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1. San Diego can thank its lucky stars for instant replay. The Chargers' two-point upset of Indianapolis masks a disturbing trend with the Bolts -- the collapse of a second-half offense. In their past two games, they've been outscored 43-3 in the third and fourth quarters. What's worse, in their past 21 series they have five turnovers and two touchdowns. So tell me again, what was so wrong with Martyball? All it did was put up 42 in the second half on Cincinnati last year and 28 on Denver -- and both were road games.
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| Take heart, Miami. There are many fans around the NFL who are ashamed of their teams' Weak 10, er, Week 10 performances. (US Presswire) |
3. Congratulations, Chicago and Oakland. I never thought I would see a game where there were almost as many punts (18) as there were points (23). Move over, Tom Walsh. You have company.
4. If the Eagles sour on Donovan McNabb and try to trade him after this season, Minnesota should be interested. Brad Childress coached McNabb in Philadelphia, and you would think by now he would want someone who looked more like a passer and less like the Venus De Milo. For the record, McNabb's four TDs on Sunday were one shy of the Vikings' total for the season. It makes too much sense not to be considered ... provided, of course, McNabb is available.
5. At some point, Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger joins the MVP conversation. He's not going to challenge Tom Brady, but he might push Peyton Manning, Tony Romo and Brett Favre. Those two second-half runs Sunday -- one for a 30-yard touchdown -- convinced me.
6. The more I see Patrick Crayton operate in the giant shadow of Terrell Owens, the more he reminds me of this decade's version of Alvin Harper opposite Michael Irvin. All Crayton did against the Giants was turn his last three catches into first downs, including one for a 20-yard TD. "He's been doing that all season," offensive coordinator Jason Garrett said.
7. Good news, Green Bay: You may have found a running back. When Ryan Grant punctured Denver for 104 yards, it meant nothing to me because he shredded the woebegone Broncos. But 119 against Minnesota? The Vikings were the league's second-ranked run defense entering this game. Now that's impressive.
8. Next time he opens his wallet, Washington's Dan Snyder should remember this: For all the gazillions he sank in Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle El and Brandon Lloyd, it was James Thrash who was the team's first wide receiver to score this season. And he did it twice.
9. That loss to Arizona could signal the beginning of the end for Detroit's playoff hopes, and here's why: Three of their next four opponents are the Giants, Green Bay and Dallas -- a trio that's 22-5. Uh-oh.
10. Giants fans are starting to sweat, and maybe they should. With that loss, Tom Coughlin is 8-17 in the second half of the season as the team's head coach. Remember, the Giants were 6-2 a year ago, and look what happened.
11. Uh, Mike Martz, there is a reason they give you running backs, and eight carries for minus-18 yards is not it.
12. There is nothing more unwatchable these days than Baltimore on offense. Simply put, the Ravens stink. Yeah, I know, they went five consecutive games in 2000 without a touchdown, but they had the world's best defense in those days. Now, nobody can bail them out, and this is what we're looking at, folks: In their past two losses, they have almost as many turnovers (10) as points (14), and in their past 87 offensive series they have only seven TDs. Tony Banks, where are you?
13. Yes, Cleveland is legit, and it could be this year's New York Jets. Of the Browns' final seven opponents, only one -- the Bills -- has a winning record, and they get them at home.