AFC South Break Down Week 14
(Jeanne Alexis writes for Black & Teal, which is FSB’s Jacksonville Jaguars blog. Representing the rest of the AFC South are Naptown’s Finest, Titan Sized and Toro Times.)
Though the AFC South as a division does not have the same kind of dominance it had last year, it does still have two of the most powerful teams in the AFC. The Colts are having a reassurance as the injury bug is finally shaken off and the Titans continue to crush their opponents. In fact, even the Texans got to experience some pride as they upset the Green Bay Packers. Only Jacksonville experience defeat at the hands of the Chicago Bears, assuring mathematical elimination from the playoffs. As if any expected a miracle season from them at this point.
Looking back: It seems like the Jacksonville Jaguars are the only team in the NFL that doesn’t dare the Texans to beat themselves. Houston had four turn overs in their game against Green Bay. However, Matt Schaub was back in the game so only one turn over was the fault of the quarterback. The Texans continued their strange sort of offensive oppression with 549 yards of total offense. Kirs Brown kicked the game winning field goal, giving the Texans a fight chance for their first winning season in franchise history.
Looking forward: The Texans are facing the Titans at home on Sunday. This has the potential for a big upset. The Titans are comfortable because they already have their division sealed away. The Texans are fighting for a winning season. Matt Schaub is back on the field and the Texans have only improved since the last time the two teams have met each other.
Looking back: Useless stat of the week? Peyton Manning has never lost against the Bengals. The Colts are known for their powerful offense but a lot of credit should be given to the defense in this game. I know it was the Bengals but they were held to only 3 points. One field goal. Not only that but the Colts forced three turn overs and Peyton was good for at least one touchdown a quarter.
Looking forward: All the sports analysis are saying that the Colts are flying under the radar. You know what that means? They are finally taking notice of the Colts again. A lot of people wrote their season off as a lost cause because of early defeats but now even Warren Sapp is predicting them to go to the Super Bowl. The Colts are taking on the Lions next week. Try as they might, the Lions lost very convincingly to the Jaguars so I highly doubt that the Colts will struggle. Manning may even be chilling on the bench by the end of the fourth quarter.
Looking back: It is official. The Jaguars now have a losing season. Do you remember the last time the Jaguars won a game? It was a month ago. Against the Lions. The Jaguars looked like they might have been able to hold on but the game quickly got out of control after the first half. The 23 points the Bears scored doesn’t seem fair to the defense — they looked like the only people out there willing to at least try.
Looking forward: The Jaguars are 1-5 at home. Even as an optimist, it is hard for me to believe that the Jaguars are going to beat the Green Bay Packers this year. The Pack is coming off a disheartening loss as they try to find their footing against the fallen Jaguars. The Jaguars have a four game losing streak, they have a losing record for the season and they haven’t even been able to work up a fight since the Lions game. All fans have to look forward to is the off season and the blood letting it is promising.
Looking back: During the first quarter, it looked like the Browns might have been able to pull out the win. They entered the second quarter 6-0 with the promise of a defensive battle. Then the Titans scored 21 unanswered points in the next two quarters and made Browns fans everywhere disappointed that they had worked up some hope. Looking at the stats, it is almost a surprise that the Browns didn’t win. The Titans had 3 turnovers and 13 flags for 131 yards. Maybe against a better time this would have been a loss but the Browns couldn’t find a way to take advantage.
Looking forward: As talked about above, the Titans take on the Texans in Houston. As I write this, I really suspect an upset by the Texans. The only thing the Titans are fighting for is home field advantage in the playoffs. It just seems like one of those “wanting it more” situations. However, I have underestimated the Titans all year this year and overestimated the Texans so I am probably just talking out of of my butt at this point. I can promise you one thing: it will be interesting.