In attendance: Ex-Navy Cheesehead, Chef Spouse, me, The Executive Committee, Mad Kitchen Scientist
Menu: It was a Food Lab weekend, so we were finishing up our butter doughs. Conclusion? Brunch dishes - homemade brioche and croissants, omelettes to order, homemade apple and fig compotes, bacon and sausage, mimosas, bourbon milk punch, really delicious Calvados. So health food.
Stud of the week: It's unusual for me to pick the same guy two weeks in a row, but how do I NOT go with LeSean McCoy? 92 yards on the ground, 138 total, a TD...with a BROKEN RIB. He truly is Shady. But in a good way. Brent Celek had a pretty good day too. I also have to give props to Quintin Mikell, who bagged his first career TD. And to fireplug Chad Hall, who saw some playing time with Riley Cooper benched by a concussion. And Nate Allen, who had a truly key tipped pass late in the 4th that kept Frank Gore from catching what almost definitely would have led to scoring the go-ahead TD.
So the good news is that it was a win. And, as I mentioned in my picks for this week, that's never sure thing when the Eagles play in prime time and go west. The Eagles were competent, and beat a team that's now 0-5. OK then.
But the real interest was on the 49ers side of the ball. What is going on with Alex Smith? He played like crap, up until the San Fran fans started booing him so loud I could hear them WITHOUT the TV on and chanting for backup David Carr. Mike Singletary clearly chewed him out - and he came back and kicked butt, scoring 14 points and pulling the 49ers to within 3 points.
Is it just me, or do injuries seem to be kicking extra ass this year? Brod Bunkley is the latest to go down, with (apparently) a season ending elbow injury. I know you think I'm joking, but seriously, the team is going to run out of players.
Speaking of, it looks like Mike Vick, who Andy Reid swears on a stack of Bibles is still the starting QB, will be back for Atlanta next week. You *know* Vick's gotta want that, and I'd feel a lot better with him back, since right now we're one bad play away from a Kafkaesque season.
A final note: special teams! GAH! What the hell is wrong with those guys? I mean, Ted Ginn is not exactly your grandma or anything, but (say it with me) "C'mon, man!" Those long returns are killing, if it's not using the #1 receiver on special teams and him getting hurt (like, oh, last night).
Around the rest of the NFL....
Jaguars over Bills - OK, so I guess there wasn't a "we just beat the Colts!" letdown. And Bills? An 0-5 hole is pretty hard to dig out of. Did you know that all 4 AFC South teams are 3-2 right now?
Ravens over Broncos - Did I hear right that the Broncos have never beat the Ravens at home? I know winning on the road is tough, but damn!
Colts over Chiefs - The Chiefs had to lose eventually, but they're still looking solid to make a run at the West. But Peyton threw no TDs for the first time since...ever? They won and all, but he looked pretty cranky.
Skins over Packers - Wow. Didn't call that one. This was definitely a case of "if you let them hang around, it'll bite you." The Packers were - are - the better team. But the Redskins hung in and didn't get too far behind, McNabb came up clutch when he needed to (which, carping Philly fans aside, is mostly what he does), and the D came through big when they needed it. The Skins just wanted it more. Also, how about that LaRon Landry? 13 tackles and 2 turnovers (a pick and a FF). And everyone was in a panic about the 5 sacks McNabb took. Um, it's not November. He never gets hurt until November, no matter what happens. Come November 1? All bets are off.
Lions over Rams - WAY over. 44-6 over. Yikes. Sam Bradford looked like the rookie he is, throwing two picks and never getting the Rams in the endzone. He had to take a step back at some point. Guess that was this week.
Bears over Panthers - Speaking of QB trouble, the Bears had plenty. Fortunately, they were playing the Panthers, so it didn't matter. Seriously, backup QB Todd Collins threw for 32 yards and 4 picks. I think I could do better than that.
Bucs over Bengals - I'm calling it. The Bungles are back.
Falcons over Browns - Well sure, but maybe I should've called the Falcons to win the south. Oh well - coulda, shoulda, woudla. Seneca Wallace went down before halftime, leaving the Browns playing a gimpy Jake Delhomme, who went on to throw two picks. It's amazing the game was as close as it was (and the Falcons won by 10).
Giants over Texans - Hm. Interesting. The Giants figured out how to shut down the run, and it killed the Texans.
Cardinals over Saints - OK, I couldn't really expect the Saints to have another magic season like last year, but they lost to a team that was starting an undrafted rookie at QB for the first time. Really? REALLY? Of course, it's pretty hard to overcome 4 turnovers.
Titans over Cowboys - HAHAHAHAHA! I can't believe I got punked into calling the Cowboys to win the division. At the rate they're going, they'll be lucky to finish 8-8. And they're doing it to themselves, which makes it even better. Penalties, penalties, penalties, and mostly dumb shit. How awesome it that?
Raiders over Chargers - TWO blocked punts?!? I thought we had special teams troubles. No wonder the Raiders were able to win this.
Right now, I'm just waiting to see if the Vikings/Jets contest will EVER start. And the commentators have clearly totally run out of stuff to talk about.
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