The Eagles are Going to the Playoffs, Jared Goff and the Rams are for Real: Events that Sparked My Interest, Week 9

Week 9 was headlined by games that were either close or blowouts. What caught my eye this week was the continued dominance of Jared Goff (Los Angeles Rams) and Carson Wentz (Philadelphia Eagles) and how their play will impact the playoffs.

Carson Wentz’s Improvement all but Yields a Divisional Title for the Eagles

9 weeks into the season, Carson Wentz in the NFL MVP. He’s thrown for 2,262 yards, 23 touchdowns, and lead the Eagles to an 8-1 record. He only threw for an average of one touchdown per game in the 16 he played in last year. His improvement, along with his teammates have all but guaranteed the Eagles the NFC East. If they manage to win 4 of their remaining 7 games, they are the 6^th seed.  Their remaining schedule features games against Chicago and New York, both of which are wins. They also have games Dallas, Seattle, Los Angeles, Oakland, and two against Dallas. They should be able to win a majority of those games at minimum, giving them their 4 wins. They could also make the playoffs as a division winner, and fifth win is necessary for that.

The Eagles control their own destiny to the playoffs and not making it as a division winner (at worst) would be a huge surprise. The capabilities of Wentz’s weapons – Zach Ertz in the Red Zone, Jay Ajayi’s ability to take some pressure off Wentz, Alshon Jeffery as a deep threat – and his improvement have made the Eagles a playoff lock.

Jared Goff and the Rams are for Real

Did anyone expect the Rams to be 6-2 at this point? I didn’t. Did anyone expect them to be winning the division now? I certainly never expected them to be leading the division at any point in the season. But you know what? They are! They are for real. Baring a major injury (which we’ve seen a ton of this season, including Deshaun Watson, Odell Beckham Jr. and others) the Rams will be contending for the 5^th seed in the playoffs as I don’t think they beat the Seahawks for the division title.

Half of their wins have come against teams who have a combined record of 4-22 (the Colts, 49ers, and Giants), so some statistics may be juiced, but in the NFL a win is a win, and you’ve only got 16 chances at one.

In addition to their high scoring wins, they’ve also won some close games, including ones against the Cowboys and (sadly) the 49ers in which their defense has held onto the win. Since Aaron Donald has ended his holdout, the Rams defense has only gotten better, and I expect that to continue, possibly putting the team in the playoffs.

Subscribe to my blog via email to get an update any time something is posted. Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter at @KidReporter363 for other updates about my writing and check out all my content at haydengoldberg.contently.com. Please leave your feedback in the comment section, I reply to everyone and take any and all feedback, ideas, comments, etc. under consideration.

Deshaun Watson Will Recover From Injury, Seahawks make Big Trade to Bolster Offensive Line: Events that Sparked My Interest, Week 8

Week 8 was the week leading up to the NFL Trade Deadline, and outside of the trades made, only one thing really sparked my interest: Deshaun Watson. With that in mind, Events that Sparked My Interest is back.

Deshaun Watson is here to stay, once he Recovers from ACL Injury

This season, Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson has had a stellar rookie season, but his performance against the Seahawks – in Seattle – shows that he is here to say. Coming into the game, he had put up three or more touchdowns in each of the past three games. In Week 8, he scorched the Legion of Boom with 402 yards and four touchdowns in addition to 67 yards on the ground. The final of his three interceptions is forgiven because the throw was a last-ditch effort to stay in the game, and the first two were bound to happen as he is a rookie in Seattle. His ability to escape the pocket and find the open receiver was eerily reminiscent of Russell Wilson and leads me to believe that Watson is here to stay. He has a great defense (that will only get better when healthy), a plethora of unique receivers, and a running game to support him.

Sadly, earlier today, he tore his ACL (as I was writing this) and is out for the season. But, I expect him to do great things once he gets back next season because of these various reasons.

Duane Brown Trade Upgrades Seahawks Offensive Line an Incomprehensive Amount

The trade deadline this season was October 31st at 4pm EST and there were an unheard-of flurry of moves resembling the MLB trade deadline. Among the most significant of the moves was the Seahawks trading for an offensive lineman. Since the Seahawks traded Max Unger for Jimmy Graham, their offensive line has been atrocious. For years, fans have been dying for the team to upgrade their offensive line, and they finally did it. They acquired Left Tackle Duane Brown from the Houston Texans, who they went up against two days prior.

What did they have to give up? Well, it started like this:

Seahawks Trade	Texans Trade
CB Jeremy Lane          2018 5th Round Pick         2019 2nd Round Pick	LT Duane Brown

But then Lane (with his big contract) failed his physical so the deal was off until Seahawks General Manager John Schneider amended the deal with Texans GM Rick Smith, so that the new trade looked like this:

Seahawks Trade	Texans Trade
2018 3rd Round Pick ·         2019 2nd Round Pick	·         LT Duane Brown ·        2018 5th Round Pick

In order to create the cap room for Brown (because Lane wasn't traded), the Seahawks converted the approximately $6.26 million of Wilson's salary that has yet to be paid into a signing bonus paid immediately, with the $6 million plus cap hit being spread out over the next three seasons.

This deal is huge because they are not only bolstering their offensive-line but they traded away two top picks. They now don't have a second-round pick till 2020 and have only 7 picks as compared to the 9.5 Schneider averages each year. Nor do they have a second rounder this year. Even though they are known for finding gems late in the draft, they’ve also drafted a lot of key pieces in the second round including Bobby Wagner (2012), Paul Richardson (2014), Frank Clark (2015), and Jarran Reed (2016).

Only time will tell if the Hawks made a good decision.

Subscribe to my blog via email to get an update any time something is posted. Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter at @KidReporter363 for other updates about my writing and check out all my content at haydengoldberg.contently.com. Please leave your feedback in the comment section, I reply to everyone and take any and all feedback, ideas, comments, etc. under consideration.