Summin’ up Philadelphia 34, Cleveland 31 OT—Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens put on a show, but Jeff Garcia wasn’t about to bow over so easily. Jeff Garcia, who has been the “bigger man” in this feud between himself and Owens, ran straight into hard-hitting Brian Dawkins, determined to tie the game. However, it wasn’t meant to be, as David Akers kicked a 50-yard field goal to keep the Eagles unbeaten. Jacksonville 27, Indianapolis 24—Jacksonville was seeking revenge for its week four loss to the Colts earlier this season. Byron Leftwich came through in the fourth quarter, leading the Jaguars to three scoring drives. The last drive was the biggest, as Josh Scobee kicked a 53-yard field goal to put them ahead. The Colts weren’t sharp coming off their bye week, committing 12 penalties. New England 13, New York Jets 6—One of these two unbeaten teams had to fall in this match-up between AFC East leaders. While the Jets put up a fight, holding the Patriots scoreless in the second half, it was New England’s defense that came up with a big play to win the game. With a little over two minutes to play, Rodney Harrison broke up Pennington’s pass on fourth-and-eight to end any chance of a Jet’s comeback. This week proved to be a week of upsets. The biggest upset was winless Miami over St. Louis 31-14. How Mike Martz let his team lose is inexplicable. It wasn’t any better for St. Louis’ rival Seattle, who lost to Arizona 17-25. Seattle, an early NFC contender, has suddenly lost its last three games and must win next week against Carolina. Detroit came away with a key road victory over the New York Giants, 28-13. It is ironic that a team that couldn’t win on the road for an NFL record three years and 24 games, has three road wins this season. Finally, the Chiefs, showing some of last year’s form, exploded out of nowhere to beat Atlanta 56-10. The Falcons’ top ranked rushing defense was nowhere to be found in this beating. Lookin’ Ahead New York Giants at Minnesota—Minnesota fans remember all too well last year’s second half collapse against the Giant’s that started their four game losing streak. The Vikings will be out for payback. New England at Pittsburgh—Rookie Ben Roethlisberger will get a shot at snapping the Patriots’ streak, in what should be another interesting challenge for the Pats. Indianapolis at Kansas City—If Kansas City stays hot and Indianapolis finds its groove, this could be one high scoring affair. Fantasy Watch Studs of the Week Priest Holmes and Derrick Blaylock—Holmes and Blaylock combined for eight touchdowns on the ground, setting an NFL record. If Holmes had remained healthy the entire game, he could have broken the record for single game rushing touchdowns. This outburst is surprising considering the Chiefs’ recent struggle, and the fact that Atlanta came in with the top ranked rushing defense. Duds of the Week Matt Hasselbeck and Michael Vick—You know your team is doing badly when the opposing team puts up more points than your quarterback. Both Hasselbeck and Vick had quarterback ratings under 20. It’s not surprising that both teams were soundly defeated. Marquee quarterbacks are supposed to lead their teams, not tank them. Burnin’ Up Tiki Barber—Barber has really been lighting it up the whole year, putting up over 150 yards from scrimmage and scoring every week. He’s also scored a touchdown in his last four games. He will get another chance at a big game next week against Minnesota’s shaky defense. One note of concern though, Barber did have his first fumble of the year last week. Byron Leftwich—Most people thought Leftwich would experience growing pains his second year in the league. Much of the load has been put on his shoulders in the crunch time, and he’s been performing beyond most people’s expectations. Leftwich gets another favorable match-up this week against another up and coming quarterback, David Carr. Ice Cold Chris Brown—Brown has definitely cooled off the last two weeks, after starting the season with three 100-yard plus rushing games. Without a healthy Steve McNair to take pressure off the run, the rookie hasn’t been able to step up. Under the Radar Michael Clayton—Clayton has quietly become the Buccaneer’s number one passing option over the past few weeks. He has put up solid points the last few weeks, and will continue to get balls thrown his way with little else working in this offense.
