All-Out Blitz: Week 12

This week’s All-Out Blitz takes you around the league with our quick-snap overview of all 32 teams heading into week twelve.

By George Kurtz, Senior Writer TheFantasySportsForum.com

Arizona Cardinals:  For all of those Cardinal fans who were pulling for John Skelton to take over the starting QB role with Kevin Kolb out with his toe injury, that was an ugly performance last week, not a good thing when you have to be pulled from the game and replaced by Richard Bartel, Kolb has been a big question so far this season at quarterback, but Skelton is certainly not the answer.

Atlanta Falcons:  WR Julio Jones hasn’t practiced so far this week and seems unlikely to play once again Sunday, what a shame he suffered this injury almost immediately after the big game he had against the Colts (yeah, I know, who hasn’t had a big game against Indianapolis), just when it seemed he was going to put it all together and be a force for the Falcons the injury occurred and now it’s fair to wonder if he will ever be at full strength this season.

Baltimore Ravens:  WR Torrey Smith may finally give the Ravens the deep threat they have lacked for what seems like forever, this offense may finally have all the pieces to be truly dangerous, except now it seems the jury is out on QB Joe Flacco,  he has a top notch RB in Ray Rice (even if the offensive coordinator doesn’t always seem to think so), up and coming TE in Ed Dickson, good possession WR in Anquan Boldin, and the speedy Smith, there are no more excuses for Flacco, time to step up.

Buffalo Bills:  RB Fred Jackson was placed on the IR Wednesday with a broken fibula, what a shame as he was having an All-Pro season, has anything gone right for this team over the past month, they have lost receiver after receiver, QB Ryan Fitzpatrick has played terribly since signing his big contract, they have gotten blown out in three straight games, and now the season ending injury to Jackson, no one may circle the wagons like the Buffalo Bills, just not sure what else there is to protect at this point…..CJ Spiller will take over the running duties with the loss of Jackson, guess we will finally see if he can come anywhere near justifying the 1st round pick the Bills spend on him a couple of years ago.

Carolina Panthers:  Not sure if there was a player I was more wrong about coming into the season than QB Cam Newton, he has played great, but you have to wonder if the losing is starting to get to him as he seems to be taking to many chances with the football which is leading to his interception rate going higher and higher.

Chicago Bears:  Talk about insult to injury, not only did QB Jay Cutler throw an interception, but then he break’s his thumb trying to make the tackle…..QB Caleb Hanie will take over the reins of the offense and try to lead the 7-3 Bears into the playoffs, it won’t be easy as the Bears have no chance to win the division and are right now sitting in the final playoff spot, one game ahead of the Falcons, Cowboys, and Giants…..Cutler may not be a fan favorite but he makes that offense go with his mobility and rocket for an arm, teams will now be doing all they can to stop RB Matt Forte, forcing Hanie to beat them.

Cincinnati Bengals:  The Bengals have not lost two straight games to their division rivals, Steelers and Ravens, but both games were close and the Bengals didn’t have their best WR, AJ Green, for most of the Steelers game, and all of the Ravens one, this team is going to be a force in this division sooner rather than later…..Speaking of Green, he has been limited in practice this week with that knee injury, Cincy is playing Cleveland this week, they should be able to beat the Brownies with or without Green, so they may elect to give him another week to heal.

Cleveland Browns:  RB Montario Hardesty looks like he will be back in action this week as his calf injury has sufficiently healed, and the Browns have already let it be known that he will get the starting job back if he does play, sorry Chris Ogbonnaya…..The Browns defense is good enough to keep them in games, but the offense is lacking big time in playmakers, I mean, they don’t have any, not one, hard to make a final judgment on QB Colt McCoy until you put some talent around him.

Dallas Cowboys:  The schedule is setup nicely for the Cowboys for the remainder of the season, they are technically in 1st place in the NFC East now and have their next two games against the Dolphins and Cardinals, sure Miami is playing better but Dallas should win the game and a win over the Cardinals would put them at 8-4, the Giants next two games are against New Orleans and Green Bay, ouch, they could be 6-6, those two games left between the Cowboys and Giants may not mean as much as everyone thinks they will.

Denver Broncos:  You have to love the honesty of GM John Elway, who when asked if the Broncos have found their quarterback of the future in Tim Tebow, answered “no”, most people seemed to jump to the conclusion that with QB Kyle Orton placed on waivers, that the Broncos were satisfied with Tebow, apparently not…..The placing of Orton on waivers was certainly a curious move on a couple of levels, first it shows that Denver made a mistake in not trading Orton to Miami earlier this season, and second, the division rival Chiefs claimed Orton, they are only one game back of the Broncos in the AFC West, and the two teams play each other the final weekend of the season, how ironic would that be if that game decided which team would win the division?

Detroit Lions:  Have to admit, when QB Matthew Stafford threw interceptions in his first two drives last week, I thought the broken finger was bothering him, well, five touchdown passes and 300+ yards later, apparently not…..What were the odds of Stafford throwing those five TD passes and not one of them going to WR Calvin Johnson?….After RB Kevin Smith made his presence felt with a huge game both running and receiving, all I can say about Maurice Morris, nice knowing you.

Green Bay Packers:  This game on Thanksgiving may represent the biggest chance at foiling the Packers undefeated season, they are playing a team with an explosive offense, on their turf, in front of a raucous crowd, and a national audience, going to be a fun one…..WR Greg Jennings suffered a knee injury last Sunday and didn’t play most of the second half, but is expected to play Thursday, RB James Starks will be a game time decision with knee and ankle injuries, but at this point it’s all about QB Aaron Rodgers and the passing game.

Houston Texans:  The Texans couldn’t ask for a better opponent for QB Matt Leinart’s first game that the Jaguars, not only have they had 14 days to prepare for them, but the Jags don’t have much of an offense outside of RB Maurice Jones-Drew which will allow them to bring Leinart along slowly and rely on their running game which may be the best in the game…..WR Andre Johnson should return from his hamstring injury this week which will give Leinart a legitimate option in the passing game.

Indianapolis Colts:  What to talk about with the Colts, hmmmm, another week, another loss, in their march to a winless season…..TE Dallas Clark will miss yet another game with his leg injury…..QB Curtis Painter will start for the Colts, but could have a short leash…..RB Joseph Addai is back at practice and could start this week in what would normally be a juicy matchup against a porous run defense, problem is Donald Brown and Dalone Carter might also be in the mix for the starting job.

Jacksonville Jaguars:  Poor Jack Del Rio, he is pretty much a dead man walking, and will most certainly be fired as soon as the season ends…..Ex Jags QB David Garrard is still recuperating from his back surgery and is still about a month away from being able to play, so he still isn’t an option for teams looking for help.

Kansas  City Chiefs:  The Chiefs put a crimp in the Bears’ plan with their waiver claim of QB Kyle Orton, Orton is unlikely to start this week but should be under center for their Week 12 matchup against Pittsburgh, a warm up for the next game against, the Bears, irony indeed…..Tyler Palko proved Monday night that he really doesn’t have what it takes to be a starting NFL QB, just doesn’t have the arm strength, matter of fact if the Chiefs hadn’t claimed Orton, Ricky Stanzi may have started over Palko before the end of the season.

Miami Dolphins:  It’s a shame it took the Dolphins half a season, but they have figured out what makes them tick over the past three weeks, QB Matt Moore seems to have the complete control of the offense, RB Reggie Bush has been a bigger part of the offense than one might have imagined, even getting the goal line carries ahead of Daniel Thomas, question is, is this turnaround enough to save head coach Tony Sparano’s job.

Minnesota Vikings:   The loss of RB Adrian Peterson to a high ankle sprain makes an already sputtering offense unwatchable…..Teams won’t be worried about the big play potential of RB Toby Gerhart and although QB Christian Ponder seems to have a future as an NFL signal caller, that future is not now.

New England Patriots:  The Patriots probably aren’t the best team in the AFC, but their schedule over the rest of the season leaves them as the clear favorite for the number one seed and home field advantage throughout the playoffs…..WR Wes Welker has been slowed down of late as opposing defenses have been doing their best to take him out of the game, problem is no one seems to have a solution as to how to stop TE Rob Gronkowski.

New Orleans Saints:  The Saints running game should get interesting this week, we know Darren Sproles is going to play and be the biggest threat as far as a receiver, the question is who will become the main ball carrier, including the man at the goal line, will Mark Ingram now be the number one guy now that he is completely healthy or will Pierre Thomas continue to be fed the rock, any way you look at it, Chris Ivory would seem to be the odd man out.

New York Giants:  Can’t understand how the Giants could’ve laid an egg Sunday night versus Philly, those two teams hate each other and the Giants needed the win badly, plus they had a chance to put the final nail in the Eagles coffin…..A big problem for the G-men was their inability to provide protection for QB Eli Manning and the loss of RB Ahmad Bradshaw due to a foot injury, Bradshaw may or may not return Monday, but that won’t matter if the offensive line doesn’t step up its play, one this is for sure, Brandon Jacobs is not the answer.

New York Jets:  Coach Rex Ryan is trying anything he can think of to motivate QB Mark Sanchez, including having backup Mark Brunnell take snaps with the first unit, for the Jets, this is pretty much a playoff game, and so will every other game be for the remainder of the season…..The Jets running game has also had its problems as Shonn Greene missed most of the Denver game with a rib injury, he seems like he will be good to go Sunday, but LaDainian Tomlinson suffered a setback with his knee injury and seems likely to miss the game.

Oakland Raiders:  RB Darren McFadden will once again miss this week’s game, it seems this sprained foot which was originally defined as being a day to day injury, is not a month to month injury, all signs do point however to McFadden returning in Week 12, not that the Raiders really need him however as Michael Bush has done a great job in his absence…..WR Darrius Heyward-Bey who suffered a neck injury last week isn’t practicing this week and is likely out this week.

Philadelphia Eagles:  QB Michael Vick still hasn’t practiced since suffering broken ribs and may not play this week as well, Vick may have to wait until those ribs are healed as he is a running QB, which means he will get hit, standing in the pocket is not his forte as we all know, Vince Young did a solid job in his place, but it would seem the Eagles would be significantly outgunned if Vick can’t play…..WR Jeremy Maclin did return to practice Wednesday, whether or not he plays would seem to be a matter of pain tolerance.

Pittsburgh Steelers:  QB Ben Roethlisberger with his broken thumb, but may be in the shotgun more than normal, that being said, he’s still going to have a big game in this one…..WR Hines Ward was demoted once more, to number four on the depth chart as Jericho Cotchery was promoted over him, and he could even be dropped further once Emmanuel Sanders returns from injury, Ward is owed $4 million for next season and seems almost certain to be released in the off-season.

San Diego Chargers:  The Chargers are down four offensive lineman which will make life incredibly difficult on both the running and passing game, and certainly won’t make life any easier on QB Phillip Rivers…..RBs Ryan Matthews and Mike Tolbert are also going to suffer as the holes won’t be there to run through…..WR Malcolm Floyd seems is still not practicing due to his hip injury and now there are even rumors that he could be placed on IR.

San Francisco 49ers:  It seems each and every week the 49ers prove their doubters wrong, if Green Bay slips up as at all, it could be San Francisco who has home field throughout the playoffs…..RB Frank Gore seems to be banged up each and every week and one has to wonder if the 49ers are going to take it easy with him during the remainder of the season to make sure he’s at full strength come playoff time…..In the beginning of the season it seemed that SF was doing all they could to make sure QB Alex Smith wouldn’t lose the game, but now he has gained their trust and they are opening up the offense, which is making this team even more dangerous.

Seattle Seahawks:  WR Sidney Rice missed practice Wednesday, it seems that he is dealing with a knee issue and may not be able to play this week…..Coach Pete Carroll is taking heat for the way the Hawks have played this season, seems the fans may have been a bit spoiled with the Hawks unlikely playoff berth last season, not to mention actually winning a game, they may have expected a bit more this season than what they are getting.

St. Louis Rams:  Even with QB Sam Bradford back at the helm, the Rams keep finding ways to lose, they are not a very good team, but should be better than 2-8, coach Steve Spagnuolo may pay the price for this season with his job, but truth is, if the Rams did let him go, it wouldn’t take long for another team to scoop him up.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:  The Bucs are one of the more disappointing teams this season as they were expected to challenge the Saints and Falcons for supremacy in the NFC South, but QB Josh Freeman see has taken a step back, another loss and their season will be officially over…..TE Kellen Winslow had a huge game versus the Packers, perhaps that is a sign of things to come…..RB LeGarrette Blount had a run last week that was reminiscent of Marshawn Lynch’s in the playoffs last season, unfortunately that was about all he did during the game.

Tennessee Titans:  So much for RB Chris Johnson turning around his season, seems that game against the Panthers was because of the weak Carolina run defense and not a sign of things to come…..QB Matt Hasselback had to leave last week’s game with an elbow injury, the good news is there was no structural damage and he should be able to start this week, Jake Locker’s time is not here yet, especially with the Titans thinking they can catch the Texans and win the AFC South thanks to the loss of QB Matt Schaub.

Washington Redskins:  The Redskins played a spirited game against the Cowboys last week and probably should’ve won the game, but a pair of missed FGs, 49 yarder in regulation, and a 52 yarder in OT, ended that dream…..Good news for the Skins is that WR Santana Moss should return to the lineup this week…..So much for the Tashard Choice experiment, he was released this week after playing one game for Washington.

 

This post was written by George Kurtz