NFL Week Five: My Three Wishes

Some Defense, Somewhere

There's no doubt which side of the ball has been on top this season. On half a dozen occasions a team has scored over 30 points and still lost. Even in games where the QB has been sacked time and again, he's still manage to put a significant number of points on the board. Heck, even the Rams had a half time lead last Sunday and I've rarely seen a weaker offense in the NFL.

That offense has been so on top in the first month of the season cannot just be down to the narrowing gap at the top of the NFL, with both the Patriots and the Colts slipping from their dominant best. A number of teams out there seem to be operating on the basis of "If they score 30, we'll score 31". And it gets boring after a while, watching two offenses slug it out. There's more drama in a 17-16 win than there is in a 57-36 one. Let's have some defense back, please.

Dignity and Decorum return to Oakland.

I don't think I am alone in having been astonished at this week's events. Have you ever seen a more unpalatable, unworthy and frankly spiteful outburst by a team owner than Al Davis' against Lane Kiffin?

Davis seems to be alone in the world in thinking that the root cause of the problem in Oakland lies anywhere than with him. He's the owner and he's the general manager. He hires the coaches and boy, does he fire them. He seems to have no appreciation of the fact that the one constant in the Raiders' woeful last five seasons has been him and events of this week only gave the impression of a deluded old man clinging desperately to power.

Which is odd, because the last I heard there was no interest from anyone in taking over in Oakland, so Davis is likely to have the Raiders on his hands for many years to come. Which means that it is time for him to shut up, take some responsibility and accept that, when things go wrong, he's going to have to shoulder some of the blame.

No More Heritage Uniforms

How ridiculous did the Jets look last weekend? Guys, you ditched those kits for a reason. Please stop inflicting them upon us.