The border between "stupid" and "profound" is narrow and near impenetrable, like if the Swiss Guard defended the eastern edge of Andorra. Trent Dilfer, that clever devil, is one of the few who can say they've snuck through.
NFL Watchability Index, Week 6: You cannot lose games and still win
According to sources, winning is an important part of football, if not the most important part. Let that sage advice be your guide for which games will be worth watching this week.
Steven Bisig-US PRESSWIRE
At its face, this clip is a hilarious emblem of how bad television NFL coverage can be, but we should assume that Trent Dilfer wasn’t actually trying to explain to us how losing a football game means you can’t win it. No one is that dumb to think the average sports fan still hasn’t figured out scoreboards -- at least, no one with the capacity to be a functioning, gainfully employed adult in this world -- so let’s figure out what Dilfer’s point might have been.
Take this weekend's game between the Denver Broncos and the New York Jets for example. This isn't a "big" game for the Broncos, at least not compared to any other. The Broncos are 3-1 and presumed to be on their way to the playoffs after returning much of their key Super Bowl personnel. The Jets, meanwhile, are 1-4 coming off a pasting by the San Diego Chargers. If Denver were to lose this weekend, no one would suddenly assume the Broncos are horrible. There would be worries, sure, but many would just chalk the game up to four hours of inattention in a long season.
But what might that inattention say about the Broncos? Are they fatigued from last season’s run? Are they too passive? Do they think too highly of themselves? Will they still have energy to invest at the end of the season if reserves are running low in Week 6?
Will they suddenly recall the taste of losing -- and not just any loss, a bad loss -- in the Divisional Round and flounder?
One rogue loss probably doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme -- sometimes teams goof, and that’s OK -- but it could mean something. That’s what Dilfer is getting at. You cannot lose games and still, without a doubt, win. The only way to know for sure that you’re a championship contender is to keep your score higher than the other guy’s.
Trent Dilfer, you sage.
Watchability Rankings
| Who | When (ET) | Where | Watchability |
| Cowboys @ Seahawks | Sun., Oct. 12, 4:25 p.m. | Fox | 5/5 |
| Giants @ Eagles | Sun., Oct. 12, 8:30 p.m. | NBC | 4/5 |
| Bears @ Falcons | Sun., Oct. 12 ,4:25 p.m. | Fox | 4/5 |
| Lions @ Vikings | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | Fox | 4/5 |
| Patriots @ Bills | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | Fox | 4/5 |
| Steelers @ Browns | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | CBS | 4/5 |
| Washington @ Cardinals | Sun., Oct. 12, 4:25 p.m. | Fox | 4/5 |
| Panthers @ Bengals | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | Fox | 3/5 |
| 49ers @ Rams | Mon., Oct. 13, 8:30 p.m. | ESPN | 3/5 |
| Ravens @ Buccaneers | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | CBS | 3/5 |
| Packers @ Dolphins | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | Fox | 3/5 |
| Broncos @ Jets | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | CBS | 2/5 |
| Chargers @ Raiders | Sun., Oct. 12, 4:05 p.m. | CBS | 2/5 |
| Jaguars @ Titans | Sun., Oct. 12, 1 p.m. | CBS | 1/5 |
Sunday, Oct. 12
Jacksonville Jaguars at Tennessee Titans, 1 p.m. -- CBS
The reasons why this is a bad game are pretty obvious, so let's gloss over those. Instead, let's talk rookies! Blake Bortles should have a little breathing room against the Titans. Tennessee wants to give Bishop Sankey more reps, and a bad Jaguars defense could be prime fodder for a breakout game. That's exciting, right?
Rating: 1/5
Baltimore Ravens at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1 p.m. -- CBS
There is a trend of good teams taking on bad ones on the road this week. Ravens-Bucs fits the mold, though not as tightly as other matchups. The Ravens are coming off a loss, and the Buccaneers have been competitive in the two weeks since their blowout loss to the Atlanta Falcons. There may still be hope for the Bucs to turn things around, but they’ll probably need to find an offense at some point, and that might be asking a lot.
Rating: 3/5
Denver Broncos at New York Jets, 1 p.m. -- CBS
The Trend Pt. 2, this one much more pronounced than the Raven-Bucs example. The Jets are always ripe for schadenfreude, and the Broncos are always capable of wrecking a box score. In terms of a “fun” game, you might want to pass.
Rating: 2/5
Detroit Lions at Minnesota Vikings, 1 p.m. -- Fox
Poor, poor Jason Hanson. The longtime Lions kicker finally retired after the 2012 season, and two years later Detroit may finally be fielding a well-rounded team. Lo and behold, the Lions’ kicking game is an absolute disaster -- they missed three field goal attempts during last week’s three-point loss to the Bills, and are now 1-of-9 on attempts longer than 40 yards.
Teddy Bridgewater should be back for the Vikings, making this game ripe for fun, intrigue, shenanigans and a whole bunch of other stuff you want out of a key division matchup.
Rating: 4/5
New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills, 1 p.m. -- Fox
Based solely on this season, is there any result to this game that could actually surprise you? The Patriots were on both ends of blowouts in back-to-back weeks. The Bills have a lot of moxie and may be charmed. Kyle Orton gave Buffalo a good start against a strong defense last week. The spectrum of possibility is wide and head scratching. Whatever happens, we still won't know anything about these teams.
Rating: 4/5
Carolina Panthers at Cincinnati Bengals, 1 p.m. -- Fox
The Bengals got their asses kicked so thoroughly that one wonders whether there is really anything to take from it. Sometimes you just lose and it doesn’t mean you’re bad. Maybe you just sneezed when a ball was flying at your face, and it broke your nose and made you look like a dummy. That is a real thing that has happened to people. We should absolutely point and laugh at it, but maybe cut the Bengals some slack because they’re trying real hard, OK?
Rating: 3/5
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns, 1 p.m. -- CBS
The AFC North may have the most parity of any division in the league, top to bottom. The Browns, meanwhile, are incapable of playing a game that isn’t a heart stopper -- every game they have played this season has finished within three points, including their three-point season-opening loss to the Steelers. Heck yeah it’ll be fun.
Rating: 4/5
Green Bay Packers at Miami Dolphins, 1 p.m. -- Fox
The Trend Pt. 3, with slight apologies to the Dolphins, who have yet to fall off the ledge at 2-2. Those losses were significant, however, and the wins came against the Oakland Raiders and a sleepy Patriots in Week 1. This feels like a game the Packers should win, but doing what they should isn’t always the Packers’ “thing.”
Rating: 3/5
San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders, 4:05 p.m. -- CBS
The Trend Pt. 4. The Chargers are -- just maybe! -- Super Bowl contenders. The Raider are, uh, oof, oh boy.
Rating: 2/5
Chicago Bears at Atlanta Falcons, 4:25 p.m. -- Fox
Overpowering and maddeningly inconsistent passing games colliding like high speed trains? God yes.
Rating: 4/5
Dallas Cowboys at Seattle Seahawks, 4:25 p.m. -- Fox
Cowboys-Seahawks is easily the highest-quality game of the week. Through five weeks, there might not be two more complete teams in the NFL. The Seahawks and Cowboys rank fifth and sixth in scoring offense, respectively, and first and eighth in scoring defense. Both offenses are incredibly well balanced. The Seahawks’ defense has met expectations, and the Cowboys’ has exceeded theirs.
The game is in Seattle, so it runs the risk of a being a routine Seattle blowout a la the Packers’ visit in Week 1. Still, there isn’t a more important game this week in terms of potential Super Bowl implications, and for that reason you are obligated to tune in.
Rating: 5/5
Washington at Arizona Cardinals, 4:25 p.m. -- Fox
Therapists are literally trying to wake up Carson Palmer’s injured nerve, which seems like an imprecise and informal way for a well-regarded health professional to describe his work on a highly paid athlete. Nerve damage is a scary and frustrating thing for a quarterback. It can put a passer in the dark for an indeterminate amount of time.
That means the Cardinals may be rolling with Logan Thomas again this week and into the foreseeable future, which is a scary thing for fans who built up high expectations after a 3-0 start. The Cardinals have the potential to be one of the league's best teams, but momentum is a fleeting resource, and struggles at quarterback could dampen whatever fun the team had been having.
Rating: 4/5
New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles, 8:30 p.m. -- NBC
The Giants' offense flipped a switch in Week 3 and has since averaged 35 points per game in consecutive wins against Houston, Washington and Atlanta. The Eagles are 4-1 but sputtering of late. What has been a horrendous offensive line will get a much-needed boost with the return of Lane Johnson from suspension.
If the AFC North is the most competitive division in football, the NFC East may be next. This show on Sunday night is well worth your time.
Rating: 4/5
Monday, Oct. 13
San Francisco 49ers at St. Louis Rams, 8:30 p.m. -- ESPN
The Trend Pt. 5. The 49ers are finally looking like the team we expected them to be after some early season soul searching. The Rams are in rough place at 1-3, and are poorly positioned Monday night pitting their bad run defense against the run-heavy Niners.
Rating: 3/5
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