by Gerald Udowiczenko

Well that was a little too close last week, but was mainly due to that damned call of DL vs WC, both called in the two-minute warning and both last plays of the half. The first was completed for a gain of 18 yards and then run for 31 yards and a TD and then after recovering the onside kick and driving down field a straight pass for 24 yards and a TD. Pheww that was close.

But like I’ve always said, a win is a win and in the AFC East this season everyone one of them is going to count, especially those against division rivals. So perhaps with a bit of luck this season I can actual win at least one of my games against the Bills? Our game always seem to come down to a last play of the game situation, so with luck I’ll have learnt from the Bengals on how to complete those plays :o)

Thanks to Darren, Graham, Brucey & Mark for this weeks contributions.

NE (5-2, W3) @ BB (6-1, W2) Last time : wk 16, 2004 (27 - 28)
Gerald : No comment, other than its Game of the Week in the AFC.
Darren : Bills by 3.
SPLATT : Buffalo by 9.

NY (2-5, L3) @ MD (6-1, W4) Last time : wk 16, 2004 (13 - 6)
Gerald : Well itís looking a long long road for the Jets. If they are to muster a challenge in the East, the first step will be beating all divisional rivals and this week theyíve got the Fish. While they (Fish) didnít look very impressive against the Hawks last week, I feel theyíll just be that little bit too strong for the Jets and if that is the case, I think they (Jets) can probably kiss goodbye to the post season. But its never over till the fat lady sings soÖÖ.. Fish by 7.
Darren : Dolphins by 10.
SPLATT : Miami by 13.

TT (5-2, W1) @ CL (6-1, W2) Last time : wk 16, 2004 (3 - 51)
Gerald : Tough one to call, as both teams are playing good football. But I donít thing Julian has enough confidence in his own team at present. Titans by 5.
Darren : No comment.
SPLATT : Cleveland by 1.

CI (1-6, L4) @ PS (4-3, L1) Last time : wk 16, 2004 (41 - 30)
Gerald : Both lost last week, but the Steelers should really be too strong. However they will need to make more use of forced turnovers, as well as reducing their own mistakes, as if they donít it could be a lot closer then is comfortable. Steelers by 10.
Darren : Steelers by 7.
SPLATT : Pittsburgh by 14.

OR (3-4, L1) @ SD (4-3, W3) Last time : wk 10, 2004 (18 - 34)
Gerald : The Raiders came close to beating a potent offence last week, while the Chargers rode their luck a little. Both teams need the win as this division looks like it will be extremely close. Raiders by 3. OT
Darren : Raiders by 1.
SPLATT : San Diego by 4.

SS (0-7, L8) @ KC (1-6, L5) Last time : wk 10, 2004 (17 - 29)
Gerald : Both have bad losing streaks and unfortunately I canít see the Hawks breaking their duck. Chiefs by 10.
Darren : Chiefs by 6.
SPLATT : Kansas City by 9.

AC (0-7, L36) @ PE (3-4, L3) Last time : wk 14, 2004 (0 - 22)
Gerald : Another team that looks set to carry on with their streak. Unfortunately that streak happens to be losing. The Eagles did slip up last week, but a lot of good teams will do that against the Saints. So this will really be no contest. Eagles by 21.
Darren : Eagles by 24.
SPLATT : Philadelphia by 14.

DC (3-4, L1) @ WR (5-2, W3) Last time : wk 14, 2004 (13 - 28)
Gerald : The Skins have a 2 game lead in the East and that must be a first for a very long time? As usually the Skins & Eagles are neck and neck. A win this week should ensure the continuation of that cushion, which come the end of the season will be sorely tested. Especially as the Boyz seem to have found some form and while they did lose last week, it wasnít by much and that ëDí of theirs is starting to look good. But saying that, I think the Skins will be too strong. Skins by 7.
Darren : Redskins by 3.
SPLATT : Washington by 5.

DL (5-2, W1) @ MV (4-3, W1) Last time : wk 10, 2004 (17 - 20)
Gerald : Well a win is a win even if it isnít pretty and congratulations must go to Bruecy on winning despite turning the ball over 5 times. This week will be a real test for the ëDí which lately have shown signs of cracking. The Vikes seem to be regaining that form of last season and this must be the Game of the week in the NFC. Last time the Lions came close to upsetting that unbeaten record and while their isnít one this season, I feel they just sneak it. Lions by 3.
Darren : Vikings by 3.
SPLATT : Minnesota by 9

CB (6-1, W5) @ TB (0-7, L8) Last time : wk 10, 2004 (24 - 25)
Gerald : Sad to say no real contest. It seems no matter what Coach Jones does a win just doesnít seem to be on the cards. This week against the Bears, unless they go for a real extreme change of tactics I canít seem them breaking their duck. Bears by 10.
Darren : Bears by 21.
SPLATT : Chicago by 9.

NS (7-0, W11) @ SR (2-5, W1) Last time : wk 14, 2004 (39 - 24)
Gerald : I think this will end up the worst drubbing of Coach Canwellís career. As the Rams really do lot a sorry bunch, while the Saints just seem to be going from strength to strength. Saints by 28.
Darren : Saints by 14.
SPLATT : New Orleans by 10.

AF (3-4, L1) @ SF (3-4, L2) Last time : wk 14, 2004 (24 - 23)
Gerald : An important game for both, as I think whoever wins this game will probably end up coming second in the league and getting a wildcard. I think the Falcons look the slightly stronger team. Falcons by 1.
Darren : 49ers by 3.
SPLATT : San Francisco by 7.

by Graham Canwell (Week 7)

	Offence	New England	Not quite the usual AFC offensive fireworks this week but there a few great performances. Runners up (in no particular order) were Cleveland, Buffalo, San Diego and Miami but the narrow winners were the Pats by virtue of their 40+ points.
	Defence	Tennessee	Only coming up with an average offensive effort against the potent Jets is often a recipe for disaster, but the Titans’ D made sure that wasn’t the case this week as they ensured their team a fairly comfortable win.
	Coach	Gorner (SD)	Yes, again! Hung in throughout a tough game before snatching a dramatic final quarter comeback victory against the Steelers, one of the league’s tougher defences.
	Offence	Minnesota	One of my easier choices, as the Vikes gave a terrific display of power offence in racking up over 30 first downs and ultimately overwhelming the Niners. Runners-up were the Redskins but in true-AFC style contenders were thin on the ground.
	Defence	Detroit	The Detroit D are no strangers to the defensive Rammy, which they earned this week by limiting the Cowboys to 12 first downs and enabling their own offence the luxury of getting away with five turnovers.
	Coach	Whitfield (MV)	Got his team looking like last season’s selves again, and in a tough road game in San Francisco. Quite possibly a turning point in the Vikings’ season, but we’ll soon find out when they meet the Lions this week.
	The Diddley	St Louis	Not sure how Diddleyish it really was. But I wanted to give an award and after saying how well we’d generally been playing while losing I though it only fair to draw attention to the fact that although we won this week we were a bit rubbish really.

Gerald to Richard : Hereís hoping that it doesnít come down to what usually happens between us when we play, a costly turnover when Iím within striking range of taking the lead.

Gerald to Paul Gregory : That was just a little too close. Perhaps you should only use DL, as it sure as hell worked for you a treat last week :o)

Gerald to Julian : Just a few points.

1. A win is a win is a win. Does it really matter how you did it? If you want beautiful football youíre in the wrong game.
2. So the team isnít playing well. So what! Youíve only lost one game.
3. Finally remember all those close games that you win, give you more LPs.

Gerald to Julian : Oh. And if I was at all out of order or misinterpreted your whinge. Write in and put the record straight. :o)

Gerald to Jon : Hummm. Not a great day for Randy. No interceptions at least and he got over 50% (only just () completion, but I think heís just too old to play anymore.

Gerald to Paul Meskill : Unlucky, you almost had those Lions. So when am I going to get this small little piece from you then?

Graham to Gerald : Re the week 5 Diddley ‚ youíre right, the Chargers thoroughly deserved it. Donít know how I missed them. Iíve been very nice to them the past couple of weeks so Iím sure they wonít mind if I award it to them retrospectively.

Graham to Jon : Whatís gone wrong??? Basically I donít have Chris Miller around to bale out the defence any more, so theyíre finally getting the canings theyíve deserved for a few years now. How about you?

Graham to SPLATT : Personally I never doubted you for a second, since your predictions were clearly far too accurate for there to be any possibility that you might be merely Brucey with a different spelling.

Graham to Bruce : So is SPLATT going to be able to predict your postseason games correctly this year??

Ye Olde AFC Round up of NFLAB by Mark Dixon

In a desperate attempt to not be accused of only singing when I'm winning I thought I'd do one of these despite last week's result. Though my displeasure may well make it in to the narrative at some point! :o) We'll kick off with some AFC West teams: The Raiders recent run of half decent form came to a shuddering halt as they hosted the very in form Bills. Neither team bothered with the run much, both placing the game in the hands of their respective QBs and while neither made any mistakes the Bills hit two thirds of their pass attempts for almost 400 yards and 4 TDs to take the honours in what ended up as a shootout. The other contenders, apart from the Raiders, in the West are the Chargers who hosted Pittsburgh in a game both teams needed to win. Pittsburgh had the better of the first 3 quarters, but Football is 4 Quarters long and we were out played in the final period. We should've put the game beyond reach really, but we didn't and we're paying the price. Hopefully we'll still make the playoffs and get a shot at revenging this result then. Elsewhere, the Dolphins crept past the Seahawks in a game that they dominated, but 2 turnovers allowed the Seahawks to keep in touch and still be in it come the end. The Fish won't be scaring anyone if they can't put an 0-6 team away easier than that, but they got the win and I suppose that's all that counts. To round out the fortunes of the AFC West we travel out to Kansas where the Chiefs hosted the Browns. The Browns, who looked so good week 6 in despatching the Rams, had another 'cold' week, despite racking up 30 points they never quite put the Chiefs away.

Coach Horne will expect better. The Chiefs find themselves in the midst of a tight battle for 1st Draft pick, but they'll need to lose to Seattle to have a chance of clinching it. (and they need the Cards to win one!) In other Games around the Conference, the Patriots and the Bengals got themselves into a shoot out, combining for 75 points and almost 830 Net yards in a game that went down to the wire. At 41-20 the Pats must've thought that they'd done enough, but the Bengals scored twice in the final 7 minutes to make it look respectable, but never had a shot at the win to be honest. Good result for the Patriots that keeps them in touch with the top of the AFC East. In the remaining AFC game; the Titans hosted the Jets and never quite let them get started. The Titans are playing great D right now and proved it again with a stifling performance against the Jets. The Titan O ain't too pretty, but when you have a D like theirs to back you up you don't need to be pretty, just effective. Next weeks clash with the Brows will show just how good that D really is though. How it all pans out: In the East, it's as you where. The Bills over the Dolphins with the Patriots holding on in there. The Jets season is close to being over already. In the Central it's much the same story. The Browns march on into next weeks key clash, the Titans take second from the failing Steelers and the Bengals might as well give up now... And in the West the Chargers win gives them sole possession of the division lead, the Raiders are second and the rest are making up the numbers.

West meets East Coast! (Or History of NFL Team Nicknames)
	Owner Anthony J. Morabito chose 49ers for his All-America Football Conference squad because it reflected San Francisco’s link to the California Gold Rush. The 49ers kept the name when they joined the NFL in 1950.
	A group of New England sportswriters picked Patriots as a tribute to Patriot Day, which celebrates Paul Revere’s ride.

Newsletter of the Year (NotY)

Don’t forget to vote for BttDB in the Endzone (www.endzone1.co.uk) poll, the poll is open for a week or so. So get your vote in fast, as you don’t have long left.

If you don’t have access to the web, drop me a line and I’ll vote for you.

Check out the links below.

To vote
http://www.misterpoll.com/496519641.html
To view Results
http://www.misterpoll.com/results.mpl?id=496519641

Web Sites

Don't forget to visit the following sites :
http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/gameplan

www.endzone1.co.uk
brucey.net/nflab/

Well I’ve a bit more room this week, but unfortunately I just don’t have the time this week. So I’m going to have to call it a day.