So far the clear contenders as the best teams in the NFL (as well as Super Bowl favourites) have been the Atlanta Falcons, Houston Texans, Chicago Bears and recently the Green Bay Packers and the New York Giants.
In week 9 the Pittsburgh Steelers announced themselves as deserving to be in this group of contenders with an impressive win over the red hot Giants.
Despite having to fly in and out of New Jersey on gameday due to the inability to find accommodation as a result of Hurricane Sandy, the Steelers produced one of the most impressive performances of the week against a very good opposition.
For a team that is accustomed to drawing headlines like no other team, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been travelling under the radar.
Due to their losses to weak opponents like Tennessee and Oakland, the Steelers have appeared to be an unspectacular team. In their victory over the Giants that saw their record move to 5-3, the Steelers have announced that they will be a serious player in the AFC.
The Steelers do not have the defence that was the backbone of their two Super Bowl victories from three appearances, but it is still good enough to get them across the line. Their pass defence was outstanding, limiting Manning to 10-24 passing and only 125 yards.
Their front seven was very good, allowing only 68 yards on the ground while also controlling the line of scrimmage against one of the league’s best offensive lines. Offensively, Roethlisberger had an unspectacular game resting on the running game to control the ball.
Isaac Redman was fantastic, running for 147 yards against a solid defence. For years the Steelers have had issues with their offensive line that has forced Roethlisberger to create and rescue the team from broken plays.
If the Steelers have finally solidified their line and provided Roethlisberger the time to throw combined with the reliability of a running game, this could be the best Steelers offense of the entire Tomlin era.
With the Ravens treading water in the wake of injuries to key defensive players, the Steelers can easily overcome their divisional deficit and will be a clear favourite to capture the second seed in the AFC.
The Steelers victory over the Giants was one of the most important but the Chicago Bears was by far the most impressive. With their defence leading the way again, the Bears looked fantastic in dismantling the decent Tennessee Titans.
Brian Urlacher and Charles Tillman continue to amaze in youthful performances with Urlacher scoring a defensive touchdown and Tillman forcing a remarkable four turnovers in a staggering performance by a cornerback that would do Charles and Rod Woodson proud.
Tillman currently has seven forced fumbles in as many games and would already be tied for the league wide lead for the entire of last season. He continues to amaze and is with JJ Watt the most impressive defensive player this year.
Due to Percy Harvin’s play tailing off and Tillman continuing to win games by himself, it is time to start including Tillman in conversations about league wide MVP.
The Bears just have a knack for creating turnovers and converting them into instant offense at a record pace.
Offensively, quarterback Jay Cutler and receiver Brandon Marshall continue to excel with another exceptional performance in week nine. Although question marks still remain about the Bears, particularly their offensive line, this is one of the best teams in the NFL.
Next week’s game on Sunday Night Football against the Texans is a must watch and will be a quality litmus test to evaluate the Super Bowl contenders.
The Falcons retained their perfect record thanks to mental lapses by the Dallas Cowboys.
This game was an interesting contrast in cultural style, with the frantic and disjointed Cowboys at odds with the measured Falcons. Arguably, the Cowboys have a superior set of talent across the board compared to the Falcons, with Atlanta only having a definitive edge at receiver.
The difference between the two teams is that the Falcons operate with exceptional confidence and poise. Coach Mike Smith inspires confidence in his players and demands accountability for mistakes and mental errors.
Quarterback Matt Ryan is an extension of the personality of his coach and always seems to do the little things right to find a way to put his team in the position to win.
Ryan rarely has spectacular games like Aaron Rodgers, but he has an amazing ability to deliver when it counts. His fourth quarter passing is a testament to this – he seems to always find the open receiver and move the chains to ultimately put the game out of reach.
Dallas are another story. Tony Romo is often spectacular but is just as likely to make poor decisions that cost the team games. Coach Jason Garrett oversees a team that cannot seem to stabilise, they are either performing abysmally or tapping into their incredible potential.
Defensively they constantly are in the wrong position and although there are some incredibly talented players on the defensive side, they are constantly exploited by their lapses. Unlike the Falcons, the Cowboys seem to constantly find new ways to beat themselves.
Whether Atlanta is the best team in the league is yet to be seen. They have beaten all opponents but only faced one team with a winning record to date and only have one team more with a winning record.
It is foreseeable to imagine the Falcons closing the season unbeaten.
After the early hype surrounding rookie quarterbacks Robert Griffin III and Russell Wilson, week 9 saw the less hyped Ryan Tannehill and Andrew Luck face off with playoff implications surprisingly at stake.
Both quarterbacks have been fantastic with Luck being everything he was expected to be coming out of Stanford and Tannehill proving critics wrong with a very impressive season to date.
Luck outplayed Tannehill and should be recognised for breaking the single game passing record for a rookie. Luck’s leadership of the Colts and his performance has been outstanding, this is not a very good team at all but he has shown that he has the ultimate skill for a quarterback: covering up poor talent.
Peyton Manning had it, John Elway had it, Aaron Rodgers has it and Luck is showing that his talent is able to overcome his teams weaknesses and win constantly in spite of this.
Although he hasn’t been as impressive as Luck so far, the Dolphins will be feeling very positive that Tannehill is the answer at quarterback for years to come.
That the Dolphins are even in a position to contend for the playoffs seemed ridiculous at the start of the season and if Tannehill can maintain his level of play, don’t be surprised if he takes over second spot in the race for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
The Packers quietly extended their winning streak to four but injuries continue to mount for Green Bay.
The Packers are incredibly thin at receiver – losing their top three – with Rodgers having to throw to Randall Cobb and James Jones. Rodgers continues to thrive despite these losses and tallied another four touchdowns and furthered his league lead in touchdowns with 25 to date.
Rodgers is delivering one of the quietest MVP seasons in recent years, performing at an incredibly high level despite leading what is one of the most depleted offenses in the league. Although Peyton Manning and JJ Watt are drawing the most press, Rodgers is giving a master class in the meaning of Most Valuable.
Carolina’s upset win over Washington did more than just give Cam Newton and Ron Rivera respite from the considerable criticism they have faced for weeks, it handed the American Presidential election to Mitt Romney.
Known as the Redskins Rule, since 1940 the victor of Washington’s final game prior to the election has indicated which party would win the election. If the Redskins were to win, the incumbent party also won the election and if the Redskins lost, the incumbent would lose.
This trend has been upheld 17 out of 18 times and with the Panthers victory President Obama should be nervous.
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