by Tom Weppel
After a fairly solid win against the Broncos, the Jaguars are off for the week. This is a very early date to receive a bye, but that’s the way the schedule rolls, my friends.
After three weeks, the Jaguars really haven’t established an identity or personality. We still don’t really know what kind of team the fans have to cheer for. It can be a very frustrating feeling, to be sure. Will we see more of the grinding, running game we saw work in Denver, or are we gonna’ go with a mediocre passing game? Will turnovers continue to plague David Garrard and the offense, or will they be able to finish off drives with scores?
And are we ever gonna’ get more out of Jack Del Rio? It seems the guy almost has no personality at all. He does not come out with anything of significance during his press conferences, and his style is very close to the vest, compared to his playing days, when he was a little brasher, flying off the handle to tackle opponents as a Linebacker in the League.
We shall see what the rest of the season has in store for us, when the Jags hit the road again after their off-week, when they go to Kansas City.
There is no question the dominant team in the NFL is the New England Patriots. They have simply taken care of business with no problem against their first three opponents, and they will most likely do the same when they go to Cincinnati on Sunday night.
The Pats have a veteran team that is firing on all cylinders with no problem. And while the Colts, Cowboys, and Packers are all sitting nicely at 3-0, I believe it’s New England that is simply THE team to beat for the rest of the season. Unless, of course, injuries come into play, which is always a possibility in the NFL.
Meanwhile, the Falcons, Bills, Dolphins and Rams are not playing so hot at 0-3. All four teams have had struggles each week, and it has made things cumbersome for each franchise. This week, the Falcons host the upstart Texans, the Bills host the Jets, the ‘Fins host the Raiders, and the Rams go to Dallas. So plan on St. Louis being 0-4 without question, while the other three have a decent shot at winning their first.
Oh, my! Is THIS a weekend for college football or what!
Here in town, the Florida State Seminoles are coming to play the Alabama Crimson Tide. If you don’t think there’s gonna’ be about 85,000 wild fans around here, combined from both sides, you’re nuts! This will trump the past ten Florida/Georgia crowds, EASILY, simply because of the excitement by both school contingents and the hype surrounding the game.
Alabama native Bobby Bowden will try and beat the Tide, a team that is smarting a little from their home OT loss last weekend to the Georgia Bulldogs. Obviously, this will be a big game for ‘Bama Head Coach Nick Saban, and so we shall see how things pay out downtown in No-Name Stadium.
Meanwhile, the Gators come off a not-so-easy win against the Ole Miss Rebels by hosting the Auburn Tigers, a team that has a tough season so far, with home losses against South Florida and Mississippi State. We have seen Tim Tebow continue to display his wares as Gator QB. The fans are infatuated with the guy. Reports are that he simply cannot walk around campus unattended anymore, as he must have some type of security to escort him to class.
And so Florida will have a test on their hands with Auburn, which is trying to get their act back together in the SEC. It should be an entertaining contest.
In other games, Georgia will host the Ole Miss Rebels, while Davidson comes into town to play the JU Dolphins, a team looking for their second home win of the season. Nationally, the winless Notre Dame Irish (not Fighting this season!) go to Purdue, where they will probably take their fifth loss of the year. Charlie Weis and his mates have to be totally reeling.
This is the last week of the season before the playoffs begin. The American League teams are pretty much set, with Boston, Cleveland, the Angels, and the Yankees ready to go.
But in the National League, it’s taken these last games to figure out who gets to play in the postseason. All three Division races have become tough, with the Mets and Phillies in the East, the Cubs and Brewers in the Central, and the Padres and D-backs in the West. From there, SOMEONE has to be the Wildcard entry, so, it should be quite interesting to see who plays when the dust settles on Sunday.
After a wild, bumper-car race in Dover, the boys head out to Kansas City to race on another fairly obscure track in their march for the Chase.
While twelve drivers and their teams go after a championship, the other 31 drivers on the track are simply there to win the race. It almost goes against matters, in a way. It makes it possible for a car at the end of a race to take somebody out if they don’t like them, and they have nothing to lose or gain, for all intents.
Following the Chase during a race can also be a complicated experience. To try and keep track of who’s won how many laps, and who has how many points can get crazy.
And while that news should rule the racing headlines, it isn’t. Most race fans are talking about Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and his going with #88 to drive in his new ride, sponsored by Mountain Dew and their energy drink, known as AMP. That change, along with many others for next year, should make things extremely interesting for the 2008 season.
Tom Weppel talks trash with Greg Larson, Lonnie Marts, Eugene Chung, Artis Gilmore, and Ron Duguay on SportsAvengers.com 24/7.
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