NFL: Week 8 knee-jerk reactions
October, 30, 2012
10/30/12
1:30
PM ET
By ESPN.com staff | ESPN.com
You’ve heard the chatter by the sports pundits and on the talk shows. Heck, you may have even heard it here. So are the knee-jerk reactions about your team based in reality? Our NFL bloggers weigh in.
NFC Knee-jerk Reactions | AFC Knee-jerk Reactions
WEEK 8
| Team | Knee-jerk reaction | Reality or not? |
|---|---|---|
| AFC EAST by James Walker | ||
 | The Bills have had two weeks to prepare for Houston and have fixed all their issues. Can you say "upset"? | I doubt it, Bills fans. The Texans are an awful matchup and also had two weeks to prepare. Buffalo drops to 3-5. |
 | Look out, Patriots! We crushed the Jets and we're coming for you next! | Pump your brakes, Dolphins fans. Miami is playing well but not as well as the Patriots. Just focus on winning games. |
 | Forget what I said last week about the Patriots' being average. We're elite again! | New England is a good team, and that's enough in a mediocre AFC. The Patriots have potential to be great by the end of the year, and that's when it matters. |
 | Fire coach Rex Ryan, fire general manager Mike Tannenbaum and bench quarterback Mark Sanchez. The Jets stink. | Ryan and Tannenbaum are safe this season. Ryan also says Sanchez is the starter. So don't expect anything to change, Jets fans. |
| AFC WEST by Bill Williamson | ||
 | The Broncos are legitimate contenders in the AFC after they showed they can play a complete game against New Orleans. | Not so fast. Yes, it was an impressive win and, yes, the Broncos need to start fast. But let's see them do it a few more times, before we starting looking at their long-term prominence. |
 | The Chiefs are sure contenders for the No. 1 overall pick with a 1-6 record. Plus, they're just so uncompetitive. | Yes, the Chiefs are in the hunt for the No. 1 overall pick. They are not showing any signs that they're going to turn around their season, and it is difficult to fathom any other team playing worse than the Chiefs right now. |
 | The Raiders are serious AFC West contenders now that they have won two straight games and are 3-4 and tied with San Diego. | Well, give Oakland credit for getting to 3-4, and the Raiders have more to be excited about than San Diego right now. But let's wait to see whether Oakland can hang in the hunt. |
 | The Chargers are quickly falling out of the playoff race now that they have suffered three straight terrible losses to fall to 3-4. | I can't disagree. Until further notice, this team is an official mess. Nothing is going well after it blew two big leads and then followed up with a stinker at Cleveland. |
| AFC NORTH by Jamison Hensley | ||
 | The Ravens' offense struggles on the road and now Baltimore is playing a Browns defense that has limited teams to three field goals over the past six quarters. There's no margin for error with Pittsburgh sitting one game back now. | There's no denying the Ravens' offensive struggles on the road. But Cleveland is one place where Baltimore has had success away from home. The Ravens have averaged 24 points in the past four trips there, and Ray Rice gained 204 yards last year in Cleveland. |
 | The Bengals have lost to two rookie quarterbacks this year, Ryan Tannehill and Brandon Weeden. How can they even think there is a chance of beating Peyton Manning? This one is going to get ugly. | Cincinnati will get a boost in the secondary if first-round pick Dre Kirkpatrick can suit up for the first time. But that won't cover up all of the weak spots in the secondary. The Bengals' best hope at slowing down Manning is a consistent pass rush from Carlos Dunlap, Geno Atkins and Michael Johnson. |
 | Things are finally turning the Browns' way. Cleveland has won two of its past three games and would have won two weeks ago if Josh Gordon made that touchdown catch. Beating Baltimore will send a statement that this is a team to watch. | The Browns have never had a better opportunity to beat the Ravens for the first time since 2007. Baltimore is dealing with injuries and reeling from a rout at Houston. The key is whether Trent Richardson can exploit a struggling run defense. Suddenly, this game has become very interesting. |
 | The Steelers are finally playing like the Steelers. The running game is back with Jonathan Dwyer. The defense is swarming to the ball. It's only a matter of time before Pittsburgh moves past the Ravens to take over the top spot in the AFC North. | Hold on just a second. Remember how the Steelers fall apart on the road? Let's see what Pittsburgh does at the New York Giants before declaring the Steelers division champions in the first week of November. |
| AFC SOUTH by Paul Kuharsky | ||
 | We're rested and ready to show Mario Williams what he's missing. We went into the bye as the best team in the AFC. Our boys will come out of the weekend against an inferior opponent with the same status. | Hard to argue with how Texans devotees are feeling right now. Arian Foster and the run game should have a field day against a terrible run defense. |
 | Playoffs, baby. Look at the way things are coming together. We won't win the Super Bowl, but we may need to throw a parade when this is over anyway, to celebrate the job Ryan Grigson, Chuck Pagano, Bruce Arians and everyone has done in Year 1. | Things are moving in a very nice direction, but the progress isn't always going to be forward. The Colts could further establish themselves as a contender against the Dolphins. And they could just as easily fall back to .500. |
 | This team has no clue how to make clutch plays or how to finish. Even when it plays "well," it loses. It's painful. Please end it. | You've seen four consecutive losses. So accept a bit of a moral victory. The Jags weren't far away from a win in Green Bay, or in Oakland a week earlier. If they could just get things to click by making a couple of more plays in the big moments … |
 | That was a knock-out game. Get to .500 there and we'd have had a chance. But this team can't win six of its last eight to get to 9-7, and there is no certainty that 9-7 would get us in the playoffs. Fire both coordinators. Play Jared Cook more. Do something drastic. | No matter the Titans' current record, this is not a playoff team given its defensive deficiencies. They need to get Jake Locker healthy, get him more experience and keep building. What drastic measure now makes anything better? |
AFC WEST SCOREBOARD
Thursday, 9/5
Sunday, 9/8
1:00 PM ET Oakland Indianapolis 1:00 PM ET Kansas City Jacksonville
Monday, 9/9
10:15 PM ET Houston San Diego - ESPN/WatchESPN
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ABOUT THIS BLOG
Bill Williamson
Williamson joined ESPN.com in 2008 after four seasons covering the Denver Broncos for the Denver Post. He previously covered the Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks.
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