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Pittsburgh
Steelers 21, Chicago Bears 9
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Steelers: This is one the Steelers had to have
and they played well on both sides of the ball. Jerome Bettis came
up big in his retro performance.
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Bears: They're still not generating enough offense to win
games like this on the road. If they want to win in the playoffs,
that has to change. Kyle Orton did play a little better, but still
not good enough.
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Cincinnati
Bengals 23, Cleveland Browns 20
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Bengals: Coming off two big games, this was a natural
letdown for the Bengals and it showed. Rudi Johnson came up big,
but Carson Palmer didn't. They should feel fortunate to win this
one.
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Browns: This team is still fighting, which is a good sign.
The defense did a nice job against that high-flying Cincinnati
offense.
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Tennessee
Titans 13, Houston Texans 10
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Titans: They didn't do a lot offensively, but the defense
played well. They should still feel fortunate the way they held on
at the end.
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Texans: How many different ways can they find to lose? Kris
Brown missed a 31-yard field goal on the last play. Ouch. At least
they're alive in the Reggie Bush derby.
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Indianapolis
Colts 26, Jacksonville Jaguars 18
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Colts: Peyton Manning showed the Jaguars they can't hold
him down all the time. The defense came up big except for a
late-game swoon.
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Jaguars: They didn't do enough on offense until it was too
late. They played not to lose instead of to win in the first three
quarters. They were handled on this day.
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New England
Patriots 35, Buffalo Bills 7
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Patriots: Look who's playing better as we come down the
stretch. The New England defense is suddenly playing well now that
it's getting healthy. Tom Brady was cooking Sunday, too.
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Bills: That was ugly, real ugly. The Bills did nothing on
offense and couldn't stop the Patriots. Yecch.
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New York
Jets 26, Oakland Raiders 10
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Jets: So the Jets offense can score a touchdown. They got a
decent running game going, which kept the pressure off Brooks
Bollinger. The defense had a nice day.
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Raiders: Marques Tuiasosopo wasn't the answer at
quarterback. He struggled to get the team moving. The run defense
wasn't very good.
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Minnesota
Vikings 27, St. Louis Rams 13
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Vikings: The defense had a big day, picking off Ryan
Fitzpatrick five times. Brad Johnson did a nice job managing the
game again.
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Rams: There will be days like this when a rookie is
starting at quarterback. The kid will make mistakes. It's up to
the others to pick him up and they didn't.
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Tampa Bay
Buccaneers 20, Carolina Panthers 10
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Buccaneers: This is a huge victory for this team. Cadillac
Williams had a big day and the defense did a nice job limiting the
Panthers running game.
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Panthers: They couldn't get the running game going and they
couldn't stop it. That's a bad combination. This was a chance to
grab a firm hold of the division, which makes this a really bad
loss.
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New York
Giants 26, Philadelphia Eagles 23 (OT)
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Giants: The offense moved the ball all day, but three
interceptions by Eli Manning hurt. The defense struggled to stop
the run -- which isn't good heading to playoff time. At least Jay
Feely made the kick this time.
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Eagles: They bounced back with a nice effort after their
awful performance last Monday. Ryan Moats had a nice day running
the ball. Andy Reid deserves credit for this team playing hard.
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Seattle
Seahawks 41, San Francisco 49ers 3
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Seahawks: Seattle did a nice job against the jayvee. The
offense was overpowering against the 49ers. Matt Hasselbeck had a
heck of a day.
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49ers: Alex Smith continues to find the NFL troubling. He
just can't get anything going. The defense didn't offer much
resistance, either.
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Washington
Redskins 17, Arizona Cardinals 13
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Redskins: They had to have this game to stay in the playoff
hunt, and they found a way. Mark Brunell struggled with three
interceptions. Antonio Brown had a nice kickoff return for a score.
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Cardinals: They lost three fumbles and that was a killer.
The running game still doesn't threaten anybody.
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Denver
Broncos 12, Baltimore Ravens 10
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Broncos: It sure wasn't pretty, but they'll take it. The
running game hasn't clicked the past couple of weeks, and that's a
concern. The defense had a good day.
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Ravens: The defense played well, the offense made too many
mistakes. Kyle Boller just makes some of the dumbest throws you'll
see.
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Dallas
Cowboys 31, Kansas City Chiefs 28
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Cowboys: This one belonged to Drew Bledsoe and the passing
game. He lit up the Kansas City secondary for three scores. The
Cowboys run defense was bad.
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Chiefs: They had no answer for Bledsoe and that passing
game, wiping out a great day by Larry Johnson. Their playoff hopes
were damaged greatly.
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Miami
Dolphins 23, San Diego Chargers 21
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Dolphins: Give this one to coach Nick Saban. He had his
team ready to play. Chris Chambers had a second consecutive big
day.
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Chargers: This is what we'd call laying an egg. The
Chargers had no business losing at home to this team. The pass
defense was bad.
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Green Bay
Packers 16, Detroit Lions 13 (OT)
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Packers: Samkon Gado had another big day and the Packers
defense did a nice job on a goal-line stand in the fourth quarter.
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Lions: The Lions played hard, but they blew a 10-point
lead. They still make way too many mistakes, like the overtime
personal foul penalty on Shaun Rogers.
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Charger Pride 
