Diplomatic Immunity

The Baltimore Ravens were really if we are being (REAL WITH OURSELVES) was the first real team that the Patriots’ defense had to play their whole season — and the Ravens definitely showed up and showed out. Yes there are teams running option football, but the Ravens utilize this style of play for their offense like no other team the league has seen and of course it helps to have a 22 year old 6’2 212lb quarterback from the University of Louisville in which by the looks of it probably has a 40 time of 4.30 flat, Opposing teams who have played the Ravens have said it is almost an impossible task to try and prepare for that offense in just one week, Jackson, being the most dangerous running threat as a quarterback that the league has seen since Michael Vick in his hay day playing for the Atlanta Falcons. In the Ravens’ 37-20 win over the Patriots on Sunday night, LJ not only beat the Patriots physically being with his legs and his arm, he beat them with his mind. The Patriots just about did every thing they could to try and stop that explosive offense but failed almost at every attempt. After the game, starting quarterback Lamar Jackson said
“They went ‘Cover Two.’ They went ‘Cover Zero.’ They went Quarters. They went ‘Cover Six,” “They were doing it all.” So “Who is Afraid of The Big Bad Wolf?
…Definitely not Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens.

– Mike Nickelz

MINOR SETBACK

Indianapolis – Colts (5-3) fell short to the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-4) after Indianapolis kicker Adam Vinateri missed a go ahead 43-yard field goal attempt with 1:14 left on the clock. Vinateri mistake drops the Colts to second place in the AFC South. They now trail Houston by a half-game. Quarterback Jacoby Brissett left the game in the second quarter with a left knee injury and did not return. Veteran backup QB Brian Hoyer entered the game and threw 17-of-26 for 168 passing yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. Steelers win keeps them alive in the AFC, after winning 3 straight games. New acquired safety Minkah Fitzpatrick’s 96-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter really helped the Steelers after slow start. Pittsburgh also blocked an extra point attempt by K Adam Vinateri. Adam Vinateri has really struggled with field goals and PAT attempts this season. Hopefully things get better as the season goes along. The Colts streak of holding rushers under 100 yards is now 26 consecutive games. Next up, the Colts will welcome the Miami Dolphins (1-7) to Lucas Oil stadium Sunday, November 10, 2019 at 3:05 pm. Let’s Go Get That W Colts!!

Horseshoe Mob,
Senior

Ravens 37, Patriots 20 : Week 9 – Recap & Grades :
Offense – This group racks up 372 yards of total offense on the league’s best defense, including 210 on the ground. Mark Ingram leads the way w/ 115 yards on 15 carries for an average of 7.7 yards per carry, but he does lose a fumble.
Grade : A-
Defense – A pretty solid effort by this group, they allow 268 yards passing & 74 yards rushing but still force 2 turnovers, including 1 for a score & also record 2 sacks while getting pressure for most of the night.
Grade : B
Special Teams – This group was the weakest link of the evening as PR Cyrus Jones fumbles a punt return & Justin Tucker misses his first extra point of the season. The kick & punt return coverage is also poor.
Grade : B-
Coaching – In a match of wits, coach Harbaugh & his coaching staff had a great gameplan coming in & executed it to perfection. They knew where the weaknesses were & how to attack them. No fear.
Grade : A
Overall Grade : A-
GO RAVENS!!
#MakingAStatement

Ravens 37, Patriots 20 : Blacking Out – The Ravens play their best game all season as they rip apart the undefeated Patriots @ home to win their 4th in a row. The Ravens march right down the field on thier opening drive, going 11 plays on 75 yards against the NFL’s top ranked Defense & capping it off w/ a 3 yard TD run by QB Lamar Jackson to put Baltimore ontop 7-0. RB Gus Edwards runs it in from 12 yards out in the 2nd to make it 17-0, but PR Cyrus Jones fumbles a punt @ the Baltimore 20 & it leads to a TD pass from QB Tom Brady to WR Mohamed Sanu & Ravens still led 17-13 @ the half. CB Marlon Humphrey runs back a fumble by WR Julian Edelman 70 yards in the 3rd to make it 24-13 & Jackson finds TE Nick Boyle to make it 30-20 in the 3rd. Jackson then runs it in from 1 yard out in the 4th to officially put the game away late. Baltimore earns a huge win @ home against an AFC juggernaut & is now currently the 2nd seed in the AFC.
Bal (6-2) @ Cin
NE (8-1) @ Phi
GO RAVENS!!
#MeasuringStick

Indianapolis – The Colts (5-2) wins a thriller against the Denver Broncos (2-6) after the NFL’s career scoring leader Adam Vinateri made a 51-yard field goal with 22 seconds left to give Indy a 15-13 comeback victory. It wasn’t easy for Vinateri, who played in his 200th game as a Colt. Vinatieri opened the game missing a 45-yard field goal wide right and missed a game-tying extra point. Still Head Coach Frank Reich had faith in the 23 year veteran to put the game on his right foot. The game winning kick gave Indy three straight wins and kept them on top of the AFC South. For Denver, another tough loss. The team played conservative in the second half, which gave Colts more opportunities to take the lead and win the game. Joe Flacco, who was 20-of-32 with 174 yards and no touchdowns, did what he could, but Denver kicked two first half field goals, one capping a 17-play drive that consumed 8 minutes of clock. Denver opened up the second half with a 4-yard TD by RB Royce Freeman. Colts rushing defense came up big against star RB Phillip Lindsay, who had 14 carries, 59 rushing yards. The Colts defense has not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 25 straight games. Good win Colts, next up Pittsburgh Steelers.

Horseshoe Mob,
Josh Senior

Mitchell Trubisky the 6’2 215lbs quarterback from The university of North Carolina that the Chicago Bears drafted in the 1st round of the 2017 NFL draft as their number two pick…HE WAS ABSOLUTELY AWFUL, HORRENDOUS, HORRIFIC, HORRIBLE (by now I’m sure you get the picture) for the entire afternoon outside of two garbage drives late in the fourth quarter. He was consistent in missing open receivers on what it seemed as every route, On one route Mitch threw a pass downfield to Allen Robinson in double coverage that just looked like pure desperation.(😂😂)
and this was before the QB injured his left shoulder. That run game (17 yards on seven carries) didn’t help them either, far too many missed opportunities with the passing game..For all of the fans that drafted Mitch in their fantasy league the ounce of optimism around Trubisky you may get is just to drop him..at this point I would have far more faith in The Jacksonville Jaguars starting rookie QB Garner Minshew. Dear Bears fan my heart bleeds for you all, Shout Out Red-O lol.

– Mike Nickelz

What if your teams franchise QB just suddenly retired two weeks before your season was to start? Bummer right?

Not quite though…The best front office in football was able to (by some unforeseen force in the universe) right the ship, and now with a 4-2 record and division leaders of the AFC South it seems as if the Indianapolis Colts never missed a beat, check it
out…

General Manager Chris Ballard & Head Coach Frank Reich seem to be in the Football Gods grace….At the moment as a Colts fan it seemed all was truly lost for the Colts – With the organization on the come up. 29-year old (at the time of his retirement speech) Andrew Luck Now 30 had carried the Indianapolis Colts for 6 seasons…But Fast forward two months and the boys are 4-2 and one of the hottest team not just in their division (The AFC South) not in the AFC conference but in the league period. It’s a helluva turnaround although not as miraculous as their 2018 season where they started 1-5 and finished the season with a 10-6 record and 2nd in their division only to the Houston Texans…But even with no luck some how they still are legit contenders for not only to win the conference but some analysts are calling them superbowl contenders…This just goes to show what a great front office and coaching staff can do for a franchise in just a few short years, BIG middle finger to those who doubted us.

– Mike Nickelz

Justin Houston [Defensive End] played just three games against the Denver Broncos [As a Chief] since the 2016 season his stats totaled up in those 3 games are.. 18 Tackles 7 Tackles for a loss..7 QB Hits 6 Sacks 1 Forced Fumble

Safe to say he’s had his way with Bronco QB’s!!!…and former Baltimore Ravens and 2013 superbowl champion MVP..Joe Flacco the starting quarterback for the Ravens defeated the 49ers by the score of 34-31, handing the 49ers their first Super Bowl loss in franchise history. Is no diffrent… The Broncos offensive line unit allowed a struggling Kansas City Chiefs defense to apply pressure and be in the Broncos’ backfield all night long in a week 7 in a blowout lost to the Kansas City Chiefs ending in a score of 30-6… Joe Flacco completed 21-of-34 passes for 213 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions not bad for the former raven I guess…But (according to scout.com the Kansas City Chiefs are projected to have and will be the 21st ranked defense for the remainder of the season..

In other words..Let’s Eat!!!

– Mike Nickelz

Indianapolis – The Indianapolis Colts (4-2) have now won two straight games and three straight against the Houston Texans. QB Jacoby Brissett, who finished with 26-of-39 for 326 passing yards and a career best 4 touchdowns to lead the Colts past the Texans 30-23 and reclaim the AFC South lead. Brissett had a career best passing yards, a career best passer rating (126.7), and was sacked once in the game. Houston (4-3) got off to a rocky start by kicking fields goals in three red-zone trips in the first half. QB Deshaun Watson was 23-of-34 with 308 passing yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and was sacked three times as the Texans tried to rally a comeback. With 26 seconds left in the game, Watson threw an interception to All-Pro LB Darius Leonard to sealed the win for the Colts. Colts did get a boost in the receiving game from WR Zach Pascal, who had six receptions for 106 yards (career-high) and WR TY Hilton caught six passes for 74 yards..Marlon Mack rushed 18 times for 44 yards, he could not get anything going against the Texans 8th rank rushing defense..Colts has scored at least 23 points in 11 consecutive home games..Colts defense still has not allowed a 100-yard rusher in now 24 consecutive games. Great win by the Indianapolis Colts.

HorseshoeMob,
Josh Senior

Ravens 30, Seahawks 16 : Week 7 – Recap & Grades :
Offense – The Lamar Jackson show. LJ rushes for 116 yards on 14 carries for an average of 8.3 yards per rush & also passes for 143 despite just 9 completions & 5 dropped passes by his receivers. He combines for 259 total yards.
Grade : B+
Defense – This group played absolutely great despite being down some big names. They force 2 turnovers, turn both into touchdowns, register 1 sack & FS Earl Thomas has 5 tackles in his first game back in Seattle as member of the opposing team.
Grade : B
Special Teams – Justin Tucker hits on all 3 of his FG’s, Sam Koch punts it away 3 times for 132 yards for an average of 44.0 yards per punt. Cyrus Jones & Justice Hill contribute 29 total return yards.
Grade : A
Coaching – Coach Harbaugh & the entire coaching staff had an excellent gameplan as they brought this team into a hostile environment & came out w/ big win heading into the bye week
Grade : A
Overall Grade : A-
GO RAVENS!!
#BattleOfTheBirds