Top 5 Games:5: Washington Redskins 20, New England Patriots 17
In a game that will have New England Patriots fans questioning their head coach even further, the Washington Redskins squeaked by the wounded Patriots.
Down 20-3, Tom Brady led his troops down the field and responded with a 29 yard TD streak to young David Givens. Then, the bandaged Patriot defense managed to hold the Redskins till Brady was able to put up another seven when he completed a short pass to back-up fullback Larry Centers to put the Patriots back in position to win the game. But that was as close as the Patriots would come.
Despite getting a load of breaks from the clueless Redskin offense, the Patriots could not do anything with their great field position. With the wind at their backs, Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick insisted on handing the ball off to his fullback twice, advancing the ball to the Redskin 38-yard line. Belichick called a 20-yard slant to David Givens that was broken up.
Adam Vinatieri, who is arguably the league’s best kicker, has hit a field goal as long as 57 yards.
4: Dallas Cowboys 17, New York Jets 6
This game saw the emergence of Troy Hambrick, and Bill Parcells came out of the Meadowlands with more victories than his former employer as the Dallas Cowboys beat the New York Jets.
Hambrick had his first huge game, getting a bulk of the workload with 24 carries for 127 yards. Joey Galloway also had a successful outing, grabbing five balls for 100 yards.
The Jets clearly looked out of their element for most of the game and appeared to get outcoached by the legendary Parcells.
Late in the game, trailing 17-6, Herman Edwards decided to go for it on fourth down and three and called a two-yard out play to Wayne Chrebet, who was immediately wrapped up well short of the first down marker.
3: Philadelphia Eagles 23, Buffalo Bills 13
In a game that might prove to save the Philadelphia Eagles season, Donovan McNabb had by far his best game of the season, finishing 18 for 29 passing for 172 yards in the air with another 47 yards on the ground. He also seemed to be more confident in his decisions, threading needles and running all over Ralph Wilson Stadium.
In yet another coaching blunder, Gregg Wilson decided not to stack most of his players in the box when he knew that the Eagles were going to be running out the clock with just 2:49 remaining and the Eagles holding on to a slim 16-13 lead. This led to Brian Westbrook’s 62 yard touchdown run and basically sealed the victory for the 1-3 Eagles.
2: Tennessee Titans 30, Pittsburgh Steelers 13
In a game that was dominated by no-names, the Tennessee Titans got scores from Rocky Boiman, Drew Bennett, and Justin McCareins in their defeat of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tommy Maddox proved he still can’t beat the Titans, but still went for a respectable 31 of 47 for 332 yards. Steve McNair was his usual solid self, going a near-perfect 15 of 16 for 159 yards.
Steeler Offensive Coordinator Mike Mularky took a little heat for some of his play calling inside the 20. In range to at least make the game close, Mularky sent in Jerome Bettis for only two plays, running him for a combined five yards and then tossing a incomplete pass in what made the usually innovative coordinator seem like an average “Madden” junkie.
1: Kansas City Chiefs 17, Baltimore Ravens 10
In a surprising defensive battle, the Kansas City Chiefs emerged victorious behind Priest Holmes’ 22 carries for 90 yards.
In an “I-told-you-so-last-week” effort, Dante Hall ran for yet another return touchdown, this one a 97 yard kickoff return, to break a 10-10 tie in the fourth quarter with just 5:08 remaining on the clock. Why Baltimore Ravens’ Coach Brian Billick kicked to Hall is still in question.
Kansas City’s defense also played a supporting roll, intercepting three of young Kyle Boller’s passes, the last one to seal the game for the Chiefs. Kansas City is now one of only six teams with a perfect record.
Player of the Week: Peyton Manning
With voices starting to build in Indy, Manning has shut them up, starting a perfect 4-0 and being capped with a shellacking of the New Orleans Saints.
In just over three quarters work, Manning destroyed the Saint’s defense, going 20 of 25 for 314 yards and six touchdowns. Anytime you have more touchdowns then incompletions, you are probably having a player of the week type game.
Disappointment of the Week: Disappointment of the Week:
When you are playing a team with a big-time receiver, you are probably going to want to have one of your biggest games of the season to prove that you are big time as well. Owens did not do this, dropping some easy passes and only managing to haul in five passes for 55 yards.
Randy Moss of the Minnesota Vikings, on the other hand, proved to be the deep threat that he can occasionally be, catching eight balls for 172 yards and three touchdowns.
Watch out for: Troy Hambrick and Quincy Carter
Both of the Cowboys’ skill position players are both having seasons to remember.
Both were questioned at the beginning of the year if they should even be starting.
Both of these guys are responding in ways that champions do.
If both of these guys keep playing the way they have in the last two games, watch for the Cowboys to make the playoffs for the first time since the 5-11 streak began.
