The Oakland Raiders did Tuesday what many expected them to do for a while, which was to replace offensive coordinator Tom Walsh.

Walsh, as we've been told, was a tough guy to work with inside the Oakland building. Plus, his offense was last in the league. The problem was that Walsh's offense was outdated, something he used he was the coordinator in the late 1980s and early '90s under Art Shell.

Things change. Walsh didn't. Teams are faster on defense, there's more blitzing, and that means quicker throws. The Raiders didn't adjust, which is why their quarterbacks got killed.

The offense was a failure under Walsh, which can be expected since Shell hired him away from his job running a bed and breakfast in Idaho. He was also the mayor of the city he lived in.

Think George W. Bush might be interested in the Raiders coordinator position when he's finished? How about John McCain? Hey, the last politician did such a good job, why not another?

Now the Raiders will turn to John Shoop, former offensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears under Dick Jauron. Don't expect much. Shoop's offenses at Chicago were widely criticized.

I once called it his offense the Run-and-Shoop. The concept: Throw a 4-yard pass on third-and-12 and hope like heck the receiver does the rest.

The Raiders are a mess. Too bad the team didn't hire Bob Petrino when it had the chance.

Del Rio not leaving, but others ...

Keep an eye on the Jacksonville coaching situation. Although there has been speculation that coach Jack Del Rio will lose his job, that won't happen.

But you can expect changes.

Among those who could be in trouble are offensive coordinator Carl Smith and special teams coach Pete Rodriguez.

Smith's offense is struggling, and Rodriguez has seen his punt-coverage unit give up two 82-yard returns for touchdowns this season. It didn't help that he opted to squib kick after the Jaguars had tied the Buffalo Bills last Sunday with 28 seconds left. The Bills retuned the ball to the 40, hit one 30-yard pass and then kicked the game-winning field goal on the last play.

Del Rio then threw Rodriguez under the bus Monday when he said he wasn't in on the call to squib the kick.

There is talk inside the building that Rodriguez has alienated some of the other coaches, and that could lead to a separation. He is said to be making $650,000, which is a lot of money for a special teams coach who isn't getting it done.

Defensive linemen need protection, too

When Mathias Kiwanuka pulled off Vince Young in Sunday's Titans-Giants game, it cost New York the game. Young got a first down on the fourth-down play, the Titans went and tied it, and then won it in regulation.

Kiwanuka, a rookie from Boston College, was ripped by coach Tom Coughlin, and rightfully so. He quit on the play.

But in defense of Kiwanuka, part of the problem is the league's protection of quarterbacks. Defensive linemen are scared to make a play, fearful of a getting a penalty.

So while it was a bad play, it might be something we see more of in the future.

Quick hits

• The Saints defense has held up surprisingly well this season, but it will be shocking if it stays that way. After seeing the Saints play live for the first time last week, the speed at linebacker is a major issue. That could be a problem as move into December. One Saints official acknowledged that improving the linebacker corps would be a priority in the offseason. Adding another cover corner is also something that will be looked at closely. Jason Craft has done a nice job opposite Mike McKenzie, but he can't be the answer for the long run.

• Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson, a player I've been pushing to go to the Pro Bowl for the past three seasons, might finally get his much-deserved berth after returning a fumble 99 yards for a touchdown last week against the Vikings. It was Wilson's second 99-yard touchdown this season, the other being an interception return against the Falcons. According to Elias Sports Bureau, he is the only player in league history to have two touchdowns of 99 yards with neither being a kickoff return. But Wilson is much more than just a guy with a rare return statistic. He's a good tackler, a good blitzing safety and he he's improved greatly in coverage. If he were on any other team, he'd be a sure Pro Bowl selection. It's time he gets his due and goes to Hawaii.

• I used to call Jake Delhomme "Jake the Fake." Then after a couple of good seasons, I relented this summer. I even told him so. No more Jake the Fake. Well, you know what? Sometimes first instincts are the best. Delhomme is struggling in a big way, so much so that the Panthers have to be considering quarterback options for next season.

• Niners coach Mike Nolan is taking a lot of heat for his decision to kick a field goal on fourth-and-inches at the St. Louis 7 with four minutes left in the game. He shouldn't be. Leading 14-13, the right call is to go up by four in that spot and make the Rams score a touchdown to beat you. If the Rams make the stop there, all they need is a field goal to win it. Nolan did the right thing. Even if the 49ers make the first down, they still might not get the touchdown. Would they run more time off the clock? You bet. But that's not a sure victory, either. The Rams scored a touchdown late to win the game 20-17, which is why Nolan's taking the heat, but he doesn't deserve it. He did the right thing.

Michael Vick is losing it.

Aside from flipping off the fans as he walked off the Georgia Dome field Sunday, there have been other signs. He has complained about the play-calling. He has complained about his receivers and Sunday he questioned them after they dropped a bunch of passes.

There was even an interesting play during the game. When Vick threw way behind and low to receiver Michael Jenkins, the crowd booed. So what did Vick do? He gave the signal that the ball was tipped at the line of scrimmage, which it was.

Translation: It wasn't my fault.

That's the problem. None of it is Vick's fault. It's time he took responsibility for his actions.

The Falcons are 5-6 and heading nowhere. The coaching staff could be on its way out. Vick isn't going anywhere. We don't think. Remember this is a team with Matt Schaub as the backup. He's a restricted free agent after the season and some team will make a play for him.

The Falcons can't afford to keep both, so it looks like they're pretty much stuck with Vick.

I said stuck.

Until he learns to pass, and until he learns to be held accountable, he's just a guy running around making plays. He'll never be considered a quarterback.

As for the bird-flipping, he apologized later. But what if that were Terrell Owens or Chad Johnson or somebody else?

Imagine the fury?

Here's hoping Vick gets things turned around. He's a good kid who's obviously going through a difficult time. One more thing: The Falcons need to quit babying him. That could be a good way to start.

If you rip the coach for his play-calling, do something about it when it changes. Tiki Barber ripped Giants coach Tom Coughlin publicly for abandoning the run last Monday night in a loss to the New York Giants.

So Coughlin, after a face-to-face meeting with Barber last week, fed Barber in Sunday's loss to the Titans. Barber carried 25 times for 82 yards. That's not good enough. That's only 3.3 per carry. If you want the ball, and get it, do something with it.

By the way, why does Barber get a free pass after blasting Coughlin? If that was Owens or Chad Johnson or Keyshawn Johnson, it would have been huge news, and those players would have been ripped.

Barber, likable in the media, caught no heat. He should have. And now that he had a so-so game after griping about not getting the ball, he deserves even more.

One footnote about Coughlin supposedly abandoning the run: He has told people that his biggest regret in coaching was abandoning the run in the 1999 AFC Championship Game when he was coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars were upset by the Titans that day.

Funny how the Barber abandonment talk came on that same Alltel Stadium Field.

Did you know that if you're not from Texas, you're a foreigner when you visit?

Let me tell you why. I took a cab to the Cowboys-Colts game Sunday, and when I got near the stadium, my cab driver, who was from another country -- somewhere in the Middle East, I think -- asked if I would get out in an area that was full of traffic.

I said OK, paid him, and jumped out. As soon as I did, a police officer came rushing at me.

"You can't do that," he screamed at me. "You can't do that."

He was trying to make me get back in the cab, when it raced off. "He told me to get out," I said to the cop. "He was a foreigner and he told me to."

"Are you from Texas?" the cop said.

"No," I replied.

"Then you are a foreigner, too," he said.

So let's see: I am born in New York and live in Florida, but I am a foreigner when I visit Texas?

At least he didn't give me a ticket or take me away.

You know what they say about foreign prisons.

The tooth hurts

With former Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin returning to Jacksonville to face his former team Monday night, the local newspaper did a story Sunday featuring people who worked with or around Coughlin and some of their memories.

Since they didn't ask me, and I covered the man for six years for that very same paper, I'll offer one of my favorites.

During one of the seasons when I was on the beat, Coughlin made the hallway at Alltel Stadium, which houses the team's operations, off-limits to me and the rest of the media. No biggie. We knew where we stood, the guards always keeping us out. Yes, guards.

But one day while eating lunch, I had a crown pop off and needed to see what it looked like under there. One problem: There was no mirror in the bathroom in the media work area.

So I raced down the hall to another bathroom in the no-media zone. The guard stationed there cautioned me not to cross the line.

"Sorry, dude," I told him as I blew past him. "I have to get to a mirror."

The next day is when Coughlin factors in. While standing on the practice field, I got a call from one of the public relations assistants.

"You're not gong to believe this," he said. "There's a maintenance man in the media bathroom, putting up a mirror."

Who do you think made that happen?

So if you're ever in Alltel Stadium and happen to make your way into the media bathroom in the lobby, look for that mirror.

It's mine.

Stand and deliver

The game is meant to be played in the pocket.

That is something I preach about NFL quarterbacks all the time. Why? You don't like to risk injury. We learned again Sunday that the pocket is the best place to be after Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb was lost for the season with a torn ACL in his right knee.

McNabb injured the knee while trying to throw a pass as he was being chased out of bounds. He landed awkwardly, which is how he tore up the knee.

I'm not saying that a quarterback should stay in the pocket all the time, but the more you can limit the runs outside of it, the safer you will be.

Donovan McNabb is exhibit A.

Stand and deliver, Part II

What is wrong with Eli Manning?

Here's what: He's chucking and ducking. Manning is not staring down the gun barrel, waiting to make throws. He's throwing and then ducking.

That's a killer for an NFL quarterback.

Manning needs to put on the tape of his brother, Peyton, who stares down a rush as well as anybody in the game.

Eli was awful Monday night against the Jaguars, and a lot of it had to do with his inability to wait until the right moment to make a throw, instead choosing to throw and duck.

If that doesn't change, the kid has no chance to come close to his brother, and the Giants will be left wondering if they made the wrong move trading to get him.

Quick hits

• If you love seeing collisions, watch Cowboys rookie fullback Oliver Hoyte. At 250 pounds, this former college linebacker packs quite a wallop when he meets linebackers head on in the hole. He had one knockdown of Colts linebacker Rob Morris that was crushing.

• That was a tricky decision coach Marty Schottenheimer had at the end of the Chargers-Broncos game. Leading by 1, he had the ball at the Denver 1 with just over a minute to play. Faced with a third down, he opted to try and score on that play, rather than take the clock down and try and do it on fourth down. He scored on third down, but it almost backfired when the Broncos moved the ball to the San Diego 30 in the closing seconds. It worked out, and it's a tough decision, but Schottenheimer probably played it right, although he would have been wise to go for two after he scored. He was up seven and a two-point play wins the game. If he doesn't get it, it wouldn't matter. The Broncos would kick the extra point if they scored if down seven.

It's good to see Vinny Testaverde back in the league, signing with the New England Patriots this week. He's one of the classiest players to ever put on a uniform.

He once did something for me that I will never forget. I never have been a guy who cares much for autographs or that type of thing, even when I was a kid. But when my mother was dying of cancer in 1989, I asked Testaverde, then with Tampa Bay, if he would sign something urging my mother to fight. He was one of her favorite players (It's an Italian thing).

I didn't know Testaverde at all, yet he gladly obliged my request and wrote a nice message to my mother. My mom lost her fight with cancer that year, but I still have the frayed piece of paper that Testaverde signed for my mother.

Testaverde means Green Head in Italian. What it means to me is class.

Welcome back, Vinny.

Jax news: Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio isn't going to get fired after the season, no matter how his team finishes up.

There has been some speculation -- bad information, mind you -- that Del Rio could be in trouble if his team doesn't make the playoffs. Forget that. Del Rio signed a contract extension after the 2005 season that raised his salary to over $3 million. Owner Wayne Weaver isn't one of those owners with a pocketful of cash, making it tough to let Del Rio go -- even if that's what he wanted to do, and it isn't.

Now if the Dallas Cowboys job opened up, Del Rio might be a candidate for that job. The Cowboys would have to compensate the Jaguars in that scenario with draft picks. Del Rio played for the Cowboys, winning a Super Bowl ring there.

What could be happening inside the Jaguars building is a fracturing in the front office. James Harris, the team's general manager, is the one responsible for the team's first-round picks, and they haven't exactly worked out. When Del Rio sat down quarterback Byron Leftwich two weeks ago, it was a sign that Del Rio might be getting more and more power in the building.

There is some talk that Gene Smith, the team's director of college scouting, could be in line for a bigger role. Smith is largely given credit for the team's draft picks from the second round on down, and those picks have been solid, particularly the second-round picks.

In the second round under Del Rio and this regime, the Jaguars picked cornerback Rashean Mathis, running back Greg Jones, who is hurt but would be starting, middle linebacker Daryl Smith, tackle Khalif Barnes and running back Maurice Jones-Drew. Mathis, Smith and Barnes are among the team's best players.

Keep a close eye on the front office. Del Rio isn't getting the ax, no matter what happens the rest of the way.

Quick hits

•  Herm Edwards is making the right move inserting Trent Green back into the starting lineup. When healthy, Green is one of the better passers in the game. Damon Huard, who has done a nice job filling in, is a career backup. You can't change that pedigree overnight. If Green is healthy, and they say he is, he should be the starter.

•  It's about time the New England Patriots fixed that cow-pasture of a field they were playing on at Gillette Stadium. It was an embarrassment. The Patriots will now be playing on FieldTurf. Anything, including an empty lot, is better than what they were playing on.

•  If you're planning to watch the Michigan-Ohio State game, keep an eye on Michigan defensive tackle Alan Branch. At 330 pounds, he is a force in the middle and could be a high draft pick next April if he opts to give up his senior season. The Buckeyes will have trouble moving him off the point.

What makes the San Diego Chargers offense click?

The obvious answers are running back LaDainian Tomlinson, tight end Antonio Gates and quarterback Philip Rivers.

Tomlinson has another answer.

"It's the offensive line," Tomlinson said.

He's right on with that one. The San Diego offensive line is making a strong push to stake the claim as the league's best. What's even better is that they're all relatively young.

Left tackle Marcus McNeil is a rookie, left guard Kris Dielman is in his second season, center Nick Hardwick and right tackle Shane Olivea are in their third seasons and right guard Mike Goff is in his sixth.

McNeil has been a real find. Coming out of Auburn, he had all the tools teams love in a tackle. He was huge (6-feet-9, 350) and he had the power do knock people off the ball. But for some reason scouts thought he might be a bit too slow to handle playing left tackle in the NFL, which is why he was targeted mainly as a right tackle.

The Chargers used him at both positions in the preseason, but when Roman Oben went down with an injury, McNeil was forced in as the starter at left tackle. The job is now his for a long time, even though Oben is back.

So the next time you see Tomlinson rip off a touchdown run, remember the five guys up front. They're really growing as a unit.

Quick hits

• I've known Mark Brunell for a long time. He was a darn good quarterback when I covered the Jaguars from 1995-2000. But Joe Gibbs is making the right move to sit him down and play Jason Campbell. Brunell has never been comfortable with what the Redskins have done during his time there. In his first season, Gibb's first back from retirement, the offense was outdated. Lat season, after a few tweaks, he was limited by the lack of weapons other than Santana Moss. This year, he's had a tough time adjusting to Al Saunders' huge playbook. Campbell deserves the chance to see if he's the quarterback of the future. Brunell has had a nice career. Perhaps now it's time for him to consider that political career he has mentioned in the past.

• The Cincinnati corners aren't very good. Tory James and Deltha O'Neal are two veterans who have had some decent seasons since coming to the Bengals. But they're not playing well this season, and it's killing the defense. It's time for the team to put rookie Jonathan Joseph in the lineup. Both James and O'Neal were let go by other teams before coming to the Bengals. That's usually a pretty good sign that they're just guys. The Bengals are finding that out now.

• A couple of years ago, I wrote that Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher was overrated. At the time, he was. He isn't anymore. Watching him play the past two weeks has been a real treat. He's all over the field, playing with a high intensity that you see from the great ones. Overrated? Not anymore.

• The Jaguars receivers are having major problems catching the ball. They had seven drops Sunday, two that turned into interceptions. The scary thing about that is that Reggie Williams and Matt Jones were both first-round picks. If they don't pick it up down the stretch, the word bust might be showing up next to their names, especially for Williams, who is in his third season. Williams also got into a jawing match with a fan during Sunday's loss to the Texans. That's not a good thing for a player known for his maturity issues.

• David Carr continues to grow as a quarterback. He is much more comfortable in the pocket, knows when to take off and when to throw it away. All that hard coaching from Gary Kubiak has appeared to pay off. Carr has the tools to be a Super Bowl quarterback. Give props to Kubiak for starting to get it out of him.

When Roger Goodell was named the NFL's commissioner earlier this year, some wondered how he would handle discipline.

We have our answer.

Goodell has been amazingly swift in handing out punishment to both players and owners -- Dan Rooney got hit -- for infractions.

This week, Goodell fined Oakland Raiders defensive end Tyler Brayton and Seattle Seahawks tight end Jeremy Stevens for their Monday night adventures. Brayton was fined $25,000 for his knee to the groin of Stevens, while Stevens got a $15,000 fine for attempting to knee Brayton earlier.

Goodell didn't wait a week to make his decision. He delivered it swiftly, so everybody involved could move along.

So far, Goodell has made quite an impression in his first couple of months on the job.

Now comes a tough test: What to do with the Los Angeles market? That's been one of his babies even before he was commissioner.

But if we are grading Goodell on his first couple of months, he'd probably be getting an A.

Quick hits

•  Steelers coach Bill Cowher benched cornerback Ike Taylor for this week's game against the Saints. Taylor had an awful day last week against Javon Walker and the Broncos. But he came into the season as the team's best cover player, a big, physical corner. He then signed a new long-term deal and some speculated that the money caused him to lose some of his hunger. He will be replaced in the lineup by second-year player Bryant McFadden. The move is proof that Cowher isn't afraid to mess with high-priced players, but it's also proof that maybe the Steelers erred in giving Taylor the big contract. I still think Taylor can be a good player, Maybe this will help get him out of his funk. Even on the two passes on which he gave up touchdowns last week to Walker, he was in the vicinity and just didn't make a play. That's a good sign.

•  The loss of receiver Amani Toomer for the season with a knee injury is huge for the Giants. Now it's up to speedster Tim Carter to fill the void. Carter is faster than Toomer, so he might be able to stretch the field more than Toomer. This will put a lot of pressure on Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey to make more plays.

•  I thought it was interesting this week that the Arizona Cardinals players had a players-only meeting after Bert Berry ripped into some of his teammates. It's nice to see the Cardinals still care. This thing is getting away from Dennis Green, which means there will certainly be a coaching change after the season.

•  Don't you get the impression that Chiefs coach Herman Edwards wants to wait until after Sunday's game against Miami to make a real decision about what he will do with his quarterback situation? If I was him, I'd want to see Damon Huard on the road again before talking about keeping him in when Trent Green returns. If Huard plays well against the Dolphins, the job might be his even when Green returns. If he doesn't, you can bet Edwards will go to Green.

As Denver Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey left the Broncos locker room following his team's victory Sunday over the Pittsburgh Steelers, he was moving slowly as he maneuvered his way through the entrance way, one his bags falling to the ground.

"Come on shutdown corner, let's get it going," said another Broncos player.

"They say there aren't anymore shutdown corners," I said to Bailey.

He laughed. "Yeah, no more shutdown corners," he said as he walked away.

That's a little joke I have with him. We've always joked that the chic thing to say is shutdown corners don't exist.

Bailey is not only a shutdown corner, but he's also the best cover corner in this era not named Deion Sanders.

One more thing: He's the most-valuable non-quarterback in the league.

Watching him play the position is a thing of art. He can play man coverage on any receiver, and yet he's also a willing tackler. Against the Steelers, he baited Ben Roethlsiberger into throwing two interceptions, on one play making it appear as if he was beaten.

Sanders will always rank as the best cover corner I've seen. But Bailey is right up there with him -- and moving closer every week.

Quick hits

• I've always thought Steelers linebacker Joey Porter was more bark than bite. Sure, he'd get some big sacks and he was a big reason why the Steelers played well last season, but in that defense that position is supposed to get sacks. Didn't Greg Lloyd and Kevin Greene and others do the same things? Porter has battled injuries this season, but he appears disinterested. That is, if you can find him. He was a total non-factor against the Broncos Sunday. The media loves Porter, especially one national magazine that put him on its cover this summer. But the way I see it, he's overrated.

• The ankle injury that will keep Mike Strahan out for 2-4 weeks comes at a bad time. The Giants play the Bears this week and then play at Jacksonville on a Monday night in two weeks. If Strahan is out for those two games, it will be a major blow to the defense and could be something that prevents the Giants from winning home-field advantage in the playoffs. The Giants played without Osi Umenyiora the past two weeks, and his availability for the Bears game is in doubt because of a hip flexor. Back in April when the Giants drafted rookie Mathias Kiwanuka in the first round, many wondered why the team would draft him with those two Pro Bowl ends on the roster. Now we know. You can never have enough pass rushers.

• Bob Sanders is the real deal in the Indianapolis secondary. I've been pumping Sanders a long time in this space -- yes, I was ahead of the curve on that one -- but it's clear his impact is huge on the Colts defense. He is a force in run support and having him back in the lineup Sunday was huge.

• Give props to Lions president Matt Millen. Yes, I just wrote that. Millen hit on receiver Roy Williams. So his batting average is .333 after he missed on Mike Williams and Charles Rogers. That's good in baseball, but it's awful in drafting in the first round.

• Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio said that Byron Leftwich is still at only 85 percent in his recovery from an ankle injury. That means David Garrard will start again Sunday against the Texans. If he does, and he plays well, he could have the job the rest of the way. One interesting sidelight to this quarterback controversy is the potential for Del Rio to spar with general manager James Harris. It was Harris who pushed to pick Leftwich, and there are actually some in the building who refer to Leftwich as Harris' son. If Del Rio opts to stick with Garrard, it would certainly fly in the face of what Harris wants to happen. It might also say something about how Del Rio feels about his status in the building after getting a contract extension last year.

The Jacksonville Jaguars will start David Garrard at quarterback this Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.

It may be longer than that.

Although Byron Leftwich has insisted that he's healthy enough to play, that's not the case. Word is, Leftwich's injured ankle is hurt worse than what he's saying publicly.

Leftwich was never known as a mobile quarterback to begin with. With a bum ankle on his plant foot he would have even less mobility and, like he did in Houston two weeks ago, he might have trouble with his accuracy since he can't step into throws. That's why Garrard is getting his second consecutive start.

Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio has said time and again that Leftwich is his starter when healthy, but the words "when healthy" seem to apply here. If Garrard plays well, the Jaguars could just keep him as the quarterback the rest of the way, especially with Leftwich's ankle more of a problem than has been known.

The interesting dynamic here is that Leftwich has one year left on his contract after '06, which means he was hoping to get a new contract after this season. But now the Jaguars can't possibly give him a new deal since he's on the shelf and on the verge of being replaced. Maybe that's why he was so reluctant to admit the ankle is a problem. It appears the days of Leftwich as the franchise passer in Jacksonville might be over.

If Garrard plays well, he will be the quarterback the rest of the way. If Garrard doesn't show he's the long-term answer, the Jaguars may be forced to draft a quarterback or go the free-agency route.

Either way, the Jaguars might be forced to admit they blew the seventh overall pick in 2003 on Leftwich.

I still think Leftwich can be a good quarterback in the right situation. He needs to be on a team that favors the up-tempo style of offense, one that lets him drop back and throw a lot. A new team might be a good thing for his career.

Reggie Bush was the biggest of the little men entering NFL Draft last April.

Halfway through the 2006 season, two other little running backs have more yards rushing than Bush.

One is Jacksonville Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew, a little pinball runner who has made the most of his chances backing up Fred Taylor. The other is New York Jets running back Leon Washington, who has taken over as the primary runner with the Jets.

Washington has 397 yards on 87 carries, Jones-Drew has 264 yards on 62 carries and Bush has 212 yards on 70 carries. Bush does have 42 catches for 290, which is better than the other two, but the other two each have five touchdowns while Bush has one.

The Saints took Bush with the second selection in the draft while Jones-Drew was a second-round pick. Washington lasted until the second day, going in the fourth round to the Jets.

At 5-8, 200 pounds, Washington heard what Jones-Drew heard entering the draft, which is they were too small, even if they were nearly the same size as Bush.

"I've heard about my size all my life," Washington said. "It doesn't get frustrating. It's just that I have to keep proving myself to all the doubters out there."

In the Jets' first four games, Washington had just 17 carries from scrimmage. But in the past four he's had 69 carries. He's also had two 100-yard games in the past four.

"It's just a matter of coach (Eric) Mangini giving me more of a chance," Washington said. "I'm feeling comfortable with what they are giving me. Whether it's five carries or 20 carries, I have to make the most of them."

So far, he and Jones-Drew are both doing that. When told he has more rushing yards than Bush, Washington laughed.

"A lot of people hadn't seen me play," Washington said. "Now that they're getting the chance, I think I'm making people take notice."

He leads all little-men rookie runners in rushing yards, which is saying something with Reggie Bush in that group.

Quick hits

--Let me clear something up: Byron Leftwich is the Jaguars starting quarterback. If he's healthy enough, he's the guy. End of story. How do we know? Jack Del Rio has said it time and time again, yet nobody believes him. The issue then is the health of Leftwich. His ankle, which Del Rio said was hurt against Washington a month ago, could be an on-going thing.

The ankle is the same one he hurt last season, and it's also the leg he broke when he was at Marshall. So that has to be a concern. But the front office and coaching staff believe Leftwich is the best quarterback in terms of giving them a chance to win. There has been some talk around the league that the Jaguars won't give Leftwich a new contract extension since his deal voids after the 2007 season. That's not true, just yet. They have to find out in the next nine games if he is the guy for the long run. That's why sitting him down for David Garrard makes no sense. Garrard certainly isn't the guy for the long run.

--Pats coach Bill Belichick is a football genius. Mike Freeman, my colleague at CBS SportsLine.com, wrote a column that was dead on this week (for once) about the greatness of Belichick. But when I watch the Patriots, I'm as amazed about another coach on their staff as I am Belichick. And that's offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia. He's transformed a group of guys -- that's what they are since there are no stars -- into a top-notch offensive line. And it doesn't matter who plays. Year in and year out during the Patriots run, the line has made due through a variety of injuries and defections. It's time Scarnecchia gets the attention he deserves.

--The two oldest starting quarterbacks in the league, Minnesota's Brad Johnson and Washington's Mark Brunell, are both on short leashes. If either of those two struggle this week in their games, look for a change. The Redskins will go to Jason Campbell, while the Vikings will go to Brooks Bollinger. The Redskins have to find out of Campbell is their quarterback of the future. The Vikings like rookie Tavaris Jackson, but he has been injured for most of the season so Bollinger would be their guy if Johnson is benched.

--The Giants are already talking about a possible long-term extension for coach Tom Coughlin. It makes sense. The guy can coach. He was a heck of a coach in Jacksonville, too, but his personnel moves were his undoing. In New York, he doesn't have control of personnel, which is a perfect situation. The late Sid Gillman, one of the offensive wizards of the past 35 years, used to rave about Coughlin as an offensive coach. With Eli Manning developing into a top-notch quarterback, the Giants offense under Coughlin will continue to improve.