James Lofton on Wild Card Weekend

01/02/2015

Out and Up James Lofton NewEach week, Hall of Fame wide receiver and Westwood One Sunday Night Football analyst James Lofton tells you about the teams, players and trends that are on the way out and those that are on the way up around the NFL.

IN: In the record books. DeMarco Murray broke Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith’s franchise record with a 20-carry, 100-yard performance in a win over Washington. Murray’s 12th 100-yard game of the season gave him a total of 1,845 for the year. Murray’s dominance throughout the season is a very big reason why the Cowboys are back into the playoffs and have dreams as big as Arizona for the month ahead.

DOUBLE MOVE: Ndamukong Suh was out for the Lions… now he’s back in. Detroit has one of the top run defenses in the league, thanks in part to big Suh, but they didn’t look all that great last week at Green Bay. Eddie Lacy gashed them for big chunks, with 105 yards on just 13 carries and a pair of scores. It should be interesting to see how DeMarco Murray fares against the Lions on Sunday.

OUT: Win and they were in! Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers faded away under a sea of red in Kansas City. Rivers was sacked four times by the Chiefs’ All-Pro linebacker Justin Houston (a free-agent-to-be) and seven times total by the KC defense. The Chargers could muster only a lone touchdown and will head back to the drawing board to get a jump start on the 2015 season.

OPTION ROUTE: Do you break right or left? Do you break up or stick together? Plenty of options abound in our nation’s capitol. Will owner Daniel Synder have a quick hook with Jay Gruden? Is RGIII the QB of the future? How about defensive coordinator Jim Haslett? So many questions and it’s not even an election year!!!

GO: Go figure this one out. Jim Harbaugh is headed for the green on offer from the Maize and Blue when he could of headed north on the 101 for the Silver & Black. Then again, coaches tend to never quite come out of that Black Hole the same.

COMEBACK: The comeback player of last Sunday should also be the NFL MVP. I don’t suffer from East or West Coast bias, but maybe I do have a little when it comes to the Cheeseheads. When Aaron Rodgers went down in a heap in the second quarter at the end of his short touchdown toss to Randall Cobb, that sound you heard was the fat lady singing the blues. When Rodgers came back out of the tunnel just after halftime, that tune switched to 70,000 Cheeseheads belting out Hallelujah!

– James Lofton

Pro Football Hall of Famer James Lofton is the analyst for Westwood One’s coverage of Sunday Night Football. This weekend you’ll find James in Pittsburgh as the Steelers take on the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday night. Coverage of our Wild Card doubleheader begins with Cardinals vs. Panthers at 4 PM Eastern.

Most Recent NFL Posts

SB INSIDER 800x497

Super Bowl Insider: Full Show

11 February 2024
Each week, Scott Graham takes you around the NFL on Westwood One's NFL Insider. New episodes will post here every Saturday.
SB PREVIEW 800x497

Super Bowl Preview: Full Show

11 February 2024
Scott Graham and Ross Tucker are your hosts for NFL Preview, Westwood One's half-hour look ahead to each week of the NFL season. A new episode will be added right here every Saturday throughout the season.
NFL PREVIEW 800x497 PBG

NFL Preview: Pro Bowl Week

03 February 2024
Scott Graham and Ross Tucker are your hosts for NFL Preview, Westwood One's half-hour look ahead to each week of the NFL season. A new episode will be added right here every Saturday throughout the season.
NFL INSIDER 800x497 PBG

NFL Insider: Pro Bowl Week

03 February 2024
Each week, Scott Graham takes you around the NFL on Westwood One's NFL Insider. New episodes will post here every Saturday.
NFL PREVIEW 800x497 CHAMPSUN

NFL Preview: Championship Weekend

27 January 2024
Scott Graham and Ross Tucker are your hosts for NFL Preview, Westwood One's half-hour look ahead to each week of the NFL season. A new episode will be added right here every Saturday throughout the season.
Load more posts