Inside the Film Room: Breaking Down Key Plays from NFL Week 5

Dion Lewis has given the Pats an unexpected boost this year, but how did he get free Sunday against Dallas?

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

This will serve as the first edition of what I hope will be a weekly series breaking down some of the biggest plays across pro football, using the coach's tape, or as it is now more popularly known, the "All-22" film.

Each week we'll take a look at not only game-changing plays, but also plays that utilized interesting schemes or simply showcased dominating talent. I won't bore you any more, here are the breakdowns from Week 5.

Joe & Daphne's Preview: The NFC North

Pictured: Daphne being held by not Joe.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe) and Daphne Parello (@DaphnePup)

We finish up our NFC previews with the high-flying North.

I know, imagining a division where passes are flying all over the yard at Lambeau Field and Solider Field is a little weird, but with three of the league's Top-13 passers returning from last season, along with a promising sophomore, and half the division (Minnesota and Detroit) playing indoors, this isn't the NFC Norse of old.

Even with all those yards through the air returning, there are still questions for each team in the North. Can Green Bay find enough defense to get to Super Sunday? Can the Bears turn Jay Cutler's gaudy yardage totals into wins? Can Detroit take the next step and truly contend in the NFC, and how far can Teddy Bridgewater carry Minnesota in his second season, especially with the help of reinstated All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson?

Daphne and I investigate.

Lobel's Question of the Week: To Kick or Not to Kick?

Every week, legendary sportscaster Bob Lobel wants to hear your opinion on something that caught his eye over the weekend. This week's question deals with the Patriots and the fine line between "playing on" and "running up the score" in a blowout.

With just over two-minutes left in the game, New England had already benched most of its starters, including star quarterback Tom Brady, and led 48-23.

Facing a 4th and 16, the Patriots chose to kick a 39-yard field goal, pushing their lead to a full four scores. While the kick seemed to be in the normal flow of the game, many Patriot-bashers have called the move "bush league" and "unnecessary."

Bob wants to know, what say you? Participate in our poll below, and Tweet him your thoughts at @boblobel, or let us know what you think on Twitter at @SuiteSports.

NFL Week 6 Primer (With Picks): Hey, We're Doing a Little Better Now

Peyton Manning joined Brett Favre in the super-exclusive 500 TD passes club, and just generally had his way with Arizona last week. Not to toot our own horn, but we totally saw it coming.

By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Jeremy's taking a break from leading these pick pieces, so I (Joe) will be guiding you through our games of the week and making my picks first.

Last week was a big week for me, as I took my first steps back toward tying Jeremy, and finishing the year with at least a .500 record, but stupid Jeremy still finished with a winning record on the week (you can see our results for last week, and the whole year, at the bottom of this post). Actually, we both had pretty good weeks, despite a bunch of "WTF?" games.

Cleveland came back from 8,000 points down to beat Tennessee, the Broncos put a beating on Arizona's normally solid defense, Jacksonville hung with Pittsburgh for 55 minutes, Carolina woke up from a two-week coma and Tampa Bay looked like a competent football team for the second week in a row.

To quote the great Vince Lombardi, "what the hell's going on out here?!"

NFL Week 4 Primer (With Picks): Vegas Course-Correcting?

Steve Smith will likely go down as the greatest player in Carolina Panthers history, and he welcomes his old team to Baltimore this Sunday.

 By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Since Week 1, people have been harping about this being The Year of The Underdog. We mentioned a few stats in our Week 2 Primer after underdogs went a staggering 11-5 in Week 1. They went 9-7 in Week 2, and, as you'll see below in our Underdog Update (which we'll keep tossing into the primer until it seems to even out - if it ever does), finished at .500 last week. We aren't quite sure that downward trend is enough to suggest that Vegas is already accounting for it (after all, favorites still haven't beaten underdogs in any full week, and dogs are still eight games over .500 for the year), but the lines this week may give us a clue.

In Week 1, nine of the sixteen games had lines higher than four points. In Week 2, there were eight. In Week 3, there were eight. When there are that many lines higher than a field goal, it would stand to reason that underdogs, on average, have the advantage (that's just common sense - the higher the spread, the more likely it is the underdog will cover). So what do the Week 4 lines look like?

Only four teams are favored to win by more than four points. That leaves nine games that can be covered with a field goal and an extra point. It's too early to say that this is a conscious decision by bookmakers to shrink the lines (it's entirely possible that this slate of games is uniquely even and we'll be back to big lines next week), but with this many small(er) lines, it's difficult to stick with the "when in doubt, take the points" philosophy, if for no other reason than you aren't getting as many points as you normally do. You might be better off just picking winners, regardless of the spread, and letting the chips fall where they may.

Underdog Update:
Last Week: 8-8
Season: 28-20
Home Dogs Last Week: 1-3
Home Dogs; Season: 5-6

Game(s) of The Week:

Green Bay @ Chicago (1:00 p.m. Sunday, FOX)

This game always seems to take on more resonance than the average divisional tilt - it's probably the premier rivalry in the league (it's the longest-running one at least - this will be the 189th meeting between the two clubs). It will take on a bit of added significance this year, as Green Bay will want to avoid starting the year 1-3, with two of those losses coming within the division. There's no need to bore you with the numbers (mostly because we were too lazy to look them up), but let's just say that the historical record of teams starting 1-3 with an 0-2 division record isn't exactly stellar. 

Long And Suite Preview: The NFC North

Jared Allen and Julius Peppers both changed teams this summer. But they both stayed in the division. Which one will have a bigger impact? And will it lead to a division title?

By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Would you have guessed that the NFC North was tied for the 2nd-worst cumulative record of any division in the league last year (only the AFC South was worse)? Would you believe that the division had the worst cumulative SRS score in the entire league? Would you believe that they were the only division in football to have all four teams post a negative SRS?

It seems improbable that a division with so many blue-blood teams would go belly up like that, but it did.

Granted, there were some extenuating circumstances. The Packers were 6-2 when Aaron Rodgers played all four quarters. They were 2-5-1 when he didn't. They had three different backup quarterbacks start in a span of four weeks, including the was-somehow-still-employed Seneca Wallace. The Bears, long known for stellar defenses, suffered a rash of injuries on that side of the ball and saw the entire unit fall into a tailspin. The Lions, for the umpteenth year in a row, couldn't find much success running the ball and couldn't find a reliable second receiver to compliment Calvin Johnson. And the Vikings, well, they started Josh Freeman for a game. That really sums up their season.

March Mascot Melee™: Round One of the NFL Bracket

Steely McBeam is just the worst.

By Joe Parello  @HerewegoJoe

We got our mascot tournament going yesterday with the top mascots from the MLB and the NBA.

Today, we bust out the big guns and tackle the hardest hitting mascots in the National Football League. Check out our bracket below.

Why Your Favorite NFC Team Will Make the Super Bowl Next Year

Now that they've re-signed their apathetic, humorously smoking quarterback, the Bears are THIS CLOSE to the Super Bowl.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe) and Jeremy Conlin (jeremy_conlin)

Yesterday we told you how every team in the AFC can make the Super Bowl.

For realz. Joe even came up with an elaborate Tebow-Vick two-quarterback system for the Jaguars, and had Johnny Manziel leading a perennial bottom-dweller to Super Sunday.

Jeremy, on the other hand, thought the Raiders were in such bad shape, that coming up with a fictional scenario where they made the Super Bowl was not something he was prepared to do.

You can check out that article here. Now, join us once again as we brighten your day and let you know why you're favorite NFC team is TOTALLY making the Super Bowl next year.

NFC Championship Primer: The Best Defenses in NFL History

How do the Seahawks and their dominant secondary rank among the NFL's all time best defenses?

By Joe Parello  @HerewegoJoe

With Sunday's NFC Championship being billed as a heavyweight bout between two of the league's best defenses, I grew curious: How do these two great defenses stack up against the best in league history?

Well, it turns out at least one of them does very favorably.

NFL Week 16 Primer - .500 In Striking Range

Much like T-Sizzle and the Ravens, we've been on fire lately, and have a chance to finish the year strong.

 By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Somehow, inexplicably, we enter Week 16 with a legitimate chance to finish the year at .500 (or better!). There are 32 games left to be played, and I currently sit 11 games under .500, Joe just three (!!!). So if Joe goes 18-14 or better (very possible), he'll get into the black. I need to go 22-10 over the next two weeks (snowball's chance in hell).

Just as surprising has been Joe's roaring comeback to take the lead in our head-to-head standings. Following Week 5, I held a two-game lead in our disagreements and held that lead for nearly two months before Joe started cleaning up - a 3-0 record in Week 12, followed by a 3-1-1 showing in Week 13 and a 2-0 sweep in Week 14. Now Joe has the upper hand and a four-game lead in disagreements (and thus, overall records).

Joe could play coy and just agree with all of my picks (as I always submit my picks first) to ensure that he wins the competition between us. But I know that his competitive nature and his deep-seeded desire to break .500 for the season will keep him honest (note: I'm writing this paragraph before I know what Joe's picks are - if he double-crosses me and agrees with everything I'm going to fire him).

So Joe is chasing .500; I'm chasing the head-to-head crown. Two men enter. One man leaves [with his dignity].

NFL Week 9 Primer - Another Poor Slate

The Packers and Bears square off in the "best" game this week. But how good is it, really?

By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

There's something about this season that is leading to a jarring lack of marquee matchups. The best game last week featured 4-3 Detroit and 4-3 Dallas. The only other matchup between two winning teams last week was a 40-point Cincinnati blowout over the Jets. Week 7 saw a miserable slate outside of the Sunday Night game between Indianapolis and Denver.

This is purely by chance. The NFL schedule is 100% pre-set, effectively years in advance. Each division plays within their division twice and against a rotation of one division from each conference (for example, the NFC North plays the AFC North and NFC East this year). These rotations are established years in advance - plus two additional games against the teams from their conference that finished in the same standing in their respective division (for example, last year's NFC North runner-up, Minnesota, in addition to playing the entire NFC East, plays Carolina, 2nd in the NFC South last year, and Seattle, 2nd in the NFC West).

In other words, it's not like the poor schedule is set up by the league trying to create interesting matchups. The rotation is established and known years in advance - we already know that in 2019, the AFC East will play the NFC East and AFC South. So it's purely bad luck that we've had a number of weeks in a row with a disappointing slate.

Long and Suite Preview: The NFC North

It's a quarterback's league, but Adrian Peterson carried Minnesota to the playoffs in 2012.

By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Like the NFC East, the NFC North is an evenly-matched division. All four teams have made the playoffs at least once in the last three years, including the Vikings doing it with two different quarterbacks. Unlike the NFC East, however, there seems to be a consensus choice to win the division - you won't see too many predictions that don't have Green Bay on the top line.