Osi's sack-tacular start tops Favre for Week 4 honors
02.10.2007 03:01
Sport and Travel
- Source: USA Today
USA TODAY's Jarrett Bell wraps up the NFL weekend and hands out his weekly accolades every Tuesday:
PHOTOS: Picture tour of NFL Week 4 First, the five things we learned from Week 4: 1. Maybe Brian Griese wasn't the answer after all. The Bears' new starting quarterback threw three interceptions at Detroit, Cedric Benson fumbled for the third time in four games and Chicago's defense, battered by injuries, suddenly looks mortal. It all adds up to a season in flames for the defending NFC champs, who must now take their 1-3 record to Lambeau Field to face red-hot Brett Favre and the Packers. The Super Bowl-loss hangover lives on. Of the past eight teams to lose a Super Bowl, six missed the playoffs and posted losing records the next season. The Bears seem destined to continue the trend. 2. Maybe A.J. Smith should have patched things up with Marty Schottenheimer. The San Diego Chargers' disastrous 1-3 start has fans longing for the good ole' days of Martyball. The poor start under successor Norv Turner raises questions about the impact of coaching continuity or the lack thereof, with coordinators Cam Cameron and Wade Phillips departing for head coaching jobs before Schottenheimer was fired following a 14-2 regular season. With everything out of sync, the Chargers' season might be on the line in Sunday's A-West showdown at Denver. 3. Brett Favre is playing such an efficient brand of quarterback now that it has masked the Packers' sorry rushing attack. Green Bay entered Sunday's game at Minnesota with the NFL's lowest-ranked rushing game and gained just 46 yards with unproven types such as Ryan Grant toting the rock. As good as Favre is — and he's been better by taking fewer risks this season — the unbeaten Packers are rolling the dice without giving him at least the semblance of a decent rushing game. 4. Tony Romo is earning more money by the week. The Dallas Cowboys are looking to sign their exciting quarterback to a long-term contract, yet with his playmaking skills and results, Romo's price has risen significantly since the offseason. Dallas didn't rush into a deal before the season, wanting to see Romo's progress. They have. And it will cost. Romo might secure an extra $20 million in guaranteed money if he continues his hot streak. During Sunday's rout of the Rams, Romo turned a potential disaster into a positive play by scrambling nearly 40 yards after an errant snap. And he threw for 339 yards, too, as the undefeated Cowboys lead the NFL in scoring with a 38.7 points per game. 5. Kurt Warner has given the Cardinals just the shot in the arm they needed, coming off the bench in successive weeks to pump life into the offense. The former two-time NFL MVP has been susceptible to injuries in recent years, but it appears new Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt has found a way to minimize risk — and throw opposing defenses for a loop — with his judicious use of Warner in spot duty. While still-developing Matt Leinart (2 TDs, 3 INTs, 63.8 passer rating) battles through inconsistency, the sharp Warner has built a robust 125.0 rating with 3 TDs and zero picks. And now, on to the awards ... | JARRETT BELL'S NFL ACCOLADES -- WEEK 4 | | | Stud of the week: Osi Umenyiora | | | The New York Giants' defensive end was Donovan McNabb's worst nightmare, abusing backup left tackle Winston Justice and terrorizing McNabb for a club-record six sacks to lead a unit that tied an NFL record with 12 sacks in a 16-3 smashing of the Philadelphia Eagles. Before the game, Umenyiora went out on a limb and predicted that the Eagles wouldn't match the 56 points they scored the previous week against Detroit. During the game, the Eagles probably wanted to press assault charges against Umenyiora. | | | Offensive player of the week: Brett Favre | | | The NFL's record for career TD passes now belong solely to Favre, who stung the Minnesota Vikings for No. 421 and 422 in Green Bay's 23-16 win at the Metrodome Favre passed for 344 yards and didn't throw a pick as the Packers improved to 4-0 behind their seemingly ageless wonder of a quarterback. | | | Special teamer of the week: Morten Andersen | | | The Atlanta Falcons' 47-year-old kicker began the season in retirement ... again. Sunday, the league's oldest player booted four field goals in a 26-16 victory against Houston. Sure, Steve Breaston had a 73-yard runback that marked Arizona's first punt return TD in 14 years and Chicago's Devin Hester added to his legend with a 97-yard kick-return score, but the steady Andersen keeps proving why -- try as they might -- he is so difficult to replace. | | | Rookie of the week: Trent Edwards | | | Buffalo's third-round pick, stepping in for an injured J.P. Losman, made his first NFL start against the Jets and the Bills accomplished two things that had eluded them this season: They passed for 200 yards and won a game. Edwards is the first rookie QB to win his debut since Drew Henson won for the Cowboys in November 2004 -- snapping a league-wide string of 12 rookie QB debut losses. And he didn't do it with a keep-him-under-wraps gameplan. Edwards surprised the Jets by throwing passes on nine of the Bills' first 12 snaps, and finished 22-for-28 for 234 yards with a TD and a pick. | | | This week's genius: Ken Whisenhunt | | | He's the first Cardinals coach to win the first two home games in a season since Charley Winner in 1966. And to make it sweeter, Whisenhunt accomplished the feat against his former team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, who passed over their former O-coordinator to hire Mike Tomlin as Bill Cowher's successor. Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger has dropped many hints that he wasn't thrilled with Whisenhunt's approach, deemed too conservative. Well, maybe it was Cowher -- and not so much Whisenhunt -- who dictated the philosophy that produced a Super Bowl XL victory. In any event, nobody's thinking of Whisenhunt as conservative now as he has unleashed an unconventional two-QB platoon -- using wily vet Kurt Warner for special packages in relief of developing young starter Matt Leinart. It smacks of brilliance because it has been productive and kept defenses off-balance. | | | Comeback player of the week: Daunte Culpepper | | | The Miami Dolphins dumped Culpepper and opted for Trent Green, in part because they were not convinced that the QB's knee was healed sufficiently. Fate left Culpepper to make his first start for the Oakland Raiders at Miami, and he made the Dolphins pay by rushing for three TDs and throwing for two scores in a 35-17 romp. After diving inside the pylon on one determined TD run, Culpepper bounced to his feet, pointed to the stands and patted his surgically-repaired left knee for the ultimate in-your-face Kodak moment. Although he passed for just 75 yards, Culpepper didn't throw a pick -- and had plenty of help in the person of Justin Fargas, who rushed for a career-high 179 yards after replacing an injured LaMont Jordan. | | | This week's big surprise: Chargers meltdown | | | The San Diego Chargers opened the second half with a 10-point lead against the Kansas City Chiefs, got their first 100-yard rushing game of the season from LaDainian Tomlinson -- and still lost. In yet another meltdown for a team that is fast building a reputation for poor finishes, the Chargers were shut out in the second half and allowed Kansas City an unanswered 24 points. And reminiscent of the playoff meltdown against New England, the Chargers had a first-and-goal from the Chiefs' 5-yard line with five minutes to play -- and never gave the ball to Tomlinson while Rivers threw four consecutive incompletions. What's not surprising are the wagons circling around new coach Norv Turner. The chant from Chargers fans was simple and direct: "Marty! Marty!" Rivers' three turnovers contributed to the cause, but the Chargers' defense -- now directed by Ted Cottrell with Wade Phillips' departure -- was again victimized for big passing plays that further exposed a glaring weakness. | | | Unsung hero of the week: Earnest Graham and Michael Pittman | | | The Tampa Bay running backs picked up the slack after Cadillac Williams was injured, combining to rush for 138 yards in the 20-7 victory that gave the Buccaneers sole possession of first place in the NFC South. Their work is hardly done. Williams suffered a torn ligament in his right knee and is lost for the season. | | | Bonehead blunder: Bears' QB change | | | Brian Griese can do it just like Rex Grossman did as the Chicago Bears quarterback. In his first start, Griese picked up where Grossman left off, throwing two of his three interceptions in the red zone. Bears coach Lovie Smith finally made the QB switch last week, only to see Griese's picks and an injury-depleted defense wilt as the Lions set an NFL record by scoring 34 points (including one on an onside kick return) in the fourth quarter. | | | Did you notice? | | | Tight end Dallas Clark led the Indianapolis Colts with six catches for 76 yards, including two TDs, in the 38-20 victory against Denver. Or slot receiver Dallas Clark. Or H-back. Or wide receiver. Or fullback. Clark is the ultimate 'X' factor' for the Colts offense as he lines up in so many positions to cause matchup problems. The Broncos even had all-pro corner Champ Bailey covering Clark at times on Sunday. The Colts needed Clark's production in a big way, with all-pro receiver Marvin Harrison leaving early with a knee injury and a 10-point deficit to boot. It was the second time in four games that Clark led the Colts in receiving. | | | Stat of the week | | | In their stunning 27-13 victory against Baltimore, the Cleveland Browns notched at least 24 points for the third consecutive game. In 2006, the Browns scored 24 points in three games all season. | |
| NFL Replay 2007 weekly awards in review | | | Offensive player | Defensive player | Genius | Rookie | Special teamer | Comeback player | Unsung hero | | | Week 1 | Randy Moss | Mario Williams | Jeff Davidson | Adrian Peterson | Ellis Hobbs | Tony Romo | Freddie Keiaho | | | Week 2 | Tom Brady | Lance Briggs | Mike Shanahan | Amobi Okoye | Neil Rackers | Jamal Lewis | Frank Gore | | | Week 3 | Brett Favre | Mathias Kiwanuka | Lane Kiffin | Dwayne Bowe | Cowboys kick team | Donovan McNabb | Gary Brackett | | | Week 4 | Brett Favre | Osi Umenyiora | Ken Whisenhunt | Trent Edwards | Morten Andersen | Daunte Culpepper | Earnest Graham and Michael Pittman | |
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