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On Any Given Sunday

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The Jets had the inside track on the Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes, yet they not only showed up on Sunday but gave the Los Angeles Rams a whipping they won't soon forget.  This proves again the old adage that on any given Sunday any NFL team can win.  Not to be outdone, the lowly Bengals took down Pittsburgh on Monday Night, handing the once vaunted Steelers their third straight loss.  Neither game was particularly close.  Both the Jets and Bengals led by as many as 17 points, holding off late charges by the Rams and Steelers.  The Rams suffered more than the Steelers, as it knocked them out of first place in the NFC West.  The Steelers are struggling but still have a one-game lead over the Browns.

Somehow the NFL has made it through 15 of its 17 weeks without any serious scheduling problems due to COVID-19.  The players have shown themselves remarkably disciplined given they are not being forced to play in a "bubble" as was the case with the NBA when it resumed its 2019-2020 season in late July.  There have been coronavirus cases here and there, causing some teams to be undermanned on game day, but not that many games were forced to be rescheduled and no games were lost.  Such was not the case at the collegiate level, where many games ended up being cancelled.

I suppose when there is so much money riding on the line, NFL players will be more careful about their personal contacts.  The only time they were forced to play within a bubble was during pre-season practice.  Those who did defy the restrictions immediately found themselves cut by their teams.  

Unfortunately, the NCAAF wasn't so strict.  Not only did Florida coach Dan Mullen flaunt restrictions by urging Gator fans to "pack the swamp," at their next home game, but more than 20 players and coaches on his team came down with COVID-19 after a road trip to Texas A&M.  The Aggies had only one reported case.  Mullen later apologized but the damage was done.  The Gators were forced to postpone that home game until the end of the year, losing to LSU at the Swamp. 

I'm really impressed the NFL pulled this season off (knock on wood).  It didn't seem possible given 32 teams spread across the country with opposing players, coaches and staff coming in contact with each other on a weekly basis.  The only serious problem appears to be the high number of injuries suffered across the league because the training schedule had been shortened prior to the season.  San Francisco appears to have suffered the worst, losing a high number of starters and limping along to a 5-9 record after playing in the Super Bowl last year.  Not so Kansas City, which is coasting to another Super Bowl appearance at a staggering 13-1, easily the best team in the league.

Following the Jets surprising victory, Jacksonville is now regarded as the worst team in the NFL.  The Jaguars won their opener over Indianapolis before losing the next 13 games.  By virtue of a tiebreaker they would get the first pick in next year's draft if both they and the Jets end up 1-15.  


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