Brought to you by the King of Shredz:
First things first, guys, I have to take care of business. Week Three in the NFL is upon us, being played by great players who have yet to be tried or convicted for child abuse, murder, bounties, domestic violence, substance abuse, or just merely violating personal conduct. Remember the movie ‘Playmakers?’ It was a television show televised by ESPN about a decade ago that basically went over all of the problems that went on in the NFL, in a fictional league of course. There’s a reason why the show was pulled after about one season, and I’ll leave it at that.
The good news is that there are some very classy and talented NFL players who actually appreciate their opportunities. So, without further ado, here are my picks for the week:
Already Played: Atlanta over Tampa Bay: 35-7. This game was a snoozer. It was actually 56-0, Atlanta’s favor before T.J. Yates entered the game. That pretty much tells you that Tampa’s defense is overrated and Josh McCown is a backup.
AFC Game of the Week: San Diego over Buffalo: 27-24- Two weeks ago I would never have guessed that the Buffalo Bills would be in the conversation for anything except due to the fact that they gave Cleveland their first round pick. Now, they are being given a shot at 3-0. I’m still not sold on them yet.
Cincinnati over Tennessee: 28-10- If Jake Locker can be the Jake Locker of Week One and not the one we saw last week, then the Titans may just have a chance here. Why will this not happen? Because the Bengals have one of the best defensive units in the NFL. They’re just too good.
Cleveland over Baltimore: 16-9- I honestly thought Brian Hoyer would be on the bench by now, but he’s done a good enough job to keep Cleveland In contention for the AFC North. As for the Ravens, they’re on the road. The Ravens don’t play well on the road.
Green Bay over Detroit: 31-28- Here’s a shootout…..potentially. The Lions have to score more than a touchdown to beat Green Bay. They just aren’t good enough……..they’re playing the same old Packers and they’re the same old Lions.
Indianapolis over Jacksonville: 20-15- The 0-2 Colts vs. the 0-2 Jaguars. It sounds like a snoozer, but the Colts played against two of the top three teams in the NFL, and lost by a combined total of ten points. Just a tough schedule. Now, it’s smooth sailing. Why isn’t this higher than 20 points? The Colts like to play to the level of their competition.
Lock of the Week: New England over Oakland: 38-6- The Patriots are one of the best in the league at virtually everything. The Raiders are one of the worst at virtually everything. Not a good combo.
New Orleans over Minnesota: 34-17- Maybe the Saints can finally win a game without blowing it. If they can’t beat Minnesota in the Super Dome, then they aren’t beating anyone. That being said, Rob Ryan has to go if this happens. He’s the worst defensive coordinator of all time.
Houston over New York Giants: 28-17- Houston is the luckiest team in the NFL. No offensive talent, or old talent, and they still put up a lot of points, and allow very few. Why? Look at what they’ve played so far. Now they play the Giants and a washed up Eli Manning.
NFC Game of the Week: Philadelphia over Washington: 44-38- Like offense? Here’s one for all of us. Two 2012 draft picks going head to head. Kirk Cousins……yes, Kirk Cousins, vs. Nick Foles. Two high powered offenses, one shootout. If the Redskins put thirty plus points up again, they may as well trade RG3 to the Rams……that’s ironic.
Snoozer of the Week: Dallas over St. Louis: 21-16- I’m not one to bash America’s Team but I also am a fair person and the Cowboys still aren’t on my watch yet as a contender. But, Tony Romo is still way better than Austin Davis. Heck, half of Dallas’s fanbase probably has never even heard of Austin Davis. Who is Austin Davis?
Upset of the Week: Arizona over San Francisco: 23-21- No matter who plays quarterback, the Cardinals are not only the second best team in the conference, they have the second best coach in the NFL in Bruce Arians. He can make something out of nothing.
Miami over Kansas City: 17-16- Close game, but the Chiefs are 2-8 since their 9-0 start last season. Different coach, different quarterback, same sorry-ass Chiefs. But, you have to mention the Dolphins in the same breath. End of the day, the Chiefs always, always, always wear down.
Revenge of the Week: Denver over Seattle: 30-13- Call me crazy? Have you ever seen a vengeful Peyton Manning play in an NFL game? The results speak for themselves.
Carolina over Pittsburgh: 20-13- The Steelers are in danger of falling to 1-2. Remember when the Steelers were one of the NFL’s elite? Remember when the Panthers were a laughingstock? I only hope no Pittsburgh fan will wake up from a four year coma, because they’re in for a rude awakening……..literally.
Chicago over New York Jets: 31-24- Jay Cutler looked like an all-pro last week. Geno Smith is still in his second season and is still mistake prone. Not a good combo.
Nifty Workouts: So, I had a few good ones this week. Let me begin with my One Hundred Rep Nightmare:
100 reps of everything, as many sets as it takes. Rest time is how many reps you have remaining in seconds.
Decline Push-ups
Dumbbell Rows
Lunges
Crunches
Upright Rows
Suspended Dips
Plate Curls
Try it.
Also, before isolating any muscle group, try these before you workout:
Chest: 100 dumbbell fly
Back: 100 pull-ups
Triceps: 100 suspended dips
Biceps: 100 dumbbell curl
Legs: 100 lunges
Shoulders: 100 lateral raise
Abs: 100 full crunches
Before you workout the target muscle group, shock those muscles early.
Give me a weekly shoulder, ab, and cardio attack:
1,000 jump ropes for warm-up
10 minute non-stop ab work
4 sets of each and every movement, 8-12 reps unless specified.
Dumbbell Clean to Press
super-set: Inverted Barbell Presses
Dumbbell Lateral Raise
tri-set: Dumbbell Front Raise
tri-set: Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly
Battling Ropes for 50 reps
tri-set: Rope Face Pull
tri-set: Machine Rear Delt Fly
I’m out! Todd ‘King of Shredz’ Matthews.
Todd Matthews 