NFL Weekly

NFC East: With the Redskins knocking off the Cowboys 26-24 yesterday, there should be no doubt that the NFC East is the best division in football. I had the Redskins ranked as the 9th best team in the NFL last week and they certainly proved they are a top 10 team by beating Dallas. It's a shame that a team in the NFC East is going to miss the playoffs, while one of the mediocre teams out west will get in instead. Yes, I'm already slotting in 3 teams from the NFC into the playoffs. Still one of these four teams is going to miss out and it will be interesting to see which team will be the odd team out. The NFL is a week to week game now and just because one team is up now doesn't mean things will stay that way. I really like the way Washington is playing right and I think Dallas has too much talent to miss out on the playoffs. The Giants look solid once again, but I would not be surprised if they have a stretch of games when they struggle. Philadelphia could be the team that misses out, because they just seem to have a history of coming up short and I think losses like they just had against the Bears could come back to cost them in the end. At the same time, I think Philadelphia beats Washington at home next week, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Jason Campbell: I couldn't talk about the NFC East without dedicating some time to Jason Campbell, who continues to impress me this season. Now maybe Jim Zorn's west coast offense has helped Campbell, but I couldn't help but watch him during the game yesterday and start to think that he is maturing into a star QB for the Redskins. Campbell has been phenomenal this year completing 65.3% of his passes, while throwing for 878 yards and 6 touchdowns. Most importantly, the Redskins as a team haven't turned the ball over once in four games and certainly that is credit to the maturity of Jason Campbell. Campbell is getting little publicity right now for the way he is playing and I have to wonder why? Right now he is the best QB in the NFC East, not Romo, not Manning, not even McNabb. Sure, those guys are playing well, but Campbell is playing better than all of them right now and he deserves some shine.

Tennessee Titans & Buffalo Bills: The Tennessee Titans and Buffalo Bills continue to roll and are both now 4-0 on the season. I really like both of these teams to keep playing well throughout the season because they both have fairly easy schedules. I will be looking forward to the Titans matchups against Indy, Jacksonville, Green Bay, and Pittsburgh, which are the toughest games left for the Titans. Meanwhile, the Bills square off with San Diego, New England, Denver, and the NY Jets for their toughest games. Certainly all winnable games for both teams and those are the toughest games left. The rest of their schedules are filled with teams like Miami, Cleveland, Kansas City, and Detroit. If Tennessee and Buffalo win 12 plus games this year, then it is more proof that the NFL is just a year to year game now and the schedule has as big a part of who makes the playoffs as any other factor.

Don't get me wrong though, both of these teams are solid, especially on defense. The Titans defense has just been amazing allowing only 11.5 points a game, which is 2nd in the NFL, and just 263.5 yards a game, which is good for 5th in the NFL. Buffalo's defense has been almost as good giving up just 15.8 points a game and 280.5 yards, good for 5th and 7th in the NFL respectively. These teams certainly cane play with the best of them, but the added advantage of an easy schedule could help them get first round byes in the playoffs, which would make each team just one game closer to the Super Bowl.

Other NFL News:

- The Rams fired head coach Scott Linehan after starting 0-4 this season. Linehan and the Rams had lost 17 of their last 20 games and sport one of the worst defenses in the NFL giving up a whopping 36.8 points a game.

- The Steelers took two big hits last night, as both Rashard Mendenhall and Kendall Simmons were injured and are out for the season. Mendenhall fractured his shoulder, while Simmons tore his right Achilles. The Steelers might have won last night, but I still think they are going to struggle with their tough schedule the rest of the way; and losing two key performers certainly doesn't help.

- Brett Favre threw for a career high 6 touchdowns against the Arizona Cardinals, leading the Jets to an explosive 56-35 victory.

- Sad news for Jacksonville Jaguars offensive lineman Richard Collier, who is paralyzed below the waist and his left leg was amputated, after getting shot earlier this month.

Fantasy Stars of the Week:

Laveranues Coles: 8 receptions, 105 yards rushing, 3 TDs

Larry Johnson: 198 yards rushing, 2 TDs

Brett Favre: 289 yards passing, 6 TDs

Fantasy Waiver Wire Pickups of the Week:

Steve Breaston, WR, Cardinals: 9 receptions, 122 yards receiving

Robert Meachem, WR, Saints: 99 yards receiving, 1 TD

Lance Moore, WR, Saints: 7 receptions, 101 yards receiving, 2 TDs

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