Welcome back all to this second edition of Abe’s Big Game Slate. Since last week was the first volume, we didn’t have an opportunity to review the games that occurred the week before. That’s why this week and going forward, we will be starting a new segment called…
Bills @ Ravens Recap
Holy crap. HOLY CRAP.
So uhhh yeah. Derrick Henry. He’s a problem. To anybody who thought he might have lost a step, this game must have been a tough pill to swallow. For those who didn’t get to catch the game on Sunday night, this tweet pretty much sums it all up.
I’ll finish with this. While I did not make a score prediction on this one (though my colleague did), I expected it to be a hell of a lot closer than this.. Baltimore is looking scarier than ever with the added element of Derrick Henry, and I’m excited to see where they can go this season.
Georgia @ Alabama Recap
HOLY CRAAAAAAP. I know that’s how I started my NFL recap, but HOLY CRAP that was one of the craziest games I’ve EVER seen. Now, in the beginning, my pick looked absolutely horrible. With Alabama getting out to a 28-0 start, I thought the thing was as good as over. I sat aside my laptop and watched my beloved Buckeyes stomp on the Spartans until I looked down and damn near choked on my drink. The manner in which Georgia flipped the game was absolutely INSANE.
The key takeaway however, RYAN WILLIAMS IS THAT GUY. I’m just going to end this by going ahead and showing you the game saving play from the 17 YEAR OLD TRUE FRESHMAN RECEIVER.
NFL Game of the Week: Cowboys @ Steelers
This week’s slate isn’t exactly full of crazy must watch games, but I do think that this Sunday’s prime time matchup of the Steelers and Cowboys SHOULD be a good game.
The situationship here with the Steelers QB room is actually quite interesting. On the one hand, you have a proven Super Bowl caliber QB in Russell Wilson who while old and slightly regressed, might still have enough left in the tank to take them where they want to go. On the other hand however, they’ve been rolling with Justin Fields, and benching him now might squander what little confidence that he has left to build on; not to mention that Russ is on a minimum deal.
It looks like Fields is going to end up getting the start this week, and it will be interesting to see where the Steelers go from here, which takes us to this weeks…
The gameplay for Pittsburgh has to be as follows. Establish the run game through both Najee Harris and the other running backs in that room, but also Justin Fields. Build up his confidence and swagger, which will then open up the passing lanes in the play action and other areas. Get Fields some quick and easy throws that can build up that early completion percentage.
For Dallas, make Trevon Diggs and the rest of the Dallas secondary make life hell for Fields. Keep him contained, make him force throws, and offensively, make sure you give Dak enough time in the pocket against this monster Steelers pass rush.
CFB Game of the Week: #11 USC @ Minnesota
While this isn’t a game that is going to get the most coverage, after seeing how well Minnesota played against Michigan, I think we’re in for a treat with this one.
A trap game at night for USC against an angry and flat out robbed Gophers team is going to be one where I could easily see the Trojans slip up and lose.
With that, we go to this weeks
For USC, they’ll have to make sure that they can keep Miller Moss comfortable. Get him started with some quick and easy throws that will open up the field and the run game.
Minnesota is going to have to play a great game, but we know they are more than capable after the trouble they gave Michigan (trouble meaning they simply had the game won and got screwed). They’ll need another great game from Max Brosmer, keeping him from making any dumb mistakes, and will need their secondary, lead by senior Ethan Robinson to step up and make life miserable for Miller Moss.
