***THE GAME OF THE WEEK***

The Saints roll over the Patriots 38-17. Saints QB Drew Brees completed 18 of 23 passes for 371 yards and five touchdowns, to five different receivers. Just like Brees, the Saints defense dominated and was able to shutdown the NFL's No.2 offense. The defense recorded two sacks, forced a fumble and had two interceptions, including one by recently signed CB Mike McKenzie. It was over when safety Darren Sharper intercepted Tom Brady's pass in the fourth quarter with the New Orleans leading 38-17.

Ravens steel one from Steelers

The Ravens beat the Steelers in overtime 20-17. In the fourth quarter, Ray Rice's 44-yard catch over the middle on a critical fourth-and-5 set up the Ravens game-tying field goal. The Steelers defense sacked Joe Flacco five times and forced three fumbles, while the Ravens were unable to rattle rookie QB Dennis Dixon for most of the game. Baltimore's only takeaway in overtime proved to be the difference. Ravens Rookie LB Paul Kruger intercepted Dennis Dixon on Pittsburgh's second drive in overtime and returned it to the Steelers 28 yard line. Six plays later, Billy Cundiff nailed a 29-yard field goal for the win.

Vikings demolish Bears

The Vikings defeated the Bears 36-10. The Vikings offense is really looking unstoppable with Brett Favre leading them. Favre is spreading the ball to his receivers and defenses don’t have an answer for stopping the Vikings explosive attack. The Bears objective on stopping Adrian Peterson, Favre spread the ball around to seven different receivers, with five receivers finishing with at least five receptions each. Favre picked apart their soft zone coverage with outstanding accuracy. Although the Vikings' offense still starts with Peterson, Favre's outstanding performances this season is sure to make opposing defensive coordinators re-evaluate their strategies toward the end of the season.

* THE GAME OF THE WEEK*

The Colts won a thriller in Indianapolis over the Patriots 35-34. The Colts were down 24-7 in the 1st half when they started to make a great comeback. Reggie Wayne came through in the clutch for the Colts. He helped start the rally with a 20-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter. He also helped finished the comeback by catching his second and most important touchdown pass from Peyton Manning with 16 seconds left in the game. But before that Bill Belichick made a very controversial call. He made the fourth-and-2 gamble on their 28-yard line backfired when Kevin Faulk's reception was marked inches shy of the first down. Bill Belichick had a lot of confidence in his offense, so much that it over shadowed his 2nd option to punt the ball.

The Redskins End Drough

The Redskins get a much needed victory over the Broncos 27-17. The Redskins defensive secondary was torched early in the game, but the offense picked up the slack. The Redskins OFFENSE really came alive. Filling in for an injured Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts was a great. He gained 114 yards on the ground with a touchdown and his hard running appeared to tire a Broncos defense in the fourth quarter. Also rookie linebacker, Brian Orakpo, has really made a name for himself. He recorded 1.5 sacks in the Redskins win and injured Kyle Orton in the process.

Packers dominate Cowboys

The Packers defeated the Cowboys 17-7 at Lambeau field. The Cowboys just looked out of sync the whole game. They did not put up any points til late in the game thanks to the Packers suffocating defense. The Packers called a slot of five-man overload zone blitzes to disrupt the Cowboys' rhythm. Defensive coordinator, Capers cleverly integrated more safety blitzes to get Charles Woodson involved. Additionally, the Packers mixed their zone coverage behind the pressure to keep Tony Romo from finding open receivers against the blitz. With Romo uncertain and hesitant in the pocket, Green Bay recorded five sacks and forced him into two turnovers. The Packers' defense has been inconsistent, but this effort is what coach Mike McCarthy envisioned when he decided to use the 3-4 defense. Cornerback Charles Woodson led the Packers defensive with nine tackles, two forced fumbles, a sack and a diving fourth-quarter interception in front of Green Bay's end zone.

Bengals defeat Steelers again

The Bengals complete the season sweep on the Steelers with a 18-12 victory. The key to the Bengals win was their defense. The Bengals held the Steelers to 226 yards of offense and continued to pressure Ben Roethlisberger. Cincinnati relied on a variety of five-man pressures to balance its standard four-man rush to keep Roethlisberger on the move. While those four-man rushes involved some stunts and twists, the Bengals didn't blitz much. This allowed the Bengals to keep more defenders in coverage and stop the Steelers' passing game.

Bengals Handle Ravens

The Bengals dominated the Ravens 17-7. They also dominated in all aspects of the game. The one thing that shined the most was the Bengals defense.The Bengals held one of the league's most explosive offenses to only seven points and limited the Ravens to 1 of 10 on third down. While Cincinnati's front seven played exceptionally well, the secondary was impressive. Leon Hall and Johnathan Joseph covered Derrick Mason and Mark Clayton on the perimeter as the team used a lot of two-deep, man under coverage against the Ravens in long yardage situations. This tactic allowed the young corners to be aggressive at the line of scrimmage while protecting them down the field with safety help over the top. With Joe Flacco unable to find high-percentage passes to fall back on in critical situations, the Ravens never clicked offensively.

Saints remain undefeated

The Saints are still undefeated after making a great comeback against the Panthers 30-20. The Panthers jumped out to a 14 point lead but it wasn't enough to win. Drew Brees changed his approach to make an explosive second-half comeback. He attacked the middle of the field with a mixture of short and intermediate throws to take advantage of the soft spots in the coverage. Operating out of a variety of multiple receiver sets, Brees found Robert Meachem on throws that took advantage of mismatches. While most teams would run crossers or square-in routes between the hashes to take advantage of the coverage, the Saints took advantage of the scheme by running vertical routes. This tactic worked to perfection on two separate occasions, producing a 54-yard touchdown and a 21-yard grab on identical patterns. With the Panthers forced to pay more attention to the deep throws over the middle, Brees was able to precisely move the ball by going to his running backs and tight ends on a number of check downs to keep several vital drives alive.

Dallas steal one in Philly

The Cowboys defeated the Eagles 20-16 in a NFC East showdown. The Cowboys defense

sacked Donovan McNabb four times, had two interceptions and held the Eagles, who averaged 29 points per game coming in, to just 16 points. The Cowboys also limited Philadelphia to 4-of-12 conversions on third down and stopped McNabb on fourth-and-inches at Dallas' 45-yard line in the fourth quarter. Tony Romo hit seven different receivers and the mixture made it difficult for the Eagles to focus on slowing down a primary target. Jason Witten and Roy Williams were the favorite options, but the emerging Miles Austin is the team's top playmaker. His only reception was a 49-yard touchdown, which proved to be the deciding score. While the Cowboys will continue to sort out the order in the passing game, the unexpected depth and flexibility of their receiving corps is suddenly difficult for opponents.

Farve Homecoming

Brett Farve's homecoming was a success. He led the Vikings to a 38-26 victory. He threw 4 touchdowns to 4 different receivers and most importantly had 0 interceptions. Special Teams always get overlooked but it has really been helping the Vikings greatly. Percy Harvin averaged 35 yards on five kick returns and provided two game-changers that led to two touchdowns. He also caught a 51-yard touchdown pass. While Brett Favre will rightly receive cheers for his outstanding return to Green Bay, it was the unsung hero Harvin that got the Vikings the tough road win.

Falcons fall to Saints

Ths Falcons fought hard but came up short against the Saints 35-27. Coming into the game, the Saints led the NFL with 72 points off turnovers. The team added 14 more against the Falcons thanks to a pick-six from Jabari Greer and a touchdown drive that came after a Tracy Porter fourth-quarter interception in the red zone. The Saints defense forced Matt Ryan into three interceptions. Saints only scored once in the second half but it wasn't enough for the Falcons to get a win.

NFC East Blowout

The Eagles destroyed the Giants 40-17. The Eagles defense was really dominant in this game. The Eagles used a blitz-happy approach to force Eli Manning into a bad performance. Defensive coordinator Sean McDermott called up the pressure early to hurry the clock in Manning's head and incorporated a series of bluff-and-drop tactics to bait him into hurried throws against their zone. With Manning not being comfortable in the pocket, the Eagles intercepted him twice and kept the Giants from finding an offensive rhythm.

Ravens stomp Broncos

The Ravens end the Broncos win streak with a 30-7 victory. The Ravens rediscovered themselves on defense against the Broncos by not showing exotic looks but by relying on a conservative blend of pressure and coverage. Baltimore's front four got constant pressure on Kyle Orton in the pocket, which forced him to settle for a lot of dump-off passes to the running backs. The Ravens offense was clicking on all cylinders and the Broncos just didn't show up this Sunday.