Projo Pats Blog

In the San Diego Chargers, the New England Patriots will be facing a team that at first seems to be a riddle. They've outscored opponents by 19 points on the season, and yet they're 2-3. Add to this that quarterback Philip Rivers is having the best season of his career, with a quarterback rating over 100, and he has impressive weapons at all the skill positions.

Part of the explanation is bad luck. San Diego surrendered a last-second touchdown in the first week of the season to lose to the Carolina Panthers, and then was doomed partly by Ed Hochuli's whistle in its Week 2 loss to the Denver Broncos. The team put together a complete effort in beating the Jets and then cruised past the Raiders, but they looked bad against the Dolphins last week (sound familiar?).

But the big problem for the Chargers is their defense. They're giving up more passing yards per game than any other team in the NFL, despite having invested heavily in their secondary in recent drafts. (Boston Globe) That is good news for a Patriots team that reinvented itself on offense last week against the 49ers, getting back to throwing the long ball. (projo.com)

Another thing that could bode well for the Patriots -- who did an excellent job of controlling the clock at San Francisco -- is the Chargers' inability to get the opposing offense off the field. San Diego's offense has run 55 plays per game so far this season, which is 31st in the league. (San Diego Union Tribune)

If the Chargers can't turn things around on defense, the pressure will fall to that productive offense of theirs. But that unit, in turn, will have to turn around its luck against New England: The Chargers have managed just 47 total points against the Patriots in their last three games. (projo.com)

NOT THE SAME: John Clayton of ESPN, for one, says the luster is off Sunday night's showdown.

INJURY UPDATES: Running back LaMont Jordan (calf) and tight end David Thomas (flu) did not participate in practice for the Patriots, while Laurence Maroney was limited by a shoulder injury and Stephen Gostkowski with a right thigh problem. The Chargers had both of their starting wide receivers, Vincent Jackson and Chris Chambers, out of practice, while LaDainian Tomlinson returned to limited action. Antonio Cromartie was also limited. (projo PatsBlog) Chambers, who is dealing with an ankle injury, looks unlikely to play on Sunday.

SAN DIEGO BANDWAGON: The Chargers are the consensus pick of the national experts for this week's game, according to a roundup compiled by The Globe. (Boston Globe) For the record, the Boston newspaper is picking the hometown team.

WINSLOW HOSPITALIZED: Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow has been hospitalized at the Cleveland Clinic after feeling ill for several days. (projo.com)

BRAVELY DECIDING TO IGNORE THE ISSUE: The Dallas Cowboys have decided not to impose any discipline on Adam "Pacman" Jones for hitting a bodyguard this week, although the ultimate decision might be the NFL's. The Dallas Morning News' Jean-Jacques Taylor says that Jones is a talent you just can't trust.

FINALLY, SOMEONE HITS BROWN: Ronnie Brown, who ran all over the Patriots and the Chargers in the last two weeks, faces a fine from the NFL for leading a line dance in the end zone after scoring a touchdown against San Diego out of the "wildcat" formation. (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

SEVERAL EAGLES DOCKED, TOO: Philadelphia lost the game, and several of their players will be losing money, too, for their antics on Sunday against the Redskins. Rookie showboaters DeSean Jackson and Quentin Demps will have to pay $10,000 each for their end-zone celebration following Jackson's punt return for a touchdown, and linebacker Torrance Daniels will have to pay $5,000 for unnecessary roughness on a punt return by Antwaan Randle El. (Delco Times)

AND THE WINNER IS: When players are fined by the league, the money goes to the National Football League Players Association Players Assistance Trust, and to various charities supported by the NFL. (profootballtalk.com)

AND NOW VOTER FRAUD CHARGES, TOO! The Las Vegas Journal-Review reports that a Nevada organization that registers low-income people to vote has been accused of falsifying forms with bogus names and fake addresses. We'll let Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller explain the charges: "Some of these [forms] were facially fraudulent; we basically had the starting lineup for the Dallas Cowboys. Tony Romo is not registered to vote in Nevada. Anyone trying to pose as Terrell Owens won't be able to cast a ballot."

HOW DID WE GET HERE? Greg Garber of ESPN examines the downfall of the Raiders franchise. He talks to 15 people close to the team, including former star receiver Tim Brown, and most of them point their fingers at owner Al Davis. The emperor of Oakland, however, insists that the turnaround is coming.

AND IF YOU START WINNING SOME GAMES, THAT WOULD BE NICE TOO: Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel has asked his players not to let politics interfere with their game preparation, after backup (for now) quarterback Brady Quinn and left tackle Joe Thomas appeared at a campaign event with John McCain. (Akron Beacon Journal) Hey wait, isn't McCain a Steelers fan? (projo.com)

READY TO DANCE? Jason Taylor was on the practice field Thursday for the first time since left calf surgery, and he could play when the Redskins host the Rams on Sunday. (Washington Times)

THIS WEEK'S PICKS: We were 9-5 last week, nothing to brag about, but an improvement over Week 4. Home teams are listed in caps:

Bears over FALCONS: Interesting battle of two surprising 3-2 teams. I like Chicago's defense to rattle young Matt Ryan.

Dolphins over TEXANS: Miami has shown that it can put up the points, and Houston's defense is terrible.

VIKINGS over Lions: The debate continues -- is Detroit or St. Louis the worst team in football? Neither one will surrender the title easily.

SAINTS over Raiders: Tough loss for New Orleans last week, and they are in trouble if they don't win this one. Fortunately, they face the Raiders in the first game of the post-Lane Kiffin, but still in disarray era.

REDSKINS over Rams: If Washington could beat Dallas and Philadelphia on the road, imagine what they should be able to do to St. Louis at home.

JETS over Bengals: Cincinnati showed some life last week at Dallas, but if Brett Favre is even half of what he was a couple of weeks ago against Arizona, that should still be enough.

Ravens over COLTS: Tony Dungy felt that yesterday's comeback win over Houston was a potential season-saver, but the Colts are in trouble if they don't play much, much better against a dangerous Ravens team.

Panthers over BUCCANEERS: A potentially great game here, but Tampa Bay's disarray at the quarterback spot leaves them ill-equipped to take on Carolina's outstanding defense. I give the Panthers the edge.

BRONCOS over Jaguars: Jacksonville's not doing anything well enough to pick them on the road against Denver.

Packers over SEAHAWKS: These are two teams in bad shape, but I think Seattle's situation is worse. If Aaron Rodgers can't feats on this sorry defense, then you really have to wonder.

Cowboys over CARDINALS: I've been picking Arizona week after week -- and I still like them to win the NFC West -- but Dallas is due for a good game.

Eaglers over 49ERS: Donovan McNabb called out his teammates last week, and he might not have Brian Westbrook to fall back on again, but the Eagles' pass rush should be all over J.T. O'Sullivan in San Francisco.

CHARGERS over Patriots: San Diego needs this game desperately, and I expect them to put forth a total effort, similar to what they did against the Jets three weeks ago.

Giants over BROWNS: The team with the lowest points scored in the NFL meets the team with the lowest points allowed in the NFL. Figure it out.

 Tags  Football Today

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