NFL 2002 Second Half Begins & Surprises Keep Coming

NFL FACTOID: STREAKS

Think there have been a lot of winning streaks in the NFL this season?  If you break it down into three-game win streaks, there have been 19 so far this year -- close to topping the season totals for 2000 (21) and 2001 (20).

The only thing constant in the National Football League is that "On Any Given Sunday ..." the surprises will just keep on coming. Last week for instance:

There were the Buffalo Bills, with three wins in a row, anxiously awaiting the division-rival New England Patriots -- losers of four in a row.

Result:  New England wins, 38-7.

Or take the New York Jets, losers of five of their past six. They had to fly cross-country to face the San Diego Chargers (6-1). Did you really think the Jets would win, let alone beat the Chargers with ease?

Result:  The Jets win 44-13.

And then there are the St. Louis Rams. All but dead and buried at 0-5, they have won their past three, and are on a mission to become the first 0-5 club in NFL history to make the playoffs.

"You can grow from slow starts, and having to overcome them," says Pittsburgh Steelers head coach BILL COWHER, whose own team has grown from 1-3 to 5-3.

So as the second half of the season begins, it’s going to make for one wild ride through December!

In Week 10, the Chargers’ travel to Saint Louis to face the Rams and their "third-string" quarterback MARC BULGER, who didn’t throw a pass in his two-year NFL career but has now lead St. Louis to three wins in a row.

The Pittsburgh native -- another graduate of Pennsylvania’s "Big 33" high school all-star game who made the NFL -- has thrown only three interceptions in his three games, the last leading to an Arizona TD last Sunday. That doesn’t bother Rams head coach MIKE MARTZ.  "That’s a young player’s mistake," says Martz. "If that’s his only bad mistake in three games, which it is, then you’ve got to be very happy where he is."

Chargers head coach MARTY SCHOTTENHEIMER is just as pleased with his second-year quarterback, DREW BREES, who has taken the team to its 6-2 record in his first season as a starter. But he was not at all pleased with the team’s performance against the Jets.

"There are things that are going to have to get fixed," says Schottenheimer. "And be assured, they will be fixed."

One way to do that is for San Diego’s fourth-ranked NFL rushing defense to put a stop to Rams running back MARSHALL FAULK. Of course, that’s a lot easier said than done. The flu couldn’t do it last week, as a weakened Faulk "only" rushed 27 times for 178 yards and a touchdown, and caught five passes for another 58 yards.

"I’m here to be in there at crunch time, getting those carries, running out the clock," says Faulk, who has 69 touchdowns in 52 games with the Rams. "That’s my job. Sometimes you’re not 100 percent. Sometimes you’re not 90 percent. But you’ve got to go out there and give it your all."

Like somebody in the NFL might think he doesn’t?  Faulk ranks second in the league in scrimmage yards with 1,170 (behind Kansas City’s PRIEST HOLMES; 1,297), and is on his way to a fifth consecutive 2,000-yard season in the category, which would add to his NFL record.

Two of the top three scrimmage-yards producers in the league will be on the field Sunday. Chargers running back  

LA DAINIAN TOMLINSON sits right behind Holmes and Faulk with 1,109 scrimmage yards, and follows Holmes (857) as the league’s No. 2 rusher (845).

In San Francisco, the 49ers (6-2) want to keep riding their victory gravy train (five out their past six games) that has given them a two-game lead in the NFC West when they face the Kansas City Chiefs (4-4), a member of the only division in the league without a losing team, the AFC West.

And although they will not face each other, two of the hottest stars in the league will be on the 3Com Park sod -- the Chiefs’ Holmes and 49ers wide receiver TERRELL OWENS.

"Holmes," says ESPN analyst and former NFL linebacker TOM JACKSON, "is the most dangerous back in football right now."

With the most carries in the NFL -- 190, even with Kansas City coming off a bye -- the six-year veteran who entered the NFL as a free agent leads the league in non-kicker scoring with 90 points. That’s 30 points more than his closest pursuers -- Faulk and Buffalo’s TRAVIS HENRY.

He also tops the NFL in rushing and scrimmage yards. And he has no inclination to slow things down.

"This is what it takes to get the job done," says Holmes. "However I feel on Monday, that’s just the way it’s going to be. Once you relax and get content and try to pace yourself, that’s when you mess up. You try to conserve your energy, but you don’t try to pace yourself. That can catch up to you in the long run."

And that’s precisely the trouble defenders are having these days with Owens, who, week after week is showing that he is one of the most dangerous long-ball threats in the league.

Owens tops the NFC in TD receptions with six and comes off a "monster" game against Oakland, catching 12 passes for 191 yards for his best game of the season.

"We did everything we could to stop Owens," said Raiders head coach BILL CALLAHAN. "We put CHARLES WOODSON on him one-on-one, we had double-coverage, we had bracket coverage.  We had every conceivable coverage known to man, but he continued to break our secondary down."

Owens is particularly effective in the "YAC" stat -- yards after the catch. Through the past three seasons, close to half his yards were gained after catching the ball:

 

"YAC" ATTACK

 

Those reverse-the-season Steelers will seek to keep their winning streak going this week against a club that has put together its own string of victories, one with historical significance.

The Atlanta Falcons, visiting Pittsburgh, have won four in a row -- the team’s longest winning streak since its Super Bowl XXXIII season of 1998.

A matchup to watch will be Falcons quarterback MICHAEL VICK against Steelers right inside linebacker KENDRELL BELL, the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2001.

Vick is the Falcons’ leading rusher with 362 yards, and heads the top 20 NFL rushers in average yards-per-carry with a 7.5 mark. Bell is back after a four-game absence with a sprained ankle and seems the dominant, pursuing self he was as a rookie when he led the Steelers in most lost yards caused on sacks (84).

"Teams get edgy when they see No. 97 in there," says Steelers safety LEE FLOWERS.

After rushing for 90 yards in each of his past two games, Vick was limited to minus-five yards last week against Baltimore, which used a close-up zone defense that didn’t over-commit to chasing him but boxed him in. "I think what we saw Sunday was a glimpse of the defenses we’re going to see from now on," he says. "They didn’t want me to get outside, or have any lanes to run through. If defenses do that, we have to find a way to beat them."

On the Steelers’ QB side, the Falcons don’t have to worry about TOMMY MADDOX taking off like Vick -- although he did line up as a wide receiver last week on one play. They do, though, have to be concerned with the leadership wiles of "this year’s KURT WARNER" who, in a lot of ways, typifies the surprise aspects of 2002.

Once chosen by Falcons head coach DAN REEVES as the Denver Broncos’ No. 1 draft choice (1992), and brought to the New York Giants when Reeves coached there, Maddox was out of the NFL from 1996-2000 and sold insurance. Taking over for KORDELL STEWART, he has led the Steelers’ resurgence with a 4-1 record and ties New Orleans’ AARON BROOKS for the best TD percentage in the league (6.7).      

The week will conclude with two Monday night winners (unless there’s a tie) when the Oakland Raiders visit the division-rival Denver Broncos in the 500th telecast of ABC’s NFL Monday Night Football (ABC, 9:00 PM ET).

Named during the telecast will be the "Greatest Monday Night Football Game of All-Time," as voted upon by fans on NFL.com. Since the beginning of the season, fans were asked to vote for the greatest MNF game, narrowing an original list of 12 contests to a final five (see below). Monday Night Football -- the longest-running prime-time entertainment series in television history -- began in 1970.

A rundown of key stats in the first 499 telecasts of MNF: 

 

499 & COUNTING

 

Of course, when these two original AFL rivals get together, every game seems like a "greatest."  The names alone through the years seem to make it so -- STABLER, ELWAY, SHELL, MECKLENBURG, GRADISHAR, HENDRICKS.

Raiders cornerback TORY JAMES was a Bronco from 1996-99 and knows the rivalry between the clubs runs deep.

"The whole team got up for the Raiders," says James. "If we only won one game, the Raiders were the team we wanted to beat."    

Oakland has not won in Denver since 1994, and in the past three years, no game in the season series has been decided by more than 10 points.

The Broncos (6-2), coming off a bye, are tied with San Diego for first in the AFC West. The Raiders are symbolic of the "streaky" nature of the NFL season so far. They won their first four, and now have lost their last four.

"At this point, we don’t have a choice but to respond," says Raiders cornerback Woodson. "We are on a skid now, and the only way to get off that skid is to win a ballgame. We’ve got to regroup this week, just concentrate and stay disciplined. We can’t hold our heads down and let the season go down the drain."

It could be a classic Raiders-Broncos battle. Oakland arrives in the Rockies with the NFL’s top offense and rushing game. The Broncos have the league’s No. 3 defense and No. 1 rush defense.   

 

FIVE FINALISTS FOR THE GREATEST MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL GAME OF ALL-TIME

NOVEMBER 20, 1978 -- DOLPHINS 30 AT OILERS 35

EARL CAMPBELL rushes for 199 yards and four TDs as he outduels BOB GRIESE at the Astrodome.

SEPTEMBER 5, 1983 -- COWBOYS 31 AT REDSKINS 30

DANNY WHITE throws for three second-half TDs and runs for another to rally Dallas from a 23-3 halftime deficit to defeat the defending Super Bowl champions.

DECEMBER 2, 1985 BEARS 24 AT DOLPHINS 38

DAN MARINO throws three TD passes and RON DAVENPORT runs for two more as the Dolphins hand the Bears their first (and only) loss of the season

OCTOBER 17, 1994 -- CHIEFS 31 AT BRONCOS 28

In a classic exhibition of gunslinging quarterbacks, JOHN ELWAY and JOE MONTANA battle back and forth the entire night. A Montana five-yard TD toss to WILLIE DAVIS with eight seconds to go gives the Chiefs the win.

OCTOBER 23, 2000 -- DOLPHINS 37 AT NY JETS 40 (OT)

Jets overcome a 30-7 fourth-quarter deficit to win on a JOHN HALL 40-yard field goal.

NFL 2002: WEEK 10 (SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 10)

CINCINNATI BENGALS (1-7) AT BALTIMORE RAVENS (3-5)

SERIES

	BENGALS	RAVENS
LEADER		8-4
STREAKS		7 of past 8
COACHES VS. OPP.	LeBeau: 1-2	Billick: 5-1
LAST WEEK	W 38-3 at Texans	L 20-17 at Falcons
LAST GAME	12/23/01: Bengals 0 at Ravens 16. Baltimore RB Terry Allen rushes for 91 yards & game’s only TD. Ravens’ defense posts shutout & Baltimore LB Ray Lewis has 2 INTs.
LAST GAME AT SITE	12/23/01
TV	CBS (1:00 PM ET): Ian Eagle, Solomon Wilcots

STATS

PASSING	Kitna: 111-163-1,058-7-7-82.3	Blake: 43-77-527-2-4-64.2
RUSHING	Dillon: 162-694-4.3-4	J. Lewis: 159-646-4.1-3
RECEIVING	Warrick: 28-302-10.8-2	Heap (TE): 34-365-10.7-4
OFFENSE	296.4	288.3
TAKE/GIVE	-8	-3
DEFENSE	333.0	327.3
SACKS	Williams: 3.0	Boulware: 4.0
INTs	Hawkins: 2	Harris, R. Lewis, Reed (R): 2
PUNTING	Harris: 41.5	Zastudil (R): 41.4
KICKING	Rackers: 29 (14/14 PAT; 5/7 FG)	Stover: 47 (14/14 PAT; 11/13 FG)

NOTES

BENGALS:  In last meeting, RB COREY DILLON rushed for 127 yards, becoming first RB to eclipse 100-yard barrier against Baltimore in span of 51 games. Dillon has 3 games with 100 yards rushing on season & is on pace to set team record for most in season with 6. Four Bengals, including Dillion, share current record of 5 (Dillion twice) Last Sunday vs. Houston, QB JON KITNA registered career-best single-game comp. pct. of 81.5 (22 of 27) for games started in 38-3 win. Owns AFC’s 3rd-best 4th quarter comp. pct. of 70.1 (47 of 67) CB ARTRELL HAWKINS tied franchise record last week for longest INT return (102-TD) with former CB LOUIS BREEDEN. Defense forced 6 turnovers (3 INTs, 4 fumbles) last year in series, including 66-yard INT-TD by LB TAKEO SPIKES. TD was first of Spikes’ career. Have held Ravens to 917 net passing yards in past 4 (229.3 yards per game) RAVENS:  Have won 7 of past 8 in series & 5 consecutive at home. Head coach BRIAN BILLICK is 5-1 (.833) in career vs. Bengals. Under Billick, club is 24-8 (.750) after Nov. 1 (includes playoffs) QB JEFF BLAKE was member of Bengals for 6 seasons (1994-99). Ranks third in team annals with 15,124 passing yards & 79.3 passer rating RB JAMAL LEWIS had first 2 career 100-yard games against Cincy. Aims for third consecutive 100-yard game vs. Bengals. Had career-high 70 receiving yards in his last game vs. Cincy (11/5/00) WR TRAVIS TAYLOR was club’s leading receiver & rusher last week at Atlanta. Had first career 100-yard game (127 yards, 1 TD) & career-long 39-yard rush .TE TODD HEAP has 4 TD receptions at home (vs. 0 on road) in 2002 Defense has held Bengals to 752 total yards in past 4 (188.0 yards per game). Ravens have 11 sacks in past 4 meetings, including 3.0 by LB PETER BOULWARE & 2.5 by DE MICHAEL MC CRARY ...K MATT STOVER has 46 FGs & 194 career points vs. Cincinnati -- both tops vs. any club.

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (6-2) AT CAROLINA PANTHERS (3-5)

SERIES

	SAINTS	PANTHERS
LEADER	8-6
STREAKS	Past 4
COACHES VS. OPP.	Haslett: 4-0	Fox: 0-0
LAST WEEK	Bye (Wk 8: L 37-35 vs. Falcons)	Bye (Wk 8: L 12-9 vs. Buccaneers)
LAST GAME	12/2/01: Panthers 23 at Saints 27. New Orleans QB Aaron Brooks tosses 17-yard TD pass to WR Joe Horn with 1:35 left to end Saints’ 4-game losing streak.
LAST GAME AT SITE	10/14/01: Saints 27, Panthers 25. New Orleans RB Ricky Williams runs 1-yard for winning TD as time expires to give Saints dramatic victory.
TV	FOX (1:00 PM ET): Kenny Albert, Tim Green

STATS

PASSING	Brooks: 153-268-1,835-18 (1C)-9-86.6	Peete: 92-154-1,149-5-4-83.0 OR Weinke: 10-21-140-0-0-69.5
RUSHING	McAllister: 171-836 (1C)-4.9-7 (T3C)	L. Smith: 169-595-3.5-6
RECEIVING	Horn: 49 (3C)-670 (2C)-13.7-5 (T2C)	S. Smith: 28-436-15.6-1
OFFENSE	347.9	279.9
TAKE/GIVE	+4	+1
DEFENSE	367.6	275.1 (3C)
SACKS	Howard: 4.5	Peppers (R): 9.0 (1L)
INTs	S. Knight: 3	Grant: 3
PUNTING	Gowin: 42.2	Sauerbrun: 46.9 (1L)
KICKING	Carney: 64 (22/22 PAT; 14/16 FG)	Graham: 25 (4/4 PAT; 7/9 FG)

NOTES

SAINTS:  Club seeks best start since 1992 (7-2). Offense ranks first in NFC with 69.0 redzone TD pct. (29 trips, 20 TDs) QB AARON BROOKS looks for ninth consecutive game with 200 yards passing. Tied for NFL lead with TD pass every 6.7 attempts. Ranks first among NFC starters with 95.2 passer rating in fourth quarter & third with 99.9 rating on third downs. Seeks third consecutive win as starter vs. Panthers & has 5 TDs, 2 INTs in past 2 vs. Car RB DEUCE MC ALLISTER needs 100 yards rushing vs. Panthers for second-most 100-yard rushing games in single-season in club history. He has 6 100-yard games in 2002 & club has 5-1 (.833) record in those games. Needs 3 rushing TDs to become fourth player in Saints’ history with 10 in single-season WR JOE HORN has 12 100-yard receiving games with Saints & club is 11-1 (.917) in those games. Seeks second consecutive 100-yard game vs. Car. & averaging 114 yards in past 2 vs. Panthers PANTHERS:  Defense leads NFL with 31 sacks, including 27 by d-line. Have already surpassed 2001 season total (26). Club has not allowed 100-yard rusher in past 10 games & seeks to hold opponents under 300 total yards for sixth time in 9 games RB LAMAR SMITH has 6 TD runs, most by Car RB since TSHIMANGA BIAKABUTUKA’s 6 in 1999. Needs 2 TD runs to pass FRED LANE (7) for most in single-season in club history WR MUHSIN MUHAMMAD has TD vs. NO in 3 of past 4 games. Has career-high 192 yards (9 catches, 1 TD) vs. Saints (9/13/98) TE WESLEY WALLS has had at least 50 yards in 3 of past 4 vs. Saints, avg. 15.7 yards per catch in those games. Spent 1994-95 seasons with NO, avg. 47.5 receptions per year Club has INT in 8 of past 9 Rookie first-rounder DE JULIUS PEPPERS needs 6.0 sacks for NFL single-season rookie record (JEVON KEARSE, 14.5, 1999). Seeks fourth multiple-sack game. DE MICHEAL RUCKER needs 3.0 sacks to tie career high (9.0, 2001).

DETROIT LIONS (3-5) AT GREEN BAY PACKERS (7-1)

SERIES

	LIONS	PACKERS
LEADER		74-62-7
STREAKS		Past 4
COACHES VS. OPP.	Mornhinweg: 0-3	Sherman: 4-1
LAST WEEK	W 9-7 vs. Cowboys	W 24-10 vs. Dolphins
LAST GAME	9/22/02: Packers 37 at Lions 31. Green Bay QB Brett Favre throws for 357 yards & 3 TDs in 6-point road victory. Packers rookie RB Najeh Davenport rushes for 84 yards on 22 carries.
LAST GAME AT SITE	9/9/01: Packers 28, Lions 6. Green Bay RB Ahman Green rushes for 2 first quarter TDs as the Packers build 21-3 lead. Green finishes with 157 yards.
TV	FOX (12:00 PM CT): Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Cris Collinsworth

STATS

PASSING	Harrington (R): 117-233-1,312-6-9-59.9	Favre: 169-258-1,893 (3C)-15 (2C)-4-100.2 (1L)
RUSHING	Stewart: 129-553-4.3-3	Green: 162-712 (3C)-4.4-5
RECEIVING	Hakim: 29-384-13.2-2	Driver: 35-587-16.8-5 (2C)
OFFENSE	268.5	356.5
TAKE/GIVE	-1	+15 (1L)
DEFENSE	345.9	318.4
SACKS	Porcher: 4.0	Gbaja-Biamila: 7.5 (2C)
INTs	Claiborne: 3	Sharper: 4 (T1L)
PUNTING	Jett: 43.8 (3C)	Bidwell: 42.0
KICKING	Hanson: 56 (17/17 PAT; 13/14 FG)	Longwell: 71 (3C) (26/26 PAT; 15/20 FG)

NOTES

LIONS:  Club seeks fourth win in past 6 games Team has surrendered only 14 sacks this season after allowing NFL-high 66 in 2001 Head coach MARTY MORNHINWEG spent 1995-96 as assistant coach with GB Rookie QB JOEY HARRINGTON (No. 3) seeks fourth win in seventh career start. Passed for 182 yards, 2 TDs in last meeting in first NFL start RB JAMES STEWART seeks second 100-yard rushing game in past 3 vs. GB. Has 12 career 100-yard efforts & his team is 9-3 (.750) in those games. Lions are 8-2 (.800) when he has more than 20 carries WR BILL SCHROEDER totaled 225 receptions for 3,435 yards & 20 TDs in 74 games with GB from 1997-01. Faces former team for first time. Played college football at Wisconsin-LaCrosse WR-PR AZ-ZAHIR HAKIM leads NFC with 14.8-yard PR avg TE MIKHAEL RICKS leads all NFL TEs with 17.6 yards-per-catch avg Defense seeks to hold opponents to less than 90 yards rushing for fourth consecutive game K JASON HANSON has 1,100 career points & needs 14 to pass EDDIE MURRAY (1,113) for most in club history PACKERS:  Club has won 19 consecutive games when leading at half, longest current streak in NFL QB BRETT FAVRE has 40,520 career yards passing & needs 32 to pass JOE MONTANA (40,551) in sixth all-time. Has 14-7 record (.667) as starter vs. Lions. Is 70-12 (.854) as starter at home, best by home QB since 1950. Has started 165 consecutive games, most by active player RB AHMAN GREEN has 13 100-yard rushing games with Packers & club is 13-0 in those games. Seeks fourth consecutive game with TD & has 7 TDs (5 rushing, 2 receiving) in past 3 games. Has rushed for 3,274 yards with GB & needs 80 to pass EDGAR BENNETT (3,353) in eighth in club history TE BUBBA FRANKS had career-high 9 catches in last meeting Club leads the NFL with 27 takeaways, after posting 39 in all of 2001, & +15 takeaway/giveaway ratio DE KABEER GBAJA-BIAMILA seeks fourth multiple-sack game in past 5. Has 6.5 sacks in past 4 games.

NEW YORK GIANTS (4-4) AT MINNESOTA VIKINGS (2-6)

SERIES

	GIANTS	VIKINGS
LEADER		9-5
STREAKS		3 of past 4
COACHES VS. OPP.	Fassel: 1-3	Tice: 0-0
LAST WEEK	W 24-17 vs. Jaguars	L 38-24 vs. Buccaneers
LAST GAME	11/19/01: Giants 16 at Vikings 28. Minnesota QB Daunte Culpepper tosses 4 TDs, including 3 to WR Randy Moss, to carry Vikings. Moss has 10 catches for 171 yards.
LAST GAME AT SITE	11/19/01
TV	FOX (12:00 PM CT): Dick Stockton, Daryl Johnston

STATS

PASSING	Collins: 170-265-2,041-6-8-82.6	Culpepper: 183-290-2,009 (2C)-8-14-72.6
RUSHING	Barber: 133-545-4.1-4	Bennett: 117-556-4.8-2
RECEIVING	Barber (RB): 40-389-9.7-0	Moss: 53 (2C)-564-10.6-3
OFFENSE	341.3	382.3 (1C)
TAKE/GIVE	-5	-15
DEFENSE	305.4	376.5
SACKS	Strahan: 5.0	Johnstone: 5.0
INTs	Peterson: 2	Chavous: 2
PUNTING	Rouen (Den.): 42.3	Richardson: 41.2
KICKING	Bryant (R): 47 (11/11 PAT; 12/14 FG)	Anderson: 32 (14/14 PAT; 6/7 FG)

NOTES

GIANTS:  Club is 37-4 (.902) under JIM FASSEL when leading after 3 quarters QB KERRY COLLINS has thrown club-record 1,636 consecutive passes, longest current streak in NFL. Colts’ PEYTON MANNING ranks second with 372. Collins seeks third consecutive 300-yard passing game vs. Vikings, including 381 yard, 5 TD effort in 2000 NFC Championship Game. Is on pace for first 4,000-yard passing season by Giants QB since PHIL SIMMS in 1984 (4,044). RB TIKI BARBER rushed for 101 yards & 2 TDs (2, 44) vs. Jaguars last week & seeks first consecutive 100-yard rushing games since 11/25, 12/9/01 (124, 110). Has 324 career catches & needs 4 to pass BOB TUCKER (327) for fourth place in club history WR AMANI TOOMER seeks fourth consecutive 5-catch outing vs. Vikings, including postseason. Has catch in 59 consecutive games & is tied for seventh in NFC with 11 third down receptions (199 yards) Rookie TE JEREMY SHOCKEY (No. 14) tied for NFC lead (ANTONIO BRYANT) among rookies with 24 catches & ranks second with 302 yards receiving DE MICHAEL STRAHAN has sacks against 45 different QBs in regular season, but never Vikings QB Culpepper VIKINGS:  QB DAUNTE CULPEPPER has thrown 55 TD passes & needs 4 to pass WARREN MOON (58) for fourth in club history. Has connected with WR RANDY MOSS for 24 career TDs & needs 3 to become most prolific scoring tandem in club history (Moon/CRIS CARTER). Has 7 career 300-yard passing games & needs 300 yards vs. Giants for sole possession of fourth on club’s all-time list RB MICHAEL BENNETT had fourth career 100-yard rushing game last week, finishing with 114 yards, including 85-yard TD run, longest run in team history. Seeks third consecutive 100-yard game. RB MOE WILLIAMS needs 35 yards for career high (291, 2001). Rushed for 2 TDs vs. TB last week Moss seeks second consecutive 100-yard receiving game vs. Giants. Had 10 catches for 171 yards & 3 TDs in last meeting Vikings have 4 native Minnesotans on roster: C MATT BIRK & G CORBIN LACINA (Cretin-Derham Hall HS), QB TODD BOUMAN (Russell-Tyler-Ruthton HS) & T ADAM HAAYER (Forest Lake HS).

                                               INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (4-4) AT PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (6-2)

SERIES

	COLTS	EAGLES
LEADER	8-6
STREAKS	3 of past 4
COACHES VS. OPP.	Dungy: 1-3	Reid: 0-1
LAST WEEK	L 23-15 vs. Titans	W 19-13 at Bears
LAST GAME	11/21/99: Colts 44 at Eagles 17. Indianapolis RB Edgerrin James rushes for 152 yards & scores 3 TDs as Colts win 6th consecutive game.
LAST GAME AT SITE	11/21/99
TV	CBS (1:00 PM ET): Dick Enberg, Dan Dierdorf, Bonnie Bernstein (Field reporter)

STATS

PASSING	Manning: 207-308-2,125-14-11-87.1	McNabb: 164-289-1,753-12 (T3C)-5-81.3
RUSHING	James: 154-523-3.4-1	Staley: 125-546-4.4-2
RECEIVING	Harrison: 69 (1L)-835 (3L)-12.1-4	Thrash: 33-437-13.2-4
OFFENSE	338.6	369.5 (2C)
TAKE/GIVE	-4	+7 (2C)
DEFENSE	309.4 (2C)	266.9 (2L)
SACKS	Freeney (R): 4.0	H. Douglas: 6.0
INTs	Bashir, Harris, Peterson: 2	Dawkins: 2
PUNTING	H. Smith: 42.6	Landeta: 44.6
KICKING	Vanderjagt: 48 (15/15 PAT; 11/15 FG)	Akers: 77 (1C) (20/20 PAT; 19/20 FG)

NOTES

COLTS:  Have won past 2 vs. Eagles, outscoring Philly 81-27 QB PEYTON MANNING completed 16 of 26 passes (61.5 pct.) for 235 yards with 3 TDs & 0 INTs for 129.5 passer rating in only career meeting. Manning owns 3 of club’s 4 highest single-season comp. pct. marks & is currently on pace for 67.2 pct., which would set franchise record WR MARVIN HARRISON was born in Philadelphia & attended Roman Catholic High School. Was 3-time Maxwell Award winner, given to city’s top player. Aims for 3rd consecutive game vs. Eagles with TD. Has 11 catches for 166 yards (15.1 avg.) & 2 TDs in 2 career meetings. With 69 receptions, Harrison has already surpassed 35 of 49 year-by-year club receiving leaders. Needs 5 catches to surpass former WR STERLING SHARPE (595) for most catches in first 7 seasons Round 1 selection DE DWIGHT FREENEY (No. 11) has 4.0 sacks to lead team P HUNTER SMITH leads AFC with 38.8 net avg. Punt coverage unit allowing NFL-low 3.4 yards per return.  K MIKE VANDERJAGT has scored in club-record 63 consecutive games EAGLES:  Club 1 of 2 NFL teams (GB) undefeated at home Have 25-4 (.862) record when scoring at least 20 points under head coach ANDY REID & have scored in 27 of 32 quarters in 2002. 7-2 start would be best since 1996 QB DONOVAN MC NABB aims to become first QB in NFL history (since 1970) to rush for TD in 5 consecutive games. Ranks first in NFL among QBs with 398 yards rushing & is first QB with 2 100-yard rushing games in single-season since BOBBY DOUGLASS (1972) RB DUCE STALEY has 11 career 100-yard rushing games & with 100 yards vs. Ind, ties RICKY WATTERS for third most (12) in club history. Needs 16 carries to pass Watters (975) in third on club’s all-time list KR-PR BRIAN MITCHELL will play in 200th career game this week while P SEAN LANDETA plays in his 250th Defense has sack in 44 consecutive games, second longest streak in NFL (TB, 52) DT DARWIN WALKER has recorded at least 0.5 sacks in 6 of past 7 games. LB LEVON KIRKLAND has started 131 consecutive regular-season games & has never missed game (168) in NFL career.

ATLANTA FALCONS (5-3) AT PITTSBURGH STEELERS (5-3)

SERIES

	FALCONS	STEELERS
LEADER		11-1
STREAKS		Past 9
COACHES VS. OPP.	Reeves: 6-5	Cowher: 3-0
LAST WEEK	W 20-17 vs. Ravens	W 23-20 at Browns
LAST GAME	10/25/99: Falcons 9 at Steelers 13. Pittsburgh’s defense keeps Falcons out of endzone on 5 plays inside Steelers’ 5-yard line in final 3 minutes.
LAST GAME AT SITE	10/25/99
TV	FOX (1:00 PM ET): Sam Rosen, Bill Maas

STATS

PASSING	Vick: 96-159-1,095-4-1-86.9	Maddox: 105-165-1,205-11-7-90.1
RUSHING	Vick (QB): 48-362-7.5-4	Zereoue: 86-373-4.3-2
RECEIVING	Finneran: 29-369-12.7-3	Ward: 55-607-11.0-7 (T1L)
OFFENSE	321.6	340.5
TAKE/GIVE	+1	+1
DEFENSE	305.4	319.4
SACKS	Kerney: 6.0	Porter: 6.0
INTs	Carpenter : 2	Porter: 4 (T1L)
PUNTING	Mohr: 41.3	Miller: 43.1
KICKING	Feely: 73 (2C) (19/19 PAT; 18/21 FG)	Peterson: 52 (22/22 PAT; 10/15 FG)

NOTES

FALCONS: Head coach DAN REEVES has 193 career wins & needs 1 to pass CHUCK KNOX for sixth place on NFL all-time list. Club 28-10 (.737) under Reeves when leading at halftime QB MICHAEL VICK leads NFL with 0.6 INT pct. (1 INT, 159 attempts). Ranks third in NFL with 100.3 third down passer rating. Ranks second among NFL QBs with 362 yards rushing RB WARRICK DUNN has 11 career 100-yard rushing games & his team has 9-2 (.818) mark in those games. First-round draft pick RB T.J. DUCKETT (No. 18) leads NFC rookies with 348 yards rushing. Had career-high 75 yards rushing & 5.8 avg. vs. Ravens WR BRIAN FINNERAN has 3 TD receptions & needs 1 for career high. Has 29 catches, 22 for first downs DE PATRICK KERNEY seeks third multiple sack game in past 4. Scored first career TD on 4-yard fumble return last week K JAY FEELY is 20-21 (.952) all-time in FG attempts on road & leads NFC with 11 touchbacks on KOs STEELERS:  Are 11-1 (.917) all-time vs. Atlanta, including 5-0 mark at home, & have won 9 consecutive in series. Head coach BILL COWHER has never lost to Falcons (3-0). Club is 7-3 (.700) in past 10 vs. NFC. Team is 9-2 (.818) at Heinz Field QB TOMMY MADDOX was Denver’s 1992 first-round draft pick (No. 25) by Falcons head coach Reeves. Also spent 1995 season with Reeves (NYG). Maddox is on pace to set team comp. pct. (63.6) & passer rating (90.1) records In past 4 vs. NFC, RB JEROME BETTIS has rushed for 412 yards (103.0 yards per game) on 80 carries (5.2 avg.). Aims for 4th consecutive game with TD run vs. NFC WR HINES WARD was All-American at Forest Park (Ga.) High & All-SEC selection at Georgia. Is 2nd in school history with 3,870 all-purpose yards (HERSCHEL WALKER). WR TERANCE MATHIS played 8 seasons with Atl. (1994-2001). Set club records in catches (573), receiving yards (7,349) & TD catches (57) LB KENDRELL BELL earned All-State honors at Laney High in Augusta, Ga. & was All-SEC 2nd-team at Georgia In last game vs. Atl., LB JASON GILDON had 8 tackles, 6 QB hurries/pressures & 1.5 sacks.

SAN DIEGO CHARGERS (6-2) AT ST. LOUIS RAMS (3-5)

SERIES

	CHARGERS	RAMS
LEADER		4-3
STREAKS		2 of past 3
COACHES VS. OPP.	Schottenheimer: 3-1	Martz: 1-0
LAST WEEK	L 44-13 vs. Jets	W 27-14 at Cardinals
LAST GAME	10/1/00: Chargers 31 at Rams 57. St. Louis QB Kurt Warner passes for 4 TDs as Rams score on first 11 possessions to remain undefeated.
LAST GAME AT SITE	10/1/00
TV	CBS (12:00 PM CT): Ernie Johnson, Brent Jones

STATS

PASSING	Brees: 149-239-1,524-10-8-80.6	Bulger: 56-90-696-6-3-94.5
RUSHING	Tomlinson: 186-845 (2L)-4.5-8 (T3L)	Faulk: 151-780 (2C)-5.2-8 (T1C)
RECEIVING	Conway: 45-623-13.8-5	Faulk (RB): 54 (1C)-390-7.2-2
OFFENSE	331.8	366.4 (3C)
TAKE/GIVE	0	-5
DEFENSE	324.6	316.3
SACKS	Johnson: 5.5	Little: 7.0
INTs	Edwards: 4 (T1L)	Bly, Herring: 2
PUNTING	Bennett: 40.4	Berger: 41.9
KICKING	Christie: 34 (22/23 PAT; 4/6 FG)	Wilkins: 52 (19/19 PAT; 11/15 FG)

NOTES

CHARGERS:  Aim for first 7-2 start since 1994 when team advanced to Super Bowl XXIX Head coach MARTY SCHOTTENHEIMER has career 3-1 (.750) record vs. Rams QB DREW BREES, vying for 7th win in 9 starts, makes 1st NFL start in dome In 5 career games vs. NFC, RB LA DAINIAN TOMLINSON has 569 total yards from scrimmage (420 rushing, 149 receiving) for 113.8 yards per game avg. Ranks 2nd in AFC & 3rd in NFL in total scrimmage yards with 1,109 WR CURTIS CONWAY tied for 3rd in AFC in 3rd down receptions (14) with 2 of his 5 TDs. Offense is NFL’s best inside 20, scoring 19 TDs in 26 possessions (73.1 pct.) LB DONNIE EDWARDS returns to Missouri after spending 6 seasons with KC (1996-2001).   Edwards is tied for NFL lead with 4 INTs, including 1 INT-TD. Club tied for 3rd-most INTs (11) in AFC.  DE RAYLEE JOHNSON leads club with 5.5 sacks, tied for 4th in AFC. Team has 24 sacks, has allowed only 10. Defense allowing AFC’s 2nd-lowest 36.5 pct. 3rd down conversion rate (Miami, 35.0 pct.) RAMS:  Club seeks fourth consecutive game with 27 or more points. Team ranks second in NFC with 60.7 redzone TD pct. (28 trips, 17 TDs) QB MARC BULGER looks for fourth consecutive win in fourth career start RB MARSHALL FAULK has 120 career TDs & needs 5 to tie Pro Football Hall of Famer WALTER PAYTON (125) for sixth all-time. Rushed for 178 yards last week & seeks fourth consecutive 100-yard game. Rams are 19-0 when he rushes for 100. Looks for third 100-yard game in past 5 vs. AFC & averages. 94.5 yards rushing with 7 total TDs in past 4 games against AFC opponents. Leads NFC with 59 first downs (43 rushing, 16 receiving) WR ISAAC BRUCE has 58 career TDs & needs 1 to pass ERIC DICKERSON in second place on club’s all-time list. Needs 18 catches to pass HENRY ELLARD (593) for most in club history. Needs 100 yards receiving vs. SD to become first player in club history with 30 career 100-yard receiving games. Seeks fifth consecutive 5-catch game vs. AFC Defense had 10 sacks in first 5 games, 10 in past 3.

HOUSTON TEXANS (2-6) AT TENNESSEE TITANS (4-4)

SERIES

	TEXANS	TITANS
LEADER	--
STREAKS	--
COACHES VS. OPP.	Capers: 1-0	Fisher: 0-0
LAST WEEK	L 38-3 vs. Bengals	W 23-15 at Colts
LAST GAME	--
LAST GAME AT SITE	--
TV	CBS (12:00 PM CT): Don Criqui, Steve Tasker

STATS

PASSING	Carr (R): 107-207-1,387-7-8-68.2	McNair: 171-262-1,768-13-9-86.8
RUSHING	Allen: 90-324-3.6-0	George: 155-532-3.4-4
RECEIVING	Bradford: 26-497-19.1-5	Mason: 35-496-14.2-2
OFFENSE	247.0	309.6
TAKE/GIVE	-5	-1
DEFENSE	322.1	353.4
SACKS	Posey: 5.5	Carter: 7.0 (T1C)
INTs	Glenn: 2	A. Dyson: 3
PUNTING	Stanley: 42.0	Hentrich: 44.3
KICKING	K. Brown: 37 (10/10 PAT; 9/14 FG)	Nedney: 55 (16/16 PAT; 13/14 FG)

NOTES

GAME FEATURES new Houston team (Texans) vs. former Houston team (Titans/Oilers). Titans were known as Oilers & played in Houston from 1960-96. Both teams feature running backs from Ohio State: EDDIE GEORGE of Tennessee & JONATHAN WELLS of Houston TEXANS:  Rookie QB DAVID CARR (No. 1) is on pace to set NFL expansion team passing record with 1,387 yards after 8 games. Former Carolina QB (now NYG) KERRY COLLINS threw for 2,717 in 1995. Collins’ coach in 1995 was current Texans coach DOM CAPERS WR COREY BRADFORD is three receiving yards from 500. In NFL history, only Carolina Panthers (1995) have produced 1,000-yard receiver (MARK CARRIER) in inaugural season. Offense has scored on opening drive of 2nd half 3 of 8 times CB MARCUS COLEMAN will play in his 100th NFL game this Sunday DE JEFF POSEY is tied for 4th in AFC with 5.5 sacks. Defense has registered at least 1 sack in 7 of 8 games this season. Club on pace for 40 sacks, which would be more than 15 of 31 NFL clubs in 2001. Defense is AFC’s 5th stingiest inside 20 with 47.8 TD pct. (11 of 23) TITANS:  Head coach JEFF FISHER is 16-4 (.800) vs. teams with head coach in first year with club. Fisher is 37-26 (.587) vs. division foes. Club is on 1st 3-game win streak since 2000, when team won 8 consecutive en route to Fisher’s first divisional title QB STEVE MC NAIR has NFL’s 2nd-longest active streak of consecutive games (20) with at least 1 TD pass, trailing only Denver QB BRIAN GRIESE (23).   Among active QBs, McNair owns 2nd-best record against divisional opponents (31-18, .633) RB EDDIE GEORGE has 532 rushing yards at season’s halfway mark, placing him on target to reach 1,000 yards for 6th time in his 7-year career. Club is averaging 128.3 rush yards per game (4.6 per carry) in past 3 games after averaging 69.4 yards (3.0) in first 5 games Club tied for 2nd in AFC with 8 fumble takeaways Tied with Denver DE TREVOR PRYCE, Tennessee DE KEVIN CARTER (7.0) may become 4th player in club history to lead AFC in sacks (since 1982) CB ANDRE DYSON is tied for 5th in AFC with 3 INTs KR coverage unit is NFL’s best, allowing only 18.1 yards per return.

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (2-6) AT ARIZONA CARDINALS (4-4)

SERIES

	SEAHAWKS	CARDINALS
LEADER		5-1
STREAKS		5-1
COACHES VS. OPP.	Holmgren: 0-0	McGinnis: 0-0
LAST WEEK	L 14-3 vs. Redskins	L 27-14 vs. Rams
LAST GAME	9/13/98: Cardinals 14 at Seahawks 33. Seattle CBs Willie Williams & Shawn Springs each return INTs for TDs as Seahawks improved to 2-0.
LAST GAME AT SITE	10/29/95: Cardinals 20, Seahawks 13. Arizona S Lorenzo Lynch returns INT 72 yards for TD with 3:44 left in OT to give Cardinals victory.
TV	FOX (2:05 PM MT): Curt Menefee, Tim Ryan

STATS

PASSING	Hasselbeck: 94-168-1,182-4-6-71.1	Plummer: 146-278-1,623-7-9-65.4
RUSHING	Alexander: 147-500-3.4-7 (T3C)	T. Jones: 118-457-3.9-2
RECEIVING	Alexander (RB): 37-309-8.4-2	Boston: 32-512-16.0-1
OFFENSE	294.1	313.9
TAKE/GIVE	-1	+1
DEFENSE	361.1	347.3
SACKS	Bernard (R): 4	Vanden Bosch: 2.5
INTs	Tongue: 2	Wilson: 3
PUNTING	Feagles: 42.8	Player: 43.4
KICKING	Lindell: 43 (16/16 PAT; 9/13 FG)	Gramatica: 46 (16/16 PAT; 10-15 FG)

NOTES

SEAHAWKS:  QB MATT HASSELBECK ranks third among NFC starters with 89.4 fourth-quarter passer rating RB SHAUN ALEXANDER has 5 career 100-yard rushing games & club is 5-0 in those contests. Has 23 career rushing TDs & needs 5 to tie SHERMAN SMITH (28) in third in club history. Has 37 receptions for 309 yards & needs 8 catches & 35 yards for career highs (44, 343). Had career-high 8 catches vs. Redskins last week WR KOREN ROBINSON seeks third 100-yard receiving game of 2002. Had career-high 8 receptions for 100 yards last week. Needs 9 catches & 61 yards for career highs (39, 536). WR BOBBY ENGRAM has 20 receptions in 2002, 18 for first downs TE ITULA MILI had career highs with 6 receptions & 71 yards vs. Redskins DT JOHN RANDLE has 127.0 career sacks & needs 1.5 sacks to pass RICKEY JACKSON in eighth on NFL’s all-time list. Rookie fifth-round draft pick DT ROCKY BERNARD has 4.0 sacks & needs 0.5 to set club single-season rookie record P JEFF FEAGLES has held opponents  to 55 PR yards in 2002, third-fewest in NFL CARDINALS: QB JAKE PLUMMER has 15-10 record (.600) as starter when completing at least 60.0 pct. of passes. Has rushed for 197 yards, fifth most in NFL among QBs, & career-best 6.6 yards per carry average. Needs 21 yards rushing for career high (217) RBs THOMAS JONES (457) & MARCEL SHIPP (206) have both rushed for career highs in 2002 WR DAVID BOSTON has 7 career catches of at least 50 yards & is on pace for third consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season TE FREDDIE JONES averaing 11.1 yards per catch in past 4 vs. Seahawks G PETE KENDALL started 75 of 76 career games with Seattle from 1996-2000 & was Seahawks’ first-round draft pick (No. 21 overall) in ’96 Club has 12 INTs, third-most in NFC, after posting 17 in all of 2001 S JUSTIN LUCAS scored second TD of season on 38-yard INT return vs. Rams.

WASHINGTON REDSKINS (4-4) AT JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (3-5)

SERIES

	REDSKINS	JAGUARS
LEADER	2-0
STREAKS	2-0
COACHES VS. OPP.	Spurrier: 0-0	Coughlin: 0-2
LAST WEEK	W 14-3 at Seahawks	L 24-17 at Giants
LAST GAME	10/22/00: Redskins 35 at Jaguars 16. Washington WR Albert Connell has 7 receptions for 211 yards & 3 TDs as Redskins win 5th consecutive game.
LAST GAME AT SITE	10/22/00
TV	FOX (4:05 PM ET): Pat Summerall, Brian Baldinger

STATS

PASSING	Matthews: 82-152-882-8-3-80.5	Brunell: 136-234-1,612-8-4-83.5
RUSHING	Davis: 123-528-4.3-3	Taylor: 161-690-4.3-4
RECEIVING	Gardner: 32-461-14.4-3	J. Smith: 43-603-14.0-3
OFFENSE	308.1	332.1
TAKE/GIVE	-5	+4 (T2C)
DEFENSE	312.4	332.6
SACKS	Arrington: 7.0	Henderson (R): 5.0
INTs	Bailey, Smoot: 3	McCree: 2
PUNTING	Barker: 41.2	Hanson: 45.0 (2C)
KICKING	Tuthill: 40 (13/13 PAT; 9/10 FG)	Seder: 10 (4/4 PAT; 2/4 FG)

NOTES

REDSKINS:  QB SHANE MATTHEWS seeks fourth win in sixth start this season.  Has 7 TDs & 2 INTs in his 3 wins RB STEPHEN DAVIS has 18 career 100-yard rushing games & with 100 yards vs. Jaguars ties for most in club history (LARRY BROWN, JOHN RIGGINS). Seeks second consecutive 100-yard game vs. Jags after posting 114 yards, 2 TDs in last meeting. RB KENNY WATSON rushed for 110 yards last week vs. Seahawks in first career start WR ROD GARDNER needs 1 TD reception to tie career-high (4, 2001) Club ranks fourth in NFC in holding opponents to 41.4 redzone TD pct. (29 trips, 12 TDs) DE BRUCE SMITH had sack in last game vs. Jags & has sacks against 70 different QBs in 18 seasons. Had 2.0 sacks last week LB LA VAR ARRINGTON has sack in 3 of past 4 games. Has 5.0 sacks in past 4 & career-high 7.0 this season CB DARRELL GREEN needs INT vs. Jax to increase NFL record of consecutive seasons with INT to 20. CB CHAMP BAILEY needs 2 INTs to tie career-high (5, 1999-00) & record third 5 INT season in past 4 JAGUARS:  Play 2nd consecutive interconference game. Are 11-6 (.647) vs. NFC in past 17. Have 37-15 (.712) record at home since 1996, 5th-best in NFL in that span QB MARK BRUNELL passed for 271 yards in last meeting vs. Redskins. Has connected with WR JIMMY SMITH for 41 TD passes, 2nd-most among current QB-WR duos (Indy’s PEYTON MANNING-MARVIN HARRISON, 51) In last game vs. Washington, RB FRED TAYLOR rushed for 124 yards on 22 carries (5.6 avg.). In past 17 games with at least 15 carries, Taylor has rushed for 1,989 yards (117.0 yards per game) & 15 TDs. Tied for 2nd in NFL with 6 runs of 20 yards or more In past 5 vs. NFC, WR Smith has 37 receptions for 515 yards & 2 TDs TE KYLE BRADY had 8 receptions for 111 yards (13.9 avg.) in last meeting Rookie DT JOHN HENDERSON (No. 9) leads club in sacks (5.0) & is on pace to set new rookie team sack record (TONY BRACKENS, 1996; 7.0). Club has sack in 32 consecutive games, 4th-longest current streak in NFL After kickoffs, opponents’ avg. drive start is 25.9, tied for 3rd-poorest field position in AFC.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (4-4) AT CHICAGO BEARS (2-6)

SERIES

	PATRIOTS	BEARS
LEADER	5-3
STREAKS	3 of past 4
COACHES VS. OPP.	Belichick: 1-1	Jauron: 1-0
LAST WEEK	W 38-7 at Bills	L 19-13 vs. Eagles
LAST GAME	12/10/00: Patriots 17 at Bears 24. Chicago QB Shane Matthews passes for 2 TDs & Bears RB James Allen scores twice to lead Chicago.
LAST GAME AT SITE	12/10/00
TV	CBS (3:15 PM CT): Kevin Harlan, Randy Cross, Beasley Reece (Field reporter)

STATS

PASSING	Brady: 208-316-2,189-19 (1L)-9-94.0	Miller: 123-213-1,422-10-6-81.9
RUSHING	A. Smith: 128-554-4.3-3	Thomas: 161-495-3.1-4
RECEIVING	Brown: 46-426-9.3-1	Booker: 47-697 (1C)-14.8-5 (T2C)
OFFENSE	355.8	285.6
TAKE/GIVE	+1	-3
DEFENSE	309.5 (3C)	353.6
SACKS	McGinest: 4.0	Colvin: 7.0
INTs	Law: 3	Austin, M. Brown: 2
PUNTING	Walter: 38.1	Maynard: 41.2
KICKING	Vinatieri: 54 (21/21 PAT; 11/12 FG)	Edinger: 50 (17/17 PAT; 11/14 FG)

NOTES

PATRIOTS:  Aim for 4th win in past 5 vs. Chicago. Including SB XXXVI, club has won past 5 on artificial turf (last loss 11/23/00) QB TOM BRADY makes 1st career start vs. Chicago. Including Super Bowl XXXVI, Brady is 4-2 (.667) vs. NFC. In those 6 starts, Brady has completed 116 of 184 passes (63.0 pct.) for 1,219 yards with 11 TDs vs. 7 INTs for 86.3 passer rating. Has thrown 7 of his NFL-best 19 TD passes in 4th qtr. -- tied for 2nd-most 4th qtr. TD passes RB ANTOWAIN SMITH (554 rush yards) is on track to become 1st Patriots rusher to amass 1,000 rush yards in consecutive seasons since CURTIS MARTIN (1996-97). QB Brady and RB Smith are both 4-for-4 in converting 3rd-and-1 rush attempts into 1st downs In past 6 games vs. NFC (including SB XXXVI), WR TROY BROWN has 37 catches (6.2 receptions per game) for 452 yards (75.3 yards per game). Brown had 7-yard TD catch in last meeting. Two of Brown’s 12 career 100-yard receiving games have been vs. NFC, one of which was vs. Chicago (124 yards, 9/21/97) LB ROMAN PHIFER leads club in tackes (52). Defense is 2nd in AFC & 4th in NFL in pass yards allowed (176.9) BEARS:  QB JIM MILLER needs 3 TD passes to tie career high (13, 2001). Seeks third win in past 4 games vs. AFC opponents. Has thrown 5 TDs & 0 INTs in past 3 games against AFC foes, completing 61 of 89 (68.5 pct.) attempts for 579 yards & 105.0 passer rating RB ANTHONY THOMAS seeks third 100-yard rushing game in past 5 vs. AFC opponents WR MARTY BOOKER has TD reception in 3 of past 4 games. Has led club in receiving yards in 8 of past 11 games. Needs 100 yards receiving vs. Patriots for career-best 3 100-yard games in single-season. Seeks at least 80 yards receiving for fifth time in past 7 games TE JOHN DAVIS needs 4 catches & 57 yards for career highs in both categories (17, 202, 2000) Club third in NFL with 10 fumble takeaways DE PHILLIP DANIELS tied career high with 2.0 sack last week vs. Eagles LB ROSEVELT COLVIN has 11.0 sacks in past 11 games Special teams specialist S LARRY WHIGHAM spent 1994-00 with Pats, earning spot in Pro Bowl following 1997 season.

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (4-4) AT SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (5-2)

SERIES

	CHIEFS	49ERS
LEADER		5-3
STREAKS		Past 3 at home
COACHES VS. OPP.	Vermeil: 2-4	Mariucci: 1-1
LAST WEEK	Bye (Wk 8: W 20-10 vs. Raiders)	W 23-20 (OT) at Raiders
LAST GAME	11/12/00: Chiefs 7 at 49ers 21. San Francisco scores TDs on 3 consecutive possessions in 2nd quarter to stun Kansas City.
LAST GAME AT SITE	11/12/00
TV	CBS (1:15 PM PT):Greg Gumbel, Phil Simms, Arman Keteyian (Field reporter)

STATS

PASSING	Green: 154-244-1,864-16 (T3C)-10-91.3	Garcia: 153-239-1,680-12 (T3C)-4-94.5 (2C)
RUSHING	Holmes: 190-857 (1L)-4.5-13 (1L)	Hearst: 96-457-4.8-3
RECEIVING	Holmes (RB): 51-440-8.6-2	Owens: 48-669 (3C)-13.9-6(1C)
OFFENSE	382.0 (2C)	356.5
TAKE/GIVE	+6 (1C)	+10 (2L)
DEFENSE	438.0	325.6
SACKS	Hicks: 5.0	Carter: 7.0
INTs	Wesley: 4 (T1L)	Bronson, Heard: 3
PUNTING	Stryzinski: 40.0	Baker: 40.3
KICKING	Andersen: 79 (1L) (28/28 PAT; 17/18 FG)	Cortez: 69 (21/21 PAT; 16/20 FG)

NOTES

CHIEFS:  Club owns NFL’s No. 3 total offense (382.0 yards per game) In 2 career starts against 49ers, QB TRENT GREEN has completed 36 of 64 passes (56.3 pct.) for 511 yards with 3 TDs vs. 2 INTs for 84.8 passer rating. Green’s 16 TD passes on season has him on pace to set club record, surpassing HOF QB LEN DAWSON (30, 1964). Green is NFL’s best 4th qtr. passer, completing 43 of 67 (64.2 pct.) for 534 yards & 8 TDs vs. 1 INT for 122.1 rating With 15 TDs, RB PRIEST HOLMES trails single-season TD record by 11 with 8 games remaining (MARSHALL FAULK, StL, 26; 2000). Holmes is one of 4 RBs to register 3 games of 122 rush yards or more on season. Leads non-kickers in scoring (90); next closest non-kicker has 60 points. Tied for 5th in AFC in receptions (51), leading all AFC RBs, 2nd in NFL (Faulk) TE TONY GONZALEZ leads NFL TEs in TD receptions (6). Club leads NFL in avg. yards per 1st down play (6.72). Offense ranks 4th in league in scoring TDs inside 20 with 61.0 pct. (25 TDs in 41 possessions) Club owns AFC’s best turnover ratio (+6) Punt coverage unit ranks No. 3 in NFL, allowing only 5.4 yards per return 49ERS:  Club plays second of 3 consecutive games vs. AFC foes (SD, Week 11) & aims for 7-2 start for second consecutive season QB JEFF GARCIA leads NFL with 134.7 third down passer rating, including 10 TDs & 0 INTs. Has 9 TDs, 2 INTs in past 6 vs. AFC RB GARRISON HEARST has 14 career 100-yard rushing games with 49ers & will move into sole possession of second place in club history (ROGER CRAIG) with 100 yards vs. KC. Club has 13-1 record (.929) when he rushes for 100 yards. RB KEVAN BARLOW needs 82 yards rushing for career high (512, 2001) & is averaging career-best 4.7 yards per carry. Hearst & Barlow (431) are only RB tandem in NFL to each have 400 yards rushing WR TERRELL OWENS has 66 career TDs & needs 1 to pass Craig for second in club history. Seeks to post third consecutive 100-yard receiving game for first time in his career DE ANDRE CARTER has career-high 7.0 sacks in 2002. Has 7.0 sacks in past 7 games & seeks sack in fifth consecutive game.

SUNDAY NIGHT
MIAMI DOLPHINS (5-3) AT NEW YORK JETS (3-5)

SERIES

	DOLPHINS	JETS
LEADER		37-35-1
STREAKS		8 of past 9
COACHES VS. OPP.	Wannstedt: 2-5	Edwards: 2-1
LAST WEEK	L 24-10 at Packers	W 44-13 at Chargers
LAST GAME	9/22/02: Jets 3 at Dolphins 30: Miami RB Ricky Williams rushes for 151 yards & 1 TD while Dolphins’ defense forces 4 turnovers to snap Jets’ 8-game winning streak versus Miami.
LAST GAME AT SITE	10/14/01: Jets 21, Dolphins 17. New York QB Vinny Testaverde passes for 2 TDs & Jets RB Curtis Martin rushes for another as New York overcomes 17-point halftime deficit.
TV	ESPN (8:30 PM ET): Mike Patrick, Joe Theisman, Paul Maguire, Suzy Kolber (Field reporter). CBS Radio: Joel Meyers, Bob Trumpy, John Dockery (Field reporter). ESPN Deportes: Eduardo Varela, Fuad Reveiz, Luz Ramos (Field reporter)

STATS

PASSING	Lucas: 35-72-363-1-6-33.5	Pennington: 119-168-1,349-6-4-96.6 (2C)
RUSHING	R. Williams: 177-758 (3C)-4.3-6	Martin: 105-389-3.7-3
RECEIVING	Chambers: 28-345-12.3-2	Coles: 38-466-12.3-2
OFFENSE	336.9	302.5
TAKE/GIVE	-3	-2
DEFENSE	318.4	382.9
SACKS	Taylor: 6.5 (3C)	Evans: 4.0
INTs	Surtain: 4 (T1L)	D. Abraham: 3
PUNTING	Royals: 42.8	Turk: 42.4
KICKING	Mare: 56 (23/24 PAT; 11/15 FG)	Hall: 48 (15/15 PAT; 11/16 FG)

NOTES

SIX OF PAST 8 meetings in NY have been decided by 8 points-or-less DOLPHINS:  Play 2nd consecutive primetime game after 24-10 MNF loss at GB. Are 15-4 (.789) on Sunday night, including 5-1 (.833) on road. In past 2 in NY, Dolphins have outscored Jets 40-7 in 1st half Since 1970, are 137-111-1 (.552) on road, tops in AFC QB RAY LUCAS was member of Jets for 4 years (1997-2000). Started 9 games as Jets QB, compiling 6-3 (.667) record & 85.1 passer rating as starter. Attended Harrison (NJ) High School & Rutgers, where he holds school record with 43 TD passes In first game as Dolphin vs. Jets, RB RICKY WILLIAMS rushed 24 times for 151 yards (6.3 avg.) & 1 TD Rookie TE RANDY MC MICHAEL had 5 catches for 79 yards & 1 TD in 1st game vs. NYJ DE JASON TAYLOR, AFC’s Def. Player of Month for Oct., had 6 tackles, 2 passes defensed, 1.0 sack, 1 forced fumble & fumble recovery in Wk. 3 win over Jets JETS:  Aim for 5th home win in row vs. Dolphins & 9th in past 10. In past 3 at home vs. Mia., Jets have out-scored Dolphins 76-21 in 2nd half QB CHAD PENNINGTON has 110.1 passer rating in 4 career starts, completing 93 of 121 (76.9 pct.) for 997 yards w/ 6 TDs & 2 INTs. Pennington’s 76.9 comp. pct. highest of any QB in 1st 4 career starts RB CURTIS MARTIN has TD run in 9 of 14 career games vs. Mia. Martin’s 9 TDs is most by any player vs. Mia. RB LAMONT JORDAN had 1st career 100-yard game in Wk. 9 vs. SD (107) PR-WR SANTANA MOSS leads NFL with 20.6 PR avg., tied for NFL lead with 2 PR-TDs. With 52-yard PR-TD last week, is 1st player since ’79 (J.T. SMITH) with PR-TDs in consecutive games in 1 season.  WR WAYNE CHREBET has 7 TD catches vs. Mia. -- most vs. any foe.

MONDAY NIGHT
OAKLAND RAIDERS (4-4) AT DENVER BRONCOS (6-2)

SERIES

	RAIDERS	BRONCOS
LEADER	50-31-2
STREAKS		12 of past 14
COACHES VS. OPP.	Callahan: 0-0	Shanahan: 12-2
LAST WEEK	L 23-20 (OT) vs. 49ers	Bye (Wk 8: W 24-16 at Patriots)
LAST GAME	12/30/01: Raiders 17 at Broncos 23. Denver QB Brian Griese throws 12-yard TD pass to WR Rod Smith with 9:59 left to put Broncos ahead for good.
LAST GAME AT SITE	12/30/01
TV	ABC (7:00 PM MT): Al Michaels, John Madden, Melissa Stark (Field reporter). CBS Radio: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, Warren Moon (Field reporter)

STATS

PASSING	Gannon: 232-342-2,546 (2L)-16 (T3C)-7-96.7 (1C)	Griese: 187-284-2,116-13-9-90.1
RUSHING	Garner: 81-518-6.4-4	Portis (R): 114-562-4.9-4
RECEIVING	Rice: 51-678-13.3-3	Smith: 49-541-11.0-2
OFFENSE	407.4 (1L)	377.5
TAKE/GIVE	+4 (T2C)	-1
DEFENSE	347.5	270.8 (1C)
SACKS	Barton: 4.0	Pryce: 7.0 (T1C)
INTs	R. Woodson: 3	O’Neal: 3
PUNTING	Lechler: 44.3	Knorr (Dal): 41.0
KICKING	Janikowski: 58 (28/28 PAT; 10/15 FG)	Elam: 67 (3C) (22/22 PAT; 15/21 FG)

NOTES

CLUBS MEET IN 500th MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL GAME. Past 6 meetings have been decided by total of 37 points. Clubs combining to avg. 53.5 points in past 4 games. Game features NFL’s top offense (Oakland, 407.4) against AFC’s best defense (Denver, 270.8) RAIDERS:  Last year vs. Broncos, QB RICH GANNON completed 60 of 82 passes (73.2 pct.) for 555 yards & 5 TDs vs. 2 INTs for 101.4 passer rating. On season, Gannon has thrown for 300 yards in 6 of 8 games; NFL record for most in one year is 9 WR TIM BROWN has 33 catches for 381 yards & 5 TDs in past 4 vs. Broncos. His 13 career TD catches vs. Broncos & 1,669 receiving yards are his second-most vs. one opponent. WR JERRY RICE (51) & RB CHARLIE GARNER (45) tied for 5th & 10th, respectively, among AFC reception leaders -- one of two AFC clubs with 2 players in top 10 (Buffalo). Offense averaging NFL’s 2nd-most 1st downs per game (23.6) Defense has 6 players with at least 1 INT. S ROD WOODSON leads team & ties for 5th in AFC with 3 INTs BRONCOS:  Denver has won 8 of past 9 in series & 12 of past 14. Club is 5-2-1 vs. Raiders in Denver on MNF Head coach MIKE SHANAHAN is 12-2 (.857) in career vs. Raiders, including 7-0 at home QB BRIAN GRIESE has 4-1 (.800) career record as starter vs. Raiders. Griese had 98.6 passer rating in last meeting, completing 19 of 26 passes (73.1 pct.) for 142 yards with 1 TD & 0 INTs. Holds longest current consecutive games streak w/ TD pass (23) WR ROD SMITH had 18 receptions for 147 yards & 3 TDs last year vs. Oakland. In past 7 against Raiders, has 51 catches (7.3 per game). TE SHANNON SHARPE leads NFL TEs in receptions (38). Offense is 6 of 8 (.750 pct.) in converting 4th down attempts DE TREVOR PRYCE (7.0) tied for AFC sack lead (KEVIN CARTER, Tenn.). Defense allowing AFC-low 17.0 1st downs per game .P MICAH KNORR makes Denver debut.
 

BUFFALO, CLEVELAND, DALLAS, TAMPA BAY HAVE OPEN DATES IN WEEK 10

BUFFALO (5-4):  Club was 1-8 after 9 games in 2001 QB DREW BLEDSOE leads NFL in passing yards (2,802) & may become 2nd player in NFL history to pass for 5,000 yards in single season (DAN MARINO, 5,084; 1984) RB TRAVIS HENRY is one of two RBs in NFL to register 3 games of 132 rush yards or more (MARSHALL FAULK, StL). Henry already has more rushing TDs (9) than 35 of club’s 42 single-season rushing leaders WRs ERIC MOULDS (62) & PEERLESS PRICE (60) are 2 of 3 NFL receivers with 60 or more receptions. Moulds & Price are on pace to become 2nd NFL receiving duo to each record more than 100 catches, joining 1995 Lions HERMAN MOORE (123) & BRETT PERRIMAN (108). Price has recorded 3 of his 7 TD receptions on 3rd down -- most in AFC DE AARON SCHOBEL leads club with 5.0 sacks, tied for 7th-most in AFC. 

CLEVELAND (4-5):  Team has scored 20 points or more in 4 of past 5 games In past 3 games, QB TIM COUCH has completed 69 of 104 passes (66.3 pct) for 636 yards & 5 TDs vs. 2 INTs for 90.9 passer rating RB JAMEL WHITE leads club with 409 rush yards, on pace to gain 2nd-most rush yards for club since 1986 (LEROY HOARD, 890; 1994). White is 3rd in NFL among RBs in receptions with 46; only StL’s MARSHALL FAULK (54) & KC’s PRIEST HOLMES (51) have more. Only NFL club to have 5 players with 25 or more receptions PR DENNIS NORTHCUTT (16.8, 2nd in NFL) is one of 2 players with 2 PR-TDs (SANTANA MOSS, NYJ) In past 2 games, DE COURTNEY BROWN has 10 tackles, 2.0 sacks, 2 passes defensed, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery & 1 blocked FG. CB ANTHONY HENRY & LB EARL HOLMES have 13 tackles each in past 2. Defense ranks No. 2 in AFC inside 20, allowing 12 TDs in 31 possessions (38.7). Opponents have been shutout in 8 trips inside 20 -- most by defense in NFL K PHIL DAWSON is AFC’s 4th-most accurate in FGs (15 of 17, .882); only misses were 52-yard try & partially-blocked 45-yarder.

DALLAS (3-6):  RB EMMITT SMITH is NFL’s all-time rushing leader with 16,782 yards. Needs 1 100-yard rushing game to tie BARRY SANDERS in second place all-time with 76 100-yard rushing games (WALTER PAYTON, 77). Smith has 480 career receptions & needs 10 to pass DREW PEARSON (489) in second place on club’s all-time list RB TROY HAMBRICK scored first TD of season last week on 3-yard run Rookie second-round pick WR ANTONIO BRYANT leads NFC rookies with 391 yards receiving & is tied for first with 24 receptions (JEREMY SHOCKEY). WR JOEY GALLOWAY seeks 50th NFL TD (44 receiving, 4 PR, 1 rushing) Defense has allowed 3 TDs in past 4 games Club ranks first in NFC holding opponents to avg. drive start of 25.1 yard-line Team has 9 INTs in 2002 after posting 9 in 2001 Rookie third-round draft pick CB DEREK ROSS had 2 INTs last week vs. Lions & is tied for NFL lead with 4 INTs.

TAMPA BAY (7-2):  Defense has scored 5 TDs & surrendered 9 in 2002. Club has allowed NFL-low 109 points (12.1 per game). Defense holds opponents to NFL best 22.2 redzone TD pct. (18 trips, 4 TDs) QB BRAD JOHNSON has 47-27 record (.635) as starter. Tied club record with 5 TD passes last week (STEVE DE BERG, 9/13/87), passing for 313 yards. Has 10 career 300-yard passing games, including 3 with TB WR KEYSHAWN JOHNSON had 133 yards receiving, 2 TDs (2,19) in win over Vikings TE RICKEY DUDLEY has 8 receptions, 3 for TDs in 2002 DT WARREN SAPP has 7.0 sacks in past 7 games. His 7.5 sacks are most among NFL DTs. DE SIMEON RICE has 7.0 sacks in past 5 games, including 2.0 last week LB DERRICK BROOKS has 4 TDs in 2002 & needs 1 to tie NFL record for most TDs on turnovers in season (5, KEN HOUSTON, 1971). Needs 1 INT-TD to become fourth player in NFL history with 4 in season.

 

 

SPORTS

BASEBALL | BASKETBALL | COLLEGES | FOOTBALL | GOLF | HOCKEY | OLYMPICS | SOCCER | TENNIS

 

 

 

NFL 2002 Season's Second Half Begins & Surprises Keep Coming