These are the picks for the 2002 season. The bold represents the team selected to win. Games in red represent the Upset of the Week. At the bottom, The weekly and overall records for the season appear at the bottom. These picks are based purely on winners and losers with no consideration from the spread. The spread is used only to determine upsets for the Upset of the Week.
The door may close behind a player when they exit the game, but it never locks. It's up the player to decide to either keep walking away or return. Sometimes, though, it would be nice if these players could be locked out for good.
Last week quarterback Jeff George and wide receiver Chris Carter returned to the league. So far this year, neither of these guys were missed.
After being given the boot by then Washington head coach Marty Schottenheimer, I said back in 2001 that George would be back in the league somewhere. He has a arm that is one of the strongest in the league when he left. But it took George this long to get back into the league because coaches tend to sour on his attitude. Bore George signed with Seattle, coached by the no-nonsense Mike Holmgren. George is a back-up for now.
Give credit to George for waiting for the best opportunity to come around. The Seahawks might have lost starter Trent Dilfer for the year and were in need of depth at the position. Matt Hasselbeck assumes the starter role, but hasn't been the player Holmgren expected since he traded with Green Bay to acquire Hasselbeck. If Holmgren loses his patience with Hasselbeck, George will see action.
The question is, how long will George remain on the field? Or with the Seahawks? Schottenheimer tired of George's reluctance to take what was available short and under-utilizing the tight end. Holmgren runs a West Coast offense. George prefers the deep ball. If he continues his trend of tuning out the coach and doing what he wants, George will either be back on the bench, or on the couch, waiting for the next team to call, if there is a next team.
Chris Carter didn't want to retire when he initially put away his cleats. He wanted a contract worth playing for. Since the money wasn't there at the time, he ran an out route to television broadcast. But like the many catches made along the sidelines by Carter, he might had fell out of bounds, but his feet remained in. The retirement was temporary, as he signed with Miami during the Dolphins' bye week.
Best of all, Chris Carter was starting, thanks to season-ending surgery wide out Oronde Gadsden underwent. In his first game back, future Hall of Famer wasn't his old self. He was stripped of a reception and a pass intended for him was picked off after Carter took a hard hit as the ball arrived and the pigskin popped up. On the way down, a Green Bay Packer caught the ball for the pick.
Injuries haven't been kind to the Dolphins. Besides being without a starting wide out, the starting quarterback, Jay Fiedler, won't be back for a few more weeks. In two weeks, Fiedler's replacement, Ray Lucas, has accounted for 10 turnovers. Carter might not see good passes until Fiedler returns. Carter came back for this?
There's seven weeks left in the season. Seattle will be done when the season ends. Miami hopes Carter will play a major role in stabilizing the offense and keeping the team in the playoff hunt. Will either Carter or George return for 2003? Who knows, but the 2002 season was going along fine without them.
Atlanta at Pittsburgh - T
Last week might be historic for Atlanta's quarterback Michael Vick. He was held to negative rushing yards. Maybe nobody ever thought that would happen. Sort of like Kordell Stewart wrestling away the starting quarterback job from Tom Maddox. No one would believe it if they heard it. Believe this -- the Falcons will come away from Heinz Field with a win.
Cincinnati at Baltimore - W
Shhhh.....listen....it's coming from the Bengals...hear it? That's right. Nothing. No predictions, no guarantee. They don't want B-more's fury fueled by anger. Fair to say that the Ravens will flatten Cincinnati.
Detroit at Green Bay - W
As Lambeau Field goes through renovations to upgrade the stadium to modern times, players have to sacrifice until the job is completed. Well, not all players. The opposing team uses a trailer outside of the stadium as their locker room. It isn't bad, except for the fact that the trailer is also storage space for stadium concessions. The Packers brush aside the Lions.
Houston at Tennessee - L
Never before had an expansion team been favored for a game like the Texans were last week against Cincinnati. Las Vegas favored Houston by three, which was how many points they scored in that contest. Now that the stars re-aligned correctly, the expansion team is the underdog, a similar situation in their two wins. Make it a three-pack for the Texans in the Upset of the Week.
Indianapolis at Philadelphia - L
Remember when Indy quarterback Peyton Manning was critical of teammate Edgerrin James for not participating in the voluntary team workouts? The workhorse running back has trouble staying healthy and without James, the Colts are hurting. James will be out again and the Eagles will suffocate the Indianapolis offense.
New Orleans at Carolina - W
Funny to think, but the added weight carried by N.O. running back Deuce McAllister was a bad thing in their last game. He ran over a tackler on his way to the endzone to tie the game. Unfortunately it left enough time for Atlanta to drive for a game-winning field goal. Any extra time will be run out by the Saints as they take knees after doing a number on the Panthers.
N.Y. Giants at Minnesota - W
For goodness sakes, Minnesota's defense gave up 38 points to the Tampa Bay offense. With teams bringing back players who were out of the league, maybe now would be a good time for the Vikings to place a call to former defensive end Demetrius Underwood to see if he'd be interested in returning. Nothing will save the Vikes from the Giants.
San Diego at St. Louis - W
There's an interesting debate brewing in the 'Lou. Quarterback...um...it's, um...that number 13 guy...Kurt Warner! Yeah, Kurt Warner! Well he started throwing again after breaking a bone in his throwing hand. The question is, with things going so well under Marc Bulger, should Warner be given his job back when he's healthy? The truth is, it doesn't matter who the QB is. Either one can turn and hand the ball off to running back Marshall Faulk 25-30 times a game. Hand this game to the Rams.
Seattle at Arizona - L
Running back Maurice Morris made such an impression on Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren that Holmgren even thought of benching current starter Shawn Alexander. If Holmgren goes through with the change, it's only to save Alexander for prime time night games. In three nationally televised games, Alexander averaged 209 total yards and 3 touchdowns under the stars. This game takes place under the sun, so the Cardinals will knock Seattle's lights out.
Washington at Jacksonville - W
Redskins quarterback Shane Matthews won the season opener and his first game back as a starter. Head coach Steve Spurrier notices the trend and benches Matthews every Monday for the rest of the season, hoping repeatedly naming Matthews the starter will squeeze wins from Matthews. The strategy won't work beginning with the Jaguars who paste Washington.
Kansas City at San Francisco - W
It's gonna take a while for San Fran's offense to get going. The players and coaches planned on spending hours reviewing tapes of the Chiefs' defense. But there isn't a tape out there with K.C. playing defense. It's no matter, as the 49ers dismantle Kansas City.
New England at Chicago - W
The Patriots came out of their bye month with a vengeance, led by veteran quarterback Tom Brady. Only in his third year, He's wise beyond his experience. After calling out his players to the media last week, he came back a couple of days later with the classic "taken out of context" comeback. Those are veteran words I tell ya! The Patriots find a way to win.
Miami at N.Y. Jets - W
Things are getting desperate for the Dolphins. They reportedly contacted retired quarterback Troy Aikman through a third party to see if he would be interested in returning to the league. A suggestion: Garo Yepremian probably wants to redeem himself for his only pass attempt being intercepted. The Jets appear settled at quarterback and wax the Dolphins.
Oakland at Denver - Monday Night - L
What a way to celebrate the 500th episode of Monday Night Football with one of the most fierce rivalries in football. After starting out 4-0, the Raiders have been exposed as a soft defensive team, losing four straight. And when things go bad, players sour. On the flip side, winning solves any problem. Things stay quiet as the Broncos nail the Raiders.
Home | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Wild Card | Divisionals | Conference Championship | Super Bowl