The Redskins were able to defeat an injury depleted Giants squad Sunday for the first time since the Joe Gibbs era. The Giants take on the Rams this week in what is being dubbed the "IR Bowl" for Monday Night Football. They should see defensive end Justin Tuck back on the field for the matchup but still will likely not see help for a secondary that got ripped apart by Rex Grossman this past Sunday. The Rams will most likely be without Steven Jackson and Danny Amendola (definitely out), and quarterback Sam Bradford is nursing a hand injury. Jason Pierre-Paul should have another great opportunity to expand on his sack total (two vs. the Redskins) against an offensive line that gave up five sacks against the Eagles. This game should present a good opportunity for the Giants to get their first victory of the year in front of the home crowd; the Rams defense gave up over 400 yards of total offense in Week 1.
Eagles
The "Dream Team" pulled out a victory on the road when they visited the Rams in Week 1. After being a one score game at halftime the Eagles were able to pull away with the Rams losing the help of running back Stephen Jackson (2 carries, 56 yards) and wide receiver Danny Amendola. The Eagles two most impressive offensive players had to be DeSean Jackson, who went over 100 yards receiving and scored a touchdown, and running back LeSean McCoy who ran for 122 yards and a touchdown. Michael Vick looked solid in his debut escaping pressure (97 rushing yards) and throwing for two touchdowns. Although, Vick was only able to complete 44 percent of his passes, was hit often, lost a fumble, and had less than 200 yards through the air. Also, Nnamdi Asomugha had a rough first outing for the Eagles, he registered one tackle, was burnt by Brandon Gibson a couple of times, and was called for pass interference. Winning on the road isn’t easy in the NFL, so I’m sure the Eagles are more than happy to come away with this decisive win.
This week the Eagles continue their road trip and head to Atlanta. This will be Michael Vick’s first appearance in Atlanta since 2006 when he last played for the Falcons. The Falcons are coming off an embarrassing 30-12 loss in Chicago, so they should be fired up to play in front of the home team crowd this Sunday. Michael Turner was able to go for 100 yards rushing against a stout Bears defense, so the Eagles could have trouble especially after giving up 169 rushing yards to the Rams, 113 of which was to backup RBs. Also the Eagles will have to worry about a better pass rush molesting Vick this week with John Abraham and Ray Edwards coming at him. The Eagles offensive line did not look very good against the rush in Week 1. I fully expect this to be a heck of a game and a great watch for Sunday Night Football.
The Cowboys looked good for the first three quarters of their game against the Jets on Sunday night, but Tony Romo became that pressure player we all know and love to squander away a victory in the fourth quarter. Despite a good passing game for Romo, he threw a pick to Darrelle Revis late in the fourth to set up a game winning Nick Folk field goal for the Jets. Romo passed for 342 yards and two touchdowns but also fumbled twice in the game. The Cowboys were also never able to get a rushing game going against the Jets with Jones/Choice/Murray only combining for 48 yards. The offensive line gave up four sacks this week and still looks to be the weakest spot on the Cowboys offense. Interestingly enough the Cowboys were the only defense in the NFL not to commit a penalty this week.
This week the Cowboys will head to San Francisco to take on a 1-0 49ers team. The 49ers won their JV game last week against the Seahawks, despite only putting up 209 yards of offense last week (2nd worst in the NFL). The Cowboys should get their first win of the year, but it’s always tough to get a road win in the NFL.