by Gerald Udowiczenko

Well I tired a different variation on the rushing game last week, and if I hadn't failed on two 4th down inside the 5 yard line, I reckon things would have been a lot different. Unless our 'D' can find its form of last season, I fear this will be a piss poor season, as we are starting to fall behind the battle for those two wildcard places. And have little chance of the divisional title, especially as the Bills are going so well.

The only shocks (and one of them wasn't to me, as I tipped them to win) last week, were the Rams going down to the Falcons and the Buccs edging the Bears in a very tight game. Though they did manage to miss three FGs during the game, which would have made it a lot more convincing.

As always thanks to the following for making this issue what it is, a newsletter? This weeks thanks go to (in no particular order) Graham, Brucey, Jon, Mark Dixon & Paul Meskill.

CI (2-6, L2) @ BB (8-0, W8) Last time : wk 3, 2003 (9 - 34)
Gerald : Well they just keep winning and win and I can't see the Bengals being able to stop that. Bills by 21.
SPLATT : Buffalo by 11.
Graham : Bills offence to run riot and notch up another 30+ points. BB 17.
Jon : The Bengals are not performing as well as I'd expected so far this season whereas Buffalo are just about sweeping the rest of the AFC before them so far. BB x 10.

PS (4-4, W3) @ NE (3-5, L1) Last time : wk 15, 2003 (16 - 29)
Gerald : No comment, other than I hate gameplan!
SPLATT : New England by 8.
Graham : If the Pats roll out the same gameplan again they'll get beaten. They probably won't though, and they're too good to go 3-6. NE 3.
Jon : Mark got off to an excellent start with his win over the Titans. Can the Pats break up the New momentum in Pittsburgh? Not if they totally rely on the run. PS x 3.

SS (1-7, L4) @ MD (5-3, W3) Last time : wk 13, 2003 (15 - 20)
Gerald : The Fish are looking very good at present and must be hoping the Bills slip up a couple of times? To give them hope of more than just a wildcard. The Hawks just don't seem to be able to pull the wins out of the hat like they use to. Fish by 10.
SPLATT : Miami by 9.
Graham : Two teams in contrasting form. Dolphins shouldn't have any trouble. MD 14.
Jon : Seattle are having an appalling season so far.. The Dolphins, on the other hand, are still chasing a post season spot. MD x 7.

DB (6-2, W2) @ NY (6-2, L2) Last time : wk 1, 2003 (20 - 24)
Gerald : Both teams have the same record, but opposite form. The Broncos have won their last two, while the Jets have lost theirs. Tough one to call, but I think the current form will just have it. Broncos by 7.
SPLATT : Denver by 8.
Graham : Jets need to get back on track. Broncos are always tough to beat, but I fancy NY to just sneak it. NJ 1.
Jon : Whilst the Bills & Browns have been making the AFC headlines the Broncos have been quietly getting on with winning the West again. This should be a good test of the Jets' playoff credentials, but I fancy the Broncos to have just that little bit too much for them. DB x 3.

OR (3-5, L2) @ CL (7-1, W2) Last time : wk 15, 2003 (14 - 38)
Gerald : After their slight hick-up, the Browns have looked pretty unstoppable, as of late. The Raiders need to inject a new lease of life if they're to get anywhere this season. Unfortunately playing the Browns will not be the best way to do it, unless they (Browns) uncharacteristically throw it away? Browns by 14.
SPLATT : Cleveland by 16.
Graham : Oakland shouldn't put up too much resistance to the Cleveland steamroller. CL 21.
Jon : Improved though the Raiders are I can't see them challenging the Browns over 60 minutes. CL x 10.

KC (3-5, W1) @ TT (1-7, L6) Last time : wk 15, 2003 (26 - 27)
Gerald : A great performance last week, but they are now playing a coached Titans and I think they will slip up, as they have done so in the past. Titans by 7.
SPLATT : Tennessee by 3.
Graham : Never know what to expect from the Chiefs. So after last week's awesome performance they'll probably lose this. TN 3.
Jon : The all out blitz against the FB/TE offence of the Chiefs. Could be interesting. I think the Chiefs may hold out on this one. KC x 1.

TB (3-5, W1) @ WR (6-2, W3) Last time : wk 3, 2003 (0 - 40)
Gerald : A great win last week for the Buccs, but that Skins 'D' will be just too hard to score against. Even if their own offence struggles, the Skins 'D' will keep them in it. Skins by 10.
SPLATT : Washington by 12.
Graham : Skins' offence hasn't really clicked yet, but that D can generally be relied on to see them through. WR 10.
Jon : Tampa got a good (if close) win last week but the 'Skins are probably somewhat more of a challenge. WR x 4.

DL (1-7, L1) @ PE (7-1, W5) Last time : wk 1, 2003 (3 - 6)
Gerald : Can't really see Jon losing here, but the last time these two met it was very close. Eagles by 1.
SPLATT : Philadelphia by 17.
Graham : Lions have looked much better in the last couple of weeks. Not enough to win in Philly though. PE 17.
Jon : Don't look for much scoring here as the top two Ds (on yards) go head to head. It'll be close and will probably come down to field position from returns and turnovers.

SF (5-3, W1) @ DC (3-5, L1) Last time : wk 9, 2003 (30 - 13)
Gerald : The Boyz are still going to be shell shocked from last weeks game and I can't see it getting any better, though they should score. 49ers by 10.
SPLATT : San Francisco by 3.
Graham : Niners D is having a terrific year, and with the Boys having been shut out last week they'll fancy their chances here. SF 6.
Jon : The 49ers seem to be dropping in performance level as the season progresses (much like last year), which could give Dallas a chance to recover from last week's horror story. All the same, SF x 3.

SR (5-3, L2) @ AC (0-8, L21) Last time : wk 9, 2003 (47 - 7)
Gerald : Well who would have thought it, the Rams on a two game losing streak? (well me for one - blowing my own trumpet nice and loud). This week it should be back to normal, but I've a feeling the Cards could surprise us all this week (and they are due a bit of luck). Cards by 3.
SPLATT : St Louis by 18.
Graham : I ought to be more confident than I am. I'm not saying any more than that.
Jon : After the last 2 weeks I'm hesitant about predicting a Rams win. But they can't lose to the Cards, and 3 times in a row, surely. Can they? SR x 10.

AF (4-4, W1) @ CB (4-4, L1) Last time : wk 13, 2003 (10 - 17)
Gerald : Not quite a winning record, but only one game behind the leaders and nicely placed for the wildcard battle. The Falcons seem to have found what has been missing the couple of seasons (if not more?) and seem to be going in the right direction. Though they will need to keep that up throughout the whole season, if their to over take the Rams & 49ers. This week is an important game, to show that last week wasn't lucky. Falcons by 9.
SPLATT : Chicago by 6.
Graham : Although Atlanta often seem to raise their game against me they impressed me last week. About time they strung some good performances together. AF 1.
Jon : Great win for the Falcons last week to put them right back in the running, whilst the Bears suffered an unexpected loss. So as the Falcons should probably be favourites the Bears'll win. CH x 3.

NS (1-7, L5) @ MV (8-0, W10) Last time : wk 1, 2003 (28 - 23)
Gerald : Humm Vikes by lots.
SPLATT : Minnesota by 13.
Graham : Vikes. Vikes. Vikes. MV 17.
Jon : The Vikes were given one hell of a fright by the Lions last week and won't want that to happen again. Chances are it won't. MV x 14.

by Graham Canwell (Week 8)

	Offence	Kansas City	366 pass yards, 277 rush yards, 71% completions, 34 first downs . . . anyone want to argue? Browns, Bills, Dolphins and Steelers were all really good too but couldn't compete with those numbers.
	Defence	Miami	OK, the Pats shot themselves in the foot a bit by trying to repeat that one dimensional offence trick, but the Fish did a good job of being ready for it. Browns and Chiefs were the best of the rest.
	Coach	Guard (MD)	Had a bad start but Miami are back on track in a big way now. Richard is doing a marvellous job of getting the Bills seemingly better and better every week.
	Offence	Atlanta	No, look again - it isn't the Vikings this week. Falcons got the job done and made the plays that mattered, as I was unfortunate enough to witness at first hand. Worth pointing out that the Vikings were still excellent, though they left it rather late to creep past the Lions
	Defence	Philadelphia	You always know where the Eagles' strength is going to be and this year is no exception. There were two other shutouts this week so the Skins and Niners deserve a mention too. As do the Bears and Buccs. This is the defensive conference remember.
	Coach	Meskill (AF)	A terrific and well-deserved win. At least I won't have to wait too long for a shot at revenge . . . or a repeat dose!
	The Diddley	San Francisco	A little harsh, but that's always more likely the week after a "no award" because I get desperate to dish one out. I'll probably feel bad about it in the morning . . .

Gerald to All : Apologies to those that made the last pub meet. Sorry I didn't make it, but I wasn't feeling too clever.

Gerald to Paul M : See I told you, you could win. Just keep that up all season and you'll win the division.

Gerald to Stuart : You was lucky!

Gerald to All : What a week for shut-outs & no offensive scoring. Who said we had an offensive league?

Gerald to Ian : Good win. But can you keep it up all season?

Gerald to Graham : You must be a bit worried about retaining the Divisional Crown this season? So when did you last lose two-in-a-row??

Gerald to SPLATT : Stop tipping me to win! Every time you do so, I lose (well nearly every time).

Gerald to Mark Dixon : Yeah the new PC is fine. Haven't started copying over my files yet. I'm waiting for a free weekend. I also need to dig out all the bit n pieces (software) I've got on the old PC, to re-install it on the new one. I've moved house at least three times since I installed some of the software, so god knows where I've put the disk (and I do mean disks and not CD's)? My old PC is over 10 years old, started life as a 486DX and got it to a P166 a couple of years back. Finally decided that it was about time to move on.

Gerald to Paul M : I think she (Mrs Riley?) was Irish and not Scottish, wasn't she? But I know what you mean. The Housekeeper from Father Ted.

Mark Dixon to All : Thanks for the kind words, hopefully I can turn this franchise around and still make the playoffs, but then again...

Mark Dixon to Gerald : Good Luck! Not this week though, I hope! Hope you got the PC sorted.

Mark Dixon to Tim : Hope so. What do you know that I don't? Are we cursed?

Mark Dixon to Graham : Hopefully we can stop the Browns walking away with the division. Bring on week 14!

Mark Dixon to Jon : The computer/Pat beat the Jets, but I'm not complaining. Just need the East to beat it's self and we have a shot. See you in week 20? :o)

Mark Dixon to Bruce : Nice site, keep up the good work. It's one of the reasons I'm here!

Mark Dixon to Mark (Gamble) : Well that was close, I'm dreading week 10 already

Jon to Bruce : Please don't play as well this week.

Jon to Paul M : Superb win. I could be wrong, but I think you've beaten Graham more than anybody else in the league. So why can't you do as well against everybody else? (Probably what you ask yourself!)

Jon to Mark G : I see that the basic tactics don't really change for different leagues? I think I should obtain a copy of Mark D's gameplan for NFLB next season. ;-)

Paul M to All : We bloody won! We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. We won. Try thinking of a Scottish type voice going You will. You will. You will. etc. The Falcons are happy for the rest of the season now!

Graham to Paul : Well played. My toughest opponent as usual. See you in week 10.

Graham to Richard : I would have given myself the week 6 coaching award if I'd known I wasn't going to win again all season!!!! I'm still annoyed at not having tipped you to win the East (I had gone for you and then changed my mind at the very last instant against my better judgement).

Graham to Tim : Slow down mate. I might not be able to catch you up this year but I'd like to stay on the same planet.

PUB MEET IV

The venue is at what looks like it will become the regular, The Fulmar & Firkin.

The closest tube is Holborn on the Central (red) and Piccadilly (blue) lines. When you come out of the entrance (the one straight ahead, not on the side), cross Kingsway (the big road opposite the exit), turn left down Kingsway, first or maybe second street on the right, about 20-30 yards down the street (you can see the pub from Kingsway).

The date is Saturday November 17th, the time is still to be confirmed, but I'm guess sometime in the afternoon. I show know by next issue, encase I don't or forget to publish it, drop me a line & I'll let you know.

Web Sites

Don't forget to visit the following sites :
uk.clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/gameplan
www.endzone1.co.uk
brucey.net/nflab/

Well that's all for this week.