ZB Game of the Week: Seahawks at Colts

by Guest Post | Oct 4, 2013 | 2013 season, Game of the week

There are a few great games to look forward to this weekend, but none more so than the matchup between Seattle and Indianapolis. The Seahawks are undefeated, but they’ve looked much stronger at home than on the road. And Indianapolis is 3-1, with an impressive road smoking of San Francisco already on the resume.

The Colts will host this game Sunday afternoon at Lucas Oil Field. And two occasional guest of Zoneblitz have returned again to share their thoughts about the game. The comments of Nick Ashbourne, editor of 12^th Man Rising and Kyle Rodriguez, editor at The Colts Authority can be read below. (more…)

ZB Game of the Week: Packers at Bengals

by Guest Post | Sep 21, 2013 | 2013 season, Game of the week

There weren’t a lot of obvious game of the week picks for week three. There aren’t many division rivalry games that are likely to mean a lot in the standings at season’s end. And it’s too early to say who is matching up in a game that will have playoff tiebreaker ramifications. So I ended up going with this game because for a couple reasons. First, I think the Bengals and the Packers are both playoff teams and, very possibly, both division champions. But secondly, I was piqued by this match-up because of the potentially psychological ramifications for the Bengals.

For many years, Cincy was at the bottom of the barrel of the NFL. Marvin Lewis has taken them to a level of respectability now, with two consecutive playoff appearances, but I don’t think many have taken them seriously as a Super Bowl contender, particularly as they’ve fought to get out of the shadow of Baltimore and Pittsburgh. This year, the Bengals definitely have a chance to overtake those two rivals and winning a game like this would prove, not only to fans, but to themselves that they are truly a contender. Meanwhile, the Packers play their first road game since getting beaten by San Francisco in week one and Green Bay must win to keep up with a Chicago team that has gotten out of the gates well.

Ray Rivard, editor of LombardiAve.com, and Jason Marcum, editor of Stripe Hype, have joined Zoneblitz to share their thoughts on this contest. (more…)

ZB Game of the Week: 49ers at Seahawks

by Guest Post | Sep 12, 2013 | 2013 season, Game of the week

I took no debate this week when we were determining our featured Game of the Week. I’ve been saying all summer that the NFC’s two best teams are San Francisco and Seattle and I had plans to circle this one on the calendar before the schedules even came out. In a way it’s a shame that the Seahawks and 49ers are meeting this early in the season, but it doesn’t diminish the drama surrounding this game. There will be a lot of season left after the game, but the winner will have an early edge in the battle toward division prominence and potentially homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.

This week, we’re joined by Al Sacco, staff writer for 49erswebzone.com and 49ersgab.com, and Nick Ashbourne, the new editor for 12^th Man Rising. (more…)