The NFL Roundup - Week 5

There's quite an interesting second quarter of the season now laid out before us in the NFL. Some of the elite playoff teams we have come to know over the last few years are dealing with a rough season and some teams that shouldn't be winning, certainly are. It makes for fascinating football and fascinating stories and as we kick off Week 5, here are the top stories to keep an eye on this week. 

If Matt Hasselbeck starts will he prove the football world wrong, again?
Everyone said Hasselbeck was done at age 40. They said his arm had nothing left and that his start for Indianapolis against Jacksonville this past week would be a disaster...and everyone was wrong. Matt looked sharp in the pocket this last week, making all the throws he needed to make and he stayed mistake free. It wasn't a performance for the ages mind you, but for a 40 year old QB to throw 47 times in a game and pull off the win, well that's pretty damn impressive and if he has to go again for the Colts, seeing as how Luck is Questionable and that offensive line is porous, I see him continuing to impress.

What has happened to Colin Kaepernick and can he get his game back on track?
A few years ago, #7 was the savior of the 49ers franchise and fans were wondering if he would follow in the footsteps of Montana and Young, despite a Super Bowl loss to the Ravens. Today, everyone in football is wondering if this once wunderkind read option quarterback is in decline. He has been simply awful this season, tossing five interceptions over the last two weeks and only finding the end zone twice all season. Teams have simply figured out his tendencies and attacked his weaknesses and this is the end result. It's ugly out there for Colin and quite frankly, I think the read option QB has a short shelf life and his expiration date may be drawing near.  

Is Rex Ryan a good football coach, or a hype machine? 
I think we can all agree that Sexy Rexy got a raw deal with the New York Jets. A bad GM that puts bad players out on the field means one thing...a lot of bad football. So when Rex got the gig in Buffalo I expected big things. This was his chance to redeem himself and show everyone how awesome he is. So why the hell are the Bills 2-2 while his former team, the Jets boast a record of 3-1? In fact New York should be worse off since they still have a lot of the players that were part of the Ryan era still on the squad, which means one thing and I hate to say it, but right now Rex is more hype man than coach. It shows on the field since his team relies on momentum over fundamentals, the problem is that the good coach is in there somewhere, we've seen it on the field and I hope that part of Rex comes back to football soon.

Does Detroit finally get their first win of the season this week?
The short answer is...maybe? This is a talented team that just has not been able to get it done thanks to a myriad of issues. The coaching is off, the execution sucks, the list goes on and on. What kills however is the fact that it's obvious they are capable of playing quality football. They showed big flashes of brilliance in Seattle last week, they just couldn't get it done, and before I hear back on the flag thing, that doesn't matter to me. They had sixty minutes of football to take a lead, they didn't do it, end of story. Either way, this is a big game coming up against Arizona and they need something to build their confidence soon. They pull this one off the season is salvageable, they don't...well then it is business as usual in Detroit. 

What will the Miami Dolphins look like under new Head Coach Dan Campbell?
Let's be honest, Miami is a mess. Joe Philbin lost his squad and it's clear that the inmates run the asylum. We heard about Tannehill ripping the practice squad. We've heard about the rumored defensive disdain and poor Dan Campbell gets to clean up the mess and we are all wondering, how fast can he fix it...or can he fix it at all? Sadly, we won't really know until game time. But the fact that Dan installed the Oklahoma drill shows he is ready to see this team toughen up quickly and that's a plus. But the man does have a monumental task ahead of him. I personally think he will make a difference quickly simply because this team has been without leadership that long. How long that lasts however with a whiny franchise QB and an egotistical thug in Suh remains to be seen.

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OUR PICKS OF THE WEEK

John's Picks
Denver Broncos at Oakland Raiders - Denver
Washington Redskins at Atlanta Falcons - Atlanta
New Orleans Saints at Philadelphia Eagles - New Orleans
Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens - Cleveland
Buffalo Bills at Tennessee Titans - Buffalo

Scotty's Picks 
St. Louis Rams at Green Bay Packers - Green Bay
Chicago Bears at Kansas City Chiefs - Kansas City
Jacksonville Jaguars at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Tampa Bay
New England Patriots at Dallas Cowboys - New England
Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens - Baltimore

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