A Glance at Week 3

Randy Moss versus Terrell Owens. Tom Brady versus Ben Roethlisburger. Eli Manning versus the San Diego fans. These are the 3 best matchups of the week. Let's start in Philly.

The hype for the Oakland and Philadelphia matchup is all about Moss and Owens. But the real difference in this game will be defense. The Eagles have one of the best defenses in the league, and with Jeremiah Trotter back in week 2, their defense was dominant. Granted it was the 49ers, but they still allowed only 3 points, and didn't even allow any garbage points in the 4th quarter. With Trotter stuffing the run, the Eagles would have handled the Falcons in week 1. Without him, they still nearly won, even with McNabb hurting and the offense struggling.

Moss will still have a big game against the Philly D, posting 150 yards and 2 scores, about the same numbers as his counterpart TO will have. The only difference will be TO's numbers will come in the first half, and Moss' will come in the final quarter, when the Eagles already have an insurmountable lead. Lamont Jordan won't be able to get much on the ground, and the Raiders will be forced to rely on the pass, playing right into the Eagles blitz crazy defense. Eagles win 37-21.

The Panthers didn't exactly blow the Patriots away with their offense in week 2, but their defense shut down the Patriots' attack, as I predicted. They beat the Patriots at the their own game, with just enough big plays on defense and special teams to post the victory. New England isn't going to lose its second game in-a-row, especially not without a fight. But Pittsburgh has cruised to 2-0 with easy blowout victories against the Titans and the Texans, behind a stout defense and back-to-back 100 yard games from Willie Parker.

New England has a much better defense than Houston and Tennessee, and will be aiming to slow down Parker. Roethlisburger will again have to prove that he can perform well without depending on the rushing attack. With New England in its 4-3 alignment, Parker won't find as much room to run, and the game will come down to whether or not Roethlisburger can consistenly move his team down the field with his arm. The Patriots win in a close one, 20-17, as Roethlisburger makes costly mistakes in the passing game, and New England bounces back.

The Giants are coming off a dominant victory against the Saints, looking to go to 3-0 against the Chargers. San Diego is 0-2, losing two close games to Dallas and Denver, two games which they should have won. San Diego hasn't used LaDainian Tomlinson enough. Tomlinson has only 124 yards on 38 carries, an average of 3.3 yards per carry. The line isn't getting the job done, and is giving up on the run too early. With a 14-3 lead in the second half against the Broncos, the Chargers should have given Tomlinson the rock on every play. Instead Brees threw a costly interception, and after Champ Bailey took it the house, San Diego lost all of its momentum.

Against the Giants, they must find a way to get Tomlinson involved in the passing attack, as he has not caught a pass is so far this season. Lost in all this is Eli Manning is making his first appearance in San Diego, the team he refused to play for when he was drafted by them 2 years ago. San Diego's D (and its fans) will give Manning a rude welcome, putting pressure on the young quarterback, forcing him into costly mistakes. Tiki Barber won't find much room to run, and Tomlinson will run all over a Giants defense that is not good as adverstised. The Chargers are too angry to fall to 0-3. LT leades the way in a 24-13 San Diego victory


Flashback

Truth:

"The Patriots take an early loss as they struggle to get their run game going and Julius Peppers terrorizes Tom Brady"

"Carson Palmer has a big game against a Vikings defense that is not as good as everyone thinks.."

"Things only get worse for the Texans this week against the Steelers. The one positive from this game is Dominick Davis picks up a late TD when the game is already over.."

"The Eagles get their offense going against a 49ers D that taktes a step back.."

Myth:

"The Colts win in a shootout and everyone stops talking about how much improved their defense is and focuses again on how good Manning is."

"The difference in this game is McGahee's ability to gain yards wtihout much to work with and Cadillac's failure to do so..as Buffalo goes to 2-0.."

"The Ravens win a defensive struggle..."