NFL GridIron Gab Daily Digest

Jclombardi highlights Packers headlines.

Guest senior writer jclombardi @ http://lombardiave.com

Packers running game–by committee and off to slow start: Until something better comes along, the Green Bay Packers may have to accept that their running game will consist of 3 yards and a chunk of sod in the facemask. None of the three runners on their 53-man roster possesses the kind of breakaway ability that keeps jerseys clean or even the occasional breakaway ability that veteran Ryan Grant brought to the offense before suffering a season-ending ankle injury against Philadelphia in the opener.”That’s the way we look at it. We were OK. It was not to the standard that we feel we can play. We need to do a much better job as we get ready for Chicago.”

McCarthy: Clifton the starter, but Bulaga may start--Chad Clifton remains the Green Bay Packers' starting left tackle when healthy, coach Mike McCarthy said Monday. But when it comes to deciding just when Clifton will be healthy and whether he'll be considered healthy enough to start Monday night's showdown with the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field – that much McCarthy couldn't say.  "He's our starting left tackle. He's battling through a rough spot right now medically. We have Bryan Bulaga getting ready."

Packers’ Bush hopes versatility makes him special–Defensive back putting penalty days behind him: Bush now generally serves as the sixth defensive back when the Packers occasionally play their dime defense to defend the pass. He’s here because of the special teams, playing on punt and kickoff squads as well as both return teams.

Packers vs Bear week: Packers-Bears rivalry is wasting no time creating a special buzz — both locally and nationally. When these two longtime division rivals square off on a national stage on Soldier Field next Monday night, the ratings could be off the charts in Chicago and Green Bay for a game with all kinds of subplots.  You’ve got the mighty Packers, considered legitimate Super Bowl contenders by many league observers after their blazing second-half effort in 2009. While they were far from perfect in their victories over the Eagles on the road and at home against Buffalo, they definitely played well enough to sustain their elite status in league circles.

Packers-Bears I: JayRod reaches relevance: a matchup worthy of hyping. This is what we envisioned all along: Two smart, young quarterbacks with strong arms and favorable schemes leading their undefeated teams into a “Monday Night Football” showdown for sole possession of first in the NFC North. Jay Cutler and his Chicago Bearsare one of the NFL’s biggest surprises, while Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packershave thus far satisfied expectations if not exceeded them.

It did not take Eagles head coach Andy Reid long to change his mind about the starting QB spot for his team.

Tuesday, just one day after saying the club would go back to Kevin Kolb under center, Reid did a 180, naming Michael Vick the teams starter.

“When someone is playing at the level Michael Vick is playing, you have to give him an opportunity,” Reid said. “This isn’t about Kevin Kolb’s play. You’re talking about Michael Vick as one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL right now.”

Kolb started the teams first game, a loss against the Packers, but had to leave and missed the second half due to a concussion. He missed the game at Detroit last Sunday, and Vick played his way into the starting spot with a solid outing the teams 35-32 win.

“Kevin is fine. It’s not an injury-related issue,” Reid said. “It’s not about judging him. He’s going to be a championship-caliber quarterback.”

Vick threw for 175 yards and one touchdown and ran for 103 yards in the 27-20 season-opening loss to Green Bay. He had 284 yards passing and two TDs in the three-point win at Detroit on Sunday.

Kolb started two games in his first three seasons before he became the team’s starter after Donovan McNabb was traded to Washington on Easter.

Kolb struggled in the first half against the Packers in the season opener, but he became the first QB in league history to throw for 300 yards in his first two career starts last year.

Though the Eagles have been grooming Kolb to be the starter since drafting him in the second round in 2007, Vick forced Reid to make a difficult decision by playing better than he did when he was a superstar in Atlanta.

“Michael did an exceptional job and my job is to evaluate the players,” Reid said. “It’s my obligation to make the proper decision.”

Vick’s start against the Lions was his first in nearly four years. He has completed 63.8 percent of his passes and has posted consecutive games with a passer rating above 100 for only the second time in his career.

“His accelerated play was brilliant,” Reid said. “This is what I think is right. He’s back and maybe even a little better.”

Defending Super Bowl Champions: #1

Champs before Defending Champs: #2

You can tell how good a team truly is by the way their leaders speak, conduct themselves following games.

1. New Orleans Saints: Drew Brees:“We’ve stayed with the mindset we are the hunter, not the hunted.”  Sean Payton: “We came in with the mindset that we were going to win the turnover battle, and we did that decisively."  This team doesn’t beat itself.  How about the Bush injury? They have enough weaponry to overcome Reggie’s absence.  Overcoming adversity better than any other team.  Defense is turnover-machine.

2. Pittsburgh Steelers: Troy Polamalu (see his absurd timed-out “Jump”): “Head & Shoulders has gone above and beyond by insuring my Samoan locks for a cool $1 million dollars,” … “This reinforces that my full and thick hair is unstoppable.”  Well the way he and his defense has been playing, I’ll reinforce this: Dick LeBeau’s D is unstoppable.  Hines Ward: “They put us in the black jersey thinking that was going to be a mental edge. For us, we fought through it.”  So the Titans thought this would effect the Steelers?  Nice try. Mike Tomlin: “I know it won’t be me,” “I’m not good enough.”  Does it matter who starts at QB?  No.  Big Ben is back soon.  Defense, run game, and special teams can withstand for two more games.  Oh, if you love some Mike Tomlin check this out: Tomlin speaks. How can you not like this guy?  I can listen to him talk all day, what a coach, and he’s unreal -insanely COOL!

3. Indianapolis Colts: As dominant as the Pittsburgh defense is, you can make a case for Indianapolis’ offense being just as dominant.  Peyton Manning, you know this.  As for the defense, I was impressed beyond belief by their performance against the Giants.  This team is better than it was last year.  That’s scary.

4. New England Patriots: Let’s not overreact.  Tom Brady had one bad half.  The defense had one really, really bad half.  They will be fine.  And consider this: Tom Brady has found his “Dallas Clark” in Aaron Hernandez.  Brady’s ammunition is as fully loaded and powerful as ever.  Wait ’till this offense clicks.

5. Cincinnati Bengals: If only Carson Palmer could wake up.  Defense showed its true colors against Baltimore.  Jordan Shipley is going to make a big difference.  Waiting on USC’s “last” and “most recent” Heisman Trophy winner…

6. Green Bay Packers: Is Aaron Rodgers going to step his game up even more, to another level, now that Ryan Grant’s lost for the season?  I think so.  This dude is just having fun, enjoying football, playing flawlessly.  Defense looks improved.  Clay Matthews is sick.  I’m curious to see how rookie Brian Bulaga fares against Julius Peppers Monday night.

7. Dallas Cowboys: Things are all right.  Just need to run the ball more, slow down the pace.  Learn to balance up-tempo attack with power game.  Once balance is reached, 0-2 start will be long forgotten.

8. San Francisco 49ers: Offense looks as good as it ever has been.  Alex Smith, you can see him starting to get it.  He’s almost there.  They run the ball like no other, and stop it like no other.  Still believe they’re championship-caliber.  Singletary just needs to do some extra work concerning turnovers/mental mistakes.  Can’t beat themselves like they did against Saints.

9. Minnesota Vikings: So the defense gave up two scoring drives to New Orleans; one to start game, one to start 2nd half.  One touchdown drive to Miami.  Defense is where it needs be, Adrian is running with a full head of steam.  Favre will take care of pass woes against Detroit’s shaky secondary.  Calm down.

10. Chicago Bears: Jay Cutler is playing out of his mind, yet he’s fully capable of playing this way for a consistent period of time.  Defense doesn’t allow big rushing plays.  They’re finally healthy.  Team looks like a contender, however, the offensive line has no shot of holding up.  You know the next game is HUGE, they’re bringing out the throwbacks!

11. Tennessee Titans: Chris Johnson/Vince Young ran into Pittsburgh’s defense.  Benching could pay big dividends for Vince/team in long haul.  Nate Washington is finally starting to emerge.

12. Houston Texans: One week it’s Foster, next it’s Schaub-Andre connection making things happen.  Offense is dynamic as all get out.  As good as they play, can they overcome its defense’s deficiencies in the secondary?  It was a breathtaking comeback, but all the balls/calls bounced/went their way.  Any chance this continues?  I’m not drinking the Kool-Aid just yet, although I’m getting the ingredients out in preparation to make the Kool-Aid.  How soon?  Beat Dallas at home, I’m drinking the Kool-Aid.

13. Baltimore Ravens: Joe Flacco is a good quarterback.  What’s Ray Rice been up to?  Team MISSES Ed Reed.  Game against Pittsburgh at home in two weeks will tell me a lot more about Flacco.  Not buying him leading this team to Promised Land.

14. Washington Redskins: Donovan is Donovan.  He looked outstanding against Houston.  Team is one call their way from 2-0.  Bogus timeout rule.  I guess the receivers are more than enough.

15. Miami Dolphins: Fish smell like 8-8, 9-7 team.  Nothing jumps out.  Middle of the pack.  Chad Henne?  We going to see Brandon Marshall?  Defense is stout as can be.

16. New York Giants: Is defense a bit overhyped?  Get rid of Brandon Jacobs.  Hakeem Nicks should be more targeted.  Still not trusting Eli in big games, let alone games on the road.

17. San Diego Chargers: Mike Tolbert is a load.  Defense made David Garrard look like he was back at East Carolina.  Never underestimate Philip Rivers.

18. Kansas City Chiefs: See what happens when you build through draft, put together solid coaching staff, and make big momentum-changing plays.  This team used to be in an identity crisis, now they actually have an identity.

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Josh Freeman is just another good QB.  Really?  I like the way things are coming to fruition for Raheem Morris’ squad.  Ever since he took over the reins of the defense, it’s been really good.  Mike Williams is a #1 WR.  Kellen Winslow is making plays.

20. Atlanta Falcons: Michael Turner is back hurt.  Once again, the “Power Back Theory” after big carry year proves itself correct.  However, they probably don’t need him the way Jason Snelling is playing.  Defense looks better than I thought.  Important game at Superdome Sunday afternoon.  They lose, another ho-hum year.

21. New York Jets: Pretty soon it could be Mark Sanchez leading the Jets, and not the defense.  Jenkins gone, now Revis is hurt.  Holding out did what good?  Santonio Holmes back in two weeks, offense could be on the up and up, whereas the defense could be struggling.  Will both sides click at once to be considered serious contender?

22. Philadelphia Eagles: Andy Reid is KILLING this team.  Go figure, Mike Vick starts, offense thrives.  They actually run the ball, new revelation?  What happens when they run more often, they excel.  Give the ball to your best playmakers.  DeSean, LeSean, and Vick.  Talent is there on both sides of the ball, coaching could be downfall.

23. Detroit Lions: Jahvid Best is not big enough to make a serious impact in the NFL.  He’s too small.  He’s too fragile.  Fast enough for Saturdays, yet not Sundays.  He won’t be a scoring threat, he’s not strong enough.  If only Matthew Stafford hadn’t gotten hurt…this team would be 2-0.

24. Carolina Panthers: Jimmy Clausen, about time.  I’ll give this team a free pass.  Now let’s see what they can do.  Surprised run game hasn’t been that effective.

25. Denver Broncos: Knowshon Moreno (wow, he can make things happen in a hurry), Demaryius Thomas (looks like the real deal), Eddie Royal (wheels to burn, what a YAC killer) -they do have playmakers.  Josh McDaniels does have a plan in mind, he does know what he’s doing.  Kyle Orton looks really good.  Hopefully Champ is ready for Colts.

26. Arizona Cardinals: Jason Snelling dominated you.  Derek Anderson looks terrible.  I thought the defense was going to be stellar.  Tim Hightower is a keeper.

27. Jacksonville Jaguars: David Garrard.  Can’t play like that if you want to compete in the AFC South.  This team can’t win away from home.  MJD, something’s wrong him.

28. Oakland Raiders: New QB, new results.  Darren McFadden has arrived.  Rolando McClain is a bad, bad man.  Can I see more Louis Murphy on a consistent basis?

29. Seattle Seahawks: You fooled me Pete Carroll.  They got lit up by Denver.  Not even close.  Embarrassing.  Humiliating performance.  At least Matt Hasselbeck’s still under center.

30. St. Louis Rams: Two close losses.  What’s even more frustrating, two blown leads in the 2nd half.  Playing better than I expected.  Mark Clayton-Sam Bradford looks like a winner.

31. Buffalo Bills: No C.J. Spiller, no hope.  Ryan Fitzpatrick?  Are you kidding me?

32. Cleveland Browns: No playmakers on either side.  Both QB’s threw game-altering interceptions.  0-9 start, inevitable?

Jerry Rice is cool, we already know that.

They don’t remember how well you played, but if you won when you played.

What Did I Learn: So the 49ers fall to 0-2.  Panic button?  The defending champs clipped them, as they countered the team’s furious late comeback rally with one of their own, winning the game 25-22 in walk-off fashion.  Champions know how to win, been there, done that.  In what was the best game I’ve seen so far during this young season, I came away impressed with both teams.  With that said, I’m only going to cover Singletary’s men; we know the Saints are the best team in football, as for the 49ers?  Questions abound.

You couldn’t ask for a better game plan.  Well-executed.  The 49ers played the Saints as physical as any team could possibly have played them.  Frank Gore was in full-effect.  The offense had an identity, looking to their main man early and often.  The run blocking was outstanding, especially on the Anthony Dixon touchdown run.  Mike Iupati pulled to perfection, leading the way on that play, and on many plays throughout the night.  You’ll be seeing his face in Hawaii for many years to come.  As for the passing attack, Alex Smith looked relatively sharp despite a couple of picks.  He completed more than two thirds of his passes, went downfield effectively to Vernon and Crabtree, and showed off his nimble scrambling capabilities.  Overall, he displayed signs of growth.  The offense did its part.  They ran the ball at 5.5 yards per clip and threw it for close to 9 yards per pass.  You have to be pleased.

Defensively, as much as I applaud the effort from San Francisco, I have to say I was a bit disappointed in their lack of aggressiveness at times.  I believe they could have been physical with the Saints receivers.  Too many easy completions.  I know they wanted to prevent the big play, and did, but if they meet again in the Playoffs you have to blitz Brees somewhat more and play their wideouts bump and run more often.  Nonetheless, I think you saw a good blueprint on how to beat the Saints, that is, minus the turnovers.  4 turnovers?  Not going to win games, with a -4 turnover differential.  So lets give the defense credit, they withstood that on top of one of the league’s most potent offenses.  It was a contain game, they limited the Saints to just barely over 2 yards per rush, and only a bit more than 6 yards per pass.  They proved their legitimacy.

What I take away from this game is the 49ers are still among the best in the NFL.  They can play with the elite, they showed that Monday night.  They have all the parts needed to put together a run in the Playoffs.  Despite the slow start, I still have them as a 10-11 win team.  If anything, the two games thus far will make this 49ers team a better team.  First game, the blowout, that was needed.  It will help in the long run.  Second game, you have to come away with a moral victory considering how you played the champs.  However, in the short term you have to figure out how to right the ship at 0-2.  And even if these games do no harm, no foul and end up benefiting the club, the bottom line is you still have to win.  At the end of the day, this is a win now business whether you’re rebuilding or reloading, either way, no matter what the case.  So, right now as a 49ers fan you have to be thrilled to see how your team play, yet there’s still the bottom line -you wasted a golden opportunity.  As we move further down the season, let’s see if the 49ers can take advantage of future opportunities, because this team has an opportunity to be golden.

Coach Singletary: “The things that we did to ourselves that were self-inflicted cost us the game.”

Gore: “It wasn’t like another team was out there beating us,” “we were beating ourselves.”

Something really good came out of Sunday's win for the Raiders. Bruce Gradkowski? Not really. Darren McFadden? Sure, yes. Rolando McClain and Lamarr Houston? Both looked good at times, no doubt.

But the single best thing to come out of the Raiders win? Oakland has wide receivers again. True-blue silver and black wide receivers. Louis Murphy and Derrius Heyward-Bey combined for 12 catches and 171 yards. Are you kidding me?

Most Raider players want to celebrate in the "Black Hole." Last season, Heyward-Bey was the Black Hole. He would run a route, and then disappear. Greg Papa could be heard, on more than one occasion, saying, "Russell back to pass. Throws to Heyward-Bey who… a) Drops it. b) Drops it. or c) Drops it." The odds of Russell and Bey hooking up were about the same as me hooking up. Come to think of it, 9 times for me and the wife would be a good year, but that's not the point.

The 2009 first-round pick had 9 receptions last year. Nine! In 11 games he caught 9 balls. I want that to sink in. Betty White had more catches in a Snickers commercial. It's virtually impossible to catch only 9 balls in 11 games and play as much as he did, but yesterday, we saw signs.

Six catches for Bey (enough with the hyphenated names, okay, Mom and Dad? Pick a name, any name, and go with it. Do you know what a pain it is to write Heyward-Bey when I could just write Bay?), and some of them in traffic. The Raiders actually looked like they knew how to throw the forward pass. Now don't get them confused with Stabler to Branch, but still.

Murphy showed signs last year that he could be a viable receiver in the NFL if someone can get him the damn ball—thank you, Keyshawn—and that someone was Bruuuuce Gradkowski on Sunday. After a rookie season in which the former Gator had 34 receptions, he has 10 thru 2 games, and looks like the kind of guy a QB could look for on 3rd downs in particular. When the Raiders finally sewed up the win over the Rams, it was on a 3rd and 7, when Bruuuuce hit Murphy for the game sealer.

Prior to Sunday, neither Murphy nor Bey seemed ready to taking that next step to relevance. Who cares if they hyphenate their names or not? The more important question was: Are "dropped-passes" hyphenated?

But by the looks of Sunday, writing Heyward-Bey just became a little more relevant.

The Rams offense had success in the first half as they were able to run the ball against the the Oakland Raiders standard seven man front.  The Rams were then able to get their short passing game going as the Raiders kept their two safeties deep.  Sam Bradford started the game 6-6.  (Let's leave out the fact that with all that "success" the Rams offense scored only 7 points in the first half.  So, it is all subjective with the impotent Rams offense.)

In the second half, the Oakland Raiders made the easiest adjustment in the world, in fact it is a surprise that the Raiders waited that long to make the adjustment.  The Raiders moved one of their safeties down near the line of scrimmage which had a dual effect. 

First, it stopped the Rams best player, running back Steven Jackson as the Rams offensive line was no longer able to open up the holes for Steven Jackson to even get more than 2 yards per rush.  The second effect is that it slows the Rams short passing game with more players within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage.  With no running game, the Rams could not even go to their sparsely used play action game that had some success in the first half.

Most NFL teams will line up with eight men around the line of scrimmage from the beginning of the game to stop Steven Jackson and the Rams short passing game.  The Rams will not dare pass deep. 

Whether it is because the Rams pedestrian wide receivers cannot get open downfield or because the Rams offensive line can not protect for long enough for the long pass plays to develop, or that Rams offensive coordinator Steve Shurmur is too afraid or unwilling to run deep passes. 

Also, the order to not pass down the field may come from Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo or rookie QB Sam Bradford does not want to take the risk and prefers to check down.

There are many possible reasons for the Rams easy to stop offense, but whatever the reason, the Rams need a way to get through, around or over the basic "8 men in the box" defense because they will see it every single game going forward in 2010.  If the Rams continue to be this easy to stop, they will not win a single game in 2010.

Things I know.

The pundits are proving they don't know anything… again. Vikings, Cowboys, Steelers, Bucs and Chiefs. Yes it's just the first two weeks, but the Vikes and Boys look bad. The Bucs and Chiefs weren't supposed to win more than 4 games. The Steelers were supposed to be lucky to come out of week 4 at 2-2. There is a lot of football left to play, but the start isn't looking good for many preseason predictions out there.

Brett Favre looks like he has aged 10 years in 10 months. Is this the same Brett Favre we saw last season? Did someone body snatch Brett? Or is it that being 40 has finally caught up to the incredible Brett? Yes he didn't go to training camp, but he didn't go to training camp last year and didn't have a season in the Minny offense under his belt. That can't be the only issue. Did everyone see the video of him entering the stadium before the last game? He looked like he was dragging himself down the hall. Brett just looks tired and old.

Mike Vick cannot "win" the starting QB job from Kevin Kolb. There is no quarterback controversy in Philadelphia. Mike Vick looked great, but Andy Reid has been clear. They are developing Kevin Kolb to be their long term solution at QB. Mike Vick cannot win the starting job. There is still the possibility that Kolb could LOSE the starting job if he doesn't perform well for a long period of time. All that Mike Vick has done is, maybe, shorten Kolb's leash.

Things I think I know.

The Cowboys are not coached well on offense. People seem to forget that the Cowboys offense has been one of the most heavily penalized teams since Wade Phillips took over in 2007. Many would blame fun loving Wade Phillips for the sloppy play, but the defense doesn't seem to have these problems, so maybe it's Jason Garrett? One thing is for sure: If it doesn't improve, the good ship lollypop that is called "The Dallas Cowboys" may be in for a long voyage.

Joe Flacco has accuracy issues. There was a lot of angst among Baltimore fans for saying this last week, but it continues to look like Flacco sometimes just can't put the ball where it needs to be. He has a great arm, but that's not the question. Maybe it's a fundamentals issue that a QB coach can work with Flacco about. He certainly is able to make some very accurate throws sometimes too. However, on other occasions, Flacco is floating or diving a pass into the ground. Maybe he just needs to be more consistent with his feet and body placement. If it doesn't improve, he'll have a ceiling on how good he can be.

The Lions are a better team than expected. Yes, they are 0-2. But they have been playing pretty well and have been closely competitive in both games. Even without Matt Stafford this week, the Lions were exciting to watch and it is clear that they are collecting talent. (Jahvid Best anyone?) They have a lot better team than they did just a few years ago and just need to learn that intangible edge that it takes to win.

Things I know I don't know.

Has Mike Martz really improved Jay Cutler that much? Don't forget that Jay Cutler had some up and down games last year too… but… so far so good for Cutler and Martz. Cutler has a QB rating over 100 in both games and appears to be making better decisions. Against the Lions, that wasn't a surprise, but against the tough Dallas defense, it should be. There are lots of games left to find out if Mike Martz really has "fixed" Cutler.

What to make of the Patriots, Ravens, Jets and Bengals? In week 1, the Patriots thumped the Bengals, while the Ravens physically beat down the Jets in a close game. The world was crumbling for the Jets and Bengals and the world was roses for the Pats and Ravens. And then week 2 happened. The Jets embarrassed the Pats and the Bengals edged the Ravens. All four of these teams were playoff teams last year and maybe that's all this means. Did the Bengals just get lucky with an INT throwing Flacco? Were the Jets just having an off game on Monday night? Are they all four good teams and they just played each other tough?

Have the Houston Texans finally learned how to win games on a regular basis? The Texans have had a good team for several years. They just couldn't seem to consistently win the easy games and pull out the tough ones when they were close games. Blown leads, failed comebacks, big let downs. Well, they didn't blow the lead against the Colts and pulled off their FIRST overtime win in team history against a tough Redskins team. Are they past this now? Are they in position to make the playoffs, maybe even win the AFC South?

I have already seen a ton of criticism of Brett Favre around the web, following his four turnovers in Sunday's loss against the Miami Dolphins.

I have also seen a number of people defending Favre, claiming that he had no open receivers to throw to.

Below is a poll asking you to tell which performance you thought was the bigger problem:  Favre or his pass catchers.

However, you are not going to get away from this without first getting my opinion on the matter.

First, let me say that Percy Harvin should have got the pass that would have been a touchdown but instead ended up as an interception in the second quarter.  Some credit has to be given to Vontae Davis for making a heck of a play.  However, Favre did throw the ball to a spot where Harvin was forced to stop in his tracks instead of hitting him in stride.  I'm not making excuses for Harvin, but that throw could have benefitted from better timing and placement.  On third and twelve, the opportunity was also there to make the safe throw to a wide open Adrian Peterson in the middle of the field.

On third and ten, backed against their own endzone, Favre held onto the ball longer than a veteran quarterback should and Cameron Wake was able to pop the ball out of his hands for a Miami defensive touchdown.  In this case, I see Percy Harvin streaking open right off the bat but Favre didn't see him because he wasn't the primary receiver.  After that, Favre is forced to hold the ball for too long because the play called had routes that were timely in their development.  Shiancoe was the escape valve on the play, but he was held in to pass block (ineffectively) for too long.

Favre' second pick came in the third quarter, on a 2^nd and 8, in the redzone.  Favre zeroed in on Bernard Berrian who had single coverage.  Despite the fact that Visanthe Shiancoe was open on the underneath route, Favre never thought twice about giving Berrian a shot at single coverage.  It turned out to be a poor decision, and an even worse throw.  Berrian never had a chance at that pass, and unless Berrian was supposed to cut inside of the coverage, this one is completely on Favre.

The third and final interception came on a play where Favre was trying to force the ball down the field for a quick strike, despite the fact that Berrian was double covered.  The Vikings had over six minutes remaining, down by only four, and it was first down with 10 to go.  They also had decent field position.  The play action developed and Favre rolled to his right, where Shiancoe released from his pass block and was wide open with room to run.  Instead of throwing the safe short route, Favre chose to chuck it down the field and underthrew Berrian by a good five yards, if not more.  This one was 100% on Favre, as there was no reason to throw into double coverage and the throw wasn't very good anyways.

So, my verdict?  Brett had decent protection from his offensive line and mediocre play from his receivers.  He also had to struggle to deal with some very questionable playcalling.  The bottom line, however, is that Favre failed to recognize Visanthe Shiancoe and Adrian Peterson as his top outlets late in the game, despite their consistent production over the last two weeks.  His timing was off and he made some very dubious decisions.

Every time Favre dropped back to throw in the second half, I had a certain amount of nervousness that I haven't felt since Tarvaris Jackson was put in charge of the offense.

There is blame to be placed on the coaching staff and the receivers, but I think Favre is the person on the offense that needs to improve the most in order for this offense to get rolling.  Well, second to Fahu Tahi that is.

Jets wide receiver Braylon Edwards was arrested on a drunken driving charge early Tuesday morning in New York, the New York Post reported. He was pulled him over on the West Side and found he had double the legal limit of alcohol in his system, police said. Edwards, 27, was arrested at 5:15 a.m. and charged with DWI.

Police said they smelled alcohol and Edwards was found to have a 0.16 blood-alcohol level, or double the state’s legal limit of 0.08. A passenger was with Edwards but it doesn’t appear they were charged. Edwards is currently in police custody, and will be arraigned later today.