This has been one of the ugliest weeks in NFL history. You can’t encounter any type of media without hearing about all of the issues and problems surrounding the game we love right now. Public outcry has reached fever pitch and legacies have been tarnished. There’s no doubt the NFL faces many challenges in the coming weeks and months, and the world will be watching as things unfold.
NFL Week Three Primer: Focusing on Football
With that said, I’d like to discuss some of the more positive and exciting aspects of football, if for no other reason than to take a little break from the sombre, depressing vibe that the NFL is carrying with it right now, and focus purely on the sports itself.
What’s that you say? We have a Super Bowl rematch on Sunday afternoon? It’s true. Peyton Manning and the Broncos head to Seattle with revenge on their minds, after a stinging Super Bowl defeat, and will surely enter CenturyLink Field in an angry mood. Their opponents, the defending champion Seahawks, will likely enter their home field just as angry after tasting an upset defeat last week at the hands of the tenacious San Diego Chargers. Smart money dictates that this game will be much closer than the Super Bowl was, and it’s always exciting to watch two of the best teams in the league play with something to prove. This is not a game to miss.
The Carolina Panthers are proving a lot of people wrong. Again. After an off-season that saw a cavalcade of important players leave town, and a Week One Cam Newton absence, this club has managed to start the season 2-0, and sits firmly atop a competitive NFC South. The strength of this team is its stifling defense; as long as Luke Kuechly and company are on their game, this team is a force. Throw in an impressive return from Super-Cam, and it would seem that the Panthers are well on their way to another playoff berth.
How electric does Darren Sproles look in the Philadelphia Eagles offense? The water bug looks to be playing at his highest level and Chip Kelly’s creativity has returned him to the multi-purpose dynamo that he was a couple of years ago. His first two weeks with his new team have been very exciting and it appears that Kelly’s high-powered offense is no flash in the pan.
How about Jay Cutler? He takes tons of abuse, but you can’t argue against his toughness. After taking the most vicious quarterback hit this season has seen through two weeks, he got up, dusted himself off, and threw four touchdown passes to lead the Bears to a big comeback win over the 49ers in the inaugural contest at Levi’s Stadium. He may not always do it with a smile on his face, but he’s proving his worth to his team, and the league as a whole.
J.J. Watt is unstoppable, and the Texans appear to be back in business. A week after putting on one of the most dominant defensive displays in recent history, Watt outdid himself by scoring his first offensive touchdown after lining up as an eligible receiver and hauling in a Ryan Fitzpatrick goal-line pass. Frankly, I’m not sure there is anything that Watt can’t do on a football field, as he continues to prove that he is, in fact, the best defensive player in the game today. The fact that he’s now chipping in on offense is just icing on the cake. He’s a great player and a fun guy to watch; the kind of person the game needs right now as the league continues to reel.
Yes, it’s a rough time for the game we love. It’s a rough time for the players, coaches and owners. It’s a rough time for the fans who spend their money on tickets and jerseys with their heroes’ names on the back. The fact is, sometimes some of our heroes let us down. Anyone with any life experience knows that. But we can’t afford to ignore all of the positives and focus solely on the negatives.
That’s true of life and it’s equally true of football.
And both will go on.
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