Don't Get Too Excited About Week 3

Week 3 in the NFL was a sensational one ... that is already being way too sensationalized. Brett Favre is 28, not 38! The defending champs are no more! Tom Brady is great again! Drew Brees is a schlub, but Pierre Thomas will carry New Orleans all the way! (Okay, nobody's said that, but after what Brees didn't do for my fantasy team this week, I'm bitter.) Here's a few things to keep in mind when sifting through your NFL stories this week.

The NFC North looked strong at 4-0 this week ... But most divisions could do that with 3 games against the NFC West and 1 against the Redskins.

Titans and Dolphins apologists will tell you at 0-3, all is not yet lost. They're wrong. The Dolphins have to catch up to two AFC title contenders in their division and the Titans have to go 12-1 to catch up to the perennial 12-win Colts. Some food for thought for Tennessee fans: your schedule hasn't been that though. Neither the Steelers nor the Texans have a win outside of their game against you.

ESPN is going to try all week to convince you Terrell Owens is on the verge of a major breakdown in Buffalo. I don't like T.O. (pictured, right), but his press conference after the Bills' loss to the Saints made me angry, and not towards him. Terrible, terrible journalism. I've never heard so many loaded questions in my life.

Darrius Heyward-Bey is already being labeled as a colossal first round bust. For where he was taken in this year's NFL Draft, Heyward-Bey has been and will continue to be a bust. However, everyone knew that ahead of time, so is it fair? Did Heyward-Bey come out and say he was the best wide receiver in the draft? Or was he just a late first round prospect that the Raiders stupidly took at number 7? You already know this answer. Having the single worst starting quarterback in the NFL can't help his chances either.

Image source: http://media.photobucket.com/image/Terrell%20Owens%20Bills/Blainorama/terrell-owens2.jpg

Mock Draft: Picks 25-32

This is the end of the summary of the mock draft we held on Monday. The draft is officially less than 48 hours from now, so this is all I will say about it. Here's wishing the best possible pick to hometown Darrius Heyward-Bey, and let's see some trades. Trades are exciting. 

25. Miami Dolphins

Herman: Evander Brown (DT, Missouri)

Radecki: Vontae Davis (CB, Illinois)

Kiper: Malcolm Jenkins (CB, Ohio State)

McShay: Kenny Britt (WR, Rutgers)

Wright: Everette Brown (DE, Florida State)

- Notes: Another one with all five of us disagreeing, which shows one of two things: either A) the Dolphins are for real from last year and they don't have many holes and can draft for best player available, or B) the Dolphins last year were complete flukes and have tons of holes. I'm going for B. 

26. Baltimore Ravens

Herman: Darrius Heyward-Bey (WR, Maryland)

Radecki: Eben Britton (OT, Arizona)

Kiper: Vontae Davis (CB, Illinois)

McShay: Rey Maualuga (ILB, USC)

Wright: Darrius Heyward-Bey

- Notes: All of these make sense. Heyward-Bey is the tall, fast receiver the Ravens need. Britton would add stability to the right tackle position that the Ravens desperately need. Ozzie Newsome has already hinted at taking a corner in the first round, and Davis is a great talent. If Maualuga is still there, he will be hard to pass up. 

27. Indianapolis Colts

Herman: Clay Matthews (OLB, USC)

Radecki: Peria Jerry (DT, Mississippi)

Kiper: Peria Jerry

McShay: Evander Hood

Wright: Peria Jerry

- Notes: Defense, and more specifically, defensive tackle, is the running theme here. Only I, who thinks that Clay Matthews is too much of a value to pass up here, doesn't have the Colts taking the best defensive tackle available. 

28. Buffalo Bills

Herman: Eben Britton

Radecki: Phil Loadholt (OT, Oklahoma)

Kiper: Eben Britton

McShay: Eben Britton

Wright: Phil Loadholt

- Notes: Sense another theme? Getting rid of Peters makes tackle a glaringly obvious need here. Tyler and Wright had Britton off the board by now, or else I'm sure he would have been the pick. 

29. New York Giants

Herman: Hakeem Nicks (WR, North Carolina)

Radecki: Hakeem Nicks

Kiper: Hakeem Nicks

McShay: Hakeem Nicks

Wright: Percy Harvin (WR, Florida)

- Notes: Another seemingly obvious pick. Nicks would fill the void that Plaxico Burress's jailing will leave, and Harvin will give the Giants a dynamic playmaker. 

30. Tennessee Titans

Herman: Alphonso Smith (CB, Wake Forest)

Radecki: Darius Butler (CB, Connecticut)

Kiper: Percy Harvin

McShay: Vontae Davis

Wright: Darius Butler

- Notes: Wider receiver and cornerback are the biggest needs for the Titans, and it's not even close. However, wide receiver has been a need for such a long time, it's hard to see them finally addressing that need now, so cornerback is the choice for most. 

31. Arizona Cardinals

Herman: Larry English (OLB, Northern Illinois)

Radecki: Knowshon Moreno (RB, Georgia)

Kiper: Larry English

McShay: Donald Brown (RB, Connecticut)

Wright: Chris "Beanie" Wells (RB, Ohio State)

- Notes: If Wells is still there at 31 for the Cardinals, they may seize up out of pure joy. More likely they will go for a runningback like Brown, or they may take the risk and go for Larry English, an underrated pass rush out of Northern Illinois.

32. Pittsburgh Steelers

Herman: Alex Mack (C, California)

Radecki: Alex Mack

Kiper: Eric Wood (C, Louisville)

McShay: Max Unger (C, Oregon)

Wright: Vontae Davis

- Notes: Center is the likely choice for Pittsburgh here, although is Davis is still on the board, Pitt definitely could take him to add a quality cornerback. 

And that's that. I'll be following this up on Sunday with the winner and percentages for everyone. Just so everyone knows up front, this is how scoring will work. One point for every player taken in the spot the drafter said he would be taken in. Once again, we're going to work off numbers here, not teams. That's how I'm getting rid of the trade aspect. I'm intrigued to see how this pans out. 

And the Titans fall

There will be no 16-0 team this year. Earlier today, the NFL's last undefeated team fell as the Titans lost to the New York Jets 34-13.

I did not expect them to lose this week, mainly because they were at home. But the Jets flat out dominated this game. Kerry Collins threw the ball 39 times and the Titans defense (best in the league, at least points-wise) gave up 34 points and let the Jets go 7-13 on 3rd downs. The Jets had 192 yards rushing and the Titans had a mere 45.

The last couple games, the Titans looked beatable. I figured it would only be a matter of time until they lost, because a team like the Titans couldn't go undefeated. In today's NFL, with scouting the way it is, only a dominant team can go through the gauntlet and finish 16-0. The Patriots were that dominant team...well, until the Super Bowl.

The big question is: where do the Titans go from here? Most experts - including TnT Sports' very own Tony Herman - had the Titans at #1 because they hadn't lost. The Giants looked much more dominant in all facets of the game for most of the season (the Browns game was obviously a fluke, for both teams) and should now be #1 in most power rankings, assuming the win today, which is no sure thing. As I type, the Cardinals are up 12-10. That is definitely the biggest game of today, if only because it will prove to the country that the Cardinals are for real (it honestly feels wierd to say that the Cardinals are one of the NFL's "elite" this season).

Update: The Cardinals lost, but their offense played great against a good defense. They are legit.