Week 9 didn’t disappoint, there were great games and great performances. This week wasn’t without surprise Cincinnati got there first win of the year and Tennessee remained perfect to this point. Some teams had some injuries that will effect the remainder of there season and its officially time to make a run at the playoffs. We are starting to see big divisional races form and the second half of the season should be as fun as the first.

AFC East – How the times have changed, a couple weeks ago it looked as if the Bills were in complete control of this division and now it is wide open. The Patriots and Bills lost in week 9 and the Jets and Dolphins won, making the division the closest in all of football. The Jets, Bills and Patriots are all tied at 5 – 3, while the Dolphins are 4 – 4.  This sets up a huge match up in week 10, Bills vs Patriots, that will feel like a must win for both teams. Both teams are coming off losses and will look to bounce back on Sunday. Miami has a home game vs Seattle and the Jets are home as well against the Rams, you have to expect both teams to win. Right now it looks like 10 -6 might get you into the playoffs in the AFC, therefore only two of these teams can make it. I think this division will stay close all year long and you should look for big match ups in the last week of the season.

The Brady Quinn era will get under way in week 10. The Browns announced that Anderson has been benched in favor of the 1st round pick and popular Quinn.

Ben Roethlisberger - It was only a matter of time, Ben Roethlisberger missed the second half on Mondays game with a shoulder injury. “Big Ben” gets sacked more then any quarterback in the league and has had a sore shoulder since early in the season. Steelers fans should be concerned without Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh becomes an ordinary team that might struggle for wins. They do have a suitable back up in Byron Leftwich, that is capable of playing a solid QB for this team. Fantasy players should keep an eye on the news to find out more about Ben and his status in week 10.

Daunte Culpepper signs a 2 year deal with the Detroit Lions. I had a feeling Culpepper wouldn’t stay retired for long and hopefully he can still play at a high level. No doubt he is an upgrade for the still winless Lions, and should add some stability to there offense. Culpepper is only 31 years old and if he returns to near the form he had prior to his injuries he can lead the Lions to a victory or two.

Donte Whitner , the Bill safety, suffered a separated shoulder in week 9′s game against the Jets. Whitner has become a reliable safety for the Bills and is one of there leaders on defense and in the locker room. His status is unclear for next weeks match up against the Patriots, but its likely he will be out. This is a big blow to the Bills, who are already struggling in the middle of this season.

Second Half Favorites - We are approx. half way through this season and it is time to take a look at who the favorites might be to compete for a Super Bowl at season end. We are only half way through the year and a lot of things are going to change, but there are some clear cut favorites emerging. In the NFC the New York Giants look like the heavy favorites to return to the Super Bowl this season. The Giants boast the 2nd raked offense to go along with there 4th ranked defense, and they have proved they can beat teams in a variety of ways. Its unclear who the true competition for Giants will be in the NFC, but the Carolina Panthers are looking good at 6 – 2 and I think the Philadelphia Eagles are going to step it up in the second half. The AFC has become a bit more foggy in the past couple weeks, but the perfect Tennessee Titans look like they will continue to role. The Titans are starting to remind me of the Super Bowl winning Ravens who won there title with all defense. The question will be whether or not the Titans are ready to perform on the big stage, and I personally look for the Pittsburgh Steelers to give them a run in the second half. Pittsburgh looks like the Steelers of old, but a lot will depend on the health of Ben Roethlisberger. The Patriots and Colts are still hanging around and with big second halves can get into the discussion, because they have been there before. My mid season prediction is a New York Giants vs Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl.

The Detroit Lions looked like they might get there first win of the season in week 9, but 14 unanswered second half points led the Bears to victory. The final score was 27 – 23 and had to be disappointing to the fans and management of the Lions.  The Lions have a tough schedule remaining and there best chance to win might be next week against the Jaguars. After that they might have to hope in week 17 that the Packers rest some players getting ready for the playoffs, and they can steal a win from a better team.

We are about half way through the year and things are starting to get  interesting. Here’s some storylines to watch for in the coming weeks, can the Bills rebound, can the Colts fight for a playoff spot, can the Lions win and can the Titans remain perfect. Enjoy the upcoming weeks of NFL football and the run for the Super Bowl.

Were heading into the grind, the half way point of the season. Were starting to see who the contenders are and who the pretenders are. Injuries are starting to pile up for teams and there depth will be tested. The trading deadline is over, the rosters are set and it is time to make a run for the playoffs. There are some major questions surrounding big market teams and questions will need to be answered in the next few weeks about the rest of the season. Lets get ready to find out which teams are ready to make there runs and prove they are Super Bowl contenders.

Dallas Cowboys - What is going on in Big D, injuries, trades and suspensions have dominated the headlines this week. First off “Pacman” Jones has been suspended indefinitely by the league, and is anyone surprised. Jones knew when he got reinstated prior to this season that any screw up know matter how small would get him suspended again. He got into a fight and know he may not play for the rest of the year. If this guy wants to play football ever again, he needs to figure this stuff out and stop it. Losing “Pacman” is a big loss, but nothing compared to the injury status of QB Tony Romo. Romo has a broken pinky and will be out as the starter for up to 4 weeks.  We have already heard rumblings from there all pro wide out Terrell Owens about not getting the ball enough and now 40 year old Brad Johnson will be the starter in Dallas. As if all this wasn’t weird enough the Cowboys went out and traded for highly talented, yet under achieving wide receiver Roy Williams. I makes no sense to me you have Owens complaining because he isn’t getting the ball, so you go out and get another wide receiver who will want the ball as well. Not to mention the fact that the Cowboys best chance to win might be by running the ball with Barber. I don’t know how this is all going to play out, we all remember what Owens can do when he isn’t happy with an organization. Maybe this will work out perfect, maybe Owens is happy to lose catches to Williams, maybe Johnston plays like he’s 28 again and maybe even “Pacman” gets back on the field. All I know is there is going to be a lot of question marks that need answering in Dallas over the next few weeks, it should be entertaining to watch.

AFC East - This division has been owned by the New England Patriots for a long time, but we might be seeing a changing of the guard. The Buffalo Bills have gotten off to a 4 -1 start and the Dolphins and Jets are playing better then a lot expected. All these teams have soft schedules and may have better records then they should. In week 7 a big game between the Chargers and Bills to see whether or not the Bills are for real and can take charge of this division. On Sunday it looks like Bills QB Trent Edwards will play, giving them a much better chance of competing with the Chargers. I think this might be the best division to watch coming down the stretch this year, no one is out of it and if they all play well they all might have a chance at the division crown.

Shaun Alexander signs a one year deal with the Washington Redskins
Willie Parker (Pit), Joseph Addai (Ind), Felix Jones (Dal) are all injured running backs
Carson Palmer (Cin), Matt Hasselbeck (Sea) are both out as QB’s this week

Most Valuable Player - It’s a little early, but lets take a look at who have been the best players and front runners for the MVP this year. Lets start a QB and take a look at Drew Brees. Brees leads the league in throwing yards, with 12 TD passes so far this year. Drew has a QB rating of 105 and is probably the front runner so far, if the award was given out today he would win. Other QB’s Jay Cutler and Kurt Warner are also off to great starts and if they keep it up will be in the MVP discussion at seasons end. If you want to look at running backs, you need to start with the Redskins Clinton Portis. Portis is averaging almost 5 yards a carry and has amassed 640 yards and 6 TD’s so far this year. If you had to pick an MVP right now it would be between Portis and Brees, both guys have led there teams thus far. If you want to look at wide outs Greg Jennings (GB), Roddy White (Atl) and Larry Fitzgerald (Arz) are leading the league at this point.

Playoff Predictions - There are still a lot of question marks, but lets make some early season playoff predictions. In the AFC I think Pittsburgh and Tennessee will win there divisions pretty easily. The other two divisions aren’t that easy, but I like the Bills to hang on in the East and the Chargers to start playing better and win the West. The two wild card spots will be grabbed up by the Colts and Patriots. The NFC division winners will be the Packers, Panthers, Cardinals and Giants. There is going to be some very disappointed teams here, but I think the wildcard teams will be the Cowboys and Saints. Potential Super Bowl match up Pittsburgh Steelers vs New Orleans Saints ??

Predictions are what they are, fun to examine, but ultimately only time will tell. I think we should see a lot of great battles over the next few weeks and after that I will take a look and re-evaluate my MVP and playoff predictions. The biggest story over th next couple of weeks will be the Cowboys, they have a lot of talent and if they some how can manage to use all of it they will be great.

The New England Patriots were born on November 22, 1959 becoming a member of the new American Football League. In a naming contest, a team of Boston sportswriters decided to keep the history of the area alive calling their franchise the “Patriots”. The Patriots played in the first ever regular season AFL game on September 9, 1960 losing to the Denver Broncos 13-10. The Patriots finished the first season with a 5-9 record. The Patriots would improve over the next three seasons posting back-to-back 9-4-1 seasons and in 1963 finished tied for first place with the Buffalo Bills. The Patriots first playoff game came against the bills which they won 26-8. In the AFM Championship game the Patriots were dismantled 51-10 by the San Diego Chargers. The following season placekicker and wide receiver Gino Cappelletti was named the AFL Most Valuable Player. Cappelletti became the AFL’s all-time leadier in points scored with 1,100. In 1966 another Most Valuable Player came form the Patriots in fullback Jim Nance who lead the league in rushing twice in 1966 and1967.The Patriots would play in many different locations including Fenway Park, where the Boston Red Sox baseball team plays, Boston University Field, and in Harvard. The Patriots finally made their home at 70,000 seat Foxboro Stadium in 1971.

As the 1960′s and 1970′s went forward little success came around for the Patriots with a new low in 1970 with a 2-12 record. The Patriots would once again reach the playoffs in 1976 but would lose to the Oakland Raiders 24-21. The Patriots would make their first Super Bowl appearance against the “Monsters of the Midway” Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. The game was rout and the Bears won 46-10. The 1990′s for the Patriots saw them rise again to meet the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXI. The Packers would end the Patriots hopes again to a championship defeating them 35-21.

The 2000′s provided the New England Patriots with what they have been wishing for, a Super Bowl victory, not just one but three Super Bowl wins. The Patriots first Super Bowl win came against the heavily favored St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI with a 20-17 win. The second Super Bowl victory two seasons later against the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII in another thrilling game with the Patriots winning 32-29. The next season provided the Patriots with the same result winning Super Bowl XXXIX against the Philadelphia Eagles 24-21. The Patriots would make a Super Bowl trip in Super Bowl XLII against the New York Giants but lost 17-14. The Patriots were on the verge of going undefeated with a 19-0 record and do something that hasn’t been done since the 1972 Miami Dolphins, finishing a season undefeated. That year several NFL record were broken when the Patriots set the all-time scoring record in a season with points scored with 589, Tom Brady throwing fifty touchdown passes, and Randy Moss catching twenty-three touchdown passes.

Since 2001, the New England Patriots have won the AFC East seven times, four Super Bowl appearances, back-to-back 14-2 regular seasons, and a 16-0 regular season. Its safe to say that the New England Patriots are the team of the decade.

The Buffalo Bills became a member of the American Football League in 1959. Not until 1963 did the Bills have the on field success they were looking for ending in a tie for the AFL Eastern Division title. The next two seasons saw the Bills win the AFL Championship defeating the San Diego Chargers in 1964 20-7 and 1965 23-0. The Bills played in a their third consecutive AFL Championship game but lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 31-7. After there very successful beginnings the Bills found themselves at the bottom of the league winning only thirteen games in the next five seasons.After a dismal few years the Bills became competitive once again with running back Orenthal James or better knows as O.J. Simpson.

Simpson was the number one overall pink in the 1969 draft by the Bills and made an immediate impact in the Pro’s. Simpson set the then record for rushing yards in a single season with 2,003 becoming the first player do to so and also winning the Most Valuable Player award. Simpson was selected to the 1970′s All Decade team and elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.

As the 1980′s wore on the Bills began to see the makings of a successful team again as in the 1960′s. Quarterback Jim Kelly was selected in the 1983 draft but didn’t start for the Bills until 1986 because he choose to play in the United States Football League. In addition to Kelly in 1988 running back Thurman Thomas was selected. The Bills were on the verge of making NFL history, but not in the ideal way. The Bills would play in four consecutive Super Bowls from 1991-1994 which has never been done before, sadly, losing all. The Bills first Super Bowl appearance was the closest game of all with the Bills losing 20-19, making it the closest Super Bowl ever. The flowwong year the Bills made the second appearance against the Washington Redskins losing 37-24. Thurman Thomas lead the league in rushing that year winning the Most Valuable Player. The Bills lost to the Dallas Cowboys the next two years in games that were not very competitive, 52-17 and 30-13. The Bills were victims of a much better Dallas Cowboy team lead by quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith, and wide receiver Michael Irvin. Appearing in four straight Super Bowl will probably never happen again, or if it does it will be a very long time. What the Buffalo Bills accomplished overall was still very impressive. While the ultimate prize is to win the Super Bowl, appearing four straight times is something to be proud of.

In 1993 the Bills were apart of more history as well beating the Houston Oilers in overtime in the AFC Wild Card game coming from thirty-two points down to win 41-38. What is more remarkable about that victory is that it was won with the Bills backup QB Frank Reich when starting QB Jim Kelly suffered ligament damage to his knee.

Over the last decade the Bills have had little to be happy about making the playoffs one once in 1999 losing to the Tennessee Titans in the Wild Card game. The Buffalo Bills play in the AFC East with the New England Patriots, New York Jets, and the Miami Dolphins. The Patriots have dominated the division the last ten years. The Buffalo Bills are long over do for more success like they had in the 1990′s.