Ten Thoughts on the NFL and the Bears

1) On Sunday afternoon, the New Orleans Saints, led by quarterback Drew Brees, knocked off the previously unbeaten Los Angeles Rams 45-35. During that game, while watching Brees do his usual video-game numbers thing, I started to wonder why he’s rarely in the discussion for one of the best of all time. I get the ring thing, he only has one, so Tom Brady and Joe Montana edge him there, but should Brees be above Aaron Rodgers? What about Peyton Manning or Brett Favre?

Brees, like Rodgers and Favre “only” has one ring, and then there’s the whole dome thing, but Manning played 130 games in a dome or retractable roof stadium to 135 of them for for Brees.

So where would you put Brees when discussing the all-time greats?

2) I’m usually all for a good celebration after a touchdown, but don’t go so far that it gives your team a penalty. The NFL relaxed their celebration rule, but it’s not a free-for-all. Sticking a prop under the goal post is still a no-no.

What Michael Thomas did was funny, but giving away 15 yards on a kickoff is no laughing matter for coaches. “I wasn’t all that fired up about the penalty,” Saints’ head coach Sean Payton said. “We’ll get that all figured out and handled, but he had a good game.”

My guess is he, nor any other Saints, ever do this again this year.

3) When it comes to celebrations, I wonder how long it took to rehearse this one.

Even though Seattle’s celebration was well done, they still lost to the Los Angeles Chargers, who are 6-2 and right on the (7-1) Chiefs’ heels for the AFC West lead. The Chargers have won 5 straight games with three winnable games up next before a showdown with the Steelers in Pittsburgh on December 2nd. Their rematch against the Chiefs will come two weeks after that one.

4) Philip Rivers has now started 200 consecutive games at QB for the Chargers which puts him in elite company. Only Brett Farve (297), Eli Manning (210) and Peyton Manning (208) have more consecutive starts than Rivers.

5) The Pittsburgh Steelers have won 4 straight after a rocky start, and now they seemed primed to get holdout, and franchise tagged Le’Veon Bell back for their offense before the November 13th deadline to get paid for this season.

How big a boost will Bell give them as they try to stay on top of the AFC North?

6) The Atlanta Falcons have won three straight and have climbed back into the wildcard discussion. Key to their rebound from a 1-4 start is the play of quarterback Matt Ryan, who hasn’t throw for less than 350 yards in any of their last three games.

7) Speaking of good QB play, did you see what Nick Mullens did on Thursday night?

Wait a minute, let me back up... Did you know that Mullens was the starter at QB for the 49ers?

In his debut game, the former UDFA from Southern Miss went 16 of 22 passing for 262 yards and 3 TDs.

We are living in the golden age of quarterbacking!

Or are we...

8) From CBS Sports, “after throwing 3 INT and 0 TD today, Nathan Peterman’s career QB Rating IMPROVED from 20.8 to 30.7. “

And then there’s this nugget on Peterman.

More from Veronica, “Peterman got picked off three times today and his career interception percentage went DOWN, from 11.1% to 9.2%.”

I have no idea who this guy is that wrote this, but...

9) The Dallas Cowboys are a mess, and I’m here for it.

Hall of Famer, and Cowboy legend Troy Aikman recently gave his take on his former employer and he did not hold back. After going through the list of coaches the team has had since their last Super Bowl win, he said this;

“Go through the list and this team, over a long period of time, has been what it’s been,” Aikman said Tuesday on 1310 The Ticket. “It hasn’t always mattered who the head coach has been. So to me, if you’re asking me, I’d say there has to be a complete overhaul of the entire organization.”

Aikman points to the failures of ownership and does not hold back in the interview. Check it out in the link for more of the dysfunction.

10) For the 30th straight year, the Chicago Bears are holding their Jewel-Osco coat drive to benefit The Salvation Army. The coat drive is headed up by long time, head equipment manager Tony Medlin, and they are setting a goal to collect 25,000 new or gently used coats. All the info can be found in the video below, and you can also visit the Salvation Army website right here.

10a) I wanted to pass on one more item for a good cause that was started up by one of our long time readers. It’s a ticket resale site, but a portion of all sales go to charity, plus there are no service fees.

Check out TixBlitz for all the info, but here are the charities you can give to when you buy.

Camp One Step — a charity that allows children with cancer to attend camp and participate in empowering activities. Use the code “SCORE” at checkout and 25% of net proceeds are donated to Camp One Step. For additional information on Camp One Step, visit their website https://camponestep.org/.

The Cure Starts Now — Use promo code AUBREIGH and 25% of net proceeds will be donated to this charity. The Cure Starts Now represents something truly different. For us it’s not about fighting just one cancer, but the elimination of cancer as a whole. We believe as the experts do; that in order to truly cure cancer you have to focus on those cancers that are the biggest bullies like DIPG. The Cure Starts Now is the first cancer charity dedicated to this “homerun cure” – curing cancer, one child at a time. You can find out more at http://www.thecurestartsnow.org .

Pat Mac’s Pack — is a group of people dedicated to keeping the memory of Patrick Thomas McNamara alive through participation in service projects and fundraising efforts. Patrick was 13 when he died after an 11 year battle with a brain tumor. Use promo code WGN at checkout and we will donate 25% of net proceeds to this amazing organization. For more info, visit their website http://Patmacspack.org.

Dragon Boat Atlanta — a nonprofit organization committed to spreading breast cancer awareness. Use the code “DRAGON” at checkout to donate your proceeds to their cause. Visit http://www.dragonboatatlanta.US to find out more about their organization.