Officially, we’re not doing Monday night Live Blogs this year.

Unofficially, we’ve done three in the last four weeks.

Tonight, it’s the 1-3 Vikings at the 2-2 Saints.  Submit your comments, enjoy the game.

Seahawks wide receiver Deion Branch was finally healthy enough to get on the field for the first time this season on Sunday against the Giants.

But he wasn’t able to make it out of the game with his health intact.

Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said today that Branch is out indefinitely with a bruised heel. The injury is a painful one, and the issue for Branch will be whether he can tolerate the pain.

Branch missed all of the off-season, preseason and the start of the regular season following knee surgery in January. He has missed 10 games in his two-plus seasons with the Seahawks.

Holmgren said quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has a “tweak” of his knee but will be OK and that cornerback Kelly Jennings suffered a concussion and will be OK.

The Vikings will have one of their injured wide receivers available tonight against the Saints, while another one will sit out.

Per Sean Jensen of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Vikings wide receiver Sidney Rice is inactive for tonight’s game, while Bernard Berrian is active. Rice had been optimistic that he would be able to go tonight. Both Rice and Berrian were listed as questionable with knee injuries on the official injury report.

The other inactives for the Vikings: S Madieu Williams, CB Benny Sapp, FB Thomas Tapeh, T Drew Radovich, T Marcus Johnson and DT Letroy Guion.

For the Saints, the inactive players include WR Marques Colston, TE Jeremy Shockey, DT Sedrick Ellis, WR David Patten and CB Aaron Glenn.

Amid reports that the NFL is reviewing tape of the hit from Cards safety Adrian Wilson that knocked Bills quarterback Trent Edwards out of a game that Buffalo eventually lost by 24 points, ESPN’s Ron Jaworski declared Monday on PTI that it was a “legitimate hit.”

Jaws noted that Wilson had his face up when he struck Edwards, and that the concussion likely arose when Edwards’ head hit the ground.  And Jaworski kinda/sorta suggested that it was Edwards’ only fault for not picking up a “third level” (we love it when Jaws uses jargon) defender.

While the hit reportedly won’t be reviewed based on the prohibition against helmet-to-helmet contact, the rule regarding unnecessary contact comes into play, given that Wilson possibly slammed his body onto Edwards.

So we’ll respectfully disagree with the bespectacled analyst.  And we’ll all find out within the next few days who’s right, and who isn’t. 

Cards S Adrian Wilson (hamstring) played only a handful of snaps; one of them limited Bills QB Trent Edwards to a handful of snaps, too.

Cardinals QB Kurt Warner enlisted his kids to help him with his fumbling troubles.

The 38-point loss by the Seahawks to the Giants got the Cardinals’ attention; “We looked at that and said, ‘Man, we gotta take this division,’” DT Darnell Dockett said.

Rookie WR Early Doucet caught six passes for 42 yards in his pro debut.

But it was Steve Breaston, not Larry Fiztgerald, who led the Cardinals in receiving yardage.

RB Tim Hightower scored two touchdowns for the Cards.

Bills LB Kawika Mitchell, whose last visit to Arizona resulted in a Super Bowl win, called his most recent trip to the desert ”ugly as hell.”

As Mark Gaughan of the Buffalo News points out, those rabbit ears that fans in Buffalo used for viewing the game won’t exactly be collector’s items.

A third-quarter offside penalty by the Bills prompted the Cards to take a field goal off the board, and they then punched it in for a touchdown.

Bills RB Marshawn Lynch was held to only 65 total yards.

The Patriots ran 80 offensive plays; the 49ers ran 48.

The 49ers had just six plays in the third quarter, including a punt.

Patriots WR Randy Moss was glad to connect on the deep ball again.

Said Patriots CB Ellis Hobbs, “I think this gets us back on track. I think all of us individually, we hadn’t lost confidence in ourselves, but we took a good punch to the face when we played Miami.”

Matt Cassel had 259 passing yards, his most in a game to date.

Patriots LB Tedy Bruschi called the game a “true linebacker victory.”

The 49ers’ defense looked toothless.

Said 49ers RB Frank Gore, “We went out there today flat. We have to go out there and fit together and play hard.”

Said 49ers coach Mike Nolan, “It gets down to staying on the field offensively on third down and getting off on defense, and a lot of other things, but it’s never one area.”

The loudest cheer of the day came at halftime, when Steve Young’s jersey was retired.

The Panthers held the Chiefs to 122 yards, their lowest total in 22 years.

In contrast, the Panthers gained 441 yards — just 42 shy of the franchise record.

“That was the worst I have been involved with in my professional career,” said Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez.

Carolina CB Ken Lucas explained the team’s approach in the wake of the Chiefs’ Week Four win over the Broncos; “Denver allowed Kansas City hope.  We went out there from the start of the game and took all hope away and didn’t give them a chance to feel like they had a chance.”

The Panthers haven’t allowed a touchdown since the third quarter of their 20-10 loss to the Vikings.

Carolina WR D.J. Hackett was injured on the first play of the game.

Panthers WR Steve Smith dropped a touchdown pass, and RB Jonathan Stewart lost a fumble on the next play.

Panthers DE Charles Johnson is drawing rave reviews.

Chiefs LB Derrick Johnson was confused by the blowout loss; “We thought we had the mojo back,” he said.

RB Larry Johnson seemed to be too willing to accept the outcome.  “Games like this are going to happen,” Johnson said.

The New York Giants generated their biggest margin of victory since 1972, and they did it without receiver Plaxico Burress, who was suspended for Sunday’s game against the Seahawks.

But as Burress rejoined the team, he expressed no regret for the behavior that resulted in the suspension.

“It was just a situation I had to deal with that morning, and I made the right decision,” Burress said during a conference call.  “I don’t have any regrets about the decision I made at all.

“That was the decision they chose to do.  I’ll take it at that.  I’m not going to lose any sleep over it.  I got me some rest and was able to get away for a while and chill out and relax.  Things like that happen.  I’ll keep moving forward and get back to doing what I do: catching footballs, scoring touchdowns and get back to work.”

Though Burress supposedly didn’t show up for work two Mondays ago because of a family situation, we heard that he overslept.  It also has been reported that the Giants had fined Burress 40 to 50 times for a variety of transgressions since joining the team in 2005.

Burress refused to get specific about the reason for his absence.  “There are some things that you guys don’t know,” Burress said.  “So you can’t say it wasn’t an emergency on my part because you don’t know everything that was going on.”

Still, part of the problem is that Burress didn’t call the team or take calls regarding his absence.

“Coach said I was suspended because I needed to be more responsible,” Burress said.  “I was being responsible, I just put my child first.”

And it doesn’t sound like Burress plans to change his ways, even if he still insists that his conduct was justified.

“Some of the demands they ask me to do, I just don’t meet,” said Burress.  “Maybe I have a problem with time or something, I don’t know.  I haven’t been able to quite put my finger on it.  Does it really bother or affect me?  No.  When it’s times to step on the field and play, that’s what I do.”

Except when, you know, he’s prevented from stepping on the field and playing because of his “problem with time or something.”

We realize that ESPN needs to try to come up with an angle for creating excitement for each of its Monday night games.  (Paying $1.1 billion per year for the right to broadcast the games tends to create a sense of urgency in that way.)

As a result, the folks in Bristol are trying to make something out of the showdown between Adrian Peterson of the Vikings and Reggie Bush of the Saints.

But for those of you expecting a repeat of the epic 1994 MNF matchup between Barry Sanders and the Lions and Emmitt Smith and the Cowboys, don’t hold your breath.  While Reggie has sold a lot of jerseys and generated a lot of ink, he’s not an elite NFL running back.  Instead, he’s a glorified third-down back who plays on more than third down.

Bush has only one 100-yard rushing game in his career.  His career per-carry average equates to a good GPA.  He catches a lot of short passes and gains a few extra yards before being tackled.

Peterson, on the other hand, is the real deal.  But he’s stuck on a mediocre team that can run and stop the run, and can’t consistently pass or stop the pass. 

As we see it, this game is more about Peterson versus quarterback Drew Brees, whose team will win if he can pick apart the Cover 2 defense.  But the notion of a heavyweight battle between tailbacks is more compelling.

Even if one of the two is a welterweight.

The Falcons’ formula is simple — build an early lead and then hold it like a kid playing video games with a bladder full of Mountain Dew. 

How big was the Falcons’ win at Lambeau?  “Games like this can define a season,” LB Keith Brooking said.  “This was a huge hurdle that we overcame today.”

Rookie QB Matt Ryan generated a passer rating of 94.1.

Falcons DT Grady Jackson holds a grudge like a kid playing video games with a bladder full of Mountain Dew (that line is as cool as the other side of the pilllow); he wanted to stick it to the Packers for not re-signing him after the 2005 season.

LT Sam Baker started for the Falcons after missing time with a concussion.

DE John Abraham of the Falcons has seven sacks in five games.

The Packers lost because of their failures in the run game; “Running the ball and stopping the run are so basic to football,” linebacker A.J. Hawk said.  “We just could not get it done today.”

Said Packers QB Aaron Rodgers of his performance despite having a shoulder injury:  “I don’t [regret playing].  I regret the one decision I made, the interception.  But I put everything out there on the line today, my body, my shoulder.”

Greg Bedard of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel gets a “rrrrrow” award for this line:  “[Roddy] White caught eight passes for 132 yards and a touchdown, and all came in the first half.  The only things missing from the NFC title game were subzero temperatures and a flailing Al Harris.

Green Bay LT Chad Clifton left Sunday’s game with a hamstring injury.

Bucs coach Jon Gruden said on Monday that quarterback Brian Griese is questionable for Sunday with an injured elbow.

“Brian Griese hurt his right arm,” Gruden said.  “His elbow, and his shoulder, will be evaluated further today.  His status right now I would say is questionable.

“We’re going to address the quarterback situation once we get all the facts.  Obviously, health is going to be an issue.  I thought Jeff [Garcia] did do some good things yesterday.  His health has been an issue, and his return to health is something that we’re excited about.  We’ll evaluate it today, and we’ll let you know on Wednesday.”

Garcia was benched after one week of the season in favor of Griese, who led the Bucs to three straight wins.

Gruden also said that linebacker Barrett Ruud is questionable with a knee injury.

Only days after conceding that linebacker E.J. Henderson will miss a month with two dislocated toes, it turns out that Henderson will be out even longer.

Per the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Henderson has been placed on injured reserve, ending his season.

The move creates a roster spot for left tackle Bryant McKinnie, who was suspended the first four games of the season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.

Henderson became a force for the Vikings once the team adopted the Cover 2 defense in 2006.  Signed through 2011, he’ll earn $2.5 million in base salary this year.

The St. Louis Rams have placed tight end Randy McMichael on injured reserve, ending his second season with the team.

McMichael broke a leg bone on September 28 against the Bills.

Joe Klopfenstein will replace McMichael in the starting lineup, and Daniel Fells will replace McMichael on the roster.

Said Cowboys WR Terrell Owens after the game, “God used me today for his glory.”

Cowboys RB Felix Jones had a 33-yard touchdown on fourth-and-4.

Said Cowboys QB Tony Romo, “I don’t know what standard everybody wants it to be. We want to get every first down and score every time we touch the ball. Is it unrealistic? Probably, but we’re going to strive for that. Are we disappointed or something? I mean all we can do is work as hard as we can. What else can we do?“

Said Bengals QB Carson Palmer, “When you’re not a very good football team and you come into a good football team’s house, you’ve got to play perfect.”

Cowboys coach Wade Phillips was overheard saying “you stink” in the direction of a columnist who had asked a question about why the Cowboys “stunk” for most of the game after a good start.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones thought the team “went into a lull” for part of the game.

The Bengals have played tough against good teams, but they haven’t managed a win.

Bengals RB Chris Perry is killing the team with his fumbles.

Perry’s continued fumbles will probably result in more carries for RB Cedric Benson.

Said Bengals WR Chris Henry of his first game action this season, “It was a good start. It’s not that easy to not play in a game and then come in. It was a good first game, I guess.”

We’ve previously noted that former Titans G.M. Floyd Reese is campaigning to become the Detroit Lions’ next general manager, and Reese was at it again today.

Reese, working as an analyst on ESPNews, said this afternoon that he thinks the job of running the Lions would be one of the best jobs in football.

“The ownership is there,” Reese said. “[Lions owner William Clay Ford] wants to win, wants to win badly. They’ve got a great stadium, they’ve got a great facility. The people there are great fans. They really are. I started my career in Detroit way, way back when. But right now they have to go through a total evaluation.”

So does Reese think he’s the person who should oversee that total evaluation, and take the reins of the franchise? When asked directly, he said he’d love the job.

“Are they giving me the job? If they are, I’ll be there. If not I’ll be here at ESPN.”

Reese’s comments came after ESPNews showed a clip of Lions coach Rod Marinelli getting upset when a reporter asked him at today’s press conference whether he would resign.

“I’d never do that,” Marinelli said. “Never. Because the game of football is about teaching. I am a living  example of what the fight is about. I believe in what I’m doing 100 percent. I’m going to fight every single day I have that opportunity. I owe the game of football that. I owe every kid in this community that. Don’t ever say that to me.”

If Reese were to become  the general manager of the Lions, it would be good news for Marinelli, as Reese spoke highly of Marinelli during the ESPNews segment.

The Dallas Cowboys already have one Roy Williams on the roster, and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones says they won’t be adding another.

Jones tells Peter King of Sports Illustrated that the Cowboys won’t be swinging a deal with the Lions to add wide receiver Roy Williams — and they won’t be swinging a deal with any other team to add any other receiver, either.

“We have no plans to trade for a receiver before the trading deadline,” Jones said on Sunday afternoon.

When King asked again, directly, whether there would be a trade for a receiver, Jones again said there would not be.

“No,” Jones said. “No trade for a receiver.”

Williams, who holds the distinction of being a Matt Millen draft pick who didn’t bust, is reportedly on the block, if there’s a team willing to pay the Lions a high price for his services. Jones, however, says the Cowboys won’t be that team.

Folks attending games at the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers should be prepared to be frisked.

With a federal appeals court clearing the way last month for the resumption of security pat downs at Raymond James Stadium, the procedure will be resurrected on October 12, the team announced on Monday.

The procedure is used at all NFL stadiums.  A lawsuit was filed challenging the procedure in Tampa.  After some initial success, the measure was upheld.

And that’s a good thing, in our view.  If anyone has a problem with getting patted down, they should just watch the game at home.

Eagles running back Brian Westbrook was already nursing an ankle injury, and after Sunday’s loss to the Redskins he has another injury to worry about.

ESPN reports that Eagles coach Andy Reid said today that Westbrook has “fractured ribs.” He suffered the injury during the first half of yesterday’s game and returned after getting a painkilling injection. He finished with 12 carries for 33 yards and six catches for 51 yards.

Per ESPN, since Westbrook became the team’s starting running back, the Eagles have gone 36-23 with him and 3-7 without him.

There is no word on Westbrook’s status for Sunday’s game at San Francisco.

The Redskins rolled up 204 yards on the ground against an Eagles run defense that had allowed a total of 215 rushing yards in its first four games.

Said Eagles QB Donovan McNabb, “I was embarrassed the last two weeks. Two teams that we should not have lost to.”

Redskins coach Jim Zorn won the coaching battle.

Eagles RB Brian Westbrook can’t seem to get healthy.

Said CB Sheldon Brown of the lack of enthusiasm from the home crowd, “It felt like we were on the road for some reason.”

Eagles coach Andy Reid puts the responsibility on himself for the team to play better.

The Redskins are playing well on the road.

The schedule gets easier for the Redskins in the coming weeks.

Redskins DE Andre Carter had a big game and said afterward, “In this business, there’s always somebody nicked. The next guy has got to stand up and fill the void when we’re missing someone. And that’s what we did today. We went out and played 11 men as one, no egos, no individuals.”

Redskins players had some interesting descriptions for coach Jim Zorn’s gutsy decisions.

The family of Bucs kicker Matt Bryant has issued a statement thanking the team and its fans for the support shown after Bryant’s infant son died suddenly on September 24.

We realize that young children die anonymously every day, but the passing of Tryson Bryant shocked and saddened the NFL community and those who follow the game.

Here’s the full text of the statement, via the Tampa Tribune:

We have been searching for the right words to express how truly blessed we feel with the outpouring of sympathy from the Tampa Bay community.  Still, we cannot begin to let you know how much your support means to us at our most difficult time.

Our son Tryson’s passing has shown us that we are surrounded by a loving family, a compassionate community and a football team that is more than just a team; they too are family.  Everyone has wrapped their arms around our family, and you have truly touched our hearts.

We want to express our gratitude to the Glazer family for their generosity and kindness.  Our Buccaneers family has shown us that together we can get through any difficult time.

We also have been comforted by many condolences and prayers from people in Tampa and across the country.  We appreciate all of the cards, flowers and e-mails that we have received from those of you who have offered sympathy and shared your own stories of loss.  We would like to extend a special thank you to those who have made donations to the March of Dimes, an organization that is very close to our hearts.

Although Tryson’s stay here on Earth seemed just a fleeting moment in time, our loving memories of him will last forever.

Thank you for your continued prayers.

Matt & Melissa Bryant

The reputation of the Broncos as a soft finesse team fueled the low-scoring, hard-fought win:  “I guess when you get tired of people on the outside trying to label you with some stuff like that, it lights a fire under you,” LB Boss Bailey said.

Broncos QB Jay Cutler adjusted to the Tampa Two defense, even though it sounds like he really didn’t want to; “That’s not really my thing,” Cutler said.  “We are used to throwing the ball down the field a lot and getting big chunks, and we really couldn’t do it against this defense.”

Denver RB Michael Pittman has learned how to drive his message like a Hummer into a sedan:  “I’m just waiting to get my opportunity to run the ball 20 times. . . . I want to run the ball.  But I would never go to my coach and say, ‘Give me the ball!  I want 20 carries!’”

But what of the fact that he’s 33 years old?  “Everybody ages differently,” Pittman said.  “If you take care of your body, you age a lot slower.  I don’t got no big gut hanging out or nothing like that.”

Broncos WR Eddie Royal and TE Tony Scheffler were both limping on crutches after the game.

Bucs coach Jon Gruden was impressed with Broncos K Matt Prater.  “Have you ever seen a [f–king] kicker kick a [f–king] 55-yard [f–king] field goal and make it by 25 [f–king] yards?  Honestly, why [f–king] work on your [f–king] kickoff return when you [f–king] come here? That [f–king] guy was [f–king] unbelievable.”

An elbow injury suffered by Tampa QB Brian Griese could result in Jeff Garcia re-entering the starting lineup.

But it sounds like Griese won’t be out for long:  “It’s going to be all right.  I took a helmet to the elbow and there’s not a lot of room for swelling so the swelling made it tough for me to grip the ball.  The doctor says it’s okay, and I’m glad it’s just a bruise and nothing structural.  I’m just going to get as much treatment as I can.”

Trailing by three, the Bucs had a chance late to get the ball back, but couldn’t force the Broncos to punt.

The stats were fairly equal; the teams had 17 first downs each and one turnover, and the difference in total yardage was only 26.

Coming into the game, Giants WR Domenik Hixon had 94 yards receiving in his career; in less than a half of work Sunday, he had 104 yards and a touchdown.

Giants WR Sinorice Moss made the most of an opportunity.

Said Giants LB Antonio Pierce, “We’re one of the top five, 10 teams in the league. Some other guys have better special teams, better name players, better coaches, a lot of things. We’re just one of the teams that is lucky to get to 4-0.”

Giants QB Eli Manning didn’t look like he missed suspended WR Plaxico Burress.

Giants RB Brandon Jacobs ran for 136 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.

The Giants’ defense made Seahawks RB Julius Jones pay for saying he would hit them in the mouth.

The Seahawks’ defense won’t enjoy this week’s film sessions.

Said Seahawks LB Lofa Tatupu after the game, “That was embarrassing. As one of the leaders of this defense I take that very personally. I shoulder that burden. We’ve got to find some answers and quick.”

Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck will have an MRI today on his injured knee.

Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said afterward, “Give the Giants credit, but from our standpoint today was unacceptable. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth.”

Last week, we posted an item regarding a gratuitous slam made by Cowboys owner Jerry Jones against the Houston Texans.

“The Cowboys have never been about checkered tablecloths and boots and hats,” Jones said when talking about the team’s new stadium.  “They’ve been about glitz and glitter.  Leave the other stuff to the Houston Texans.”

Though Texans owner Bob McNair wasn’t troubled by the comment, Jones has apologized.

“I told him I wasn’t offended at all by it,” McNair told the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram.  “He didn’t mean anything by it, and it didn’t bother me at all.  I took it [as] a compliment, because after all, we are the Texans.”

Tom Lewand has had a good thing going in Detroit.  For 12 years and counting, he has positioned himself to claim credit for success (if there, you know, had been any) while at the same time avoiding accountability.

It’s the mark of the “business guy” in NFL circles — the men who crunch numbers during the week and sit next to the owner on Sundays.  When things go well, the business guy can say he had a hand in it.  When things don’t go so well, the business guy can say, “Hey, don’t blame me.  I’m just a business guy.”

But Lewand might be flying too close to the sun on wings of pastrami.  With CEO Matt Millen gone and Lewand and former assistant G.M. Martin Mayhew scoring increased duties for the balance of the season, Lewand’s apparent zeal to secure a position of high influence in the post-Millen regime could prompt ownership to finally conclude that Lewand is sufficiently responsible for the team’s turmoil over the past decade to merit his removal.

Eleven days ago, Lewand foolishly boasted that the Lions would beat the Bears.  Then, after Chicago shellacked the home team on Sunday, Lewand actually attended coach Rod Marinelli’s post-game press conference.

And spoke.

Moving forward, there should be no ambiguity.  Lewand possesses a key role in the organization, and he therefore should be held to the same standards as Millen, Marinelli, Mayhew, Mariucci, and Mornhinweg.

And the franchise, in our assessment, won’t be in a position to recover from its protracted funk until Lewand is either fired or completely removed from any aspect of the football operation.

Make no mistake about it — league insiders are paying close attention to the situation.  And for the same reason that the Raiders won’t be able to find a head coach who has other options until owner Al Davis no longer owns the team, the Lions won’t be able to attract the kind of person who’ll come in and fix the franchise until Lewand is no longer in a position to share power and/or to potentially undermine those who hold it. 

Though the scary head injury suffered eight days ago by Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin wasn’t bad enough to knock him out of the game for more than a couple weeks, it almost knocked the man who threw the ball that Boldin was trying to catch out of the league permanently.

Per Michael Silver of Yahoo! Sports, quarterback Kurt Warner decided after the September 28 game against the Jets to retire immediately.

“This is it.  I can’t do this anymore.  It’s time to retire,” Warner wrote in a text message to his wife, Brenda.

“Something scary like that just makes you contemplate what’s really important and puts football in perspective,” Warner told Silver after Sunday’s 41-17 win over the Bills.  “It’s things like that make you say, ‘This game isn’t everything, and I’m not sure if I can do this anymore.’  Because the bottom line is that all I really want is to be able to go home to my wife and kids.”

Warner changed his mind about hanging it up after he learned that Boldin’s injuries weren’t serious.

That was great news for the Cardinals.  Warner bounced back from a six-turnover (NFL.com still says it was seven) performance against the Jets and led the Cardinals to a season-correcting win, which put them back on top of the NFC West, 2.5 games ahead of the umpteen-time defending champs from Seattle.

Against the previously unbeaten Bills, Warner completed 33 of 42 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns.  More importantly, he generated no turnovers.

Bears QB Kyle Orton loves playing against the Lions, which makes him exactly like every player on 30 other NFL teams.

Even without three starters, the Bears looked just fine.

Bears WR/KR Devin Hester had his fourth career receiving touchdown.

Hester’s longest return was 20 yards on a kickoff, and his fumbled punt led to Detroit’s only touchdown.

TE Greg Olsen had a big day for the Bears.

Said Lions coach Rod Marinelli, “I don’t look to the future. I’m going to get up in the morning and go to work. I’m not getting the job done.”

Lions fans cheered when QB Jon Kitna was benched for Dan Orlovsky; Orlovsky promptly threw an interception.

The Lions still have the same players and coaches who were brought in by Matt Millen.

Said Lions RB Kevin Smith of reports that he wasn’t going to start, “I was always starting. Y’all wrote that in the paper.”

WR Roy Williams succinctly summed up how the Lions have been playing: “We’re getting slaughtered.”

Eagles kicker David Akers missed a 50-yard field goal on Sunday.  The kick, if good, would have put the Eagles up by 17 points. 

Instead, the Redskins got the ball at their own 40, and ultimately converted the possession into a three-pointer of their own.

The six-point swing in what ended up being a six-point game is getting attention in Philly.  As is the fact that Akers has missed nine kicks in a row from 45 yards or longer.

“The distances are there,”Akers said.  “It’d just be nice to hit ‘em between [the uprights] once in a while . . . I go out and try my best, and I’m coming up ‘right’ on them, apparently.  Is it frustrating?  Yeah.  Do I feel like I’m letting my teammates down?  Absolutely.”

Meanwhile, Redskins kicker Shaun Suisham made field goals of 48 and 50 yards on Sunday.

At some point, the Eagles need to contemplate making a change.  Sure, Akers has been the team’s only kicker during the Andy Reid era in Philly.  But something’s wrong — and Reid seems to be the only one who doesn’t realize it.

“David’s going to make a lot more of those than he’s going to miss,” Reid said Sunday.  “Down the stretch here, he’ll be fine.”

We’re not so sure Akers will be fine.  And we’re not so sure the Eagles will be fine, either.

The Redskins are 4-1, and as evidenced by this video of his post-game reaction to the win at Philly, owner Dan Snyder is excited about his team.

And there’s no reason why he shouldn’t be fired up.  He bought the team nine years ago, and despite immense financial success the franchise hasn’t done so well on the field.

This year, in an ultra-competitive NFC East, the ‘Skins have followed a lackluster opening night loss with four straight victories, including wins at Dallas and at Philly.

The success of the team also validates Snyder’s decision to hire Jim Zorn to coach the team, and to give ever-increasing authority to Vinny Cerrato, who some league insiders have privately predicted could never get a similar job with any other team. 

Given the current success of the Redskins, Cerrato probably won’t ever need to try.

A week after a key player for the Arizona Cardinals was knocked out (literally) by a helmet-to-helmet hit, a member of the Cardinals used his hat as a weapon, and almost certainly will be fined for it.

Safety Adrian Wilson sent Bills quarterback Tent Edwards to the showers early by putting the crown of Wilson’s helmet into Edwards’ facemask.  The play took on an even higher level of violence as Wilson seemed to intentionally drive his hat into Edwards’ jaw when the two of them hit the ground.

If the goal is to stop these kinds of hits, then Wilson needs to lose a significant chunk of his pay for the week.

Meanwhile, NBC’s Keith Olbermann will likely generate a flurry of calls and e-mails for his comment while narrating highlights of a disoriented Edwards being carted off the field.

“I can see Russia from here” was the line Olbermann attributed to Edwards.  It was an objectively funny line, but the pro-Palin viewers in the audience, who surely are already looking for reasons to complain about the polarizing Olbermann’s involvement in a sports show, probably won’t see the humor in it.

Four weeks after his only start of the season, Bucs quarterback Jeff Garcia is back on the field.

He has replaced starter Brian Griese, whose return is questionable due to a shoulder injury suffered on a hit from Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey.

So far, Garcia is one for one; the Broncos lead 13-6.

The action can be followed right here.

At a time when there were questions regarding the physical condition and emotional drive of receiver Randy Moss, the best player on the Patriots’ offense not named Tom Brady has gotten out of the two-game funk with a 66-yard touchdown catch in the first half of New England’s game at San Francisco.

In all, Moss has four catches for 103 yards as the Pats lead the Niners 17-14.

Though they lead the all-time series 7-3, New England has never won at San Fran.

The action can be followed right here at NFL.com.

Bills quarterback Trent Edwards suffered a concussion in the first half of his team’s game against the Cardinals.

Edwards was carted off and won’t return.

In his place is J. P. Losman, who lost the starting job last  after catching a flying elbow from Vince Wilfork of the Pats.

The Bills trail the Cards at halftime by ten, 24-14.

Bills fans were treated to the sight they’d least like to see early in today’s game at Arizona: Quarterback Trent Edwards on the turf and not getting up.

When Edwards completed a 13-yard pass on third-and-5 on the Bills’ opening possession, Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson made him pay for it. Wilson, on a blitz, came in at full speed and drilled Edwards, hitting him in the right shoulder and planting his left shoulder into the ground.

Edwards was helped off the field and replaced by J.P. Losman. On Losman’s second play from scrimmage, he and running back Marshawn Lynch failed to connect on a handoff, resulting in a fumble that the Cardinals recovered. The Cardinals scored a touchdown on the ensuing possession.

All the action can be followed here.

Proving that they’re among the league’s elite teams, the Washington Redskins have crawled out of an early 14-point hole, scoring 23 straight points to lead the Eagles in Philly.

A win would push the ‘Skins to 4-1, and would drop the Eagles to 2-3.

It also would cap a stunning two-Sunday tour of the NFC East for the ‘Skins, in which they won on the road against the Cowboys and Eagles.  Washington’s remaining three division games will be played at home.

Clinton Portis has 135 rushing yards and counting, and tight end Chris Cooley is over 100 yards receiving.  Each have scored a touchdown.

With the Lions trailing by 24 points and four balls thrown in his direction dropped, Lions receiver Roy Williams seems to have mentally disengaged from the team that made him one of its various first-round wideouts during the Matt Millen era.

Williams has three catches for 36 yards.  He was complaining moments ago in animated fashion to an assistant coach about a pass that was thrown over his head by Dan Orlovsky, who has replaced starter Jon Kitna.

There have been rumors that Williams might be traded; the Lions say he’s not on the block.  Based on performances like today’s, he will be.  Then again, he also won’t have much value on the market.