Week 9, 2019 --- lots of business at the halfway point

I have come to the conclusion that the San Francisco 49ers are the best team in the NFL.  They have steamrolled every team they've played this season, not just the mediocre teams, but EVERY team.  This past Sunday they went up against a good Carolina Panthers team and scored more than 50-points on them, while holding them to 13-points.  They are balanced and can strike quickly.

I have also realized that the Cleveland Browns aren't what we thought they would be.  They struggle against any good teams they face.  True, they faced an undefeated New England Patriots team Sunday, but they looked flat, almost confused.  They have talent and I think will be good in a couple of years, but they're not quite there yet.

TRADES

This last Tuesday was the deadline for trades from team to team.  Some decide to offload large contracts, others are thinking of the now and want to win, realizing they need a single piece to push them into the playoffs, possibly to the next level.

Cleveland Browns trade Austin Corbett to the Los Angeles Rams.  Corbett has only started one game in his two years in the league.  Not a lot of playing time, so we will see how well this trade benefits the Rams in the years to come.

Los Angeles Rams trade Marcus Peters to Baltimore.  Peters has some experience, being in the league since 2015.  He's been a force, having contributed to over 200 tackles and 25 interceptions in his short career, and one fumble return for a touchdown.

Jacksonville Jaguars trade Jalen Ramsey to the Los Angeles Rams.  Ramsey has been a bit of a headache to the Jaguars as of later, requesting a trade.  They accommodated and shipped him to the other side of the country.  During his career, starting in 2016, he has contributed to over 220 tackles and 9 interceptions, one of which he's returned for a touchdown.  Perhaps he can find the happiness he's needing in LA.

Atlanta Falcons trade Mohamed Sanu to New England.  Sanu has been in the league since 2012 and has proved to be a legitimate weapon across from Julio Jones.  He helped propel the Falcons to the Super Bowl a couple of years ago.  He has over 4,000 yards in his career, with the career year being in 2018 when he had 838-yards receiving and four touchdowns.  He has 25 touchdowns on his career.  Should be a nice target for Tom Brady.

Denver Broncos trade Emmanuel Sanders to San Francisco.  Jimmy Garoppolo has already been able to utilize Sanders.  A very experienced receiver with over 7,000 career yards receiving with 40 touchdowns.

Detroit Lions trade Quandre Diggs to Seattle.  Diggs has over 60-games experience in the defensive backfield, has helped on 229 tackles and six interceptions with one touchdown.  Defensive backs have been a weakness for the Seahawks so I'm sure this will help them continue to dominate.

New England Patriots trade Michael Bennett to Dallas.  Bennett has the 16th most sacks of all current active players, at 65 1/2.  This is his 10th year in the league.  Dallas has one of the most consistent defensive linemen in the NFL.

New York Jets trade Leonard Williams to the New York Giants.  A 6-5 302-lb defensive lineman will plug some holes.  One in his sixth year in the league knows how to plug the holes.  He's been responsible for 17-sacks during his career.

Miami Dolphins trade Kenyan Drake to Arizona.  The Cardinals have already started using the talent of Drake.  In the first half of this Thursday night game he already has 70-yards with the touchdown.  He's already proving to be a force for the Cards.

Cleveland Browns trade Genard Avery to Philadelphia.  A tough second-year linebacker.  No doubt will help the Eagles while they try to get some consistency.  Already he has 4 1/2 sacks in his two seasons in the league.

Los Angeles Rams trade Aqib Talib to Miami.  I truly hate when this starts to happen with future hall-of-fame players.  The Rams are simply dumping some payroll and the Dolphins picked up a star so they can fill some seats in their stadium.  Talib is tied for 2nd in active players with interceptions, with 35 for his career.  I think he still has a little left in him, so Miami might be able to build some around him.

Games of the week...

Arizona (9) @ New Orleans (31) — So the Saints didn't listen to me about letting Drew Brees sit an extra week.  Mr. Brees simply lit up the Cardinals defense.  It started out almost equal, but once Brees got warmed up in his first start since mid-September he couldn't really be stopped.

Carolina (13) @ San Francisco (51) — This game didn't even start close.  The 49ers are simply the most balanced, dominant team right now in the NFL.  They can score some points on you, and they can stop you from making points.

Green Bay (31) @ Kansas City (24) — What an exciting game!!  It started fast and ended fast.  The Chiefs' Matt Moore had his work cut out for him and he handled the task well.  Unfortunately for him, though, Aaron Rodgers didn't have the cobwebs to wipe away while he played.

Games to watch...

Minnesota (6-2) @ Kansas City (5-3) — The Chiefs' only losses this year are at Arrowhead Stadium, also against potential playoff teams.  The Vikings have played very crisp football the last few weeks with Kirk Cousins simply lighting up opposing defenses.

New England (8-0) @ Baltimore (5-2) — Bill Belichick has a perfect record when he coaches against quarterbacks in their 2nd year or earlier.  However, they have not faced a quarterback the likes of Lamar Jackson.  This should be a fun one to watch as Tom Brady takes his 20-year experience against the just over 1-season that Jackson is bringing to this game.  I am really excited to see this game.

What to watch for...

Robbie Gould (SF) needs just 6-points to pass Eddie Murray for 20th all-time scorer in NFL history.

Adrian Peterson (Was) and Frank Gore (Buf) need one touchdown each to pass Antonio Gates and Lenny Moore to tie for 14th on the all-time touchdowns scored.

Frank Gore (Buf) needs only 97-yards to pass Barry Sanders to become the 3rd most prolific rusher in NFL history.