Best & Worst Of NFL Week Seven

Seven weeks into the NFL season and the unbeaten teams are no more. Minnesota suffers it's first loss of the year at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles. A rookie is tearing it up down in Miami, helping keep fellting hope alive for the Fins. Huge plays were the order of the weekend. In one case, a defensive struggle resulted in five straight turnovers as two quarterbacks engaged in a comedy of errors. In another game, a promising young safety broke loose with one of the craziest defensive touchdowns we’ve seen in a while. Sunday night lead to a lack of scoring and a tie between Arizona and Seattle. Matthew Stafford shows that he still has a little bit of life left in his game. Same thing can be said about Andrew Luck, who helped keep the Colts fleeting hopes alive. Same thing with Ryan Fitzpatrick with the Jets. So here we go, its the best and worst of week seven in the National Football League.

Best:
Jay Ajayi, Running Back Miami Dolphins
Talk about making a statement in your last couple of games. The second year running back out of Boise State has really been lighting up opposing defenses. Ajayi barely touched the ball the first four weeks, his workload picked a little in week five. Then last week, he broke the 200 yard mark. Guess what? He did it again this week. Ajayi had 28 carries for 214 yards and a touchdown in the Dolphins 28-25 win over the Bills. When you can pull something like that off, it puts you in rare air. Jay Ajayi joins OJ Simpson, Earl Campbell, Ricky Williams as only NFL players with back-to-back 200-yard rush games. He's done it twice, while no other running back in the entire league has hit the 200 yards mark once. Maybe the last two weeks, with a performance like this, could be a sign of things to come for the Miami Dolphins.

Worst:
Matt Ryan, Quarterback Atlanta Falcons
Don't get me wrong, on paper he had a solid day. Ryan went 22 of 34 for 273 yards and a touchdown. But he was sacked three times. That's not even the worst of it. San Diego pulled out a 33-30 win over the Falcons in Overtime on Sunday. Here's why I put Matty Ice here on this list. Ryan threw a crucial interception late in the game Sunday. He tried to force the ball to Julio Jones, which isn't too bad an idea conseidering Jones is one of the top receivers in the league and should be able to haul in the pass. I mean JOnes did have 9 catches for 174 yards in the game, the top numbers for any wide out in the league this week. But if your Matt Ryan in this case, its late in the game and there are three guys on him in the middle of the damn field. Jones had no chances of catching that ball and it cost the Falcons the game.

Best,
Matt Forte, Running Back New York Jets
I've been saying this the last couple of weeks now, they need to use this guy more and more then they have. He had 30 carries for 100 yards and a touchdown on the ground and he also caught 4 passes for 54 yards and another touchdown as the Jets snapped a four game losing streak, beating the Ravens 24-16. If you look at the work load that Forte has had the last few weeks, he hasn't really been used that often. Of the seven games, the Jets have really used Forte a lot in three games. They barely lost to the Bengals in week one, they beat the Bills week two and now the win on Sunday against the Ravens. Do you see the trend here? Memo to the Jets, use Matt Forte more often. The more you use Forte, maybe Ryan Fitzpatrick wouldn’t be forcing the ball into places he shouldn’t on a weekly basis.

Worst:
Geno Smith, Quarterback New York Jets
For some small, weird reason I almost feel bad for Geno. Almost. Geno lost his starting job last year due to his immaturity. Fitzpatrick has a fantastic year and the Jets just miss out on the playoffs. This year, Fitz is back and plays bad. I mean worse then Geno did at the start of his rookie year. So Geno gets named the starter for the Jets win over Baltimore on Sunday. He doesn't finish the game. It had nothing to do with a bad performance. He was 4 of 8 for 95 yards and a touchdown (69 of those yards came ona catch and run with Quincy Enunwa). But in the 2nd quarter, Geno was trying to avoid a sack, got hit wrong and blew out his ACL in his knee. His season is over, as is possibly his career with the Jets. Talk about a turblent run.

Best:
Andrew Luck, Quarterback Indianapolis Colts
Things didn't look good for the Colts on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans. Had the Titans held onto a lead, it would have dropped the Colts to 2-5 and made it impossible really to come back into the division and wild card race. Andrew Luck wouldn't let that happen. On third-and-13 in the fourth quarter, with the Colts trailing 23-20, Luck avoided the rush and made an unbelievable throw to Devin Street for 20 yards. Then, later in the drive, Luck found Jack Doyle in the end zone for a go-ahead touchdown. The Colts scored a defensive touchdown after that, and they won 34-26. Luck finished 27 of 39 for 353 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. While a 3-4 record isn’t ideal for the Colts, their quarterback always gives them some hope for better days ahead. Sunday was one of Luck’s finest days.

Worst:
Case Keenum, Quarterback Los Angeles Rams
Things really have been going from bad to worse for the Rams. Case Keenum has been playing bad football the last couple of weeks, look no further then the 17-10 loss in London Sunday to the Giants. Case went 32 of 53 for 291 yards and a touchdown. Here's the downside to his performance. He got sacked three times and he threw four interceptions. Four picks is just awful. Can't be happening at this level for a guy who might have this level of talent. After the game, head coach Jeff Fisher wouldn’t even fathom the idea of benching Keenum. Instead, he placed more blame on his receiving corps. I'm not totally sold on that. I say it might not be such a bad idea to have Jared Geoff ready to go if Keenum struggles again.

Best:
Marquette King, Punter Oakland Raiders
Punters, they have more skills then you think. Look at what King did in the Raiders win over the Jags on Sunday. He was setting up for a punt ion the fourth quarter. He got the ball and expected a block to be coming. He flubbed the snap, picked the ball up and just ran with it. And he ran fast. The 27-yard gain was the low point of a bad day for the Jaguars (more on them in a bit) but a fun highlight for a Raiders team that is 5-2 and the only NFL team that has banked four road wins.

Worst:
Stephen Gostkowski, Kicker New England Patriots
Its strange, the Patriots are playing good football right now, but one of their best and most reliable players, isn't playing all that well at the moment. Sure New England beat up on Pittsburgh, walking away with a 27-16 victory, but Stephen Gostkowski had an off night, at least by his standards. Gostkowski missed an extra point on Sunday, the fourth he has missed this season. He has also missed three field-goal attempts, and if his 75 percent mark on field goals holds, it would be the worst of his career. The good news is none of his kicks have cost the Patriots a game. A bit of an unexpected slump for one of the best kickers in football.

Best:
Matthew Stafford, Quarterback, Detroit Lions
I think its safe to say that Matthew Stafford is pretty good at leading a group of cardiac kids in Detroit. The Lions pulled out a 20-17 victory. He was sacked three times, and finished the day going 18 of 29 for 266 yards and a touchdown. Average numbers for a guy of his talent. But here's why he was put here on the list. Washington had kept him in check most of the day. But the Lions had one last drive left in them down by three. They needed to go 75 yards to get down the field and score. Stafford did that, connecting on four of five passes on that drive, including his game winning score to Anquan Boldin. Detroit started the year off losing three of their first four games, now they're 4-3 and Stafford has lead the team down the field on game winning drives each of the last two weeks.

Worst:
Gus Bradley, Head Coach Jacksonville Jaguars
This was supposed to be the year for the Jaguars. They had the pieces in place. Blake Bortles looked like he could have something to work with on offense. He had Chris Ivory behind him in the backfield, he had Allen Hurns and Allen Robinson to throw to. On paper, the defense looked like they could hold their own and maybe have the Jags challenging for a Wild Card spot in the AFC. That hasn't happened. Last week, the Jags were trounced by the Raiders, losing 33-16. Sunday’s loss to Oakland featured three turnovers and 13 penalties for 122 yards. The Jaguars now feature a minus-seven turnover mark. You just cannot win with that formula. On more then one occasion this season, Gus Bradley has been put on the hot seat. Nearly at the midway point of the season, we’re as convinced as ever before that he is not going to provide the answers this franchise needs to troubleshoot out of the mire.

World Series Preview

At long last, the final battle has arrived. Major League Baseball is now set to crown a world champion in the sport. After 162 regular season games, a wild card game, the divisional round and league championship, we have arrived at the summit of the baseball season. In a little over a week, we will determine who the best baseball team in the world is for the 2016 season. Post season play began three weeks ago with ten teams fighting it out for the right to be the best team in the world. We've come down to the final two teams, which also just so happen to be the two teams in baseball with the longest world championship droughts. So enough talk, lets break it down.

For the 112th time, the American League Champions battle the National League Champions. This years World Series pits the American League Central winners, the Cleveland Indians, taking on the National League Central Champions, the Chicago Cubs. Cleveland has home field advantage in this series by way of the American League winning the All Star Game back in July. This matchup features the two franchises with the longest World Series title droughts, a combined 176 years without a championship. The previous longest combined drought was 132 years in 2005 between the Chicago White Sox (88 years) and the Houston Astros (44 years).

The Indians will make their sixth appearance in the World Series. They won their first two world championships, in 1920 against the Brooklyn Robins, and in 1948 against the Boston Braves. They lost their three most recent appearances in the Fall Classic, losing to the New York Giants in 1954, the Atlanta Braves in 1995, and the Florida Marlins in 1997. Cleveland qualified for the postseason by winning the Central (their eighth division title and their first since 2007) with a 94-67 record. They defeated the Boston Red Sox in three games of the American League Division Series, before clinching the pennant with a five-game victory over the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Championship Series. Tribe Manager Terry Francona, is managing in his 3rd World Series, winning World Series championships in 2004 and 2007 with the Red Sox.

The Cubs will make their 11th appearance in the modern World Series (since 1903). They won two world championships in 1907 and 1908, both against the Detroit Tigers. They lost their eight other appearances, in 1906 against the Chicago White Sox, in 1910 against the Philadelphia Athletics, in 1918 against the Boston Red Sox, in 1929 against the Athletics, in 1932 against the New York Yankees, in 1935 against the Tigers, in 1938 against the Yankees, and in 1945 against the Tigers. Chicago qualified for the postseason by winning the Central (their sixth division title and their first since 2008) with a 103-58 record. They defeated the San Francisco Giants in four games of the 2016 National League Division Series, before clinching their first National League pennant since 1945 with a six-game victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Cubs manager Joe Maddon is managing in his 2nd World Series, his first was with the Tampa Bay Rays when they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in 2008. Ironically, in 2008, his Rays beat Terry Francona's Boston Red Sox to win the AL Pennant.

Here's the date and times for every game in this series:
October 25 Chicago Cubs @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 8:08 pm
October 26 Chicago Cubs @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 8:08 pm
October 28 Cleveland Indians @ Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field 8:08 pm
October 29 Cleveland Indians @ Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field 8:08 pm
October 30* Cleveland Indians @ Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field 8:15 pm
November 1* Chicago Cubs @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 8:08 pm
November 2* Chicago Cubs @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 8:08 pm

Talk about long waiting franchises. Cleveland hasn't won since 48 and the Cubs haven't seen the series since 45. So both teams are due and something has to break in this series. So lets see who really has the edge in this series. It's going to to be a split in terms of the pitching staffs. No doubt about it, the Indians have the better relief pitching. Cleveland has had a stellar pen this post season, with ALCS MVP Andrew Miller and Cody Allen looking great over the last three weeks. Terry Francona has had no issues going to Miller and Allen over extended innings if he so needs to.Its worked for him so far, and if its not broke don't fix it. Sure, Chicago has a good pen in its own right, as Aroldis Chapman could be lights out this playoffs, but he has looked a little shaky at times.

Cleveland has a good pen, but that's if they can even get those guys the ball with a lead. Starting pitching has to go in favor of Chicago. Cleveland could get Danny Salazar back in time for Game 3 or 4 in Chicago, but who knows yet, its not set in stone, due to his injury. Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer and Josh Tomlin get the nod to start the series on the hill for the Tribe, so they're off to a decent start. Chicago is going with John Lester, Jake Arrieta, Kyle Hendricks and John Lacky to start the series. On paper, the Cubs hold the advantage, but don't count out the Tribe pitching staff, the did dispatch the two best offensive teams in the American League to get here.

Defense and hitting are just as important in this series as pitching. Chicago has a better infield then Cleveland does, except in one spot. Coming from 2nd base, Javier Baez has been a very nice surprise for the Cubs this year. But Jason Kipnis is a slightly better defender, slightly better hitter and draws more walks then Baez does. You can also make the argument for Francisco Lindor over Addison Russell at short as well, another close call. Lindor has been phenominal all playoffs, often times stealing the show with his glove. He really has been a great joy to watch play so far in the playoffs, no disrespect to Addison Russell. In the Outfield, if your the Cubs, the only one who has been a worry has been Jason Heyward. Heyward has looked completely lost at the plate, to the point that Maddon even benched him in Game 6 of the NLCS. For a guy who's had so much hype surrounding him (and with good reason at the start of his career why not), he has really come down to earth as of late. He's the only one in that Cubs outfield, or lineup as a whole for that matter, that's looked uncomfortable in this playoffs.

Chicago is hitting .222 as a team, while Cleveland is hitting .208. Chicago has also driven in twenty more runs then the Indians have, granted they've had to play more games because the Indians won both of their series in a two fewer games. Also the Indians have had a week off since closing out the Blue Jays, which could hurt their chances and cool them down a little. Same thing happened to the Detroit Tigers in 2012, they swept the Yankees in the ALCS, then got swept by the Giants in the World Series (granted the Giants were red hot at the time but still).

Cleveland can hold up with starting pitching and that bullpen is outstanding. But here's the problem. Chicago is too good and too deep a lineup. The Indians can run the bases sure, that's what most good teams need to do to be a success in the playoffs. I just think the Cubs are going to be too good. Almost didn't look that way against the Dodgers in the NLCS, but still Chicago is too talented and too deep a team to come up short. I know I picked against the Tribe in the last two rounds and they have proved me wrong. Maybe they'll do it again now. Then again maybe not.

Prediction: Chicago Cubs in 6!

Best & Worst Of NFL Week Six

We've hit the six week mark in the National Football league season. And talk about an up and down kinda week. Buffalo is getting hot managing to win four straight, the Bears can't hold a lead in a football game and now sit at 1-5. Cleveland is still winless, no shocker there. The Jets hit a new low getting blasted on Monday night by the Cardinals, meanwhile the Giants managed to show up and win a game in dramatic fashion against the Ravens. There was a little bit of everything this week, what with Pittsburgh getting upended by the Dolphins. Atlanta, who had been one of the hottest teams in existence the last few weeks, blow a 17-3 lead to Seattle and lose by two points. Dallas, lead by Dak, outplayed Rogers and the Packers in a good football game. Oh yeah and Vontaze Burfict shows how much of a moron he is. All that and more made up week six in the NFL. Here's some of the best and worst from the week that was.

Best:
Jay Ajayi, Running Back Miami Dolphins
If you're a Dolphins fan, there haven’t been many bright spots this seas season up to this point. Sunday, the team picked up its second win after defeating the Steelers 30-15. Sunday's breakout star was running back Jay Ajayi, who amassed 204 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries. He took advantage of stellar blocking up front from Miami’s top-five offensive linemen, who were on the field together for the first-time this season. It appeared to make all the difference in the world as Ajayi cruised to his first game of rushing for more than 100 yards. He averaged a stunning 8.2 yards per carry, including a 62-yard scamper with less than a minute to go in the ballgame. That 62 yard run put the nail in the Steelers’ coffin for good Sunday.

Worst:
Vontaze Burfict, Linebacker Cincinnati Bengals
As if this guy didn't cause enough trouble last year in the playoff against the Steelers. He missed the first three games of this year because of his stupidity with the hit on Antonio Brown. So he's been back now for three games from that suspension, and he's back at it again. During the 4th quarter of the Patriots win over the Bengals, Burfict dove low at Patriots tight end Martellus Bennett’s knee/ankle and may have also intentionally stepped on Patriots running back LeGarrette Blount’s leg. The league is reviewing both incidents. Burfict has long lost the benefit of the doubt. He was standing upright when a pass came Bennett’s way and went low, made contact at the knee, and didn’t attempt to wrap him up. If fines and suspensions don’t get through to him, maybe nothing will.

Best:
Odell Beckham Jr, Wide Receiver New York Giants
For all the antics and crap that the guy has done on the sidelines and all that other stuff, people seem to forget that he is a talented wide receiver and maybe one of the top three wide outs in the game today. The last couple of weeks, Odell's numbers had been low, failing to break the 100 yard mark in a game since week three against Washington. In fact, that game against the Redskins was the only game through the first five in which he had over 100 yards. That changed in week six in the 27-23 win over the Ravens. He had eight catches for 222 yards and a pair of touchdowns, the last one was the score that put the Giants ahead for good in the ballgame. Hell the 222 yards in this game accounted for almost half of his total production for the year. Sure he may have been a little bit banged up but he was good enough to help the Giants snap their three game losing skid and get back on track. Now the question is can he keep this performance up in London Sunday morning against the Rams?

Worst:
Indianapolis Colts Defense
How the hell did Indy blow this football game? You'd like to think that if a team has a lead that they would be able to hold it together right? I mean think about it. Indy kept Brock Oswiler in check most of the game. He'd looked shaky the last couple of weeks. During the bulk of the ballgame, Brock had only managed 113 passing yards on the day. Indy had a two touchdown lead when we hit the final seven minutes of that football game. It all fell apart from there. Osweiler to tally 156 yards on 14-of-17 passing and lead the Houston Texans on a 17-0 scoring run to close out the game in overtime. The collapse of Indianapolis can be seen in the final touchdown pass from Osweiler to tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz. Safety Mike Adams just whiffs past the tight end, who ends up strolling into the end zone without being challenged. The Colts should have won this one, they had the ballgame, THEY HAD IT! But an utter collapse by the defense in the final minutes of the game allowed the Texans to steal the win.

Best:
LeSean McCoy, Running Back Buffalo Bills
Shady McCoy had been one of the top running backs in all of football a few years ago when he was playing with the Eagles. He hasn't quite been that same back since, but we saw flashes of it on Sunday in the Bills 45-16 win over the 49ers. Buffalo ran wild against the 49ers defense, totaling 312 yards and four scores. Oh yeah, three of those scores came from LeSean McCoy, who had 140 yards on 19 carries to go along with those three scores. He helped open things up for Tyrod Taylor to throw for two scores as well. It was total domination by the Bills and it was a big screw you from McCoy to his former coach in Chip Kelly, who traded him away from the Eagles while he was still running the ship in Philly.

Worst:
Ben Roethlisberger, Quarterback Pittsburgh Steelers
It was a bad day for football in the Steel City. Nont only did a rookie run you over, but Big Ben had a bad day. Not only did he tear his meniscus, but he was beat by the lowly Miami Dolphins. They left him limping and hobbling to the locker room after hyperextending his knee on a scramble that led to his first interception of the day. After the game, Roethlisberger was seen with ice on both knees and a bruise in the middle of his back. Sunday’s contest was easily Big Ben’s worst outing of the season as he was held to just 19 of 34 passing for 189 yards, one touchdown and two picks. Not good for the Steelers.

Best:
Rob Gronkowski, Tight End New England Patriots
The best tight end in the game is back and with a bang. I know he missed time with an injury, but his first couple games back on the field, he didn't look all that comfortable. Then Brady comes back and its like the light switch went on for Gronk. Brady had a good game, throwing for 376 yards and three scores in the Patriots 35-17 win over the Bengals. His favorite target in this ball game, no surprise here, was his big tight end. Gronk hauled in more yardage than any game in his remarkable career, he caught seven passes for 162 yards and caught his first touchdown of the season. Gronk's back, so is Brady, and the Pats look like themselves again. They're going to be a tough team to beat.

Worst:
Julio Jones, Wide Receiver Atlanta Falcons
Jones had a monster week two weeks ago when he had that 300 yard day. Last week he was held to just two catches for 29 yards. This week was a bit more of a bounce back week, as he finished with 7 catches for 139 yards and a touchdown. But how can he be in the worst department with those kinda numbers? Because he had a bad drop in the Seattle loss, but he and the Falcons got robbed on the no-call late in the fourth. Jones, a superstar, is supposed to get those calls, even late in the game. Both Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas III were hanging on him as the ball came down.

2016-17 NHL Season Preview

October has arrived and it can mean a lot of things to a lot of people. Changing of the leaves. Pumpkin flavored everything. Long sleeve weather. Oh yeah, and the start of a brand spanking new hockey season. The National Hockey League is back and ready to roll for the 2016-17 season. Pittsburgh is coming off its 4th Stanley Cup title in team history, while the San Jose Sharks are looking to get back to the finals for the 2nd time ever. The Edmonton Oilers kick off their first season at Rogers Place, playing their first games ever in a  home building other than Northlands Coliseum. The team will play its first regular season home game on October 12, 2016, against Calgary It will also be the Detroit Red Wings' final season at Joe Louis Arena before moving into their new arena, Little Caesars Arena, in time for the 2017–18 NHL season.

There will be some new faces in new places heading into the new year. Anaheim (Randy Carlyle), Calgary (Glen Gulutzan), Colorado (Jared Bednar), Minnesota (Bruce Boudreau), and Ottawa (Guy Boucher) all have new head coaches going into this year. Then we have some players that have decided to switch cities. PK Subban was traded to Nashville, sending Shea Weber to Montreal. St. Louis picked up Neil Yakapov from the Oilers for draft picks. Anaheim picked up Jonathan Bernier from Toronto, while Brian Elliott gets shipped from the Blues to the Flames. Oh and Taylor Hall went to New Jersey from Edmonton. When the regular season opens, more players will have new places to call home. Milan Lucic (Edmonton), James Reimer (Florida), Andrew Ladd (Islanders), David Perron (St. Louis), David Backes (Boston), Kyle Okposo (Buffalo), Eric Staal (Minnesota), Vernon Fiddler (New Jersey), Justin Falk (Buffalo), Thomas Vanek (Detroit), and Jiri Hudler (Dallas), among others, have jumped ship to new clubs.

It's the centennial year for the league, now celebrating it's 100th year in operation as a league, so it should lead for one hell of a hockey season. To help with the celebration, the NHL is playing four outdoor games this year. The Winnipeg Jets will host the 2016 Heritage Classic against the Edmonton Oilers at Investors Group Field on October 23. The Toronto Maple Leafs will host the Centennial Classic at BMO Field on January 1, 2017, against the Detroit Red Wings. The game will commemorate the 100th season of the Maple Leafs and NHL as a whole. The following Monday, January 2, the St. Louis Blues will host the Winter Classic at Busch Stadium against the Chicago Blackhawks. Finally, on February 25, 2017, the Pittsburgh Penguins will host the Philadelphia Flyers at Heinz Field for the Stadium Series game.[21]

No more fluffy, here's what you came to read. Lets get right into it. Here's how the 2016-17 NHL Season goes down.

Western Conference
Central Division:
1. Chicago Blackhawks (107 Points)*
This could be sounding like a possible broken record here, but man the Hawks are good and going to be hard to beat. Corey Crawford is going to be Mr. Reliable in the Hawks net once again this year. Chicago made a major addition on the blueline, adding Brian Campbell to support stars Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook and give the Hawks a tremendous top four (along with Niklas Hjalmarsson). Chicago did lose Andrew Shaw and Andrew Ladd to in the offseason, but they still have plenty of talent left to work with on offense. They still have the league MVP in Patrick Kane, the rookie of the year in Artemi Panarin, and of course are lead by captain Jonathan Toews. Even with a more questionable bottom six forwards, the top six should provide enough to get them into the playoffs and capable of a deep run that could include a deep playoff run.

2. Dallas Stars (106 Points)*
Dallas is going to once again be a force in the Western Conference. They actually finished with the best record in the West last year, with 109 points and did it without Tyler Seguin most of the year due to injury. A big reason for that is the goaltending duo of Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen. Despite losing Alex Goligoski and Jason Demers in the offseason, the group appears stronger defensively thanks to the addition of Dan Hamhuis and a promising performance from Stephen Johns down the stretch and into the playoffs. They make take a bit of a step back this year, but with Seguin and captain Jamie Benn leading the charge for the best offensive in the league last year, they should be just fine and in line for that deep run into the playoffs.

3. Nashville Predators (100 Points)*
This might be a bit of a backwards step for the Predators this season. They traded away their captain and team leader, Shea Weber, to Montreal in exchange for PK Subban. Subban is a very good all around hockey player, nothing against him in that regards. Only thing against Subban is, he isn't quite the same leader that Weber is. But with the style of play coach Peter Laviolette likes to utalize, Subban will be a great fit on that Preds blueline. Nashville can still ride their top goalie Pekka Rinne to another fantastic run this year. Ryan Ellis, Roman Josi, P. K. Subban, and Yannick Weber make up a fine top four defensive pairing. Ryan Johansen, Craig Smith, Filip Forsberg and Calle Jarnkrok are all getting better and joining guys like Mike Fisher (new team captain) and James Neal at the next level. Nashville should be in great shape to, at worst case scenario, get back to the 2nd round of the playoffs.

4. St. Louis Blues (99 Points) (WC)
As good as St Louis has been the last couple of seasons, they are going to take a step backwards this year. St. Louis lost a lot in the offseason. They traded away goalies Brian Elliott and Anders Nilsson, and lost David Backes, Troy Brouwer, and Steve Ott to free agency. Three core guys from the playoff run last year are gone. St Louis has impressive defensive group and some talented forwards led by superstar Vladimir Tarasenko. David Perron was added to help bolster the offense a little, and to replace Elliott in net, Carter Hutton will work decently with Jake Allen in goal. This means the Blues have the potential to make it back to where they fell short last spring. They can't be counted at as a potential Cup winner, but they will try to give coach Ken Hitchcock a storybook ending in his final season.

5. Minnesota Wild (98 Points) (WC)
Bruce Boudreau has a bit of an undertaking here in trying to get the Wild back to the level they are used to in Minnesota. Adding a guy like Eric Staal to the lineup in Minnesota could be huge. Only thing you could knock against Eric Staal is that his offensive production numbers have gone down, and his point per game pace that he had in his younger days in Carolina are well gone. Solid goaltending with Kemper and Dubnyk make the Wild feel a little bit more secure. Ryan Sutter is coming off a career best year on the blueline a season ago, so he should be back to top form again this season. On offense, Minnesota is hoping that Zach Parise can come back from his injury filled year last year and be a productive force once again, just like he was when they signed him. Mikko Koivu is expected to have another good year, as is Erik Haula. For Minnesota to take that next step, they need Charlie Coyle, Mikael Granlund, Nino Niederreiter and Jason Zucker into consistent threats. They are close to doing it.

6. Winnipeg Jets (97 points)
Talk about a team making a jump, i can see the Jets being that team. Last year, Winnipeg just missed out on the playoffs, they couldn't catch a break in regards to trying to get in. Michael Hutchinson and Ondrej Pavelec are going to be counted on again in net, but if they fault, Connor Hellebuyck is ready to take playing time and run like crazy with it. Dustin Byfuglien and Tyler Meyers are expected to anchor the blueline once again this season. Injuries are what killed the Jets last year, but this year thbey are healthy and ready to rock on offense. Blake Wheeler lead the team in scoring last year and will do it again this year. Mark Scheifele and Nikolaj Ehlers will both be expected to improve off good scoring numbers from last year. The core hasn't changed much since the playoff appearance two years ago. The addition of rookie Patrik Laine, the second-overall pick from last spring, and more internal growth should lead to a strong run at the postseason.


7. Colorado Avalanche (79 Points)
Could be another long season in Denver. Not a single player on the Colorado Avalanche roster had 60 points last year. The team has missed the playoffs in five of the last six seasons and dropped eight points from a 90-point campaign in 2014-15 to 82 in 2015-16. New head coach Jared Bednar has some interesting pieces to work with this year. This year's defensive group of Francois Beauchemin, Erik Johnson, Tyson Barrie, Nikita Zadorov, Eric Gelinas, Fedor Tyutin, Chris Bigras and Patrick Wiercioch is the deepest they've had in years. Semyon Varlamov needs to get back to his old form, because lets face facts he wasn't great last year. Gabriel Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon, and Matt Duchene are going to need help from a supporting cast this season if the Avs hope to bring themselves back to some sense of normal for a team that's always had such high expectation.

Pacific Division
1. San Jose Sharks (103 Points)*
The defending Western Conference champions are going to be back in the thick of things again this year. Going with Martin Jones is a great move, he was brilliant for the Sharks last year in the playoffs. Only thing I might even question is who's behind him I mean the Sharks did give up James Reimer to the Panthers as a free agent and are now going with Aaron Dell as the backup netminder, which could be a problem if anything happens to Jones. So it leaves one to wonder just a little bit. But the Sharks are still deep enough that they can be able to compensate for it. Brent Burns, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and newly added David Schlemko make a solid top three for the Sharks. Oh yeah, they're also one of the deeper offensive teams in the league. adding a guy like Mikkel Boedker in free agency is a huge help, and this team has plenty of options for line combinations to create a deadly top nine and a very worthy fourth trio that could capitalize on matchups. San Jose may be one of the most balanced teams in all the West.

2. Anaheim Ducks (99 Points)*
Another good season should be ahead in Anaheim. I know they've won four straight division titles but they may take a slight step back this year. Goaltending is there. John Gibson and recently added Jonathan Bernier are going to make a fine one two punch in goal, in fact this maybe the best one two punch in the division. They lost some good players this offseason, guys like Jamie McGinn, Chris Stewart, and David Perron, so depth was hit a little bit. They did retool a little by adding guys like Jared Boll, Mason Raymond, and Antoine Vermette, all of which could be huge moves. One of the big knocks against the Ducks last year was lack of secondary scoring behind Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf. Still expect the Ducks to be a solid team once again this season.

3. Los Angeles Kings (98 Points)*
This is a bit of a surprise but the Kings will be able to get back into the playoffs again this year. I know they took a big hit when Milan Lucic left town in free agency, so that does leave a hole in the Kings lineup. They had a lack of scoring last year and it may rear its head again this year. But the Kings are still a good team. They have great goaltending in Jonathan Quick, Peter Budaj and even Jeff Zatkoff. Los Angeles also has solid defense lead by Drew Doughty, Jake Muzzin and Alec Martinez. Anze Kopitar took over as Captain from Dustin Brown and should make an awesome leader. Marian Gaborik, Jeff Carter Devin Setoguchi are expected to join Kopitar as the leaders on offense of this Kings squad. It might not blow everybody away but it will be good enough to get back into the playoffs once again.

4. Calgary Flames (97 Points)
This team may have something to work with, but right now its just not in place. Both of their goalies, Brian Elliott and Chad Johnson came by way of free agency and leave a little to be desired. Elliott has played more than 50 games in a season just twice in eight seasons and will likely get a good 60 or so this year. Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton, Jyrki Jokipakka, and T. J. Brodie make up a pretty good top four on the blueline. Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, and Troy Brouwer are going to be expected to lead a charge of a solid offensive hockey team. It won't be the same that it was two years ago when the Flames made the playoffs, but they are back heading in the right direction.

5. Arizona Coyotes (89 Points)
For each of the last four seasons, the Arizona Coyotes have missed out on the playoffs. I don't see that trend getting broken this year sadly, but the Yotes are making steps in the right direction. Max Domi and Anthony Duclair both played quite well last year and will be counted on to not only duplicate, but improve upon from those numbers a year ago. Captain Shane Doan is coming back as a mentor and traded for Alex Goligoski. Mike Smith needs to come back to form and stay healthy if they are going to stand a chance, although Louis Domingue is a serviceable backup. Adding talented players like Luke Schenn, Radim Vrbata and Jamie McGinn helps add depth to a team that could have some working talent to go with and make a little noise in the West.

6. Edmonton Oilers (86 Points)
Some of the bottom feeding days in Edmonton maybe starting to pay off. Moving into a new arena, Rogers Place, helps usher in a new era of Oilers hockey. Edmonton was the worst team in the West a season ago, but now they may very well be on the move up. Sure they traded away Taylor Hall to the Devils in exchange for Adam Larsson, a move which some question but could turn out to be a good thing for both teams. What has me a little puzzled with Edmonton is that they're relying on Jonas Gustavsson and Cam Talbot to tend goal, something that has been a bit of a weakspot for this team. Adding power forward Milan Lucic shifts the culture as the Oilers look to get more intensely competitive. If all goes well and Connor McDavid stays healthy, the team could make a massive jump and be a surprise playoff qualifier.

7. Vancouver Canucks (80 Points)
Vancouver has slipped over the last few years and I don't see it getting better right now out in Western Canada. Vancouver lost a lot of talent in the offseason, seeing Dan Hamhuis, Yannick Weber, Linden Vey, Radim Vrbata, Brandon Prust, Chris Higgins, and Matt Bartkowsk all bolt town. So they went out and added Loui Eriksson in free agency. Eriksson has history with the Sedin twins in international play and had a 30-goal, 63-point season with the Boston Bruins last year. They still have Ryan miller in Net, who is still a solid goalie, but they don't have much else to work around. Its going to be a long year in Vancouver.

Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
1. Tampa Bay Lightning (106 Points)*
Things are going to look good, I mean really good down in Tampa this season. This offseason, General Manager Steve Yzerman spent a lot of money to keep his core players in tact. Vladislav Namestnikov, Nikita Nesterov, Nikita Kucherov, Alex Killorn, Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman, among others, all got new long term deals. Smart thinking by Yzerman. Tampa made it to the Cup finals two years ago and the East finals last year. Ben Bishop has beomce one of the elite netminders in the league, as has Victor Hedman on the blueline. Steven Stamkos is a premire forward in this league, and that's putting it mildly. Tampa is good, they're deep and they're going to be the best team in the East this season.

2 Florida Panthers (101 Points)*
Talk about a team making a quick move up the ladder. Not too many people expected the youth movement in Florida to catch on quickly, but it did, and will keep going this year. Florida added some big pieces. They signed James Reimer to a long term deal, making him heir apparent to Roberto Luongo in net. They brought in Keith Yandle and Jason Demers to bolster a decent defense. On Offense, Jaromir Jagr is going to be leading the charge. Jonathan Marchessault came over from, Tampa to help bolster the offense along with Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov, Vincent Trocheck, and Reilly Smith, the offense is going to be balanced in Florida. Watch out for the Panthers this year.

3. Montreal Canadiens (100 Points)*
A few changes have been made to one of the oldest franchises in the league. Swapping P.K. Subban's offensive upside for Shea Weber's gritty and physical play in his own end could pay off in the short term as far as being a cup contending team is concerned. Al Montoya was brought in as a solid backup to Carey Price, who is going to be the big concern for the Habs this season. Montreal goes as Price goes. Price was off to a hot start last year, and once he got hurt, the Habs tanked. Montreal still has a good all around team, with guys like Andrei Markov, Alex Galchenyuk, Tomas Plekanec, Max Pacioretty, and Brendan Gallagher among others. Montreal has the talent, Price health depending, to get back to the playoffs.

4. Boston Bruins (90 Points)
The last two seasons haven't been kind to the Bruins, as they've missed the playoffs each of the last two years. Boston has plenty of talent to be able to put the puck in the net up front. Sure losing Loui Erikson and Lee Stepniak is a bit of a blow, but when you consider the fact that the Bruins still have Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand, David Krejci, and they added in guys like David Backes, Boston shouldn't really have a problem with scoring. It's the blueline that has me worried in Beantown. Outside John-Michael Liles and Zedeno Chara, maybe even Torey Krug, you don't know what your going to get from the Boston defense every night. Tuukka Rask is a very capable goalie, but last year, he posted his worst save percentage in his seven pro years. So it leaves something to be desired. Still i think Boston has enough to at least make a run at it.

5. Detroit Red Wings (88 Points)
Well this is the end of the line. For the first time since the 1989-90 season, the Detroit Red Wings are going to miss out on postseason play. Pavel Datsyuk left home to play in Russia, and Brad Richards called it a career. Jimmy Howard and Petr Mrazek can do a fine job of keeping the Wings in a lot of games this season, but the blueline in front of them leaves a little to be desired. Outside of the top four in Danny DeKeyser, Jonathan Ericsson, Mike Green, and Niklas Kronwall, it really makes you wonder. Detroit did try and reload on offense this year with Datsyuk gone. Frans Nielsen, Thomas Vanek, and Steve Ott were brought on board to help out Henrik Zetterberg, Justin Abdelkader, Gustav Nyquist and Johan Franzen. Detroit might be able to pull something out of the hat to keep the streak going, but it doesn't look good.

6. Buffalo Sabres (86 points)
This is a team that's finally starting to swing in the right direction. They lost Chad Johnson in net but they have Robin Lehner and Anders Nilsson, which might not be a bad one two punch. They aren't going to steal the show like other goalies in this division, but they're solid never the less. Justin Faulk was brought in late to bolster the defense, which was a good move adding him to play with Zach Bogosian, Josh Gorges, and Rasmus Ristolainen. Jack Eichel still the key cog in the offense, so to help him out they brought in Kyle Okposo. Those two guys along with Brian Gionta, Evander Kane, Matt Moulson (if he shows up and produces), Ryan O'Reilly and Tyler Ennis can help put Buffalo in a better place for the future. This year, they still miss the playoffs.

7. Ottawa Senators (78 Points)
Canada's Capital has had a tough go since it snuck into the playoffs two years ago thanks to Andrew Hammond. He's still in Ottawa, but is playing second fiddle to Craig Anderson. The big problem with Ottawa is they're an old team and getting older. They swapped young center Mika Zibanejad for Derick Brassard. They also brought back veteran grinder Chris Kelly, who can play important minutes on the penalty kill and in defensive situations. They're hoping a healthy team of veterans can make a run, but just making it back to the playoffs would be a big improvement.

8. Toronto Maple Leafs (75 Points)
The rebuild is still on in Toronto. Yes its the 100th year of the franchise, and yes the have the top pick from the draft Auston Matthews in the lineup, but that's not going to promise them getting more wins. They had 29 wins and 69 points last year, the worst numbers in the league. Frederik Andersen and Jhonas Enroth were both brought in to tend goal but its not going to help. Toronto isn't going to magically become playoff contenders overnight. They've got some nice pieces but its not enough to get them in.

Metropolitan Division
1. Pittsburgh Penguins (109 Points)*
They are the defending Stanley Cup Champions and have a decent shot to become the first back to back champions in the last twenty years. Its practically the same exact roster the Penguins had a year ago when they won the whole thing, so what's to say they can't do it again. The only real area of weakness for the Penguins is on the blue line, where they depend heavily on Kris Letang for big minutes and offensive contributions. The loss of veteran Ben Lovejoy in free agency puts more pressure on younger players like Olli Maatta, Derrick Pouliot and Brian Dumoulin to be more sound in the defensive zone as well. If the group struggles in front of expected new full-time starter Matt Murray in goal, the team could drop from sixth place in goals against and in turn lose home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

2. Washington Capitals (106 Points)*
The argument made above for the Penguins, you can make for the Capitals as well. This team did just win the Presidents Trophy as the best team in hockey last year. The only major piece the caps lost was Jason Chimera, who signed with the Islanders over the summer. So to make up for it, they added guys like Lars Eller and Brett Connolly to strengthen the forward depth. The team is loaded and should be a top regular-season club. The biggest question that still hangs over the heads of the Capitals is can they finally get over that hump and get passed the 2nd round? They haven't gotten that far since 1998? Can this finally be the year that Alex Ovechkin takes them to the promise land?

3. New York Rangers (100 Points)*
This year, the Rangers kick off their 90th season. Last year, they were bounced in the first round by the Penguins. The Boys from Broadway have done a little bit of retooling since the end of last season. Despite the trade that sent Derick Brassard to Ottawa for the younger Mika Zibanejad and the loss of defenseman Keith Yandle, the Rangers core is largely the same. They added a little more speed by adding Zibanejad, Michael Grabner and Nathan Gerbe. Adding those guys makes the Rangers look capable of rolling four lines that can create mismatches. Jimmy Vesey signed out of college adds yet another element which could make them a dangerous team. If Henrik Lundqvist can keep performing at a top level, the team will be a threat to represent the East.

4. Philadelphia Flyers (97 Points) (WC)
This team is going to be sneaky good. As a matter of fact they were last year too, thanks to their young blueline lead by Shayne Gostisbehere. They still have veterans like Mark Strei and Radko Gudas. Young guys like Brandon Manning and newcomer Ivan Provorov could help the Philly goaltending. Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth could be the ones in net to help the Flyers. If things fall apart fast on the blueline they could be relied on more then in years past. Philly has talent on offense. Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek, Wayne Simmonds and Brayden Schenn carry the team offensively and the supporting cast hasn't shown an ability to produce at a higher level. This team is good enough to catch a wild card spot.

5. New York Islanders (95 Points) (WC)
Things have taken a bit of a step back for the Islanders this season. After breaking out of the 23 year drought of winning a playoff round a season ago, the Isles lost some key players from that team. New York lost Brian Strait, Matt Martin, Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo to free agency. All they got back in return was really Jason Chimera and Andrew Ladd, who I do like as a pickup. Still think some of the depth at forward maybe a bit of a problem for the Isles, it does have me worried. The blueline is going to be fine, so is the goaltending. With the loss of some of the talent up front, the Isles have taken a half step back this season. They are a good team and will be a playoff bound team, of that there is no doubt. What has me worried is that they still haven't really been able to build a true supporting cast around their best player. Tavares is good but he can only do so much. If the supporting cast isn't there, then its almost a lost cause. Still the Islanders are going to be a playoff team.

6. New Jersey Devils (91 Points)
New Jersey hasn't been able to really produce much over the last couple of seasons in the goal department, leaving a lot of pressure on the goaltending and blueline. Corey Schneider got them close to making the playoffs last year, but when he got hurt the Devils lost all chance of making it to the playoffs. This is a team that will be better and will challenge for one of the Wild Card Spots this year. Bringing in Taylor Hall was a big move, considering how desperate they are for scoring. Their 182 goals were last in the NHL, but Hall has scored 20 or more in four of his six NHL seasons, with the other two shortened by injury. He has 328 points in 381 games and his presence could propel the Devils where they need to be. At the same time, they had to give up a top defensemen in Adam Larsson to complete the trade. IF anything happens again to Schneider, the Devils could be near the bottom, but they have the talent to make a run at it.

7. Carolina Hurricanes (80 Points)
Carolina will be lucky if they hit the 80 point mark this year. Eric Staal is no longer with the team, having left for Minnesota in the offseason, so that leaves a big hole to fill on this hockey team. Cam Ward and Eddie Lack could be good. but they need to improve on their numbers from last season. They'll rely heavily on Jeff Skinner and Jordan Staal and veteran newcomer Lee Stempniak for goals. If supporting scorers like Elias Lindholm, Victor Rask and Teuvo Teravainen disappoint, they could be a lottery squad.

8. Columbus Blue Jackets (74 Points)
Going to be another rough year in Columbus this year. Columbus could plummet to last in the league if the Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers' offseason changes pay off and the Jackets' decision to promote from within turns out to be the wrong move. In 2013-14 the team had a 30-goal, 60-point forward in Ryan Johansen and a 50-point defenseman in James Wisniewski. They also had Vezina worthy play from goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. Last year, the top point-producing blueliner was David Savard with a paltry 25 points. No forwards scored more than 53, and Bobrovsky was outplayed by rookie Joonas Korpisalo in net. The team essentially stood pat this offseason hoping Seth Jones is the answer on the back end after dealing Johansen for him last season, and that the young players will improve quickly.

Stanley Cup Prediction: Lightning Over Stars!

ALCS Preview

Its been a while for both teams left standing in the American League. The Toronto Blue Jays haven't made the World Series since 2993, meanwhile Cleveland is look for its first World Series appearance since 1997. Both teams got here completing sweeps in the Divisional Round, Toronto taking out Texas and Cleveland downing Boston. This is going to be a battle of hot hitting teams, both powered, at least in the playoffs, by the long ball. So enough with the fluff, here's what we got for the American League Championship this year.

We have the American League Central Champions, the Cleveland Indians, taking on the American League Wild Card Winners, the Toronto Blue Jays. Cleveland won the Central with a 94-67 record. Then to start the playoffs, the Indians dispatched the Boston Red Sox in a three game sweep. Cleveland is now 47-42 all time in the playoffs. This will be Cleveland's fifth appearance in the ALCS. The Indians won the ALCS in 1995 and 1997 but would go on to lose the World Series both times. The Indians lost the 1998 and 2007 series.

As for the Toronto Blue Jays, their 89-73 record was good enough to get a Wild Card spot. The playoffs started for the Jays with a Wild Card game win over the Baltimore Orioles, they then followed it up with a three game sweep of the Texas Rangers in the ALDS. Toronto is now 26-26 all time in the post season. This will be Toronto's second consecutive ALCS appearance and seventh overall. The team lost the 2015 American League Championship Series to the eventual World Series champion Kansas City Royals. The Blue Jays had previously made consecutive ALCS appearances in 1991, 1992 and 1993, losing in the former but winning both the 1992 and 1993 World Series.

This will be the first postseason meeting between the Blue Jays and the Indians. This is the first ALCS since 2014 to feature two teams that had swept their ALDS opponents. The Indians won the regular season series, taking four of the seven meetings.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
October 14 Toronto Blue Jays @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 8:08 PM EDT
October 15 Toronto Blue Jays @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 4:08 PM EDT
October 17 Cleveland Indians @ Toronto Blue Jays Rogers Centre 8:08 PM EDT
October 18 Cleveland Indians @ Toronto Blue Jays Rogers Centre 4:08 PM EDT
October 19 Cleveland Indians @ Toronto Blue Jays Rogers Centre 4:08 PM EDT
October 21 Toronto Blue Jays @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 8:08 PM EDT
October 22 Toronto Blue Jays @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field TBD

One of the things that helped both teams get to this point is their hot hitting. Toronto's had the power game working in the playoffs, something they had going for themselves last year as well. It was just a season ago that Toronto had the highest scoring offense in all of the American League. This year, it wasn't exactly the same thing as the team battled through injuries to get into a wild card spot. They got in never the less. Once the divisional round came up, it looked like Toronto's bats came alive again. They scored 22 runs in three games against Texas, which included eight long balls. Lets face it, the Jays are a home run hitting team and they're back to hitting that way again. Some might not think that could be a recipe for success in the playoffs, but hey, its been working for the Jays so far. Maybe this will be the year that it finally gets them over the hump for the first time since 1993.

During the season, Toronto took the final two games of a four game set at Rogers Center. Toronto has an even split amongst home and road games this year, which is important come the playoffs. Toronto won 46 home games and 43 more on the road. Scoring runs came in bunches in both home and road games. Toronto had a positive run differential both at home and on the road. Toronto's home record was better then its road record, but they had a higher run differential on the road (both were in the plus which is an advantage for the Jays). And don't knock them, Toronto's pitching staff of J.A Happ, Aaron Sanchez, Marco Estrada and Marcus Stroman have been pitching quite well in the playoffs. Sure they got knocked around a bit by Texas in the Divisional Round, but they did well enough to leave a lot of those Rangers hitters stranded on the basepaths during that three game sweep.

Here's though where I think Cleveland may have an advantage. They've got home field in this series, something which has been huge for the Tribe this year. Cleveland won 53 games at home, the only team with more home wins in all of baseball then Cleveland was the Chicago Cubs. Cleveland also has a +105 run differential at home, one of the best in baseball. They aren't quite as good on the road, as they are in the negative in run differential on the road, but they still do have a winning record on the road too, at 41-39. Most of the damage that the Tribe did this year was at home, which is why having home field for them could be huge in this series.

And I know the Toronto bats are waking up, but who knows if they can keep it up against Cleveland. i mean the Red Sox had the best offense in the AL, yet the Indians held Boston to just seven runs and a .136 batting average with runners in scoring position in a three-game sweep, something that no other pitching staff was able to do this entire season. Plus Trevor Bauer, Josh Tomlin, and Corey Kluber are going to be tough to deal with if your Boston. Oh yeah, lets not forget about the bullpen as well. Terry Francona wasn't shy about being aggressive with his bullpen against the Red Sox in the last round, so don't be too surprised if he's wanting to be doing that again in this round as well. Andrew Miller, Bryan Shaw, and Cody Allen faced 37 percent of the hitters the Red Sox sent to the plate in the ALDS. So if your Toronto you have an idea of what might happen in this series.

But the way I look at it, I don't know if Cleveland is going to get that lucky again in this series. This will be a very happy series for hitters that's for sure. Toronto's bats are coming around at the right time and Toronto's starting pitching has had the best ERA so far in the playoffs in the AL at 3.78. Cleveland is going to put up a fight, but at the end of the day, its not going to be enough

Prediction: Toronto Blue Jays in 7!

Best & Worst Of NFL Week Five

Five weeks in the National Football League season and things are already taking shape quite quickly. Minnesota stands as the only unbeaten team left in the league, while Cleveland is the only team in the league that's looking for its first win on the year. Tom Brady made a statement in his first game back from suspension, while Brock Oswiler had an absolutely horrible week. Atlanta is starting to put their mark on the league that they maybe a force in the NFC, while the defending NFC Champions the Carolina Panthers have looked human, actually maybe even a little less then that, the last few weeks. Oakland continues to surprise teams week after week, showing that they might have finally arrived back in the league again as a good team. Same thing with Dallas, who prove that their two rookie studs are carrying that football team on offense. So here's some of the best and worst performances from around the NFL in Week Five.

Best:
Tom Brady, Quarterback New England Patriots
He's Back! If there was any doubt as to whether or not the 39 year old, four time Super Bowl winning quarterback would have any rust from not playing in over a month, they were quickly put to rest. Brady finished with 406 yards in 28-of-40 passing, including three touchdown scores. On his first possession of the football since last years playoffs, Brady just happened to complete five of six passes for 65 yards, including two to Rob Gronkowski for 53 yards. Rob Gronkowski and receiver Chris Hogan went over 100 yards thanks to Brady's passing talents in the Patriots 33-13 win over the Browns. Many people knew that Brady was going to come out with a fire in his eyes and have himself a day. He didn't disappoint.

Worst:
Brock Osweiler, Quarterback Houston Texans
When Houston shelled out $21 million to have Brock Osweiler start at Quarterback, they thought they had an answer to the problem at that position. They were wrong. Sunday, it hasn't been good for Brock, going up against the Vikings tough defense. Not only did the Vikings blow out Houston, it ended 31-13 in favor of the Vikings, Brock was just an innocent bystander at times. His throws were bad and he was rattled when put under pressure from the Minnesota defense. Brock finished with just 184 yards (much of which was gained in garbage time) on 19-of-42 passing with a late touchdown to DeAndre Hopkins and one interception. Not good numbers for a guy making that much money. Yes the Vikings defense has been doing this to quarterbacks all year long, but Osweiler has been average at best during games this year. I'm sorry to break it to Houston but Brock isn't worth what you've been paying him.

Best:
Ezekiel Elliott, Running Back Dallas Cowboys
Dallas has had an impressive one, two rookie punch in the backfield this year. Dak Prescott has done very well under center while replacing an injured Tony Romo. I mean Dak has throw 155 passes without a pick, 2nd most ever to start a career (behind the 162 of Tom Brady). As good as Prescott has been, I think that Zek Elliott has been better. Dallas came away with a 28-14 win over the Bengals Sunday. Cincy had allowed just 3.8 yards per carry and no rushing scores. Zek went off on the Bengals, finishing with 134 yards and two touchdowns on just 15 carries. Ezekiel capped off his brilliant game with a 60-yard score in the third quarter that put the Cowboys up 28-0. Dallas got an early jump on the Bengals and Cincy couldn't recover from it. Dallas now sits on top of the NFC East with a 4-1 record, a lot of it having to two with Zek Elliott.

Worst:
Breshad Perriman, Wide Receiver Baltimore Ravens
He was the Ravens first round pick in 2015. Perriman missed all of last season due to a knee injury. He's had a chance to show himself worthy of being a first round selection in the Ravens 16-10 loss to Washington on Sunday. Late in the fourth quarter, Perriman beat All-Pro cornerback Josh Norman for what looked like a go-ahead touchdown. It was the kind of play the Ravens wanted when they drafted Perriman. It was a great effort to go up and make a nice catch against a very good cornerback. And his second foot landed just out of bounds (officials ruled it a touchdown, but it was reversed after a replay review). The Ravens couldn’t score after that and lost 16-10. Even though Perriman barely missed out on his chance with that play, it offered hope that he can make plays like that going forward

Best:
Joey Bosa, Defensive End, San Diego Chargers
At long last, the waiting for Joey Bosa is over. He missed time due to a contract holdout in camp, then missed the first four games of the season due to a hamstring injury. When Bosa did finally make it to an NFL Field for his debut, which turned out to be a Chargers 34031 loss to the Oakland Raiders, that was nothing against the play of Bosa. He was fantastic in his first professional game. The 3rd overall pick from this years draft had himself a nice day, getting his first two sacks in the NFL, to go along with two QB hits four total tackles and two assisted tackles. He was a terror against the Raiders on Sunday. This doesn't seem like its going to be a good season for the Chargers, but they’ll be looking for signs of hope going forward. Bosa seems to be one.

Worst:
Miami Dolphins Hopes
Things really don't look very good for the Dolphins this year. Miami is 1-4, sitting in last place in the AFC East and showing very little signs of improvement from the team. Case in point, Sunday's game against the Titans. Tennessee came into Hard Rock Stadium and made it their own, winning 30-17. Marcus Mariota dominated Miami’s pathetic, overpaid defensr, finishing the day with just 223 total yards but made them all count, scoring four times, once on the ground and three times through the air. DeMarco Murray added to his strong campaign with 137 total yards, and Derrick Henry got into the action with 54 yards on seven carries. Lets face facts here, the Titans aren't all that great a team yet. They just did that to Miami, so what does that say about how bad a team the Dolphins are.

Best:
Matt Ryan, Quarterback Atlanta Falcons
Some quarterbacks have great careers because of their receivers. Big Ben has Antonio Brown in Pittsburgh, Andy Dalton has AJ Green in Cincy. And of course Matt Ryan has Julio Jones in Atlanta. Ryan had that monster 503 yard passing game last week, and 300 of those passing yards went to Jones. Some wondered if it was just a flash in the pan type of thing for Matt Ryan. Well Sunday, Ryan proved that it wasn't a joke. With Jones locked down, he still put up 267 yards through the air, proving he’s a huge part of what makes this Falcons offense one of the NFL’s best. Tevin Coleman, a running back, had 132 receiving yards. Mohamed Sanu had 43. Jones, in fact, was the team’s fourth-leading receiver, but that didn’t slow down the Falcons offense much. Matt Ryan still makes that team go, no matter who they're playing. He's putting up a strong case right now for possible offensive MVP in the league this year he's been that good.

Worst:
Philadelphia Eagles Unbeaten Season
Philly had been perfect through their first thee games. They got a bye week in week four, coming out of it against Detroit, a team who hasn't been very good through the first four games of the year. That plan went out the window by the end of the day Sunday, as Detroit ruined the Eagles perfect season with a 24-23 win. Carson Wentz finally threw his first NFL pick and he was outplayed by Matthew Stafford. Matt Prater hit the go ahead field goal with 1:29 to go in regulation. Detroit put the game away when Darius Slay made an over-the-shoulder interception on the next snap. This is no real knock on the Eagles, they have surprised quite a few people this year in that they are a good team and they can play up to their competition. Don't believe me, just ask the Steelers. But things don't look too easy for the Eagles the rest of the way. I mean look at who they have the rest of the way: at Washington, vs. Minnesota, at Dallas, at New York Giants, vs. Atlanta, at Seattle, vs. Green Bay, at Cincinnati, vs. Washington, at Baltimore, vs. Giants, vs. Cowboys. Where’s the easy game in there?

NLDS Preview

Here we go. After 162 regular season games and a Wild Card Game, the National League Divisional Series is set to go. The final four in the National League is all set. Three of the four teams have played in at least one World Series, while the fourth, Washington, is trying to get to the series for the first time in franchise history (Montreal never made it to a World Series in its time in Canada). This marks the 12 trip to the Divisional Round for the Dodgers, the 8th for the Giants, 6th for the Cubs and 5th for the Nationals.There's a lot on the line in this round. Can the Nationals win a round for the first time since 1980? Can the Dodgers get past the Nats? Does the even year magic still have something left for the Giants? Is this really the year for the Cubs. So lets get right into it shall we.

First up we have the National League East Champions, the Washington Nationals, taking on the National League West Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Los Angeles won the NL West for the 4th straight year, doing it this year with a 91-71 record. Los Angeles hasn't gotten out of the divisional round since beating the Braves in 2013. LA hasn't made it to a World Series since their last win in 1988. The Dodgers  have made the world series 18 times, winning the title six times. Los Angeles is 72-89 lifetime in the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Nationals come in after winning the National League East for the 3rd time ever, all in Washington. The Nats finished with a 95-67 record, a nice bouncback from the collapse last year. This team is looking to make the NLCS for only the 2nd time ever, the last appearance coming when they were still in Montreal in 1981. This will be the second postseason meeting between the Dodgers and the Nationals franchise. Their most recent meeting was in the 1981 National League Championship Series, in which the Dodgers won the National League pennant over the then-Montreal Expos in five games. Los Angeles won five of the six meetings between the teams during the regular season.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
October 7 Los Angeles Dodgers @ Washington Nationals Nationals Park 5:38 EDT
October 8 Los Angeles Dodgers @ Washington Nationals Nationals Park 4:08 EDT
October 10 Washington Nationals @ Los Angeles Dodgers Dodger Stadium TBD
October 11 Washington Nationals @ Los Angeles Dodgers Dodger Stadium TBD
October 13 Los Angeles Dodgers @ Washington Nationals Nationals Park TBD

This could be a solid series. A lot of people talk about the Giants and their luck with even years, and with good reason. An interesting note here, though, is the Nationals have won their third-straight even-year NL East title while missing the playoffs in every odd year of their existence. So Washington has the same luck as the Giants do, but for them it doesn't always end the way the Nationals want. These Dodgers have won four division titles in a row, but they were bounced from the NLCS in 2013 in six games. In each of the last two years, they've lost in the NLDS round. This with Clayton Kershaw in his prime, too. Meantime, they've seen their biggest rival win three of the last six World Series. So both teams are really looking for something to prove in this series. As noted before, Los Angeles won five of the six meetings, with the only win for Washington coming in a lopsided 8-1 game. Los Angeles outscored the Nats 25-13 in the other five games. They won one on a walk-off, a few pitcher's duels and essentially a blowout (the score ended 8-4, but it was 7-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth). Being the home team in this series favors the Nationals. Besides the fact that the Nats finished with the better record, the Dodgers aren't as good away from Chavez Ravine. Los Angeles is 38-42 on the road this year and they've given up 2 more runs then they've scored on the road. Washington won 50 games at home this year and are balanced at both home and on the road.

Los Angeles had only two guys drive in 90 or more runs this year, Adrian Gonzalez and Justin Turner.  Four Dodgers hitters, Turner, Yasmani Grandal, Corey Seager and Joc Pederson hit twenty or more home runs. Seager was the only Dodgers regular to hit over .300 on the year, he finished hitting .308. As a team, the Dodgers can't hit lefty's. As a team, the Dodgers hit .235 against lefty starters and if you throw in relievers too, the Dodgers are hitting just .213. That's not good, especially come playoff time. If Washington is smart, they will load up on lefty relievers so that way if the Nats get a lead, it pretty much means the Dodgers chances of a comeback aren't good.

Then we have the Nationals. A good hitting team, led by one of the big hero's of last years playoffs Daniel Murphy. Murphy had a career year, hitting .347 with 25 homers and 104 RBI, numbers that were better then the MVP in the NL last year, Bryce Harper. Harper was no slouch this year, hitting .243, but he did hit 24 homers and he drove in 86 RBI While the Dodgers may have set a record for most guys put on the DL this year, they are healthy right now by comparison to the Nationals at the moment. All-Star catcher Wilson Ramos is out for the season with a torn ACL and it happened so late that we didn't really see them in an extended stretch without him. Stephen Strasburg is unlikely to toe the rubber at all due to an elbow issue. Bryce Harper has dealt with various injuries all season and the best guess is that's why he hasn't quite himself at the plate. Max Scherzer has been dominating force this year, winning 20 games , with a 2,96 ERA and 284 strikeouts. I think he can top anybody in LA right now, only because Clayton Kershaw hasn't come back to full health yet.

Both teams are banged up and hurting going into this series,. Los Angeles does appear to have a bit better bill of health, but I think because of all the problems they've had scoring on the road, its going to make things very tough on LA. This series will go the distance, but at the end of the day I just think the Dodgers will have too much of a hill to climb.

Prediction: Washington Nationals in 5!

Next up we have the National League Wild Card Winners, the San Francisco Giants, taking on the National League Central Champions, the Chicago Cubs. Chicago comes in having won the Central for the first time in 2008. Chicago finished the year with the best record in all of baseball, with a 103-58 mark. This was the first time since 1935 that the Cubs have won more than 100 games in a season. Chicago is looking to make it to the NLCS for the 2nd year in a row. Chicago hasn't won the Pennant since 1945. Chicago is 32-60 lifetime in the playoffs. As for the Giants, they made it as a wild card team, finishing the year with an 87-75 year. To get to this round, the Cubs had to beat the Mets in the NL Wild Card Game. Even years have been good to the Giants, winning three World Series since 2010. San Francisco is 96-87 lifetime in the playoffs. This marks the 2nd ever meeting between the teams in the playoffs. Their last meeting was in the 1989 National League Championship Series, which the Giants won in five games. Chicago won four of the seven meetings between the teams during the regular season.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
October 7 San Francisco Giants @ Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field 9:15 EDT
October 8 San Francisco Giants @ Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field 8:08 EDT
October 10 Chicago Cubs @ San Francisco Giants AT&T Park TBD
October 11 Chicago Cubs @ San Francisco Giants AT&T Park TBD
October 13 San Francisco Giants @ Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field TBD

There's a lot on the line in this series. Can the magic of the even number year keep up for San Francisco? Can Chicago get the job done after running rough shot over the league all year?  This is going to be a very good, very even series, maybe the best matchup of this round.  If your Chicago, playing at home is a big help this year. The Cubs won more than 70 percent of their games played at the friendly confines of Wrigley Field, resulting in the best home record in baseball. Of course, the Cubs also boasted the second-best record on the road. What that means is, this year at least, it didn't matter where the Cubs played, they won. San Francisco is an OK road team, they had a winning record at both home and on the road. But if you take run differential into account, then the Giants maybe a little more uncomfortable playing three of the possible five games in this series at Wrigley Field. If your the Cubs, its worth noting that, even though you dominated everybody during the regular season, nothing is set in stone come playoff time. An interesting stat to look at is that, from 1995 (the first postseason with a wild-card team) to 2015, 22 teams won 100 games, but only two of them won the World Series (the 1998 and 2009 Yankees), and just six won pennants (the '95 Indians, '99 Braves, '03 Yankees and '04 Cardinals were the others). What's more, the teams with the best record in baseball have won just four World Series in that span: the aforementioned Yankees plus the 2004 and '07 Red Sox. So you never know.

Chicago has the numbers to back up why they are so good. Bryant and Rizzo but had over 100 RBI and both guys hit over 30 homers. Addison Russell was the only other Cubs hitter to drive in more than 90 runs, as he finished the year with 95. Ben Zobrist was the only other Cubs hitter to drive in more than 70 runs, as he finished with 76. Chicago is stupendous at smothering everything put into play. Their .745 defensive efficiency was the best in the majors this season by nearly three percentage points Those numbers back up the fact that the Cubs are a good hitting team. Oh yeah, they can pitch too. Chicago had the majors' stingiest rotation, with a 2.96 ERA. All five Chicago's starters, Jake Arrieta, Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Jason Hammel and John Lacky, won 11 or more games. Lester and Hendricks each had an ERA under three. As for their bullpen, the unit's 3.56 ERA ranked fourth in the league, and its 9.9 strikeouts per nine was tops. Chicago was even more dominant in the second half after adding Aroldis Chapman. Facts are the Cubs are good.

San Francisco got here thanks to a brilliant pitching performance from Madison Baumgarner in the Wild Card game. The man is brilliant come playoff time that's nothing new. San Fran has other pitchers besides Madison. Johnny Cueto won more games then Bumgarner did during the year. One thing that worries me about the Giants is the pen. The Giants’ bullpen led the league with 32 blown saves and lost nine games in which it led in the ninth inning, including five in September and October. But its overall marks, like its 3.66 ERA, are the highest of any NL playoff team. Numbers like that have to give anybody heartburn. Bochy’s three World Series rings attest to his deft touch with the bullpen and willingness to break from orthodoxy. San Francisco can hit a little. The Giants' offense ranked ninth in scoring (4.41 runs per game) and OPS+ (94) and 13th in homers (130), including just 55 at AT&T Park; they didn't have a single player with 20 overall. They were solid against righties (.737 OPS, sixth), less so against lefties (.703 OPS, 11th).

As good as the Giants are, the Cubs are just that much better. This pick is kind of easy to make.

Predictions: Chicago Cubs in 4!

ALDS Preview

Here we go. Divisional round has arrived for the American League. After 162 regular season games and one wild card game, we're set with the final four teams standing in the American League. Both matchups in the American League Division Series are rematches of past series. Boston is facing Cleveland for the first time since the 2007 ALCS, a series in which Cleveland blew a 3-1 series lead. Then there's the bigger matchup of the two, at least as far as tension goes. Its rematch of last years ALDS as Texas battles Toronto. Both series are going to be highly entertaining and both are going to drew huge ratings on TV and radio. So lets not waste anymore time on the fluff and get right into it. Here's how the American League Divisional Series are going to play out.

First up its the American League West champions, the Texas Rangers, taking on the American League Wild Card winner, the Texas Rangers. Texas comes into this series having won the American League West with a 95-67 record. This marks the 2nd year in a row, and the seventh time in franchise history, that the Rangers have won the division. Texas is looking to win a playoff series for the first time since going all the way to the World Series in 2011. The Rangers have never won a World Series. Texas is 21-28 lifetime in post season play. Meanwhile, Toronto has gotten to the playoffs as the wild card team, finishing the regular season 2nd in the AL East with an 89-73 record. This marks the first back to back playoff appearance for the Jays since winning back to back World Series titles in 1992 and 1993. To get to the Divisional Round, Toronto beat the Baltimore Orioles in the Wild Card Game. Toronto has two World Titles to their credit and are 26-26 lifetime in the post season. This marks the 2nd ever meeting between the two teams in the playoffs, with the Blue Jays beating the Rangers in last years ALDS in five games.

Here are the date and times for every game in this series:
October 6 Toronto Blue Jays @ Texas Rangers Globe Life Park 4:38PM
October 7 Toronto Blue Jays @ Texas Rangers Globe Life Park 1:08PM
October 9 Texas Rangers @ Toronto Blue Jays Rogers Centre 7:38PM
October 10 Texas Rangers @ Toronto Blue Jays Rogers Centre TBD
October 12 Toronto Blue Jays @ Texas Rangers Globe Life Park TBD

You want to talk about a budding rivalry, you got one right here. Look no further then last year in this very same round, with the Jays walking away with the win. I think what set this whole thing off was the Jose Bautista bat flip in game five after hitting the series ending home run. Some feel that the teams got their feelings out when they got into a brawl on May 15th at Globe Life Park, but don't be surprised if there are a few more fireworks that go off in this series after last years events. Oh and if the regular season numbers mean anything, Toronto took four of the seven meetings between the teams this season. To look into those numbers a little deeper, Toronto outscored Texas 36-21 during those seven games, if that means anything. You know good and well that regular season numbers don't mean squat come playoff time.

These two teams haven't seen eachother since the brawl in Texas on May 15th, Texas has done a bit of retooling since then. Texas improved by the call-up of Matt Bush (he was summoned to the majors just in time for the second Jays-Rangers series) and the return to health of Tanner Scheppers. As far as the lineup goes, the pre-deadline additions of Jonathan Lucroy and Carlos Beltran directly addressed to significant holes. Oh, and the surge that Carlos Gomez has enjoyed since being plucked from the scrap heap appears to be sustainable. In other words, this is a significantly better Texas roster than the Jays encountered during the regular season. Sure the Rangers got 95 wins this year, a very impressive number and the best mark in the American League. It is worth noting that, in order to do that, Texas finished with a run differential of eight. They scored eight more runs then they allowed.

Toronto, on the other hand, actually had a good run differential. Yes they won less games, finishing with 89 victories. But they also scored 93 more runs then they gave up. With a run differential like that, you'd think Toronto would have won more games. Toronto also had to do it against a slightly tougher schedule, with their opponents having a .506 winning percentage. Texas opponents had a .503 win percentage. The middle of Toronto's lineup, lead by Joey Bats, Tulo, Donaldson and Edwin, can hang, and even outslug, a lot of teams in this league. Sure Beltre, Odur and Desmond put up good offensive numbers for Texas, Toronto just had the better power and offensive pops.

Pitching may balance out, with a slight edge to Toronto, who had more guys hit double digits in wins and had starters with a lower ERA. Texas is a good team no doubt, They won more games then any other team in the American League. But Toronto just has the mojo working right now. Texas makes it a good series but it won't be enough.

Prediction: Toronto Blue Jays in 5!

The other series pits the American League Central champions, the Cleveland Indians, taking on the American League East Champions, the Boston Red Sox. This marks the first playoff appearance for the Sox since winning the World Series in 2013. Boston won the East this year with a 94-69 record, making it the 15th division title the team has won. Boston has won three world titles in their last seven trips to the post season. The Sox are 90-77 lifetime in the playoffs. Meanwhile, Cleveland comes in with a 94-68 record, good enough to win the American League Central. This division title was the 11th in the teams history, its first since 2007. Cleveland is searching for its first playoff win since beating the Yankees in 2007's ALDS. The Indians have two World Series to their credit, but haven't made it to a Series since 1997. The Indians are 44-42 lifetime in the playoffs. This marks the 5th meeting between the teams in the playoffs. Cleveland won in 1995 and 1998, while the Red Sox claimed victory in 1999 and 2007. Boston won four of the six meetings between the teams this season.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
October 6 Boston Red Sox @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 8:08PM
October 7 Boston Red Sox @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 4:08PM
October 9 Cleveland Indians @ Boston Red Sox Fenway Park 4:08PM
October 10 Cleveland Indians @ Boston Red Sox Fenway Park TBD
October 12 Boston Red Sox @ Cleveland Indians Progressive Field TBD

At various points this season both the Red Sox and Indians looked not only like the best team in the American League, but arguably the best non- Chicago Cubs team in all of baseball. The Indians had a franchise record 14-game winning streak back in June while the Red Sox had an 11-game winning streak in September. Interesting fact, there are only two players from the 2007 ALCS that are playing in this series, Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz. During the regular season, Boston won four of the six meetings, outscoring the Tribe 31-18. Now here's a surprising stat. The split between the two teams in home vs. road games. Cleveland won 52 home games and scored 105 more runs then they allowed. they won 41 road games and gave up four more runs then they scored. Boston on the other hand, was more balanced. Boston won 47 home games and scored 97 more runs then they allowed. On the road, Boston won 46 games and scored 87 more runs then they allowed. Pretty stark contrast I'd say.

Cleveland has home field advantage because they had the better record. All five of their starting pitchers had double digits in wins, but only Corey Kluber has an ERA under 3.30. The Indians have that flexibility with Andrew Miller, who's done a fine job since joining the Indians in a trade with the Yanks. He's done well, as has closer Cody Allen and primary setup man Bryan Shaw. On offense, Mike Napoli and Carlos Santana have been powering the Tribe, both hitting over 30 home runs on the year. Not only can the Indians hit, they can run too. They were fourth in baseball with 134 total steals. Cleveland can hit and run wild so it's something that the Red Sox are going to have to keep an eye on. Only down side is Cleveland. Thy're missing some key players. Michael Brantley has played only 11 games this year due to shoulder surgery and subsequent complications. Carlos Carrasco is out for the postseason after a comebacker broke a bone in his hand in mid September. And Danny Salazar is currently working his way back from a flexor muscle problem and could be on the ALDS roster as a reliever.

Don't count out the Red Sox, they are kinda good. David Ortiz, Hanley Ramirez and Mookie Betts each hit over 30 home runs and drove in over 100 runs. Jackie Bradley and Xander Bogarts hit over twenty homers and drove in over 80 runs on the year. Boston is top heavy in their rotation. Rick Porcello went 22-4 with a 3.15 ERA. And there's David Price, who went 17-9 with a 3.99 ERA. Boston has solid starting pitching, but there leaves a few questions at the back of pitching staff. Sure Kimbrel saved 31 of his 33 chances. But he walked the bases loaded prior to Teixeira's grand slam, and in his final three regular season appearances, he walked six of the 13 batters he faced. He'd walked four of the previous 57 batters he faced prior to that. That's not so good. Koji Uehara and Brad Ziegler are good pitchers leading to Kimbrel, but they aren't as overpowering as Miller and Shaw in Cleveland's pen.

I'll come right out and say it I think the Indians have the slightly better pitching staff. But Boston's hitting is just going to be too much to deal with. There's a reason why the Red Sox have the balance scoring difference that they had during the regular season. Cleveland isn't as good on the road and if they go down early in this series, I can't see them overcoming the difference. Its been a fun ride for the Indians but this is where it comes to a close.

Predictions: Boston Red Sox in 4!

Best & Worst Of NFL Week Four

A quarter of the way through the NFL Season and we've already got a few things shaken up around the National Football League. We started the week with five teams with perfect records, now we're down to three, the Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles. Oh yeah and there was the crazy week that was in week four. Lets see. New England gets shut out by Buffalo in their last game without Tom Brady under center, Arizona seems to have lost its collective mojo (they can't find a win right now), and Denver is using two no name quarterbacks and are still unbeaten. Matt Ryan and Julio Jones went off in a huge win by Atlanta. Carolina can't catch a break with Cam Newton now possibly to miss time with a possible concussion. A lot has gone down in week four and we will help you get caught up. So here's some of the best and worst of week four in the NFL.

Best:
Matt Ryan, Quarterback Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta put a beating on Carolina on Sunday, walking away with a 48-33 victory. Ryan went off the charts, going 28 of 37 for 503 yards, throwing four touchdowns and one pick. It was the first time ever that Ryan had thrown for that many yards in a game. Ryan threw for 182 more yards then any other quarterback in the league this week, which is really an eye popping number when you look at it. Atlanta has the most productive offense in the NFL through the first quarter of the season so far, Matt Ryan and his favorite target Julio Jones are a huge reason for that.

Worst:
Jamies Winston, Quarterback Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Talk about an up and down performer. This week was a bad game for Winston. He went 17 of 35 for 179 yards. He was picked twice and sacked five times. I know your going up against the best defense in the league in Denver and you get spanked 27-7 but still. And this was coming one week after he threw for over 400 yards passing (granted in a losing effort as well) but still. You'd like to think that Winston would be able to build off of that performance. Part of the fault has to go to Dirk Kotter the Bucs head coach. He left Winston in the game too long. By the end of the game, Denver already had a commanding lead. Winston was just getting beat up at that point, so leaving him in the game wasn't a good thing for Jamies both mentally or physically.

Best:
Julio Jones, Wide Receiver Atlanta Falcons
You want to talk about a guy who was in a groove, look no further than Julio Jones on Sunday. Not only did Atlanta beat up on Carolina in a 48-33 win, Julio Jones was FEELING IT! He was Matt Ryan's favorite target on Sunday, finishing the day with 12 catches for 300 yards and a touchdown. Yes, you did read that number correctly, Julio Jones had 300 yards receiving in a single game. Jones became just the 6th player in league history to have 300 receiving yards in a single game. He joins Flipper Anderson (336 yards vs New Orleans, 1989), Calvin Johnson (329 yards vs. Dallas 2013), Stephone Paige (309 yards vs. San Diego, 1985), Jim Benton (303 yards vs. Detroit, 1945), and Cloyce Box (302 yards vs. Baltimore, 1950) to do that. He and Matt Ryan became the first QB-WR combo to have 500+ passing yards and 300+ receiving yards in the same game. Impressive day for Atlanta on Sunday.

Worst:
Carolina Panthers Defense
Its no secret that Carolina was supposed to have one of the top defenses in the entire league. Well it didn't look like that Sunday. We already touched on what Matt Ryan and Julio Jones did to the Panthers defense. But wait there's more. In total, Atlanta gained 571 yards, averaging 8.8 yards per play and converted eight third downs. Oh yeah, Atlanta also marched down the field for scoring drives of 92, 98 and 99 yards. The stunning defensive collapse has left the defending NFC champions with a 1-3 record to start 2016. Things really aren't looking good for the Panthers right now, they need to get there act together.

Best:
Le'Veon Bell, Running Back Pittsburgh Steelers
He's Back! The best running back in the league returned with a force on Sunday. In his first game back from his three game suspension, Bell had the best numbers of any back in the league Sunday. Bell had 18 carries for 144 yards in his return against Kansas City, helping lead Pittsburgh to a convincing 43-14 win over the Chiefs. Oh yeah, he also had five catches for 34 yards, which proves how much of a double threat the guy is. He's the best in the game for a reason, there are few defenders in the league who can knock him off his feet when he's rolling. His first game back really showed that nothings changed from last season. Bell is a beast in the Pittsburgh backfield and now that he, Antonio Brown and Ben Rothlesberger are all healthy and on the field and same page at the same time, the Steelers are going to be a very tough team to beat.

Worst:
San Diego Chargers
This comes as a bit of a surprise. Think about what happened Sunday between the Chargers and Saints. The Chargers had full control of the game, leading by the score of 34-21 with less than seven minutes left on the clock. Most football fans would think that with less then seven minutes left and your team up by two scores, you should be getting set for a victory party in the parking lot after the game right? Right? Not in this case for San Diego. Melvin Gordon fumbled the ball away, giving the Saints a chance to pull to within one score, which they did. On San Diego's next possession, it was Travis Benjamin’s turn to develop a case of late-game butterfingers, coughing the ball up leading to a New Orleans go ahead score. Philip Rivers had a golden chance to play hero and send everybody home happy with a comeback. On cue, he threw an interception on San Diego’s final offensive possession, throwing away any hope the Chargers had of winning in the process.

Best:
Russell Wilson, Quarterback Seattle Seahawks
There had been some questions as to the health of Russell Wilson and his leg going into Sunday's matchup with the Jets. Well, he quickly put those worries to rest.Russell went 22 of 32 for 309 yards, good for three touchdowns and no picks. The only dent on his day was that he was sacked twice, but that fact can be overlooked with how well Russell played. He and Jimmy Graham had some great chemistry, and the one thing that really stuck out to me was how easy Russell made it look. Christine Michael was left wide open in the middle of the field to catch his first NFL touchdown. The score was a nice way, for Seattle anyway, to cap a four-play, 61-yard drive that gave the Seahawks a 24–10 lead. Russell seems to play pretty well when his a little banged up I think.

Worst:
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Quarterback New York Jets
I feel like a bit of a broken record with this one, at least the last couple of weeks I have. Not only did Fitz throw six picks against KC two weeks ago, he added three more this week against the Seahwaks. Oh yeah, all three picks came in the 2nd half of the game, and all three picks lead to ten points for Seattle. Which, just in case anybody forgot, was the difference in the ballgame as Seattle walked away with a 27-17 win. Fitz has ten picks on the year, a scary number. To make that number even worse, Fitz has thrown for only four touchdowns this season. Ouch. I know Jets head coach Todd Bowles showed confidence still in his starting quarterback, but it really does leave one to wonder. If Fitz keeps struggling like this, how short a leash does he have before he gets yanked in favor of either Geno Smith of Bryce Petty? As much as I like Fitzpatrick, he really needs to get his game back on track.

Best:
Michael Crabtree, Wide Receiver Oakland Raiders
Don't knock the guy, Crabtree still has something left in the tank to be a good receiver in the NFL. He had seven catches for 88 yards in the Raiders 28-27 win over the Ravens. Three of Crabtree’s seven catches produced touchdowns, including a pair of scores in the fourth quarter. Crabtree’s touchdown receptions just kept getting better. After hauling in a short fade from Derek Carr in the first quarter, Crabtree snagged a second score in traffic on third down and then beat the Ravens by making an over-the-shoulder catch and getting two feet in the end zone with 2:13 left in the contest. Through four games, Crabtree has four touchdowns and two game-winning plays (including the two-point conversion to win in Week 1). Yeah, the guy can still produce in the National Football League.

Worst:
Matthew Stafford, Quarterback Detroit Lions
Just by looking at the two teams on paper, you'd like to think the Detroit Lions would be better then the Chicago Bears. Right? Well, as the old saying goes, that's why they play the game. Chicago pulled out a 17-14 win over the Lions, thanks to a little ineptitude from the Lions QB, Matthew Stafford. Stafford threw two key interceptions, both of which likely cost his team points in a game that was won by three points. Both occurred right outside the red zone, meaning the Lions were denied two chances to at least attempt field goals. The first interception was likely the fault of receiver Golden Tate, who ran the wrong route and Jacoby Glenn pounced on the pass for an interception right before the half. The second was thrown into traffic and intercepted by Deiondre’ Hall. He was trying to get the ball to tight end Eric Ebron, but the throw was well off target. As much as I like Matthew Stafford, playing poorly on the road is an unfortunate Stafford trademark. He finished with 213 yards on 23-of-36 passing with no touchdowns and the two costly interceptions.