How We Saw Week 5

The Jaguars are not a fluke, at 3-1.  Last year, they were 2-0 before Fred Taylor went out for the rest of the season; it should be no surprise to anyone that they are right back on their feet with Taylor staying on his.

What is a surprise is how bad the Titans look.  Yes, they have some injuries - but, they have gotten crushed in their last two games against the Raiders and Redskins.  They are having a terrible time defending the pass (something they have had trouble with for a while) and McNair and George simply can't get much going.  It doesn't look like it will get any better soon, either.

--Drew Bledsoe continues to put up awesome numbers at the Bills' quarterback, but he must be getting a bit frustrated. He threw for 414 yards against Oakland and led his team to 31 points, only to lose by 18. He also threw three interceptions (his first since Week 1) and is playing as if the Bills must score on each possession because their defense stinks. The Bills are 2-3 and in their three losses they've scored 31, 23 and 31 points.

--Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre put on a clinic in the first half of Monday night's game against the Chicago Bears. Favre was brilliant, throwing for 287 yards (a record first half for him) and three touchdowns. Favre completed passes to seven receivers. The guy is simply amazing.

--The 0-5 St. Louis Rams are easily the most disappointing team thus far. On Sunday, they seemed to play with little intensity and were blasted by San Francisco, a team they've owned the prior three years.

--Another major disappointment are the 1-4 Tennessee Titans, who lost to a rookie quarterback, Patrick Ramsey of the Washington Redskins. The Titans used to be unbeatable at home, but this year they are 1-2.

--What's happened to the Pittsburgh Steelers defense? They got passed over in Weeks 1 and 2 by New England and Oakland, and on Sunday, were run over by Duece McAllister (123 yards) and the New Orleans Saints. The Steelers are lucky that play in a crappy division.

--The most exciting team? Try the Cleveland Browns, whose games have gone down to the last play four of five times. On Sunday night, the Browns rallied from 23-0 down to Baltimore, only to fall short, 26-21, when a last-second pass was intercepted in the end zone.

--The AFC is by far the stronger of the two conferences. Consider the NFC Philadelphia Eagles, who are 2-0 vs. the NFC but 1-2 vs. the AFC (and that one win was against expansion Houston).

--New England lost at Miami, which is no surprise. The Patriots are 0-13 playing in Miami in September or October.

--With his loss at Denver, San Diego coach Marty Schottenheimer is now 3-11 all-time in the Mile High city.

--My Top 5: 1. Oakland (4-0); 2. Denver (4-1); 3. San Diego (4-1); 4. Miami (4-1); 5. New England (3-2).

--My Bottom 5: 32. Cincinnati (0-5); 31. Houston (1-3); 30. Minnesota (0-4); 29. St. Louis (0-5); 28. Tennessee (1-4).

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