OUTSPORTS.COM
NFL TOPS & BOTTOMS

E-mail us at mail@outsports.com

                                        
Every week we name out TOPS & BOTTOMS of the NFL - the guys who rode their competitors the hardest, or who let themselves take it up the ... well, you get the picture.

Week 8

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
Randy Moss: The Viking receiver made an amazing catch for the winning TD against Buffalo. He caught a Daunte Culpepper pass in the end zone and his momentum appeared to be taking him out of bounds. But he somehow managed to apply the breaks and get both feet in. No other player in the league could have done that. 
Jimmy Raye: The Chiefs' offensive coordinator called a brilliant game in KC's 54-34 win over the Rams. A double-option pass, a pass to a tackle, and three straight passes to start the third period (resulting in a TD) showed an aggressiveness needed to beat the high-powered Rams. 
Albert Connell: A breakout day for the Washington receiver: 7 catches, 211 yards, 3 touchdowns.

THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
Tony Banks: The Baltimore Ravens QB was simply awful: three interceptions (including one in the end zone for the second straight week) and for the fourth game in a row the Ravens failed to score a touchdown. 
Arizona: The Cardinals were dreadful on all counts, getting drilled by previously punch -less Dallas, 48-7.
Rams defense: The Rams brought back senior citizen Bud Carson as a defensive advisor. After giving up 54 points to the Chiefs, the Rams would be better off getting some new defensive talent rather than a 69-year-old coach.

Week 7

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
Rich Gannon: The Oakland Raider quarterback was marvelous in Sunday’s 20-17 win at Kansas City. He was a super-accurate 28 for 33 passing and his scrambling frustrated the Chief defense all day as the Raiders overcame a 10-point halftime deficit. 
Brett Favre and Jeff Garcia: The Packer and 49er quarterbacks put on a fun show in Green Bay’s 31-28 win. Garcia was 27 or 42 for 336 yards and four touchdowns, giving him an NFL-best 19 TD passes. Favre finished 20 of 27 for 266 yards and threw a 67-yard TD pass to Antonio Freeman. 
The Rams offense: They scored 45 points, the fifth time in six games they have broken 40. There may have never been another offense like it in NFL history.
Edgerrin James: In the whole storied history of the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts, no one had ever rushed for more than 200 yards in a game. Until James did it on Sunday against Seattle, racking up 219 yards in a 37-24 win. 

THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
David Boston: The Arizona wide receiver was coasting to a 70-yard touchdown, when he turned around at the 10 yard line and taunted the defenders. This despite the Cards being down to Philadelphia 24-7 after his score. The refs threw a flag for unsportsmanlike conduct on Boston. He needs to get a clue. 
Gunther Cunningham: The Chiefs coach is now 0-2 at Arrowhead Stadium against the Raiders. His predecessor, Marty Schottenheimer, was 11-0 at home against the Raiders.
The Bengals: They have been shutout in three of their six games this season. Pathetic. 
Tony Banks: The Ravens QB was brilliant in a 39-36 Week 2 win against Jacksonville. But he has regressed, and has not gotten the Ravens into the end zone in three consecutive games. 

Week 6

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
New England Patriots: After starting the season 0-4, the Patriots have pulled off two improbable victories, including an upset this week over the Indianapolis Colts, 24-16, off of touchdown passes from two quarterbacks and their punter, and a stellar effort from their defense who held the Colts to just 16 points.
Terrell Owens: Against his cross-bay rival Oakland Raiders, the San Francisco wide receiver had 12 catches for 176 yards and two touchdowns.
Tim Brown: Owens wasn't the only receiving star on the field. Brown had 7 catches for 172 yards and the game-winner in overtime in the Raiders' 34-28 win at San Francisco.


THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
Donovan McNabb: With just 30 seconds left in the game, and his Eagles tied at 14 with the Redskins, the Philadelphia quarterback was chased out of the pocket and threw a terrible 40-yard pass into the arms of Darrell Green, who set up the winning field goal with his 25 yard return.
Brett Favre: The Green Bay quarterback was 2-6 all time at the Silver Dome in Detroit - and his woes continued Sunday, as he threw three interceptions and lost two fumbles.
The Baltimore Ravens offense: Thank God for their defense, which in the last two weeks has allowed 10 points. It's a good thing since Baltimore's offense in the same period has consisted of nine Matt Stover field goals.

Week 5

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
Deion Sanders: He's had a rough start to this season, but his brilliant punt return in OT helped the Skins beat Tampa. It was Prime Time again. 
Mike Vanderjagt: The Colt kicker nails the game-winner to beat Buffalo, 18-16. Then after the game we get to see how handsome he is, especially sporting that nice stud in his left ear. 
Baltimore's defense: Yes, we know the games were against Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Cleveland, but three shutouts in five games is damn impressive.
Kurt Warner: He just keeps doing it for the Rams, this time throwing for 24-30 for 390 yards, 0 INT, 4 TD before being replaced in the fourth quarter by Trent Green (who, incidentally, completed 3 passes for 75 yards and 1 TD).  Warner stays on pace to break the 6,000 yard mark for passing in one season.


THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
Plaxico Burress: The bonehead play of the year so far belongs to the rookie Steeler receiver.  After catching a nice 20 yard pass from Kordell Stewart, Burress fell to the ground, surrounded by Jaguar defenders.  He got up and spiked the ball.  But, he had not been touched (this is PRO football, Plaxico), so the ball was now live and a Jag picked it up and ran it back into Steeler territory.
Tim Biakabutuka: Against weakened Dallas, he all but handed the game to the Cowboys, fumbling four times and losing two of them. 
The Charger defense in Missouri: In their last two road games the Bolts have allowed 42 at Kansas City and 57 at St. Louis. They must be thrilled Jefferson City doesn't have a team. 
Warren Sapp: Something happened that kept the Bucs superstud on the bench the entire first period at Washington. But he wasn't talking and Tony Dungy simply said ``It's a decision we made before the game.'' Thanks for enlightening us. 
Kerry Collins: After a 3-0 start the Giant QB is playing like the KC we've come to know. He was miserable last week in a loss to Washington and even worse Sunday, throwing three picks against Tennessee.

Week 4

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
Miami's defense: The Dolphins have allowed only one touchdown in four games, the best total to start the season in 50 years.
Ronde Barber: The Tampa Bay corner may be the best in football. Despite Tampa's first loss on Sunday he was effective and had an interception return for a TD.
Charlie Garner: This guy's always been an underrated back, but he reached the record book on Sunday by setting a San Francisco team mark with 201 yards rushing. 
Kurt Shulz: The Detroit Lions free safety had a trifecta--three interceptions in the Lions' win at Chicago.


THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
Cincinnati: If there a worse franchise than the Bengals? They're 0-3 and have scored seven total points. Pitiful.
Ricky Williams: The Saints' back had 102 yards rushing, but he needs to learn to hold onto the ball. His two fumbles were costly as the Saints lost to Philadelphia.
Drew Bledsoe: He doesn't have much to work with, but the Patriots' QB has to take some responsibility for his team's 0-4 start. Bledsoe again had the Pats in position to tie at Miami, but for the fourth straight game he came up short.

Week 3

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
Miami's defense: The Dolphins held the Ravens to six points Sunday and have allowed only 19 in three games (the lowest first three games total since 1980). Look at the totals these three put up in the Baltimore-Jacksonville game: Banks (Ravens' QB), 262 yards, 5 TD passes; Brunell (Jacksonville QB), 386 yards, 3 TDs; Smith (Jacksonville receiver), 15 catches, 291 yards, 3 TDs.
Mike Anderson: The Bronco rookie shredded the Raiders for 187 yards and became only the ninth rookie to start his career with two 100-yard games.
Tiki Barber: The once-third-down-back-now-nicknamed-"Lightning" led the New York Giants in rushing and receiving yards this week and scored one of their two touchdowns. 
The Ref Cam: This week we got to see an Olindo Mare extra point try fly right into the camera and hit the ref in the head.  It must have hurt, but the camera couldn't have gotten a better shot.

THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
Buffalo's special teams: The Bills allowed a 97-yard kickoff return for a score and fumbled two punts.
Patriot's offensive line: For the second consecutive week, they allowed a sack of Drew Bledsoe on a fourth down to decide the game.  As they go, so goes the Pats' record.

Week 2

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
Tony Banks, Mark Brunell, Jimmy Smith: Look at the totals these three put up in the Baltimore-Jacksonville game: Banks (Ravens' QB), 262 yards, 5 TD passes; Brunell (Jacksonville QB), 386 yards, 3 TDs; Smith (Jacksonville receiver), 15 catches, 291 yards, 3 TDs.
Jay Riemersma, Buffalo tight end: He scored two TDs, the second an amazing display of athleticism, especially for someone weighing 254 pounds. As Riemersma was going out of bounds at the goal line, he somehow reached the ball over the pylon for a score.
Tampa's defense: In beating the Bears, 41-0, the Bucs defense continued a streak of 12 quarters without letting Chicago score a touchdown. 
Jake Plummer: It was fun watching Jake be Jake against Dallas on Sunday night. Plummer's second TD pass of the game capped an 11-point comeback for the Cardinals, 32-31

THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
Brad Johnson: Washington's quarterback three four interceptions, including three in the fourth quarter in the loss to the Lions. The Skins have scored only 30 points in their two games and we can already hear the cries for Jeff George.
The Bengals: The losingest team of the '90s started the new century where they left off--as losers. They opened their brand new stadium by being pasted by the hapless Browns.
Steve McNair: It was supposed to be the season the Titans' QB took the next step in becoming an elite player. But he was shaky in a loss at Buffalo and ineffective Sunday against Kansas City. It took a McNair injury to bail out the Titans as backup Neil O'Donnell engineered drives that tied, then won the game over the Chiefs.
Pregame shows: CBS and Fox are virtually unwatchable. Mike Ditka and Jerry Glanville on CBS sound like a couple of hee-haws arguing at a bar after too many drinks. And Fox's quick cuts and annoying sound effects get old after the thousandth time. Only ESPN offers anything of value, but its show is still too long. Skip 'em all and go for a hike before kickoff.

Week 1

THIS WEEK'S TOPS
The Young QBs of the NFL: The Bears' Cade McNown, Vikings' Daunte Culpepper, Eagles' Donovan McNabb, and Bucs' Shaun King all had the performances of their young careers on Sunday, and all posting wins except McKnown, who lost a road game to Culpepper's Vikings.
Andy Reid: The Philadelphia Eagles' coach pulled off the surprise of the weekend, destroying Troy Aikman and the Dallas Cowboys, 41-14, with an improved, quick defense and the one-two punch of Donovan McNabb and Duce Staley. And he started it all off with a successful onsides kick. The guy's got the verve going.
Tiki Barber and Ron Dayne: The Giants' new 1-2 running back punch combined for 222 yards rushing and 3 TDs in New York's win over Arizona.
Pat Williams: The 310-pound Buffalo nose tackle was all world against Tennessee Sunday night, helping to shut down Eddie George.

THIS WEEK'S BOTTOMS
The AFC West QBs: The Chief's Elvis Grbac, the Seahawks' Jon Kitna, the Raiders' Rich Gannon, and the Chargers' Ryan Leaf all failed to dominate games that were theirs for the taking.  Their teams combined for a total of 29 points between them. Only Gannon won, because he was playing the Chargers. Only Brian Griese and his brilliant Monday Night performance for Denver saved the division from total embarassment.
Troy Aikman: Should have stayed single, Troy. Against Philadelphia, Aikman was 0 for 5, with an interception returned for a TD. He then was knocked out with a concussion.
Desmond Howard: He was brilliant for 94 of the 95 yards on his game-winning punt return touchdown vs. New Orleans. But the Detroit Lion acted like a total ass by stopping at the 1, and sliding his foot across the goal line in the ultimate taunt. We still like what Jim Brown once said about scoring TDs: Act like you've been there before.
Tennessee's hands: The Titans had several key drops in their 16-13 loss against Buffalo: Frank Wycheck and Lorenzo Neal each dropped TD passes, Eddie George dropped what may have been a long TD, and defensive lineman Jason Fisk dropped a sure interception with the game on the line.