Finally Detroit goes into a game with a win under their belt, it should do wonders for the teams confidence but they enter week 4 with a very tough match up against the Bears.  For the Lions to win this game Calvin Johnson needs to have his best game of the season against a struggling Bears secondary.  The Bears are coming of another huge win over the Seahawks which saw Cutler have his second great game of the season. Expect Cutler to abuse the Lions 30th ranked pass defense and Matt Forte to get back on track also. In the end Jay Cutler and the Bears will be too much for the Lions to take 2 games in a row.

Cincinnati vs. Cleveland

After an exciting win versus the Steelers the Bengals get to face a Browns team that is one of the worst in the league. Eric Mangini seems to have lost the faith of his team after not being able to decide on a starting quarterback, both of them have been terrible when they have played this season. The Bengals will go into this game extremely confident, currently they sit at 2-1 but could very easily be 3-0 if not for a fluke 87 yard tipped pass for a touchdown by the Broncos. This one should be an easier victory than the other 2 for the Bengals as they cruise against the Browns.

Oakland vs. Houston

Many people said that the Texans could be a sleeper pick to win their division and possibly make some noise in the postseason. This is quickly proving to be no more than just a hunch thanks to the Texans porous defense, they have struggled to stop anyone this year.  This is key for the Raiders, if they want to have a chance in this game Darren McFadden and Michael Bush have to continue the trend of running backs rolling over the Texans defenders ala Thomas Jones, Chris Johnson, and Maurice Jones- Drew.  While Matt Schaub has been great the past 2 games for the Texans he has always struggled against the Raiders mostly due to Raiders corner back Nnamdi Asomugha shutting down Schaub’s favorite target in Andre Johnson.  The key for the Texans is Steve Slaton, he needs to get going against a Raiders defense that struggles against the run.  Even with Nnamdi shutting AJ down the Raiders lose this game due to the ineffectiveness of JaMarcus Russel.

Seattle vs. Indianapolis

The Colts look to stay unbeaten against the Seahawks who will be without quarterback Matt Hasselbeck again.  The Colts have offense hasn’t missed a beat this year without Marvin Harrison and the injured Anthony Gonzalez, in fact Peyton Manning is looking better than ever this year with at least 300 yards passing in every game.  Pierre Garcon has shown game changing speed and has made his share of big plays so far this season. Dallas Clark has been pretty much unstoppable and the Colts are finding ways to get him the ball, even running end arounds for their All Pro Tight End. It will be very interesting to see how the Colts defense responds to being without Dwight Freeney who will miss the game with an injury. Peyton Manning will continue his hot streak as the Colts move to 4-o this season.

Tennessee vs. Jacksonville

Both teams have to win this game if they want to stay in the hunt for the division that the Colts are already running away with.  This match up favors this Titans, as the Jaguars rely on the run and the Titans biggest strength is shutting down the run. The Jaguars will have to win this game with David Garrard’s arm, as Tennessee’s defense is weak against the pass. Mike Sims-Walker is quickly developing into Garrard’s favorite target with 12 catches for 187 yards in the past 2 games including multiple catches on the Jags game winning drive against the Texans.  The Titans cannot afford to fall to 0-4 on the season, they should come out playing extremely motivated enough so to win this game.

New York Giants vs. Kansas City

The Chiefs are coming off a lose in which the Eagles didn’t have Donovan McNabb or Brian Westbrook, their 2 best offensive weapons, and the Giants are coming off a victory agaisnt the Bucs in which they allowed just 35 yards through 3 quarters. This game has blowout written all over it. Look for Brandon Jacobs to have his best game of the year, he has struggled very badly this year.  The Chiefs are prone to giving up the big play, Mario Manningham could have a huge week.

Baltimore vs. New England

This could be the best game of the weekend as Baltimore looks to continue their dominance and the Patriots try to establish their offense. While the Patriots finally seemed to be effective running the football in week 3 do not expect that to continue against the Ravens defense that is the best in football in stopping the run. Yet the Ravens secondary has the toughest task considering how they have struggled this season, if Wes Welker plays they could have a long afternoon.  The Ravens have to get pressure on Tom Brady and not allow him to get comfortable in the pocket, just like the Jets did in week 2.  This game is the toughest to predict but the Patriots are smart enough to realize that they have to throw the ball beat the Ravens and they will do just that. While the Patriots have struggled this year they improve to 3-1 while the Ravens fall to 3-1.

Tampa Bay vs. Washington

This game is easily the most boring of the weekend. Both teams have been terrible on offense and the Bucs have decided to start second year quarterback Josh Johnson this does not bode well for them. If Clinton Portis doesn’t get it going this week it would be obvious that he has lost a step thanks to the large load that he has had to carry in previous seasons.  The Buccaneers are probably the worst team in football this year, there is no way the pick up their first win of the season this week, even against the struggling Redskins.

Buffalo vs. Miami

The Dolphins go into this game without their starting quarterback and still searching for their first win of the season. The key for the Dolphins to get win number is being able to run the ball which they have done extremely well so far this year and is something that the Bill have had a hard time stopping.  The Bill will be getting running back Marshawn Lynch back, this should give Trent Edwards another good offensive weapon. It will be interesting to see if the Bills try to change their game plan to get the ball to Terrell Owens.  This should be a close game with the Bills coming out on top thanks to a strong game by Trent Edwards.

New York Jets vs. New Orleans

The match up provides a battle of two unbeaten teams, one with a great offense, the other a great defense.  This should be a great battle between a top QB and a defensive mastermind and it will be interesting to see who wins this match up. Brees is coming off an average week by his standards, just 172 yards and no TD passes. The key for the Saints offense this week is to make sure that the rest of the offense, besides Marques Colston, can make plays. Colston is going to be shadowed by one of the best corner backs in the leauge, Darrelle Revis, who has shut down both Andre Johnson and Randy Moss this season.  The Jets defense will be too much for the Saints this week as they move to 4-0 on the young season.

Dallas vs. Denver

Denver goes into this game looking to remain unbeaten, their defense has played great this season but Dallas will be the first real test for this team.  So far they have faced the Bengals, Browns, and Raiders all below average offensives. The Cowboys come into this game with the number 1 ranked rushing offense but will be without the second head, Felix Jones, of their three headed monster. While the Broncos defense is greatly improved they will have a hard time with the Cowboys this week and their quest to say undefeated fall shorts, Cowboys win this game.

St. Louis vs. San Francisco

Even with out running back Frank Gore the 49ers should be able to handle the helpless Rams who will be without starting quarterback Marc Bulger. The Rams are one of the worst teams in the NFL yet again, besides Steven Jackson, the offense doesn’t have enough weapons and their defense has problems stopping everyone. Last weeks loss to the Vikings is the definition of heartbreaking for the 49ers, they should come out gunning to dominate this game. Shaun Hill seemed to be on the same page with Vernon Davis who has all the talent in the world, having Davis finally break out would give the 49er’s a legitimate receiving threat. This should be an easy win for San Francisco.

San Diego vs. Pittsburgh

The Steelers go into this game realizing that have to turn things around, they cannot afford to lose 3 games in a row this early in the season. Not having Troy Polamalu has really hurt this defense who has had a hard time closing games out. The Steelers will be without RB Willie Parker and back up Rashard Mendenhall has not done enough to warrant this much playing time, this injury comes at a bad time as Willie Parker had his best game of the year last time out. The Chargers have to have a big game from Philip Rivers as they will have a tough time running against the Steelers front 7. Great teams find ways to win football games when their back is against the wall, the Steelers will win this game.

Green Bay vs. Minnesota

This game will be all about Brett Favre’s first meeting against his former team and it will be covered like crazy. Minnesota is coming off of a huge win which was won by Favre last second heave to newly acquired wide out Greg Lewis. It was a great play and showed exactly why the Vikings wanted Favre as their QB. It will be interesting to see if the Packers come out wanting to put a hit on their old teammate.  The key to this game will be Adrian Peterson, he had a tough game last week but now he faces a defense that isn’t great against the run. This is going to be a great Monday Night Football game with Brett Favre getting the last laugh against his old team.

Last week’s record- 14-2

The Ravens are 2-0 on the season thanks in part to the play of second year quarterback Joe Flacco, so far he has thrown for 497 yards and 5 touchdowns and seems to be really coming into his own. The normally dominant Ravens defense has given up an average of 25 points per game, the run defense is still dominate but the secondary has been torched so far.  Too bad Cleveland doesn’t have the firepower on offense to take advantage of this.  Baltimore wins this game easily.

Washington vs. Detroit-

This is my upset pick of the week, Detroit goes into this game with 19 straight losses but I see them coming out of this game with a win.  The Redskins offense has been terrible this year only scoring 2 touchdowns in 2 games with 1 of them coming on a trick play. The defense is still talented but Steven Jackson still ran for over 100 yards on them last week so they can be run on. Expect Calvin Johnson to have a big game and the Lions to get their first win in over a year.

Jacksonville vs. Houston-

Last week versus the Titans quarterback Matt Schaub had a huge game for the Texans (357 yards and 4 touchdowns). Jacksonville’s secondary is beaten up and has been picked apart by Peyton Manning and Kurt Warner, Schaub is capable of doing the same. Steve Slaton finally gets a easier match up and reminds everyone how great he was as a rookie. Houston wins and improves to 2-1 while the Jaguars fall to 0-3.

Atlanta vs. New England-

This game has the making of game of the week. Atlanta is 2-0 and quarterback Matt Ryan has shown that he is well on his way to being a superstar and with the addition of Tony Gonzalez he might already be there. The Falcons running game isn’t quite as good as it was last year but could get on track this week against a Patriots defense that has allowed over 100 rushing yards a game. Tom Brady has yet to seem comfortable since coming back from knee injuries that caused him to miss all last season. He has only thrown 2 touchdowns on the season and has already attempted 100 passes.  Wes Welker should be ready to play this week, having both Welker and Moss against an average defense should be enough for Brady to get it going and give the Patriots win number 2 on the season.

Green Bay vs. St. Louis-

Last week the Packers gave up 141 yards to Cedric Benson, Steven Jackson is a much more talented running back and if the Rams want to have any chance to win this game they need to give the ball to their best offensive weapon, he could have a huge week.  The Packers were expected to be a high flying offense but so far they have struggled with pass protection having given up the most sacks in the NFL. The Rams on the other hand have had trouble rushing the passer and have only had 1 sack in 2 games, something has to give.  The Packers offense comes to life this week as they take care of the Rams.

New York Giants vs. Tampa Bay-

After a slow start to the season by Giants running back Brandon Jacobs we can expect to see a breakout game from their star back. His struggles are directly related to the Giants struggles in the red zone. It will be interesting to see how the loss of Justin Tuck and Kenny Phillips affects the Giants stingy defense, luckily they have a lot of depth on their defensive line. The Bucs defense, on the other hand, is no where close to what it used to be. They have given up an average of 33 points per game while allowing 450 yards per game. The Giants should run away with this game.

Tennessee vs. New York Jets-

Tennessee cannot afford to fall to 0-3 if they want to compete this season, yet the Jets can move to 3-0 and maintain early control of the AFC East.  One week after Chris Johnson put on a show against the Texans he gets to face a greatly improved Jets defensive with defensive mastermind, Rex Ryan, as coach. It is safe to assume that Ryan will have a game plan in place to contain Johnson and make the rest of the Titans beat him. Rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez will be key in this match up, if he can play well against an average pass defense the Jets should win this game.

Kansas City vs. Philadelphia-

This game will get tons of media attention as Michael Vick makes his regular season return to football as a situational quarterback, it will be interesting to see how he changes the Eagles game plan. The Eagles will once again be without Donovan McNabb and possible Brian Westbrook, Kevin Kolb will start in McNabb’s place. Also interesting to see is how the Eagles defense responds to be abused by Drew Brees. The Chiefs offense has struggled so far and Dwayne Bowe has missed time in practice due to injury. Larry Johnson is just a sliver of what he used to be, he is just averaging 2.8 yards per carry on the season.  Even with all the question marks the Eagles win this game.

San Francisco vs. Minnesota-

Last time these 2 teams met Adrian Peterson had the worst game of his career (14 carries for 3 yards). He has made it known that he has been thinking of this game since the closing seconds of that 3 yard performance. Basically, he is carrying a big chip on his shoulder and with how talented Peterson is he could make everyone forget about that game very easily. Frank Gore faces the biggest challenge but he is the key to this game. Gore blew up for 207 yards and 2 touchdowns last week and he must have another great game against the Williams Wall for the 49ers to have a chance to win this game. An angry Adrian Peterson will be too much for San Francisco, Minnesota wins.

New Orleans vs. Buffalo-

Buffalo ranks 31st in the NFL in pass defense while Drew Brees leads an offense that has scored at least 45 points in both games this season. The Bills, along with the rest of the NFL, could have a hard time stopping the Saints passing attack but the Saints defense could struggle to shut down a greatly improved Bill’s offense. Fred Jackson has been great this season and is making fans forget about Marshawn Lynch and should have another big game this week. The Saints put another 30+ points on the board and add another win to their record.

Chicago vs. Seattle-

Jay Cutler promised that he would play better against the Steelers than he did against the Packers and he did just that leading them to a win against the defending Super Bowl Champions. The Bears defense is still one of the best in the league and should give back up Seneca Wallace some problems. Matt Forte has been terrible this year but this week provides an intriguing match up, Seattle ranks 26th in rush defense. After winning a big game against Pittsburgh the Bears continue their win streak against the Seahawks.

Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati-

Pittsburgh has to be angry after losing a game last week that they should have won. While Carson Palmer has looked good at times he has also looked rusty, he could have a rough afternoon against the Steelers dominate defense. Cedric Benson has been key to the Bengal offense so far and being fed the ball early and often, but he too could have a tough time this week.  An angry Pittsburgh team should run away with this game.

Denver vs. Oakland-

Denver’s defense couldn’t stop anyone last year so during the off season they went out and made a splash, so far the changes seem to be working.  The defense is only giving up 6.5 points per game and is ranked 2nd in yards per game allowed, this trend should continue against an anemic Raiders offense. JaMarcus Russel could very well be the worst starting quarterback in the NFL and this allows teams to stack the box to stop the running game. Expect another struggle from the Raiders while the Broncos dominate this divisional game.

Miami vs. San Diego-

After suffering a heart breaking loss on Monday Night Football the Dolphins have to travel to San Diego to take on one of the NFL’s best offenses. Philip Rivers is proving that last year was no fluke while Vincent Jackson is bursting onto the scene as a true number 1 receiver. Darren Sproles has added a different dynamic to the offense with his ability to catch passes out of the backfield and could provide problems for the Dolphins but the biggest problem will be the big play ability of Rivers to Jackson. The Colts proved last week that the Dolphins defense has a tough time covering the big play.  The Chargers offense will be too much for the Dolphins this week.

Indianapolis vs. Arizona-

This is not a great match up of the Cardinals because of the Colts number 1 ranked pass defense. The Colts can definitely be ran on but teams struggle to throw against them. I see the Cardinals relying more on running backs Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells this week in an attempt use the Colts weakness as an advantage. Even with the number 1 pass defense the Colts will have a hard time slowing down the trio of Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston.  This game could easily been one of the best games of the week to watch with the Colts just barely coming out on top.

Carolina vs. Dallas-

After a heart breaking home opener Tony Romo must play better for Dallas to have a chance to win games. The Cowboys defense shut down a great Giants running game but allowed wide receivers Mario Manningham and Steve Smith to do whatever they wanted.  The Cowboys should not have to rely on Romo much this week as they face a Panthers defense that struggles to stop the run, this could be Felix Jones’ breaking out party with Marion Barber expected to miss this game. With 2 gunslingers taking snaps this game will ultimately come down to which quarterback makes fewer mistakes.  The Cowboys win this one for Jerry Jones in Jerry’s World.

Games of the week

Titans vs. Steelers-

The Thursday night season opener saw a defensive struggle featuring the Tennessee Titans and defending Super Bowl Champions Pittsburgh Steelers.  The Titans showed that losing Albert Haynesworth was not going to hurt their run defense by giving up just 36 rushing yards on 26 carries but their secondary suffered as Ben Roethlisberger gashed them for 363 yards.  As for the Steelers, they played a typical Steelers game. Their defense shut down the Titans and only allowed 10 points and Big Ben lead a game winning drive.  The win did come at a cost, safety Troy Polamalu left the game with a knee injury and is expected to miss 3-6 weeks.

Bills vs. Patriots-

The Buffalo Bills played their hearts out on Monday Night Football but made just one mistake and Tom Brady took advantage.  The Bills outplayed the Patriots for most of the game but momentum changed when Leodis McKelvin decided to run out a kickoff instead of taking a knee in the end zone, 31 yards later the ball was out and the Patriots recovered. Needless to say, even with a rusty Tom Brady, the game was over. While Brady looked rusty in the first half he delivered when it mattered most.

Players of the week

BEST QB:  Drew Brees’ came just 15 yards short of the single season passing yards record last year, this year it seems like he is gunning for the Touchdown record. In week 1 Brees torched the Lions defense for 6 Touchdown passes( to 5 different receivers) and 358 yards. Even though it was the Detroit Lions defense this performance was one to be remembered.

BEST RB:  Adrian Peterson showed exactly why he is the best running back in the NFL. He exploded for 180 yards including a beautiful 64 yard run,which ended in with his 3rd TD of the day, on which he looked like he was playing a high school team.

BEST WR:  There were a few great performance’s by WR’s in week 1 but Reggie Wayne was the best( 10 catches for 162 yards 1 TD). With Marvin Harrison gone Wayne took over the role of “number 1 receiver” and proves that he is up for the task. Wayne has had some great season’s before but this year could be very special.

BEST TE:  Ben Watson isn’t even the New England Patriots starting TE but he came up big when it mattered most. He caught a touchdown to pull the Patriots within 5 and caught another just over a minute later to put the Patriots up for good.

BEST DEFENSE:  This has to go to the Philadelphia Eagles defense, they dominated a Carolina Panthers team that went 12-4 last year.  Many people said the Eagles defense would suffer from the loss of Brian Dawkins, Jim Johnson, and Stewart Bradley but after one week they could not be more wrong.  After a 70 yard opening drive touchdown by the Panthers the Eagles allowed just 99 yards the rest of the game.  They finished the game with 5 sacks, 5 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, 1 defensive touchdown, and 1 punt return touchdown.  It was a great performance by the Eagles defense.

Texas Rangers fans are witnessing something amazing this season. This year was supposed to be a building year, just staying competitive until the number 1 farm system in baseball was ready to make a major impact on the big league club and push them over the top.  What was supposed to be happening in 2010 is happening a year early and the Rangers are making a push to be playoff bound this year thanks to the help of young stars.

During Spring Training the biggest headline coming out of Surprise, Arizona was the Rangers front office decision to move short stop Michael Young to third base opening up the position for slick fielding,20-year-old, Elvis Andrus.  Andrus was scouted as a Gold Glove caliber SS who would “wow” you with his glove but might disappoint you with the bat. Late into his rookie season only part of this is proving to be true.  The number of jaw-dropping defensive plays cannot be counted by the youngest position player in baseball, to say that he has “Gold Glove talent” is an understatement.  Yet, Andrus has not seemed over matched by Major League pitching. In 122 games this season he is batting .272 with a .340 on base percentage, pretty good for a guy who is a defensive stud. Even more impressive is his numbers since the All Star Break, .303 batting average with a .370 on base percentage, which seems to suggest that he is adjusting to big league pitching.  It is also worth mentioning that he has stolen 26 bases on the season.  The upside for this kid is through the roof, he has future star written all over him.

Andrus is not the only young position player who is making an impact on the Texas Rangers.  Out fielder Julio Borbon has shown exactly why he fits the mold of the perfect lead off hitter.  In his short stint in the big leagues Borbon has boasted a .320 batting average with a .386 on base percentage and any time he gets on base he is a threat to steal bases with his game changing speed. In just 23 games he has stolen 13 bases while only being caught once.  While the offensive numbers are impressive,Borbon was scouted for his great outfield defense. He has the speed to chase down any ball in the out field.  He has a great chance at winning the starting center fielder job in 2010 Spring Training.

No one had helped their stock more, by the end of the 2008 season, than pitching prospect Derek Holland.  He made his way through the minors with the help of a greatly improved fastball that was touching 98 and impressive command. He turned himself into a top five prospect in the Rangers farm and top 100 overall.  It took him just one start into the minor league season before he received the call up to the major league club where he would be used as a bullpen arm.  Eventually he would become a starter and there have been glimpses as to why he is such a highly regarded prospect including a magnificent 96 pitch complete game 3 hit shut out versus the Angels.  Holland’s arsenal consists of a high 90’s fastball which sets up a good slider, change up, and curve ball but he depends on the ability to command all of them consistently. He greatest asset during his run through the minors and glimpses of major league success is his ability to pound the strike zone with all of his pitches. Though Holland has struggled recently there is plenty of reasons to believe that this 23-year-old lefty will  become a top of the rotation starter the Rangers have needed for a long time.

Arguably the most exciting and most talented of the Rangers prospects is pitcher Neftali Feliz. Yes, it is Feliz, not Perez as much of the media has suggested.  Feliz has taken the Rangers and fans by storm by putting up ridiculous numbers in his short time at the Major League level.  He has shown great command of his 100 mile per hour fastball, which was considered the best pitch in the minor leagues, along with a plus “curveball” and a 90 mile per hour change up.  In 23.2 innings he has 29 strike outs, only 2 walks, 8 hits, and 2 earned runs which is good for a .76 ERA and ungodly .42 WHIP.  While it is a small sample size,Feliz possesses a once in a life time quality arm and says that he can dial his fastball up to 100 “whenever he wants”.  Most pitchers with 100 mph heat are often wild and exhibit a lot of effort while throwing hard,Feliz is the exact opposite.  He has pinpoint control and an effortless delivery that looks like he is playing catch.  The 21-year-old star has shown unbelievable poise and presence on the mound, he is calm no matter what the situation is. Feliz is not your typical hard thrower, he is a pitcher that knows exactly when and how to use his deadly repertoire of pitches. He is the future ace of the Rangers rotation and has the chance to be the best pitcher in baseball in just a couple of years.

Not all of the Rangers minor league talent has reached the big leagues yet, there are still plenty of young arms just waiting to break out.  The most talented player left in the farm system is switch hitting first baseman JustinSmoak, former first round pick out of the University of South Carolina.  Smoak is a great pure hitter with a very good eye and power from both sides of the plate.  Smoak gets on base at a great rate, .363 OBP, in his time at AAA Oklahoma and could help the Rangers in that regard.  Fans will be very happy to hear the MarkTeixeira comparison. Smoak will soon enough be a middle of the line up hitter the Texas Rangers desperately need.

Every time Elvis makes a Web Gem, Borbon steals a base, Holland throws a slider in the dirt for a swinging strike out, and Feliz blows someone away with a 101 mph fastball I realize how great these young kids are and that the future is bright for the Texas Rangers. The rest of the AL West better watch out because the Rangers are going to be around for a long time.