Week 6: Sunday Recap

Cute, huh!

This is an exciting week in the short life of this blog! Not only am I given a break this week from the troubles of Cam Newton whose on the field woes are matched only by his alma mater, Auburn, who I also happen to be a life-long fan of; but this week I also get to introduce the new GFG logo and Facebook page! So please like Gridiron For Girls on Facebook (I promise I will figure out how to get a "Like" button on the blog, baby steps.) and let me know what you think of the logo! Having an official logo coupled with the events of my weird/crazy weekend has made me a little saucy, so please forgive the tone of some of the recaps below, I simply could not help myself.

- The biggest story of the day has to be the comeback of the Greenbay Packers. After losing only one game last year, the bar was set (maybe unfairly) high for Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. So when they travelled to Houston to take on the undefeated Houston Texans many wondered if the Packers' season was done. Far from it. Aaron Rodgers channeled all the negative chatter around him and turned it into an outstanding performance that resulted in a dominating 42-24 win over Matt Schaub and the Houston Texans. Aaron Rodgers threw for 338 yards and a career-high 6 touchdowns, 3 of which were to Wide Receiver Jordy Nelson. The Greenbay defense also did their part to shut down a team that has been averaging 30 points per game. "Impress Him" Fact: Coming into Sunday Night's game Matt Schaub was getting sacked an average of once for every 51 pass attempts; on Sunday night the Packers sacked Schaub 3 times. So the Houstons are now 5-1, still a very impressive record, and the Greenbay Packers are 3-3 and have silenced critics for at least one week.

Nelson and Rodgers. I guess when you catch 3 TDs in a game it doesnt matter that your name is, "Jordy".

- A little east of Houston, the Atlanta Falcons are still undefeated after a last second field goal got them their 6th win of the season against the Oakland Raiders, but it wasn't pretty. The Raiders, who have not had an interception all year, intercepted Matt Ryan 3 times in the first half! In the second half, it was any one's game. With 2 minutes left in the game, Asante Samuels returned an interception for 79 yards and a touchdown giving the Falcons a 7 point lead. But those crazy Raiders weren't giving up so easily, QB Carson Palmer completed a 38 yard pass to Derek Hagan which set up a short touchdown rush by Darren McFadden to tie the game with 40 seconds left. But last minute wins are the bread and butter of this 6-0 Atlanta Falcons team. Matt Ryan drove his team down the field one last time and Matt Bryant (who, BTWs, is 37 years old) booted through a 55 yard field goal to win the game, 20-23, with 1 second remaining. The Falcons are now the only undefeated team in the NFL."Impress Him" Fact: This is the second time this season that Matt Bryant has saved the day for the Falcons. Two weeks ago he kicked the game winning field goal with 5 seconds left to give the Falcons a win against the Panthers.

This little kicker is a hero...

- The Dallas Cowboys' suffering continues. Last we saw the Cowboys, Tony Romo was continuously throwing the ball to the wrong team. Today he looked pretty good against the Baltimore Ravens; he threw for 261 yards and managed only 1 interception. "Impress Him" Fact: If you were to look at the stats of this game alone you would bet your Halloween Candy that the Cowboys won. Dallas held on to the ball twice as much as the Ravens and rushed for 227 yards which is the most ever against the Ravens by any other team EVER. On top of all that, the Ravens only had 1 yard on three offensive plays in the 3rd quarter. ONE YARD!! But as the Football Gods have decided that they hate the Cowboys, they handed a little bit of luck to the Baltimore Ravens to give them a 29-31 win over the Cowboys. The first bit of luck came when Jacoby Jones had a 108 yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the 3rd quarter to make it 13-24. This was not only an exceptional run, but it also tied for the longest kickoff return for a TD in NFL history. What are the chances? The next break for the Ravens came when Dez Bryant wasn't able to catch a ball on a 2-point conversion that would have tied the game with 32 seconds remaining in regulation. It may have looked like luck had run out when the Cowboys retrieved an on-side kick and had another chance to tie the game with 6 seconds remaining. But, like I said, the Football Gods hate the Dallas Cowboys and Dan Bailey missed a 51 yard field goal attempt to end the game and give the Ravens the win. What can I say at this point about the Cowboys....even when they're good, they're bad.

...this little kicker is not.

- What is the deal with the Jets? It's like being in a bad relationship; one day they are dumping you over a text message, the next day they are showing up with a diamond ring and a copy of The Notebook. Every week I make some conclusion about this team and the next week they turn around and do the opposite. One week they don't score any points, the next week they are a scoring machine.WHAT IS HAPPENING OVER THERE?! No wonder no one but (some) New Yorkers like these fools. In my defense the New York Jets blew out the Indianapolis Colts after scoring only 3 touchdowns in their last 4 games. For all you math whizzes out there that means they went one game without a touchdown (no points at all to be clear)!!! So who on Earth could have predicted a blow out against a team who pulled off an emotional comeback win last week. NO ONE! Okay. Sorry about that. Long story short, the Jets beat the Colts, 35-9. Running Back, Shonn Greene, who was averaging about 25-30 yards a game before today had 161 yards and 3 touchdowns....which I am sure thrilled all the fantasy football owners, including my husband, who either cut or benched him today, sending my husband's "NFL Sunday Hair" to an all-time high. Even little Timmy Tebow got in on the action with a 23 yard completion. Who knows what these yahoos will do next week against the Patriots, I am not saying a word.

- Speaking of the New England Patriots, they were not able to overcome the Seattle Seahawks on their first trip to Seattle. With 1:18 remaining in the game rookie QB, Russell Wilson found Sidney Rice in the end zone for a 46 yard touchdown to cap off a 14 point come-from-behind rally giving the Seahawks a 23-24 win.

Cheer up, Belichick. Christian Grey is around the corner and knows how to make it all better.

- Remember when you were in high school and they made you carry around an egg for a week to remind you not to get pregnant? Well this week Michael Vick put himself through a similar test. In order to make sure he cuts down on his fumbles, Vick carried around a football everywhere he went this week and challenged anyone who saw him to try and strip it from him. And just like Egg Week in high school has failed time and time again (thanks, MTV), this experiment also did nothing for The Philadelphia Eagles' turnover woes. Vick had one lost fumble in the game against the Detroit Lions as well as 2 interceptions. This gives Vick 6 fumbles and 8 interceptions for a total of 14 turnovers on the season, the most in the NFL. The Lions beat the Eagles 26-23 in overtime and the Eagles lose another close one. Aside: Why is  Sixteen and Pregnant so hard to look away from?! I mean, I think I have struck TV gold when I find a 16 and Pregnant Marathon on! To be clear, I do not endorse high school pregnancy, so if someone can please tell me why I am so fascinated by the struggles that these poor girls face I would be forever grateful.

Look alive, #7! You're about to be a Daddy!

Quick Notes:
- What did rookie QB, Brandon Weeden get for his 29th birthday? The Cleveland Browns first win of the season beating the Cincinnati Bengals 24-34! On a sidenote: how long was Brandon Weeden in college that he is turning 29 in his rookie year? 10 years?

- In a rematch of the 2011 NFC championship game, the   Giants pull themselves to the top of the NFC East with a 23-3 win over the SF 49'ers. "Impress Him" Fact: Before today's game the 49'ers had not allowed a rushing TD on their home field in 14 games, Ahmad Bradshaw broke that streak on Sunday.

- RG3 overcame a mild concussion to put on a show today to get a win for the Washington Redskins against the Minnesota Vikings. Not only did RG3 complete 17 of 22 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown, but he was also the lead rusher for the Redskins with 13 carries, 138 rushing yards, and 2 rushing touchdowns (including one 76 yard rushing touchdown). The Redskins beat the Vikings 38-26. I can't even think of something smart to say here, he was simply great. Maybe he should get knocked out more often...look at that I could think of something smart to say!

Six Sunday's into the NFL season I think things are going well. My husband is actually asking me questions about games that are going on and it has been nice to actually get out of the bed on a Sunday. The downside is that I have decided that since I am writing about the NFL, I should take on the diet of a linebacker and have probably gained 7 pounds during this experiment. But cheeseburgers are delicious so I am willing to live with it through the winter. Don't forget to like the Gridiron For Girls Facebook Page and follow me on Twitter @gridiron4girls. I would love to hear any questions you have about the NFL or anything else! Having said that, I will leave all of you with this question: Should I be concerned that I just asked my husband if he was talking to me and his response was, "No, I was talking to the TV."? Thoughts?

Week 4: Order Has Returned- Cleveland Browns vs. Baltimore Ravens

Welcome to Week 4! Can you believe we are already 25% through the NFL football season?! Well, the regular season...then there are the playoffs...and then the Super Bowl...who am I kidding, there is still a LONG way to go and believe it or not, I am actually glad! Full Disclosure: I HAD to watch the season premier of Grey's Anatomy last night, just HAD to! The last time I saw my favorite doctors they were dying in the woods after a plane crash, there was no way I could wait another day to see who made it and what state they were in. I hope you will all understand. That being said, I did dutifully flip back to the Cleveland Browns vs. Baltimore Ravens game between commercial breaks and watched the second half....I could never let my loyal readers down, and make no mistake I am so grateful for all 30 of you. Now on to the game!

- For maybe the first time in their careers as NFL referees the men in stripes received a standing ovation when they took to the field in Baltimore. As predicted, Monday Night's debacle sparked so much controversy that both sides were able to reach some kind of agreement and get the regular officials on the field. Almost immediately you could tell that order had been restored and the shenanigans of the past weeks were just that...in the past.

Thumbs high to you too, Mr. Regular Ref! (Photo Credit: Soraspy.com)

-  The Baltimore Ravens have had a rough few weeks. In fact, last night was the first home game of the season where the Ravens did not have a moment of silence at the beginning of the game. The first was for their former owner, Art Modell who passed away 4 days before the season started, and then last week for Torrey Smith's younger brother who was killed in a motorcycle accident last Sunday. Through all of this, the Ravens have played 4 games in just 17 days and managed to come out with a 3-1 record, including their 23-16 win over the win-less Cleveland Browns last night. The Ravens are proving week after week that they have both the physical and the mental toughness that it takes to be a great NFL team. "Impress Him" Fact: The Ravens became just the second team in NFL history to win a game on Sunday night and then turnaround and win again the next Thursday.

- Joe Flacco proved his own resilience for the Baltimore Ravens. He shook off an early interception in the red zone and put together a 87 yard drive which included a 18 yard touchdown pass to none other than Torrey Smith. "Impress Him" Fact: Joe Flacco's red zon interception last night broke a streak of 125 passes in the red zone without an interception. Flacco also pulled a fast one on Cleveland Brown's linebacker, Scott Fujita, and rushed for a 1 yard touchdown....and a less-than-cool touchdown spike. Anquan Boldin also did his part for the Ravens in the second half with 125 receiving yards.

I know Sam is an Eagle and not a Raven, but still pretty uncanny, no? (see the full QB to Muppet comparison  @gridiron4girls on Twitter) (Photo Credit: Buzzfeed.com)

- The Browns rookie QB, Brandon Weeden, actually had an okay game with 25 completions for 320 yards and just when the announcers were about to praise his performance he threw an interception to Cary Williams who returned it 63 yards for a Ravens touchdown.

- Much like Monday night, the game came down to the final seconds and not one, but 2 Hail Mary attempts (the Browns got another chance after a penalty was called against the Ravens). But unlike Monday night, there were not hundreds of replays and endless analyzing...mostly because Weeden way overthrew the last pass so no one had a chance to catch it.

- The Ravens extend their home winning streak to 13 games, the most in the NFL and won 10 straight division games, also the most in the NFL and the Browns are 0-4 for the third time since 1998.

So we are underway in Week 4 and with the return of the tenured officials  it promises to be a little less cray cray and a little more focused on the actual X's and O's. I wonder if it will be as entertaining for me to watch without all the drama, but one thing you can count on is that I will keep you posted. Hope everyone has a great weekend!!