So which distraction will be greater?

The Bears' situation with Tank Johnson?

Or the possibility that Jon Gruden won't be the Bucs' head coach next season?

It's an imperfect measurement to be sure, but after one quarter (the Bears lead 7-0),  it looks like Gruden's job security is having a bigger impact. Granted, the disparate talent could have something to do with it, but where's the fun in that?

The Patriots must have stolen a page from the Dolphins' playbook and purchased tape of David Carr's cadence.

New England has picked off the quarterback twice in the first quarter, while moving the ball at will and taking a 17-0 lead.

The Texans decided a fake punt in the first quarter was necessary to have any chance to beat the Patriots. It backfired and New England took advantage of good field position to jump out in front.

Each of New England's last four home games has been decided by seven points or less (2-2 record).

'Tis the season for some football ... fa la la la la la la la la!

Let's see what's up for Sunday ...

- Passing records are being threatened by Saints quarterback Drew Brees. Brees has thrown for 300 or more yards in six of his last seven games. Brees now has 4,033 passing yards on the season and needs to average 351 yards per game in his last 3 games to surpass Dan Marino's NFL record of 5,084 yards passing in 1984.

- The longest continuing series in the NFL returns when the Lions face the Packers at Lambeau Field. Once unbeatable at Lambeau, the Packers now appear totally vulnerable at their home stadium. Green Bay is 1-5 at home this year, and has been shut out twice. The Packers have lost 10 home games the past two seasons after losing just 10 home games total between 2000 and 2004 (30-10). The last time before this season that they had been shutout at home was 10/17/91 versus Chicago, the year before Brett Favre became a Packer.

- Can Vince Young keep the magic alive for the Titans? It's a matchup of two red-hot teams in Nashville, as the Jaguars pay a visit. Tennessee has won four straight games in the same season for the first time since they won six straight from 10/12-11/23/2003.

The Jaguars, meanwhile, rushed for a franchise-record 375 yards against Indianapolis in Week 14. It was tied for the second-highest rushing total for a team in one game since 1970 (Bengals, 407 yards vs. Denver, 10/22/2000).

- Here's what Milhouse Van Houten of the Simpsons had to say about the Texans-Patriots game in Foxboro, "New England was shut out last week. Just like my Dad and I have been shut out by every girl we've ever loved. But some day we'll score, just like New England will this week."

- The Bears have already clinched the NFC North division title. However, home-field advantage throughout the playoffs can be clinched today (complete playoff picture).

The Bears face the Buccaneers, who have just one win in its last seven games and will be looking to snap its three-game losing streak. During their three-game slide, the Bucs have been outscored 75-19.

Enjoy the action!

The ever-changing landscape that is the NFL playoff picture is finally coming into focus.

San Diego has been the hottest team in the NFL for two months and now owns the top spot in the AFC. A win over Denver allowed the Chargers to clinch the AFC West title, take a one-game lead over the Colts and Ravens for the No. 1 seed, and probably sew up the NFL MVP award for LaDainian Tomlinson.

While the Broncos briefly looked competitive in the second half, their fourth straight loss all but ends a possible wild-card run.

The "good" Jaguars showed up for a second straight week in a convincing win over the Colts. Indianapolis has struggled to stop the run all year long, but it took on new meaning against Jacksonville, as the Colts gave up 375 yards on the ground.

After winning nine straight to start the season, the Colts have lost three of four and are in danger of not even having a first-round bye.

The Ravens bounced back from a poor performance against the Bengals with an impressive win in Kansas City. The Chiefs dropped their second straight game and are in jeopardy of being knocked out of the playoff race.

Although it was against the Raiders, the Bengals won their fourth straight game and continue to play well on both sides of the ball.

Miami pitched a shutout and kept New England from clinching its fourth consecutive AFC East crown. The Patriots will still make the playoffs, but it will be a short ride if this performance is repeated.

The Bills did the Patriots a favor by beating the Jets on the road.

While the Texans got a look at what they could have had, Vince Young's 39-yard touchdown run in overtime gave the Titans their fourth straight victory.

The Seahawks overcame the loss of Matt Hasselbeck and Shaun Alexander to give the team a chance at a first-round bye. However, that idea might have gone out the window with a loss at Arizona. The Cardinals took advantage of mistakes to win for the third time in four games.

The Giants finally got a win at the expense of the struggling Panthers. Eli Manning barely completed 50 percent of his passes, but he threw three touchdowns with no interceptions.

The loser of this game was expected to have an uphill battle to make the playoffs, and that's definitely the case after Atlanta and Philadelphia both came up with victories on Sunday.

The Falcons trailed at the half, but did enough in the game's final 30 minutes to beat the Buccaneers.

The Eagles also struggled with the Redskins, but escaped Washington with a win.

When NFC North teams square off, someone has to win. With Brad Johnson still behind center, the Vikings put up 30 points in a victory over the hapless Lions.

In what would have been a great matchup a decade ago, Brett Favre looked like the Brett Favre of old for the Packers. The problem for the 49ers is that Alex Smith looked like the Alex Smith from his rookie year.