NFL quickies

The Patriots went across the country and smoked the Raiders?  Yawn. Something about that pesky standard of excellence still being alive and well.

Whoa. The Packers got shut out at home by a mediocre team like the Ravens? Things are not good in Cheeserland these days.

Somewhere in his NYC penthouse, Roger Goodell likely chuckles. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones had threatened to come after the Commish with "everything he had". Pity JJ just saw his team get demolished -- four touchdowns worth -- in his very own palace -- by the surprising Eagles. It would seem the Jones boys have more urgent concerns than pursuing some sort of vendetta against the head of the league offices. As in -- Da Boys are soft all over the field, with no help in sight. Wanna come after me JJ, quoth the Roger as he giggles? Try getting your own house in order first.

Don't look now, but Jacksonville -- JACKSONVILLE -- is pretty good these days, and definitely in the playoff hunt.

Many don't want to acknowledge it, but Case Keenum, yes, THAT Case Keenum, is rolling along nicely these days for the Vikings. Once an afterthought, he's got the Vikes on a roll. As usual, Sam Bradford is hurt, and former starter Teddy Bridgewater is still on the mend, though active and supposedly good to go. Would head coach Mike Zimmer dare yank Keenum to plug Teddy back in? If so, he better hope Bridgewater turns into a Montana, Brady, or Bradshaw. Because if not, he'd look mighty foolish putting Keenum back on the bench. Hey, when it's working -- don't mess with it.

Ah yes, those pesky Detroit Lions won another game. Thing is, they have lived the most charmed life possible so far this season to currently sport a 6-4 record.

The Vikings aside for now -- I'll get back to that -- they've played four teams with winning records. Carolina, Atlanta, New Orleans, and Pittsburgh. And lost them all -- three of them at home.

On the flip side they got a win against Minnesota when they were down to their third string quarterback, another against Green Bay without the services of Aaron Rodgers, and had their hands full with the ever-woeful and winless Cleveland Browns. Earlier today, they barely -- BARELY edged the Chicago Bears. And the only reason they won that game was because Bears rookie QB Mitchell Trubisky fumbled a snap and a Lion defender scooped it up and returned it for a touchdown. A fluke play. Throw in a pretty bad Arizona team, and a downright pitiful NY Giant squad. None of these can exactly be termed "quality" wins.

But by thunder, the Honolulu blue and silver crowd is back on the bandwagon. Poor misguided souls. Don't they realize another spectacular crash is in their future? They can whoop it up if their puddy-tats prevail against the above-mentioned mediocre Ravens, a Tampa Bay team that has come apart at the seams, another go-round with the lowly Bears, a tussle with Marvin Lewis's always terrible Cincinnati Bengals (how does this guy keep his job after a decade of obvious incompetence?), and finishing up with Green Bay, likely to have shut down Rodgers for the season if they're smart, because the Pack is already out of it. Let him fully heal and have at it again next year.

So not only looking behind, but ahead, the Lions have caught every break possible this season.

They might well stumble into the playoffs again, regardless of how things turn out at Ford Field on Thanksgiving day against the Vikes.

But that is where it will stop, abruptly, again. Once into the post season, this patsy rose garden stuff all goes away.

Whoever they meet, if they get there, will be the real deal. And as mentioned above, when the Lions have faced a good team this year -- they lose.

Hey, it's just another year.

Does any sane person really expect any more out of the Lions after over a half century of futility, with a parade of clown coaches, and even more hilarious front office personnel along the way?

And if the late William Clay Ford (RIP) wasn't clueless enough, enter his 90+ year old widow Martha with her long ago AARP daughters to now run the show. Collectively, these women likely don't know the difference between a draw play and a Broadway play. A blitz or a Blatz. A "Cover 2" defense probably means an extra loophole while an accountant somewhere fills out their taxes. Throw in the fact they hired an "estate planner", who's admitted he knew nothing about football as president of the team, and there you go. The Ford legacy lives on.

And people still ask me why I bailed on this sorry franchise 20 years ago?

Hello?