past them for the division. Again.

Oakland Raiders

The Raiders have made a big step forward with finally giving up on the JaMarcus Russell experiment and trading for Jason Campbell from the Redskins. There is no question that he’s an upgrade and should improve whole elements of the game. He’s not perfect, he holds onto the ball too long, and can stall drives in the redzone, but he’s better than Russell. Play-calling this year will be down to Hue Jackson, who’s come in from Baltimore.

Rolando McClain, drafted 8th overall this year, comes in and is the immediate leader on the defence. He needs to help stop the run. Nnamdi Asomugha remains one of the league’s premier corners, and a main reason why this team is so good against the pass (the other is that they’re so bad against the run!)

Coming of successive 5-11 records, they’ll look to to better. I’m not sure I can see it at this point though.

Denver Broncos

Whilst I’m looking forward to mercilessly booing the Broncos at Wembley, there are some intriguing stories to watch develop here. Knowshon Moreno had a great rookie season and was fun to watch, I’ll be hoping he doesn’t suffer the dreaded sophomore slump. Brandon Marshall is now out of town, so Eddie Royal and Demaryius Thomas will look to lead the line. Thomas was the first receiver taken in the 2010 NFL Draft and forms part of a promising young corp. Brandon Lloyd, a favourite of Kyle Orton at Chicago, will also look to hook up with his old quarterback.

Speaking of Orton… he posted his career best stats last season, better than Jay Cutler did in Chicago (much, I’m sure, to Josh McDaniel’s delight). However, he’s now got not only Brady Quinn behind him, but Tim Tebow. Nobody divides opinion quite like Tim Tebow, but common wisdom has him starting 2011 and he could well be used as a redzone impact player… though it’s not so clear which position he’d play! Regardless of those behind him, Orton will be looking to push on.

The Broncos were great against the pass last year, with only the Jets and Bills giving up fewer yards, but it was a different story against the run where they ranked 26th overall. A similar story to Oakland in that regard. Don Martindale moves from linebackers coach to DC and will have to work mainly with the same personnel he had last year.

After starting 6-0 last season and ranking up impressive wins on the way, the Broncos will think they should have done more than becoming only the 7th team since the merger to have such a start and then not make the play-offs. I can – just about – see them getting to 9-7 and being in play-off contention this year. Week 16 against the Texans could be a big game.

Kansas City Chiefs

The poor Chiefs. When a 4-12 record is a big step forward, you know it’s not been a good time.

Matt Cassel was the big signing for the 2009 season but in the end, you could easily make a case for Tyler Thigpen having a better season in 2008 than Cassel did in 2009. Chris Chambers, who came in last year off waivers, has signed a long-term deal and will start opposite Dwayne Bowe. One bright spot for the Chiefs was the emergence of Jamaal Charles at running back. Once Larry Johnson was released, he took over the major share of carries and gained a great YPC average and eventually became the first player in history to get 1,100 yards on fewer than 200 carries.

The story for the Chiefs this year is the big changes to the coaching staff. Pretty much the entire team will be coached by new faces this season, and how quickly adjustments are made will be telling this year for the Chiefs.

They may well improve, but I can’t see them making a big splash in the conference.

Predictions (made 18th July 2010)

Image Credit: Robert Sanque

JaMarcus carefully lines up an interception

Really, you at the back? You thought they’d keep him on the books and pay that $6.45 bonus he’s due to warm the bench? Admittedly, he can warm a lot of bench, but still…

Less than two weeks after trading for Washington’s Jason Campbell, the Raiders have released Russell. The #1 selection from the 2007 draft leaves them after taking $39 million for a total of 7 wins.

It’s hard to imagine any team taking any sort of a chance on him now, though I guess stranger things have happened, which means we’ve seen the last of him in the NFL. I, for one, won’t miss him though I guess I do feel for the guy. A bit.

Anyway, wherever he his (my guess is comfort eating in an IHOP) he’s free of the Raiders and they’re free of him.

Image Credit: sgrace

Each in turn…
The Offensive Line
Chris Samuels retirement left a gaping hole on the left side of the line. And let’s be kind, this was a porous line at the best of times. Once the position at draft-time was sorted (see Quarterback, below) then there was very little doubt that the line would be bolstered with the #4 pick and sure enough, it was. Trent Williams comes in to protect McNabb’s blindside. The 7th round also saw us pick up Erik Cook (C, but versatile) and Selvish Capers (G) to give depth in the future. McNabb isn’t the scamperer that he was in years past, so he and our running backs (again, see below) are going to need a solid line.

Running Back (s)
The off-season has seen the free agency pick-ups of Willie Parker and Larry Johnson. Which together with Clinton Portis gives us a very old running back corp. Sharing the load, can these guys get the job done? Probably yes, but we’re going to need the Shanahan magic to get the running game going. To be inventive and surprising. But I can’t see any of these guys escaping many secondaries, even though Chris Cooley is saying that they’re all looking good. It will be interesting to see if Anthony Alridge gets beyond the practice squad this season as well as how motivated Portis will be after quite a lot of nay-saying about him from a lot of quarters recently.

Jason Campbell
As I said in the original article, and repeated here, I think Campbell showed a lot last year. He deserved a chance and it’s just the way that things have turned out that it won’t be in burgandy and gold I am pleased to see him moving (probably) upwards.
But there’s no mistaking that Donovan McNabb represents an upgrade, as he would to many teams. It’s easy to point at flaws in his game, but he’s a good age for a QB, has the skillset, experience, leadership and most importantly – the motivation to take us into the post-season sooner rather than later. Personally, I’m really excited about watching him play and hope that the receiving corp can step up.

Older Players
March 4th saw a big clearout of older players. Fred Smoot – gone. Antwaan Randel El – gone back to the Steelers. Rock Cartwright (has joined Campbell in Oakland) and Ladell Betts – gone. Randy Thomas, Cornelius Griffin. Blam… they’re gone. Do I need to say anymore?

It’s now a younger (but not outright young) team and that should reflect well across all elements of play.

The Defence
With the switch to 3-4 coming, there are still some areas to be looked at here. Most notably in the hulking form of Albert Haynesworth. He does not want to be paid to get double-teamed every week as nose tackle and him and Shanahan are apparently not on good terms.
I hope they sort it out. He didn’t have a bad 2009 all told. No, be wasn’t the dominant tackle that he’d been in previous years, but he was a big part of our line despite the setup not playing to his strengths. Whilst his deal is as financially crippling as it is he’ll be going no-where, so let’s make the most of him.

We really need help at safety and I hope that gets addressed in free-agency. But I like the look of our linebackers, who have added depth with 4th round pick Perry Riley.

So all in all, the team is looking good. I fancy us to have a good run at the post-season this year, though won’t get carried away. There’s still a lot to happen before the pre-season.

It’s been a tough time for former Washington Redskins’ quarterback Jason Campbell. His days were numbered from the moment Donovan McNabb came over to the burgandy side (and I’ll be talking about that another time). He signed his tender, but no-one really expected him to stick around. In fact, the only real surprises have been how long it took and the price that the Redskins got for him.

Yes, Jason Campbell will be turning out next year in black and silver as he switches east coast for west to join the Oakland Raiders. He’s also got an extension out of it, and would look to be the starter or at least to compete with JaMarcus Russell. I’m thinking he’ll start, as JMR will surely be released before his massive salary for the season is due. I also think that it’s a good move for the Raiders and for Campbell. Campbell will have to learn yet another new system but he’s proven adaptable over the years and the Raiders will surely use his arm more than the recent schemes in Washington. Whilst I’ve not been his biggest fan, he did impress me last season to the extent that I’d have been happy to see him start again. By all accounts conducted himself with a high level of professionalism throughout his time at FedEx Field and you have to admire that attitude.

The Redskins don’t play the Raiders this year, so I can safely wish him well and say thanks for his service and wonder about just getting a 4th round pick (in 2012!) for a proven starter…

Image Credit: jf photo, with thanks.

The likable, but perhaps out of his depth Jim Zorn has gone, in a move that is in no way surprising – he’d probably been emptying his office steadily over the last few months – and Mike Shanahan is in. Not just as Coach, but in an Final Say role that he likes and that the team needs. But there’s a lot to fix, let’s take a look at some of the problems he’s inherited.

The Offensive Line
Make no mistake, this was a terrible unit this year. Whether it was injuries or just bad play it all starts with these guys and a lot of the other issues are direct results of these guys. When passing, there is never any confidence that when Campbell drops back he is going to have any time or space, that the pocket will hold as long as it needs to.

When Running, there’s little confidence that they’ll clear the way or win the battles that they need to The ‘Skins were 27th in rushing yards, with a paltry 94.4 yards per game. That’s something to be addressed. Which leads me onto…

Running Back
Clinton Portis is a great player, there’s no mistake on that. Through all his years, he’s given is all but it’s that effort that’s starting to take its toll. Even when fit (or at least as fit as he gets) he didn’t look like the same player. Those years of hard-won yards starting to take their toll? Age? Conditioning? That damned offensive line again? Probably a combination of all these things and more. We also saw that Ladell Betts was not a starter, and that the rest of the backs weren’t really up to it either. One glimmer is the emergence of Quinton Ganther as a hard runner who’s difficult to bring down and who will fight for those extra yards.

Clinton Portis played his first two seasons under the new Man in town, and there’s a strong chance that we’ll see an offense that will suit him better next season.
A fan favourite, they’ll be many who’ll want him to do well. But I can’t help but think that he’s on the downside and we should be looking to back him up with a young stud. Could that be Ganther? Probably too early to say, but I don’t want to go into the 2010 season with the backs as they are.

Jason Campbell
There are some, me included, who think that Jason Campbell has shown us an awful lot this season. He’s been strong, he’s made plays and he’s shown the sort of guts and determination you can build a team on. He’s still been frustrating, but not in the sort of measures the 2008 model was. All things considered, he was certainly better than he ended last season and you got the feeling he could see a drive out when it matters. Of course, the record won’t reflect that and his teammates (yes you, Clinton) taking shots at him – questioning his leadership, temperament and virtues won’t help at all. He’s out of contract this off-season, and we don’t know at this point what Mike Shanahan is thinking. If not him though, we’ve got no-one who can lead the team and will be looking at the draft and then to start a rookie.
Personally I think he’s earned a solid chance to show what he can do. I’ve not been his biggest fan over the short years, but he’s won me over this year.

Older Players
There’s nothing definitive that says that older players cannot be productive, though it favours some positions more than others. Some coaches thrive on it, and get the best out of players in the ‘later’ years of their playing careers. Let’s see what Shanahan can do, as Santana Moss and Antwaan Randel El will both be 31 before the next season starts, Clinton Portis will be 29 and across the board this isn’t a young team. Half of the O-line will be well into their 30s.
Some of the younger players stepped up this year (finally, in some cases!) and it will be good to see how they progress from this. Even if in some cases, like at Tight End, it could mean some tough choices.

The Defence
If there was one bright spot (and for the record, there was more than one) then it was the performance of the D. They frequently kept us in games, and played hard. Of course, they got blown out on a couple of occasions, and in a couple of days they were beaten in the 4th quarter after tough games. But there have been misteps too. DeAngelo Hall has missed so many tackles that I’ve lost count; LaRon Landry took a step backwards this season and an opposition QB will pick on Fred Smoot all day long. Albert Haynesworth wasn’t the same player he’d been at the Titans, but he was doing a different role. With solid play from the rest of the line (who are also ageing) and rookie wonder Brian Orakpo at linebacker with the best MLB in the NFL in London Fletcher there is a solid core that can make good things happen.

It’s way too early to make guesses or predictions for what next year will bring. We have the #4 pick and can expect some aggressive free agency work too. As ever, it’ll be interesting to watch the off-season and see what happens.

Image Credits: Skaines, clydeorama and davidseletyn
Check out their work at Flickr.

Well, it’s all getting a bit silly isn’t it?

In all honesty though, I never saw us doing more than propping up the division so I’m not hugely surprised at our results. Just how bad we are though… that is surprising.

Another scoreless first half, more of the same again and again. I just… really, I don’t know what to say. This season is shot to pieces and if anything we’re being flattered with our 2-4 record. We have no easy games coming up any time soon and could easily be looking at 2-8 when we travel to Oakland in week 14.

Jason Campbell has surely played his way out of Washington. He’s not been good, and though he’s been let down across the board the bottom line is that he’s the quarterback, and more responsibility falls onto his shoulders. Even if the offensive line can’t protect him, you just don’t feel like he’s carrying the team or taking any sort of leadership role. That might be wrong, but that’s how it seems.

And let’s not forget that management have not been sure on him for a while now about him. Worse is that we can watch Jay Cutler and Mark “Sanchize” performing well (though not this week, eh Mark?) we can surely see someone new in teh ‘Skins backfield in 2010. In all honesty, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Portis out either.

Jim Zorn has been stripped of play-calling duties. But I’m not sure Sherman Lewis is the answer just a few weeks after joining the organisation. He might though, and we’ll have to see what happens first half next week.

I can’t possibly get three things I liked, but I did get to two and that’ll have to do this week. (I can’t find it in me to give the special teams some credit for not falling over each other during punt returns.)

What wasn’t good to see was a deserted FedEx field by the time Collins ambled into a safety to end the game. I never like to see a stadium that quiet, and certainly not the Field.

Anyway, the Philadephia Eagles are up in primetime on Monday and then we head into the bye-week. Nobody is going to be surprised if Coach Zorn is clearing his office early next week, regardless of the result.

Image Credit: pillpusher

Well, talk about a game of two halves!

First half… well this was just awful. All the same issues cropping up again and again: 4th down calls, Jason Campbell throwing interceptions twice whislt trying to get the ball to Kelly (one bad throw, one bad decision into double coverage), Campbell fumbling to allow the Bucs to score their first 1st quarter points of the season, Clinton Portis getting stuffed at the line, Ladell Betts getting stuffed behind it, penalties on Casey Rabach… it goes on and on.

We go into the break with only 99 yards of offense, and without putting up any points. I’m becoming more and more convinced that it’s a ploy to get Punter Smith to the Pro Bowl. And we can’t even do that properly as he was unable to punt after suffering an groin injury early on.

To give some credit to the team though, the defense was doing a pretty good job. Across the day they only gave up 2 3rd down attempts and generally were looking good in coverage and getting pressure on Josh Johnson. Carlos Rogers had a great play on Michael Clayton that led to a sequence that involved a penalty for delay of game, an incomplete pass, then a FG attempt that faded to hit the upright and bounce out.

Yeah, you look great. Like you don't know that.

Second Half

The second half and things were much improved offensively. It started with a solid interception from DeAngelo Hall on the Bucs first drive and we didn’t really look back. The play calling was improved and Jason Campbell made some good decisions and some good really throws (which is infuriating! At least if he was consistently rubbish we could move on).

Chris Cooley showed us all how great he is, Portis kept hammering at the Bucs defensive line and got some good yardarge in the end, every inch of them hard-earned. Randel El had no catches, and Santana Moss only had two but one of those was for a 59 yard TD which had great movement from Moss and great awareness and a super throw from Campbell.

It wasn’t all good though, and Campbell forced another throw into double coverage and was duly picked off for the third time of the day and Suisham missed an PAT when Ronde Barber came storming on off the edge.

So my three favourite moments from this match:

So we travel to Carolina next week. The Panthers are 0-3 coming off their bye-week and will be a tough game. But if we play like the 2nd half ‘Skins and not the 1st half variety, we should give them a game.

“Father and Son” Image Credit: Nois29 @ Flickr
(This picture is from the Rams’ game two weeks ago, but I think it’s awesome. See the full size image here)

Strangely enough, I don’t feel as bad about the 19-14 loss to the Detroit Lions as I did about the 9-7 win against the Rams last week. This wasn’t, after all, the 0-16 Lions. It was the 0-2 Lions, who are barely recognisable in any way from the record setting 2008 variety. Likewise, we’re not the 6-2 Washington Redskins who opened up 2008 so strongly.

So it’s all the same complaints on the offense as last week: bad calls, no running game, Jason Campbell still looking like a deer in the headlights. However, we can compound the offensive problems with some defensive ones too: 99 yard drive for a touchdown? Check. Below average 3rd down performance? Check. This was shocking.

Needless to say, I struggled to find three things I liked this week.

Things I didn’t like… well, there’s too many to mention, but I join the clamouring call of people who want someone other than Jim Zorn calling the plays. I like the guy, but it might be too late for him already.
I didn’t like last week’s Touchdown-or-Bust call and I liked it less this week. I didn’t like the final play either: I know in my head that the game was over, but toss it up to the endzone and see what happens. We were never going to be able to lateral it to a score. In other areas, the state of the O-line makes me wince everytime the ball is handed to poor Clinton Portis, or when they form a pocket. Pretty much anything they do, actually.

Apart from some of the defence, practically the only other player who came out with any credit was Hunter Smith, whose superb punting did its best to pin the Lions back. So it’s come to this: I’m praising the punter… yeah, I don’t even want to mention the punter, let alone pick him out as doing well.

Anyway… 1-2 and propping up the NFC East. That’s where I think we’ll be at the end of the season, so at least my expectation is being correctly managed. But if we can’t be at least 3-3 after the Buccaneers, Panthers and Chiefs games, then we really are in trouble.

With thanks to randomgoodness from Flickr for the image

Oh dear, that was an awful game to watch. Firstly it was a lot closer than it really should have been because… secondly, we showed a complete inability to score and thirdly Dante Hall still doesn’t look very good.

To be fair to Hall, he did OK for most of the game but got beaten for the Rams’ only score. The defence as a whole looked really good though; I love to see Chris Horton making plays and it was great to see Haynesworth getting involved too.

I didn’t like the call to go for it at 9-7 though. I’d have kicked a field goal and taken the points. Whilst I admire Jim Zorn for wanting to get the score, it wasn’t the smart move even though it did pay off in this instance. But still, it’s easy to second guess.

Three favourite plays this week:

Things could get tougher now, with injuries taking their toll on the offensive line. Randy Thomas is out for the season (and perhaps his career is over) so a line that wasn’t looking great anyway is now weaker.

We have the much-improved Lions next week, and in all honesty it’s going to be a tough game. I’m pretty sure we can hold their offense, but scoring will still be hard again. It’s the same story that we’ve seen across the last two seasons: Campbell in particular, and the offense in general just can’t punch it in.

With thanks to ty law from Flickr for the image. All rights remain his