An NFL update: the halfway point

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N-F-L, it’s in the game … wait. Pixy

Over 50 per cent of the season down

The NFL season has officially made it past the halfway point and I couldn’t be more excited. Those out there may remember that I had written a “start of the season” article regarding the NFL, in it stating that I thought it would be an interesting year, that there were plenty of interesting match-ups to watch, and that it would be interesting to see who would remain relevant longer between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants. Well, judging by the given records between the two teams and their current standings in their respective divisions, they’re both still relevant, which comes as quite the shock considering the Giants are a resounding 3-7 this season.

 Yes, before getting into the other prime players in the current stage of the NFL, the entirety of the NFC East is still in the running for a playoff position despite the standing records. The Eagles currently sit at 3-5-1, the Giants (as mentioned above) are 3-7, the Washington Football Team is at 2-7, and the Dallas Cowboys are 2-7 as well. Do some quick number crunching and you’ll find that the total wins are 10 overall. To put that into perspective, the Pittsburgh Steelers are 9-0. They’re one win off from tying the entirety of the NFC East. It’s like they say, anything can happen in the world of professional sports.
           

Moving away from the sad side of the National Football League and more towards the up and comers. The Buffalo Bills, the Arizona Cardinals, and the Miami Dolphins have all started stealing the show, making for a solid outing as opposed to other seasons that these clubs have had. The Dolphins defense have especially been on fire this year, having now (including this past Sunday) earned turnovers in multiple games and even shut out the New York Jets for the first time in six years (six years since the Dolphins last shut out win to clarify).
           

Speaking of the Jets, oh the Jets. I find it to be a fascinating scene when any sports team goes a lengthy losing streak, but in the NFL it truly feels like something special. With regards to the modern football schedule as we know it today (16 games in a season), there have been only two teams to go 0-16. The first was the 2008 Detroit Lions, a season so bad that they never truly recovered afterwards, earning only three playoff berths since and losing in the first round of each. The second being the 2017 Cleveland Browns which, for those who remember, know how over-the-top I was in my excitement for them to go 0-16. Now, in this glorious year of 2020 (he said sarcastically), we have the opportunity to watch the New York Jets become numero tres on the list of losers. Currently, the Jets sit at 0-9, have several key players injured and look as if they’re eyeing the first round draft pick with more intensity then the Super Bowl. Perhaps this is head coach Adam Gase’s plan, but who can really know other than Gase himself at the end of the day.
           

Keeping with Detroit and Cleveland however, there has been some progression there since their time in the 0-16 sun. Detroit not as much as they continue to fight for a .500 overall record, currently sitting at 4-5. While the Browns on the other hand are doing quite well, sitting at 6-3. Granted, something could be said about the Browns schedule this year, but at the same time, Browns fans have been through a lot so I’ll just say “good show” and leave it at that.
 

Looking into other teams in the league, the Seattle Seahawks (despite a couple of recent hiccups) have looked quite impressive this season, same with the Kansas City Chiefs. This is to be expected however, given the ridiculous level of talent on those squads. The Baltimore Ravens have been floundering a bit, but I suspect they’ll pick themselves back up soon moving forward. The New Orlean Saints and Green Bay Packers are doing their usual things, that is to say winning.
 

Speaking of winning, what’s going on with the Las Vegas Raiders? Once again, those who know me know I used to be a huge Raiders fan, but after their move from Oakland, I jumped over to the Dolphins ship (and I couldn’t have picked a better year to do it). Looking at the Raiders squad now though, I just have to ask. What gives? I spend how many years rooting for the Raiders in Oakland, but now that they’re in Las Vegas they can win. I get that there’s coaching/staff replacements that happen and the like, but still, I mean you guys couldn’t have made the playoffs once when I was cheering for you? Well, actually, you did, but you got beat by Brock Osweiler during his run with the Texans.  

All that being said, with this NFL update concluded, I likely won’t be doing another one until the end of the season. Until then, top five Chicago Bears quarterbacks.

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