MATTHEW: Crazy buys today. Cutting two shows at once. Currently Wheeler is sitting next to me trying to figure out who he hates at tight end. Personally I think he is still smarting from the fact that I was so right about my prediction that Reggie Wayne is going to be the #1 man in Indy. But that doesn’t mean the blog will not continue. What it does mean is that I am going to have to enlist a friend of mine, Bill Epner to help out with this entry. Now for you folks at home Epner knows more about sports than ANYONE. Seriously he can tell you who the young up and coming stars of the Etobicoke track scene are. Creepy … yes but the man has got a brain packed with knowledge.

So Bill first question: Did Drew Brees peak in 2006?


BILL: Maybe, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't have a few really good seasons left. It’s not like we're talking about Tommy Maddox circa 2002 here! Brees has had three excellent seasons in a row, has superior weapons around him, and being in the NFC and specifically in that division REALLY helps.

Actually, I was more worried with Bush - he was completely ineffective rushing and receiving. You think that teams are figuring out how the Saints want to him?


MATTHEW: Hey I would never drop a Tommy Maddox (He did have a 0.0 rating in 1995!) when talking about Brees. But it looked like the Colts had the best answer for Brees, give him the short stuff and play deep. Brees was the best QB going deep last year. If you force him to go 8-12 plays you have a good chance against him. At least that is what it looked like last night.
Yeah Bush never got on track. I don’t think they have him figured him out; his talent will always beat schemes. But the entire Saints offence looked listless and the Colts were playing at a higher level. LB’s Freddie Keiaho (2nd year guy) and Rob Morris looked great out there. I did have to laugh when Al and John mentioned how comfortable Rob looks out there. He has been with the same team for eight years!!!! He should be comfortable.


BILL: Ya, Rob Morris has lost his starting job like 5 times since he was drafted. He's a great athlete and that was shown last night when he ran down Deuce a couple times. But the reality of the matter is that he's just not consistently effective.

I think that the Colts played as well as they could on defence last night. They were buzzing and the Saints were clearly overwhelmed at times. Part of the problem was that the Saints got down quickly in the second half which allowed the Colts to 'pin their ears back' and rush Brees without any fear of the run. That forced some bad decisions and ill-advised passes out of Brees.

Is there any bigger potential train wreck than the New York Football Giants? My God - shaky QB, malcontents at TE and WR, the players hate the coach, Strahan has held out until this week, tough division and their best player retired (Funny story - some dude in my office pool wanted to take him in our draft - wow)


MATTHEW: Good point about Morris. Oh God where to start with the Giants. I’m setting the over under at 6.5 for the amount of times Eli gets sacked. By the way if you are betting at home take the over. The tackles can’t pass block and Dallas with Wade (Benny Hill) Phillips can rush the passer. B. Jacobs is un-proven, the secondary couldn’t cover CIS wide outs and everyone hates the coach. I’m predicting a 6-10 record and the team drives a dump truck of cash and jewels to Cowher’s home.
Talking about bad teams are you excited for the Brodie Croyle era?


BILL: I think that Cowher's going to end up elsewhere - I just don't see him landing in NY and enjoying it. Frankly, I'm not sure why he left Pittsburgh - that's as good of a situation as a coach can get.. Two coaches in 35 years is unmatched anywhere in football - anywhere in sports for that matter.

Croyle was only marginally effective at Alabama so no, I'm not happy with the on set of the BC era. I'm very surprised that they didn't pursue someone in free agency or Brady Quinn in the draft when they knew that they weren't going to have Green in the fold one way or the other. Regardless of who's at QB, there are bigger problems on the horizon for the Chefs. Their O-line, which as once the toast of the league, has had some major losses over the last couple seasons (Roaf and Shields) and is getter very long in the tooth. And, I don't even want to talk about their WR’s as they are an unmitigated disaster. The D is going to be decent again, but it’s clearly not going to steal games they way the Ravens or Bears defenses do.

Speaking of the Chi-towners, what is the deal with Sexy Rexy?


MATTHEW: Sorry for the late response … just finished taping the show. Pure brilliance. 23 minutes of gold.

Praying for Cowher … so many bad coaches since Parcells left in ’90.

Wow so I take it you are looking at a 4-12 season for KC? I say tank the season and go draft Brohm from Louisville.

I am not as anti Grossman as a lot of people are. Played well in the playoffs vs Seattle and New Orleans + he does have some good targets.

All right final question before we wrap this up:

You watched them both play: Who will have a better season: Reggie Wayne or Marvin Harrison?


BILL: Tough call on Harrison and Wayne. Everyone keeps thinking that Harrison will slow down and Wayne will take the top spot on that team - like the dynamic in St. Louis with Bruce and Holt. The thing is, Harrison is still playing at such a high level and doesn't look like he's going to slow down. He never gets hurt because he doesn't take big hits and he has the best QB in the game throwing to him. Essentially, you can't go wrong with either of them. If you're talking keeper, you have to go for the younger player, but otherwise it’s a complete toss up.
I think the bigger issue from a fantasy standpoint is whose going to catch more balls between Clark and Anthony Gonzalez. While Clark was good last night, I can see Gonzalez stealing some of those catches as the season continues. Manning loves him, and he brings a little more speed to the table than Clark.


MATTHEW: Very diplomatic … I think this is the year Wayne becomes THE MAN …. Thanks so much Bill for participating, I’ll see you at the wedding.


BILL: In this case, that's the right answer, Matt. Just being honest