Instant reactions: week 10

We're already through with 10 weeks of the NFL season? Here are recaps and reax for your viewing pleasure.

Minnesota 34, Washington 27
And here I was thinking the Redskins had a shot. They practically have to win out now.

Seattle 33, Atlanta 10
Russell Wilson and the Seahawks got their revenge for the NFC divisional round. Of course, this Atlanta team isn't quite the Falcons squad of 2012.

Detroit 21, Chicago 19
I'm a little surprised Chicago hung in this one. But it's a division game, so you know both teams had to give it their all.

Philadelphia 27, Green Bay 13
Good things happen when Nick Foles touches the ball. Of course, if memory serves me correctly, Mike Vick started off the season really well, too.

St. Louis 38, Indianapolis 8
Holy Luck! Andrew's boys were utterly decimated at home. Looks like they didn't really make plans for this one.
Giants 24, Oakland 20
As poorly as the Giants' season started, New York has won three straight and is tight in the NFC East hunt.

Pittsburgh 23, Buffalo 10
Nobody thought Buffalo would win this game before the season started, but I'm not sure anyone would have expected the two teams to be a combined 6-12 coming out of it.
Jacksonville 29, Tennessee 27
Jake Locker got hurt again, and Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for a 111 passer rating in his stead. Something is wrong with this Titans team, and it's not the quarterback position.

Baltimore 20, Cincinnati 17 (OT)
The Bengals are trying really hard not to win the AFC North.

Carolina 10, San Francisco 9
This will be the New England-Indianapolis or San Francisco-Dallas of the 2010s. These are two good teams that have bright futures. It will be fun to watch.

Denver 28, San Diego 20
Peyton Manning has thrown 34 touchdowns in nine games. This puts him breaking Tom Brady's single season record in the second quarter of his week 15 game. He's currently on pace for 60 touchdowns this season.
Arizona 27, Houston 24
Case Keenum has a bright future. His present is currently being diminished by Wade Philips.
New Orleans 49, Dallas 17
A tale of two Panthers: Eastern Illinois product Sean Payton just coached a league-record offensive performance. Eastern Illinois product Tony Romo was 42 percent passing with just 10 completions for 128 yards.
Tampa Bay 22, Miami 19
The happiest team in the AFC tonight is Baltimore. They just took a one-game lead on literally everyone else in the hunt for the final wild card spot, because literally everyone else lost.

Clayton's fantasy update:
It was a spectacular fantasy football weekend. Fear The Llama defeated Turtle Power and the league admin by 91.8 points to take first place in the division in the adjusted league. Drew Brees led the way with 35 points, and every single slot besides tight end earned double-digits.

Romo No-mo wasn't quite as dominant, but got a solid rivalry win over the Leningrad Red Army. No-Mo swept the Red Army for the first time since the two team's owners began playing fantasy football against each other five or six years ago. The Orange M's hold a 1.5-game advantage for second place in the division in the standard league, with the head-to-head tiebreak over Leningrad should it come to that.

NFL midseason report

Every NFL team has now played through the halfway point of its schedule. Now that it's midseason, it's time to dole out my annual midseason predictions.

Final Standings

AFC East
New England 12-4
New York Jets 9-7
Miami 7-9
Buffalo 5-11
Explanation: Tom Brady just gets it done year after year. He will lead the Patriots to their 10th division title in the last 11 years. The first half of the season has proved successful for the Jets, who will fight for a wild card spot up until week 17. Unfortunately for the Dolphins, Miami's offseason gambles did not quite pay off as well as the team hoped. Buffalo will compete when EJ Manuel returns, but it will be too little, too late as the Bills finish in the cellar.

AFC North
Cincinnati 11-5
Baltimore 8-8
Cleveland 7-9
Pittsburgh 5-11
Explanation: The Bengals already seem to have wrapped up the AFC North. The Ravens and Browns will stay competitive in the playoff hunt until the last week or so, but their early seasons will end up costing them. The Steelers' season took a massive dive; the team will need to restructure after a last-place finish.

AFC South
Indianapolis 12-4
Tennessee 9-7 (wild card)
Houston 5-11
Jacksonville 1-15
Explanation: The Colts proved Saturday night that nothing will keep them from rising back to the top of the AFC South. The Titans will earn their first of a string of wild card berths by beating out the Jets via tiebreak in the final week of the season. Houston plays a tough second half; they will be competitive for a while, but will simmer down to a 5-11 mark by season's end. Don't expect the Jags to match the 2008 Lions, but they'd be the team to do so if anyone goes 0-16 in 2013.

AFC West
Denver 13-3
Kansas City 11-5 (wild card)
San Diego 8-8
Oakland 4-12
The Chiefs finally will play the good teams on their schedule. Expect a losing second half of their season, but Kansas City will still win enough to reach the wild card round. Denver will lose in Kansas City and New England, but will hold on to win the division and give Peyton Manning home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Chargers won't go home happy, but Mike McCoy has the building blocks on which to build a 2014-15 playoff team. The Dennis Allen era will be over in Oakland after the Raiders put together yet another 10-plus-loss season.

NFC East
Dallas 9-7
Washington 9-7
Philadelphia 6-10
New York Giants 4-12
Explanation: Every team in the NFC East will play a tough second-half schedule. It is really only because the Cowboys lead now that Dallas will represent this once-great division in the playoffs. The Redskins are beginning to find their stride, but RGIII's squad will eventually find themselves on the outside looking in. The Eagles will begin their fall after facing a bye-rested San Francisco team next week.  The Giants' season was over before it really even began.

NFC North
Detroit 13-3
Chicago 9-7
Green Bay 9-7
Minnesota 2-14
Explanation: The Lions are by far the only healthy team that's competitive in the NFC North. Over the next three weeks, they will use an easy second half to pull ahead of the injury-plagued Bears and Packers and then will ride out the rest of the season on top. Chicago will sweep Green Bay to earn the second-place spot, and the Vikings will be looking for answers after pulling a reverse-Kansas City.

NFC South
Carolina 11-5
New Orleans 11-5 (wild card)
Atlanta 4-12
Tampa Bay 2-14
Explanation: Thanks to the Falcons upsetting New Orleans in the Georgia Dome in week 12, the Panthers will win a tiebreak over the Saints to win the NFC South in a shocker. I think Carolina is playing too well to lose more than two games in the second half. The Saints are struggling on the road; despite a perfect 8-0 in the SuperDome they will find themselves on the road in the wild card round. The win over New Orleans will be the Falcons' only bright spot of the season. Tampa will win two late games after firing Greg Schiano and enter search mode as soon as the season closes.

NFC West
Seattle 14-2
San Francisco 11-5
Arizona 9-7
St. Louis 5-11
Explanation: Tampa was a giant fluke for the Seahawks. They'll be fine. Bruce Arians will keep the Cards competitive, but a loss to Philadelphia will cost them a shot at the NFC West's third playoff spot. The 49ers will earn the only wild card berth from the West, and Arizona will be left watching. The Rams are just beginning to struggle; Jeff Fisher could possibly see himself out of work once again at the end of the year.

Playoff scenarios

AFC1- Denver
AFC2- New England
AFC3- Indianapolis
AFC4- Cincinnati
AFC5- Kansas City
AFC6- Tennessee

NFC1- Seattle
NFC2- Detroit
NFC3- Carolina
NFC4- Dallas
NFC5- New Orleans
NFC6- San Francisco

Wild Card Round:
AFC3 Indianapolis 42, AFC6 Tennessee 20
It won't be pretty for the Titans, who haven't made the playoffs under the current regime or with practically any of the current roster. Luck and the Colts are ready for a third game in the division rivalry this season, and will roll over Tennessee.

AFC4 Cincinnati 26, AFC5 Kansas City 13
The Chiefs will put up a fight early, but the Bengals have been to the playoffs before and know what it takes to win.

NFC5 New Orleans 37, NFC4 Dallas 10
The Saints will come angry after losing the division. Drew Brees will throw for 500 yards and four touchdowns as cameras everywhere will show Tony Romo flustered on the sideline throughout the game.

NFC3 Carolina 36, NFC6 San Francisco 30 (OT)
Third-year superstars Cam Newton and Colin Kaepernick will go blow-for-blow in the most exciting wild card game of 2014. Cam will win it, fittingly, on a 13-yard bootleg rushing touchdown in the waning seconds of overtime. The Panthers' miracle season continues.

Divisional Round:
AFC3 Indianapolis 30, AFC2 New England 27
Try as he might, Tom Brady will not be able to overcome four different receivers' rookie mistakes. An Aaron Dobson bobbled pass will set Adam Vinatieri and the Colts up in field goal range as the clock ticks down. Unlike Peyton Manning, Luck will not feel the sting of losing to Brady in the playoffs.

AFC4 Cincinnati 41, AFC1 Denver 34
Peyton Manning's record-breaking season will come to a sudden end when he watches veteran safety Chris Crocker return an interception 63 yards into the end zone for the game's final score. Andy Dalton and the Bengals will move on.

NFC3 Carolina 24, NFC2 Detroit 18
The Panthers defense will step up to the challenge of Stafford, Megatron and the Lions. The Lions will suffer from ten weeks of weak competition and not be prepared to handle Carolina. Newton once again will advance.

NFC1 Seattle 53, NFC5 New Orleans 35
Remember the 12th Man coming to play when the 11-5 Saints paid a visit to the 7-9 Seahawks? It will be even more humiliating for New Orleans this time around as the Seahawks are decidedly a better team in 2013.

AFC Championship: 3-Indianapolis 21, Cincinnati 6
Ultimately, this game will come down to the better defense. Robert Mathis and the Colts D will step up and force Andy Dalton into several ill-fated decisions. Luck will do a better job of managing the game, and will reach the Super Bowl in his second year as a pro quarterback.

NFC Championship: 1-Seattle 33, 3-Carolina 24
Not even Cameron Newton can get past the 12th Man. Seattle rides the home wave straight to the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl XLVIII: Indianapolis 24, Seattle 16
The next generation of NFL football will officially be introduced February 2, 2014 when future Hall of Famers Russell Wilson and Andrew Luck meet for the first of three times in the Super Bowl. Just as in the regular season preview, Luck will draw first championship blood and become the first quarterback drafted in the historic class of 2012 to win a Super Bowl. Chuck Pagano, just a year ago fighting to defeat cancer, will hoist the Lombardi Trophy in the cold New York air.

Postseason awards

Offensive Player of the Year: Peyton Manning

When all is said and done, Manning will likely have every significant single-season passing record. He is by far the most deserving man for this award. 

Defensive Player of the Year: Justin Houston

Houston has been putting together one of the most outstanding seasons this year on one of this year's most outstanding defenses. Robert Mathis will finish a close second, but Houston will beat the Colt out. 

Comeback Player of the Year: Cam Newton

After fighting a sophomore slump, Newton will lead his team to the playoffs in 2013. That's a stellar comeback if ever there was one. 

Rookie of the Year-Offense: Geno Smith

There are a handful of players who are worthy for this award, most notably Keenan Allen, Eddie Lacy and Kenbrell Thompkins. But ultimately, Geno is most responsible for his team's success in 2013, which is why he will stand out among the rest. 

Rookie of the Year-Defense: Kiko Alonso

If it wasn't for Vontaze Burfict's oft-fined play, the Bengals 'backer would be the clear choice. Despite Buffalo's subpar record, Alonso has been very impressive during his inaugural season. 

Most Valuable Player: Tom Brady

Have you seen the group of guys he's been playing with? Without Brady, the Patriots are one of the bottom two teams in the AFC East. You can't get more valuable than that.

Coach of the Year: Andy Reid

Yes, the Chiefs will cool down in the second half. But a nine-win improvement is spectacular in the NFL. Chuck Pagano, Marvin Lewis, Bruce Arians and Ron Rivera should all get consideration, but Reid will be the best man for the award. 

Instant reactions: Week nine

My reactions from the ninth week of the NFL season. 

Miami 22, Cincinnati 20 (OT)

Just when the Bengals were a lock in my mind to be one of the two teams in the AFC Championship, they lose via the rare overtime safety. Not sure what to make of that. 

Tennessee 28, St. Louis 21

The Titans are finally back on track. And Chris Johnson had a Chris Johnson-like day for the first time in far too long.

Kansas City 23, Buffalo 13

The Chiefs keep rolling. Now they have a bye week to prepare for the game of the season at Denver, KC's first true test of 2013. 

Jets 26, New Orleans 20

The Jets got kicked bad last week. What more motivation did Rex Ryan need? Oh, wait...

Carolina 34, Atlanta 10

The Panthers certainly look like a playoff team right now. 

Dallas 27, Minnesota 23

Until they get this Freeman/Cassel/Ponder situation figured out, the Vikings are always a beatable team. 

Washington 30, San Diego 24 (OT)

After a slow start, the Redskins have put together a couple of solid games. 

Seattle 27, Tampa Bay 24 (OT)

They say the good teams find a way to win, and the losers find a way to lose. This game is the textbook example. 

Philadelphia 49, Oakland 20

So, the Chip Kelly offense works on the west coast, but nowhere else. 

Cleveland 24, Baltimore 18

The Cincinnati Bengals love that Cleveland is keeping them in charge of the AFC North. The rest of the division? Not so much. 

New England 55, Pittsburgh 31

Leading 41-31 with the ball and five minutes to go, you would think the Patriots would grind the ball and burn the clock. Nope, eighty yard bomb from Brady to Aaron Dobson. The Patriots have no dignity. 

Indianapolis 27, Houston 24

Leading 7-0 in the first quarter, Houston faced first-and-one inside the Colts' 20. Take the points while you're ahead, right? Nope, Ben Tate gets stuffed and Indy ends up with a three-point win. This one play, not Kubiak collapsing or Luck's fourth-quarter brilliance, was responsible for the game's result. 

Chicago 27, Green Bay 20

Things just got interesting among the league's oldest three-way rivalry. The NFC North is officially anyone's game. 

Clayton's fantasy update:

Fear The Llama continued its winning ways, using 20-point performances from Drew Brees, Stevan Ridley and Gio Bernard to cruise past Team Yandow and reach 5-4 on the season. 

The Romo No-mo Broncos had a bye week, meaning it was up to Andy Dalton (averaging 27 points over the last three weeks) and Golden Tate (coming off 21 points in week eight) to cover for Peyton and Demaryius. The two combined for eight points, and No-mo dropped a crucial game against division-leading Team Underwood. The orange M's stay in second place, but are now only half a game ahead of third-place Leningrad. A crucial match against the Red Army next week could determine who gets to play in the playoffs, and who will ride the consolation ladder. 

A special note on Richie Incognito

I saw an interview in which Dolphins linebacker Cameron Wake discusses several things NFL veterans will do to "initiate" rookies, so to speak. I agree that things like wacky haircuts, dinner bills and laundry duties are a part of any group's "welcome to the club" package, and that's completely OK. 

What's not OK is a veteran player basically demeaning a younger player in such insensitive terms as Incognito seems to have, and death threats, joking or otherwise, should be completely off-limits. 

This is the latest in a long, long line of issues over Richie Incognito's career. In my modest opinion, Mister Incognito needs a long break from football and, likely, some psychological help. 

Instant reactions: Week eight

My reactions from the eighth week of the NFL season. 

Carolina 31, Tampa Bay 13

That Cam Newton kid isn't a bad dual-threat quarterback. In fact, Colin Kaepernick and Russell Wilson, he was the first. 

San Francisco 42, Jacksonville 10

Denver, take note. This is how a good team is supposed to beat the Jaguars. 

New Orleans 35, Buffalo 17

Drew Brees ended this game early. The Bills are undoubtedly missing EJ Manuel. 

New England 27, Miami 17

The Dolphins spent their offseason trying to beat Tom Brady. For one half, it looked like it worked. 

Giants 15, Philadelphia 7

This once-proud rivalry looked more like a Bucs-Jags game. 

Kansas City 23, Cleveland 17

The Browns looked as good as a 3-5 team can against an 8-0 team. It was a good game between two of the AFC's top defenses. 

Detroit 31, Dallas 30

There was not a more exciting final minute of football anywhere this weekend. The Lions only won because Dallas choked in the end, but Matthew Stafford sure had a clutch game. 

Cincinnati 49, Jets 9

The Bengals put on a division champion's performance against a surprisingly decent Jets squad. This could be a signature game in Cincy's America's Game documentary. 

Arizona 27, Atlanta 13

The Cardinals defense crushed Atlanta's will Sunday afternoon. 

Oakland 21, Pittsburgh 18

Oakland should never be counted as an underdog at home against Pittsburgh. 

Denver 45, Washington 21

For three quarters, Denver appeared to be a mortal football team. Suddenly Peyton Manning took charge and the Broncos destroyed Washington late game. 

Night recaps to come. 

Instant reactions: Week seven

Reactions from the seventh week of the NFL regular season

Seattle 34, Arizona 22
The Seahawks are getting it done with Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, Sidney Rice and just about anyone else.

San Diego 24, Jacksonville 6
Anyone surprised by this one? Moving on...

Atlanta 31, Tampa Bay 23
These really aren't your older brother's Falcons, are they? A home game against the woeful Buccaneers should not have been this close.

Buffalo 23, Miami 21
Apparently Doug Marrone was right to start Thad Lewis. The win keeps Buffalo in the thick of the AFC East race.

Carolina 30, St. Louis 15
Neither of these teams is easy to figure out this year. The Rams are hoping Sam Bradford isn't hurt for long.

Cincinnati 27, Detroit 24
It's not pretty, but the Bengals keep winning and still hold strong to first place in the AFC North.

Washington 45, Chicago 41
The Chicago Bears, since starting the season 3-0, are on a 1-3 streak. The latest loss likely reminded Chicago's opposing quarterback of his high-scoring college days.

Jets 30, New England 27 (OT)
The Patriots have lost two of their last three games. The AFC East race could be getting quite interesting.

Pittsburgh 19, Baltimore 16
Why does this rivalry never fail to disappoint? In a sport that's progressively transformed to bigger offensive turnouts each week, it's nice to see a defensive, low-scoring affair.

San Francisco 31, Tennessee 17
Jake Locker came back about a half too soon. The 49ers need every win they can get to stay in the NFC West race.

Kansas City 17, Houston 16
The Texans have shown that the Chiefs are beatable. Regardless, Kansas City will go into the Denver game undefeated.

Green Bay 31, Cleveland 13
I'm still not a fan of the Green Bay throwback uniforms, but they looked good wearing them from a football perspective.

Indianapolis 39, Denver 33

Indianapolis is once again the team to beat in the AFC. Denver can beat the Chiefs at Invesco, but the Broncos might not have a good visit to Kansas City. 

Giants 23, Minnesota 7

It is sad when the play of the game comes from the losing team. Josh Freeman out-Eli'd Eli, which is why the Giants won. 

Clayton's fantasy update:

Both teams suffered horrific losses this week. I'm about to say goodbye to Romo No-mo's entire set of starting skill players, who have done next to nothing in the past two weeks. No-mo fell to 3-3-1 in the standard league. 

A bye-week-depleted Fear The Llama fell to previously one-win Da Drug Deala. Da Drug Deala had five of nine starters in double digits as FTL dearly missed Drew Brees and Matt Bryant, among others. FTL drops to 3-4 with the loss. 

College football shakeup and top 25

Normally this is a Facebook post, but so much happened that I must put in my two cents.

What a weekend of college football. There were so many great games that it was almost hard to keep track if you didn't know exactly what was happening at every moment. Despite all of the upsets, one thing remains clear: Alabama is clearly still king of the college football world.

Let's start with the SEC, where South Carolina, Georgia and LSU all fell to unranked teams. The common denominator? Each underdog played at home. Kudos to Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Ole Miss for not being afraid to play these SEC giants tough.

Missouri beat Florida as it should have, even though everyone favored the Gators to win. The Tigers are now on track to win the SEC East and be the first of the recent Big 12 transfers in the conference championship game. Sorry, Johnny Manziel.

Speaking of Texas A&M, what a classic SEC upset Auburn put together. The SEC fundamentals of ground and pound, defense and low scores...oh, wait. This was your regular modern college football barn burner. Still, Auburn impressed on defense in the waning seconds, while the aforementioned Manziel tried to win the game all by himself. From a first down inside the 20, A&M was all the way back at midfield by the time downs turned over. What a finish.

Over in Tuscaloosa, Alabama had a lazy night. AJ McCarron and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix were picking bacon and pork chops out of their teeth during plays as the Tide had its way with Arkansas.

Moving on to the game of the night (that really wasn't), Florida State beat Clemson as many expected. What no one expected was the Seminoles' dominance. If Bama hadn't bulldozed the Razorbacks, Florida State should be receiving attention as the top team in the nation. Chances are Florida State will remain number three until Oregon or Alabama improbably slip up somewhere along the way.

In the teams-that-struggled-but-managed-to-somehow-win category, Ohio State is most prevalent. Iowa could make some noise in the Big Ten race. Other teams to make the distinction of almost-weren't include Oklahoma, Miami, Texas Tech and Wofford.

The Terriers, number 13 in FCS, struggled against 1-6 conference foe Western Carolina. The 2013 Catamounts are best-known for their 62-3 trouncing by Auburn last week. In other words, an easy win for Wofford. The only reason the Terriers won is because Western is so God-awful; with two fourth-quarter drives that made it to the opposing five-yard-line, the Cats failed to convert each time.

One more note before I get to the 25s, I'm beginning to wonder why the Baylor Bears have not gotten more national attention. Baylor is consistently putting up 60+ points per game and allowing hardly anything in the depleted-but-still-relevant Big 12. The Bears should be top five this week with a combination of their dominance and everyone else losing.

FBS Top 25
1. Alabama 7-0
2. Oregon 7-0
3. Florida State 6-0
4. Ohio State 7-0
5. Baylor 6-0
6. Miami 6-0
7. Stanford 6-1
8. Missouri 7-0
9. Clemson 6-1
10. Texas Tech 7-0
11. Fresno State 6-0
12. Oklahoma 6-1
13. UCLA 5-1
14. Texas A&M 5-2
15. Virginia Tech 6-1
16. Oklahoma State 5-1
17. Auburn 6-1
18. Northern Illinois 7-0
19. LSU 6-2
20. Louisville 6-1
21. Wisconsin 5-2
22. Michigan 6-1
23. South Carolina 5-2
24. Michigan State 6-1
25. Notre Dame 5-2

FCS Top 25
1. North Dakota State 7-0
2. Eastern Illinois 6-1
3. Eastern Washington 5-2
4. Montana State 5-2
5. Towson 7-1
6. Fordham 8-0
7. Coastal Carolina 7-0
8. McNeese State 6-1
9. Sam Houston State 5-2
10. Montana 6-1
11. Maine 6-1
12. Youngstown State 7-1
13. Wofford 5-2
14. Bethune-Cookman 6-1
15. Northern Iowa 4-3
16. Lehigh 6-1
17. Northern Arizona 5-2
18. Villanova 4-3
19. James Madison 5-2
20. Central Arkansas 4-3
21. Samford 5-2
22. South Dakota State 4-4
23. Tennessee State 7-1
24. New Hampshire 3-3
25. Georgia Southern 4-2

Instant reactions: Week six

My NFL reactions from the sixth week of the season

Chicago 27, Giants 21
Any other season, this would just be another dominant defensive performance by Chicago. This season, it's Eli and the Giants giving away yet another game.

St. Louis 38, Houston 13
Houston, we have a problem. 2-4, third in the AFC South, and two quarterbacks throwing interception after interception. Time to call up David Carr again?

Green Bay 19, Baltimore 17
This was a disappointingly dull game between two perennial playoff participants who are under-performing expectations this year.

Philadelphia 31, Tampa Bay 20
Nick Foles kept the Eagles in the thick of the NFC East race by taking advantage of the worst team in the NFC in 2013.

Pittsburgh 19, Jets 6
If you didn't watch the first five weeks of the NFL season, this game went exactly as expected. The question to watch in the next two or three weeks is which of these teams is back to playing as expected in August.

Kansas City 24, Oakland 7
I don't want to take anything away from Kansas City's 6-0 start, but the only halfway decent teams the Chiefs have played so far are Dallas and Tennessee. The Cowboys would've won if the game was in the Jerry Dome, and the Titans would have won had they been playing with their starting QB. The Chiefs will get lucky again next week against a flustered Houston squad.

Carolina 35, Minnesota 10
No story from this game is more important than the tragedy in Adrian Peterson's personal life this week, especially since neither of these teams is relevant in 2013. Prayers to AP and his family.

Detroit 31, Cleveland 17
The Lions remain atop the NFC North. The Browns are still in the thick of the AFC North race, but this loss is a definite setback in their surprising season.

Cincinnati 27, Buffalo 24 (OT)
The Bengals got some help from the NFC North and stand alone atop the AFC North. That fourth quarter comeback by the Bills should raise a concern or two about Cincy in close-game situations.

Denver 35, Jacksonville 19
The Broncos started looking ahead to next week's showdown in Indianapolis before the game started. If they had actually been invested in playing the Jaguars, the final would've been along the lines of Auburn's 62-3 college win over Western Carolina Saturday.

Seattle 20, Tennessee 13
Had Jake Locker not hurt his hip, the Titans would be 5-1 and celebrating Seattle's first home loss since Christmas Eve 2011. This game also would've cemented the AFC South's dominance over the NFC West.

San Francisco 32, Arizona 20
Wouldn't it have been something had the Cardinals pulled off the upset? The Niners are still far from looking like the squad that won last year's NFC Championship.

New England 30, New Orleans 27
Tom Brady keeps on winning. It's disgusting.

Dallas 31, Washington 16
Unless you're playing against Peyton Manning, you'll generally win if you score a touchdown in each quarter, as Dallas did Sunday night. This is a solid division win for the Cowboys.

San Diego 19, Indianapolis 9
Remember earlier in the season when I said the Chargers had a dark horse shot at the playoffs? This game proves it.

Clayton's fantasy update:
Fear The Llama got back to .500 with an upset win over the Keith Bulluck Taxi Company. Monster performances by Knowshon Moreno (28.4 points) and Reggie Bush (19.5) knocked off the last undefeated team in the adjusted league.

Meanwhile, horrific performances by every member of Romo No-mo dropped the team to 3-2-1 on the season. As of yet, neither team has garnered the same result in the same week as the other.

Instant reactions: Week five

My instant reactions from the fifth week of NFL action.

Cleveland 37, Buffalo 24
Yes, the Browns are first in the AFC North and 3-2 for the first time in forever. But take into account that the quarterback Cleveland beat was in his first meaningful NFL action and Brian Hoyer is out for the year, and it now becomes ever so slightly less sweet.

Cincinnati 13, New England 6
The Patriots looked like a team with a corps of unproven receivers. It wasn't enough to fall to the Jets, but Cincy is no New York.

New Orleans 26, Chicago 18
The Bears have four days to turn things around from two straight losses. The good news? They have four days to prepare for the winless Giants.

St. Louis 34, Jacksonville 20
The Rams are not playing anywhere near as well as they should be. Allowing the Jaguars to hang around until close to the end of the game proves this.

Green Bay 22, Detroit 9
No one in the NFC North has been able to stop Detroit this year. Except the Packers. Their bye week last week was opportune.

Baltimore 26, Miami 23
The defending champs earned their first road win of the season. The Dolphins now have a bye to dwell on back-to-back losses to two playoff-caliber teams.

Indianapolis 34, Seattle 28
The Colts gave the Seahawks a taste of their own medicine, and now hold an outright lead in the AFC South and a 2-0 mark over the top two teams in the NFC West. As with the Colts and Niners, these two teams will likely have a Super Bowl rematch within the next four years.

Philadelphia 36, Giants 21
The Giants can't even win a home game within their dismal division. It's time to start looking at Jadeveon Clowney...

Kansas City 26, Tennessee 17
The Kansas City Chiefs are the second of three 5-0 teams in the NFL in 2013. Last year, they were the worst team in the NFL. How things change.

Arizona 22, Carolina 6
Don't look now, but Bruce Arians and the Cardinals are 3-2. Bruce Arians and the Cardinals beware: 3-2 could turn into 3-5 easily before the bye with games at San Francisco, and at home against Seattle and Atlanta.

Denver 51, Dallas 48
Tony Romo gave us the blueprint for beating the Broncos: Out-perform Peyton Manning with a home-field advantage. Unfortunately for the rest of the league, the only two other quarterbacks on Denver's schedule capable of doing so are Andrew Luck (Week 7) and Tom Brady (Week 12).

San Francisco 34, Houston 3
The Texans looked like an expansion team and Matt Schaub was more like Jamarcus Russell. Houston has now lost three straight, and is below .500 for the first time since 2010.

Oakland 27, San Diego 17
Somewhere, Al Davis is telling the Raiders, "Yeah, I screwed you over for the past decade, but this Pryor kid who was my last pick ever is going to get you places. Don't let him go."

Monday night recap to come.

Instant reactions: Week four

My reactions for the fourth week of the NFL season.

San Francisco 35, St. Louis 11
I take back what I said week one about the NFC West having two wild cards.

Cleveland 17, Cincinnati 6
The Browns are suddenly tied for first in the AFC North. How did that happen?

Detroit 40, Chicago 32
The grudge match in Chicago could have implications on the NFC North race.

Buffalo 23, Baltimore 20

Are the Ravens under-performing, the Bills over-performing, or is it a little of both? 

Kansas City 31, Giants 7
It gets better and better in KC, and worse and worse for the Giants.

Minnesota 34, Pittsburgh 27
What's the difference between these two previously-winless teams? The team that is no longer winless has a starting-caliber running back.

Arizona 13, Tampa Bay 10
If Mike Glennon had a decent head coach, he could have earned his first NFL win today. Either that, or he'd still be on the bench and Josh Freeman's Bucs would be 3-1.

Indianapolis 37, Jacksonville 3
How long do you think it is until Jacksonville's front office caves and calls Tim Tebow?

Seattle 23, Houston 20 (OT)
Interesting stat: The only two overtime games of 2013 have been Houston's first two home games. The Texans are now 1-1 in those two games.

Tennessee 38, Jets 13
3-1 might be as good as it gets for the Titans, as they will likely have to take on Kansas City next week without their starting quarterback. 2-1 might have been as good as it gets for the Jets, who have to face a Falcons team that's better than its record suggests in week five.

Denver 52, Philadelphia 20
Peyton Manning is the best player in the NFL in 2013. The man is 37 years old, making him one of the oldest in the NFL as well. Past his prime? Not a chance.

Washington 24, Oakland 14
Maybe a road win will give RGIII and the Skins some confidence going forward. Washington is currently only one game back in the NFC East, so they have that going for them.

San Diego 30, Dallas 21
The ironic part is that the 2-2 team that lost has a better shot at the postseason than the 2-2 team that won.

New England 30, Atlanta 23

I hate to say it, but Brady's receiving corps is eerily similar to the one that won Super Bowl XXXVIII with him. For the Falcons, Mike Smith's coaching cost them the game. The master of screwing up fourth down could be looking for a new job by the end of 2014. 

New Orleans 38, Miami 17

The Saints were impressive in all three game facets. They are now the best team in the NFC. Miami is not a bad team, but this loss shows that the Dolphins still have a way to go before they are an elite team again. 

Clayton's fantasy update

It was a close loss for Fear The Llama (2-2), who would have won had it not been for a last-minute decision to sit Knowshon Mareno in favor of Eddie Royal. 

Inversely, Peyton Manning and Demaryius Thomas led Romo No-mo to an easy win against bye week-ridden Razor Sharp. 2-1-1, No-mo will be facing an almost certain loss next week as half of its points take the week off in Denver. 

Instant reactions: Week three

My reactions from the third week of the 2013 NFL season

Kansas City 26, Philadelphia 16
OK, Chiefs fans. You can start getting a little excited. Your schedule is beginning to look insanely easy with the way the NFC East has started the season.

Dallas 31, St. Louis 7
Such a huge win could give the Cowboys a momentum swing going forward in the NFC East standings.

New England 23, Tampa 3
The end of the short-lived Greg Schiano era gets closer and closer with every Tampa loss.

Tennessee 20, San Diego 17
This is another momentum win. The Titans had not beaten the Chargers since 1992.

New Orleans 31, Arizona 7
The Saints are looking pretty at 3-0. They get a big test next week when ESPN and the Dolphins come to town.

Carolina 38, Giants 0
Here come the New York media hotheads demanding Tom Coughlin's head. And a possible trade of Eli Manning.

Baltimore 30, Houston 9
With Ray Lewis in attendance, the Ravens had an exceptional defensive and special teams performance against previously 2-0 Houston. The Texans, having faced their first 2012 playoff team of the year, were completely outplayed in the second half. They used that half to overcome deficits in each of their first two games.

Cleveland 31, Minnesota 27
Start 0-2 against the NFC North, and it's a disappointment. Lose at home to the Browns and their third-string quarterback? It's time to start looking forward to 2014.

Cincinnati 34, Green Bay 30
Andy Dalton's fourth quarter comeback and the Bengals being able to overcome a handful of turnovers against the reigning NFC North champs suggest that Cincy is the real deal this year.

Detroit 27, Washington 20
Congratulations, Robert Griffin III. You are now the first Redskins quarterback to lose at home against Detroit since Bill Shepherd in 1935. That's a 78-year streak you just broke. Impressive.

Miami 27, Atlanta 23
This was an outstanding game between two of the league's top teams. The Falcons have now become the team that chokes in the regular season as well as the playoffs.

Indianapolis 27, San Francisco 7
These two teams will meet in the Super Bowl before their next regular season contest. Hopefully they will change the host site of said Super Bowl to Stanford, because it will basically be the Stanford Bowl.

Seattle 45, Jacksonville 17
What happens when the worst team in the league pays a visit to arguably the best? Well, the Seahawks' backup quarterback ended up throwing for one touchdown and passing for another. That's about how things went down.

Jets 27, Buffalo 20
It looks like Geno could be the answer to the question: How can Rex Ryan keep his job? But let's not rush into that conclusion too decisively. The Jets will travel to the Georgia Dome in two weeks and Smith will have to prove himself against the Falcons.

Chicago 40, Pittsburgh 23
Apparently, the Bears were right to fire Lovie Smith and hire Marc Trestman to take his place. That defense is still dominating. On Pittsburgh's end, the Steelers are dead last in the AFC North cellar. Even CLEVELAND is better than them right now.

Denver 37, Oakland 21
This tweet pretty much sums it up.

Clayton's fantasy update:
-Despite gaining no points from Reggie Bush, Fear The Llama earned an impressive 13-point win to reach 2-1 in the adjusted league. Made even more impressive because Matt Bryant (12 points), DeAngelo Williams (12.7) and Antonio Brown (33) all rode the FTL bench.
-In the standard league, Romo No-mo suffered a heartbreaking 67-63 loss. Peyton Manning was the only player in double-digits for No-mo; week two studs Martellus Bennett and Tavon Austin combined for four points. Romo No-mo takes a 1-1-1 record into a rivalry match against 3-0 Team Underwood.

Instant reaction: Week two

My instant reactions for Week Two of the NFL season.

New England 13, Jets 10

Go ahead and mark the AFC East teams on your schedule as wins. This game was terribly ugly. 

Chicago 31, Minnesota 30

Getting into an early 0-2 hole in the NFC North is not good for the Vikings' playoff chances. 

Buffalo 24, Carolina 23

Congratulations to EJ Manuel on his first NFL win.

Atlanta 31, St. Louis 24

The Rams must REALLY be done with Steven Jackson. 

Green Bay 38, Washington 20

OK guys, the East divisions of both conferences will be sending an 8-8 division champ to the playoffs. As an aside, Brandon Merriweather deserves a suspension with two helmet-to-helmets in this game. 

Miami 24, Indianapolis 20

This game could be the difference between a bye week and hosting the wild card round. 

Kansas City 17, Dallas 16

Don't get excited yet Chiefs fans, no one wants to win the NFC East. Be proud of 2-0, though. You've already matched last year's win total. 

San Diego 33, Philadelphia 30

It is the NFC East, so take it with a grain of salt. However, San Diego is quickly becoming my dark-horse in the AFC wild card race.

Baltimore 14, Cleveland 6

Congratulations to Joe Flacco on being a dad for the second time. That's about the only notable thing about this game.

Houston 30, Tennessee 24 (OT)

The good teams find a way to win, but I wouldn't be surprised if these two teams are playing week 17 for a playoff spot. 

Arizona 25, Detroit 21

Carson Palmer earned his first win as a Cardinal in comeback fashion. A sign of things to come?

Oakland 19, Jacksonville 9

Terrelle Pryor hopes he's the answer in Oakland, but a ten-point win over the Jaguars won't prove much. 

Denver 41, Giants 23

How good are the Broncos? And how bad are the Giants? Regardless, Peyton wins all-time bragging rights against Eli. 

New Orleans 16, Tampa Bay 14

The Saints are back. Schiano is done.

Seattle 29, San Francisco 3
Don't ever doubt the 12th Man. Ever.

Cincinnati 20, Pittsburgh 10
I drafted Giovanni Bernard in my fantasy league for a reason.

Speaking of fantasy....

Clayton's fantasy update
Fear The Llama earned its first win of the young season with a 115-104.5 victory in the adjusted league, while Romo No-mo played to a 74-all tie in the standard league. Had Martellus Bennett or Tavon Austin gotten the start over Tony Gonzalez or Demaryius Thomas, respectively, Romo No-mo would have indeed prevailed, and thus reached 2-0 on the season. As such, the team will settle for 1-0-1 and move on to next week's division match against 1-1 Team Hartman.

In news of should-have-started, both the Seahawks defense and Giovanni Bernard rode the Fear The Llama bench this week and combined for 40.5 points. I benched the Seahawks in favor of the Bills' D, a free-agent pickup. Boneheaded move of the week.

Instant reaction: Week One

My take on each game from the first week of NFL football in 2013:

Denver 49, Baltimore 27

I hear that Peyton Manning kid from Tennessee is a pretty good quarterback...

New England 23, Buffalo 21

It's no longer a sure deal, but the Patriots still own the AFC East. For now.

Chicago 24, Cincinnati 21

And the award for questionable time management goes once again to Marv Lewis. In a close game, you shouldn't have used up all three timeouts with eight plus minutes to play. 

Tennessee 16, Pittsburgh 9

What an ugly game. The Titans defense was surprisingly successful at stopping the Steelers offense. 

Miami 23, Cleveland 10

Can anyone say Teddy Bridgewater? The sweepstakes starts now for Cleveland. 

Detroit 34, Minnesota 24

Guess who had Reggie Bush on his fantasy football team but didn't start him. That's right, this guy. 

Indianapolis 21, Oakland 17

So, I hear that Andrew Luck kid out of Stanford is a pretty good quarterback too. As an aside, the way Oakland played today this game could end up having wild card implications. Maybe. 

New Orleans 23, Atlanta 17

Did the Saints win this because they're a legitimately good team this year, or just because of the Dome? Only time will tell. 

Jets 18, Tampa 17

Geno got his first win because Greg Schiano needed to remind us that he is the dirtiest coach in the NFL. 

Seattle 12, Carolina 7

Russ Wilson was solid, but there was nothing overly impressive with the Seahawks. They'll need more than the 12th man to keep their domination at CenturyLink alive next week. 

Kansas City 28, Jacksonville 2

Don't get too excited Chiefs fans, the score is deceptive because Jacksonville is so bad. Kansas City is still an average team this year, which is an improvement. 

St. Louis 27, Arizona 24

The NFC West is going to have two wild card teams this year. Count on it. 

San Francisco 34, Green Bay 28

Who knew Colin Kaepernick would have a more impressive passing performance than Aaron Rodgers?

Dallas 36, Giants 31
With the amount of times New York's offense gift-wrapped this game for the Cowboys, it's surprising the game's result was still in question until 10 seconds remained.

Philadelphia 33, Washington 27

Holy crap, that Chip Kelley offense looks good. The Eagles need to be able to finish, though.

Houston 31, San Diego 28
This shouldn't have even been close. But the Texans did what the Redskins, Giants, Packers and Falcons couldn't do: come back and win.

Be a fan

(If I've got you thinking a Mulan song, we're already on the same page.)

I'm a crazy, obsessive and passionate sports fan.

Those of you who know me know how true this is. Be it a professional team, college squad, or any other sporting event I am cheering as loudly and passionately as I can.

I will not apologize for my passion. I may apologize if you don't like it and I definitely will apologize for some things I might say or do in the heat of the moment. I will not, however, apologize for wearing my heart on my sleeve.

In saying this, I also realize I could attract criticism for my passionate support of all things Samford. In not apologizing, I'm subjecting myself to those who don't like my personality. I understand, and I will never step away from those who question or criticize that aspect of me or change myself because of it.

All of this amounts to nothing if I keep it to myself. In my mind, passion is something that should be shared among like-minded people. I am only writing this post because I feel my passion is something that none or few of my Samford peers share.

I know I'm not the only one who likes Samford. I know I'm not the only one who likes Samford and shows up to its athletics events. I know for sure I'm not the only one who likes Samford and shows up to its athletic events because I want to support Samford's athletics program.

But sometimes it seems like I'm the only one out there showing any support for my Bulldogs. I admit student support for athletics has never been a strong point at Samford but I also admit that as my time here has grown, so has the support for our sports teams.

As exponentially as student body support for athletics has grown, it's far from the point where it should be at Samford. I am delighted that even when Step Sing, the biggest event on campus, is going on there are a thousand people in the Hanna Center. I'm even more thrilled when maybe a couple hundred of those thousand are students.

It becomes disappointing, however, when I am possibly the only person in the court to be shouting "De-fense! De-fense!" when the visiting team is attempting to tie the ball game. I know there are others in there who care, but I don't see it.

There is a fine line between being a spectator and a fan. A spectator shows up to a sporting event, may or may not care about the outcome and watches placidly. A fan, however, has a vested interest in the outcome of the match and does whatever he or she thinks might affect the match towards that interest's favor.

The people who show up to Samford games right now are mostly either spectators or occasional fans. I definitely have noticed those Samford students who will stand up, clap and yell during parts of games. I absolutely appreciate your enthusiasm.

However, there are still a majority of students who stand up, clap and yell only when there's a t-shirt toss or some kid shooting a layup during a time-out promotional. While those are commendable reasons to cheer they are certainly not the only reason.

Still others don't stand up, clap or yell at all, or if they do it is at their fraternity brother in another section of the stands or when they are in a heated discussion about something not pertaining at all to the reason they are there. Again, there are no issues in doing either of these as long as you're supporting your team just as much.

Some of you may ask what the point of being a fan is. First of all, you should be a fan because you chose Samford. You may have chose Samford because you're going to pharmacy school here or because your sister was SGA president. Some may have come here because of the pretty (painted) front lawn or because your parents are alumni that experienced the stereotypical Samford love story. Still others are here because a 3.4 GPA at Samford looks a lot better on a resume than a 3.4 at UAB.

The point is, whatever the primary reason, I'm sure there were others. If one of them was to be a part of Samford sporting games, be an active part of Samford sporting games. If it wasn't, then go study for your BP exam or work on your med school application. If you're here solely for academics, skipping a baseball game for a study session would only help you.

Too often I see people at Samford sporting events wearing an Alabama ball cap, an Auburn hoodie, an Ole Miss t-shirt or LSU sweatpants. If the college team you prefer isn't Samford, that's fine. Don't show up to a Samford game supporting that other team.

If you are supporting another school at a Samford event, it might people think you'd rather not be here. If that's the case, leave. If you can afford Samford, you can afford any one of those big-name state schools. If you're on scholarship at Samford, I guarantee you'd get just as much or more at all of the other places.

If it's simply matter of not owning any Samford gear, athletics marketing is constantly doing promotions and I bet would even give you a free shirt if you didn't have one and asked sincerely. If that's the case, you can e-mail me and I'll do what I can to make sure it happens.

Secondly, showing up as a fan instead of a spectator creates a common bond between you and the rest of the fans. One of my favorite sayings is "it may look stupid, but you're being stupid with everyone else." In other words, if everyone is together in passionate support, no one will judge you anyway.

You see it all the time with Alabama football or Kentucky basketball. Those fans do crazier stuff than a Samford student probably could imagine. But they've got anyone crimson-clad or blue-clad behind them (the exception being someone like a Harvey Updyke) so it doesn't matter.

I understand we're not Alabama or Kentucky. We don't have one national championship in our name in football or basketball, much less dozens. But we also have more community as a smaller school. The least we can do is group together and actively show our support as a community of Samford students.

Thirdly, being a fan is fun. It gives you a chance to let off the steam for that biology teacher that gave you an 89.7 B+ instead of rounding it up to an A- or whatever other issues you have pent-up inside you. I've heard the opinion from several sources that we at Samford don't know how to have fun. We take everything from our classes to our romantic relationships seriously, no matter what. It's time to silence the critics and tell them that we can have fun, and do it in a (generally) virtuous way.

Finally, the players love it when people support them in a fan-like way. They want us there being loud and crazy and psychologically, it's been proven that having supportive fans helps athletes perform better. Samford athletes have made it a point to commend me on my support, which is pretty cool not personally knowing a lot of these people outside of my Crimson work.

I take it as a personal offense to those that tell me to tone down my passion or that choose not to join in the fun. Only when one of those two occurrences happens am I prone to get even louder, crazier and belligerent than I know I should be. It's my way of compensating for the 500 bodies that aren't making supportive noise.

So be a fan, not a spectator. If nothing else, do it so you don't have to hear me screaming like a possessed Neanderthal. That's a worthy cause if ever there was one.