It’s your last chance to get caught up on the happenings at PFF before the next slate of games is upon us and our new ‘PFF Week’ posts provide quick access to the week that was. The ‘Out West' edition covers all things pertaining to the AFC and NFC West divisions for a one-stop Saturday shop built to keep you in the loop and on top of your football-watching game.
There is a saying in the NFL that the meek shall inherit the draft picks while the strong lead the divisions. That’s especially true with the teams from the AFC and NFC West this year as six of the eight teams enter Week 5 at .500 or better. The second place teams of San Francisco and Kansas City would give serious competition in the other six divisions for their titles. Want proof of the strength of the West right now? Then check out PFF’s Weekly Power Rankings and count up how many teams are in the upper half of the NFL that reside to the left of the Rocky Mountains.
Week 4 Wrap
This shift of power was readily apparent in last week’s games where the West went 5-1 in non-division games. The lone loss came largely due to some questionable coaching decisions and poor quarterback play by Oakland. Elsewhere the Broncos dominated the Eagles, San Diego got past the Cowboys and Seattle came from behind to force overtime and steal a win from the Texans. The Cardinals opted to stay in Florida to acclimate to the humidity and overcame some logistics issues to grind out a win vs. the struggling Bucs. Finally, the Chiefs resurrection continued behind Andy Reid as they poured salt into the wound now known as the Giants' 2013 season. The lone divisional matchup of the week was the 49ers getting back to basics at the expense of the Rams who are going through some growing pains at the skill positions right now. PFF’s ReFocused articles take you into the game and give a more informed view of how the matches were decided and the key battles within them.
San Francisco at St Louis (TNF) | Arizona at Tampa Bay | Seattle at Houston
Dallas at San Diego | NY Giants at Kansas City | Washington at Oakland | Philadelphia at Denver
Keeping things in context is key and PFF puts the week together like a puzzle so that readers can see what the big picture is and how it relates to their favorite teams. That includes PFF’s Team of the Week and an expanded Team of the Month section as well. While many players out of the West ended up on those esteemed lists there were also a few who finished on the PFF ‘Had a Bad Day Team’ as well but quite a few less than some other divisions though. Rookies generally don’t see a lot of time on good teams and as a result there is only one player mentioned in the Race for Rookie of the Year after Week 4 from the West. Ben Stockwell’s AFC Stock Report and NFC Stock Report are overviews of a player who is trending upwards and sliding downwards on their respective teams. Meanwhile, Nathan Jahnke’s 32 Observations this week offer the reader an interesting stat on each team’s rush attack at this point in the season.
Looking Ahead to Week 5
The action continues in Week 5 with the Seahawks hitting the road for the second straight week taking on the Colts. The Rams hope to get right via a visit from the Jaguars, while the Cardinals take on the Panthers returning from their bye week. San Francisco hosts the Texans on Sunday Night Football as they we wait and see if they go back to being a power rushing team full-time. Denver heads south to take on Dallas and the Chiefs look to take advantage of the Titans change at quarterback due to injury. The lone divisional matchup is between the Chargers and Raiders which has been moved to 11:30 pm est due to the MLB playoffs. More details are available for your enjoyment through the Three to Focus On page or you can just access your team’s game below.
Seattle at Indianapolis | Carolina at Arizona | Jacksonville at St Louis | Houston at San Francisco
Denver at Dallas | Kansas City at Tennessee | San Diego at Oakland
Interested in seeing how the PFF Analysts do this week in selecting the games? Then just click a short link to PFF’s Pick’em: Week 5 and see if you agree with their decisions.
Additionally…
– PFF’s Signature Stats are a cornerstone of its existence and Khaled Elsayed rolled out his initial look at Pass Rushing Productivity so far this season.
– Down and distance is said to dictate coverage but just what Offensive Packages teams take the field with also has something to do with it.
– This week’s Palazzolo’s Pitch highlights some enjoyable cornerback vs. receiver battles and how some of the big name tight ends are being deployed right now.
– How important are special teams? Important enough for owner/ founder Neil Hornsby to continue The Third Phase and bringing some behind the scene players to the forefront.
– Speaking of behind the scenes, Gordon McGuinness’ Secret Superstars article features a pair of players from the AFC West who have caught his eye with their play in Week 4.
– While it’s not covering anyone from the NFC/ AFC West Sam Monson’s Analysis Notebook on the Bills/ Browns game is an excellent and mandatory read for EVERY PFF follower. In it a basic but often used rushing play is covered with how it succeeds and how it can be countered. Savvy readers will be able to pick up just how often its applied on their team on both sides of the ball and get an insight into how successful they are running it themselves.
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