Purdue Beats Ohio State - NFL Week 7 Cheat Sheet with NHL, NBA Quick Hits
Purdue upends undefeated Ohio State
Purdue's upset of No. 2 Ohio State was the event of the day. Boilermaker RB D.J. Knox and WR Rondale Moore were absolutely electric in the 49-20 victory in Lafayette, Indiana. The connection of cancer patient Tyler Trent to this resilient Purdue team makes this victory the story of the year. [Grab tissues before clicking that link.]
That means the top four teams for the college football playoff currently project to be Alabama, Clemson, LSU, and Notre Dame. Ohio State, Michigan, Texas, Georgia, and Oklahoma still have schedules that provide opportunity for them to jump into the playoff four prior to the end of the season.
NHL mini-season ticket journey is underway
My journey as a mini-season ticket holder began this past week, and I ran into a challenge right away.
I was planning on taking my son to Wednesday's matchup between the Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers, but his athletics and academics got in the way.
So I found myself within two hours of game time and minutes from going to the metro with no battle buddy for the evening. What do you do when faced with a serious problem that can only be solved by someone of character, competence and commitment? You call an Army non-commissioned officer -- that's what you do!
I made a call to an old Army friend and colleague who promptly adjusted his schedule, began movement toward the objective, and established a link up point at a watering hole adjacent to Capital One Arena. Many thanks to Scott Maynard for jumping on the grenade of a midweek evening event in the District. I think I learned a few things from the excursion:
Pacers, Wizards off to slow starts
LeBron James departed the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Los Angeles Lakers and left a championship-sized void in the Eastern Conference of the NBA.
Many people see the Indiana Pacers and Washington Wizards like E. Jay Zarett of the Sporting News -- the projected 5th and 6th seeds for the 2019 eastern side of the playoffs.
I was feeling increasingly optimistic when the Pacers signed Myles Turner to a four-year extension Monday and followed that with a 111-83 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies Wednesday. A 17-point loss to the Milwaukee Bucks Friday reminded Pacer fans of the limitations that will most likely keep Indiana from filling that LBJ vacancy. Signing Turner was smart though and if he breaks out this year, the Pacers can absolutely compete for the conference championship (big "if" -- I understand that).
The Wizards starting "Wizarding" immediately with an opening home game loss to the Miami Heat, 113-112. Washington signed C Dwight Howard over the summer, but he has yet to see much practice or any playing time due to a nagging back/buttocks injury. The Wizards will not break into the top tier in the east without a healthy Howard and F Otto Porter finally advancing his game to an All-Star level.
With LeBron out of the way, the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers are favored to win the conference title, but those teams are not mortal locks like the Cavaliers with James. Turner and Porter are not the best player on their teams, but they are THE player for the Pacers and Wizards, respectively, that will determine whether they can challenge the fallible favorites.
Turner is three years younger, three inches taller, and projected to make about $8 million less per year than Porter. The Pacers may be off to a slow start, but they are in a much stronger position going forward than the Wizards.
NFL Week 7 Cheat Sheet
Tennessee vs Los Angeles Chargers (-6.5) in London: The Titans (3-3) have three wins against teams with a combined winning percentage of 0.500. The Chargers (4-2) got their victories against teams with a combined winning percentage of 0.250. Both teams are in the hunt, but still have something to prove. Tennessee QB Marcus Mariota will probably never prove he was worth the 2nd overall pick in the 2015 draft. -- CHARGERS
Minnesota (-3.5) at New York Jets: Minnesota QB Kirk Cousins signed with the Vikings this summer for $84 million while the Jets were offering him $90 million. Is the fact that Cousins spurned the New York franchise enough motivation for the Jets to pull off an upset victory? Probably not.
-- VIKINGS
Carolina at Philadelphia (-5.0): Philadelphia's offense and defense are both rated slightly better than Carolina's squads. Panther QB Cam Newton has been serving up interceptions recently with three picks over the last two weeks as well. Philly will have the homefield advantage and Brandon Lee Gowton of BleedingGreenNation.com says the Eagles are getting their 2017 swagger back. -- EAGLES
Houston at Jacksonville (-4.0): These are two teams trending in opposite directions. In their current two-game losing streak, Jacksonville has been outscored 44-0 in the first half, according to John Reid of the Florida Times-Union. Houston hasn't been spectacular, but they have found a way to win three games in a row. -- HOUSTON
Cleveland at Tampa Bay (-3.5): Not a lot of good news for the teams involved in this matchup. Tampa Bay has lost three straight, and Cleveland suffered a 38-14 defeat at the hands of the Chargers at home along Lake Erie last week. Picking either one of these teams feels foolish, but you have to pick one of them. -- BUCCANEERS
Detroit (-3.0) at Miami: Am I reading this correctly? The 2-3 Lions are three-point road favorites? Well, they are coming off a bye week. -- LIONS
New England (-2.0) at Chicago: The Bears showed defensive weakness last week allowing Dolphins replacement QB Brock Osweiler to throw for 380 yards and three touchdowns in a 31-28 loss. The Patriots showed defensive weakness when they allowed Kansas City Chief QB Pat Mahomes throw 352 yards and four touchdowns, but they still beat the Chiefs 43-40 Monday night. I do not pick against New England unless I witness at least three undeniable signs from the heavens. -- PATRIOTS
Buffalo at Indianapolis (-7.0): This is a game between two crappy teams -- like a number of Colts games I attended in the late-'80s and early-'90s. The Bills starting QB Josh Allen is hurt so they signed Derek Anderson this week. Anderson hasn't played in the NFL since Week 5 of the 2016 season. That is a sign of a Colts advantage, but not one of biblical proportions. -- BILLS
New Orleans at Baltimore (-2.5): This is without a doubt the game of the day. New Orleans brings the 3rd-best offense into Baltimore to matchup against the top-rated defense. The Ravens have shown a little less consistency, and I assume we all trust Saints QB Drew Brees more than Ravens QB Joe Flacco. -- SAINTS
Los Angeles Rams (-9.0) at San Francisco: Won't be watching this game. Probably wouldn't watch it even if I lived in the Bay area. -- RAMS
Dallas (-1.5) at Washington: And here we have ANOTHER road favorite. An interesting nugget from the capsule on CBSSports.com: Cowboys have won eight of last ten in this series, but have lost on the road in every odd week this year. Don't forget, Dallas ran up 40 points on the Jaguars quality defense last week. -- COWBOYS
Cincinnati at Kansas City (-6.0): The Chiefs have the worst defense of 32 in the NFL. The Bengals have the 29th-best defense in the NFL. Bet the "over." -- CHIEFS
New York Giants at Atlanta (-4.0): Oh my goodness! This game may be officially unwatchable. The first game of the World Series will still be a day away, too. Ugh. -- FALCONS
Purdue's upset of No. 2 Ohio State was the event of the day. Boilermaker RB D.J. Knox and WR Rondale Moore were absolutely electric in the 49-20 victory in Lafayette, Indiana. The connection of cancer patient Tyler Trent to this resilient Purdue team makes this victory the story of the year. [Grab tissues before clicking that link.]
That means the top four teams for the college football playoff currently project to be Alabama, Clemson, LSU, and Notre Dame. Ohio State, Michigan, Texas, Georgia, and Oklahoma still have schedules that provide opportunity for them to jump into the playoff four prior to the end of the season.
NHL mini-season ticket journey is underway
My journey as a mini-season ticket holder began this past week, and I ran into a challenge right away.
I was planning on taking my son to Wednesday's matchup between the Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers, but his athletics and academics got in the way.
So I found myself within two hours of game time and minutes from going to the metro with no battle buddy for the evening. What do you do when faced with a serious problem that can only be solved by someone of character, competence and commitment? You call an Army non-commissioned officer -- that's what you do!
I made a call to an old Army friend and colleague who promptly adjusted his schedule, began movement toward the objective, and established a link up point at a watering hole adjacent to Capital One Arena. Many thanks to Scott Maynard for jumping on the grenade of a midweek evening event in the District. I think I learned a few things from the excursion:
- The Capitals are supremely talented, but still hung over from their championship binge -- struggled against the inferior Rangers Wednesday and lost Friday to a middling Florida Panthers club.
- Bar Louie is a notch better than the Greene Turtle as a pre-game link up location, but I am disappointed Tavern 10 closed its doors and is no longer an option.
- D.C. showed out for the Capitals during their Stanley Cup run, but New Yorkers out did them Wednesday -- we were surrounded by Rangers jerseys and the "Let's Go Rangers" chant dominated the arena on multiple occasions.
Scott Maynard was there during the Stanley Cup Finals, when the championship banner rose to the rafters, and when I needed a battle buddy at a moment's notice Wednesday night at the Caps/Rangers game. He was also my real battle buddy in Iraq, 2008.
Pacers, Wizards off to slow starts
LeBron James departed the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Los Angeles Lakers and left a championship-sized void in the Eastern Conference of the NBA.
Many people see the Indiana Pacers and Washington Wizards like E. Jay Zarett of the Sporting News -- the projected 5th and 6th seeds for the 2019 eastern side of the playoffs.
I was feeling increasingly optimistic when the Pacers signed Myles Turner to a four-year extension Monday and followed that with a 111-83 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies Wednesday. A 17-point loss to the Milwaukee Bucks Friday reminded Pacer fans of the limitations that will most likely keep Indiana from filling that LBJ vacancy. Signing Turner was smart though and if he breaks out this year, the Pacers can absolutely compete for the conference championship (big "if" -- I understand that).
The Wizards starting "Wizarding" immediately with an opening home game loss to the Miami Heat, 113-112. Washington signed C Dwight Howard over the summer, but he has yet to see much practice or any playing time due to a nagging back/buttocks injury. The Wizards will not break into the top tier in the east without a healthy Howard and F Otto Porter finally advancing his game to an All-Star level.
With LeBron out of the way, the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers are favored to win the conference title, but those teams are not mortal locks like the Cavaliers with James. Turner and Porter are not the best player on their teams, but they are THE player for the Pacers and Wizards, respectively, that will determine whether they can challenge the fallible favorites.
Turner is three years younger, three inches taller, and projected to make about $8 million less per year than Porter. The Pacers may be off to a slow start, but they are in a much stronger position going forward than the Wizards.
I still have a lot of reading material to get through as I attempt to determine who will win the NBA Eastern Conference championship now that LeBron James has left for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Western Conference.
NFL Week 7 Cheat Sheet
Tennessee vs Los Angeles Chargers (-6.5) in London: The Titans (3-3) have three wins against teams with a combined winning percentage of 0.500. The Chargers (4-2) got their victories against teams with a combined winning percentage of 0.250. Both teams are in the hunt, but still have something to prove. Tennessee QB Marcus Mariota will probably never prove he was worth the 2nd overall pick in the 2015 draft. -- CHARGERS
Minnesota (-3.5) at New York Jets: Minnesota QB Kirk Cousins signed with the Vikings this summer for $84 million while the Jets were offering him $90 million. Is the fact that Cousins spurned the New York franchise enough motivation for the Jets to pull off an upset victory? Probably not.
-- VIKINGS
Carolina at Philadelphia (-5.0): Philadelphia's offense and defense are both rated slightly better than Carolina's squads. Panther QB Cam Newton has been serving up interceptions recently with three picks over the last two weeks as well. Philly will have the homefield advantage and Brandon Lee Gowton of BleedingGreenNation.com says the Eagles are getting their 2017 swagger back. -- EAGLES
Houston at Jacksonville (-4.0): These are two teams trending in opposite directions. In their current two-game losing streak, Jacksonville has been outscored 44-0 in the first half, according to John Reid of the Florida Times-Union. Houston hasn't been spectacular, but they have found a way to win three games in a row. -- HOUSTON
Cleveland at Tampa Bay (-3.5): Not a lot of good news for the teams involved in this matchup. Tampa Bay has lost three straight, and Cleveland suffered a 38-14 defeat at the hands of the Chargers at home along Lake Erie last week. Picking either one of these teams feels foolish, but you have to pick one of them. -- BUCCANEERS
Detroit (-3.0) at Miami: Am I reading this correctly? The 2-3 Lions are three-point road favorites? Well, they are coming off a bye week. -- LIONS
New England (-2.0) at Chicago: The Bears showed defensive weakness last week allowing Dolphins replacement QB Brock Osweiler to throw for 380 yards and three touchdowns in a 31-28 loss. The Patriots showed defensive weakness when they allowed Kansas City Chief QB Pat Mahomes throw 352 yards and four touchdowns, but they still beat the Chiefs 43-40 Monday night. I do not pick against New England unless I witness at least three undeniable signs from the heavens. -- PATRIOTS
Buffalo at Indianapolis (-7.0): This is a game between two crappy teams -- like a number of Colts games I attended in the late-'80s and early-'90s. The Bills starting QB Josh Allen is hurt so they signed Derek Anderson this week. Anderson hasn't played in the NFL since Week 5 of the 2016 season. That is a sign of a Colts advantage, but not one of biblical proportions. -- BILLS
New Orleans at Baltimore (-2.5): This is without a doubt the game of the day. New Orleans brings the 3rd-best offense into Baltimore to matchup against the top-rated defense. The Ravens have shown a little less consistency, and I assume we all trust Saints QB Drew Brees more than Ravens QB Joe Flacco. -- SAINTS
Los Angeles Rams (-9.0) at San Francisco: Won't be watching this game. Probably wouldn't watch it even if I lived in the Bay area. -- RAMS
Dallas (-1.5) at Washington: And here we have ANOTHER road favorite. An interesting nugget from the capsule on CBSSports.com: Cowboys have won eight of last ten in this series, but have lost on the road in every odd week this year. Don't forget, Dallas ran up 40 points on the Jaguars quality defense last week. -- COWBOYS
Cincinnati at Kansas City (-6.0): The Chiefs have the worst defense of 32 in the NFL. The Bengals have the 29th-best defense in the NFL. Bet the "over." -- CHIEFS
New York Giants at Atlanta (-4.0): Oh my goodness! This game may be officially unwatchable. The first game of the World Series will still be a day away, too. Ugh. -- FALCONS
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