Yeah, that'll leave a mark -- hat tip to Yahoo's own Mike Silver for the link. The tackler, Lions linebacker Zack Follett(notes), is also a rookie, and he's got a pretty unique way of looking at the world. I've covered the last three Scouting Combines, and of all the press conferences I've seen, Follett's was the most fun. For one thing, while he's a fan of Brian Urlacher(notes), his real hero is a bit more of a downhill force who plays much better indoors.

"Growing up, Terry Tate, No. 56, the Office Linebacker, he was my hero watching those commercials. I tried to emulate him when I was out there. ... Junior year of high school, I went to Champs Sports and they sold a Reebok Terry Tate number 56 jersey, and I bought one immediately. We watched all his YouTube clips and he's bringing the 'Pain Train' and doing the 'whoop-whoop' sound and I used to do it in high school, and I used to blow the horn. It kind of stuck with me a little bit."

Follett also hopes to get a little side business going.

"I make things out of wood. My dad taught me when I was little ... When I was a senior, I took it to the next level. I started making wood cutouts. I did one of myself, kind of experimenting. My other linebacker partner painted it. It was a life-size replica.

"I did one of (fullback) Lorenzo Neal(notes) because we used to train together (when Follett was at Cal). He's the only pro player I knew at the time. Hopefully, from an investment standpoint, I'm going to open a little wood shop wherever I move and I'll make them of teammates because I know they have a lot of money to waste."

If Follett keeps hitting like he did on the play above, he'll find a place in the NFL in the long term. As for Amendola, maybe he'll remember to put the cover on his TPS report next time!

"I think people are making conscious decisions that their entertainment dollars are best spent watching NFL games free on their television sets on Sunday afternoon and Sunday night and Monday night," Pilson said in the article. Another theory is that most of the NFL's worst teams, like the Chiefs, Rams, and Titans, are in smaller markets.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell acknowledges the trend. "Since we continue to be available on free television, our fans can gather around the television sets rather than pursuing other opportunities that are more costly." One wonders if Goodell is tipping his hand when it comes to the thought of a pay-per-view model with that remark -- certainly if this continues and small-market teams struggle in the wake of half-empty stadiums (the Jacksonville Jaguars will suffer their fourth TV blackout this season when they face the Chiefs on Sunday), a pay model might be thrown out there in continued CBA discussions as a way to keep the revenue-sharing model going. Overall, NFL attendance is down about two percent from last year according to Maske's article, but that's far more indicative of those small-market struggles than it is a ding on teams like the Cowboys, Giants, Jets, Redskins, Broncos and Seahawks, who have been selling out their stadiums as a near-automatic proposition.

On the verge of a CBA meltdown, an uncapped year, a possible lockout, and a very different business model, the NFL will have to find new ways to draw viewers and make money from that viewership. As it has many times before, television may be pro football's saving grace.

It's like Riggo saw this video of Daniel Snyder being just a tiny bit relatable, sensed that a few people didn't hate Snyder as much as they did before, and immediately wanted to rectify that. Riggins was on Showtime's "Inside the NFL" on Wednesday night and unleashed his coldest words yet. Here are some of Riggo's words, via Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post:

"...This is a bad guy that owns this team. I'll just tell you that upfront. Bad guy. And if the Commissioner is worried about potential new owners and saying some of these guys shouldn't apply, he might want to police his own inside guys..."

Cris Collinsworth tried to maybe easy Riggins in the direction of saying that Snyder is a bad GM instead of a bad person, but Riggins made it clear what he meant.

"Let me put it to you this way, Cris, this person's heart is dark."

His heart is dark. Not a lot of gray area there. It would be hard to say something worse about a person than, "His heart is dark."

To me, that means that this is a person trying to do evil. This is a person who wants to, or doesn't care about, hurting other people.. He's not misguided, he's not trying to do the right thing and failing, it's not his fault because his daddy didn't hug him enough as a child ... he's just a bad person who seeks to spread misery. His heart pumps not with warm, life-giving human blood, but a frigid, black bile that fuels his foul existence.

Is that about what you're saying, Riggo? Because that's how I interpret it, and it's a little messed up, my man.

After the relative peace of a bye week, the Redskins return on Sunday to play the Falcons in Atlanta. 

The diva in question is Roy Williams, the ex-Lions receiver who hasn't come close to fulfilling the price Dallas paid for him -- first-, third-, and sixth-round picks in 2009, plus a seventh back in 2010. Through Week 8 of the 2009 season, Williams has 14 catches for 249 yards and two touchdowns. He's fourth in receiver productivity on the team, behind Jason Witten(notes), Patrick Crayton(notes), and some guy by the name of Miles Austin(notes), who has put up individual-game performances of 250 and 171 receiving yards in the last month. Austin is getting his first starts this season, and he's making the most of it. The same cannot be said of Williams, whose resemblance to Owens is only in sheer disgruntlement.

"I'm the No. 1 receiver," Williams recently told the Dallas media. "But things are just going No. 2's way." No. 2 is obviously Austin, and Williams wasn't done shifting blame away from himself.

"(Austin) gets the ball thrown correctly his way. I'm stretching and falling and doing everything. Everybody who's been here's balls are there. Our footballs are everywhere right now."

What Williams is trying to say, in a convoluted fashion, is that Tony Romo(notes) is throwing footballs with extreme efficiency to everyone else on the team, and hurling Ryan Leaf goatballs to him. That, and not Williams' sloppy routes and alligator arms, is the reason Dallas' "star receiver" has caught 14 of the 37 balls thrown his way, for a pathetic catch rate of 38 percent (as opposed to Crayton's 51 percent and Austin's 62 percent).

Now, it's come out that Michael Irvin offered tips to Williams and Austin during the Cowboys' training camp about anticipating the snap count and using correct catch technique. Irvin recently said that while Austin was a willing and grateful pupil, Williams wasn't interested. Say what you will about Irvin, but there haven't been many receivers in NFL history with his absolutely demonic competitive spirit once he got on the field. Austin understands that every little bit helps. Williams clearly doesn't.

The Cowboys have a major problem on their hands with Williams. His high price forces the team to put him in a lead role he hasn't earned and doesn't deserve, and it may take more bad plays and blamescaping before this sad experiment comes to an end.

A lot of Chiefs fans don't want that to happen. They love their Chiefs, they respect the franchise's history, and they don't want Johnson's name associated with it. It's not just because of the recent suspension, either. If you're looking for them, you'll find no shortage of reasons to dislike Larry Johnson.

So fans are taking matters into their own hands and circulating a petition asking the Chiefs to deactivate Johnson before he can claim the record. The petition reads, in part:

We are asking you, as fans of this team, this organization, and of the pride that this city has in the Chiefs, please deactivate Larry Johnson. Please do not let his name sit atop the all-time rushing leaders in Kansas City Chiefs history. He needs a mere 80 yards to surpass Priest. He doesn’t deserve that opportunity. He has never represented anything close to the values that we have for our Chiefs and it would be another dagger to the fans that continue to support this proud franchise.

If you'd like to add your name to the almost 10,000 that have already signed it, you can do so here.

It's a nice notion, trying to protect the record book from someone who isn't believed to have the character of others in there before him. It's easy to see where petitioners are coming from, and their devotion to a proud Chiefs history is commendable.

If it were my team, though, and some disreputable character was about to put his name in my team's record book ... I don't think I'd sign a similar petition. At the end of the day, what's most important to me is that the team is doing its best to win football games.

I believe there's one thing that should always be true about an organization. As Herm Edwards (sorry, Chiefs fans) once said, You Play To Win The Game. The fans who play to watch their team deserve the best effort to win. The rest of the guys on the team deserve the best effort to win. If that happens to come in the form of a not-so-nice guy running the football, then so be it.

I like the Dalai Lama. I don't like Larry Johnson. I'd rather have Larry Johnson running the football for me.

The nice thing about this particular case, though, is that Johnson is neither a nice guy or a productive running back, so his benching would seem to suit everyone. He's currently picking up 2.7 yards per carry and has no touchdowns. Backup Jamaal Charles(notes), meanwhile, has averaged a 5.0-yard gain on his 23 carries this year. So whether you see it my way, or the way of the petition signers, benching Larry Johnson seems to be the right thing to do.

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We talk, of course, about last week's disaster in Baltimore, why it happened, and what it means for the Broncos going forward. We talk about the evolution of the Josh McDaniels era, and how much fun it's been if you're a Broncos fan. There's Kyle Orton(notes) talk, Brandon Marshall(notes) talk and plenty of talk about this week's key matchup against the Steelers.

Danks and I also have the standards: the abusive e-mail of the week, the Hot Routes and I try to protect my one-game lead in the Picks Segment. Here are the games we pick this week (home teams in CAPS):

Baltimore Ravens -3 vs. CINCINNATI BENGALS
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS -9 vs. Houston Texans
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS - 13½ vs. Carolina Panthers
NEW YORK GIANTS - 4½ vs. San Diego Chargers
Pittsburgh Steelers -3 vs. DENVER BRONCOS

You can listen right here:

Or download the MP3 right here. MP3, 38:31, 18.1 MB.

Is Hines Ward(notes) simply a guy who likes to play hard or a cheap shot artist? According to NFL players, it's the latter.

Sports Illustrated asked 296 players who they thought was the dirtiest player in the league and the Pittsburgh Steelers receiver was a resounding victor, earning nearly double the votes of the next highest player. 

I was always on Ward's side when it came to the dirty/hard argument, but his block on Keith Rivers last year swayed me to the other side. It's a gray area though; if Ward was on my favorite team I'd defend him to the death.

Below is a partial list of vote-getters, their percentage of the vote and a brief description of their dirtiness. You'll find that there is literally nothing surprising about the results of the poll, other than that Vince Young(notes) got a vote. (What, he throws his clipboard at people?)

1. Hines Ward (11.6 percent): One of two players on this list to have a rule informally named after themselves, Ward is known for lighting up defenders with a bit too much gusto after an interception or fumble.

2. Albert Haynesworth(notes) (6.0 percent): We can safely assume that Haynesworth earned the vote of Andre Gurode. 

4. Roy Williams (5.1 percent): Even though the horse collar rule was made to protect the league's quarterbacks from the former Dallas Cowboys "star", I had never really thought that Williams was dirty. I just figured he did it because he couldn't tackle.

7. Richie Incognito(notes) (3.7 percent): You know that famous baseball-related bar trivia question that asks how many ways a batter can reach first base? Incognito's dossier reads like a list of all the possible ways to accrue a personal foul.

Even though he retired last spring, former Chargers safety Rodney Harrison(notes) received three votes, thus showing that dirtiness can live on in perpetuity. 

As you might imagine, Gus took some criticism for the comment. Consequently, he has apologized:

"If there is a perception of racism in this analogy, it is not coming from me. People of all races have run from the law. However, to those who are offended, I apologize."

Gus is right, I guess. Have you ever seen "Cops"? There are black people, white people, Latino people, all running from the police. Unfortunately for them, it seems that very few have "Gettin' away from the cops" speed. Or shirts.

True or not, though, the issue isn't that cut and dry. I accept that Gus Johnson made the remark without ill will for anyone, but that's not the point. The point is that remarks like that one, or "He's running like he stole something" are often used in a harmful way, implying that a black man has stolen something and/or has developed his speed while evading the police. Regardless of the intent behind it, it's not something that's completely harmless to say about a fast black man.

Clouding the issue, though, is that I think the expression is used differently in some parts of the black community. One guy might say about a fast guy, "He's got speed like he's running from the cops," not implying that the guy stole something, but that, you know, cops chase black people, whether they've stolen something or not.

It's not a simple thing that I can sort out myself. Context matters. Culture matters. This particular issue will vanish soon, but we'll have to deal with about a million more like it in the future. It's not going to get any easier.

Ever watched an NFL game and wondered why some defenders (like DeAngelo Hall(notes), above) seem to regard tackling as an optional activity or nuisance? Joseph White of the Associated Press has a theory about why this is and it's pretty good (and so obvious that it's a wonder more people don't talk about it): Tackling ability has declined in recent years because teams almost never work on the skill in practice. (Practice?!)

Go read the article. It's one of the most informative pieces I've read about the NFL this year. Here's the basic gist: Teams are reluctant to attempt live tackling in practice because of the fear of injury. As a result, players learn bad habits like overrunning plays, taking bad angles or trying to tackle high (like DeAngelo Hall, above).

The only fallacy in this argument is that there are plenty of good tacklers in the league. But it does make sense that some players have seen their skills fall off because of the lack of preparation in the area.  As Washington Redskins safeties coach Steve Jackson says in the article:

"You train yourself to 'just miss'. And now (in a game) you have untrain yourself in a manner of split seconds."

What's the counter to this, though? Does the lack of tackling in practice help or harm offensive players? Clearly it helps them avoid injuries in non-game settings, but does a receiver experience a similar decline because he can't work on juke moves or stiff-arms or how to break contact? If one is true, it stands to reason that the other is too.

This problem is only going to get worse. The NFL is trending toward more caution, not less. Teaching tackling theory can only go so far. But you can't argue with the thinking of Wade Phillips:

"We teach tackling fundamentals, but there's no reason to tackle our own guys."

Well, unless you're this dude.

Yesterday, though, Snyder went to a local high school  to announce a charitable project to renovate high school football fields in Maryland. After the ceremony, in which he was greeted cheerfully and politely, he stopped to talk to reporters.

Now witness Dan Snyder, live in his natural habitat, seeming like a real person: vulnerable, remorseful, and semi-responsible for his actions. It kind of feels like watching Planet Earth, where they've discovered something rarely seen by humans before.

See, if he was really like the person I envision in my head, when the marching band got close, he would've have turned around and screamed to the band director, "HEY! HEY! PIPE DOWN RIGHT NOW, OR I WILL HAVE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOUR BRASS INSTRUMENTS MELTED DOWN AND SCULPTED INTO A LIFESIZE STATUE OF JACK KENT COOKE, NUDE, SLOBBERING ON HIMSELF AND WEARING A DIAPER. Ahem. I'm sorry miss, you were saying?"

It was smooth of him to avoid the topic of the ban on signs, but that's easily overlooked in the bigger picture. He was almost like a real human being here. One that's destroying a franchise, sure, but still real, and at least sorry about it. I think that's a big step for him.

See last week's absurdly premature playoff picture here.

AFC First-Round Byes:
Indianapolis Colts
Denver Broncos

Other AFC Divisional Champions:
Pittsburgh Steelers
New England Patriots

AFC Wild Cards:
Cincnnati Bengals
Houston Texans

NFC First-Round Byes:
New Orleans Saints
Minnesota Vikings

Other NFC Divisional Champions:
Dallas Cowboys
San Francisco 49ers

NFC Wild Cards:
Philadelphia Eagles
Green Bay Packers

• It used to be the NFC that would remain the same from week-to-week and the AFC would get shuffled, but that trend has reversed itself. Not a single move in the AFC (Sorry, Baltimore; I'll explain in a second). Outside of the top two, though, the NFC is like a game of musical chairs at a Crystal Meth Tweakers Anonymous meeting.

• As for that Denver vs. Baltimore game and the lack of ramifications as it relates to this weekly projection: Starting with Denver, I'm not going going to kill them for losing on a cross-country tip to a solid team at home, coming off of a bye week. Of course, the bigger concern is that the Ravens laid out a blueprint on how to stifle the Broncos offense completely, but we won't know if that was the case for another few weeks.

• As for Baltimore, I'd have liked to give them a spot for their performance this week, but there was no one I felt comfortable bumping. Further rationalizing this to myself, one win now makes Baltimore a team that's lost three of their last four, with four of their next five games coming against very stiff competition.

• The awesome thing is that all this gets rectified on the field this week when Baltimore takes on Cincinnati. Absurdly Premature Playoff Picture spot ... ON THE LINE.

• Dallas was elevated to NFC East champion, because there was no way I was going to let the Giants stay there one more second. I guess I could've gone with Philadelphia, but those two performances against Oakland and Washington are too fresh in the mind. Again, the beauty of it? Dallas and Philadelphia duke it out this week. Again: Absurdly Premature Playoff Picture spot ... ON THE LINE.

• San Francisco re-leapfrogged Arizona as the AFC West Champion on the strength of their loss to Indy, and the weakness of Arizona's loss to Carolina. That remains a really tough race to call. Hopefully, the insane amount of rushing yards put up on Arizona this week is a one-time aberration and not an exposure. I'm leaning towards aberration.

A father of one of Brigham's players, according to SFGate.com, says he was on the receiving end of a Brigham punch to the back of the head. The father is Scott Haggerty, who also happens to be Alameda County Supervisor.

It's a weird story. Haggerty's side of it goes like this: He used to be an assistant coach for the team, but Brigham fired him after he missed a film session (again, that's a film session for a league consisting of 10- and 11-year old boys). Haggerty did show up on Saturday, though, to watch his son's team beat the snot out of some other hapless kids, 38-0. Film study pays off, I guess.

Anyway, the next day, the losing coach saw Brigham at a meeting and said, "Haggerty gave me all your plays." Haggerty says that the man was joking, and that Brigham just didn't get the joke. He says he doesn't even know the plays.

From there, Haggerty says that Brigham confronted him and (via InsideBayArea.com) "knocked his BlackBerry out of his hand, bent him over a four-foot fence, then punched him in the back of the head."

Yikes. That's rather frightening. I suppose, though, that when a man gets bent over a fence, he's probably lucky if the worst thing that happens to him is a punch to the back of the head. But that's just me, and I try to be glass-half-full about things.

Again, this is just Haggerty's side of the story, and Brigham hasn't told his. I just hope all this gets sorted out so we know if Brigham is really doing things the Raider way.

Stafford seems like an understanding and forgiving chap. And that's good, because if he had gone on the radio today and said, "Anyone who is booing me right now is an absolute pinhead," I wouldn't have blamed him a bit. Lions center Dominic Raiola felt the same way.

"I was very disappointed when I came to the sideline and fans were telling him, 'Throw it to me' and 'I'm open' -- this, that and the other. I popped off and said something to the fans. . . . He's not going to say nothing. I'm going to say something.  [...]

"You want to run him out of town already? You know what I'm saying? That just hit home with me because I've been through it with Joey [Harrington]. I've been through it. They sent him packing. Quick. And they're not going to do it to this guy. I'm going to be right here next to him."

Just a quick history lesson while we're here: The Lions lost all 16 of their games last year, and Matthew Stafford, in just his third game in Detroit, won. Just two games later (he missed two with an injury, plus a bye week), he's taking verbal abuse from fans?

I know it can't be easy to be a Lions fan, but we're not talking about general boos here. We're talking about Lions fans specifically heckling Stafford as he walked off the field. I mean, look at this guy (lower right, under the "quick links"). He's got that kind of anger for a rookie playing the hardest position in sports, with one of the worst supporting casts in sports? Get the net.

It's a tiny minority of Lions fans we're talking about here, and generally speaking, I respect any Lions fan who's still showing up to games. Stafford is one of the good guys, though. If your football team is going to get turned around, he's probably going to be a big reason for it. Even if he isn't, he might deserve more than five games (one of which he won) before we scapegoat him.

Gracias, Pro Football Talk.

In a semi-pro football game last week, Mauriece McIver of the Las Vegas Cobras made a clean, open-field tackle on a punt returner. The only problem? The guy he tackled was on his own team:

You may see players in the same uniform run into each other or accidentally trip someone or inadvertently bring someone down in a scrum, but I can't remember ever seeing a guy seek out his teammate and bring him down like McIver did.

In his defense, he wasn't helped by the fact that the two teams were each wearing dark jerseys. Still, that doesn't excuse McIver from not remembering that he was supposed to be blocking, not tackling. Even if the teams were wearing the exact same things, players on the return team still should know not to tackle anyone, least of all the guy with the ball.

Thanks, Deadspin

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We'll be here throughout the game this evening with running commentary on the game, observations, insights, polls, blatant lies and a high level of interactivity with you, the reader. We'd love it if you were here. Myself, Chris Chase, Doug Farrar, Andy Behrens, Scott Pianowski and Matt Sussman will all be on hand.

Starting just a few minutes before kickoff.

But of all the terrible teams, which is the worst? Shutdown Corner takes a look at the resumes of the "contenders" and whittles the list down to the most rotten squad in the NFL.

26. Oakland Raiders (2-6, -123 point differential): If we were making an All-Awful team, JaMarcus Russell(notes) would be the easy choice for starting quarterback (at least Derek Anderson(notes) once was good). But, despite the multiple blowout losses (the New York teams beat Oakland by a combined score of 82-7), the Raiders at least have a good win on their resume (vs. Philadelphia), which is more than any of these other teams can say.

27. Washington Redskins (2-5, -27 point differential): The only two wins to the Redskins credit have come against teams ranked lower on this list. And no other squad, with the exception of our "winner", has appeared to have thrown in the towel as quickly as the 'Skins. But, hey, at least fans of the team have a public forum in which to vent their frustration. Oh, wait ...

28. St. Louis Rams (1-7, -144 point differential): A full calendar year passed between victories for the Rams, who finally got a W yesterday in a battle of attrition against the lowly Lions. Twenty-four hours ago, Steve Spagnuolo's team would have been at the bottom of this list. Even now, though, it's tough to put them too much higher, particularly when the victory came despite James Butler(notes) being tackled for a safety following his retreat into the endzone on an interception return. Somewhere, Dan Orlovsky nodded in approval.

29. Kansas City Chiefs (1-6, -76 point differential): If we're looking at positives, the Chiefs have the fewest fumbles lost of any team in the NFL. But that's really about it. I don't think anyone will be surprised if Todd Haley pulls a Tom Cable in a few weeks.

30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-7, -107 point differential): The Bucs rough start is particularly strange given the esteemed coaching pedigree of Raheem Morris.

31. Detroit Lions (1-6, -92 point differential): Remember after the Lions snapped that lengthy losing streak against the Redskins in week 3 and how everyone thought it was the start of bigger and better things for the team? Yeah, not so much.

And the worst team in the NFL:

32. Cleveland Browns (1-7, -131 point differential): In five of its eight games this year, Cleveland has scored six points or less. New England scored more points in one game (59) than the Browns have since Sept. 14 (58). Derek Anderson's completion percentage is six points lower than JaMarcus Russell. Joe Posnanski wondered if the hiring of Eric Mangini was the worst in the history of the NFL. Even Rolling Stone magazine is getting in its shots.

Not that it was the most painful loss of all-time or anything, but it was certainly unique in how it was painful. Most of us will never see our hero, arguably the best player in the history of our franchise, come back in the colors of our arch-rival and then destroy us, cementing the fact that his new football team is now clearly better than his old one.

That just doesn't happen. Not on this level, with a player of that magnitude, between rivals so bitter.

I feel bad for Packers fans. Not because of who I blame for anything that's happened -- blame doesn't really matter anymore. Blame Brett Favre(notes), Ted Thompson, global warming or Emmanual Lewis if you really want to. No matter who's at fault, Packers fans just suffered a loss that packed some serious sting. Forty-five% say it's the toughest loss Packers fans have ever had to deal with.

Karma failed us. After everything that's happened, all the breathless media reports, all the spin, all the lies, all the hurt feelings ... Brett Favre gets to come out on top, both times? This time, in your own front yard? That is not right. That is not just.

Packers fans deserved to win at least one of those games, and it seems cruel that they didn't get to. All they got was to see Favre leaving their field, with his hands raised high in victory.

I guess "deserve" is a concept that doesn't apply here, though. Things happened the way they did because Minnesota has a better football team. They have a better defense and a better running attack. In this case, that means they win. It sucks, but that's how it works.

The reaction in Green Bay today seems surprisingly pragmatic, though. The Packers blogs are worried about things like their head coach, Aaron Rodgers, Johnny Jolly, and Dom Capers (naughty language alert for that last one). Like pretty much every other team out there. The newspapers are a little more Favre-y, but there's just as much focus on things like Cullen Jenkins roasting Dom Capers, and the differences in the rest of the Green Bay and Minnesota rosters.

I'm sure there's a lot of frustration and anger behind all that, too. You have my sympathies, Packer fans. No group of fans should have to go through that, and then get denied satisfaction twice.

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Steve Slaton(notes), Running Back, Houston Texans

Ben Hartsock(notes), Tight End, New York Jets. Three times yesterday, the Jets lined up to attempt a two-point conversion. All three times, they failed, and on two of those failures, there were penalties on Ben Hartsock. The first time, he started falsely, pushing the Jets back and forcing them to settle for the single point. The second time -- and this was the big one -- Mark Sanchez(notes) completed the pass for the conversion, but it was called back for an illegal shift on Hartsock. In fairness, Sanchez took responsibility for the penalty after the game, but wherever the fault goes, the penalty was huge. The Jets did get well into field goal range at the end of the game, but couldn't punch through for the six. I would've really liked their chances in overtime.

C.C. Brown(notes), Safety, New York Giants. C.C. Brown accepts this recognition on behalf of the entire Giants secondary, and really, for the defensive line, too. The Giants couldn't get any pressure whatsoever on Donovan McNabb(notes), and he shredded them like store-brand cole slaw. On the big touchdown to DeSean Jackson(notes), Brown bit hard on an inside move, which left Jackson open by about ten yards in all directions. Of course, it doesn't help anyone in the back four when McNabb can sit comfortably in the pocket for about eight minutes on every passing play, either.

Kurt Warner(notes), Quarterback, Arizona Cardinals. Say the Panthers are about to play the Cardinals, and I tell you that one quarterback is going to spend the afternoon turning the ball over like it's his job. You'd guess Jake Delhomme(notes), right? I would've. And I would've been wrong. Yesterday, it was Kurt Warner with five interceptions (though two of them came off of deflections). Just about every part of the Arizona football team bottomed out yesterday. The performance, as a whole, is damn near inexplicable. Did they bring in Dave McGinnis for a special pep talk before the game?

James Butler(notes), Safety, St. Louis Rams. I hate to include a Ram here after such a glorious day in St. Louis football history, but it had to be done. Only a Ram could pick up an interception and then manage to not only turn it into a negative for his team, but actually lose points on the play. Apologies for the poor video quality, but I wanted it to match the football quality.

Vince Young(notes), Quarterback, Tennessee Titans

Greg Mattison, Defensive Coordinator, Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens played, by far, their best game of 2009 against the Broncos yesterday. They were strong, they were physical, they were tough and they had the right game plan. They decided that they would tee off on the Denver running game and short passes, and if Denver wanted to beat them by going vertical, then hey, have it it, Kyle Orton(notes). He couldn't do it. Denver's biggest play of the day was a 39-yard pass interference call on the Ravens. Outside of that, the Broncos had just one play all day that went for more than 20 yards, and it came in garbage time.

Ted Ginn, Special Teams, Miami Dolphins. Note that it doesn't say, "Ted Ginn, Wide Receiver." Ginn didn't catch a ball (though, it should be noted, neither did his replacement, Brian Hartline(notes)). That didn't stop Ginn from just about singlehandedly winning that game for his team, though. That Miami offense was doing nothing yesterday, Wildcat or no Wildcat. But they got one defensive touchdown, and two special teams touchdowns from Ginn, both of which were "Man, that guy is crazy athletic" moments.

DeAngelo Williams(notes) and Jonathan Stewart(notes), Running Backs, Carolina Panthers. This result -- a 34-21 Panthers win over the Cardinals -- I did not see coming. The Cardinals were on the come, and the Panthers looked to be in trouble ... and then this happens. And the reason that the Cardinals were on the come was their run defense, and the Panthers plowed through them for 270 yards on the ground. They were so effective that Jake Delhomme(notes) only had to throw the ball 14 times, and that fact is not at all coincidental to the fact that the Panthers won.

Shawne Merriman(notes), Linebacker, San Diego Chargers. Shawne Merriman actually affected a game yesterday. His presence was actually noticeable on the field. It started a little bit with the game against the Chiefs last week, and then exploded this week. He had two sacks against the Raiders and wreaked havoc in their backfield all day.

As hard as it is to believe, it's been 10 years since the death of Sweetness.

Sunday, on the 10th anniversary of Walter Payton's death, the Chicago Bears honored its legendary running back with a stirring, tearful halftime tribute. Payton's widow and two children were on hand and spoke to the crowd after a highlight video was played on the screens at Soldier Field. You can, and should, view the video here. It's great.

There are two other videos on that page also worth your time, particularly the one titled "Legacy". It's nice hearing the Bears current running back, Matt Forte(notes), talk about Payton. I like knowing that some young players have a sense of history. It's also nice that some coaches honor said history, Eric Mangini.

In the video shown on the Jumbotron, Payton's teammates and coaches discuss his work ethic, playful humor and the time he spent with fans. It ends with a Payton quote that many of today's players could take to heart:

"Never die easy. Why run out of bounds and die easy? Make that linebacker pay. It carries into all facets of your life. It's okay to lose, to die, but don't die without trying, without giving it your best."

Payton, who broke the NFL's rushing record in 1984 (which was later surpassed by Emmitt Smith), died Nov. 1, 1999 at the age of 45. The public had known Payton was ill and in need of a liver transplant, but was unaware that he also had a malignant tumor on his bile duct.

If you don't think Payton was the greatest running back who ever played, you at least know he's in the discussion. And as nicknames go, Sweetness was undoubtedly at the top of the list. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs didn't play this week, but still found a way to lose. At the beginning of the day, the Titans and Rams provided them company as winless NFL teams. Now, the Bucs are all alone as the target of ridicule.

Detroit Lions. The Bucs can thank the Lions for leaving them alone in the Winless Club. They lost to the Rams ... you know, that football team in St. Louis. This is what can happen, Rams, when you let Steven Jackson do some of his running when he's near the other team's endzone.

Jacksonville Jaguars. This is the other team that lost to someone winless. It's hard to be that fired up about it, though, because it's not completely unexpected from Jacksonville. Really, nothing they could do would surprise me. I fully expect them to lose to the Chiefs by 65 next week, then beat the Giants by 40.

New York Jets. Admit it, Jets fans, that one hurt. The Manchize threw for 265 yards and 2 TDs, Thomas Jones(notes) broke the 100-yard mark, you bottled up the Dolphins run game, Chad Henne(notes) was Chad Henne, and you outgained the Fish 378 to 104 ... and you still lost. Oof. That would hurt even if it came against some random NFC team you didn't care about, but to the Dolphins? After all that trash-talking? That's got to feel like a good, solid kick to the pancreas.

Cleveland Browns. After the game, running back Jamal Lewis(notes) announced that he was retiring at the end of the season. Here's what I'm wondering: Why freakin' wait? What's the plan, to squeeze a couple more months of enjoyment out of your career? Good luck, my man. Hope you like getting drilled at the line of scrimmage.

Oakland Raiders. It wasn't an all-together terrible performance by the Raiders today, but it was the 13th straight time that they've lost to the Chargers, which can't feel good. It's the longest active such streak in the NFL.

Buffalo Bills. The Bills had been building a little momentum with consecutive wins, but that all ground to a halt today when the Texans drubbed them. There is good news, though. Terrell Owens(notes) scored his second touchdown of the season, so that investment is really starting to pay off. 

New York Giants. Remember Week 5, when everyone thought that the Giants were really good? Man. we were so young and naive back then! Everyone's got to grow up sometime, though.

But Green Bay scored the next 17 points unanswered, as adjustments were made to the protection schemes in order to keep Rodgers upright, and the defense got stronger, and Rodgers started hitting his targets. Greg Jennings(notes) and Donald Driver(notes) combined for 14 catches and 147 yards, and the Pack got within five points late in the fourth quarter, 31-26, after missing a two-point conversion. Favre's Vikings went six-and-out on their next drive, and Green Bay had a chance to pull it out. Didn't happen, Even when Rodgers completed a long pass to Donald Driver under extreme duress and was gifted with an extra 15 yards courtesy of Ray Edwards'(notes) roughing-the-passer penalty with 7:33 left in the game, the home team couldn't capitalize. A sack, an incomplete pass, and a missed field goal followed.

Then, the Vikings proved that they simply had more talent on their roster with their final scoring drive. A quick screen to Adrian Peterson netted 44 yards, down to the Green Bay 15, as no Packers defender had an answer for Peterson's downfield motion. Two plays later, Favre hit Bernard Berrian(notes) for the touchdown that put the game out of reach at 38-26. Rodgers followed with a series of desperate incompletions, and it was over.

Quite simply, the Packers aren't in the Vikings' league. They have major issues along their offensive line, they are incapable of putting together a consistent running game, and their defense, while occasionally dynamic, can be burned by speed and sheer physical talent in a way that elite defenses aren't. It may not seem faithful to the Green Bay faithful that Favre could manipulate the situation and wind up on a ready-made team, but there are more important things to worry about. The Packers have some work to do through the season, and into the offseason, before they can challenge this Vikings team.

Meanwhile, the Eagles are up to their usual Jekyll-and-Hyde tricks. Two weeks after an embarrassing loss to the Raiders in which the playcalling of Andy Reid was called into question by the boo-birds for the five millionth time, and a mere six days after they took advantage of a Redskins squad who basically forgot to show up for Monday Night Football, Philly took the wood to the Giants, 40-17. They did it without Brian Westbrook(notes), who was out with a concussion, but they did have gamebreaking threat DeSean Jackson(notes). Jackson scored on a 54-yard reception, giving him six plays of 50 or more yards this season. And they did it with the power running (!) of halfback LeSean McCoy(notes) and fullback Leonard Weaver(notes), who combined for 157 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. And they did it with a ravenous defense that limited the Giants to two touchdowns and 163 first-half yards (whole the Eagles were racking up 262). The Giants are flagging, having lost three straight, and they seem to have no answers for an offense that has lost the ability to run with consistency and control the tempo and momentum of a game.

So, when the Eagles welcome the Cowboys to the Linc for Sunday Night Football next week, the game will put the division leaders, each at 5-2, against each other in what should be the first step in a thrillride for supremacy down the stretch. Last time these two teams met, it was in the 2008 regular-season finale. Philly destroyed Dallas, 44-6, going on to the NFC Championship game while the Cowboys simply went home. Don't believe for one second that Dallas has forgotten how their season ended.

Brett Favre(notes) was welcomed back to Green Bay today with open arms ... which were then used to figuratively smack him upside the head.

The Packers legend was roundly booed by fans in his first return to Lambeau Field since the acrimonious split he had with the team (and its fans) last year. While some in the crowd politely applauded Favre when he came out for warm-ups, went to midfield for the coin toss and took his first snaps from under center, the vast majority of fans showered Favre with boos. This only continued, as Favre and his new team, the Minnesota Vikings, jumped out to a 24-3 early in the third quarter. 

Among the best anti-Favre items seen at the game were the Fedro-Favre sign (at right), a t-shirts with "True Legends Don't Wear Purple" written in green, a poster that said "We'll Never Forget You, Brent" and a banner flying behind a plane reading "Retire 4 Good". 

Some fans were conflicted about the return. One told the Associated Press that he was a diehard Packers fan, but wanted Favre to do well. More seemed to be of the thinking that Favre was a traitor ("personally I'm booing while I'm crying").

But other Green Bay fans were being more level-headed about the return:

“It’s like going into church on Sunday and the priest says, `Everybody go home, Jesus has now sided with the devil,”’ [Packers fan Mark Fields, who was wearing a Favre jersey with "JUDAS" written on the back] said.

As long as we're keeping things in perspective, I guess.

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It wasn't pretty at all. Safety James Butler(notes) gave the Lions their first two points by returning a Matt Stafford interception out of the end zone, then getting pushed back into the end zone for a safety. The only passing touchdown came from the rocket arm of kicker Josh Brown(notes), who hit fullback Daniel Fells(notes) for a 36-yard score on a fake field goal near the end of the first half. Steven Jackson finally met the end zone with the winning touchdown on a 25-yard run with 1:38 left in the game -- and that was the first rushing touchdown the Rams have scored all year! Jackson has been great all season, and he kept that up today, gaining 149 yards on 22 carries. But points have been an issue. When Fells scored his touchdown in the first half, his three on the season matched the total for all of his offensive teammates combined. Even after this victory, St. Louis' point differential of -144 is by far the NFL's worst; Cleveland's -131 is the only differential that's close.

But a win is a win is a win, and the Rams were long overdue -- no team should have to go through the equivalent of an entire season (plus!) without a win. They now have a bye, then three straight home games. That's the good news. The bad news is that they start that home stretch with the Saints and Cardinals, before easier teams like the Seahawks (who actually beat the Rams, 28-0, in the season opener) come calling.

When the two teams met in Week 5, the Fins ran wild with the Wildcat, gaining 107 yards on 17 plays with their tricked-up single wings. Miami won, 31-27, but the Jets were not impressed with the formations that made them look unaware and unprepared. Ryan called the Wildcat a college offense, and linebacker Calvin Pace said that "I can't respect that stuff, all that Wildcat, because we're in the NFL, man," Predictably, Crowder was ready to fire back. "I love nonsense. They want to say gimmick this, gimmick that. The wildcat is an offensive formation we've been running for two years. They have thousands of plays on film about it. Go stop it and shut up all the junk talking. They ain't going to give us no credit? We'll see them in three weeks."

The rematch is here, and both teams need the game. New York's loss to the Dolphins was the second game in a three-game losing streak which ended with last Sunday's 38-0 whacking of the Oakland Raiders. The Dolphins are 2-4 and just trying to stay relevant in the AFC East. But can the Jets stop the Wildcat this time? The Saints shut it down in Miami's last game by using cornerback blitzes and rolling coverage to the expected point of attack, but the reason the Wildcat keeps going strong is that the Dolphins are very good at adjusting what they do with it. If teams expect the Ricky Williams(notes) sweep, they'll run power or counter plays with Ronnie Brown(notes). And if the secondary cheats up, expect Brown to look for passing options downfield. The power stuff may have new life with the mammoth nose tackle Kris Jenkins(notes) out of the picture.

This is the last Fins-Jets matchup at Giants Stadium (barring a playoff game), and it should be a doozy. Let's hope NFL Films sends enough microphones for everyone!

Marie Lutz, who was dating Cable in January of 2009, described an incident in which Cable slapped her while driving to a restaurant. Ex-wife Sandy Cable says that in 1988, Tom Cable hit her with a closed-fist punch to the jaw. She also showed ESPN this hand-written letter from Cable in which he writes, "Ever since that day I hit you, I've felt like we haven't been as close, like that put a void between us."

Here's the report.

Cable's been in the news recently for an incident involving former assistant coach Randy Hanson. Hanson accused Cable of breaking his jaw and threatening to kill him, though police chose not to pursue charges.

Last week, the Pittsburgh Steelers -- owners of another 3-4 defense with great talent -- did to Favre what they do to just about every quarterback they face: Bring pressure from the perimeter and force the quarterback to adjust. Favre was sacked four times, completed only 33 passes in 50 attempts, threw no touchdowns and a pick, lost a fumble, and looked very much like a quarterback who could be flustered by pressure.

The Packers have only 12 sacks on the season -- compare that to Minnesota's league-leading 25 -- but they're fourth in quarterback rating allowed (64.7) and second in Pass Defense DVOA (first overall in Defensive DVOA). Green Bay doesn't have to back the dogs off Favre in an attempt to focus on Peterson, who gained 55 yards on 25 carries in the last meeting. Perhaps it's more about using their defenders differently. Rookie linebacker Clay Matthews(notes) is still adjusting to his role as an edge-rusher in a 3-4, but he has unusual speed and agility for a guy his size. Why not put Matthews over the middle and have him spy Peterson, and drop back in some zone blitzes, instead of being negated off the edge? When these two teams last played, Matthews caused a second-quarter Peterson fumble, which he then returned for a 42-yard touchdown.

There's no defensive scheme that Favre hasn't seen in his career, but that doesn't mean he can't be upended by a few interesting looks. Emotions will obviously be high in Lambeau, and ol' #4 has a history of using emotion to his advantage. The Packers must upend Favre's reunion tour if they hope to avoid a season sweep.

It hasn't been any better in 2009. Through Week 7, San Francisco ranks 29th in Pass Defense DVOA against #1 receivers, the kind Clements usually covers. These top receivers have gained 7.8 yards per play and 91.4 yards per game (that stat is the highest in the NFL), and putting those potential defensive deficits against a Colts offense that could tear up any opponent in the league is just too risky.

So, the 49ers have announced that Clements will not start at left cornerback again when the Niners hit Lucas Oil Stadium tomorrow. San Francisco will start Tarrell Brown in his place. Official word is that Brown, who the team likes enough to sign him to a three-year extension just a few days ago, looks like a better matchup against Indy's smaller, faster receivers. Whatever the reason, this isn't good news for Clements, who turns 30 in December and may soon be seen as an financial albatross unless he renegotiates or moves to safety or something of the sort. After all, the Broncos, Raiders, and Jets don't bench Champ Bailey(notes), Nnamdi Asomugha(notes), and Darrelle Revis because of matchup issues. The best cornerbacks play on a no-matter-what basis. Clements will still see the field against the Colts' multi-receiver sets, but he's now a very expensive reserve.

On the other side of the coin, there are the winless teams -- the Buccaneers, Titans and Rams. We look at who has the best chance of hitting 0-16, and spoiler alert: The conversation doesn't go well for you, Bucs. We also squeeze the Redskins into the conversation about winless teams, just because it feels like that's where they belong.

Elsewhere, we've got the standard weekly features, such as the Abusive E-mail of the Week, which this time around, is a doozy. In fact, it's the most abusive in podcast history, and I don't think there's a close second. It's very heavy on "beeps." You have a potty mouth, Glenn Saddler.

And here are the games we pick this week. On the season, I maintain a one-game advantage over Danks. Home teams in CAPS.

TENNESSEE TITANS -3 vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
NEW YORK JETS -3½ vs. Miami Dolphins
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (pick) vs. New York Giants
SAN DIEGO CHARGERS -16½ vs. Oakland Raiders
GREEN BAY PACKERS -3 vs. Minnesota Vikings

You can listen right here:

Or download the MP3 right here. MP3, 35:45, 16.8 MB.

A fellow who calls himself "Dawg Pound Mike" is organizing a protest for that night, and he's trying to get fans to stay out of their seats for the opening kickoff. He'd like fans to stay in the parking lot, in the concourse or wherever, so long as when the ball is kicked, they are not in their seats (more info on the protest here, at Dawg Pound Mike's website -- hope you like Caps Lock).

From the AP:

Sickened by the nearly constant losing since the NFL team’s return in 1999, Randall hopes the sight of empty seats for the start of the nationally televised Monday night game will send a loud message to owner Randy Lerner and club officials that fans have had enough.

“We’re tired of losing,” the 39-year-old Randall said. “We’re tired of the booing, of seeing fans leave in the fourth quarter. There are fans who have had tickets for 30 years who are turning their seats in because they can’t take it anymore. So many fans are fed up.”

You know Browns fans are serious when they're talking about missing kickoff. That's one of the few plays in any given game where they're not trailing.

I kid, I kid. I completely understand your frustration, Browns fan. The Browns are 1-6 this year, and have had exactly two winning seasons since they returned to the NFL in 1999. That's a great big steaming pile of futility. Any fan would have the right to be upset.

As someone who generally supports the idea of quality football, I support the protest. It's not that it will accomplish anything tangible -- it's not like ownership will see the protest and think to themselves, "Whoa whoa whoa ... what's this? You want us to get better football players? You want us to win games? By golly, that's a splendid idea! By how many shall we beat the Ravens this evening? Is 35 good for you? Perfect. We'll do that."

But that's not the point. Sometimes, when you've been let down, hurt, disappointed and ticked off so many times, you just need to know that you're being heard. You want someone to acknowledge that yes, they recognize and understand your frustration, and they're trying to do something about it.

It's about forming a collective voice, and making sure it's heard. Best of luck with your protest, gentlemen.

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In an extended passage from the book appearing this week in Sports Illustrated, Agassi details how he and his father hustled the greatest running back in football history back in 1979, when Agassi was just 9 years old.

As Agassi recounts in his forthcoming book, "Open" (out Nov. 9), Jim Brown was at a tennis club in Vegas one day complaining to the owner about a money match that was cancelled. Agassi's father stepped in, told Brown that he could play his son and put up his house for the wager. Brown countered with a $10,000 bet instead.

After asking the 9-year-old some questions about his skills (Agassi told him he never loses) and getting warned by the club owner not to take the bet, Brown and Mike Agassi agreed that they'd set the amount after he and Andre played two sets. After dropping two straight sets by a score of 3-6, Brown politely declined the 10K wager and offered $500 for the third. He lost, 6-2.

"Sweat running down his face, [Brown] pulls a wad from his pocket and counts out five crisp hundreds. He hands them to my father, then turns to me. 'Great game, son.'

He shakes my hand. His calluses feel rougher - thanks to me.

He asks what my goals are, my dreams. I start to answer, but my father jumps in.

'He's going to be No. 1 in the world.'

'I wouldn't bet against him,' Mr. Brown says."

Remember that Brown is generally considered to be one of the greatest athletes of all time. He is thought by many to not only be the best who ever played football, but is also considered to be the top lacrosse player ever too. There's little doubt that, even at 43, Brown was more than proficient with a racquet.

There are only three reasons it ever happens: 1) A moment of silence for a recent tragic event; 2) An injury that looks to be really, really serious; or 3) An unlikely catastrophe at the end of the game that costs the home team the win, and likely something more, like a chance at a championship.

None of the three feel good. The default setting for a packed stadium is noisy, and when it gets quiet, it's weird. No one likes it.

But it would be, as suggested by JSOnline's Michael Hunt (that link requires a subscription, unfortunately), a tremendous way for Green Bay fans to treat Brett Favre(notes). Here's a snippet:

But there is another way to acknowledge Favre, a middle road, if you will. We're talking about a wholly unrealistic, literally in-a-vacuum welcome back for No. 4, yet a response that would be completely appropriate for the occasion.

And that would be dead and utter silence. [...]

In a sophisticated way, a small town that is not exactly viewed as such by the outside world could emphatically say that the game to follow is bigger than one player.

It might also freak him out.

He's expecting to be booed, and maybe hear some cheers, too: basically, nothing he hasn't heard before in his career. Anything that stays within the boundaries of normal stadium behavior will have no effect on Favre. He's a professional.

He's also sort of disrespecting Packers fans by saying that the game is nothing special to him, there's nothing special about playing in Lambeau, and he won't be the least bit sentimental. Doesn't that make you angry, Packers fans? That Favre sees nothing special at all about his return to Lambeau as a Viking?

If you want to get to him, it's going to take the unexpected. I see only two ways to accomplish this. First would be the usual hate, taken to an ugly, extreme, violent level. I'm talking about throwing things, things that might hurt a man if they hit him, threats, the most boorish, personal and hateful of signs, etc. Obviously, we can't have this, as it's illegal, dangerous and wrong.

The dead silence, though, I think would be equally effective. There's no way that wouldn't jar Favre and everyone else. It would be unlike anything he's experienced in his career, and it would produce a chilling effect in the stadium and on television.

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"The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are not, nor have they ever been for sale. In addition, our family or any of our related companies have never invested one penny with Bernie Madoff.

"The report is baseless, irresponsible and slanderous. This type of behavior by Mr. Sileo and his company Clear Channel will be dealt with in the appropriate manner."

Original story below.

In 1995, Malcolm Glazer outbid George Steinbrenner (marking the last recorded instance of a Steinbrenner outbid) for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Glazer paid a then-record $192 million for the team, which sounds like relative chump change now. Forbes recently valued the Bucs at $1.085 billion, eighth-highest among NFL teams. But the Bucs entered the 2009 season with the most room available under the salary cap, and they remain approximately $23 million under at a time when other teams are using creative accounting to get their roster under the glass ceiling. The team is 0-7, rookie coach Raheem Morris looks to be in over his head, and the quarterback battle is between two inexperienced Joshes -- Johnson and Freeman. The formerly impenetrable defense looks incapable of stopping a good Valdosta State team, and fans are apoplectic. Not Washington Redskins apoplectic, but pretty fed up.

It's now coming out that the story of the Buccaneers may have more to do with what's happening off the field. The Glazer family (Bryan Glazer pictured above with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell) also owns the Manchester United team, and according to a report from Business Insider, financial losses in the management of that team may affect the family's interest in further NFL ownership. Radio station WDAE recently reported that the Buccaneers either are, or soon will be, up for sale. Goodell has rebuffed any claims that the Bucs are operating on the cheap, or siphoning NFL profits to prop up an ailing soccer team.

"That charge has no merit,'' Goodell told the Tampa Tribune. "The Glazer family has consistently demonstrated a commitment to winning in the NFL and that has not changed. They've restructured their organization and patience will be a No. 1 imperative in Tampa.''

Well, either WDAE got it wrong, or Goodell's about to get a nasty shock from the Tampa area. It's worth noting that the Glazers aren't terribly popular in England, either -- when the Bucs traveled to England to get smacked around by the Patriots last week, British media was denied any access to the Bucs/Man United ownership group. Literally and figuratively, unanswered questions surround this team. Ticket sales are down, apathy is up, and if the Glazers are running out of the kind of capital they would need to operate both teams, it may be time to cut bait.

Some quick facts about Jake Delhomme's(notes) interception output this season:

• Delhomme's thrown 13 interceptions so far this season

• Delhomme has thrown five more interceptions than JaMarcus Russell(notes)

• Delhomme has thrown as many interceptions as Derek Anderson(notes) and Trent Edwards(notes) combined

• Delhomme is on pace to throw 42 this year, which would tie George Blanda's record for the most picks in a season

• Forty-two interceptions would shatter the record since the league went to a 16-game regular season in 1978, which is currently held by Vinny Testaverde(notes) (35 in '88)

He's the lowest-rated quarterback in the league who has not been benched. This makes me curious about what Matt Moore(notes) and A.J. Feeley(notes) look like in practice.

When John Fox comes out for practice and says, "Alright, gentlemen, we're going to work on some footwork drills today," does Matt Moore say, "Nah, I think I'm going to go over here and do the worm"? Does A.J. Feeley bring Play-Doh out to the practice field with him, and build Smurf villages all day?

I wonder if John Fox isn't being a little too loyal here. Obviously, the man can coach football, but he and Delhomme have been together for a long time. Loyalty is great, and we probably see too little of it in the NFL, but at the same time, the priority always has to be doing the best thing to help your football team win. That's what the paycheck is for.

DeAngelo Williams(notes) deserves that. Steve Smith deserves that. Jon Beason(notes) deserves that. Every Panther who lines up and breaks their back to try to get a win every week deserves the best quarterback the team has.

And hey, maybe that is still Delhomme. Maybe John Fox believes his quarterback can work through the issues he has right now, and that the real Jake Delhomme -- the one who had never before thrown more than 16 interceptions in an entire season -- is still inside somewhere, struggling to get out. That could be true.

For Carolina's sake, though, I hope the decision's being made for the right reasons. Loyalty would not be one of those. Winning football games would be.

It happens a few times a week, with varying levels of severity. An official will get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, and suddenly, he's got armor-clad, 280-pound, highly conditioned man-beasts stampeding at him like he's drunk in Pamplona on the wrong weekend. Meanwhile, he's protected by a hat.

Not for much longer, perhaps. Adam Schefter reported over the weekend that helmets on umpires is an issue on the table for 2010, and last night on the NFL Network, NFL head of officiating Mike Pereira reiterated that protecting officials is an issue the league is looking at.

If we just put helmets on umpires (the brave gentlemen you'll find out there right behind the linebackers), that wouldn't have done much to help out the back judge who got trampled in the Steelers/Vikings game. Should we make helmets mandatory for umpires and optional for everyone else?

And what kind of helmet are we talking about? NHL, Dan Marouelli-style? Do we need facemasks? Should they just get black-and-white striped NFL helmets? Something like boxing headgear? Perhaps an MLB batting helmet? Race car driving helmets? I think something like this would be kind of awesome.

I don't know the answer here. Maybe we should just keep a list of NFL players who run into officials, intentionally or otherwise. Then at the end of the week, they get locked into a room with Ed Hochuli, whose fists are wrapped in double-sided tape and rolled through broken glass.

That seems like the fairest thing for everybody.

One guy who hasn't helped them a great deal? Reggie Bush(notes).

Jeff Duncan at the New Orleans Times-Picayune points out that Bush is getting the ball about half as much this year as he has in past years. Head coach Sean Payton was asked if Bush is being phased out of the offense.

"No, not at all, " Payton said. "He's a big threat for us, a guy that we want to get the ball to and we continue to get the ball to."

So he says, but it seems like Bush is just redundant for the Saints this year.

If they want to pound the ball on the ground, they can do that with Mike Bell or Pierre Thomas. No longer do they have to find a way to get Bush to bell out in space, in lieu of an actual running game. If they want to air it out, they've got Jeremy Shockey(notes) underneath, Marques Colston(notes) out wide, and a host of others who are made dangerous by the presence of Brees. Dumping the ball off to Bush as a supplement to the passing game isn't really necessary, either.

So where does that leave him? Well, it leaves him with fewer than 10 touches in each of the Saints' last three games.

None of this is meant with any disrespect towards Bush. By this point, I think we've all accepted that he'll never be a prototypical NFL workhorse back, but I'm still of the opinion that he's a talented guy with a skill set that can help an NFL team.

There's just not a lot of room for him to contribute with the Saints, because they do everything else so well. For the Saints, having Bush is like carrying around a calculator when you've got an iPhone.

Now Sanchez is going even further. In a charitable, yet firmly tongue-in-cheek, homage to his mid-game snack, Sanchez will donate 1,000 hot dogs and hamburgers to a New Jersey soup kitchen. The team released the news on its official Twitter account:

Mark Sanchez has purchased 500 hot dogs, 500 hamburgers, buns and rolls through A&P to donate to the Community Soup Kitchen of Morristown.

Looking at the prices at the Morristown A&P, it looks like 500 hot dogs, hamburgers and their appropriate buns would run about $750 at the checkout counter (and that's not counting the condiments -- Mark loves his mustard). That's pocket change for a guy who signed a contract earlier this year that guaranteed him $28 million, but it's still a kind, meaningful and amusing gesture from a 22-year-old who could instead be living up to the stereotype of a spoiled, rich-kid quarterback.

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I discovered some of the horror stories lived by the men whose brains and lives were destroyed by the violent nature of the game: How Steelers great Mike Webster died of a heart attack at age 50 in September, 2002 after drifting through a hell on earth for years after his football career ended, losing battles to concussion symptoms as well as drug abuse, homelessness, debt and physical pain so severe he had to use a taser gun to force himself into unconsciousness. I discovered the story of former Eagles safety Andre Waters, who committed suicide in November of 2006. After his death, forensic pathologist Bennet Omalu of the University of Pittsburgh told the New York Times that Waters' brain tissue resembled that of an 85-year-old man, and that he would have been fully incapacitated within ten years. I retold the story of ESPN analyst Merrill Hoge, who struggled for years with memory loss after his own Steelers career was over, and I discovered that Ron Jaworski, Hoge's partner in playbook analysis, claims that he himself suffered over 20 concussions in his career. Jaworski walked away luckier than most.

Given the extensive research I did for this and other articles, I found the NFL's recent claim that there is no link between concussions and Alzheimers' Disease and other memory disorders to be especially egregious. In my mind, the NFL is trying to do with head injuries what Major League Baseball did with performance-enhancing drugs for so long -- turn a blind eye to the real truth, and pay lip service to the surface facts. While the league and the Player's Union now vow to do better, ignoring overwhelming physical evidence is not a step in the right direction. The conflict of interest issues inherent in the NFL's own reported study -- which the league says will be the "definitive word" on the subject if it's ever actually published -- are obvious.

Nobody is in the dark about the most important fact: Football is a physical, violent game, and the men who play it will be affected to varying degrees by their involvement in it. It is the responsibility of those who watch over the pro game to do their best for the players at all times. Wasting years -- and potentially more lives -- by denying the obvious and burying the unpleasant truth in semantics and supposed studies helps no one.

See last week's absurdly premature playoff picture here.

AFC First-Round Byes:
Indianapolis Colts
Denver Broncos

Other AFC Divisional Champions:
Pittsburgh Steelers
New England Patriots

AFC Wild Cards:
Cincinnati Bengals
Houston Texans

NFC First-Round Byes:
New Orleans Saints
Minnesota Vikings

Other NFC Divisional Champions:
New York Giants
Arizona Cardinals

NFC Wild Cards:
Green Bay Packers
Dallas Cowboys

• The big theme this week is stability. The entire AFC is the same, and all four first-round byes are the same, even though one of them, the Vikings, went down. I'm not going to kill anyone for a could've-gone-either-way road loss to Pittsburgh though, and it's not like anyone else is making a bold charge at the spot right now.

• Dallas joins the Absurdly Premature Playoff Picture for the first time in '09. To be honest with you, I was close to throwing caution (and perhaps reason) to the wind and making them the NFC East champ, because I'm so down on the Giants and Eagles right now. Giants @ Eagles this Sunday is so interesting and so important for both teams. Do yourself a favor, Andy Reid, and let Donovan McNabb(notes) take a handful of snaps consecutively.

• Arizona edged out San Francisco for the NFC West spot. Sorry, 49ers. It's not about you, really, I'm just liking what the Cardinals are doing, particularly up front defensively. Four of their next five are against the Panthers, Seahawks, Rams and Titans, too. If they do what they're supposed to do, they could build a healthy divisional lead.

• I'm feeling pretty good about moving the Texans into the picture last week. I don't know if I'm getting suckered in just because they're so much fun to watch, or because the Battle Red uniforms make me think they have the strength and determination of firemen, but I'm feeling really good about their Wild Card chances.

• Every week I do this, I stop and look up the next Steelers vs. Bengals game. It's the week after this one. (Wildly giggling to myself.) I'm excited for that one.

Fisher has to be under the gun, despite his status as the NFL's current longest-tenured head coach, and having the guy who owns the team come out and start exercising his right (whatever it may be) to make personnel decisions can't be a step in the right direction. Young "won" 17 games for the Titans in 2006 and 2007, but quarterback wins is a shady stat at best. The Titans finished near the bottom of the league in 2006 in passing first downs, attempts, completions, yards, touchdowns, and net yards per attempt. It was the same story in 2007. Placing too much credit on one player is a very dangerous enterprise in a team sport like football, and that's never more true than when your team is built on a running game and defense.

In mop-up duty for Kerry Collins(notes) in 2009, Young is 0-for-5 with an interception, and he's going to ding the team to the tune of a $14.2 million cap hit in 2010. So it makes sense to see if Young has anything left in the tank, though I suspect the football minds in Nashville already know the answer.

If Young bottoms out and Collins is at the end of the road (both likely scenarios), that puts the Titans in the pole position to draft (and perhaps overdraft) a quarterback in 2010. Colt McCoy of Texas and Florida's Tim Tebow have questions about their abilities to fit NFL offenses, Sam Bradford of Oklahoma now has shoulder injuries that will likely take him out of the top 10 unless he revolutionizes the quarterback position at the 2010 Scouting Combine, and Washington's Jake Locker is just learning the NCAA version of the pro-style offense, never mind the real version. Due to their current quarterback situation, the Titans could set the market for quarterbacks in the 2010 draft -- and then get upended by it.

Dan Steinberg of the indispensable D.C. Sports Bog put up a post today based on signs he picked out of various garbage cans outside FedEx Field. The signs were brought in by fans who actually watched the Redskins' 27-17 debacle against the Eagles on Monday night, and had their signs taken away and torn up by security for their trouble. Clearly, Snyder didn't want the nation knowing how dysfunctional his franchise is, and taking away signs from fans would hide that fact. After all, when your head coach is stripped of his playcalling duties and replaced by a bingo caller, and your running backs are bickering, and your top free agent spends time calling out the whole team when he's not limping to the sideline, and your quarterback is getting killed because your lackey of a general manager neglected to reinforce the offensive line in the last two drafts that were chock-full of great linemen ... sure. Taking away the signs will fix everything.

Of course, the security goons at FedEx were about as discerning as everyone else Snyder's hired in the last decade -- according to Steinberg, they removed a sign from a woman telling her husband, who is stationed in Afghanistan, that she loves him, and a guy who wasn't allowed to keep the old standard "D-(Fence)" combo.

It's astonishing, really. When you consider all the problems this team has, to throw all your efforts toward blocking the free expression of the people who are still spending their hard-earned money on your colossally inferior football product, you make yourself look to all the world like an insecure, clueless dimwit. Problem is, Mr. Snyder, so many of those other moves of yours have already set the facts in stone.

"Urgency, heart, 'want-to,' whatever. I don't know. We're lacking a lot of stuff right now," the defensive tackle said. [...]

Asked if he delivered a postgame speech in the locker room, Haynesworth replied: "You can say but so much. You've got to actually 'want to.' So once we get to that point - where we 'want to' do something - then we'll do something. But if we just keep going our separate ways, then we'll just keep getting slaughtered like we have."

So it's an attitude issue. Let's stick with that for a minute. Do we believe in the "attitude reflects leadership" adage? Let's say we do.

What's the leadership situation with the 'Skins? Well, we've got an emasculated head coach, an offensive play-caller type whose play-calling duties were just given to a guy who had been with the team for about a week. Ownership could not have made it clearer that they do not support or like the current head coach, and he will be fired, at the latest, at the end of this miserable season. No one will be confusing him with William Wallace.

Above him, we've got an owner who is almost universally reviled, and whose greatest contribution to the franchise to this point has been ... I don't know, bringing Tom Cruise to a game? Redskins legends have been lining up to verbally tear him a new one recently. No one will be confusing him with General Patton.

If a change in attitude will only come from leadership, then the Redskins are probably screwed. Snyder has the respect of no one and is going nowhere, and Jim Zorn's been stripped of any authority he had. Frankly, it's hard to see where Jim Zorn has much of a reason to care.

As for Haynesworth, he hasn't been above the questions of urgency, heart want-to, and whatever this year, either. He's taken his own criticism for being out-of-shape and/or lazy.

1. Michael Turner(notes), Running Back, Atlanta Falcons

2. Matt Cassel(notes), Quarterback, Kansas City Chiefs. Cassel was really bad against the Chargers, but honestly, the bigger question here is how Cassell has managed to not have more games like that. The Kansas City offensive line is brutal. Even after yesterday's performance (10-of-25, 97 yards, one touchdown, three interceptions) against a thus-far weak San Diego defense, Cassel still has an 8-to-5 touchdown to interception ratio on the year. That's actually kind of incredible.

3. Chad Henne(notes), Quarterback, Miami Dolphins. Doug pointed out that the Dolphins got a little pass-happy at odd times in the game yesterday. Whether or not that was a bad decision (and it was), it was still incumbent on Chad Henne to make some throws, and he didn't. The Saints were stacking the line and absolutely daring the Dolphins to throw, and it turned out to be a great strategy. Yes, Ted Ginn not coming up with that ball that turned into an interception by Darren Sharper(notes) hurt the cause, but still, Henne didn't do his job. He went 11-for-26 in the second half, with two interceptions. If he's even decent in the second half, the Fish win that game.

4. Kenny Moore, Wide Receiver, Carolina Panthers. Kenny Moore is the guy who muffed the punt that erased any chance the Panthers had of coming back against the Bills yesterday, but let's be honest: Even if Moore fields it cleanly, the ball eventually ends up in the hands of Jake Delhomme(notes), and he was probably going to turn it over anyway. Don't beat yourself up over it, Kenny Moore.

5. William Gay(notes), cornerback, Pittsburgh Steelers. Gay was a winner yesterday, even though Brett Favre(notes) did abuse him a couple of times. Still, the main purpose of his inclusion here is to show the following video. Ka. Boom.

We'll be here throughout the game this evening with running commentary on the game, observations, insights, polls, blatant lies and a high level of interactivity with you, the reader. We'd love it if you were here. Myself, Doug Farrar, Andy Behrens, Scott Pianowski and Matt Sussman will all be on hand.

There are hundreds of insults you could lob toward Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder (literally), but this may be the worst: Things have gotten so bad this year that some of the team's fans will be rooting against the 'Skins in tonight's Monday Night home game against the Philadelphia Eagles. It doesn't get much worse than that.

The thinking is that if the Redskins win after a week in which he stripped Jim Zorn of playcalling duties and handed them to a guy who joined the team three weeks ago, it will only embolden Snyder. He's always had a "me against the world" attitude, so a victory could further that refrain. You can picture him squawking to Vinny Cerrato about it tomorrow: "You see? YOU SEE?! We won! We know what we're doing. Not the Washington Post, or ESPN, or those snotty fans. We do! Our plan worked! (Chest bumps Cerrato, knocking over the replica Super Bowl trophy on his desk.) Now, get me Don Coryell's number and start scouting college wide receivers, STAT!"

To some fans, the idea of ever rooting against your team seems sacrilegious. To others, a pragmatic approach could provide certain situations when doing so might be appropriate. For instance, if your squad is fighting for the No. 1 draft pick it makes sense to pull for a late-season loss to ensure that you get a can't-miss prospect like JaMarcus Russell(notes). (Or something like that.)

Doing this doesn't mean you actually have to cheer against your team though. The 'Skins fans who'd rather teach Snyder a lesson tonight won't be wearing Donovan McNabb(notes) jerseys and clapping when Laron Landry(notes) extends an Eagles drive with a 15-yard personal foul. It will be more of an apathy kind of thing.

I polled 10 of the biggest Redskins fans I know this weekend to see what their feelings were about tonight's game. Three responded that they'd be rooting for the 'Skins as much as usual. Five said they wanted a win but had to qualify their remarks with things like "but I really don't care" or "only because it's against an NFC East team". The remaining two people said that, while it pained them, they'd prefer the Redskins to lose. (And these are ten huge fans, mind you.)

As a 'Skins fan myself, I don't know where I stand. It's complicated. I had zero desire to go to the game tonight, mainly because I hope and anticipate FedEx Field being empty and filled with Eagles fans. Not going is my little protest. The best way to get at Snyder isn't on the field, but in the wallet. An empty stadium stands a better chance of getting his attention than another pathetic effort.

I never want my favorite team to lose, but I also certainly wont be upset when if they do. Best case scenario, I guess, is that the defense scores some points, the offense is embarrassed enough that Snyder realizes he's an idiot and Marty McFly drives the Delorean back to 1999 and makes it so Jack Kent Cooke's son buys the team.

1. Carson Palmer(notes), Quarterback, Cincinnati Bengals

2. Brian Cushing(notes), Linebacker, Houston Texans. Cushing accepts on behalf of DeMeco Ryans(notes), Bernard Pollard(notes) and everyone else on the Texans defense, but the rookie Cushing has been a big part of their recent dominance against the run. In Week 4, they held the Raiders to 45 yards rushing. Fine, no big deal. The next week, the Cardinals got 44. Next, the Bengals had 46, with league-leader Cedric Benson(notes) being held to 44 yards on 16 carries. This week, Frank Gore(notes) had 13 carries for 32 yards. With all their offensive weapons, if the Texans have put together even half a defense, they are a dangerous group.

3. Tony Romo(notes), Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys. Everyone else has sort of gotten lost in the emergence of Miles Austin(notes), but every big play by Austin yesterday was made possible by an on-the-money throw by Tony Romo. Patrick Crayton(notes) made a big touchdown catch, too, that was set up by Romo shaking off about three near-sacks before making the play. Romo was 21-of-29 for 311 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions on the day.

4. Brett Keisel(notes), Defensive End, Pittsburgh Steelers. LaMarr Woodley(notes) and Keyaron Fox(notes) scored the touchdowns and got the glory for the Pittsburgh defense, but it was Keisel who got to Brett Favre and knocked the ball loose to begin with. Woodley scooped it up, and the rest of the Steelers defense escorted him downfield like they were the secret service and Woodley was the president. An impressive play all around by the defense, and that's where your game was won.

5. Alex Smith, Quarterback, San Francisco 49ers. Usually, only winning teams are represented here in the five MVPs, but I will make the exception for a good redemption story. Alex Smith, the 2005 draft bust for the 49ers, took over for Shaun Hill(notes) at halftime yesterday, and very nearly led the 49ers to an unlikely comeback victory. More importantly, though, Smith seemed to have a good on-field rapport with receiver Michael Crabtree(notes), and long-term, that might be the most important thing in determining who plays quarterback for the 49ers.

Late in the New York Jets' mud-stomping of the Raiders yesterday, CBS cameras caught Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez(notes) on the bench, trying not to be noticed while eating a hot dog. Mustard packet in his right hand, hot dog in his left, Sanchez tried very hard to keep his mid-game dining a secret. No dice, though. (Click on the photo at right to see the video.)

Sanchez -- as he explains in the video below -- had been ill and unable to eat much in the week leading up to the game. To my knowledge, no one chastised him for having the snack -- not yesterday when it happened, and not today in the media -- but he still apologized immediately. I think his biggest concern was probably the perception that he was showing up the Raiders; making the statement that, "Hey, beating the Raiders is so easy that I can do it while scarfing down some delicious wieners." He obviously wants nothing to do with that kind of image.

I would doubt that any chastising would come from his head coach. Since taking the job, Rex Ryan hasn't been afraid to trash talk anyone. If anything, Ryan would have probably rather seen Sanchez eat the hot dog while standing in the pocket, the Raiders pass rush making a futile effort to get near him.

Whether it was necessary or not, here was Sanchez's postgame apology:

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For some reason, though, Tom Cable decided that today was the day. JaMarcus, after three turnovers, finally got the hook. Bruce Gradkowski(notes) entered the game, and while he wasn't the world beater you'd expect him to be, he wasn't JaMarcus-awful. He managed to throw 19 passes without being intercepted (though he did cough up a fumble) and he led the Raiders down to the Jets' 1-yard-line. Sadly, no score.

Unfortunately, any improvement that was gained by Gradkowski's insertion will be short-lived. Head coach Tom Cable announced after the game that the job still belonged to JaMarcus. As a fan of the team that plays the Raiders play next week, allow me to say, "Thank you, Tom Cable."

I kid. I don't think there's any way this is really Cable's decision. That's because Cable is a head football coach in the National Football League, which means he occasionally watches and studies football, which means he knows that Russell isn't helping anyone win right now.

I've got to believe -- and this is pure speculation on my part -- that the decision to stick with JaMarcus comes from somewhere higher in the organization. Somewhere older and more delusional, with less of an idea of how the Raiders might get better in 2009.

Anyway, after the fits that the Raiders gave the Chargers back in Week 1, it's definitely not a game I'd take for granted. I will say, though, that knowing JaMarcus will be under center provides a measure of comfort.

Chicago Bears: Cedric Benson(notes), worthless as a Bear and the league's leading rusher as a Bengal, had the kind of performance today that could only be born out of spite and resentment. Bears fans were already a little sensitive on the subject of Cedric, and now they're downright sick. Benson rolled the Bears for 189 yards on the ground, which is, of course, a career high. Matt Forte(notes), meanwhile, who was supposed to make everyone in Chicago forget about Benson, had another impotent day, carrying just six times for 24 yards.

Oakland Raiders: The crash back down to reality is never fun, is it? After an unlikely win over the Eagles last week, the Raiders were coldly reminded of their place in the NFL food chain by the Jets. The Raiders allowed two Jets to run for more than 120 yards, coughed up four turnovers and were doubled up in first downs. 

Cleveland Browns: The saddest stat of the day might be that the Browns were unable to sack the extraordinarily sackable Aaron Rodgers(notes). It's the first game this season in which Rogers hasn't hit the turf. The Lions got him five times, and even the Rams got him twice. Cleveland, however, allowed him 246 yards and three touchdowns on just 20 attempts. Ryant Grant went buckwild on them too, with 148 yards and a touchdown.

Kansas City Chiefs: Matt Cassel(notes), with a fair amount of help from the Chiefs receivers, had a rough day: 10-of-25 for 97 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. That's not good, especially against a Chargers pass defense that's been pretty porous this season. The good news? Lance Long(notes) had a couple of receptions for the Chiefs, so maybe he can quit the pornography business soon.

St. Louis Rams: Another Rams game, another wasted Steven Jackson performance. He carried 23 times for 134 yards, and you'd think it would be hard to lose when you're getting that kind of production from the running back position. But not only did the Rams lose, they got pasted 42-6. We've got to find a way to get Jackson out of St. Louis. This isn't fair.

Carolina Panthers: How do you lose when you win the time-of-possession battle by almost 10 minutes, rack up 425 yards of offense and hold the other team to 167 yards? Turning the ball over four times is a good start.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Well, at least it wasn't the first time today that the people of England had to watch a Glazer-owned team get beat down.

There aren't too many downsides to starting the season 5-0 and outscoring opponents by a staggering 99 points, as the New Orleans Saints have done this year. If we're nitpicking, though, you might say that these Saints hadn't yet proven capable of playing from behind. But after today's game against the Miami Dolphins, it's safe to say that comebacks won't be a problem for the best team in the NFL.

After trailing 24-3 in the first half (the first time New Orleans was behind all season), the Saints stormed back to outscore Miami 43-10 over the game's final 31 minutes. The New Orleans offense was potent in the second half, per usual, but the comeback was aided greatly by the Dolphins' bizarre, pass-heavy fourth quarter play-calling. Nursing a three-point lead early in the final period was a strange time for Miami to get the urge to throw it around like the Saints usually do.

Here are the Dolphins' first two drives of the quarter, along with the score at the time:

Miami 34 -- New Orleans 31

1st-10, MIA20 13:23 C. Henne incomplete pass to the right
2nd-10, MIA20 13:17 C. Henne incomplete pass to the right
3rd-10, MIA20 13:12 C. Henne incomplete pass down the middle

New Orleans 37 -- Miami 34

1st-10, MIA20 8:35 C. Henne incomplete pass down the middle
2nd-10, MIA20 8:30 R. Brown incomplete pass to the left
3rd-10, MIA20 8:21 C. Henne incomplete pass to the left

That's zero runs during the two most crucial possessions of the game for the team with the NFL's No. 1 rushing offense. Bizarre

Still, with all the pressure, the Vikings were in the game down 20-17 until late in the fourth quarter, when linebacker Keyaron Fox(notes) picked off a Favre pass and ran it back 82 yards for a touchdown. That was one of three occurrences that stopped the Vikings from winning the game. The second was Favre's fumble that was returned by linebacker LaMarr Woodley(notes) 77 yards for a touchdown, and the third was a drive that concluded with the Vikings having to settle for a field goal despite the fact that they started their final four downs with first-and-goal at the 1-yard line. On that succession of plays, Adrian Peterson got the ball on first down and Favre threw incompletions on second and third down. Peterson carried the ball only 18 times, and the Vikings still owned time of possession 36:58 to 23:02. And Peterson gave one back to Pittsburgh for the Harvin hit, absolutely destroying cornerback William Gay on one of his carries. Taking the ball out of Peterson's hands was a very questionable decision, and the Vikings will regret it as they contemplate a game they could have won.

And that was, inexplicably, when all heck broke loose. Smith has been as big a bust as any player this decade -- he's been an afterthought for a long time -- but he went 15 of 22 for 204 yards and three -- yes, three! -- touchdowns in a near-comeback against the Texans, who were up 21-0 at the half. All three of Smith's touchdowns were to tight end Vernon Davis(notes), who's been a model citizen since Singletary kicked him off the field in his coaching debut last year. Crabtree brought in five passes for 56 yards in a debut that saw him playing far longer than most people expected. The 49ers were driving at the end of the game when Smith threw a pick on fourth-and-10 that ended any hope of a comeback.

Still, if there's a bigger "from out of nowhere" story than Alex Smith this year, I haven't seen it. Smith hadn't thrown a pass in a regular-season game since Nov. 12, 2007, in a 24-0 loss to the Seahawks. If you combine the touchdowns he threw for in 2005 and 2007, it would equal the three he had today. The shoulder injuries thought to be the end of his 49ers career (he missed the 2008 season with a broken bone in his right shoulder) were nowhere to be found.

Do the 49ers have a quarterback controversy? And is a 49ers quarterback controversy the NFL equivalent of a pillow fight? We can but wait and see...

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Harvin broke his return down the left sideline, but cut right at the Pittsburgh 30-yard line as the Steelers' coverage unit closed in on him. Jeff Dugan(notes), a tight end, ran with Harvin to block any Steeler who might get in his way, but instead of shoving someone wearing black and yellow, he ran square into someone wearing black and white.

Dugan collided with back judge Richard Reels, who was backpedaling in the middle of the field, and knocked him to the ground like was a traffic cone trying to stand up to a Mack truck. Reels lay on the field for several minutes while he was attended to by medical personnel, but he walked off under his own power. The official had been observing the play from midfield and was caught out of position when Harvin made his cut.

Harvin scored on the play, though the Steelers would hold on for the 27-17 victory in Pittsburgh.

It was reported earlier today that the NFL will consider equipping umpires with helmets to protect them when contact is made with players. However, the resolution as discussed in the report wouldn't include Reels, who is a back judge. 

You'd think that with the 6-4, 264-pound Brandon Jacobs(notes) in the backfield, and one of the best offensive lines in the business, short-yardage power situations wouldn't be a problem. But Jacobs has had his running style questioned by noted bulk expert Tony Siragusa, though Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride thinks it's less about "tip-toeing" and more about Jacobs trying to be too fine at the line -- peeking through for gaps instead of simply establishing them. But there's no doubt either way that Jacobs' ability as a first-down machine has decreased. In 2007, 49 of Jacobs' 202 carries brought first downs (24.3 percent). That figure went up to 26 percent in 2008 (57 in 219 carries). In 2009, Jacobs has 107 carries and 16 first downs -- a very disappointing 15 percent. Jacobs is very fast for his size, but his primary role has to be to bash through the middle and make things happen.

He's going to have a very rough time doing that tonight against the Arizona Cardinals. It's a stat that surprises a lot of people, but the Cards have the NFL's best run defense -- they've allowed 59.6 yards per game and 2.8 yards per carry. Arizona has gone away from the blitz-happy schemes of Clancy Pendergast in favor of the gap-control defense of new defensive coordinator Bill Davis, and it's paid off. On the defensive side, Arizona ranks third in runs allowed that achieved a first down on third or fourth down with 2 or fewer yards to go -- the same stat the Giants can't seem to keep together over the last couple of seasons. We'll see who wins this primetime battle at the line.

45 passing attempts in a single game? When the Vikings and Steelers face off today, we may see more than that by the end of the first half. Minnesota has gone a bit more pass-happy with Brett Favre in charge -- they average 30.7 attempts per game as opposed to 28.2 with Tarvaris Jackson(notes) in 2008 -- but the balance has to be there with Adrian Peterson in the backfield. It's just not the same Vikings offense that opposing defenses could stack the box against. The Steelers, however, have absolutely switched from Bronko Nagurski to Air Coryell. Only the Colts sling it more often than Pittsburgh's 34.7 attempts per game, and no quarterback has more total passing yards than the Big Ben's 1,887. Roethlisberger isn't just a guy who can take a lot of hits anymore; he's now one of the most efficient and productive quarterbacks in the NFL. His 9.1 yards per attempt is tied with Peyton Manning(notes) for the league lead, and he has completed an astonishing 72.5 percent of his passes. That's why Football Outsiders ranks him third overall in opponent-adjusted efficiency, behind only Drew Brees(notes) and Peyton Manning.

It's a long way from 2005, when the Steelers won the Super Bowl with an incendiary late-season surge despite averaging a league-low 23.7 passing attempts per game. If you need any further evidence that the NFL is moving away from a run-first theory in favor of schemes more in line with the more wide-open offenses of the NCAA, look no further than the Steelers and Vikings airing it out downfield.

There are two pieces of evidence which suggest today's third annual NFL game in London between the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers is a big deal. First, the tickets sold out more quickly than a Springsteen concert in Jersey. Secondly, Roger Goodell takes every opporunity to tell us how big a deal these games are in London. He is so confident in the NFL's presence over there that he plans to add another game and, eventually, a franchise in the British capital city.

Goodell said Friday that "every indicator" shows the British market can support more games, and that having a franchise here is of "tremendous interest" to the league.

Unfortunately for Goodell and the NFL, there's much more compelling evidence that the NFL in London isn't as big a deal as they're making it seem. Anecdotally, I've heard from numerous people that the game is receiving as little buzz across the pond as it is in the States. (Seriously, did you even know there was an overseas game today?)

This morning, John Taylor, an assistant sports editor at The Washington Times who was in London this week, tweeted:

Oh, the Patriots are playing in England. That explains the people in #Patriots gear yesterday. Game getting zero media buildup over there.

Seriously, I was in UK for a week and a half, and this morning, back in the USA, is the first I've heard of Patriots/Bucs.

When he says "zero media buildup," he means it. This morning I went to five of the biggest British news sites and looked for any mention of the NFL game. The results directly contradicted Goodell's assertion that there is "tremendous interest" in the league.

There are 144 stories on the front page of the Daily Mail's Web site, none of which are about Bucs/Patriots. Stories about X-Factor stars and second-tier soccer games? Check. NFL? Zilch.

The Guardian similarly makes no mention of today's NFL action in the city, nor does the front page of the BBC's site or The Sunday Times. In fact, searching through British news sites, the only evidence I could find that an NFL game was to be played in the city today was on The Telegraph's site. That story was only tangentially related to the NFL, though, as it was about Ronde Barber's(notes) "admiration" of British soccer sensation Wayne Rooney.

What about the sellout, though? Doesn't that have to count for something? Not really. The NFL selling out a game at Wembley doesn't mean London wants American football any more than it means America wants soccer because people bought 75,000 seats to a Chelsa-AC Milan exhibition in Baltimore.

If there was "tremendous interest," it would merit more than one front page story on five of the biggest news sites in London. And there'd be a real buzz going through the city, not manufactured NFL hype. If there's viable overseas interest, the NFL would be stupid not to consider expanding. If there's not, they'd be foolish to pursue such a lofty goal. The league needs to be careful not to confuse novelty with viability.

Atlanta's defense is no great shakes overall -- they've allowed 4.7 rushing yards per attempt, one of the worst in the NFL, and their 6.5 yards per passing attempt allowed is decidedly middle-of-the-pack. But when opposing teams get ready to score, no defense is tougher to deal with, according to Football Outsiders' DVOA stat -- through Week 6, the Falcons rank first overall in red zone defense (from the opposing 20 to the end zone). The Falcons have allowed 15.4 points per game -- only the Patriots, Colts, and Broncos are better. What's especially interesting is that a secondary that's not mistaken by anyone for one of the league's best has allowed only five passing touchdowns. The Cowboys rank 29th in Passing DVOA in the red zone, but fifth in red zone Rushing DVOA -- and this is where the winner will probably be decided. Watch for that dominant offensive line to challenge ends John Abraham(notes) and Kroy Biermann(notes) as well as Jamaal Anderson(notes), who's finally found some effectiveness as a tackle in passing situations. If the Cowboys can stop middle linebacker Curtis Lofton(notes) from filling those inside gaps -- Lofton's been a scud missile all season -- that will go a long way to setting up a Dallas win.

Yes, the Cowboys need to be aware of Matt Ryan(notes), Tony Gonzalez(notes), Michael Turner(notes), and Roddy White(notes) -- but the untold, and equally important, story is what the Falcons are doing on defense when it counts.