NFL Power Rankings: Week 3

Dallas’ Sunday Night win consolidated their position at the top of the rankings but injuries are the big story of Week 3. The Packers may have lost the game but Al Harris’s ruptured spleen could put their season in jeopardy. Meanwhile both the Steelers and the Eagles face slightly uncertain futures with key players going down.

The suprise packages of the season; Buffalo, Denver and Tennessee all continue to rise as they maintained their unbeaten record while former powerhouses New England and Indianapolis slip after defeats.

The biggest movers are Tampa Bay after their epic win against Chicago, with Brian Griese of all people throwing for over 400 yards against his old team. Cleveland, however, continue to plummett with a third straight loss.

2008 Power Rankings: Week 3
	RK (Last week)	TEAM	REC	COMMENT
	1 (1)	Cowboys	3-0-0	The Cowboys are so talented, but they just lack depth at WR… Oh wait, no they don’t.
	2 (2)	Giants	3-0-0	2 minutes left and down 4, are they many other quarterbacks in the league you’d want behind center?
	3 (5)	Eagles	2-1-0	They’re playing smart, and Donovan McNabb is back to his best. Brian Westbrook was… until that ankle injury. They need him back as soon as possible
	4 (4)	Packers	2-1-0	Suddenly that defense looks very vulnerable all of a sudden. Charles Woodson is going to get very lonely out there…
	5 (10)	Titans	3-0-0	Can you say Best Defense in the NFL? I just worry about the Quarterback situation, they aren’t the Ravens of 2000.
	6 (9)	Broncos	3-0-0	Jay Cutler is some player, but can he keep this up? The defense is averaging 395 passing yards allowed in the last two games, Cutler needs to be scoring 35.
	7 (3)	Steelers	2-1-0	Never underestimate how important an offensive line is. Big Ben’s banged up after hitting the turf 12 times in 3 games.
	8 (11)	Bills	3-0-0	This team has a lot of character. Expect them to be taken close many more times, and to still come out on top in most of them.
	9 (7)	Panthers	2-1-0	It was going well until they stopped getting the ball to Steve Smith…
	10 (13)	Chargers	1-2-0	SD avoided a third last second defeat by putting 27 between them and the Jets. They just never seem to be able to stay healthy.
	11 (16)	Jaguars	1-2-0	That 0-2 start should have stopped any talk of Superbowl. Now perhaps that last second win against Indy will see this team return to form.
	12 (8)	Colts	1-2-0	This is going to be Peyton’s hardest season in years, I wouldn’t bet against him, but they’re no longer a lock to make it out of that division.
	13 (6)	Patriots	2-1-0	Wow, talk about a capitulation. 6 direct snaps leading to four touchdowns? Big big questions over this team now, where is it’s strength?
	14 (21)	Buccaneers	2-1-0	Was that Brian Griese throwing 67 times for 400+ yards? They just keep surprising you in Tampa.
	15 (12)	Cardinals	2-1-0	This one got away from them, they need to make sure they don’t ease off however, they may have some competition in this division after all.
	16 (18)	Redskins	2-1-0	Week 1 seems a long way away, and Jason Campbell is actually looking pretty good.
	17 (19)	Vikings	1-2-0	They needed that win, and the supporting cast stepped it up. But that Quarterback position is going to be the death of that team.
	18 (24)	Ravens	2-0-0	People would love to point out the faults, but they’re 2-0, what can you say? And with that defense against Pittsburgh’s O-line, it could be 3-0.
	19 (14)	Saints	1-2-0	Tough loss but how many times has that been said? Still, Reggie Bush is every bit as electrifying as first advertised.
	20 (25)	49ers	2-1-0	Don’t look now, but the 49ers are 2-1 and have quite the potent offense. It gets a lot tougher from here though, Saints, Pats and Eagles…
	21 (15)	Bears	1-2-0	I kinda feel sorry for this team, they’re playing hard. If they keep it up, the wins should come.
	22 (20)	Jets	1-2-0	And all of a sudden, talk of the Jets winning 10 kinda died down….
	23 (27)	Falcons	2-1-0	For a team who weren’t supposed to even win a game, there’s certainly a lot of reasons for optimism.
	24 (27)	Seahawks	1-2-0	An early season bye is just what they need. I just don’t think the reciever situation will recover in time.
	25 (17)	Browns	0-3-0	Some teams have a winning mentality. The Browns do not have a winning mentality, throw Brady Quinn in there.
	26 (26)	Raiders	1-2-0	On the one hand, they played pretty well, they hung with the Bills and were unlucky to lose. On the other, that was 17 points given up in the 4th.
	27 (29)	Dolphins	1-2-0	You can’t beat a bit of invention, and that was a wonderfully uplifiting victory against the Patriots. Why did everyone forget about Ronnie Brown?
	28 (23)	Texans	0-2-0	Giving up on Schaub already? Is that really the answer?
	29 (30)	Bengals	0-3-0	Well they showed a lot of spirit and that offense finally started rolling. But it’s put up or shut up time in Week 4 against Cleveland.
	30 (29)	Lions	0-3-0	Now you’ve fired Matt Millen?!? What tipped it for them?
	31 (31)	Chiefs	0-3-0	I still can’t understand why they thought they could compete with Huard and Croyle at QB. And they’ve given up on those two already.
	32 (32)	Rams	0-3-0	I don’t know what’s happened to Marc Bulger, but this team seems to think you don’t actually need an offensive line. Or a defense for that matter.

Biggest Climber: Tampa Bay 21 -> 14

Biggest Faller: Cleveland 25 -> 17

NFL Power Rankings: Week 2

Week 2’s explosive finish sees Dallas consolidate their position on top of the pile rounding off a week with not too much movement. It’s hard to knock a team at 2-0, especially with two playoff calibur teams left in their wake.

Elsewhere the Eagles move up 3 places despite losing while the Bronco’s jump up into the top 10 after their thrilling win at home to San Diego. The Chargers meanwhile are the biggest fallers slipping all the way down to 13 with their second consecutive loss.

The rankings figure to undergo a big shakeup next week however with several prominent matchups. The Colts (1-1) face Jacksonville (0-2) in a game that already could have big playoff implications while the Cowboys and Packers renew acquaintances in a matchup of NFC big guns. Philadelphia meanwhile continue in their quest to prove they are the real deal as they welcome in Pittsburgh.

2008 Power Rankings: Week 2
	RK (Last week)	TEAM	REC	COMMENT
	1 (1)	Cowboys	2-0-0	Tony Romo may not be perfect, but he and this Dallas team just proved why they’re number 1 in the NFL at the moment. They can’t afford to stop now however, it’s Green Bay next and that shut-down defense.
	2 (3)	Giants	2-0-0	Yes it was the “just the Rams”, but i do believe the champs are 2-0 and Justin Tuck may be an early candidate for DPotY. Ignore this team at your peril.
	3 (7)	Steelers	2-0-0	There’s few better all-around teams than Pittsburgh, as usual they’ll be a dangerous team in the playoffs.
	4 (6)	Packers	2-0-0	I’m telling you, Aaron Rodgers is the real deal, Detroit Lions or not.
	5 (8)	Eagles	1-1-0	And here we go again. McNabb great, Westbrook even better, recievers? Erm… That’s not even the first time Jackson’s done that.
	6 (5)	Patriots	2-0-0	Well Cassell did enough, but still there’s unaswered questions about where this franchise is going this season. Guess we’ll have to wait another week to find out though, the Fins visit next.
	7 (11)	Panthers	2-0-0	Wow, advice for Carolina opponents this season, do not rile Jake Delhomme up. After that Briggs cheap shot he tore up the Bears secondary. 2-0 and Steve Smith to come back, it’s looking very good.
	8 (9)	Colts	1-1-0	This Colts team is strug-a-ling, but Peyton Manning can still pull it out. There’s a fine line between winning ugly and barely winning.
	9 (17)	Broncos	2-0-0	Yeah it was a fumble, but this offense is for real. Jay Cutler is definitely for real.
	10 (12)	Titans	2-0-0	Routine win, but this defense is very very good. By the way, next four opponents: Houston, Minnesota, Baltimore and Kansas..
	11 (13)	Bills	2-0-0	Pencil this in your diary: Novermber 9th, Buffalo @ New England, it’s going to be huge
	12 (14)	Cardinals	2-0-0	Kurt Warner wasted no time this week, perhaps Matt Leinart should get used to that clipboard for a while.
	13 (2)	Chargers	0-2-0	There’s only so many times you can be”just not our day”. Before long, it’s “just not good enough”.
	14 (4)	Saints	1-1-0	That was winnable, very winnable. Games like that can be the difference between playoffs and no playoffs.
	15 (16)	Bears	1-1-0	This team’s defintely making progress, Kyle Orton’s minimizing the mistakes and this defense is back to it’s best.
	16 (10)	Jaguars	0-2-0	The O-line problems are killing this team’s running game, and it doesn’t exactly get easier from here. Lose to the Colts next week and thats a massive 0-3 hole for a supposed Superbowl contender.
	17 (15)	Browns	0-2-0	There’s only so many teams that can keep up the winning seasons. The reason? Harder schedules, the Browns need to wise up and start winning.
	18 (23)	Redskins	1-1-0	Maybe there is hope for this team after all. That win lets them forget the week 1 debacle, but the division may just be too tough.
	19 (18)	Vikings	0-2-0	That’s an 0-4 run stretching back to last season. Then again, the Giants started 0-2, and who thought Eli Manning was good enough? Just maybe…
	20 (20)	Jets	1-1-0	I’m still firmly in the non-believer camp when it comes to this Jets team. Why would you not blitz a guy who hasn’t started since high school?
	21 (21)	Buccaneers	1-1-0	Well that was fun, but I’m just not sure they’re offense is good enough, no matter how dominant the D is.
	22 (19)	Seahawks	0-2-0	The additions of Colbert and Robinson finally give Hasselbeck someone to throw to. And there’s plenty of time to experiment, they face the Rams at home next.
	23 (22)	Texans	0-1-0	I’m not sure a bye this early will help. Schaub to Johnson was lethal last year, they need to refind that connection fast
	24 (24)	Ravens	1-0-0	15 straight games now, it’s going to be a long season.
	25 (27)	49ers	1-1-0	That was certainly unexpected. Perhaps OSullivan is a late bloomer after all and if he can perform consistently like that, they might just challenge for this weak division.
	26 (28)	Raiders	1-1-0	Russell again looked pretty unsure in the pocket. If the defense can keep it close enough for the Raiders to be able to stick with the running game, maybe people will start taking this team seriously.
	27 (25)	Falcons	1-1-0	Welcome to the NFL Matt Ryan. Started 0-9 with 2 interceptions while Turner managed just 42 yards off 14 carries. If only they could face the Lions every week
	28 (26)	Lions	0-2-0	This team is horrible, thats 1-9 since last season’s 6-2 start. This defense can’t stop anybody and they still can’t run the ball. It’s a shame with such talented WRs in Williams and Johnson
	29 (29)	Dolphins	0-2-0	They were in that game for all of 2 minutes. Does this team have any offense? I thought they would at least be able to run the ball.
	30 (30)	Bengals	0-2-0	We knew the defense was bad, but this team has managed to put up 17 points in two games. Only 10 of those came from the offense.
	31 (31)	Chiefs	0-2-0	Larry Johnson: 12 carries, 22 yards. And you would have thought Oakland at home was a prime chance to get off the mark
	32 (22)	Rams	0-2-0	I’m really not a fan of Stephen Jackson, he has a lot to say for someone who hasn’t produced since 2006.

Biggest Climber: Denver 17 -> 9

Biggest Faller: San Diego 2 -> 13

NFL Power Rankings: Week 1

Well if Week 1 is anything to go by, we’re in for quite the season

Two rookie quarterbacks won on their debuts while San Diego, Indianapolis and Jacksonville all lost. Dallas takes the top spot after their impressive showing while the Patriots suffer a drop after the shock of losing reigning league MVP Tom Brady after just a week

Without further ado…

2008 Power Rankings: Week 1
	RK (Last week)	TEAM	REC	COMMENT
	1 (3)	Cowboys	1-0-0	They made a good Browns team look very average. Certainly the quickest out the blocks, but making the playoffs should be an afterthought.
	2 (5)	Chargers	0-1-0	All this means is they won’t go undefeated. They’re healthy, and Phillip Rivers looked pretty impressive with 3 TDs to different recievers
	3 (6)	Giants	1-0-0	With all the drama of opening weekend you may have forgotten the ease in which the Giants brushed aside the Redskins. Justin Tuck, believe the hype
	4 (10)	Saints	1-0-0	Two years on, is Reggie Bush finally ready to take the NFL by storm? He looked unstoppable against a good Tampa defense but Marques Colston being out for 4-6 weeks will be a major blow.
	5 (1)	Patriots	1-0-0	The Patriots thrive on adversity but doing this without Tom Brady? Perhaps if they hadn’t have had to hold on against the lowly Chiefs…
	6 (7)	Packers	1-0-0	I’m not sure why everyone was writing off the Packers, it’s the same team and Aaron Rodgers is a more than competent quarterback. Crowning the Vikings was very premature
	7 (8)	Steelers	1-0-0	Not a whole lot of people were talking about the Steelers before the season, perhaps those 38 points against a good Houston team will make some sit up and take notice.
	8 (12)	Eagles	1-0-0	Forget the skepticism, McNabb’s back, he just put up 38 points with no recievers. Still, there’s sterner tests than St. Louis ahead, beginning with Dallas on Monday Night.
	9 (2)	Colts	0-1-0	That’s not just “one of those days”. 29 points from Chicago and Kyle Orton? That D needs to sort itself out, if they thought Matt Forte was good, wait until they meet Adrian Peterson next week.
	10 (4)	Jaguars	0-1-0	This team is in danger of believing the hype. Carry on with complacency like that and they could find themselves out of the playoff picture very quickly
	11 (16)	Panthers	1-0-0	What a way to start the season, and without Steve Smith. That win was huge, if they can get something against Chicago this team could be for real
	12 (14)	Titans	1-0-0	Thats a nice 1,2 punch they have with Johnson and White, Young now needs to prove he can take them to the next level. Gonna be hard to do that from the bench
	13 (21)	Bills	1-0-0	That win coupled with the Patriots showing signs of mortality could bode very well for this team. A little momentum goes a long way
	14 (14)	Cardinals	1-0-0	So is it finally the year? A win on the road in the division is as good a start as any.
	15 (11)	Browns	0-1-0	Tough start but Derek Anderson 11-24? Big game next week against Pittsburgh, lose that and it’s an 0-2 hole already.
	16 (27)	Bears	1-0-0	Was that the Bears of old we just saw? Yeah, and Kyle Orton and Rex Grossman are still 1 and 2 on the depth chart, Don’t get your hopes up.
	17 (18)	Broncos	1-0-0	Jay Cutler couldn’t have ripped that Oakland D into shreds any tinier. He looks the real deal, perhaps a playoff berth isn’t so far-fetched.
	18 (25)	Vikings	0-1-0	I have a bad feeling Vikings fans may be lamenting the play of Tavaris Jackson on more than one occasion. He needs to learn to do what is needed, this team has enough talent.
	19 (12)	Seahawks	0-1-0	Courtney Brown – who? Thats the only healthy WR on the Seahawks roster that had caught an NFL pass before the season started. With Burleson now down, this team needs some recievers, fast.
	20 (28)	Jets	1-0-0	The smoke is still yet to clear but it’s still the same Brett Favre. The Favre that buckled in the Championship game last year and the Favre that was quite frankly, lucky to pick up the win. Hail marys wont work every week.
	21 (15)	Buccaneers	0-1-0	This team is looking old, where are the big plays going to come from?
	22 (17)	Texans	0-1-0	12 missed tackles in two series? Make no mistake, that was a thumping, they need to put that behind them quickly. May be hard with Ahman Green going down… again.
	23 (19)	Redskins	0-1-0	Someone buy Jim Zorn a calender perhaps? This isn’t preseason anymore, these games matter
	24 (24)	Ravens	1-0-0	Nice win, but let’s face it, they won’t get many games as easy as that this season.
	25 (32)	Falcons	1-0-0	Impressive, is Turner the real deal? Time to face a real NFL defense now…
	26 (23)	Lions	0-1-0	A team touted to get all of 2 wins and you give up 34? at home? Same old Lions…
	27 (26)	49ers	0-1-0	JT O’Sullivan, eigth team in six seasons, is he really the one? He showed promise, but those turnovers were costly.
	28 (20)	Raiders	0-1-0	Humiliated, no one more so than De angelo Hall who got torched by rookie Eddie Royal. Time to see what this teams actually made of.
	29 (31)	Dolphins	0-1-0	They deserved something from that, but they still have a long way to go.
	30 (30)	Bengals	0-1-0	This team is so bad, people are still talking about that ridiculous Ocho Cinco thing. i mean what else is there?
	31 (31)	Chiefs	0-1-0	There’s a few reasons to be encouraged, they did hang with the Patriots.
	32 (22)	Rams	0-1-0	This team is appalling, 0-11 on third down, just what has happened to this offense?

Biggest Climber: Chicago 27 -> 16

Biggest Faller: St Louis 22 -> 32

When Push Comes to Shove

I think my brother summed it up best upong hearing the news; “Oh well”. Indeed, the inevitable has finally happened, oh well.

Perhaps a little sooner than expected but realistically, noone could say they didn’t see this one coming. Despite a relatively easy first few weeks of the new Premiership season, Curbishley never really had a chance. Statistics show that this was West Ham’s best start in 9 years, but of course statistics only scratch the surface. Performances had barely improved on last season and quite frankly, West Ham could easily have been with barely more than a point had their finishing not been so clinical. Then again my grandmother would have been a bus if she was red and had four wheels. Shoulda coulda woulda.

The fact is however, that the reasons for Curbishley’s position becoming so untenable date back much further than simply some unrest after last season’s parking up in 10th place in October and staying there. The media’s been very quick to jump on the backs of West Ham fans for being unreasonable and a lot of what’s being banded about is simply not true.

Firstly, i think if you asked the majority of West Ham fans at this season their feelings on Curbishley, they would have told you the same thing. Skeptical, but give him time. Moreso, the apparent conflict between him and the board if anything galvanised the support of the fans behind Curbishley, sympathising with his position. But fans were still skeptical. This doesn’t mean the fans necessarily wanted rid, but they weren’t sure. Consider this:

• That relegation season when he took over. He “saved” us. No he didn’t in my opinion. It may be incredibly cynical of me, but quite frankly i think Curbishley got lucky that season. For weeks we continued to play incredibly poorly. Maybe this was him turning it around (Hell, I gave Pardew 2 years to get us out and he more than did that), but there’s two main reasons i don’t buy into this. One, the baffling exclusion of Carlos Tevez from the starting lineup for weeks (and the sale of Mascherano). Curbishley (or Day, i forget) actually said they didn’t know what the fans saw in Tevez until they actually started him around the Spurs game. That’s pretty incompetent if you ask me.
  Two, there’s too many reports of Curbishley’s man management being appalling. If there’s someone to  lift a dressing room, it’s not him. Now I get angry enough when Carlos Tevez is given 100% credit, because the additions of Lucas Neill and Mark Noble were just as important in keeping us up. And Lucas Neill is the key here. Say what you like about his character, the supposed 60k he earns, but he really does seem a fantastic captain, he’s been handed it everywhere he’s gone. I’m pretty sure his work to galvanise the team was invaluable.

• Curbishley’s never looked fantastic in the transfer market. Sure Upson has been a revelation, Neill’s was fantastic in the survival year. But the Ljungberg saga, Dyer, Parker, Davenport, Nigel Quashie. I’m not saying this should get him sacked, but it’s a reason to be skeptical

10 years at Freedman’s Palace

Freedman scores to save Palace

In a summer which has become known for the disloyal nature of certain players (step forward Master Bostock) it was a welcome relief to celebrate ten years of service for Mr Crystal Palace, Douglas Freedman Esq.

As an Eagles fan myself I felt the need to give my own take on a player who has defined a generation. During his two periods at the club he’s experienced the high of promotion to the Premier League coupled with relegation from it, and also saved the club from third tier football on that afternoon at Edgeley Park, Stockport in May 2001.

So lets start from the beginning, September 1995. After impressing at Third Division Barnet with 27 goals in 47 games Dougie was snapped up by Steve Coppell. It was to be the following season that we witnessed what he was made of.

After putting the disappointment of the previous season’s playoff final defeat behind them, Palace returned to Wembley to beat Sheffield United following David Hopkin’s final minute goal. As a fan of course this moment takes precedence, however, the moment I remember involves the man himself.

Being ruled out of the final of any competition is a blow to any player. This being the case Dougie entered the fray against Wolves in the semi-final first leg knowing that even if his goals fired us into the final he wouldn’t actually get to take the field on the day. Knowing this, what followed was even more spectacular.

Playoff joy

The game went into the final minute deadlocked at 1-0; Freedman then entered the fray. He lobbed the stranded keeper with his second goal; the first was something special though. Finding himself with space on the edge of the box, 25 yards out, he did what he does best…scored with style! To be precise it was a measured volley, one of the best goals I’ve seen in my lifetime at Selhurst, confirming my adoration for the man from Glasgow.

Achieving promotion with Palace was a great feat but he was quickly on the move enjoying spells with both Wolves and Forest but this wasn’t to be.

Much to our surprise and obvious amazement he re-signed for us in 2000.

What happened next is what how Palace fans will remember Dougie for years to come.

Looking relegation fodder for much of the season going into our final two games we needed two wins. Fratton Park, Portsmouth was our first destination in what to this day is one of my proudest moments as a Palace fan. Both teams were fighting for their lives in the nether regions of the First Division. A sold-out away end saw a deserved 4-2 win for Palace, Freedman grabbing a memorable brace.

That goal!

Going into the final game we still had it all to do but there he was again. 87^th minute, Hopkin’s ‘hand of god’, Freedman’s run and shot, Palace fans partying in the greatest escape in the club’s history, avoiding relegation by 3 minutes.

This is how I for one will remember (Sir) Dougie. Saving us from the brink when we looked like we were gone.

He wasn’t finished there though as he went on to form a formidable partnership with Clinton Morrison, sharing over 40 goals between them the following season, earning him a first cap and goal for Scotland.

Later in his Palace career he reached a century of goals for the club, notching his 100^th and 101^st goals away to bitter rivals Brighton in what again will go down in the folklore of the club.

So here’s to hoping there’s many more like Freedman in the years to come (Messrs Moses, Scannell, Hills), not abandoning the club like Bostock and Routledge have done in times past.