All this talk about the fans, but as the Dolphins-Bills game in Toronto looms just 18 days from now, what about the people who rely upon the Bills playing eight regular-season home games in order to maintain a livelihood?

I spoke to a few scalpers Monday in Orchard Park. Instead of making the trip to Toronto, most of them are going to head to Pittsburgh on Dec. 7 to work the Cowboys-Steelers game, meaning they’ll have to pay for gas and hotel rooms.

They said the Miami home game is usually one of the most lucrative games they work. They’re taking a hit.

Hard to feel sorry for scalpers? Fine. But what about the dozens of vendors lined up and down Abbott Road selling merchandise?

“They’re taking two home games away from us,” one vendor told me. “And the taxpayers of Erie County pay for that damn stadium.”

“Is it hurting us? Hell yeah.”

Another vendor said, simply, “It sucks. It hurts.”

I asked him if he felt people like him have been overlooked in this process.

“I think the whole city’s been overlooked.”

Some had a more positive outlook than others: “They took a game away,” said another vendor. “Hopefully we can get in the playoffs and make it up.”

After Monday night’s game, the possibility of that happening isn’t looking too good, either.

With all the bitter feelings, jealousy, and frustration plaguing the Buffalo Bills’ eight-game relationship with the city of Toronto, the focus has been on the fans, and rightly so. If it weren’t for them, franchise relocation wouldn’t be so gruelling. Owners wouldn’t have to move teams, with little warning, in the dead of night.

Fans on all sides of the coin (pro-Toronto Bills, pro-Buffalo Bills, pro-CFL) have vented loudly as rumours swirl that this eight-game series is a potential precursor to a full-out move.

Just check out Facebook, where the Buffalo-Toronto disdain has become political. In fact, it’s become America-Canada disdain. Here’s a small taste of the kind of commentary lacing a group entitled, “Stop the Bills from moving to Toronto”:

“Most of the dumb-ass hoser Canadians on here talk $%&# about the Bills and say they suck and lose all the time. That would be the tragedy of the Bills moving to a city that ignores their teams during tough times and jumps on the bandwagon when they're winning. Canadians are terrible fans and totally lame people in general. They don't understand that we don't care if the Bills have a bad season, cause that's part of being a real football fan. Sticking by your team and looking forward to next year, so that when you have a winning season and God willing a superbowl win, it's that much sweeter. As for the team moving to Rochester, that would suck pretty bad as well. Not as bad as moving to Canada though. God, I hate Canadians so much.”

Why has this become an international battle? Because patriotism and nationalism evoke strong emotions, and, when infuriated, people will try to hit you where it hurts the most, even if they sound absurd doing so.

Some fans are a little more rational. One Buffalo tailgater I talked to at Monday night’s Browns-Bills game explained to me that the Bills have been kept afloat by the heavy presence of Canadians at Ralph Wilson Stadium over the years, and that returning the favour with a game or two a year in Toronto was simply a new way to remain financially viable while sort of sending a thank you to Torontonians for supporting the Bills since their inception.

“I’m very happy with the Bills making a move,” said the fan, “because Toronto fans will love it. I think the Bills are the envy of the league.”

Still, being a tailgater, he made sure to point out that there was still work to be done on Toronto’s end: “They need to relax the tailgating [restrictions] in Toronto. They need to work on that. If they did, I think you’d have more U.S. fans coming up there.”

Only 20 yards away from that hardcore but understanding tailgater, I overheard one fan telling two others how great the scene was at the Ralph. The boasting fan -- a season-ticket holder since the eighties, hailed from Amherst, NY. He was preaching the allure of the parking lot to two guys who had made the drive down from the Greater Toronto Area.

Buffalo folk and Toronto folk coming together, grill to grill and Bud to Molson. Almost enough to water the eyes. Turns out, despite the fact they’ve become a sports equivalent of the Capulets and the Montagues, these fans see eye-to-eye on the Toronto hoopla.

“I don’t want a team in Toronto,” said one of the Canadian fans, beer in one hand, burger in the other. “It won’t be the same.”

But, I said, wouldn’t it be cool to have your own team, with the Toronto name?

“It’s the Buffalo Bills, it doesn’t work that way.”

The three fans agree on one thing: If a team comes to Toronto, it’s has to be through expansion. Bolstering the belief that the games coming to the Big Smoke could be a dress rehearsal for exactly that.

“They would sell tickets and they would have people,” said the other Canadian. “But would it be as passionate as Buffalo? I don’t think so.”

And the American preacher -- he waited his turn to share his story with me. And he was exactly the opposite of the stereotypically threatened and bitter Buffalonian. He was gracious and respectful of Toronto, and he was willing to do whatever was necessary to keep his team connected to the city.

“I would literally do anything to keep this team here -- whether it’s a game in Toronto, two games in Toronto, four games in Toronto. I’ll pay the same price for eight games here as I would for four games here, if I could keep my team.”

Although the sample size was small, the people gathering to watch the game Monday seemed to realize it was just that -- a game. I walked away with the feeling that maybe the Facebook trash-talkers were the few bad apples in what doesn’t have to be a sticky situation. After all, there’s a good chance the Bills won’t leave the city. There’s also a decent chance Toronto will be a prime destination for expansion. Maybe fans in Southern Ontario and Western New York will get the best of both worlds.

Walking away, just before dodging a group of drunk, fist-fighting fans, while avoiding stepping on the broken glass spread across the lot, and blocking out the image of a guy with blood all over his mug after taking a beer bottle to the face, I thought: “This relationship might work, and American football in Toronto could be a success without the city stepping on Buffalo’s toes.”

“But the tailgating won’t compare.”

ORCHARD PARK, NY -- In the end, after the 56-yard Phil Dawson field goal, after the 98-yard Leodis McKelvin kick return touchdown, after the 72-yard Jerome Harrison run, it came down to the Buffalo Bills, Rian Lindell’s leg, and 47 yards.

Just like in Super Bowl XXV. Forty-seven yards, and a leg. And, once again, it wasn’t the result the Bills were looking for. Lindell’s kick … wide right.

Just like on January 27, 1991, when Scott Norwood couldn’t knock one through to beat the New York Giants and take home the Lombardi Trophy.

But it’s hard to blame Lindell. It’s hard to blame anyone but Buffalo’s head coach, Dick Jauron, whose exit strategy was, for lack of a better word, wimpy.

A recent Goal-Line Stand column brought to the surface a new coaching trend in which coaches were continually “over-relying” on their kickers, settling for 45-, even 50-yard attempts to win or tie games, despite the fact their offence could’ve gotten way closer with a play-action roll out or a safe screen.

And although kickers have become progressively more accurate in the modern era, it’s not fair to them or the team to assume anything inside of 50 yards is money in the bank.

So, with the 5-4 Bills, losers of three straight, in position to win the game and keep their season alive Monday night against the 3-6 Cleveland Browns, what did they decide to do?

From the 35-yard line, they ran. And then ran again. And ran one more time. Three consecutive, pitifully predictable runs for a grand total of five yards.

And there was poor Lindell, moments removed from seeing his counterpart, Dawson, drill the longest kick of his career. He gave it a go, but, surprisingly and at the same time not surprisingly, missed.

Maybe the conservative approach had something to do with the Bills not trusting quarterback Trent Edwards, who threw three interceptions in his first six passes and hadn’t been himself during the recent losing streak.

Although Edwards settled in on paper, he seemed tentative and shaky much of the night.

Jauron was asked after the game if he had lost confidence in his quarterback, and did his best Sarah Palin impression: “It’s not a question, really, for me to answer,” he said. “You’ll need to ask him that, because only he can tell you.”

Quick, Dick: Is Africa a country?

Jauron got into field goal range, got scared, and handed the ball off. He put too much weight on his kicker’s shoulders and took too much off of his quarterback’s, and it cost him.

They say the best quarterbacks suffer from amnesia. No rough patch is too deflating. No high point is too encouraging. Maybe coaches should have the same mentality. At least coaches who want to show confidence in their quarterbacks.

After all, nothing will hurt Edwards’ confidence more than getting three straight just-don’t-screw-up play calls in his ear at the most crucial point of the season.

For Buffalo, it’s too late to learn from this. The Bills dropped to dead last in the AFC East with the loss. To punch a ticket to January football, they'd likely have to run the table the rest of the way.

Should Jauron still have a job on Tuesday? Probably not. Will he be hanging out at 1 Bills Drive this offseason? Wouldn’t bet on it. But with four consecutive losses tucked away, one thing’s pretty much certain: Buffalo’s season is once again over. And, again, it ended with those nasty four words.

“No good. Wide Right!”

ORCHARD PARK, NY -- TheScore.com is live from the press box at Ralph Wilson Stadium for the Monday Night Football battle of B's. Browns at Bills: Does it get any better?

Okay, maybe it does. But with Buffalo's season on the line, this might be the game of the year. For the only time this season, the prime-time spotlight's on Western New York.

8:00 -- We spent some time in the parking lot prior to the game, talking to Bills fans from this area and the Greater Toronto Area about the team and the Toronto game, which is lingering only three weeks away. Some good points and opinions were brought to the surface, proving that alcohol concentration doesn't necessarily jeopardize constructive thought and analysis.

8:05 -- Here's a sample of the pre-game tailgate scene in Buffalo. This is probably the single biggest difference between the Toronto football experience and the Buffalo football experience.



8:08 -- You only see stuff like that in Toronto under overpasses. And usually the folks are a little closer to the fire ... trying to keep their hands warm ... and aren't wearing $75 jerseys.

8:15 -- These teams met last year in snowy affair that saw eight total points, all by the Browns. It was the first 8-0 final score since Nov. 10, 1929, when the Chicago Cardinals beat the Minneapolis Red Jackets. Thanks to NFL.com's game page for that one. Cleveland kicker Phil Dawson was the hero last year, providing six of the eight points. The other two came off of a safety.

8:25 -- We'd love to tell you about how great the atmosphere is, but there are about 15 panes of glass holding back sound. Can't complain, though -- they're also holding back the outside air. It's chilly, but we're not expected to get snow like last year's game between the two.

8:35 -- It's really a different feeling on a Monday night. The Bills come in to this one losers of three straight. The Browns are a mess, too, with questions surrounding their effort.

8:40 -- ESPN is smart. They show the live broadcast with Hank Williams doing the intro on the big screen, thus making the crowd go nuts when the "sky cam" comes flying through to open the game.

8:41 -- Edwards is picked by Kamerion Wimbley on the first play from scrimmage. There's Shaun Rogers making things happen, getting up to deflect that pass. Nightmare start for Buffalo.

8:49 -- Well, Edwards has completed all three of his passes. Unfortunately, two have gone to the guys in white and orange. Andra Davis comes up with the pick on a dreadful throw.

8:55 -- With Wimbley and Davis out of the way, Willie McGinest and D'Qwell Jackson are next to get picks. Think every player from a 3-4 linebacking corps has ever had a pick.  Let's try again, this time in English: Has there ever been a game in which every starting linebacker on a 3-4 defence has had a pick?

9:00 -- Dawson's field goal is good. Based on what happened in last year's meeting, that should do it for this one.

9:05 -- A friend texted me saying he played a Pro Line Props card, taking the "under" on Edwards' interceptions. The line was 1.5. For some, betting can make the game more interesting. Unless you've lost the bet three minutes and 11 seconds into the game. For everyone else in the country who took Edwards to throw less than 1.5 picks on Pro Line, enjoy Prison Break, which we believe started six minutes ago.

9:10 -- Did that ball hit Roscoe Parrish? Why can't the Bills handle punts? That's two in a row.

9:11 -- Why can't the Bills complete passes?

9:12 -- Why can't the Bills run the ball?

9:13 -- Well, Edwards is still yet to throw a ball that has hit the ground. Six passes, three to his receivers, three to Cleveland's defenders. Six-for-six!

9:14 -- We're shocked they're not yet chanting "JP!" at the Ralph.

9:15 -- New rule: Dawson is the only player allowed to score points when these teams play.

9:16 -- "Cleveland scoring drive: Four plays, -4 yards."

9:25 -- D'Qwell Jackson just left for the dressing room. So much for our linebacker stat.

9:30 -- ESPN's James Walker reports that Browns cornerback Brandon McDonald was benched the first series of tonight's game for his poor play last week against Denver. Lucky for Brandon, the first series lasted one play. He can thank Edwards (not Braylon, Trent). McDonald is back now.

9:32 -- Jackson's getting x-rays on his elbow and wrist. Return is questionable.

9:34 -- Fancy touchdown from the return hero Joshua Cribbs, who must have subconsciously thought he was supposed to keep running 80 more yards through the end zone. That's his first career rushing touchdown. 13-0.

9:40 -- Where'd that come from? The Bills found some openings on the ground on that series, but the last catch-and-run by Marshawn Lynch was all about individual effort (with a side of bad tackling). 

9:42 -- Hard to believe, but that's Lynch's first career touchdown reception.

9:50 -- As ESPN takes its 37th commercial break, here's another shot of the tailgating Shangri-La that is the Ralph Wilson Stadium parking lot. We're pretty sure most of the people in this shot thought I had one of their cameras and was taking a group shot for them ... until I said thanks and walked away.



9:55 -- The Browns have yet another injury on defence. Safety Sean Jones joins Jackson in the dressing room.

9:59 -- Edwards was almost picked there. Imagine four picks in one half, and down only six?

10:00 -- What we can imagine is this: Three picks in a half, and only down three. Ridiculous. 13-10 Browns at halftime.

10:15 -- We're nice and warm. The fans aren't so lucky. Neither is the broadcast crew. Tony Kornheiser looked and sounded frozen when we saw him at halftime.

10:17 -- The injuries keep coming to the Browns. Defensive end Shaun Smith is out now, too.

10:20 -- Tough injuries on both sides. Starting corner Jabari Greer is out for Buffalo with a knee. In fact, he has two knees. One of them is injured.

10:25 -- Safe to say McDonald's out of Romeo Crennel's doghouse. Great play, knocking the ball out of Fred Jackson's hands.

10:30 -- Lynch's six catches are a career high. He's 14 yards from hitting his career high in receiving yards.

10:32 -- What was Lynch doing to Brady Quinn after that run???

10:33 -- For the third time this game, we see the Wildcat. Cribbs was the quarterback, with Quinn split out to the left. Illegal formation. No play.

10:34 -- Shaun Smith is officially out with a calf injury.

10:39 -- Big sack from the Buffalo defence to limit the damage. Dawson again with a triple. 16-10.

10:45 -- It took five guys to take Lynch down there. We haven't seen him look this good in some time.

10:46 -- 21 touches for 98 total yards for Lynch. Nothing big on paper, as always. But, again, he looks good.

10:50 -- Rian Lindell's field goal is through the uprights, which means the Bills are awarded with three points. We're set up for a good fourth quarter.

11:00 -- Jerome Harrison made Keith Ellison look pretty bad there. Seventy-two yards! Harrison's second career touchdown. The Bills have 14 minutes and 47 seconds to save their season.

11:02 -- And there's the response. This place is going nuts after Leodis McKelvin's 98-yard kick return touchdown. As you can see on the broadcast, great blocks all around, helping the rookie McKelvin score his first career touchdown.

11:05 -- It looked like that last block was in the back. Huge non-call for the Bills.

11:14 -- Strange play-calling from the Browns in the red zone. Dawson again for three. 26-20. Big series coming up for Buffalo, because suddenly neither offence can be stopped.

11:18 -- Why haven't the Bills been using Lynch in the passing game until now? He now has nine grabs and 62 yards on the night (both career highs).

11:23 -- Shaun Rogers makes this defence so much better. He's consistently getting double- and triple-teamed. Unfortunately for Cleveland, no one else has been even remotely effective. The Browns still haven't sacked Edwards tonight.

11:27 -- It looks like the Browns are going to win this challenge. Tough break for Buffalo. Either way, though, it'll be third-and-seven for Cleveland. There's still a good chance the Bills get the ball back here with good field position.

11:30 -- Never mind. Big conversion.

11:35 -- Regardless of what the book says (or what Ron Jaworski is probably saying) this is four-down territory for the Bills.

11:35 -- That might not matter now. Lynch for 28 yards. Is this an indication of how bad the Browns are or how good Lynch is? Or a little bit of both?

11:37 -- Smart play. On a wild night, just keep it with the quarterback.

11:38 -- And since this has been a night of "first career"s, that was Edwards' first career touchdown run.

11:40 -- According to ESPN, no team in NFL history has lost three consecutive games after leading by 13+ points in each of 'em. The Browns are on the cusp on history.

11:45 -- Browns have all of their timeouts. They could punt.

11:46 -- Or attempt the field goal...

11:47 -- And for the second straight game against the Bills, Dawson is the hero. Wow. Fifty-six yards! But a lot of time for Buffalo as the game enters its 11th hour of real time.

11:48 -- That was a career-long for Dawson.

11:49 -- Great field position for Buffalo; another example of why the squib kick hardly ever works. It's special teams' version of the fade.

11:50 -- Last week everyone expected San Fran-Arizona to be a dog game, and it was fantastic. Same deal this week. ESPN is lucking out on Monday nights.

11:51 -- And here's another example of a team getting too conservative too early. Why wouldn't you try to get the ball closer here?

11:52 -- We won't feel sorry for the Bills if this costs them.

11:53 -- No good. Game over. Wide right. Stupid, stupid coaching.

1:30 -- Leaving the stadium, with the field now covered in snow. Bad luck for the Bills. If this snow decided to fall two hours earlier, Dawson probably misses that 56-yard field goal and Buffalo's season is still alive.

The Detroit Lions played a half-decent game Sunday in Carolina but still fell short of their first victory of 2008. When will win number one come? Based on the result of their week 11 efforts, don’t hold your breath.

Just how bad are the Detroit Lions? Can they go 0-16? Just a couple questions surrounding Detroit as it reaches the 10-game mark, still winless.

It’s probably odd that we decide to take a closer look at the Lions’ ineptitude after they played one of their best games of the season. Rookie running back Kevin Smith played well against Carolina, amassing 112 yards on 24 carries. Detroit led 10-0 in the first half, outplaying a first-place team.

But they still lost, and maybe that’s the best indication of how bad they are. Quarterback Daunte Culpepper was probably as good as he’s going to get, Smith was great, Calvin Johnson continues to be the franchise, and the defence held the Carolina offence in check for at least part of the day.

Can things really get better for this team? Sure, the run defence was abysmal. The Lions let DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart go nuts on Sunday. But when looking at their final six games, it’s hard to see a turnaround ahead:

Week 12: vs. Tampa Bay (7-3)

Week 13: vs. Tennessee (10-0) on three days’ rest

Week 14: vs. Minnesota (5-5 and winners of four of six)

Week 15: @ Indianapolis (6-4 and winners of three straight)

Week 16: vs. New Orleans (5-5)

Week 17: @ Green Bay (5-5)

Two bright signs: The Saints are 1-4 on the road and could be mathematically eliminated by then; and four of Detroit’s final six games are at Ford Field.

Still, the task isn’t enviable.

Usually teams struggle this badly because they simply don’t have the personnel to keep up. And while that’s partly the case in the Motor City, it’s hard to put too much blame on individuals who’ve been brought together under impossible circumstances.

How often do teams start this badly? Since the AFL-NFL merger, only six teams have started 0-12 or worse. If the Lions can’t win against Tampa or Tennessee, they’ll join that group.

Here’s the crazy part. In that group already are the 2001 Lions. So, at least on paper, two of the seven worst teams in the Super Bowl era will hail from Detroit, in this decade. Only five players -- offensive tackle Jeff Backus, running back Aveion Cason, defensive end Jared DeVries, kicker Jason Hanson, and centre Dominic Raiola -- remain from that ’01 Lions team.

So unless those guys are the sole root of losing as we know it, the suits should be charged with turning the Lions from the joke they were pre-21^st century to the feature-length slapstick comedy they’ve become in the new millennium.

That’s why it’s hard to blame the players. And that’s why Matt Millen should go down as the worst professional football executive of all time.

Only one team in the modern era -- the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- has had a completely winless season. But those Bucs were an expansion franchise, which gives them a semi-asterisk. And they only went winless over a 14-game regular season, handing them another small asterisk.

The odds are in favour of Detroit joining the orange embarrassment that were the ’76 Bucs. But Tampa had an excuse.

The Lions? Well, regardless of what Rod Marinelli tells you, they have nobody to blame except themselves.

And, of course, Millen.

Week 11 one-liners

• Teams from the NFC South are now 19-2 vs. the rest of the NFL at home, after Carolina and Tampa won on home turf and Atlanta lost at the Georgia Dome Sunday.

• Broncos rookie Spencer Larsen started on both offence and defence against Atlanta, becoming the first player to do so since Orlando Brown accomplished the feat (we suppose we can call it a feat) with the Ravens in 2003.

• Julius Peppers has himself five sacks and three forced fumbles in two weeks, which is the primary reason the Panthers have somehow won both games.

• Jake Delhomme certainly hasn’t chipped in. He has a total of 17 completions in those two wins, over Oakland and Detroit.

• Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams make up the scariest running back duo of the future.

• With the Eagles pretty much toast, Donovan McNabb’s future is in doubt. McNabb threw three picks Sunday for the first time since 2006. He’s completed less than 50 percent of his passes over Philly’s last two games, both not wins.

• Both not losses, either. Thanks to that annoying tie. More on that here.

• McNabb admitted (seemingly with his tongue nowhere near his cheek) after that game that he didn’t know ties were in the rulebook.

• Brian Westbrook has fallen off the face of the planet.

• The Eagles are now 0-4-1 in games decided by six points or less.

• They’re 5-0 in games decided by seven or more.

• The Chiefs might’ve beaten the Saints had they not kept tossing fade routes each and every time they got close to the end zone. When are teams going to realize that the jump ball is a low-percentage play?

• Thom Brennaman became our hero when he summed it up on the broadcast: “For every 50 times you try that play, it works twice.”

• Early in the game, the Chiefs had a first-and-goal on the New Orleans one-yard line. They ran twice in a row with Larry Johnson, and then lobbed a fade to Dwayne Bowe. None of it worked, and KC settled for a triple. In the weeks prior, without LJ, the Chiefs might’ve hit paydirt there.

• Derrick Mason is a man (he’s 40!). That was a gutsy effort, performing gallantly despite a dislocated shoulder.

• Sure, Tampa was stuffing the run, but the Vikings had to find a way to work Adrian Peterson into the game on their final drive … and didn’t. Brad Childress continues to struggle at getting his best player the ball when it matters most.

• Minnesota didn’t run once in the fourth quarter.

• The Raiders have scored 33 first-half points all season.

• The 49ers scored 35 points in the first half against St. Louis.

• Thirty-two years young, Charles Woodson is having the best season of his career.

• The Colts are doing the little things right. They were 10-for-15 on third-down conversions against the Texans, converting two biggies on what was essentially a game-clinching drive.

• The last time the Cardinals were 7-3, Jimmy Carter was in the Whitehouse. The seventh win came one day after Kerri Strug was born.

• Against Jacksonville, Tennessee lost the turnover battle, lost the third-down battle (it only had one conversion all game), lost the penalty battle, and lost the time of possession battle. Titans 24, Jaguars 14

• The Titans have outscored their opponents 130-54 in the second half this season.

• Steelers 11, Chargers 10: The first 11-10 final score in NFL history.

• Troy Polamalu with the play of the year?

• Bad timeout by Jim Zorn, before going for it on fourth down at the end of what ended up being Washington’s final series of the game against Dallas. The decision to go for it should’ve been obvious. Timeouts are too valuable in games like that to use in situations like those.

• We’re convinced that sooner or later Bob Papa will say “(blank) picks up a couple” following a 35-yard run.

Blatant overreaction of the week

“The Falcons are/were pretenders”

Bad days do happen, especially when we’re talking about an extremely young team. And if this is as bad as it gets for the Falcons, they’re in good shape. The pieces are still there, with Roddy White, Michael Turner and Matt Ryan leading the offence for the long haul. Remember, this team has already exceeded expectations. And they still look like a playoff team.

Why the (New York Giants) will win Super Bowl XLIII

We bring it back to the bread and butter with the obvious choice. The Giants jumped ahead on Sunday against the best defensive team in football and never looked back. Sometimes we think it’s a shame they don’t use Brandon Jacobs more because the man’s a beast. But, really, their system is working like a charm and keeping everyone fresh with the playoffs down the road.

Here’s the best part about this team: They no longer need to get to the quarterback to win. They’ve only recorded one sack in their last two wins. You’re in good shape when you can win despite struggling to do what you usually do best.

Why the (Baltimore Ravens) won’t win Super Bowl XLIII

How does the running game just disappear like that? The Ravens didn’t exactly rise to the occasion in the biggest game of their season, which is disappointing. It’s been a good year, but this team has had a few too many stinkers. The schedule doesn’t let up, either.

Team of the week: Green Bay Packers

Now that’s balance! With Ryan Grant rolling and the aggressive Green Bay defence always ready to create points (another defensive touchdown against Chicago gives them nine on the season), this team has an extremely high ceiling. Green Bay beat the Bears 40-3 on Dec. 11, 1994, with Brett Favre passing for 250 yards and Edgar Bennett running for 106. This was the biggest blowout in the all-time series since then.

Player of the week: Anquan Boldin

Should Boldin be getting consideration for offensive player of the year? The guy’s missed time with a demolished face, and still has 62 catches, 792 yards and a league-leading 10 touchdown receptions.

Setting the pace

• Saints quarterback Drew Brees is on pace to pass for 5,201 yards, still ahead of Dan Marino’s all-time single-season mark.

• Dolphins linebacker Joey Porter is on pace to record 21.5 sacks, one short of Michael Strahan's single-season record.

MVP watch

We’ve decided to ditch our Albert Haynesworth campaign, partly because no defensive player has won the award since Lawrence Taylor in 1986, and partly because the Titans’ season is turning into more of a team effort. We’ll join the hordes by saying that, as of right now, your NFL MVP is Kurt Warner, who’s leading the Cardinals to one of their best seasons … ever.

Rookie of the Year watch

As of right now, your offensive rookie of the year is Ryan, who still did a decent job in an off game against the Broncos. He’s still on pace to have one of the best rookie seasons of all time. Your defensive rookie of the year is Jerod Mayo, who was once again a tackle machine against the Jets Thursday night. Mayo is going to be a beast in this league.

Ray Edwards single-season sack record watch

Edwards, the little-known Vikings defensive end, said in the offseason he planned on breaking Strahan’s single-season sack record of 22.5. We’ll track his progress here each week.

Edwards wasn’t able to get to Jeff Garcia in Tampa and is stuck on 1.5 sacks on the season. At this rate, he’ll have the worst season of his career.