1.   (1)    New England  Pro- Everything. Finish games like Mariano Rivera, well Rivera 96-2000
                                      Con- Defense hasn’t been invincible and they can’t keep getting every break.
The Patriots have kept their streak alive. The difference between past dominant teams is that they give you a chance. They chance tomake you think you can win. And then they rip your heart out. Corey Dillon has worked out
unbelievably well. The only thing bad I can think of is using Dan Klecko as a fullback is just dumb.
Grade A+ Train keeps on rollin’.
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2.   (2)    Philadelphia   Pro- Had their first test of the year. Overtime on the road and won.
                                     Con- Westbrook is hurting and the depth aint what it used to be
Another team that signed a maligned superstar and struck gold. TO has exceeded even the most
optimistic of projection scoring almost every game. People thought they were in trouble when
Buckhalter went down. Those people are idiots. They are easily the best team in the NFC.
Grade A Owens has made my fantasy teams very happy.
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3.   (4)   Minnesota       Pro- Offense is invincible and they are on their 4^th string RB
                                      Con- Started out same last year and Moss hamstring is a HUGE deal
Bennett,  Smith, Williams, Moore. It doesn’t matter when Dante Cullpepper can do whatever he
wants. We said here the Antoine Winfield addition would be huge and it is. Only blemish was ugly
 MNF against Eagles. Tice did something stupid that night so I will downgrade a hair.
Grade: B+  Talk to me in week 17
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4.   (3)  Indianapolis      Pro- Offensive balance at last  and got over stage fright last year
                                       Con- Dropped two biggest games of year against Pats Jags
The Colts have decided to keep Reggie Wayne involved every week and have even shared the
playbook with Brandon Stokley. It was nice to see Wayne shove Manning, it shows this team has a
little fire. Now if someone can shove Dwight Freeney we’ve got a team!
Grade: B Must find a way to win the big ones… again
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5.   (5)    Denver          Pro- Running game back and D has been strength all year
                                     Con- It still comes down to Jake Plummer
The Broncos were cruising until hitting a snag against Cincy. What does their coach do? He sends
out a tape of other teams illegal blocks instead of worry about how his team got shellacked
By a terrible Bengals team.
Grade: B Don’t they start this way every year?
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6.   (6)    NY Jets          Pro- Beat everyone and hung tough with Pats
                                      Con- Ignoring McCareins, Moss and relying to much on Curtis Martin
The Jets have to be the happiest team in the NFL. Yes they were expected to be good but not his good
Herm Edwards is one of the best and becoming Bill Cowher like in that he should never be fired.
One negative- Who the heck is catching all the passes here?
Grade: A+ The Jets are back.
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7.   (8)    Jacksonville   Pro- Very reminiscent of 99 Titans can winning some big games
                                      Con- Offense as explosive as wet ice cubes
The lessons learned here for the Jags are tremendous if they can sneak into the playoffs. Every game has
 been a pressure cooker and they are the ones on top most of the time. Must keep games close because
 I don’t think their offense can come back from behind too much.
Grade: A Chic Super Bowl pick making everyone look smart thus far
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8.   (9)    Pittsburgh      Pro- Staley pick turned out to be great, and Bus still involved
                                     Con- This may be a soft 5-1
Pittsburgh has been quite a surprise at 5-1. Tommy Maddox (god bless him) going down was a good
thing as Big Ben looks like the answer. Duce Staley has provided steel town toughness and Bettis
won’t be complaining as long as he scores 3 TD’s every two weeks.
Grade: A When Pittsburgh is going good everything is good with the NFL.
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 9. (12)    Atlanta         Pro- Leading the surprisingly wretched NFC South
                                    Cons- Just got the bejesus knocked out of them at KC
Jim Mora Jr. has proven he can come up with just as insane a quote as his father if not as entertaining
The West Coast change is a plus considering they are able to win and let Vick learn at the same time.
D WAS looking good until KC rolled them. I think it’s an anomaly rather than an exploitation.
Grade: B- Dangerous team when Vick is running on all cylinders
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10. (11)  Baltimore      Pro- If they can win without Lewis and Heap, well they are going places
                                    Con- What is up with offensive guru Billick?
The Ravens just win but for how long with Boller at the helm? Fortunately for them their D doesn’t
mind having it all ride on them. Lewis and Heap should benefit from the rest and their team not collapsing
in their absence.
Grade: B- They must fix their miserable offense to be taken seriously.
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11. (14)  Detroit          Pro- Can win on the road and Harrington-Williams becoming potent
                                    Con- They like puke sometimes too. Flip a coin each week I guess
The Lions aren’t doormats anymore but are they ready for the wild wild west of playoff football.
Kevin Jones played like a starter last week and he can keep it up this team is going places. Their
D has been patchwork but is adequate when they can keep it going for 60 minutes. With all of their
injuries they are susceptible to the occasional blowout.
Grade: B+ Still haven’t turned the corner but aren’t an embarrassment anymore. 
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12.  (15) Green Bay   Pro- Look like the best in football 3 times
                                    Con- Look like the worst team in football 4 times
The Pack is going to get it right. They have too many good players to be 3-4. Ahman Green got
rolling in what should be a typical Packers game- Blow the opponent into submission and then unleash
the D. These next few games are critical and I’m betting Packer.
Grade: C- No excuse for this bad of start.
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13. (12)  St. Louis       Pro- Can still light it up with the best
                                    Con- Egads! They lost to pathetic Miami and let the Bucs put up 20
St. Louis needs a new coach. Martz’s every move is mind-boggling. That explains their 4-3 record yes
they should be 4-3 but the won a game they should’ve lost and lost a well you get the picture.It’s starting to look like Faulk will be losing more PT to Jackson and they probably is the right move.
Grade: C Fortune to be leading division but no way are they a playoff team
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14. (14)  NY Giants     Pro- Have 2^nd place wrapped up with a 4^th place roster
                                     Con- Okay to lose the Lions, but they got whooped to fall 2 down to Eagles
The Giants should be worse than this but Adolph Coughlin managed to right the ship-wreck. The division
is out of reach and losing games to other surprise teams like the Lions hurts. The D has been their back bone and they will have to bring it every game to keep their average offense out of trouble.
Grade: B I thought they would be terrible.
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15. (10)  Seattle           Pro- 3-0 start and played the Patriots tough
                                     Con- 0-3 slide and catch the ball like amputees
Something has been brewing in Seattle since the last 6 games of 2002. All of that is being shot to hell with
their recent slide. Holmgren and Rhodes may need to start cracking the whip. There are two players who
need to be cut- Koren Robinson and Terreal Bierra. They provide nothing but game
losing plays and I doubt either has a positive influence in the locker room.
Grade D This team should be 5-1 and better wake up quick.
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16.  (17) San Diego      Pro- Reports of the Chargers death have been greatly exaggerated
                                     Con- 4-3? No Cons unless Rivers was a wasted pick
The Chargers are a team. While LT is a superstar they are playing well together and mistakes to a minimum.
 If some of the more talented teams (Green Bay, Seattle) played this hard they be undefeated. Hooray to
everyone involved.
Grade A+ Remember those 0-16 predictions?
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17.  (19) Kansas City   Pro- Score 8 TD’s last week and looked like last years playoff team
                                     Con- Have only won two games and are running out of time
The Chiefs are experiencing a Super Bowl hangover without the Super Bowl. Dante Hall has done nothing,
the receivers are horrible and the defense is like a parted sea. That being said they scored 8
rushing TD’s against a good Falcons d. which way do they go? The Denver game will tell us for sure.
Grade: D Everyone expected much, much more.
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18.  (22) Houston        Pro- David Carr cut his hair and they are no longer a doormat
                                    Con- Could’ve been much more with losses to San Diego and Detroit.
The Texans have gotten over the hump and David Carr to Andre Johnson is becoming a force. While their
loses to SD and Detroit aren’t terrible this team has the potential to be much better. If Indy and Jax aren’t
 careful the Texans can be a factor.
Grade: C+ Can they keep it going?
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19.  (20) Cleveland     Pro- Despite injuries the season isn’t over and they give the Eagles a scare
                                    Con- They are way to inconsistent. Garcia hasn’t helped as much as thought
The deck is stacked against the Browns. The injury bug has hit them more than anyone. Butch Davis
 probably loses his job this year and rightly so. This team was good enough to go to the playoffs 2 years a
 go and have shown nothing but the occasional flash since.
Grade: C- 7-9 will be an achievement
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20.  (23) Arizona          Pro- 2 wins and are competitive every time out. Boldin back this week
                                     Con- A young team on the rise should’ve beat San Francisco
Denny Green has them playing hard despite injuries to Marcel Shipp and Anquan Boldin. Emmitt Smith
has a little left in the tank and Boldin’s absence has probably helped Fitzgerald and B. Johnson.The defense
 with rookies Dansby and Dockett looks great and there is hope for the Cardinals
Grade: B+ Would be an A if they didn’t blow it versus San Francisco
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21.  (16) Tennessee      Pro- Chris Brown is definitely the replacement for Eddie George
                                      Con- Have dug too deep a whole and need to get ready for next year
The Titans are a mess and there isn’t reason to think it will get better. Beating the Packers on Monday
will be the highlight of the season. Steve McNair is not going to be healthy again and when he does
play there aren’t too many people healthy to throw to.  Bulluck and Chris Brown have been great.
Grade- D I saw this demise coming   
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22.  (18) Dallas            Pro- With Bill Parcels you are never out of it
                                   Con- Bad draft.. Parcels “win now” with “wait till next year” roster
I’m still sick of the Cowboys and enjoying this slide. The NFL should just make former Parcels players
 package deal every year in free agency. That way we can have Keyshawn,Vinny and Richie ready to play
 for whichever team Parcels coaches next.
Grade- F From playoffs to this mess?
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23.  (24) Cincinnati     Pro- Was win against Broncos the catalyst?
                                    Con- Expectations were high for the first time in 12 years and they are 2-4
Marvin Lewis will take a lot of criticism if the Bengals keep struggling with Palmer. Kitna may not have the
 arm, but he brought a lot of guts to this team. Here’s hoping their performance against Denver gets them
 going.
Grade: C- I want to like the Bengals, but 2-4 isn’t getting it done.
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24.  (25) New Orleans Pro- Can’t beat any team, anywhere. Roster full of talent
                                    Con-Rarely beat anyone and seem to mail it in every other Sunday
Something is seriously wrong here. As much as I like Jim Hasslet it’s probably time for him to leave. New
Orleans is clearly talented but the pieces don’t fit. During the week I picture this team just running around
having a good time pulling pranks on each other. That’s fine but if you want to win football games you have
 to grow up at some point.
Grade- D+ Jekyl and Hyde
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25.  (26) Washington   Pro- Portis playing well and defense has held up its end
                                     Con- QB is a mess, they were better off sticking with Ramsey
Nobody should have expected anything out of the Redskins this year. Here's a tip Snyder. Leave the roster
alone for a year a see what happens.
Grade- C- Ho huim
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26.  (27) Oakland         Pro- Not many, managed to win a couple games
                                     Con- Collins looks lost, mess of average RB’s defense not good either
Where to begin. This is a team in transition and it aint pretty. Kerry Collins has been a flop and the Defense
has been nothing special. Shane Lechler has been their best player. The fans are chanting For Tuiasosopo
and they may be right. Ronald Curry appears to be a keeper.
Grade: D It’s getting ugly in Oakland and will get much worse before better.
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27.  (30) Tampa Bay     Pro- Griese, Clayton and Pittman have instilled some life
                                      Con- Still have the D but one of the most inept offensives around
The roof caved in and the Bucs will have to endure another  crappy season to pay for their Super Bowl win.
 Playing Brian Griese or Chris Simms is a positive and they probably let go of Lynch and Sapp at the right
 time. Michael Pittman is hard runner when he’s not in trouble and they are implementing new talent on D
nicely. Gruden should be a good enough coach to whether the storm.
Grade: C- The Bucs are staying in games but handled the McCardell situation bad
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28.  (21) Carolina         Pro- Can blame poor start on injuries
                                     Con-Everything that went right last year has been terrible this year
You are only as good as the adversity you face. The Panthers did indeed lead a charmed life last year.The
offense has received some devastating blows and not handled it well. The defense doesn’t have as many
 excuses and has basically given them no chance at winning. They get a chance to win against a struggling
 Seahawk team this week.
Grade: D Quickly forgetting about last year
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29    (28) Chicago          Pro- May have struck gold with Thomas Jones
                                       Con- Rex loses a year of development and there aren’t many signs of life
The Bears came in to 2004 with a modest amount of talent. Losing Rex Grossman certainly popped the liner
 in the talent pool. Losing the heart of their D in Mike Brown didn’t either. The Bears seem to always play
hard, but the won’t be enough to keep them out of the cellar.
Grade: C They’ve played as well as they could considering their roster.
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30.  (28) Buffalo           Pro- Will be able to bench Bledsoe soon to see if Losman can get it done                                       Con- Two years in a row of wasting outstanding defensive efforts
Buffalo is a mess. A combination of a slow QB with a suspect line. I don’t think Drew is finished, but heneeds to get out of Buffalo. The defense is the best in the league and they have to be sick of watching their efforts go to waste. New coach Mularkey needs to figure something out quick.
Grade: F Great D and power running gets the Ravens in the playoffs and they don’t have Moulds
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31.  (32) Miami             Pro- It took them 7 weeks but they looked pretty good whooping the Rams
                                      Con- Need to blow up team and start over again
This team let Rickey Williams ruin their season. Once he started acting weird they packed it in. A good
coach would get his team to rise above but Dave Wannstedt seemed happy to pack it in. The Dolphins
make team 2 to put all of their eggs in one basket. In the NFL you never put that much hope into 1/53
 of your roster.
Grade: F So you lose your running back, deal with it. 
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32.  (31) San Francisco Pro- Tim Rattay is comfortable chucking the ball around and is a keeper
                                      Con- Peterson injury devastating and they aren’t going to win anymore games
Everyone knew the 49ers would be terrible. So this is no surprise. What is a surprise is that they won a
 game. If you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all.
Grade: C- it actually could be worse
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