Madden NFL Simulation Franchise: 2007 and Beyond

[kblu54]

AFC Standings (after Week 2)

East
1) New York Jets --- 2-0
2) Buffalo --- 1-1
3) New England --- 1-1
4) Miami ---- 1-1

North
1) Pittsburgh --- 1-1
2) Cleveland --- 1-1
3) Cincinnati --- 1-1
4) Baltimore --- 0-2

South
1) Jacksonville --- 2-0
2) Indianapolis --- 2-0
3) Houston --- 2-0
4) Tennessee --- 0-2

West
1) Denver --- 2-0
2) Kansas City --- 0-2
3) Oakland --- 0-2
4) San Diego --- 0-2

AFC Players of the Week

Offense:
Peyton Manning, QB, Indianapolis
23 - 34- 317 yds, 3 TD

Defense:
Kamerion Wimbley, OLB, Cleveland
2 tkls, 3 sacks, 2 FF, FR

[kblu54]

NFC Standings (after Week 2)

East
1) Philadelphia --- 2-0
2) Dallas --- 2-0
3) New York Giants --- 1-1
4) Washington --- 0-2

North
1) Chicago --- 2-0
2) Minnesota --- 1-1
3) Detroit --- 1-1
4) Green Bay --- 0-2

South
1) Tampa Bay --- 1-1
2) Atlanta --- 1-1
3) Carolina --- 1-1
4) New Orleans --- 0-2

West
1) Seattle --- 2-0
2) Arizona --- 1-1
3) St. Louis --- 1-1
4) San Francisco --- 0-2

NFC Players of the Week

Offense:
Brian Westbrook, RB, Philadelphia
23 att. - 123 yds, TD; 6 rec. - 61 yds TD

Defense:
Jermaine Phillips, SS, Tampa Bay
5 tkls, 2 INT, TD

[kblu54]

Week 3 Schedule
(Note: Gold = Game of the Week, Bold = Sunday Night Football, Red = Monday Night Football)
(Note: All times EST)

Arizona @ Baltimore, Sun. 1:00 pm
Buffalo @ New England, Sun. 1:00 pm
Detroit @ Philadelphia, Sun. 1:00 pm
Indianapolis @ Houston, Sun. 1:00 pm
Miami @ New York Jets, Sun. 1:00 pm
Minnesota @ Kansas City, Sun. 1:00 pm
San Diego @ Green Bay, Sun. 1:00 pm
San Francisco @ Pittsburgh, Sun. 1:00 pm
St. Louis @ Tampa Bay, Sun. 1:00 pm
Cincinnati @ Seattle, Sun. 4:05 pm
Cleveland @ Oakland, Sun. 4:05 pm
Jacksonville @ Denver, Sun. 4:05 pm
Carolina @ Atlanta, Sun. 4:15 pm
New York Giants @ Washington, Sun. 4:15 pm
Dallas @ Chicago, Sun. 8:15 pm
Tennessee @ New Orleans, Mon. 8:30 pm

[kblu54]

Bengals, Seattle looking to take control of respective divisions
NFL News

A tough AFC/NFC battle is set to take place this Sunday, as the 1-1 Cincinnati Bengals travel to the American Northwest to take on the 2-0 Seattle Seahawks.

Both teams were picked to win their respective divisions this season, and so far in the early going have been solid. Cincinnati dropped a tough 37-28 decision to the suddenly-resurgent Browns last week, while Seattle held off a frisky Arizona squad to stay unbeaten.

Both teams have excellent veteran QBs (Carson Palmer for Cincinnati, Matt Hasselbeck for Seattle) and excellent playmakers on offense, so we should see a nice shootout.

Seattle is last in the NFL in run defense, but Cincinnati is a pass-first squad, so Seattle's 4th-ranked pass defense should play a role.

Seattle seems to be on a role, and Cincinnati's loss last week exposed a lot of concerns on defense. I'm expecting the Seahawks to pull out the win in a close one.

Cincinnati Ratings Seattle
90 ---Overall--- 89
91 ---Offense--- 90
85 ---Defense--- 89
91 ---Special Teams--- 91


Cincinnati Team Stats (NFL Rank) Seattle
26.0 (9th) ---Points Per Game--- 23.0 (13th)
614 (13th) ---Total Offense--- 605 (14th)
185 (24th) ---Rush Offense--- 277 (10th)
429 (7th) ---Pass Offense--- 328 (19th)
545 (12th) ---Total Defense--- 594 (16th)
225 (15th) ---Rush Defense--- 334 (32nd)
320 (14th) ---Pass Defense--- 260 (4th)
+2 (t-7th) ---Turnover Diff.--- +2 (t-7th)


Prediction: Seattle 31, Cincinnati 24

[kblu54]

Seattle uses late 4th-quarter rally to knock off Bengals
NFL News

Cincinnati scored 21 unanswered points bridging the 3rd and 4th quarters to erase a 20-7 deficit, only to watch the host Seattle Seahawks score 2 TDs in the final 6 minutes to pull out a thrilling 35-28 victory.

Seattle led 13-7 at the half and increased their lead to 20-7 with 10:27 left in the 3rd quarter, but the Bengals kicked it into high gear. Cincinnati used 2 TD runs by RB Rudi Johnson and an interception return TD by FS Dexter Jackson to put themselves up 28-20 with 11:26 to go.

It was then Seattle's turn to answer, and boosted by a fanatic home crowd, they began the comeback. QB Matt Hasselbeck hit RB Shaun Alexander for a 2-yard TD and Seattle got the ensuing 2-point conversion to tie the game at 28. Following a three & out by Cincinnati, the Seahawks drove the field again. Hasselbeck hit WR Deion Branch for their 2nd TD hookup of the day with only 1:16 remaining to get the win.

Hasselbeck threw for 268 yards and 3 TDs on 29-of-43 passing, but did give up a pick-six. Alexander was an all-around beast for the Seahawks, totaling 171 yards from scrimmage (77 rushing) and 2 TDs (1 rec.). Branch caught 2 TDs from Hasselbeck and finished with 35 yards receiving.

QB Carson Palmer struggled against the Seahawks' 4th-ranked pass defense, completing only 14-of-32 for 182 yards and was picked off twice. Palmer did throw a 7-yard TD to TE Reggie Kelly in the 1st quarter. RB Johnson led all rushers with 80 yards and 2 TDs, while WR T.J. Houshmanzadeh added 124 yards receiving.

Box Score

CIN 7 : 0 : 7 : 14 - 28
SEA 10 : 3 : 7 : 15 - 35

1st Quarter
(9:58) SEA --- Alexander 2 run (J. Brown kick) --- SEA 7-0
(7:30) CIN --- Kelly 7 pass from Palmer (Graham kick) --- TIE 7-7
(0:34) SEA --- J. Brown 40 FG --- SEA 10-7

2nd Quarter
(0:46) SEA --- J. Brown 33 FG --- SEA 13-7

3rd Quarter
(10:27) SEA --- Branch 4 pass from Hasselbeck (J. Brown kick) --- SEA 20-7
(5:36) CIN --- R. Johnson 7 run (Graham kick) --- SEA 20-14

4th Quarter
(12:29) CIN --- R. Johnson 1 run (Graham kick) --- CIN 21-20
(11:26) CIN --- D. Jackson 29 INT return (Graham kick) --- CIN 28-20
(5:12) SEA --- Alexander 2 pass from Hasselbeck (Alexander run) --- TIE 28-28
(1:16) SEA --- Branch 4 pass from Hasselbeck (J. Brown kick) --- SEA 35-28

Team Stats

1st Downs:
CIN --- 13 ... SEA --- 23
Total Offense:
CIN --- 237 ... SEA --- 348
Rushes-Yards:
CIN --- 21-82 ... SEA --- 31-101
Passing (C-A-I):
CIN --- 14-32-2 ... SEA --- 29-43-1
Passing Yards:
CIN --- 155 ... SEA --- 247
Times Sacked:
CIN --- 3 ... SEA --- 3
3rd Down Conversions:
CIN --- 4-12 ... SEA --- 8-16
Turnovers:
CIN --- 2 ... SEA --- 2
Penalties-Yards:
CIN --- 7-58 ... SEA --- 9-60
Time of Possession:
CIN --- 24:59 ... SEA --- 35:01

Individual Stats

CINCINNATI

Carson Palmer, QB --- 14 - 32 - 182 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT

Rudi Johnson, RB --- 20 att. - 80 yds, 2 TD

T.J. Houshmanzadeh, WR --- 7 rec. - 124 yds
Reggie Kelly, TE --- 3 rec. - 20 yds, TD
Chad Ochocinco, WR --- 3 rec. - 17 yds

Ed Hartwell, OLB --- 13 tkls
Randall Godfrey, MLB --- 8 tkls
Dhani Jones, OLB --- 5 tkls
Dexter Jackson, FS --- 4 tkls, INT, TD
Bryan Robinson, DE --- 3 tkls, 2 sacks, FF

SEATTLE

Matt Hasselbeck, QB --- 29 - 43 - 268 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT

Shaun Alexander, RB --- 23 att. - 77 yds, TD; 7 rec. - 94 yds, TD

Marcus Pollard, TE --- 7 rec. - 44 yds
Deion Branch, WR --- 5 rec. - 35 yds, 2 TD
Nate Burleson, WR --- 4 rec. - 26 yds
Bobby Engram, WR --- 3 rec. - 31 yds

Julian Peterson, OLB --- 8 tkls
Patrick Kerney, DE --- 2 tkls, 2 sacks

[kblu54]

Game Recaps

Arizona 30, Baltimore 24 (OT)

OLB Karlos Dansby returned an interception for a TD in OT to keep the Ravens winless.

ARZ: Edgerrin James, RB --- 39 att. - 163 yds, TD
BAL: Willis McGahee, RB --- 33 att. - 120 yds, TD

New England 28, Buffalo 6

New England brings Buffalo back down to earth after their comeback win last week.

NE: Todd Peterson, K --- 7/9 FG
BUF: Only 131 yards of total offense

Philadelphia 14, Detroit 13

Philadelphia avoids the upset and stays unbeaten with 4th-quarter rally.

PHI: Donovan McNabb, QB --- 20 - 27 - 230 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
DET: Kevin Jones, RB --- 32 att. - 133 yds

Houston 13, Indianapolis 6

Houston shocks the Colts at home to stay surprisingly unbeaten.

HOU: Ahman Green, RB --- 30 att. - 114 yds, GW rec TD
IND: Peyton Manning, QB --- 20 - 30 - 196 yds

New York Jets 36, Miami 29

Jets score 3 return TDs, including WR Tim Dwight's game-winning kick return TD in 4th quarter, to stay undefeated.

NYJ: 2 INT ret TDs
MIA: Ronnie Brown, RB --- 34 att. - 153 yds, 2 TD

Kansas City 31, Minnesota 28 (OT)

Vick-less Chiefs upset Vikings in OT behind QB Damon Huard's 3 TD passes.

KC: Damon Huard, QB --- 20 - 32 - 260 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
MIN: Brett Favre, QB --- 16 - 25 - 218 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT

San Diego 24, Green Bay 13

Chargers dominate Green Bay in Lambeau without injured QB Phillip Rivers.

SD: LaDainian Tomlinson, RB --- 25 att. - 123 yds, TD
GB: Vernand Morency, RB --- 24 att. - 91 yds, TD

Pittsburgh 20, San Francisco 10

Pittsburgh manhandles the 49ers.

PIT: Willie Parker, RB --- 28 att. - 118 yds, TD
SF: Frank Gore, RB --- 23 att. - 107 yds, TD

St. Louis 35, Tampa Bay 23

St. Louis uses balanced offensive attack to beat Tampa Bay.

STL: Steven Jackson, RB --- 31 att. - 185 yds, 2 TD
TB: Jeff Garcia, QB --- 18 - 31 - 178 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT

Oakland 27, Cleveland 14

Rookie QB Jamarcus Russell leads Oakland to the win, the 1st of his career.

OAK: Jamarcus Russell, QB --- 27 - 38 - 299 yds, 2 TD (1 rush), 1 INT
CLE: Jamal Lewis, RB --- 21 att. - 168 yds, TD

Denver 45, Jacksonville 13

Denver outscores the Jaguars 35-0 in 2nd half behind QB Jay Cutler's 5 TD passes.

DEN: Jay Cutler, QB --- 18 - 27 - 155 yds, 5 TD
JAX: Fred Taylor, RB --- 15 att. - 84 yds, TD

Carolina 22, Atlanta 17

RB DeAngelo Williams' 2nd TD run with only 1:31 left sends Carolina to top of NFC South.

CAR: DeAngelo Williams, RB --- 26 att. - 100 yds, 2 TD
ATL: Warrick Dunn, RB --- 171 total yds, 2 TD (1 rec)

Washington 27, New York Giants 10

Washington scores 27 unanswered after Giants open game up 10-0.

WAS: Clinton Portis, RB --- 31 att. - 170 yds, 2 TD
NYG: Reuben Droughns, RB --- 31 att. - 112 yds, TD

Dallas 17, Chicago 16

Dallas rallies from 16-5 deficit behind two 4th-quarter TD runs by RB Julius Jones.

DAL: Julius Jones, RB --- 36 att. - 142 yds, 2 TD
CHI: Rex Grossman, QB --- 24 - 47 - 225 yds, 1 TD

New Orleans 31, Tennessee 22

New Orleans builds 31-9 lead and holds on for Monday Night Football win.

NO: Drew Brees, QB --- 15 - 27 - 192 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
TEN: Vince Young, QB --- 22 - 45 - 252 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT; 63 rush yds

Week 3 Notable Injuries

Shawn Barber, OLB, Houston --- Out 3 weeks (hip pointer)

[kblu54]

AFC Standings (after Week 3)

East
1) New York Jets --- 3-0
2) New England --- 2-1
3) Buffalo --- 1-2
4) Miami ---- 1-2

North
1) Pittsburgh --- 2-1
2) Cleveland --- 1-2
3) Cincinnati --- 1-2
4) Baltimore --- 0-3

South
1) Houston --- 3-0
2) Indianapolis --- 2-1
3) Jacksonville --- 2-1
4) Tennessee --- 0-3

West
1) Denver --- 3-0
2) Oakland --- 1-2
3) Kansas City --- 1-2
4) San Diego --- 1-2

AFC Players of the Week

Offense:
Larry Johnson, RB, Kansas City
32 att. - 154 yds, TD; 6 rec. - 66 yds, TD

Defense:
Lawrence Timmons, OLB, Pittsburgh
4 tkls, 1 sack, INT, FR

[kblu54]

NFC Standings (after Week 3)

East
1) Philadelphia --- 3-0
2) Dallas --- 3-0
3) Washington --- 1-2
4) New York Giants --- 1-2

North
1) Chicago --- 2-1
2) Minnesota --- 1-2
3) Detroit --- 1-2
4) Green Bay --- 0-3

South
1) Carolina --- 2-1
2) Tampa Bay --- 1-2
3) Atlanta --- 1-2
4) New Orleans --- 1-2

West
1) Seattle --- 3-0
2) St. Louis --- 2-1
3) Arizona --- 2-1
4) San Francisco --- 0-3

NFC Players of the Week

Offense:
Steven Jackson, RB, St. Louis
31 att. - 185 yds, 2 TD; 1 rec. - 6 yds

Defense:
Karlos Dansby, OLB, Arizona
7 tkls, INT, TD