Peek at the Week: Giants get chance to get it right vs. Cowboys

Game of the week

Dallas at N.Y. Giants, 4:15 p.m. ET | Preview | Endzone

The line: Cowboys by 1

The injuries: Dallas kick returner Isaiah Stanback (left shoulder) is not expected to play, opening a hole at the position for either Tyson Thompson or Miles Austin. Fullback Oliver Hoyte should be able to return to the lineup after missing the past six games with a neck injury.

Dallas' Marion Barber should help soften the front four of the Giants. (Getty Images)

The week off didn't help Giants running back Derrick Ward. In fact, he had a setback with a groin injury that has bothered him lately. Rookie wide receiver Steve Smith (strained hamstring) has not been cleared to practice, but strong safety James Butler (ankle, hamstring) has and is expected to return to his starting position.

The story: I don't know if these are the two best teams in the NFC, but I know they're two of the top three. And this one is for a division title. OK, OK, so it's early to start talking about who wins what, but the Cowboys can put two games between them and the Giants with a victory, and the Giants can tie Big D with a victory. So the stakes are simple: It's more important to the Giants than it is Dallas.

Anyway, the last time we saw these two play the Cowboys produced zillions of yards and touchdowns in a 45-35 victory that was notable for what the Giants could not do -- namely, tackle. But things have changed, with defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo straightening out his unit so that the Giants now rank among the league's leaders in many defensive departments -- including sacks, where they have an NFL-best 30. In their first two games, both losses, the Giants hemorrhaged 80 points; in their past six, all wins, they allowed 79. It doesn't take a genius to connect the dots.

If I'm Dallas, I don't hang Tony Romo out as bait for the Giants' front four. Instead, I try to soften them up with a lot of Marion Barber and Julius Jones and short-to-intermediate passes to Jason Witten and Terrell Owens. You don't want to get yourselves into third-and-long against the G-Men because they can crush the pocket ... and the quarterback with it. Instead, I'd take advantage of a so-so run defense that allows 4.2 yards a carry.

The Giants, on the other hand, can comfort themselves with this: Despite playing lousy defense in the season opener, they hung with Dallas until the very end. Their defense isn't just better; it's vastly better, and it could be difficult for Dallas to solve. If that's the case, the Giants are at an advantage. They won their past three home games by scoring 28 points a game and winning by an average margin of 14.

They can also tell themselves they stayed with Dallas without battering ram Brandon Jacobs, who bowed out of the opener after only six carries. Jacobs isn't a running back; he's a human bowling ball, and tackle at your own risk. He's coming off a season-best 131-yard effort against the Dolphins and averages 106 yards a start over his past four outings. So Dallas will need inside support, and they might have it in Tank Johnson, making his season debut.

If there's a concern for Dallas it is this: The Giants' leading scorer Plaxico Burress, who scored three times in the season opener, returned to practice this week for the first time since mid-September. Burress continues to be bothered by a sore ankle, but the bye week helped enough that he made a rare appearance at Wednesday's workout -- prompting teammates to cheer when he caught a ball. "It can be nothing but positive," he said. That depends on which sideline you're on.

Three games I'd like to see

Cleveland at Pittsburgh, 1 p.m. ET | Preview

It's refreshing to have this rivalry mean something again, and what this game means is first place in the AFC North. With a win, Pittsburgh all but wraps up the division; with a loss, it falls into a tie with -- and, no, this is not a misprint -- the Browns.

Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger is having a solid season under center. (Getty Images)

Could it happen? Sure. Will it? Probably not. The Steelers are better, and a lot better, than surprising Cleveland. That's not a knock on the Browns. The Steelers are better than everyone in the conference outside of New England and Indianapolis, and they clocked Cleveland in the season opener 34-7.

Now they're home, where they won all four this year and 22 of their past 28.

What I like about the Steelers is their efficiency. They run well. They pass well. They defend well. And they commit few mistakes, with their 10 turnovers the fifth fewest in the league.

Ben Roethlisberger is the NFL's second leading passer, while Willie Parker is its second leading rusher. That, folks, is what we call balance, and it's why Pittsburgh is a threat to the Patriots and Colts. The Steelers know how to control the football, and that's one way of preventing Peyton Manning and Tom Brady from beating you. Their average time of possession is 34:34, and if you think that's high, you're warm. It's almost a minute better than runner-up New England (33:42).

Which is why Cleveland will have trouble here. The Browns are one of the feel-good stories this fall, rallying to catch Seattle last week and St. Louis the week before. They've won four of their past five, and Derek Anderson is making a pitch to keep Brady Quinn permanently attached to the clipboard. The Browns won't be able to run against Pittsburgh because no one does. They allowed one 100-yard rusher in the past 58 games and none in the past 33, so don't look for Jamal Lewis to do a whole lot of anything.

That means the heat is on Anderson, and it also means he could struggle. Unafraid of the run, Pittsburgh will unleash a wave of pass rushers -- including defensive backs -- and Anderson had better get his three- and five-step drops down. He'll need them. Tight end Kellen Winslow, meanwhile, had better refine his peripheral vision. After linebacker James Farrior called out Winslow this week, it's probably a good idea to avoid the middle of the field.

Something to consider: In four home games, Roethlisberger has been lights-out, completing 70 percent of his passes, with eight touchdowns, one interception and a passer rating of 122.4.

Jacksonville at Tennessee, 1 p.m. ET | Preview

Trust me, Cleveland will be watching this game because the Browns could be in a race with one or both of these teams for a wild-card spot as the season winds down. I'm serious. Look at the Browns' schedule after this week, and tell me where you find a winning opponent. Answer: You don't. So they could be this year's New York Jets if they don't screw things up.

Tennessee's LenDale White has three straight 100-yard rushing games. (Getty Images)

Now back to Jacksonville-Tennessee. The Titans are a game behind Indianapolis, and while they're not in the same stratosphere as the Colts, they just keep winning and winning and winning. Hey, they almost knocked off Indy early in the season and have won six of their past eight at home.

That's the good news for the Titans. The bad is that David Garrard is practicing for Jacksonville again. OK, so he isn't exactly the second coming of Mark Brunell. But he's the better passer in this game -- provided, of course, he plays. Garrard still hasn't thrown an interception, and while he doesn't throw all that much, that's a remarkable achievement nine games into the season. Vince Young, on the other hand, has the league's second worst passer rating, but that tells you what passer ratings mean. Uh-huh, nothing. All Young has done is win 11 of his past 14 starts.

The problem for Jacksonville is twofold: 1) a hostile environment and 2) Albert Haynesworth. There's a reason the Titans are first against the run, and look no farther than No. 92. He's having a monster season and should be the leading candidate for Defensive Player of the Year when the voting begins.

The Titans, meanwhile, ran all over the Jags when they met in the season opener. They had 282 yards rushing, the most Jacksonville ever surrendered. While I don't expect that to happen again -- especially after Jack Del Rio's tirade this week -- I do expect the Jags to struggle in their third consecutive week on the road.

If Jacksonville can't run -- and it's going to be tough -- it must rely on Garrard and a shaky passing attack. I'm not sure I trust either at this point. All I know is that LenDale White keeps peeling off 100-yard games, Young keeps winning and the Titans are tough at home. That makes Tennessee an appealing choice.

Something to consider: Tennessee's defense has 12 sacks in its past two games.

Indianapolis at San Diego, 8:15 p.m. ET | Preview

If there is one team that gives Indianapolis fits, it's the Chargers. They nearly beat them in the RCA Dome three seasons ago. Then they stopped their 13-game winning streak in 2005. For some reason, they match up well against these guys no matter where the game is played, and this time it's played where the Chargers won 11 of their past 12 regular-season starts.

Joseph Addai will cause problems for the Bolts. (Getty Images)

San Diego is an enigma, one week looking like Air Coryell and the next looking like the 2007 Miami Dolphins. Sooner or later, the Chargers must get their act together, and it's going to be tough to make it sooner without defensive lineman Luis Castillo. He bowed out of last weekend's loss to Minnesota on the second play of the second half, and all the Chargers did without him was get shredded for 300 yards rushing -- and that's in one half, people.

Joseph Addai is not Adrian Peterson, but the guy is special. A week ago he played at a different speed than the New England defense, ravaging the Patriots for 112 yards rushing and 114 yards receiving -- the first player in Colts history to hit 100 in both departments on the same afternoon. Addai will give the Chargers trouble, and so will tight end Dallas Clark. He wasn't much of a factor against New England, but he could be here.

Another problem for San Diego is its quarterback. It's not that he's not playing like Peyton Manning; it's that he's not playing like Philip Rivers. The addition of Norv Turner as head coach was supposed to make Rivers a better quarterback, but the guy has regressed -- and he has taken down the league's most dangerous offense with him. After reaching the Pro Bowl a year ago, Rivers suddenly looks ordinary, and last year's most prolific offense has trouble keeping up with a suddenly porous defense in points.

Look for the Chargers to feature LaDainian Tomlinson. Indianapolis will try to take away the middle from Antonio Gates much as it tried to protect it against the Patriots a week ago, but the Colts will have trouble protecting anything from Tomlinson. Yes, the Colts are more physical on defense, but they could be missing linebackers again. Gary Brackett didn't practice Wednesday, while three others -- Freddy Keiaho, Tyjuan Hagler and Rocky Boiman -- were limited.

And that's not good.

The question, of course, is: Will the Colts be in for a letdown? History says no. A year ago, they beat the Patriots in the regular season, then beat Buffalo the next weekend. After conquering New England in 2005, they beat the Texans. And in 2004, they knocked off Tennessee after an opening-game loss to New England. But this could be different. The Chargers are home, they're desperate and they have a history of success against these guys.

Something to consider: The Chargers have won three in a row against the previous season's Super Bowl participants -- including Chicago in the season opener -- and are 7-3 against them since 2002. Furthermore, they're 3-0 when facing the defending Super Bowl champions.

Crummy game of the week

Chicago at Oakland, 4:15 p.m. ET | Preview

The Raiders plan to kick to Devin Hester -- good luck with that. (Getty Images)

I gave up on the Bears when they lost to Detroit, and I gave up on Oakland a couple of years ago. There are 18 teams in the league with records of .500 or better, and these are not two of them. For good reason: Neither has a quarterback.

Each has tried two this season, and each with similar results. An interception here, a loss there. The Bears have a league-high 16 interceptions, and the Raiders aren't far behind. They have 12, one behind AFC leader Houston. I think you can figure this one out: Keep the ball on the ground, and you have a chance.

The Raiders haven't stopped anyone outside Jamal Lewis in Week 3, allowing a league worst 5.1 yards a carry. If Cedric Benson is ever going to do something, here's his opportunity. Of course, he might not get the chance. The Raiders insist they'll kick to Devin Hester because, as coach Lane Kiffin said, "we're going to see how well we can cover."

Good luck. And good night.

Something to consider: Here's why the Raiders might try to kick off to Hester: Sebastian Janikowski leads the league with 18 touchbacks. Nevertheless, it's still a strategy that's not worth trying, guys.

Upset of the week

San Diego (+3½) over Indianapolis

The Chargers need Shaun Phillips to be at his best. (Getty Images)

I would have felt a lot better about this one had the Colts won last week. Still, I can see an upset for a handful of reasons: 1) Indianapolis is drained after the Game of the Millennium; 2) San Diego always plays the Colts tough; and 3) the Bolts are home, where they have won 11 of their past 12 regular-season games.

Indianapolis is the better team. We all know that. But the Colts are crippled, with 10 players missing Thursday's practice -- including tackle Tony Ugoh and linebacker Tyjuan Hagler. Of course, San Diego isn't doing all that well, either, with defensive lineman Luis Castillo out six weeks, center Nick Hardwick almost certainly sidelined and no word on cornerback Quentin Jammer.

Linebacker Shaun Phillips returned to practice after missing last weekend's game, and he's one guy who could make life miserable for Peyton Manning. If San Diego can run on the Colts -- and I think it should -- the Bolts can control the ball and, ultimately, the game.

Five guys I'd like to be

Terrell Owens has nine touchdowns in the last eight games for Dallas. (Getty Images)

J.P. Losman, quarterback, Buffalo. Because he gets to start against the winless Dolphins, an opponent he beat for seven touchdowns in his three career starts against them.

Mike McCarthy, head coach, Green Bay. Because he has never lost to Minnesota. You can look it up: He's 3-0.

Terrell Owens, wide receiver, Dallas. Because in eight games against the Giants, he has 47 catches for 756 yards and nine touchdowns, with his team winning seven times.

Herman Edwards, coach, Kansas City. Because as coach of the Chiefs, he has never lost to an AFC West opponent at home. He's 3-0.

Eli Manning, quarterback, N.Y. Giants. Because he produced three consecutive multiple-touchdown games against Dallas and beat the Cowboys for four TDs and 312 yards in the season opener.

Stat of the week

Good thing San Diego plays Indianapolis at Qualcomm Stadium. The Chargers are 4-1 on grass. They're 0-3 on an artificial surface.

He said it

"I am disgusted with the irresponsible behavior that some of our players have demonstrated. They are embarrassing themselves, our organization and their peers. (Their actions) show a lack of respect for the code of conduct we expect from everyone in the Jaguars' organization." -- Jacksonville owner Wayne Weaver on the spate of player run-ins with the law.

Where we will be

Pete will be in Baltimore to audition at quarterback.

I'll be at Giants Stadium to try the left side of the menu at Tony Romo's.

Gregg Doyel will be in Pittsburgh to help Kellen Winslow adjust his swivel.

Mike Freeman will be in San Diego to remove Adrian Peterson's cleat marks from the Chargers defense.