NFL Roundup: Week 5

Some observations, comments and opinions about Sunday's NFL games.

St. Louis 23, Green Bay 20
The Rams good fortunes continue late in games. This time, Leonard Little knocked the ball from Brett Favre's hand with the Packers having a first down on the St. Louis 11. Rams CB Jerametrius Butler recovered the fumble and moved St. Louis to 4-1, first in the NFC West.

New Orleans 24, Tampa Bay 21
Reggie Bush scored his first career touchdown with a game-winning 65-yard, highlight reel punt return for a touchdown. New Orleans improved to 4-1 on the season. The Bucs fell to 0-4, but rookie QB Bruce Gradkowski (225 yards passing, 2 TDs) had a decent game.

Carolina 20, Cleveland 12
DE Julius Peppers had a sack, a forced fumble and made Cleveland QB Charlie Frye miserable all day. The Panthers have won three straight after an 0-2 start. Deshaun Foster ran for 106 yards and Steve Smith caught six passes for 62 yards.

New England 20, Miami 10
Tom Brady threw for two touchdowns and the Patriots solidified first place in the AFC East with a victory over the reeling Dolphins. Miami fell to 1-4 and reports are out that Daunte Culpepper and Nick Saban had a heated argument last Friday. Can you say meltdown?

Indianapolis 14, Tennessee 13
This is why you never take any opponent in the NFL lightly. For three quarters the Titans owned the Colts. But with the game on the line Peyton Manning worked his fourth quarter magic for the third straight game. Indy remained perfect on the season at 5-0, while Tennessee stayed winless at 0-5.

New York Giants 19, Washington 3
The Giants defense held the Redskins to only 164 total yards and Tiki Barber rushed for 123 yards as New York righted its ship in a hurry with this victory. The Giants are 2-2 overall, but are 2-0 in the NFC East with a win over the first-place Eagles.

Minnesota 26, Detroit 17
Now Detroit fans know what Rams fans had to go through with Mike Martz. There is no denying the fact that Martz is an innovative offensive coach, but his play calling can drive you crazy. The Lions, who blew a 17-3 fourth quarter lead, threw 42 times and ran only 11 with four turnovers. Why would you run only 11 times when you have a 17-3 lead? St. Louis fans sympathize with you Detroit.

Chicago 40, Buffalo 7
Just when you thought the Bears couldn't impress anymore than they already have, they go out and destroy the Bills. Chicago, now an offensive as well as defensive juggernaut, is averaging 31.2 points a game and giving up only 7.2 per game. Buffalo managed only 145 yards in the contest. The Bears are 5-0 for the first time since 1986.

San Francisco 34, Oakland 20
Randy Moss scored his 100th career touchdown - that's the only good thing that happened to the Raiders in the Battle of the Bay Area. The 49ers are official winners of the 2006 Toilet Bowl - congrats to all.

Kansas City 23, Arizona 20
The Cardinals lost but Matt Leinart looked very impressive in his pro debut. The USC product threw for 253 yards and two touchdowns, but the Arizona defense gave up 13 points in the fourth quarter to blow a 20-10 lead. Kansas City, who already miss Trent Green, saw Larry Johnson get injured after a vicious face mask.

Jacksonville 41, New York Jets 0
The Jags were nearly flawless as they snapped a two-game losing streak. The defense limited the Jets to just 177 yards total and the offense was practically unstoppable. Maurice Drew scored two touchdowns and Reggie Williams appears to be finally living up to his potential.

Philadelphia 38, Dallas 24
T.O. was a no-show and Donovan McNabb made big play after big play. It couldn't have gone any better in Philly for Andy Reid and the first place Eagles (4-1). Lito Sheppard made a dramatic return to the lineup with seven tackles and two interceptions - one a 102-yard return for a touchdown.

San Diego 23, Pittsburgh 13
Philip Rivers had his coming out party with 242 yards passing and two touchdowns, but the real story was the Charger defense. San Diego limited the Steelers to only 39 yards and zero points in the second half. Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger hasn't thrown a touchdown pass in three games.

The Rams and the Saints have jumped out to surprising 4-1 records and they're doing it with balanced offenses and opportunistic defenses. St. Louis, the turnover capital of America under Mike Martz, is leading the league in turnover margin at plus-12.

New coach Scott Linehan preaches taking care of the football and Marc Bulger has bought into it big time. Bulger broke the Rams record for consecutive passes without an interception at 214. The old record was 206 by Roman Gabriel in 1968-69. Steven Jackson is leading the league in rushing with 465 yards. Who would have thought? The Greatest Show on Turf is officially dead and Rams fans could care less.

Drew Brees has brought real leadership into New Orleans and with Deuce McAllister at full srength and the play of rookies Reggie Bush and Marques Colston - the Saints can now score points, something they couldn't do much of last season.

The Chicago Bears are clearly the best team in the NFL and are playing at a high level on both sides of the ball. With Rex Grossman's maturity, a strong backfield of Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson, the emergence of WR Bernard Berrian and an already awesome defense - this team could stay unbeaten for a long time with a schedule that's very favorable in the coming weeks. Better start sweating Bob Griese.

Should be a good Monday night game with the undefeated Baltimore Ravens (4-0) coming into Mile High to take on the Denver Broncos (2-1). The Broncos need a win to stay tied for first with San Diego, while the Ravens look to extend their lead in the AFC North over Cincinnati (3-1).

This should be a low scoring affair with two solid defenses that play hard and fast. Denver definitely has the advantage playing at home in the high elevation of Mile High Stadium.


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