Here are the week's best - and most disappointing -
performances, according to Scout.com's NFL publishers and writers:
Studs
- New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning threw four touchdown
passes in the New York's victory over the St. Louis Rams. In his second
season, Manning is beginning to look off defenders regularly and is making
solid reads to lead an explosive Giants offense. Wide receiver Plaxico Burress is quickly becoming a favorite target of Manning. Utilizing his
size, speed and skill, Burress hauled in 10 receptions for 204 yards and
two touchdowns against the Rams.
- New Orleans running back Duece McAllister regained his All-Pro
form in the Saints’ 19-7 victory over the Buffalo Bills. Rushing for 130
yards on 30 carries, McAllister kept the chains moving against a tough
Buffalo defense.
- Tampa Bay quarterback Brian Griese has taken a stranglehold of
the reigns under head coach Jon Gruden. Without the team’s number one
weapon, running back Cadillac Williams, Griese passed for 302 yards and
two touchdowns in leading the Buccaneers over the Detroit Lions.
- Kansas City Chiefs Wide Receiver Eddie Kennison had another 100-yard day to go along with his first touchdown of the season. Kennison
is the sole bright spot in an under-achieving Kansas City Chiefs offense.
- Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson again was the hit of
the show for San Diego. With 25 carries for 124 yards (5.4 avg) and with
3 catches for another 34 yards, Tomlinson gave the Chargers the edge on the
ground, which opened up things for Drew Brees through the air against the New England Patriots. Tomlinson's two-touchdown performance gives him eight rushing
touchdowns for the year, and his 123 yards puts him as the second-leading
rusher in the league.
- Seattle wideout Bobby Engram caught nine passes for 106 yards
despite playing with cracked ribs, which finally caused him to leave the game
in the fourth quarter.
Duds
- St. Louis Rams head coach Mike Martz. Martz may be an offensive
genius, but his teams are consistently poor defensively, resulting in the
team being one-dimensional. Once again, QB Marc Bulger was forced to air it
out in the Rams' loss to the Giants, tossing the ball 62 times. Yes, you read
that right. No, this was not an Arena Football League game.
- Buffalo second-year quarterback J.P. Losman is struggling. This
time against the Saints, Losman was indecisive in the pocket, making
numerous poor reads and errant throws. So now, ex-Browns QB Kelly Holcomb,
who preferred to caddy for Losman rather than start for the Browns, finds
himself back in the spotlight.
- Detroit Lions quarterback Joey Harrington continues to struggle
in the quarterback-friendly offense of head coach Steve Mariucci. Harrington
has been a tease to the Lions throughout his young career, and against Tampa
Bay he threw for 137 yards. The problem in the Motor City this time is that
there is not a viable replacement on the roster.
- Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham for
allowing linebackers and third string cornerbacks to cover Eagles receiver
Terrell Owens instead of shadowing him with All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain. Even worse - a linebacker late to move with Owens in motion left
the Eagles weapon uncovered, leading to Owens' sole touchdown catch of the
day.
- The New England Patriots defense gained recognition and praise for
their play as a unit, and gets listed as a Dud for, yes, their play as a
unit after giving up 41 points to the San Diego Chargers.
- Seattle Seahawks PK Josh Brown missed a pair of 47-yard field
goals - the second at the end of regulation, which extended the game to
overtime and enabled the Redskins’ eventual 20-17 victory.
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