Packers lose, Colts win
It was a wild and wacky day of football Sunday in the NFL. The team everyone thought would go unbeaten lost, and the team everyone thought would finish winless won.
The mysterious Kansas City Chiefs, under interim head coach Romeo Crennel, knocked off Green Bay at home 19-14, ending the Packers’ 19-game winning streak. The last loss the Packers suffered came at the hands of New England on Dec. 19, 2010. The Packers were held to just 315 yards of total offense while Kansas City’s Kyle Orton threw for 299 yards. The Chiefs remain one of the NFL’s biggest enigmas. In their eight losses, they were outscored 241-62.
Meanwhile, the Indianapolis Colts put a dent in the playoff hopes of the Tennessee Titans with a 27-13 upset. The Titans fell to 7-7 while the Colts earned their first win. The win came at the hand of Dan Orlovsky, who avoided his second 0-16 season. Orlovsky was the quarterback for Detroit when it went 0-16. The win was Indianapolis’ first without Peyton Manning in 14 years.
Tennessee wasn’t the only upset victim Sunday. If there’s a team more frustrating to follow than the Chiefs, it’s the New York Giants. After taking the division lead over Dallas last week, the Giants came back home and laid an egg against the Washington Redskins, a team that was 1-8 in its previous nine games before Sunday.
The NFC East is a division no one seems to want to win. After a dominating 45-19 win over the New York Jets, a big surprise to be sure, the Philadelphia Eagles still somehow have playoff hopes if they win their last two games against Dallas and Washington. There is a scenario in which the Eagles, Cowboys and Giants could each finish 8-8. There is also the possibility that no one in the division finishes better than 8-8 or worse than 7-9.
Other upsets Sunday included Carolina defeating the Houston Texans on the road 28-13, and San Diego routing Baltimore 34-14 at home.
The wounds at the quarterback position finally showed for Houston. The Texans may have earned their first playoff bid since their expansion, but don’t be surprised if they see an early exit.
