NFL week 13 -- Heart and soul

December 04, 2007|By ROBERT KELLER / Pulse Correspondent

This week in the NFL was a memorial week as players for each team wore the number 21 on their helmets in remembrance of Redskins safety Sean Taylor. He was only 24 when he died last week after being shot in his Miami-area home.

The best game this week was the Buffalo at Washington game. The Redskins, having come off the tragic loss of their safety, came into this game playing with their hearts as Taylor would have done. The Redskins offense gained some momentum as they drove the ball down the field for a field goal on the opening drive. That momentum was enough to bring Redskins receiver Santana Moss out of his shell as he managed five receptions for 63 yards. On the first defensive play of the Redskins, they brought out only 10 defensive players to honor Taylor. The Redskins played with heart and soul, but it just wasn't enough as the Bills managed to pass by the Redskins with a last-minute field goal to win 17-16.

I went 2-2 with my picks this week; I'm 24-24 overall. In addition to the Redskins loss, the Arizona Cardinals somehow beat the Cleveland Browns 27-21. I did pick the Packers-Cowboys game correctly, as the Packers lost 37-27, and I predicted the Jacksonville-Indianapolis game right, as the Colts defeated the Jaguars 28-25.

This week, I predict the Pittsburgh Steelers will defeat the New England Patriots, Washington will win at home against the Chicago Bears, the New York Giants will beat the Eagles in Philadelphia, and Baltimore will lose at home to Indianapolis. It was a risky call to pick Pittsburgh over New England, but Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has to crack sometime. The Redskins will play with even more heart and pick off Chicago quarterback Rex Grossman multiple times. The Eagles have no team left, and unless the Ravens can do something about their crumbling team, they won't stand a chance against Indianapolis.

I feel that it is time for me to assess every starting quarterback in the NFL and rank the top three. No. 1 is not Tom Brady, just because he is not as consistent as most people claim him to be. The No. 1 quarterback is Jacksonville's David Garrard, because he is an active playmaker and he has only one interception this entire season. The second best quarterback would have to be the Patriots' Brady. He consistently gets the ball out of his hands safely, but he has a real problem once the pocket has begun to collapse. The No. 3 quarterback is Indianapolis' Peyton Manning. He has more interceptions than I can count, but he reads the defense like a book.

With only a few more games to go in the regular season, things will begin to heat up as the playoff contenders fight to the end and the noncontenders fight for pride.

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