Thursday, December 9th

Pittsburgh at Minnesota


Doesn't it seem like Minnesota should have a better record than Pittsburgh? Kirk Cousins, despite his staggering lack of intelligence, has played like a top ten QB all season, while Ben Roethlisberger has been among the worst. Nevertheless, Pittsburgh has managed to eke out six wins against some bad teams, some injured teams, and whatever-the-fuck Buffalo was in Week One. Meanwhile, Minnesota has spent the season torturing their fans on a weekly basis (which is SOOOO Minnesota), winning four and losing seven one-score games (they beat Seattle 30-17 in Week Three).

Both teams need this game to improve their place in the playoff hunt. Minnesota has the edge on offense, Pittsburgh, on defense. Adam Thielen is Out, but so is Joe Haden. This is the type of game that Mike Tomlin's crew usually wins, and the type that any Minnesota team generally loses. The choice, for me, is clear.

Winner: Minnesota

It’s been an extremely busy week for me, as I attempt to get as many things done as I can before I’m out of commission for a few weeks. On that note, I’ll do my best to get some picks up for next week, depending on how my surgery goes.
 
To better times!
 
 

​Week Twelve Picks
 
Winners in Bold
 
 
Sunday
 
 
Tampa at Indianapolis
 
Game of the week potential here. Indy has been getting steadily better, establishing the running game and asserting themselves defensively. Tampa is slowly getting healthier on both sides of the ball. Tampa needs all the wins they can get if they are to remain in the hunt for the NFC’s top seed, while Indy has a chance to move closer to the catastrophically injured Titans.
 
 
New York J at Houston
 
This week’s version of the Toilet Bowl, courtesy of two of the most messed-up franchises in the league.
 
 
Philadelphia at New York G
 
Philly’s been on a bit of a roll, playing decent defense and running the ball with aplomb. The talented but snake-bitten G-men limp along. Never knowing what each week will bring.
 
 
Carolina at Miami
 
Cam Newton will have had another week back with Carolina under his belt for this one.
 
 
Tennessee at New England
 
This season began with a lot of promise for Tennessee, yet even though they find themselves at 8-3, they’ve lost Derrick Henry, Julio Jones, and now AJ Brown. New England looks better every week.
 
 
Pittsburgh at Cincinnati
 
Cincy beat Pittsburgh already this season, and though they’ve struggled a bit since, I believe that Cincy will complete the season sweep.
 
 
Atlanta at Jacksonville
 
Times are pretty low in Atlanta. In a meaningless game, why not take the Jags?
 
 
Los Angeles Bolts at Denver
 
LA’s offense is showing signs of life again. If they can get their defense on track, they can still be contenders.
 
 
Los Angeles R at Green Bay
 
Tough call here, but I give a slight edge to LA.
 
 
Minnesota at San Francisco
 
Minnesota is so hot right now.
 
 
 

Sunday Night
 
 
Cleveland at Baltimore
 
Cleveland should be able to win this one by running the ball, as the physicality will take its toll on banged-up Baltimore.
 
 
 

Monday Night
 
 
Seattle at Washington
 
Washington’s defense has come on of late after a shaky start, and Taylor Heinicke has been a capable option at QB. Russell Wilson still doesn’t look right to me.

You know, you could make a case that this is the worst time of the year.
 
By now, I’m certain you’re all aware of how I feel about Thursday football. So, you can well imagine how I feel about the six teams, instead of the usual two, having to drag their bruised and battered carcasses out onto a football field in order to add a few more pieces of silver to a bunch of billionaires’ piles of filthy lucre.
 
Not to bag on Thanksgiving, but it really has developed into kind of a sucky holiday. It’s supposed to be about spending time with family, and giving thanks for good fortune, good health, and the blessings that life and the universe bestow upon us. However, it’s often celebrated through gluttonous feasts, as tens of millions of turkeys are slaughtered, and people gorge themselves to the point of discomfort on too much food. Often, these family feasts turn into acrimonious fiascos, due to people often being forced to share space with unpleasant family members. I can only imagine how difficult it must be now, when the country is so divided. A while back, my wife and I had a conversation with an old friend of hers. This sweet lady’s husband, a wonderful gentleman, has an adult son who is one of these MAGA idiots, and they were talking about how uncomfortable he makes all their family get-togethers, to the point where they just don’t want to see him at all. That’s sad.
 
Then, after all the feasting and fighting, comes the day after: Black Friday, an orgy of naked materialism and capitalism run amok, as people descend upon various and sundry shopping centres and big box stores in order to push, shove, curse, trample, and otherwise assault each other in the quest to obtain marked-down merchandise that they don’t need.
 
As far as I’m concerned, they can have it.
 
When you look at it, Thursday football is perfect for this time of year. Fans talk themselves into believing that they’re witnessing something special, when, in fact, they are being suckered into watching a product that is not up to normal standards because the participants aren’t physically or psychologically up to performing at their peak.
 
We don’t need Thursday football. We REALLY don’t need three games worth.
 
Having said that, I truly hope that you, dear reader, have a lovely, peaceful Thanksgiving.
 
 
 

Thursday, November 25th
 
 
Chicago at Detroit
 
This year’s Thanksgiving Thursday Three-fer begins with an absolute piece of dreck, a game between two teams that are not sniffing the playoffs this season. The only thing that could redeem this game would be plucky Detroit finally replacing that goose egg in their win column. Chicago is bad enough and poorly-coached enough to oblige.

Winner: Detroit
 
 

Las Vegas at Dallas
 
Amari Cooper picked the worst time to get COVID. That’s right; I said, “Picked.” When you choose not to get vaccinated, you might as well be choosing COVID. And, as for timing, Cooper’s COVID time just happens to coincide with the stupid tradition of Dallas hosting a game on Thanksgiving, meaning that, unlike that ding-a-ling Aaron Rodgers, Cooper gets to miss TWO GAMES.
 
Without Cooper last Sunday, the usually high-powered Dallas offense only managed to put up nine measly points. For this game, Dak Prescott will have to avoid some very good Vegas pass rushers without the services of no-vax Cooper and the concussed CeeDee Lamb. Vegas has struggled of late, but Derek Carr is a top-tier QB who can make Dallas’s defense miserable if it’s on the field too much because Dallas’s offense can’t move the ball.

Winner: Las Vegas
 
 

Buffalo at NO
 
If you’d have asked me a month ago, I’d have told you that Buffalo had the inside track for the number one seed in the AFC. Now, they’re not even in first place in their own division. Luckily for them, they’re facing a NO team that will be once again without Alvin Kamara, as well as at least one of their starting Tackles.

Winner: Buffalo

Short intro this week, folks.

I had planned to write a bit about a matter that is really important to me. However, as I often say, "Life happens." A trip to the hospital this week, plus some other unavoidable issues, has left me with precious little time. So, rather than half-ass my way through a rushed piece, I'll just get to the picks.

To better days!



Week Eleven Picks
 
Winners in Bold
 
 
Sunday
 
 
NO at Philadelphia: NO without Kamara, both starting Tackles.
 
Miami at New York J: If Joe Flacco is your best option, what are you even doing?
 
Washington at Carolina: Cam and Christian make magic.
 
Indianapolis at Buffalo: Both teams need every win they can get right now. Intensity!
 
Detroit at Cleveland: Cleveland needs new coaches before all that talent goes bye-bye.
 
San Francisco at Jacksonville: Closer than you might think.
 
Houston at Tennessee: Tennessee knows they need all the gimmes they can get.
 
Green Bay at Minnesota: No Aaron Jones for GB; Minny is so hot right now.
 
Baltimore at Chicago: No pick.
 
Cincinnati at Las Vegas: This could be Cincy's last chance to pull themselves out of their funk.
 
Arizona at Seattle: Russ's finger still ain't right, no matter how much he wants it to be.
 
Dallas at KC: No Amari Cooper makes this a bit more interesting.
 
 
Sunday Night
 
Pittsburgh at Los Angeles Bolts: If the Bolts D can't stop punchless Pittsburgh, then they're done.
 
 
Monday Night
 
New York G at Tampa: Banged-up Tampa, plus aggressive G-Men D, equals a slobberknocker.

A few weeks ago, in my Week 7 Picks column, I lamented, among other things, sports media ding-a-lings calling that week's Seattle-Pittsburgh game a "...rematch of Super Bowl forty," despite the fact that only one player from that game remains in the league.

Tonight's matchup is between New England and Atlanta, so you can probably guess where I'm going with this.

Is this a rematch of the game that everyone still remembers for 28-3?

​Well, unlike the Seattle-Pittsburgh SB, which was over 15 years ago, only five seasons have passed since 28-3. Besides Matt Ryan, there are still a few players left on both rosters from the big game, offense and defense, and including BOTH LONG SNAPPERS!

Having said all that, no, this is not a rematch. It's not for a championship of any kind. There's no trophy. There's no glory. There's no Tom Brady. Plus, it's a Thursday Night game, which is barely a real game at all.

Still, I know that even though it's not really a rematch (no matter how much sports media-types want you to think it is), it's difficult for anyone who's been a football fan for more than five minutes to look at this game and not at least THINK about that game. If I'm being honest, any time I even hear Matt Ryan's name, the first thing I think is "28-3." I'll bet a lot of people do that.

Frankly, it makes me sad.

Matt Ryan seems like a nice guy. He's really good at what he does. I haven't heard anything negative about him. He does commercials with Stone Cold Steve Austin and Ice-T. Unfortunately, he's the face of one of the most memorable collapses in sports history.

And it's not fair.

I mean, all he did in that game was go out and torch New England's defense, staking his team to a 21-3 halftime lead, before adding another TD to make it 28-3 in the third quarter. New England then mounted a comeback for the ages, but Ryan had little to do with that. He lost a key fumble, but it was as a result of a missed block, on a questionable play call. Then, late in the fourth quarter, after New England had pulled to within eight points, Ryan made a couple of great throws, marching his team all the way to New England's 22 yard line, a mere 40-yard field goal try from making it a two-score game, and essentially salting away the victory for Atlanta.

Then, disaster.

For some reason, Atlanta called a pass play, and Ryan was sacked. A field goal would be more difficult, but makeable. On another called pass play, Atlanta was called for holding, moving the ball back another 10 yards, and forcing Atlanta to punt.

The rest is history.

Kyle Shanahan was the Offensive Coordinator for Atlanta in that game. Kyle Shanahan called all of those stupid pass plays. Kyle Shanahan should be the face of that loss.

Matt Ryan still has plenty of good football left in him. Atlanta is a mess. I'd love to see him on another team, a team with a good supporting cast on offense, a good defense, and good coaching. I'd love to see Matt Ryan get another shot at glory.

Just don't send him to San Francisco.

​Thursday, November 18th


New England at Atlanta


Of all the highly-touted rookie QBs this season, Mac Jones has quietly become the best-looking player out of the bunch. I couldn't say that he's better than the rest, or more talented, but he certainly is the luckiest. Not that anything he's accomplished this season has been a fluke. When I say he's lucky, it's because he wasn't drafted by the likes of Jacksonville, New York Gangrene, or Chicago. More importantly, he's lucky because he was drafted by New England.

Mac Jones is surrounded by a good supporting cast on offense. New England has a very good defense. Mac Jones has Bill Belichick as his Head Coach, and Josh McDaniels as his Offensive Coordinator. He has everything that Matt Ryan deserves.

Mac Jones should be unfazed by the hype surrounding this game, because it has nothing to do with him. My only concern for Jones tonight is that it's his first time playing an NFL game on short rest.

New England is the better team, so they should win this one comfortably.

Winner: New England

I know it’s a cliché, but one of the things that I love about football is the oft-repeated idea of, “On any given Sunday…” that the lowliest team can beat the best. With so many intangibles and unknowables, things like weather, turnovers, injuries, luck, etc. there are no guarantees. Upsets happen all the time. That’s why they play the games. One team might look better on paper, but they don’t play on paper; they play on the field.
 
This past week has seen more than its fair share of upsets. Last Sunday, Denver dominated Dallas, and Jacksonville won an ugly contest against Buffalo, huge upsets by double-digit underdogs. In other games, 6-point underdog Atlanta beat New Orleans, 5-2 Las Vegas lost to 2-6 New York (Big Blue), and Travis Henry-less Tennessee, 7-point underdogs, beat Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald, and Co. in Los Angeles.
 
These games absolutely wrecked my picks last week. I wasn’t upset, though. I love upsets. I especially love them when a really lowly team like Jacksonville takes down a contender like Buffalo, or when a team I’m not particularly fond of, like Dallas, gets thumped at home in Jerryworld.
 
Week 10 has opened with a huge upset, as 6-2 Baltimore, favoured by more than a TD, were humbled by Miami 22-10. In my Thursday Night pick column, I expressed concern about Lamar Jackson’s workload, combined with playing on short rest. I picked Baltimore, though. It was the safe pick. My wife ridiculed me. “Miami all the way,” she said. She has a much better memory than I; over the past 20-odd years, she’s seen too many tired players wilt in that Miami humidity. I might have to start giving her space in my column regularly if she continues to show me up like that.
 
Looking at the remainder of this week’s slate, I see the potential for a number of upsets. Will any of them materialize? Only time will tell. They have to play the games.
 
Any given Sunday…
 
 
Week 10 Picks
 
Winners in Bold
 
 
Sunday
 
 
Buffalo at New York J
 
Buffalo got absolutely humbled last week, as their high-powered offense was stymied. That game highlighted the team’s only real weakness: lack of a solid running game. I expect a big effort, and a big win, against New York. Upset potential: Low
 
 
Tampa at Washington
 
The defending champs’ worst game in last season’s playoffs was against Washington, and Tom Brady will be without the services of Gronk and AB. Upset potential: Slight
 
 
Atlanta at Dallas
 
Atlanta has shown some spirit recently, including winning a close game last week, the type of games they have a reputation for losing. Dallas got humiliated last week, as the defense struggled and the offense turned in its second straight subpar performance. Also of note, Atlanta lost to Dallas last season in a game where they jumped out to a 20-0 lead, led 29-10 at the half, and led 39-24 with 8 minutes left in the game. This was the game where Dallas kicked the winning FG after recovering an onside kick, a play where Atlanta infamously stood around watching the ball instead of recovering it. Upset potential: High
 
 
NO at Tennessee
 
Tennessee has been on a bit of a roll, and are slight favourites in this one. However, their offense was just dealt another blow as Julio Jones was placed on IR. Upset potential: High
 
 
Jacksonville at Indianapolis
 
It’s hard to get a read on Indy. They haven’t really beaten a quality opponent, but they’ve lost a number of close ones to some really good teams. One thing that they have been good at is beating up on bad teams, though. Upset potential: Slight
 
 
Detroit at Pittsburgh
 
With news coming that Big Ben has Big COVID, this game has gotten a lot more interesting. I’ll be hoping for an upset here, but it’s Detroit, so who knows. Upset potential: Intriguing
 
 
Cleveland at New England
 
The Pats are slight favourites in this game, but I wouldn’t call this one an upset no matter who wins. Both teams run the ball well, and both have solid defenses. Could be a low-scoring affair. Upset potential: N/A
 
 
Minnesota at Los Angeles Bolts
 
The Bolts are slight favourites at home. Both of these teams are banged-up on defense, which could make for a high-scoring affair. Upset potential: High
 
 
Carolina at Arizona
 
Arizona are big favourites despite the fact that Kyler Murray is unlikely to play. The possibility of Cam Newton getting into this game makes things interesting, but Arizona’s defense makes an upset here unlikely. Upset potential: Low
 
 
Philadelphia at Denver
 
Denver is favoured slightly at home, but no outcome would really be considered an upset. Upset potential: N/A
 
 
Seattle at Green Bay
 
Russell Wilson returns from a finger injury, and Aaron Rodgers also returns, having been freshly de-wormed, and possibly bathed as well. Green Bay are slight favourites at home. Upset potential: Moderate
 
 

Sunday Night
 
 
KC at Las Vegas
 
What a weird scenario this is. Vegas, as a franchise, has the reputation for being the bad boys of the NFL. It certainly has been a trying season for the team. Racist coach. Top wideout kills someone. Another player acts like a complete asshole with guns. But here’s the thing: NONE of those people are with the team anymore, each having been dismissed for their transgressions. Kansas City, on the other hand, likes to keep their assholes around (Frank Clark being the typical example). KC stinks, Mahomes isn’t even a top-ten QB right now, and I’m loving every minute of it. Vegas are slight favourites at home, but no outcome seems unthinkable in this one. Upset potential: N/A
 
 
 

​Monday Night
 
 
Los Angeles R at San Francisco
 
LA decided to roll the dice and risk the delicate balance of team chemistry by adding chronic pain-in-the-ass Odell Beckham, Jr. (not to be confused with Sr., who fights junior’s battles for him on social media), to a team that already looked pretty good. Starting wideout Robert Woods promptly tore his ACL in practice. Hmmm. I expect LA to handle San Fran easily in this one, but who knows. Upset potential: Low-ish

Thursday, November 11th
 
Baltimore at Miami
 
 
It’s no secret that Miami has been a huge disappointment this season; good enough to have close games with mediocre/bad teams, bad enough to get blown out by good teams. Baltimore, even though they’re 6-2, have proven to be difficult to read, as their games are all over the map. They’ve been blown out by, and have blown out, good teams. They have had close calls against lesser teams. Justin Tucker bailed them out against lowly Detroit by hitting a game-winning FG from the parking lot. Their struggles and successes can be attributed to the same thing, that being that Lamar Jackson is carrying their offense.

Because of injuries at running back, and a lack of receiving depth, Jackson has had to do a lot, way more than any QB should have to do. Consider Baltimore’s game against Minnesota a mere four days ago, a back-and-forth affair that Baltimore won in OT. The big story is that Jackson threw for 266 yards and 3 TDs, and ran for an additional 120 yards. The downside is that Jackson accumulated 41 pass attempts, while taking 3 sacks, while carrying the ball a whopping 21 times. That’s a LOT of time holding the ball for the team’s most integral player. Lamar Jackson is tremendously talented, but a workload like that isn’t sustainable.

​Playing a Thursday Night game after such a Herculean effort on Sunday is dangerous. Baltimore is clearly better than Miami, but as this past Sunday proved, any team can beat any team at any time. Baltimore had better hope that the rest of the team steps up and squashes Miami like they should do. Otherwise, Jackson will once again take it upon himself to do whatever he can to get the win. On short rest, that’s not an ideal prospect when it involves Baltimore’s best player.
 
Winner: Baltimore

“I’m not sure how I feel about Rodgers’s greasy, long-haired, asshole, douchebag heel-turn…”
                                Me, in my Week Three picks column
 
And now, here we are, in Week Nine.
 
Aaron Rodgers has COVID. He’s not the first player or coach to get it this season, nor, I’m sure, will he be the last.
 
That’s not the reason that some people are upset, though. They’re upset because of what Rodgers has said and done, at the beginning of the season, and especially this week.
 
Aaron Rodgers, when asked about his vaccination status, said that he was “immunized.” He has not, in fact, received any COVID vaccine. In an interview with Pat McAfee this week, Rodgers characterized his use of the word “immunized” as a planned misdirection, but true.
 
I call it a lie.
 
Now, about that interview.
 
Wow!
 
He started off with a bang, stating, “"I realize I'm in the crosshairs of the woke mob right now, so before my final nail gets put in my cancel culture casket, I think I'd like to set the record straight on so many of the blatant lies that are out there about myself.” As his rambling speech continued, he would repeat his use of “woke” and “cancel culture,” as well as terms like “witch hunt,” to describe the ordeal he has been through. He scolded the league for forcing him to wear a mask, accusing them of “shaming,” him.
 
Victims. Aren’t we all?
 
He also claims that he is allergic to an ingredient in both mRNA vaccines (Pfizer, Moderna), which is plausible. I just don’t know if I believe him. I wonder if he was diagnosed by an expert, or if he just did his own research. I mean, he’s a really smart guy, a “critical thinker.” He studies, like when he hosted Jeopardy. Remember that? Aaron wants you to. Jeopardy is a show for smart people.
 
Aaron Rodgers. Smart guy. Critical thinker.
 
I have so many questions, but I don’t want to bore anybody, so I’ll just mention a few things that bug me about the whole situation.
 
Regarding Rodgers’s allergy (which, if true, is likely to polyethylene glycol, or PEG), he refers to the CDC’s advice to not take the vaccine if you have this allergy. He also says that among the treatments he has taken is the drug ivermectin, which the CDC (as well as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, World Health Organization, American Medical Association, American Pharmacists Association, and American Society of Health-System Pharmacists) does not approve nor authorize as a COVID treatment. So, does he trust the experts, or doesn’t he? I guess it depends on whether he likes what he hears. Not exactly thinking critically.
 
Furthermore, if he’s such a sceptic, why criticize the league’s policy on mask wearing for unvaccinated personnel? He says that he shouldn’t need the mask if he’s only around vaccinated people, which means he must have faith in the vaccines, except he doesn’t, and he practices social distancing, which is what the experts recommend, even though he doesn’t trust them. Confusing, right?
 
Also, he gets advice from Joe Rogan. That statement stands by itself.
 
Oh, and one more question: If you take such good care of yourself, and take all your vitamins and quack remedies, and listen to Joe Rogan, and “do your own research,” and wear masks and all that other stuff you’re supposed to do, and you’re only around vaccinated people at work, how did you get COVID?
 
Aaron Rodgers believes he is special, and he is. He’s an extremely good football player. However, when he talks about himself, he says things like “I march to the beat of my own drum,” and “I’m a critical thinker,” and “I believe in bodily autonomy.” He plays the victim, of “woke mobs” of “crazed individuals,” conducting a “witch hunt” in the name of “cancel culture.” He cherry-picks facts that suit him, and criticizes anyone who doesn’t agree with him. He implores people to stop lying, when he is the one who lied.
 
Aaron Rodgers is special. Just ask him.
 
If you ask me, Aaron Rodgers is a snowflake.
 
 
He’s definitely not a horse or a cow, though.

​

​Week Nine Picks
 
Winners in Bold
 
 
Sunday
 
 
Atlanta at NO
 
In the past few seasons, Atlanta has become known as a team that will underperform, and for blowing leads. (Call it “The Curse of 28-3.”) They’re off to a typical 3-4 start, and face a New Orleans team that, despite some question marks at QB and WR, still has plenty of talent.
 
 
Denver at Dallas
 
Dallas continues to look like an upper-echelon team, while Denver just jettisoned Von Miller.
 
 
New England at Carolina
 
That talented Pats defense is really starting to look like something, and Mac Jones, supported by an effective running attack, has been improving steadily. After a good start, Carolina’s offense has struggled to score points and protect the QB.
 
 
Minnesota at Baltimore
 
With the exception of a 30-17 win over Seattle in Week 3, all of Minnesota’s games have ben decided by one score. Baltimore, coming off their bye after getting trounced by Cincinnati the week before, have the game’s best decider of one-score games: Justin Tucker.
 
 
Cleveland at Cincinnati
 
Cincinnati is coming off a disappointing loss to the New York (Green version), so I would be surprised if they don’t play well against Cleveland.
 
 
Buffalo at Jacksonville
 
Barring some catastrophe, Buffalo should win this one comfortably.
 
 
Houston at Miami
 
This is what the bottom of the barrel looks like.
 
 
Las Vegas at New York G (No Pick)
 
One of Vegas’s top receivers just killed someone. I feel weird talking about this game, so I won’t.
 
 
Los Angeles Bolts at Philadelphia
 
The Bolts need to snap out of whatever funk they’re in, and soon. Much has been made of the poor performance of the offense in their last two games, but I’m just as worried about how many points the team has given up.
 
 
Green Bay at KC
 
KC is bad, and I’m loving every minute of it. Even without Snowflake, Green Bay is good enough to win this, provided that Jordan Love doesn’t screw things up too badly.
 
 
Arizona at San Francisco
 
I was worried when I saw Kyler Murray and Deandre Hopkins on the injury report. If they’re both playing at less than 100%, this could be a close game.
 
 
 
Sunday Night
 
 
Tennessee at Los Angeles R
 
Tennessee is going to have to figure out how to run their offense without its most important player, starting with a passing attack that features less play-action. The LA added Von Miller this week as their latest step in their win now program.
 
 
 
Monday Night
 
 
Chicago at Pittsburgh
 
No Khalil Mack again for Chicago. TJ Watt is ready to go, though.

Would you have bet on Mike White?

Drafted in the fifth round in 2018 by Dallas, White is in his fourth season in the NFL, yet until Week Seven of this season, when he replaced injured Zach Wilson, he had never thrown a pass in a regular season game. In Week Eight, he would start for the first time, against a red-hot Cincinnati team that had the best record in the AFC.

I mean, look at his transaction history:

​

Here's what his 2020 season with New York looked like:

September 5, 2020: waived by the Jets and signed to the practice squad the next day
Promoted to the active roster on September 12
Waived on October 1, 2020, re-signed to the practice squad four days later
Elevated to the active roster on October 10 and October 17 for the team's weeks 5 and 6 games; reverted to the practice squad after each game
Promoted to the active roster on November 9 
Waived again on November 10; re-signed to the practice squad again the next day
Promoted to the active roster again on November 21
Waived again on November 23 and re-signed to the practice squad again the next day
Signed a reserve/future contract with the Jets on January 4, 2021

Wow!

​Against Cincy, all he did was go 37 of 45 for 405 Yards, with 3 TDs (and 2 INTs), and he scored a 2-point conversion on a handoff-reverse-option pass, as New York pulled off a huge upset.

Few believed in Mike White's viability as a starter, as is evidenced by his brief history in the league. One person took a chance on White against Cincy, and it paid off pretty big:

​

After everything he's been through, I wouldn't have blamed Mike White if he had some serious doubts about continuing in the league. I guess he bet on himself, and, for at least one Sunday in October, he got to live the dream.



Thursday, October 4th

New York J at Indianapolis


I'm sure that Cincinnati was surprised by how well White, and New York, played against them. I expect that Indy won't take New York as lightly as Cincy probably did. Indy still has the running game, and the solid defense, and they're probably feeling some extra motivation after the news of Tennessee's Derrick Henry being lost for a significant amount of time due to injury. If New York does play well, it could be a sign that new Head Coach Robert Saleh is starting to reach the team after a rough start to the season.

Winner: Indianapolis

I don't want to spend a lot of time on this, mostly because I don't have a lot of time right now, but also because I hate Major League Baseball.

Racist fan behaviour is suddenly big news due to the Atlanta baseball team being in the World Series. At Atlanta home games, attendees like to dress in costumes, paint their faces, and chant and do a hand and arm movement in unison. This behaviour is supposed to represent a caricature of Indigenous Peoples' dress and actions.  Indigenous People have long stated that they find such actions to be mocking and offensive.

And that's really where it should end.

It doesn't, though.

When you appropriate someone's culture, especially if it is in a crude, inaccurate, distorted, or farcical manner for your own enjoyment or entertainment, and the people whose culture you are ridiculing say that they are offended, what you should do is listen.

And stop doing it.

It was racist when you did it, even if unknowingly or unintentionally.

Don't say, "Well, I don't mean it that way,..," or "It's all in good fun...," or whatever. The harm you caused is real, regardless of intent.

Don't complain about cancel culture, the left, liberals, wokes, snowflakes, or whatever term you use when called out for your shitty behaviour. You're not the victim. No one is hurting you. Acting like a victim makes you the snowflake.

This is mostly a white people problem. It's a white people problem because it was white colonizers who came to "The New World," claimed it as their own, committed genocide against the Indigenous and First Nations Peoples, and brought enslaved Africans here. It is systems and practices and laws created by white people that oppressed BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People Of Colour) and continue to oppress them.

When someone who is BIPOC writes or speaks about systemic and other forms of racism, and uses the term "white people," they are discussing very real incidents and issues that are perpetrated by white people and/or perpetuated by these white-created hierarchies and institutions.

When white people hear BIPOC use "white people," and white people jump up and protest by saying, "Not all white people," they are arguing against something that was not said. "White people" is not the same as "all white people." When white people say "Not all white people," they are playing the victim. No one is hurting them. No one is oppressing them.

This is white fragility.

Anyone who reads my columns knows that I am frequently and extremely critical of the Kansas City football team and its fans. For example, I wrote in 2019:

"Their fans are a bunch of racist idiots who think that it’s good fun to imitate and mock indigenous peoples’ traditions and iconography."

Regarding the behaviour of the attendees of the Atlanta baseball team's home games, I would say the exact same thing.

In other words, the chop is racist.

Week Eight Picks
 
Winners in Bold
 
 
Sunday
 
 
Cincinnati at New York J
 
It’s been really interesting watching this Cincinnati team round into form. They stumbled a bit after their big win over Pittsburgh, narrowly beating Jacksonville the following week. After their next big game, a tough OT loss to Green Bay, they walloped Detroit. Facing a bad New York team this week after stomping Baltimore last week is the classic trap game situation, but this New York team is really bad, and Cincy is too good and too focused to stumble.
 
 
Tennessee at Indianapolis
 
Both of these teams are hitting their stride after rough starts. Indy’s got the running game going, and Carson Wentz’s play is improving. Tennessee has started winning mainly because Derrick Henry is in peak form, and AJ Brown has been tearing it up after a slow start. Henry is the key to Ryan Tannehill’s success with the play-action passing game, but they need their receiving corps to make plays. This is a really close matchup, and an important one as well for these division rivals.
 
 
Los Angeles R at Houston
 
In a vacuum, this one is a no-brainer.
 
 
Pittsburgh at Cleveland
 
So, it looks like Baker Mayfield will start this game, despite having a serious and painful injury to his non-throwing shoulder. I think it’s a mistake to play him; one good hit or awkward landing could cause him to miss significant time. I understand him wanting to play, though. He’s still on his rookie contract, and he’s playing, essentially, for a new and hopefully lucrative deal. Cleveland’s backup QB, Case Keenum, played well in a victory last week, and has experienced some success, including taking Minnesota to the NFC Championship game less than four years ago (Remember the “Minnesota Miracle?” That was Keenum throwing to Stefon Diggs.) If Mayfield gets hurt again, and Keenum takes over and plays well, it could cost Mayfield his starting job, and a whole lot more.
 
 
Philadelphia at Detroit
 
Detroit has played so hard for Dan Campbell and come so close to winning a few times this season. In a week where the last unbeaten team has been vanquished, wouldn’t it be fitting if the last winless team gets a victory?
 
 
San Francisco at Chicago
 
Both of these teams are pretty banged-up, especially on defense. San Fran should be able to grind out a win.
 
 
Carolina at Atlanta
 
Carolina’s offense has been nothing short of pathetic since Christian McCaffrey went down. They have a chance to eke out a victory if their defense can shut down Atlanta, and if Sam Darnold can avoid costly turnovers.
 
 
Miami at Buffalo
 
In Week Two, Buffalo got a shutout in Miami after laying an egg in Week One against Pittsburgh. After a tough loss to Tennessee followed by a week off, a well-rested Buffalo squad should absolutely squash Miami.
 
 
New England at Los Angeles Bolts
 
This should be a good test for the Bolts.  They’ve had almost two weeks to think about getting blown out by Baltimore in Week Six, and they’ll be facing a Pats defense that will certainly have a few things cooked up to try and confound Justin Herbert. The Bolts need a strong performance from their talented defense, especially after consecutive subpar outings.
 
 
Jacksonville at Seattle
 
Geno Smith looked bad last week, and it appeared to me as though Seattle had no confidence in his ability to lead the offense. This would be a great opportunity for young Trevor Lawrence to pick up his second win.
 
 
Washington at Denver
 
Denver’s offense, particularly Teddy Bridgewater were pretty disappointing last week. This could very well be Bridgewater’s last chance to show that he should continue to be the starter.
 
 
Tampa at NO
 
I hate New Orleans, so I hope Tampa beats the piss out of them.
 
 
 
Sunday Night
 
 Dallas at Minnesota
 
There’s been a lot of back-and-forth speculation as to whether Dak Prescott will play in this game. If he does play, even with limited mobility, Dallas should win, because he’s surrounded by so much offensive talent.
 
 
 
Monday Night
 
New York G at KC
 
New York is absolutely capable of beating KC. They probably won’t, though.