It was another exciting Sunday in the NFL. Two games had to be decided in overtime. Check the scores to see how your team played, and prepare for Monday Night’s contest between the Titans and Jaguars.

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San Diego Not-so-Super Chargers

I bet LaDainian Tomlinson is glad he got out of San Diego when he had the chance. The Chargers are now 2-4 after their second consecutive loss, this time to the Rams. Before the season, if you told me the Chargers would lose to Kansas City, Seattle, Oakland, and St. Louis, I might call you crazy. St. Louis rookie quarterback Sam Bradford found fellow rookie Danario Alexander for a 38-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter to take a 10-0. Steven Jackson topped off a 17 play drive with a seven-yard run, and the Rams led 17-3 going into the half. San Diego running back Mike Tolbert finally reached the end zone in the third quarter on a three-yard run. Still down 17-10 in the fourth quarter, the Chargers and kicker Nate Kaeding attempted a 49-yard field goal, but Kaeding slipped as he kicked the ball. The missed field goal would end up being the difference in the game. Rams’ kicker Josh Brown would successfully connect on another field goal before Philip Rivers found Patrick Crayton on a five-yard score, but Rivers wouldn’t get another chance. St. Louis, who won only one game last year, jumped to 3-3 with the 20-17 win.

Bradford finished with 198 yards and one score with no interceptions. Jackson had 109 yards on the ground, 32 yards short of Eric Dickerson’s franchise record. Alexander, appearing in his first game, had a team high four catches for 72 yards. Defensive ends Chris Long and James Hall, as well as linebacker Larry Grant each had two sacks, and tackle Fred Robbins added a seventh for St. Louis. Rivers threw for 249 yards with a touchdown and a pick. Ryan Mathews ran for 64 yards on 12 carries. Crayton led the Chargers with 117 receiving yards. Antonio Gates had only two catches before leaving with an ankle injury.

Big Ben’s Return

Both quarterbacks in this game were making their first starts this season. Rookie Colt McCoy was thrown it the starting role when both Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace went down with injuries. Ben Roethlisberger returns after his suspension to lead his Steelers to another win. On his first drive, Roethlisberger was picked off by Browns’ first round pick Joe Haden, which led to a Phil Dawson field goal. After that, Big Ben found Mike Wallace and Hines Ward for touchdowns. Pittsburgh didn’t abandon the ground game, which won them three games without Roethlisberger. In the fourth quarter, the Steelers took a 21-3 lead on a Rashard Mendenhall run, his fifth touchdown of the year. McCoy threw his first career touchdown to tight end Benjamin Watson on a 12-yard pass. Roethlisberger capped off the day by hitting tight end Heath Miller for his third score of the day.

Roethlisberger went 16-27 for 257 yards with a 122.7 passer rating. Mendenhall ran for 84 yards. Wallace caught three passes for 90 yards, Ward caught five passes for 54 yards, and Miller had only two catches for 50 yards. Linebacker James Harrison knocked Cleveland receivers Joshua Cribbs and Mohamed Massaquoi out of the game in the second quarter with blows to the head. McCoy threw for 281 yards in his debut, but replied heavily on his tight ends. Only six of his 23 completions went to wide receivers. Watson had six catches for 88 yards, and fellow tight end Evan Moore caught four passes for 84 yards. Peyton Hillis was third on the team with 49 receiving yards in addition to 41 yards on the ground. McCoy also ran for 22 yards.

Game of the Week Results

This week’s Game of the Week between the Baltimore Ravens and the New England Patriots was one of two games decided in overtime on Sunday. The Patriots came back from being down 10 at the start of the fourth quarter, and scored 13 unanswered points. The Ravens, who had aspirations of repeating last season’s playoff victory, played well most of the game, but couldn’t hold on down the stretch. Tom Brady didn’t miss Randy Moss, as he and Deion Branch continued where they left off before Branch went to Seattle.

The Patriots took a 7-3 lead in the first quarter on a short run by the “Law Firm”, BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Joe Flacco, who played his best game of the year statistically, found Todd Heap and Anquan Boldin for touchdowns in the second and third quarters respectively. Down 20-10 in the fourth quarter, Brady connected with Branch for a score on his only touchdown pass of the night. Stephen Gostkowski connected on a field goal with less than two minutes left in regulation to tie the game at 20. Each team had three possessions in overtime before Gostkowski booted his third field goal of the day, and the Pats won 23-20.

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Brady threw for 292 yards, and doubled his interception total on the year as he was picked off twice. Danny Woodhead lead the team on the ground with 63 yards on 11 attempts, and Green-Ellis added 20 yards on 10 carries. Branch caught nine passes for 98 yards after being virtually ineffective in Seattle. Rookie Aaron Hernandez continued to impress with four catches for 61 yards. Wes Welker added 53 yards through the air, and Woodhead followed up with 52 yards. As I predicted, Flacco had a good game against the New England defense. He completed 77% of his passes for 285 yards with no interceptions. Ray Rice ran for 88 yards on 28 carries. Derrick Mason led the team with 100 yards receiving. Haloti Ngata sacked Brady twice. The Ravens’ defensive backs recorded their first two interceptions on the season as Chris Carr and Ken Hamlin each picked off Brady.

Remaining Scores from Sunday:

Miami 23, Green Bay 20 (OT)

Kansas City 31, Houston 35

Detroit 20, New York Giants 28

Atlanta 17, Philadelphia 31

Seattle 23, Chicago 20

New Orleans 31, Tampa Bay 6

New York Jets 24, Denver 20

Oakland 9, San Francisco 17

Dallas 21, Minnesota 24

Indianapolis 27, Washington 24

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Monday Night Football: Tennessee at Jacksonville

AFC South rivals meet tonight as the Titans and the Jaguars try to keep pace with the Colts and Texans within the division. Currently, both teams are 3-2. The Jaguars are coming off two big wins over the Colts and the Bills, while the Titans loss to Denver in Week 4 before defeating Dallas last week. Both teams have run oriented offenses. Jacksonville is third in the league with 146.8 rushing yards per game, and Tennessee is fifth with 138.2.

The visiting Titans are 2-0 on the road. They are fourth in the NFL in points per game (26.4). Vince Young has a 95.1 passer rating so far this season. He has thrown for 684 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions, and has run for 88 yards. He hasn’t turned the ball over since Week 2 in a loss to the Steelers. Chris Johnson continues his hunt to set the NFL rushing record this week. He was been the key to the Titan’s success again this year. In the three games Tennessee has won, Johnson has at least 125 yards and has scored twice in each game. In the two losses, he averages only 43.5 yards with a 2.5 yard per carry average. The Titan’s leading receivers Kenny Britt and Nate Washington both have three touchdown catches. Defensively the Titans have a NFL best 22 sacks. Defensive end Jason Babin leads the team with five and a half, and end Dave Ball is close behind with four and a half.

The Jaguars have been riding on the tide of quarterback David Garrard’s arm. In their three wins, Garrard averages a 129.7 passer rating, and is completing 78% of his passes. He has 10 touchdowns (one rushing) and only two turnovers (one interception and one fumble lost) in those three games. On the other hand, in his two losses, Garrard has an average 50.8 passer rating with a 53% completion rate. He has only one touchdown pass compared to five interceptions, and was sacked nine times in losses to San Diego and Philadelphia. Maurice Jones-Drew has 406 rushing yards but only one rushing touchdown. Mike Thomas has a team high 21 receptions for 258 yards, and tight end Marcedes Lewis already has a franchise record five touchdown catches. The Jacksonville defense is 29th in points allowed (27.4) and passing yards surrendered (282.2) per game.

Prediction

This will be Tennessee’s first game within the AFC South division. Their two losses have only been by one touchdown each, one coming to a stingy Pittsburgh defense. They average over 33 points a game in their three wins. On the other hand, Jacksonville has played poorly on defense. Although they did defeat Indianapolis, they gave up 352 yards to Peyton Manning. Philip Rivers and a terrible Chargers team scored 38 points against them, and Rivers threw for 334 yards. Even Buffalo was able to score 26 points, and they made Ryan Fitzpatrick look like a Pro Bowler with a 121.5 passer rating. Although both teams have run first offenses, they are both in the top half of the league in run defense. The Titans are 10th with 101.8 yards allowed per game on the ground, and the Jaguars are 12th with 102.8. This game will be decided by the quarterbacks, and I prefer Young over Garrard, especially if the Titans continue to harass opposing QB’s. Tennessee will stay tied with Houston and Indy at 4-2 with a win tonight in Jacksonville.

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By Tlarner

Here’s a look at the final AFC division: the AFC West.

“The dictionary is the only place where success comes before work”

Denver Broncos

Strength- When looking at the Broncos’ strengths from 2009 and comparing them alongside expectations from this year, I honestly couldn’t find a unit for group that stood out as a strength, mostly due to injuries to key players. Instead, I’ll just name some of the team’s individual stars. Quarterback Kyle Orton took a big step forward in becoming a household name. He threw for 3,802 yards and 21 touchdowns. He finished with a 86.8 rating, ten points higher than that of Jay Cutler, who was traded to Chicago before the season. A name to watch this fantasy season is receiver Eddie Royal. Royal had 980 yards and five touchdowns his rookie year in 2008, but saw his numbers decline greatly in ’09. However, with Brandon Marshall now in Miami, Royal should become Orton’s number one target. Denver’s leading tackler from a year ago was linebacker D.J. Williams. Williams recorded 122 tackles and a career high three and a half sacks. The final player I’ll highlight is the immortal Brian Dawkins. The 36 year old free safety is entering his 15th season in the NFL (second with Denver). He recorded a career high 116 tackles in 2009, and also added two interceptions.

Weakness- Last season, the Broncos had the league’s best pass rusher. This season, they might struggle to hit the QB at all. The Broncos were 10th with 39 sacks in 2009. Outside linebacker Elvis Dumervil had 17. It seems Elvis has left the building, and went to the hospital with a torn pectoral muscle. Originally, it looked like Dumervil would miss the entire season, but reports say he may be return before the end of the year. After Dumervil was defensive end Vonnie Holliday with five sacks and linebackers D.J. Williams & Andra Davis each with three and a half. Holliday is now a Dolphin, and Davis will line up with Buffalo. Take 39, subtract 17, then another five, and another three and a half, and you get 13.5 sacks. That’s one half less than Jacksonville, whose 14 sacks was last in 2009. Former first round picks Jarvis Moss (2007)  and Robert Ayers (2009) are expected to replace the lost sack production.

Biggest Question- Does this roster currently have what it takes to compete in the AFC West? Addition by subtraction can be a good thing, but is there a point where too much deduction can be harmful to a team. In the past two years, Coach Josh McDaniels has traded starting quarterback Jay Cutler and receiver Brandon Marshall. The first three running backs on the depth chart, Knowshon Moreno, Correll Buckhalter, and Lendale White, have been nagged with injuries this preseason. White is also facing a four game suspension to start the season. Former Raider Justin Fargas has been added as insurance. Fullback Peyton Hillis was sent to Cleveland in the trade for Brady Quinn. Quinn will probably see no time with Orton as the starter and Tim Tebow playing in Denver’s wildcat offense. Rookie receiver Demaryius Thomas, who is suppose to replace Marshall, is still being hampered by a foot injury. Arguably the best left tackle in the league, Ryan Clady is on the non-football injury list after hurting his knee while playing basketball in the offseason. Clady went through his first 20 starts without giving up a full sack (has started every game in ’08 & ’09). I already mentioned the loss of Davis and Holliday, as well as Dumervil for most of the year. It looks as if the Broncos may miss the playoffs again.

Kansas City Chiefs

Strength- The Chiefs are looking forward to bright things in Kansas City. This team starts and ends with its two running backs, Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones. Charles had a breakout year in 2009, setting himself in a category with some of the best rushers in the league. The Chiefs were 11th in total rushing yards with 1,929 yards. Charles led the team with 1,120 yards (tied with Frank Gore for 11th most) and seven scores. He had the highest average among players with over 1,000 yards with 5.9 yards per carry. Charles was also second on the team with 40 receptions. To compliment Charles, Kansas City signed former Jet Thomas Jones. Jones carried the workload as New York led the NFL with over 2,700 yards on the ground in 2009. Jones set multiple career highs, including attempts (331), yards (1,402), touchdowns (14), and longest run (71 yards). Add to the mix rookie Dexter McCluster. He can play either running back or wide receiver. As a senior at Ole Miss, he ran for 1,169 yards and caught another 520. He had 12 touchdowns, including one on his only throw.

Weakness- Kansas City had a pretty terrible defense in 2009. Their rushing defense was the second worse in the league. Their pass defense was slightly better, finishing 22nd. They were second to last in sacks. The Chiefs were also 29th in points allowed with 26.5 per game. Surprisingly, the Chiefs didn’t overhaul their defensive unit. Glenn Dorsey and Tyson Jackson both are expected to continue to improve. Both defensive ends were first round picks out of LSU, Dorsey in ’08 and Jackson in ’09. Linebackers Corey Mays, Demorrio Williams, Derrick Johnson, Jovan Belcher, Mike Vrabel, and Tamba Hali all return in 2010. Belcher, Johnson, Mays, and Williams will be competing for the two inside linebacker positions. The only changes made were in the secondary. The biggest splash was the drafting of safety Eric Berry from Tennessee (5th overall). Berry will immediately start at free safety. Cornerback Javier Arenas was drafted in the second round. Starters Brandon Carr and Brandon Flowers both return, so Arenas will see time in nickel and dime packages. In the fifth round of the draft, strong safety Kendrick Lewis was taken. He’ll have to compete with Jarrad Page and Jon McGraw.

Biggest Question- With opposing defenses keying on the running game, can Matt Cassel emerge as the quarterback he was in 2008? When Tom Brady went down for the season in ’08, Matt Cassel stepped in and was expected to merely manage the offense. However, his did a little more than manage by throwing for 21 touchdowns and 3,693 yards with a 63% completion percentage. I personally believe those numbers were product of the system he played in at New England. Behind that line, and with those offensive weapons, any quarterback can play well. But this isn’t Boston, this is K.C. With Charles and Jones in the backfield, and receivers Dwayne Bowe, Chris Chambers, and Dexter McCluster, Cassel has a decent group of playmakers. Center Casey Wiegmann returns to Kansas City after two seasons with Denver, and former Indianapolis guard Ryan Lilja should help improve the line. If Cassel truly is the franchise QB, he will have to perform better he did in 2009.

Oakland Raiders

Strength- The Oakland Raiders had the seventh best pass defense in 2009? Really? They gave up only 206.4 yards per game. That stat may be deceiving because opposing QB’s had an average 89.5 rating. I believe the Raiders have a defense that can cause some headaches among the league. Corner Nnamdi Asomugha is widely regarded as the best defensive back in the league. He has been a staple in the Raiders’ defense since recording a career high eight interceptions in 2006. Strong safety Tyvon Branch was second on the team in tackles with 124. He also had 2 forced fumbles and a sack. In fact, 12 different players recorded at least one sack in 2009 (13 if you include Michael Huff’s half sack). Trevor Scott led the way with seven sacks. In his first season with Oakland, Richard Seymour added 47 tackles and four sacks. Defensive tackle John Henderson, who played eight seasons in Jacksonville, signed with Oakland in the offseason. Middle linebacker Rolando McClain was drafted eighth overall out of Alabama. Outside linebacker Kamerion Wimbley came to Oakland via trade with the Browns. In four seasons, Wimbley has 26.5 sacks, one pick, and seven forced fumbles.

Weakness- The Raiders’ offense has consistently been, well, inconsistent. The best move Oakland made was getting rid of JaMarcus Russell. While Russell boasted a strong arm, he was horribly inaccurate and not a team leader. Former Redskin Jason Campbell is a huge improvement. Looking at the failures of other high first round picks, Darren McFadden has yet to live up to the hype. He has 856 rushing yards, five touchdowns, and eight fumbles in two seasons. Darrius Heyward-Bey’s struggles were well documented last year. Taken way too high at seventh overall, Heyward-Bey had only nine catches in 11 games played. Oakland’s 2004 first round pick Robert Gallery has struggled for years to prove he is not a bust. After going second overall, Gallery’s best move was switching to guard from tackle. The Raiders have some young talent, but those athletes need to prove they’re good football players.

Biggest Question- Can Jason Campbell change the mindset in Oakland? After being ran out of Washington after the Redskins acquired Donovan McNabb, Campbell should look to prove he can lead a team toward success. On paper, the former Auburn quarterback doesn’t look bad. In 2008 and ’09, he started all 16 regular season games, throwing for over 6,800 yards and 33 touchdowns. He also ran for just under 500 yards and two scores. Nonetheless, Campbell struggled to win in the tough NFC East. Now in Oakland, owner Al Davis has highly praised Campbell. Davis has compared Campbell to Jim Plunkett, the Raider QB who led the team to two Super Bowl wins in the ’80s. Seems like a bit of a long shot to me, the Raiders in the Super Bowl anytime soon. We’ll see this season if Campbell can resurrect his career and win in Oakland.

San Diego Chargers

Strength- The Chargers’ passing offense was ranked 5th in 2009. Quarterback Philip Rivers was eighth in the league in yards thrown with 4,254 and eighth in completion percentage with 65.2%. His 28 touchdowns was tied with Tom Brady for sixth. For the second straight year, Rivers had a QB rating over 100 with a 104.4. Pro Bowl tight end Antonio Gates led the team with 79 receptions. For the second time in his career, he had over 1,100 yards receiving (2005 & ’09). Vincent Jackson led the team with 1,167 yards and nine grabs for touchdowns, both career highs. Receivers Malcom Floyd & Legedu Naanee, running back Darren Sproles, and fullback Mike Tolbert also contributed greatly to the passing attack. The key to success again in 2010 is for the Chargers to end Jackson’s holdout. The wide out has been publicly upset with his contract. Starting left tackle Marcus McNeill is also holding out. He is another vital part of the offense, protecting Rivers’ blindside. Currently, three back-up left tackles have missed time at training camp with injuries. If San Diego’s front office gets Jackson and McNeill to report to the team, the passing attack will remain on target.

Weakness- San Diego will have to rely heavily on the passing offense in 2010 to replace a questionable ground game. The Chargers rushing attack finished only ahead of the Colts in 2009. LaDainian Tomlinson led the Chargers with 730 yards and 12 scores. After seeing career lows in many categories, the Chargers cut L.T. In nine seasons with San Diego, Tomlinson recorded 12,490 yards rushing (8th on the all-time rushing list), with at least 1,100 yards in eight of nine years, and 138 rushing touchdowns (2nd all-time). With L.T. now in New York, Darren Sproles returns as the team’s leading rusher, with only 343 yards in 2009. In his five seasons, Sproles has never had more than 93 carries. He hasn’t proven he can carry the workload. Mike Tolbert is next with 148 yards in ’09 as a fullback. San Diego’s first round pick this year was running back Ryan Mathews from Fresno State. The team has high expectations for Mathews, who had 3,280 yards and 39 touchdowns in three college seasons.

Biggest Question- How will holdouts effect the Chargers? Vincent Jackson, Marcus McNeill, and Shawne Merriman all began this preseason with contract disputes. Merriman recently signed his $3.2 million tender and reported to training camp. This was definitely a smart move for Merriman, who missed 15 games in 2008 with reconstructive knee surgery and only recorded four sacks in 2009 (had at least 10 from 2005-’07). Vincent Jackson’s absence could be detrimental to the Chargers’ offense. Without Jackson, Malcom Floyd, Legedu Naanee, and former Buffalo Bill Josh Reed would have to seriously improve their game. Maybe 2007 first round pick Craig “Buster” Davis could prove his draft status (Buster is his nickname, not reflecting on his failure as a first round pick). In three seasons, Davis has started one game, and caught 30 passes for 299 yards and one touchdown. San Diego currently has three free agent rookie receivers on the roster: Jeremy Williams, Richard Goodman, and Seyi Ajirotutu. McNeil’s presence is vital to jump start the running attack, although the Chargers made the playoffs with an injury plagued line last season. Center Nick Hardwick missed 13 games, guard Louis Vasquez missed two games, and right tackle Jeromey Clary missed six games in 2009.

Division Prediction- It looks like Kansas City and Oakland are both improving. They may be catching up to Denver real quick. I think the Chiefs and Raiders can be spoilers in a few team’s seasons. As for Denver, I don’t expect much more than a .500 season, unless Tim Tebow prays real hard for a mile high miracle. This division still belongs to San Diego. The holdouts will hurt them, but not ruin their season. And that’s how the West was won.

"I am the nothing man." AP Photo/Darron Cummings

No lead is safe…

At least when New Orleans and Indianapolis is involved, opponents can not score enough.  The Saints and Colts continued walking a thin, thin line en route to their undefeated marks. New Orleans erased an 11-point halftime deficit to defeat the Panthers 30-20. Carolina’s defense held New Orleans to just 84 yards on the ground, but the Saints have been figuring out a way to win all year. Drew Brees completed 24 of 35 for 330 yards. Robert Meachem led the way with 98 receiving yards on 5 catches.

For those keeping track at home, ‘Pomme’ DelHomme forgot to bring the dessert. The Carolina QB went an entire game without any turnovers.

The Chinchillas - "walking on a thin line"

Indy also performed their own escape routine. After Steve Slaton scored on a one-yard run , the Houston Texans led the Colts 17-13 in the fourth. Jospeh Addai answered seven minutes later with his own end zone plunge. Indy needed a little divine intervention. The Texans missed a field goal from 42 yards away as time expired.

Indy head coach, Jim Caldwell, might be considered the nothing man because “around here everybody acts the same; around here everybody acts like nothing’s changed.” Fans would be hard-pressed to remember a coach who has more quietly led his team to an 8-0 start.

Welcome to the working week

Tom ‘Terrific’ and his Pats have had plenty of pictures in the paper ‘being rhythmically admired,’  but Bill Belichick’s crew will need to ‘do it till their through it, so they better get to it.’ New England travels to Indy for a Sunday night show down with the Colts next week. After that those pesky Jets come to town. If that isn’t bad enough, the Pats geaux to N’Awlins for a Monday night soiree with the Saints.

For all those fans keeping track at home

Heisman trophy winner, Matt Leinart got into the game yesterday. He threw one pass. Leinart completed that pass…to THE WRONG TEAM. Yeah, Matt. Life is grand. “And I say this at the risk of falling from favor.”

Spirit in the night

Mark Sanchez and the Jets enjoyed a bye week. It’s been rumored that Mark “picked up Hazy Davy and Killer Joe” and headed out “to where the gypsy angels go.”

Does All State cover Green Bay

Aaron Rodgers might want to consider some insurance. The lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers sacked the Packer QB six times yesterday. At this rate Rodgers will kiss the turf 74 times this season. Ouch! Tampa Bay in those lovely creamsicle colored jerseys scored 21 fourth quarter points to win 38 -28. Tampa Bay has scored 37 combined points in the fourth quarter this year.

Cincinnati in first

Holy Kenny Anderson is it true? The Bengals clipped the Ravens 17-7 yesterday sweeping the season series from the divisional foe. The Bengals haven’t done that since 1997. Next up – the Steelers. Considering the Steelers have the Monday night game, can the Bengals take advantage?

Free falling G-Men

A clear-thinking Giant fan.

A recent article by Chas sums up my sentiments toward the Giants. In the back of my mind is always the possibility that the Giants could implode at any moment. Yesterday’s debacle could make any clear-thinking Big Blue fan scream. First and goal, and the Giants managed a field goal. Followed by the defense playing matador to Philip Rivers and the Chargers.Not that Rivers had any motivation to beat the Giants or anything.

MNF

Pittsburgh at Denver. Hey Broncos! “Is it you baby, or just a brilliant disguise?”

Got any NFL Splinters? Share them here.