Things Fall Apart

If the Broncos' season has been pure luck, then they snagged their best luck yet by having a bye week for one of the strangest weeks in NFL history. Not just in terms of records, but also plays. Let's get to the biggest piece of news, via my usual category format.

Ashes, ashes, we all fall down: Minnesota Vikings. One of the remaining undefeated teams fell today after a tough loss to the defending champs, the Pittsburgh Steelers. What's even worse is how it transpired. 13-10 Steelers. Farve and the Vikes are driving. A touchdown to take the lead is imminent. Then the unthinkable. Farve is stripped of the ball, and Pittsburgh makes sure its fattest defender picks it up and runs 77 yards into the endzone. 20-10. This game is done. No it's not. Kickoff to Percy Harvin, who then pulls an Eddie Royal by running 88 yards to make the game 20-17. The Vikings defense temporarily woke up to stop Big Ben and get the punt. Once again, Farve fires on all cylinders. A touchdown is, again, imminent. Then, again, the unthinkable. Farve's pass is deflected then intercepted then returned for a touchdown. 27-17. Game over. Tough loss for the Vikings, but I am still convinced we'll see them in the playoffs and possibly the Superbowl.

Comeback kids: I was all ready to give this to a determined San Fran team when all of a sudden the Saints showed up in Miami. Down 24-3 at one point, the Saints rallied to beat the Fins 46-34. Nice comeback for the team I'm now convinced is Superbowl-bound.
The Real Deal: Cincinnati Bengals. A 45-10 win over the Chicago Bears convinced me of two things. 1. Thank God we got rid of Jay Cutler (I know "one day he'll be great", but as of today he threw 3 interceptions, 10 for the season). 2. The Bengals are gunning for a wild card slot. If they play the rest of the season with the pose they played with today, they're going to get it, too.
Live and Let Die: American Football in the UK. Seriously. It's the same principle we use for Soccer in the US. We'll never embrace as much as we have other sports. Sorry, but it's the truth. Not to mention the game could have been played here so that people who actually knew what was going on could watch it in person.
And then there were two...oh wait...three...: For the first time in NFL history, three teams have remained unbeaten into week 7. I want to talk about each. First off, the Colts. It's no secret that the Colts have always had an easy route to the playoffs. With Peyton playing beautifully against teams not worthy to shine his cleats, the Colts are shoo-ins for the postseason. What they do when they get there is a mystery. They could go all the way, but they could also get eliminated via some other team's lucky break. Just know that a second ring of Peyton's finger isn't assured. Same goes for the Broncos. There is always a possibility that we won't make the playoffs (however, I have to say that this team doesn't nearly have the capacity to fail as last year's team had). Plus, the boy wonder McD may be in over his head come December, when we have to play stellar teams out for blood. Finally, the Saints. Yes, you heard me right: I think they're going to the Superbowl. You heard it here first. The team isn't the greatest on the planet, but the killer offense has proven unstoppable against even what was considered the best defense in the league, the NY Giants (complete bullshit but still). I would love to see them play the Broncos or the Steelers to truly prove their worth, but I believe we'll see this team in Miami again, next time as Superbowl contenders.
Gonna be a good week 8, with the undefeated Broncos playing the Baltimore Ravens (two teams I consider very similar to each other in many respects and pretty evenly matched) and Farve's return to Lambeau Field for the first time as a challenger. It seems like every week there has been at least one good matchup to watch. Let's hope the trend continues.