Random thoughts and Week 5 NFL Picks

Hey all...

Well, the curtain was lifted on a new season of NHL hockey this past Wednesday. So far, it's been a bit of a wild ride. The Stanley Cup champions Carolina Hurricanes have opened the season with 3 straight losses. The Nashville Predators, favored to win their division ahead of the Red Wings, have also yet to lose a game. Ottawa, after wnning on opening night, have lost 2 straight and their starting goaltender is already drawing the ire of the fans. Meanwhile, the Chicago Blackhawks and Minnesota Wild have scored 12 and 9 goals in 2 games, respectively. And in Montreal, after 2 games, David Aebischer looks a lot better than Cristobal Huet in nets. What can we learn from this? Well, most teams have played only 2 or 3 games, and the season is a long one. There will be lots of trades, and when it's all said and done, things will look a lot more normal than they do now.

In regards to the Canadiens, I have said all summer long that putting Sergei Samsonov with Alex Kovalev and a small center (originally thought to be Mike Ribeiro, who's been replaced by Tomas Plekanec) was a mistake. So far, that has hel true. That line is not doing anything. Samsonov looks invisible out there. Kovalev, I believe, works best with a lot of space, and right now, no one on that line is able to give it to him. Meanwhile, Saku Koivu looks like Wayne Gretzky out there, feeding his 2 big wingers, Mychael Ryder and Chris Higgins, some beautiful passes and putting the puck in the back of the net every time the opposition forgets about him. I think that it is only a matter of time for Carbonneau to send Kovalev backonto the top line and put Mychael Ryder with Plekanec and Samsonov. Montreal is a talented team, but they don't have enough talent up and down the roster to have a one-line team. They need both lines to produce and right now they're not getting that.

The Buffalo Sabres are looking really good right now. You get the feeling that had they not had so many injuries last year in the playoffs, they would've definitely beaten the Hurricanes in the Conference Finals. Ryan Miller is the real deal, Martin Biron is the best backup in the league, the defense is strong, and boy oh boy are they fast. They don't have a Jagr or a Kovalchuk on the team, but you'd be hard-pressed to find a team with better depth at foward. Too bad their new uniforms are so butt-ugly.

I will have more NHL thoughts on thursday, but now here are my weekend NFL picks:

Buffalo at Chicago: 2 very good defenses faceoff. It will be a close game, but in the end, a better quarterback and better running game means Chicago will win. Chicago

St. Louis at Green bay: Favre got rattled pretty good by Philly last week, but I expect him to bounce back. Still, the Packers look terrible this year on defense, and I believe Torry Holt and company will have a field day. St. Louis.

Tennessee at Indianapolis: Peyton Manning vs. Vince Young. Enough said. Indy in a landslide. Indianapolis.

Detroit at Minnesota: Minnesota has some big holes on defense and a sputtering offense. Still, this is Detroit they're playing. And they're at home. Minnesota.

Miami at New England: There is talk Joey Harrington could start. While I think he might be better than Daunte Culpepper, New England is too good and Miami too bad right now. New England.

Washington at NY Giants: The Giants are coming off a bye. But they've been horrible on defense this year. Against a Redskins offense that has finally hit its stride, that can't be good. Washington.

Cleveland at Carolina: Super Bowl contender against team that almost lost to the Raiders. Enough said. This is a massacre. Carolina.

Tampa Bay at New Orleans: Drew Brees against Bruce Gardowski or whatever his name is. Deuce McCallister and Reggie Bush against a banged-up Cadillac Williams. A surprising Saints defense against a disappointing TB Defense. This one will be close, cuz Jon Gruden will have shis team ready to play, but the Saints have their sights set on the Playoffs. New Orleans.

Kansas City at Arizona: Matt Leinart starts for the Cards. That means maybe one more interception, but 3 less fumbles than Kurt Warner. Cards win a close one. Arizona.

Oakland at San Francisco: Oakland is so bad Alex Smith will look like Steve Young, Antonio Bryant will look like Jerry Rice and Frank Gore will look like Ricky Watters. For one week, the 49ers will look like the team that won the Super Bowl in '94. San Francisco.

NY Jets at Jacksonville: The Jaguars defense got cut up pretty good by the Redskins last week. I expect them to return to form, which can't be good for Chad Pennington and his gang of green goblins. Still, the Jets are a resilient bunch. This one is close, but give it to the jags. Jacksonville.

Dallas at Philadelphia: Game of the week. T.O. returns to Philly. Teams fighting for the division lead. Great storylines all over. The Eagles are gonna throw everything and everyone at Drew Bledsoe and force him to make mistakes. And Mcnabb will methodically find holes in the Dallas defense and lead his team to over 30 points. Philadelphia.

Pittsburgh at San Diego: The Steelers will try to establish a ground game to help a struggling Roethlisberger. It won't work. San Diego.

Baltimore at Denver: How good is the Broncos defense? It's better than the Ravens'. In a game where only 1 touchdown will be scored, it belongs to the Broncos. Denver.

Season record: 28-17

Dwarf Out.