Manning On Cruise Control in Colts Win

Peyton Manning completed his first 17 passes of the game, threw for 364 yards and tossed three touchdowns in leading the Indianapolis Colts to their eighth consecutive win by defeating Jacksonville 31-24 last night. Despite trailing 14-0 and 24-14, Manning was calm, cool and effective as the savvy vet led the Colts comeback despite playing without Joseph Addai and Marvin Harrison. The Jaguars, meanwhile, fell to 5-10 and are undoubtedly one of the biggest disappointments in the league this year.

One of the biggest questions remaining is whether the Dallas Cowboys came together last week in midst of team turmoil and used their game against the New York Giants as a springboard to bigger and better things. We will find out on Saturday night as the 'Boys host the Baltimore Ravens in the final regular season game at storied Texas Stadium.

The Giants, meanwhile, play another big Sunday night game this week against the Carolina Panthers. Back-to-back poor performances against the Eagles and Cowboys have Giants fans wondering if this team can indeed win without Plaxico Burress. The bigger key, indeed, is the health of Brandon Jacobs, as his presence and productivity allows Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw to be bigger factors.

Mike Holmgren will be coaching his last home game as head honcho of the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday fittingly against Brett Favre and the New York Jets. While Holmgren will be stepping away from Seattle at the end of the year, I would be shocked if he was not back in the league after a year away from the game to re-energize. I wouldn't even be shocked if he contemplated coaching somewhere else next season, as he surely will be wooed by another team this offseason and has already admitted to St. Louis media that he has had second thoughts about his decision. This game for the Jets, meanwhile, will make or break their season, as the team is winless on the West Coast this year.

Giants Need Offense to Rush Back to Consistency

Much has been made of the struggles of the New York Giants' offense without star wideout Plaxico Burress. And while it's true that the lack of Plax's presence and production has hindered the effectiveness of the offense, the real culprit has been the lack of a ground game in recent weeks. The absence of Brandon Jacobs to injury has clearly affected the performance of Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw. Both backs have been effective in this offense because of their change-of-pace nature when contrasted against Jacobs. With both being thrust into more prominent roles, defenses have been able to force a lot of unmanageable third downs. Thus, Eli Manning has looked uncomfortable in the pocket and has been forced to scramble because defensive linemen are pinning their ears back and rushing the O-Line with authority in evident passing situations. The return of Jacobs to good health is vital for the offense to have any chance to move on without Plax.

Brett Favre on the AFC Pro Bowl roster and not Chad Pennington? Believe me, the Favre New York story is great, but Pennington--even Philip Rivers, Matt Cassel and Kerry Collins--deserved to go over Favre.

Meanwhile, Tennessee's Albert Haynesworth actually made a lot more money with his Pro Bowl invite, as a clause in his contract allows him to become an unrestricted free agent at season's end with his selection to the game. Haynesworth and Kyle Vanden Bosch, however, must be able to return from injuries if the Titans are to fulfill their Super Bowl aspirations. Having a first-round bye will give the the defensive standouts an extra week to heal.

In the NBA, the Boston Celtics put their 15-game winning streak on the line tonight against the Atlanta Hawks, the team that took the C's to seven games in their first-round playoff series last year. The game is in Atlanta, where the Hawks took all three home games in last year's series and have only one defeat there this season. After stopping the Cleveland Cavaliers' seven-game winning streak on Saturday, can the Hawks do the same to Celts? The streak has to end sometime. Not to make too much of a regular-season NBA game in December, but this is a statement game for the Atlanta Hawks franchise.

Plaxico's Plight

Look for the New York Giants to use the bullet wound--and not the hamstring injury--as the reason to sit Plax for the rest of the season, as the team most likely will put Plax on the non-football injury list. To be eligible for this list, however, a player must have suffered an injury in a non-football incident; thus the importance of the bullet wound. The main reason, of course, why the Giants will have their doctors look at the wound is so that the Giants can get the money owed to Plax off the books. Now this is all dependent on whether or not the league steps in first. The Giants could also suspend him for conduct detrimental to the team, especially if his lawyer steps in to try to prevent the Giants from citing a medical reason for their benching of Plax. Bottom line is, Plax has played his last game as a Giant, as the team will no longer allow him to be associated with the franchise, especially after Mayor Bloomberg's remarks yesterday. The biggest concern for the Giants, in my opinion, is how the involvement of Antonio Pierce in this shooting will affect the team. To me, Pierce is more valuable to that squad than a guy who has not even been healthy all year on an offense that has been clicking without him.

Tough year for Romeo Crennel. Ken Dorsey? Wow. Not only do you lose Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn, but then Kellen Winslow can't even stay healthy. I'd love to see him get another year, but the odds are heavily against it.

Look for the diuretics issue to be resolved today, as Kevin and Pat Williams are more than likely looking at four-game suspensions, which would absolutely cripple the playoff hopes for the Minnesota Vikings. They came into last week's showdown with the Bears in must-win mode, as the team clearly had the toughest remaining schedule of the contending NFC North teams. With the win, Minnesota looked to have the upper-hand, but these suspensions probably cannot be overcome.

Champion Giants Begin Title Defense

The New York Giants began defense of their Super Bowl championship with a dominant 16-7 victory over the Washington Redskins last night. The G-Men scored on their first four possessions, while the defense limited the 'Skins to 11 first downs and 209 total yards. And better yet, Plaxico Burress is a happy, well-paid man after signing a two-year contract extension just hours before kickoff.

We'll get our first chance to see the stronger, more mature Jimmy Clausen on Saturday as Notre Dame opens its season against lowly San Diego State. I was a big fan of the Chuck Long hiring at State, but the lowly Aztecs' loss to Cal Poly on Saturday doesn't bode well for his future. With a depleted defensive line potentially featuring fill-in linebackers, look for the Irish to hand the ball off regularly to Robert Hughes, Armando Allen and James Aldridge. Or look for them to throw the ball because it's Charlie Weis.

Miami (FLA) visits Florida on Saturday night, and while it's not expected to be the bitter war we have seen in years past (and expect it to be again in a few years), it will be intriguing to see all the young kids Randy Shannon will be rolling out there. Eleven Hurricanes caught passes last week, six of them being true freshmen. The defensive line is also loaded with young talent as the Canes strive to compete with the Gators off the field for the best athletes in the state and return the program to the glory days of Howard Schnellenberger, Jimmy Johnson, Dennis Erickson and even Larry Coker.

Am I the only one who feels bad for Steve Spurrier? I bet I am. The Gamecocks fell to Vanderbilt last night, and it's becoming increasingly clear that South Carolina--even with the 'Ol Ball Coach--won't be able to win any SEC titles in the future. It's just too tough to out-recruit fellow SEC members that have firmly established themselves into the recruiting grounds. Eight wins a year would be outstanding for any South Carolina football team. The question now remains whether Tommy Beecher can be Coach Spurrier's guy to run the offense as was thought when he was recruited.

Carlos Zambrano's MRI confirmed that the pitcher has tendinitis and inflammation in his right rotator cuff, easing the fear of Cubs brass who may have been bracing for the worst. But while no major damage was found, Cubs officials certainly will remain uneasy until Zambrano is on the mound again and throwing like he has throughout his career. The Cubs are holding out hope that he can return sometime during the team's series against Houston Sept. 12-14.