All season long people have made excuses for the Saints as to why they are not a serious contender for the Super Bowl.

The victory over the Falcons when the Superdome was re-opened was credited to the emotion surrounding the event. The early success was the result of an easy schedule, even after an impressive victory over the Eagles. Then, when they fell into a slump and lost three of four, most people thought there's the Saints we remember. But these are not the same Saints we remember. This is a team that has responded with three straight victories.

The latest came against the new darling of the NFC, the Dallas Cowboys. Sean Payton called a flawless game plan and the Saints rolled over the Cowboys on national TV. His knowledge of the Dallas schemes and tendencies gave him an advantage that he exploited the entire game.

Coach Payton has developed an offense that allows all the skill players to make plays. We all know about Deuce McAllister, Joe Horn and Reggie Bush but everybody on the offense has a chance to be a part of this offense. Marques Colston has burst on the scene but how many coaches would have trusted a 7th round rookie early in the season to play the role that Marques has played? Terrance Copper has been a great addition along with Devery Henderson and now Jamal Jones.

Every player is a viable option on every play. Just ask Mike Karney who put up three TDs on the Cowboys after not scoring a TD his three previous seasons in the league. When a team has multiple threats to defend, it puts a tremendous strain on the defense. The Saints have the deepest set of skill players in the league.

Put that together with Drew Brees, a QB that has a chip on his shoulder, and you have a recipe for success. The Saints have rallied around the difficult experience of last season and no longer appear to a team of destiny, they are just a good football team. The NFC South has placed a team in the conference championship game every year since the realignment.

The Saints, obviously, are the only team not to represent their division. If they fill that role this season it won't have anything to with destiny, it will be because they earned the right.

Michael Vick showed his frustration with the Falcons season after the game last weekend. His obscene gesture to the fans was an example of what can happen if you lose control of your emotions and a demonstration of the extreme pressure that comes with being a QB in the NFL.

No other position is scrutinized so thoroughly and no position bears the burden of the blame of losing like the quarterback. Michael is the franchise player of his team. He burst on to the scene and handed the Green Bay Packers their first playoff loss at Lambeau and followed that up the with a trip to the NFC championship game. 

Expectations couldn't be higher for fans in Atlanta and the pressure could not be greater for Michael. The Falcons started out 6-2 last year and then faded to 8-8 and after going 5-2 to start this season the are under .500 for the first time in Jim Mora's tenure as Head Coach. So what is the problem.

The point of discussion continues to be about whether or not the Falcons can win the Super Bowl without having a legitimate passing game. Michael Vick's athletic ability is unmatched at the QB position but that does not mean he will be a Super Bowl champion. History has shown that the quarterbacks that have played the position similarly to Vick have struggled to win a championship.

Randall Cunningham and Fran Tarkenton never won the big game and Steve Mc Nair came close but fell a yard short. Stave Young is the only QB that is in the top five in rushing yards that has won a Super Bowl and he had Jerry Rice. Michael Vick, like all QB's, needs a supporting cast around him.

This season his offensive line has not protected him well and his receivers have continuously dropped balls at critical times. That being said I feel the Falcons will not win a championship until the they find a way to upgrade their passing game. They need to be able to get chunks of yards throwing the ball down field and until they are able to do that I don't think they can win a Super Bowl. 

The big plays that come when Michael pulls the ball down need to be a part of the offense not the key to the offense.

There are several things going wrong for the Falcons offense this season and Michael Vick's struggles in the passing game are one of them. But because he is the QB it will always be the first one that fans look at.   

The push for the playoffs begins this weekend.

Teams have positioned themselves all season to get to the point after Thanksgiving to have something to play for down the stretch.

The Dallas Cowboys sent a message on their traditional Thanksgiving game by pounding the Buccaneers. They have won three consecutive games for the first time since Bill Parcell's first year as head coach and would have a five game winning streak going into the stretch run if they didn't give the game away to the Redskins.

The obvious reason for the improved play is Tony Romo as the starting QB. He is 4-1 as a starter, has provided mobility which has helped the offensive line and has been outstanding in the second half. But I think his greatest contribution to the team cannot be measured in statistics.

We all remember how unhappy coach Parcells looked earlier in the year. He had been through a training camp in which he was constantly asked questions about the health of T.O., started the season off poorly and then had to deal with Terrell's attempted suicide/accidental overdose. He appeared to be a beaten man on the Cowboy sideline.
The change at QB not only has provided better play on the field but seems to have improved the chemistry of the team.

Tony Romo has fun playing the game and his enthusiasm has been contagious throughout the team. The intangibles of a quarterback are an overlooked aspect of playing the position. Tony has lightened the mood and for the first time in a long time the Cowboys are having fun playing football. He gets another shot at the Giants with a 10-day rest going into the pivotal division game for the inside track to the NFC East title next weekend at the Meadowlands.

If the Cowboys beat the Giants and continue to build momentum during the remainder of the season they could establish themselves as the team to beat in the NFC. I wonder if there is any room left on the Cowboys bandwagon?  

Let's face facts.

The Buccaneers offense is bad. They are the lowest scoring offense in the NFL, even worse than the Raiders. They have not scored a touchdown in two games. There are some reasons for this. There starting QB is on IR but they went two games without scoring a touchdown when he was in the lineup. They are starting two rookies in the offensive line. However, left guard Dan Buenning was a rookie and left tackle Anthony Davis was in his second year when the Buccaneers went 11-5 and won the NFC South last season.

Could the reason the offense is struggling so much be related to the defense? For the past decade the Bucs have been in the top 10 for defense. This year they stand at 22nd. They allowed 306 yards rushing to the Falcons and 506 total yards to the Eagles. They did score two TD's in the Eagle game to help pull out the unlikely victory but that has been one of the missing elements for the defense this season.

The Buccaneers live and die by creating turnovers and right now they are on life support. They have already equaled the number of games without a turnover this season compared to last season. So why is Tampa's vaunted defense not the same this year? I believe the success this group has experienced for the past 10 years has finally caught up to them. When you have success other teams want to have your players and coaches. The attrition that Tampa has suffered over the years is starting to hav e an impact.

Sure they have lost great players like John #### and Warren Sapp but I think the coaches they have lost are the biggest reason. Look at the list of coaches who have moved on to bigger and better opportunities. Herm Edwards took the Jets back to the playoffs and Lovie Smith has what many think is the best team in the NFL this season in Chicago. The Bucs were able to weather the storm even with the loss of those key elements of there staff but last year was just too much. Defensive line coach Rod Marinelli left to become the coach of the Lions and defensive backs coach Mike Tomlin left to be the defensive coordinator of the Vikings. But the Bucs were prepared for this.

They had Raheem Morris to step in for Mike Tomlin if and when he left. OOPS! He took the job as defensive coordinator at Kansas State during the season last year. No problem, we have Joe Woods to step in. Darn! Mike Tomlin took him to Minnesota to be his defensive Backs coach. I am not saying that the new coaches the Bucs have won't be successful but they have some pretty big shoes to fill. This will take time. And during that time the offense better realize that they need to play better because right now they do not have the luxury  of starting on short fields.

I am not sure if Tampa Bay can rely on the defense to have the type of performances they have become accustomed to and while they wait to find that out they need to start getting the ball to Cadillac Williams.

Now it is the NFL's turn to deal with this issue. In the last two weeks three players have been suspended for testing positve for banned substances.

The most well known player is 2005 Defensive Rookie of the year Shawne Merriman. Shawne tested positive for nandrolone, an anabolic steroid more commonly known as deca-durabolin. As people read the articles regarding this incident it would be easy to come to the conclusion that Shawne was trying to cheat the system and gain a competitive advantage by taking steroids.

This situation is not that simple.   First and foremost Shawne must take responsibility for his decision to use a supplement not certified by the NFL. In 2000 a policy was put in place that has a principle of "strict liability" as it's cornerstone. This means that an athlete is responsible for what is in his or her body. To help the players in the NFL the league has established an agreement with EAS, a manufacturer of sports supplements.

The NFL established standards for EAS to follow to prevent any potential positive tests to occur while using their products . They stopped manufacturing the products they were previously making that could result in a positive test such as androstenedione.  Other companies were offered the same opportunity but refused to abide by the standards established by the NFL.

A study conducted by the International Olympic Committee in 2001 found that almost 15% of the 634 supplements tested contained banned substances. It appears it is possible to test positive for a banned substance by taking an over the counter supplement.   The sports supplement industry is a multi billion dollar per- year business and yet there is no regulation.

The FDA cannot agree on whether supplements should be classified as a food or a drug and therefore have not stepped in to establish a standard in the industry.

If the politicians in this country are concerned about the ramifications that athletes can have on the youth of our society in regards to the use of steroids it is time to clean up this industry. The NFL has provided an opportunity for players to use supplements safely without the threat of the negative side effects of anabolic substances and the embarrassment of letting down their teammates, fans and the kids to whom they are role models for. 

The FDA and the other agencies involved need to stop talking about what to do and come up with a comprehensive plan to assure the efficacy of the products in the supplement industry.

The debate and speculation has begun.

Can the Bears finish the season undefeated? It is virtually impossible for a team to go undefeated in the NFL these days. Sixteen regular season games in the era of free-agent parity and three playoff games against the best of the best.

Looking at the Bears' remaining schedule there are two things I see that will derail the Bears' quest.

First, a difficult stretch on the road in the month of November. Games at the Giants and Jets back to back followed by a trip to Gillette Stadium versus the Patriots. Any three-game road stretch is difficult to come through without a blemish on the schedule. I think the Patriots could knock off the Bears in the finale of the road trip. The Bears struggled against the Steelers late in the season last year stopping the run and the Pats have a strong running game. The difference this season is the defense is not on the field as long because of Rex Grossman and the Bears offense. Are they fresher at the end of the season this year with lees time on the field and not as much pressure from week to week to be perfect?

If they make it through this difficult road stretch and come to the end of the season undefeated expect Lovie Smith to rest starters once the Bears can no longer improve their playoff position. The NFL is about winning championships, not finishing undefeated. If and when the Bears earn home-field, the Bears will protect their starters from injury.

It is more likely that the Raiders will go winless than the Bears will go undefeated. There are issues inside the locker room and I do not see a real winnable game on the remainder of their schedule.

The best shot for the Raiders could be next week against the Cardinals. Matt Leinart is still getting used to life in the NFL and Arizona has struggled to run the ball and should be without Larry Fitzgerald.

Their next best shot comes in December against the Texans. At that time the Texans should be a much improved team under Gary Kubiak and the Raiders locker room issue s could have destroyed any possibility of the team coming together to prevent a winless season.

What do we know at the end of the first quarter of the season?

The Bears are the most complete team at this point of the season. Rex Grossman has justified the faith the Bears coaches have shown in him through his injuries. They now have  an offense to go with the great defense and special teams. But who else is there? There are question marks for the other contenders. In the NFC the Seahawks are without Shaun Alexander and have gotten off to a mediocre start. They also got whipped by the Bears.

The Cowboys played one bad half of football but it cost them against the Jags. The Eagles played one bad quarter and it cost them against the Giants. Does one of these teams make a statement today? Carolina is getting better with Steve Smith back in the lineup.Is that all that was wrong with the Panthers.

Can the Falcons throw the ball? At some point this sesaon they will have to win a game through the air.

The one big question in the NFC is the Redskins. The first two weeks of the season they offense was pathetic. The last two weeks they have been explosive. A win at the Meadowlands would go along way to show the rest of the league that they have joined the hunt.
 
In the AFC the Colts have a number of injuries and are hanging on for their bye week after todays game. Health could be an issue down the stretch. The other top teams in the AFC have been inconsistent. The Bengal's follow up a big win over the Steelers to a big loss to the Patriots. The Patriots started slow but played there best game last weekend against the Bengals. Are they back on track?

The Jaguars have big wins versus the Cowboys and Steelers and playe d the Colts tough. The loss to the Redskins wasn't a surprise but the amount of points they gave up was. The other top dogs play against each other this weekend. The Broncos face the Ravens after their bye week. There are still doubters about the Ravens but as Steve McNair will only get better as the season goes on. The Broncos have been up and down to st art; opening day loss to the Rams; beat the Patriots in Gillette Stadium.

The Steelers travel to San Diego to play the Chargers. A critical game for the Steelers  as a loss would drop them to 1-3. Are Big Ben and Troy Polamalu healthy after the bye week? Hopefully! The Chargers let one get away last week at Baltimore and lost to the Steelers last year ab out this time. It resulted in a 2-3 start and the Chargers had to fight all year to get back in the hunt. I think San Diego has been waiting for this rematch.
 
Is anybody going to join the Bears as complete teams after this weekend. We shall see.

The future is now for the Tennessee Titans.

Vince Young gets his first NFL start today against the Dallas Cowboys.

The plan was to follow the model that was used to ease Steve McNair into his NFL career, but Vince has progressed quickly in understanding the offense and has earned the start Sunday. Jeff Fisher was adamant that the decision has nothing to do with the Titans' 0-3 start and that Vince would have been named the starter had the Titans found a way to win their close losses to the Jets and Dolphins and stood at 2-1.

Credit Norm Chow for bringing along Vince so quickly and utilizing a user-friendly offense that has been responsible for developing young quarterback such as Philip Rivers, Carson Plamer and Matt Leinart. Jeff Fisher's biggest concern is that Vince forgets to use his greatest attribute, his athleticism, and tries to prove that he can be effective throwing from the pocket.

The media in Nashville did a great job of protecting the decision during the course of the week. They knew of the decision on Wednesday and the story did not break until late in the week. This created an advantage for the Titans as the Cowboys were unable to focus entirely on Young during their preparation during the week.

The Titans second pick could get his most extended playing time this season also. LenDale White is emerging as the frontrunner for the starting running back position. This could be the coming out party for the top of the class of '06.

Over-reaction Monday is followed by Desperation Sunday which leads us to hope and pray Saturday for some teams around the league.

What has happened to some of the preseason favorites? The Dolphins and Redskins have a chance to finally get that elusive first victory. The Redskins take on the Texans and hope to show that their offense is not as offensive as members of the Redskin Nation think it is. Clinton Portis says he will play and that should relieve some pressure from Mark Brunell who is under fire this season. Only one TD for the 'Skins so far this season on offense. Where is the passing game that was suppose to be upgraded this season with the addition of offensive coordinator Al Saunders and  WR's Antwaan Randle El and Brandon Lloyd?

The Dolphins were the darling of NFL prognosticators coming into the season but have stumbled out of the blocks to start the year. Daunte CuIpepper has struggled at QB and the offensive line has not been helpful to his comeback from a major knee injury. The Titans are in the midst of a rebuilding phase and Miami should get back on track this weekend. The Panthers and the Bucs are 0-3? Is Steve Smith that important to the Panthers or are there more problems for Carolina?

I do not blame John Fox for the fake punt call against the Vikings last week. His team needed something to generate a spark and the responsibility should fall on the players involved to know when the play will not work and keep possession of the ball. Of all the favorites to get back on track as the season progresses I like the Panthers because they are a different team without Steve Smith. He carried them through the playoffs last season and without him they are not the same team. The Bucs have an array of issues. The QB gets most of the blame but the defense is starting to feel the impact of age and the departure of coaches from their staff. Never under estimate the impact of losing good coaches.

There are some other great divisional match-ups this weekend. The Bears and the Vikings will battle for first place in the NFC North. We will find out if Rex Grossman is for real this weekend against a very good Minnesota defense. Are the Vikings contenders or pretenders in a division in which the Bears were suppose to win handily? They already have beaten two play-off teams from '05.

The Jaguars look to gain respect in a key game in the AFC South. The Colts are ####ed up and the Jags looked impressive knocking off the defending Super Bowl champion Steelers. The Bengals and Steelers face off in a key AFC North game. Injuries could play a factor in this game as the Bengals limp into Heinz Field. The Steelers are coming off of a short week and need to re-establish the run against an improved Bengals defense.
 
Perhaps the most intriguing game this weekend has the Eagles traveling to San Francisco to face the Niners. How do the Eagles respond after the meltdown versus the Giants? Are the 49ers a competitive team to watch this year? You have to love the beginning of an NFL season. Championships are not won in September but they sure can be lost!

It is still premature to draw any conclusions as teams finish Week 2 of the NFL season moving forward, but we can go back to last year and look at expectations coming into the '06 season.

Last year's playoff teams in the AFC are 10-2 while those from the NFC are 5-7. The Redskins, Panthers and Buccaneers are winless and losing ground quickly in their divisions. They have combined to score 48 points so far this season.

The Broncos appear to be the one playoff team from '05 in the AFC that still has some issues. They have only scored 19 points in the first two weeks of the season and could be in the midst of a quarterback controversy.

The team with the most surprising start to the '06 season has to be the Dolphins. The loss to the defending Super Bowl champions could be explained away but to lose to the Bills, at home. Are the Bills better than we thought, or are the Dolphins not as good as we predicted?
 
How about some good news! The Falcons have to be the feel-good story of the season so far. They have rushed for more than 550 yards the first two weeks against the Panthers (252) and the Buccaneers (306). Michael Vick has played well and both of the Falcons' victories are in the division. Right behind them (actually tied for first with them) for feel-good story are the Saints. Two victories on the road to open the season and they have their first true home game this Monday night for the outright lead in the NFC South against the Falcons. They pulled off the upset last year versus the Panthers after the devastation of Katrina. Can they do it again?
 
It is two more weeks until the first quarter report cards come out. Some teams we need to see more from: The Vikings have jumped out to a 2-0 start against good competition. The Bears come to town this weekend for bragging rights in the NFC North. Life after Drew Brees has been good in San Diego and the Ravens appear to be a force to be reckoned with. We will know more in two weeks when they face off in Baltimore. The early edge goes to the Chargers who have a bye this weekend.

 
There are two divisions with a combined record over .500, the AFC North and NFC West. I do not see Seattle running the table in the division this year. The Niners, Rams and Cardinals are much better than last season.
 
There are two divisions with a combined record under .500, the AFC West and NFC East. The East was supposed to be the best division in the NFL. They are 1-3 outside the division with the one victory coming against the Texans.

What have we learned after Week 1?  

 Home-field advantage doesn't seem to mean as much. Road teams finished the opening weekend of the season with a 11-5 record.  

NFL doctors are pretty good at what they do. Quarterbacks starting Week 1 coming off surgery were 4-1. The only quarterback to lose was Daunte Culpepper. Drew Brees, Chad Pennington, Donovan McNabb and Carson Palmer all won.  

Warrick Dunn and Chester Taylor can be featured backs. Here are their stats ... Dunn 29 carries 132 yards, Taylor 31 carries 88 yards.  

 The Ravens are as good as they said they were.They won their first road game since November of 2004 while shutting out the Buccaneers in Tampa for the first time since 1996.  

Philip Rivers was worth the gamble to let Drew Brees go to the Saints via free agency. He did more than manage the game. Never underestimate a coaches son.  

Looking forward to see in Week 2.  

St. Louis Rams: Great win versus Denver in the opener. Now its time to go on the road and show that the new regime of Scott Linehan along with defensive coordinator Jim Haslett is a team to watch in '06. If they are not ready the 49ers will be a tough test.  

Atlanta Falcons: 252 yards rushing against a very good Panther defense. John Abraham is a force for the Falcons defense. Would take a big step in the NFC South with consecutive victories to open the season in the division if they beat the Bucs at home.  

Baltimore Ravens: We may have to wait until week 4 to see if they are for real. They have the Raiders and the Browns the next two weeks and could go into their Week 4 matchup with the Chargers at 3-0.  

Detroit Lions: Can the Lions rebound from a tough loss to the defending NFC champion Seahawks as they travel to Chicago to face the Bears? There was a lot of emotion in the opener. Has Rod Marinelli changed the culture in Detroit or will they come out flat versus the Bears? 

Miami has two tough games before their bye in week 8 and lost the first one to the Steelers in the opener. Their only other difficult game before the break is against the Patriots on October 8th. If the Dolphins take care of business along the way and beat the Pats they will enter the bye at 6-1 and have a leg up on the defending division champs. The Steelers proved they are not a one man team as Charlie Batch raised his record as a Steeler starter to 3-0 filling in for Big Ben. A vintage Steeler performance with stout defense and a good running game.

Can we predict anything from the pre-season? One fact that stands out is only one team has made it to the Super Bowl after a loosing record in the pre-season. The Redskins made it to the big game after a loosing campaign in the pre-season in 1982. That was a strike shortened season so it deserves to be marked by an asterisk. Using that as a bench mark the Colts(1-3), Buccaneers(1-3), Redskins(0-4) and Steelers(0-4) will not make it to Miami for Super Bowl XLI. Teams to watch are the Bengals, Cowboys, Panthers and Giants. All finished un defeated in the pre-season.

Free agency has created parity in the NFL and we have seen a number of teams move from worst to first in their division. The Eagles are the only team with a legitimate shot to keep the streak alive in the very competitive NFC East. The other teams trying to go worst to first: Jets, Browns, Texans, Raiders, Packers, Saints and 49ers. See my point.

There are a few teams to watch as the season starts. They will not be play-off teams but should take some big strides in 2006. I like what Brad Childress is doing in Minnesota and what Rod Marinelli is doing in Detroit. Is Chicago still a lock in the NFC North? The NFC West should be more competitive and it will not be easy for the Seahawks to run the table in the division as they did in '06. The Rams will be better with Scott Linehan as the head coach and Jim Haslett as the defensive co-ordinator. The Niners will give each team they play all they want after having a good off-season and the addition of Norv Turner as the offensive co-ordinator. Edgerin James brings some much needed balance to the Cardinals. The one team that could make a jump to the play-offs is the Ravens. The addition of Steve McNair should solve the QB dilemna that ahs plagued the ravens since their Super Bowl victory in 2000.