With much to celebrate and lament, here’s a look at the NFL halfway through the 2013 season.
Good
Start out West with the league’s two best divisions.
What Kansas City has achieved after going 2-14 and getting the top draft pick a season ago is remarkable and historic. Yes, the Chiefs’ superb defense is carrying a mediocre offense, but to criticize anything Andy Reid and his staff have done in going 9-0 is misguided.
“We’re not going to apologize for any wins,” Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith said. “You keep your nose down; you do what you’ve been doing.”
Denver (7-1) was expected to be dominant, and, in stark contrast to KC, it has been on offense. Peyton Manning’s record-tying seven-touchdown explosion in the opener – matched, incredibly, by Philadelphia’s Nick Foles, on Sunday – put the league on notice when it comes to the capabilities of a healthy Manning and his minions. Even with coach John Fox now sidelined for a heart procedure, the Broncos will be formidable.
San Diego (4-4) and Oakland (3-5) have been competitive.
Residing in the NFC West are the conference’s top two teams thus far, the Seahawks and 49ers. All anyone needs to know about Seattle is how it responded after falling behind winless Tampa Bay 21-0 on Sunday. Clearly, the Seahawks (7-1) weren’t ready. Just as clearly, they were good enough and resourceful enough to rally.
And no team has a bigger home-field edge; Seattle has won 12 consecutive home games.
The 49ers (6-2), winners of five in a row, are beginning to find the balance that got them to last season’s Super Bowl.
Arizona (4-4) has shown marked improvement, particularly on defense, under first-year coach Bruce Arians, the 2012 Coach of the Year as an interim in Indianapolis.
Ah, Indianapolis. Its comeback Sunday night can, in part, be contributed to Texans coach Gary Kubiak’s collapse at halftime, prompting his hospitalization and leaving Houston distracted and uninspired. Still, the Colts (6-2) are making a habit of such rallies and are beating the big boys, with wins over Seattle, San Francisco and Denver.
Bad
Start with 2012 playoff qualifiers who have flopped, several of them spectacularly: Atlanta, Houston and Minnesota. Maybe the Vikings wouldn’t have made many Super Bowl lists, but the Falcons – so close last January – and Texans would have.
Now, they are in the mix for top-10 draft picks.
Baltimore was projected to take a step back from its Super Bowl form with so many defections on the field and leadership-wise. It’s been more like a pratfall.
Pittsburgh’s once-proud defense is, well, nothing to be proud of, a Steel Curtain torn asunder. The Giants lost their first six games – yet still are a quasi-contender – as Eli Manning turned into a turnover machine and the defense became a sieve.
Ugly
Saved this for the 0-fers, the Buccaneers and Jaguars.
At least Jacksonville doesn’t seem dysfunctional like its Florida neighbor, even with WR Justin Blackmon’s recent suspension. It’s simply a lack of talent throughout the roster.
As for the Bucs, they were seconds away from winning their opener before a ludicrous penalty handed the Jets a win. They were up by three touchdowns against Seattle in Game 8 and blew it. There is turmoil in Tampa, with coach Greg Schiano’s job security virtually nonexistent.
The race is on for homeliest teams. First one to 16 losses, uh, wins.
