NFL GridIron Gab Daily Digest

Senior writer jclombardi profiles QB Rodgers & Center Wells and Lions scouting report.

QB Rodgers avoided picks–low turnovers translate into wins: The Packers’ Aaron Rodgers has become one of the best quarterbacks in the National Football League, mentioned in the same category as Philip Rivers and Drew Brees and as someone to look forward to having a career like Tom Brady or Peyton Manning. And part of that success is because Rodgers is so good at avoiding interceptions. Look at the Packers’ record book in the category of most consecutive pass attempts without an interception: 294: Bart Starr, 1964-’65; 177: Rodgers, currently; 163: Brett Favre, 1995-’96; 159: Rodgers, 2008-’09; 157: Rodgers, 2005-’08; 152: Starr, 1963-’64. QB Rodgers’ last interception was at the end of the first half against Minnesota in Week 7. He has not thrown a pick in his last 177 attempts. ”It’s a testament to how well he’s thinking out there, how well he’s reacting and how well he’s throwing out there,” said backup QB Flynn. “And the receivers are doing a good job of being friendly to the quarterback and making plays, running the right routes, not cutting their routes off. Aaron is making good decisions and being real accurate.” This is Rodgers’ third year as starter and sixth overall. In beating San Francisco on Sunday, Rodgers had his fifth straight game without an interception, a personal-best. ”He’s been very disciplined; he hasn’t thrown the ball up for grabs very often,” said offensive coordinator Joe Philbin. ”Aaron’s playing at a very high level,” said coach Mike McCarthy.

Center Wells: The center-quarterback relationship is an intimate one – on the field. It has to be. We have to understand each other 100 percent and be able to anticipate what each other is going to do. From a lineman's standpoint, I have to be in tune with his checks, so I can anticipate what to call when the check is made, and he has to be in tune with me to understand that I'm going to make the proper adjustment so he's going to know who we're blocking. So we have to have that trust and understanding of the game plan. My wife, Julie, been through the highs and lows with me–We've been through a lot of life experiences together. We'll be married 10 years this offseason, so we've been through a lot of highs and lows. It's important, I think, to go through the peaks and valleys in life with someone that's strong and supportive and there for you and really keeps you grounded. You're never too high and never too low. With three kids now, my wife and I have to play zone defense. We used to be in man-to-man, now we're in zone. We try to employ my son to help us out a little bit, which is the curse of being the oldest. My daughter Lola has my personality. Lola is the wild child. She speaks her mind, doesn't really care who hears it, so I think she gets that from me. Son Jackson has calmed down a lot. The best part about being a dad is, when I come home from work, regardless of how my day went, my kids are excited to see me. When I'm home, I'm 'Dad,' and they just want to spend time with me. Watching my 7-year-old son look out for the baby and my daughter thinking she's the mom, all that stuff's exciting. My son comes to every game; my daughter comes to all of them except the night games. If it's a Sunday or Monday night game, she doesn't come, because she has preschool still. My legacy, you want to be remembered for being a hard worker and doing things the right way. On and off the field. Dependable and reliable, that's how I wanted to be remembered. Every Thursday night, we have dinner as an offensive line. We all take turns. We start with the oldest and work to the youngest as far as paying the tab. Whoever's paying picks the restaurant; if we win, we go back to the same restaurant. That's kind of what we do. During our winning streak, we went to Chives. We ate at Chives every week. Then we had Thanksgiving and we all ate at Chad's house and we lost. So we went back to Chives. My closest friend on the team is probably Chad Clifton. We probably hang out the most because we're from the same area, went to the same school, live in the same area in the offseason, our wives get along, our kids play together. I'd say he's the one I have the most in common with. I always said if I didn't play football, I'd either be coaching or I'd go to law school. I've got history and sociology degrees, so I'm set up to either teach or do post-graduate work. I plan on doing some high-school coaching. I think that's where my heart is at. I'd love to work at my high school and do some coaching there.

Lions scouting report: Run offense: The Lions are No. 28 in the NFL in rushing yards per game and No. 27 in average yards per carry. They're average on the offensive line, where the best player probably has been left guard Rob Sims and the weak link is right guard Stephen Peterman. Halfback Jahvid Best is a small, talented but brittle back who's a poor man's Reggie Bush. He's averaging only 3.3 yards a carry but has the quickness and speed to break off a big play at any time. He also catches well out of the backfield (50 receptions), and the Lions try to get him the ball in open space as much as they can. Pass offense: No. 3 quarterback Drew Stanton will make his second straight start. The fourth-year pro played fine in a 24-20 loss to Chicago last week (102.4 passer rating, 178 yards passing, one touchdown, no interceptions). He's 0-2 as an NFL starter and has a career passer rating of 59.0 points. He has physical tools, a good athlete, decent arm, accurate thrower, but the game sometimes seems to move a little fast for him. The Lions' passing game plays off receiver Johnson who is a large target with big-time straight-line speed. That threat has opened the way for tight end Brandon Pettigrew's big year who is tied for second among NFL tight ends in receptions (50). Run defense: The Lions rank No. 25 in rushing yards allowed and No. 28 in yards allowed per carry, but they have one of the best defensive lines in the NFL. The anchor is rookie Ndamukong Suh. He's a big (6-4, 307), square-built player with strength, quickness and instincts. Former Packers lineman Corey Williams has been mostly a rock inside also. The problem is at linebacker, where the only legitimate starter is middle linebacker DeAndre Levy. Pass defense: The Lions rank No. 16 in passing yards allowed, No. 21 in total yards allowed, and No. 25 in points allowed. They rush the passer well because of their talent on the defensive line. They rank No. 4 in sacks percentage, but their shortcomings in the back seven have been a killer. Suh gets great pressure from the inside and has a team-high eight sacks. Defensive end Avril is blossoming. His three sacks last week against Chicago pushes his season total to seven. The Lions could be short-handed for a second straight week, though, because of defensive end Bosch's neck injury that sidelined him against the Bears. At age 32 he's not as athletic as he was. He has four sacks this season, but if he doesn't play this week the Lions will miss his off-the-charts effort. Their best defensive back is safety Delmas who's more of a hitter than a cover man. They probably won't have the best player from their weak group of cornerbacks. Starter Smith, who has five interceptions but lacks speed for a short cornerback, injured his shoulder last week. Vasher or Hill probably will start in his place. Nickel back Brandon McDonald, picked off waivers from Arizona in late October, has been OK. Special teams: Stefan Logan has been one of the best returners in the league and is a big-play threat. He leads the NFL on kickoff returns (28.8-yard average, one touchdown) and is No. 4 on punts (12.4-yard average). Former Packers kicker Rayner is 6-for-8 in his four games as Hanson's replacement with a long of 50 yards. Punter Nick Harris ranks No. 9 in gross average (44.9 yards) and No. 28 in net average (35.5 yards).

Dealing with injury is nothing new for this year's Seahawks squad; however, it might be too much to deal with at once should receivers Mike Williams and Ben Obomanu both miss some or all of Sunday's matchup against the 49ers in San Francisco.

Williams left last Sunday's home matchup against Carolina in the first quarter after spraining his left ankle. A cut to Obomanu's right hand following a 27-yard reception in the same game forced the fifth-year receiver out as well.

Combined, Williams and Obomanu account for 74 receptions, 1,084 yards and five touchdowns. Seattle's remaining wideouts – Deon Butler, Brandon Stokley and Golden Tate – have collectively hauled in three less passes, amassed 274 less yards and have scored two less touchdowns. In fact, the only member of the threesome to cross the goal line this season is Butler.

What about John Carlson?

The tight end that quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said prior to the season would be this year's fantasy football sleeper hasn't lived up to the billing. The 6-foot-5, 251-pound pass-catching Carlson hasn't recorded more than three catches in a game this season since Week Three's home win against the Chargers.

A contributing reason for that is fullback Michael Robinson. Robinson missed five weeks with an injury that required head coach Pete Carroll to shuffle the deck and have Carlson take on more blocking duties than he previously had; however, once Robinson returned to the lineup last Sunday against Carolina, Carlson became the one that was on the inactive list as the third-year tight end dealt with a hip injury.

With relatively inexperienced hands out wide in Butler and Tate, a 12-year veteran slot receiver in Stokley and uncertainty regarding Carlson's availability and usefulness Sunday in San Francisco, Seattle's 17th ranked pass offense could become a lot more anemic than it already is should Mike Williams and Ben Obomanu not take the field.

Can't get enough NFLGridironGab?  Follow SeahawksGab Editor Devon Heinen on Twitter at http://twitter.com/DevonHeinen.

With week 12 officially in the books, there's still a lot of football left before we can start talking playoffs. But with the NFC so tightly bunched together, there's absolutely no room for error by the Saints now. Just one more loss could spell disaster and thrash any post season aspirations for the defending Superbowl champs.

At 10-2, the Atlanta Falcons are nursing the best record in the NFC and leading New Orleans by a game and a half. And having salted Tampa Bay away twice already, any hopes of their defeat by any other teams (except the Saints) on their final four-game schedule are dwindling fast. So, I've resolved myself to the idea that New Orleans is more likely to get into the playoffs as one of two wildcards. That of course would be a whole lot better than not making it at all.

People have asked, "What if our records are both 13-3 when the regular season ends?" Well, Atlanta would still have the edge by virtue of the Saints' ridiculous loss to the Arizona Cardinals, a common conference opponent. Our only hope now is that Carolina or Seattle can somehow pull an upset. Even then, the Saints still have to win out–plain and simple.

While I won't hinge too much hope on either Carolina or Seattle creating a miracle to help us out, I won't totally doubt that anything could happen. After all, who would've thought that the Saints could lose to either the Cardinals or the Browns with their losing records and rookie QBs at the helm? And look how those losses are coming back to haunt them. No one thought at the time that either one of those games would be just as important as the missed field goal that ensured Atlanta a victory in the Superdome. But with the NFC playoff picture looking so unclear at the moment, everything matters now.

Nevertheless, even a wildcard spot may not be so terrible. At worse the opponent would be the winner of the NFC West, a team which could very likely have a losing record. Now we all know that doesn't mean anything. But the Saints are playing some very good football at the present, the offense having found its footing and all. They've finally started beating the teams they're supposed to beat. I think that gives them the momentum and confidence that they need moving forward.

Sure, it would be great to have domefield advantage and have everything come through New Orleans again, but all the Saints have to do is win wherever they play. Of the three losses this season, only one has come on the road. Granted they still have two tough road games left, the Saints have proven that they can play just as well on the road as they do at home. They've been just as successful on grass as they've been on turf and they've even managed well in frigid weather. The circumstances don't matter a whole lot when the team is clicking on all cylinders and lately they've looked very sharp.

With all that said, I hope Coach Payton can do something about the undisciplined players that keep racking up all those penalties that have been hurting the team. It's time that the multiple-offenders be held accountable until they make a conscious effort to do better. And special teams needs to be overhauled as well. Each of the next four games is going to be just as important as the next. Three of those will be conference games and two of them division games. The game at Baltimore is so important because the Saints need it just to keep pace in the tight race. Therefore, dumb penalties, stupid mistakes, and poor tackling need to be done away with completely.

Things like that are how the Saints have been blowing big leads as of late and end up having to come from behind and win by a miracle. Those silly mistakes have killed drives and gave momentum to the other teams. I for one am glad to see the return of the big plays and a bit of consistency in the ground game. But if the Saints hope to make it into the post season, they're going to have to play to perfection from here on out, particularly when it comes to execution. Every aspect of their game is going to have to nearly flawless.

We know they have all the pieces. We know they have the hunger and the desire. And they have hoards of fans who will follow them anywhere. All they have to do is play their game to their full potential and they can be virtually unbeatable.

Things I know.

The Steelers are a better team than the Ravens AND the refs. Not only did the Steelers with Big Ben overcome the Ravens IN Ravens stadium, they overcame horrible officiating. Not only because of the newly illegal hits that weren't called on the Ravens, but because of several penalties or non-penalties that the Steelers had no recourse on. The biggest of these was a call that should have been a safety against Ray Rice when he used Troy Polomalu's facemask to hold him while blocking in the end zone. Instant safety and Steelers get the ball. Instead, on that play, Flacco threw for a 60 yard completion to Anquan Bolden. And of course the PI call that wasn't. These were game changing calls that the Steelers overcame anyway.

Dallas is a dangerous team. For whatever reason, it's becoming obvious that conventional wisdom was right. The Cowboys are a talented team (even without Romo). Now with more discipline from the Head Coach, the Cowboys are a tough team and can play spoiler, especially to the Eagles who have to play them twice in the next four weeks. The luck of this draw could cost the Eagle the NFC East at the hands of the Cowboys two seasons in a row. Except the Giants will get the benefit of this schedule draw. They were lucky to play them earlier when Wade Phillips was driving the team into the ground.

Rookie QBs playing well is starting to become routine. It used to be that rookie QBs never played well when started early. Lately, we're seeing rookie QBs playing well in year 1. Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, Matt Stafford, Mark Sanchez, and more. Heck Josh Freeman looked decent with just 10 games to develop last year. This year Sam Bradford has been stellar for the Rams. They have a lot of holes to fill all over that team, yet Bradford has been pulling some games out in St Louis. And who does he have at WR to throw to? Keep thinking, you won't come up with much.

Things I think I know.

Peyton Manning has lost his mojo. I think the mojo Peyton had for so many seasons of 11 or 12 wins every year is not there this time. Maybe it's the injuries; maybe it's the offense being out of sync. Maybe it's a failing offensive line. Maybe losing his line and position coaching did matter despite what most thought. Maybe it's all of these combined. The bottom line is that Peyton is throwing bad balls and the glimmer and fear of the Colts is fading.

The Saints may be the first Super Bowl champs to sneak up on people. No one has been really talking about the Saints. Drew Brees is on pace to throw for 4800 yards and 33 TDs. His early season struggles have inflated his INTs and the perception that he's not having a good year. The Saints have found that teams are playing them a lot tougher this year, but are still 9-3. If not for a missed 28 yd FG in overtime, they would be 10-2, in front of the NFC South and tied for the best record in the NFL. The main problem the Saints had early were injuries. They are getting healthy and if they can stay healthy may well be tough down the stretch.

The new rules are affecting officiating efficiency. That's about the only logical reason for the decline in officiating this year. Maybe Mike Pereira leaving has something to do with it. Whatever the reason, the confusion about rules among players and continuous flow of bad calls in primetime games seem to be eroding the confidence in officiating. It's no doubt all are honest mistakes, but at some point it has to be addressed. Teams and fans are getting frustrated. Ask the Lions.

Things I know I don't know.

Has anyone locked up their division? I guess the AFC North for the Steelers and the AFC East for the Pats looks solid, but there are still four games left and anything can happen. The Chiefs have the biggest lead over the competition with 2 games ahead of the Chargers and Raiders. However, they play both SD and Oak in the next four weeks and anything could happen there too. In a stroke of genius the NFL has the division leaders playing each other in the last five weeks. Last week it was Steeler-Ravens and Pats-Jets. There are six more games left that pit division leaders against each other. It's that time!

Is drafting a RB in the first round really necessary any more? Yes, Adrian Peterson and Chris Johnson are great, but other teams are doing pretty well with RB rotations and no star. Pierre Thomas was undrafted in 2007 and was a major part of the Saints SuperBowl winning 2009 season. His injury this year has opened the door for Chris Ivory. Undrafted out of Tiffin University (yea, go look that up), Ivory has racked up 636 yds at 5.2 yds/carry. LeGarrette Blount, another undrafted player, is second to Ivory in rookie rushing and is averaging 4.5 yds/carry. That's right, the three first round RBs (Best, Matthews and Spiller) are behind undrafted guys in both yards AND yds/carry. Then there are Arian Foster and Danny Woodhead. Not rookies, but undrafted players making a difference. If you include 7th rounders, you can add Ahmad Bradshaw and Peyton Hillis. This position is a short term position. Most "single back" systems wear out their RBs in a few years. The rotational scheme with non-super-star players, seems to be working pretty well, without costing draft picks.

Is it time for the detractors to finally give Bill Belichick his due? Wow that was a shellacking of the Jets. The Pats have been improving on defense every week as their young guys learn Belichick's complex schemes. The Pats swapped Randy Moss for Deion Branch. It's working. Coach Belichick is known as a scheming genius and if he's finally convincing these young guys to "just do your job", maybe we're finding out just how good he is. Over the last several years, the Pats loaded up on draft picks, trading back for more picks and trading away mid-life players for draft currency. Everyone has been astonished at how many picks in the first 3 rounds the Pats have every year. But it takes a great coach to mold that young talent into something. Jets head coach Rex Ryan was repeatedly saying that the Patriots had better coaching than the Jets (self-deprecating) and the best QB in the NFL. On Monday night, the Pats approved of that statement.

By RedskinsGab Columnist Keely Diven

The Redskins have suspended the talented but dissatisfied defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth without pay for the remaining 4 games of the season. The team blamed his suspension on "conduct detrimental to the club." According to The Washington Post's Jason Reid, on Monday Mike Shanahan learned that Haynesworth would no longer speak to him, a message that Haynesworth delivered through General Manager Bruce Allen. More information to come as it emerges.

Shanahan released the following statement about the suspension.

“Despite the club's numerous attempts to persuade Albert Haynesworth to abide by the terms of his contract, he has repeatedly refused to cooperate with our coaching staff in a variety of ways over an extended period of time. Among other things, he has consistently indicated to our defensive coaches that he refuses to play in our base defense or on first-down or second-down nickel situations. He has also refused to follow the instructions of our coaches both during weekly practices and during actual games as well.

Yesterday, when Albert was at Redskin Park, he told our General Manager Bruce Allen that he would no longer speak with me. Although suspending any player is not a decision that a head coach enters into lightly, I believe the situation has reached the point where the club clearly has no alternative.”