National Football League

Highs and lows after half of the NFL season

Published Nov. 14, 2009 5:03 a.m. ET

foxsports

With two unbeaten teams at the halfway point, some folks are breathlessly anticipating a Super Bowl matching the 18-0 (including playoffs) Saints against the 18-0 Colts. Now that's getting way ahead of ourselves. Instead, how about a look at what's transpired so far this season, with just a few peeks into the crystal football, as well? BEST GAME Saints 46, Dolphins 34. Host Miami was up 24-3 near the end of the first half when Drew Brees persuaded coach Sean Payton to go on fourth down from the Dolphins 1 with time remaining for one play. Brees leaped, extended the ball over the goal line and it was 24-10. Not long after, it was victory No. 6 for New Orleans, which scored 43 points in 30:02. "There was no doubt on our sideline we would come back and win," Brees said. "They had given us their best shot, and we had played about as bad as we could play. All we had to do was string together a few drives and gain the momentum back. We knew it was going to happen, and it did." WORST GAME Browns 6, Bills 3. Not that the people in Cleveland will be complaining, considering it might be the only win they get all season. This one had everything - everything you hope to avoid at an NFL game. In snapping a 10-game losing streak, the Browns won even though Derek Anderson went 2 for 17 for 23 yards and they picked up just nine first downs. So how did they win? Punter Dave Zastudil put seven of nine punts inside the Bills 20. When Roscoe Parrish muffed one, it set up the winning score. A field goal, naturally - expecting touchdowns in this game was fantasy football. BEST COACHING A strong case can be made for Josh McDaniels, who seemed to be on a path to destruction with the Broncos after ticking off Jay Cutler and having to trade him to Chicago, then struggling to get along with Brandon Marshall. Six weeks into the season, though, Denver was undefeated. But a better case can be made for Marvin Lewis in Cincinnati. A perpetually dysfunctional franchise could have folded like a tent in a hurricane after losing on a fluky touchdown to the Broncos in the opener. Instead, Lewis emphasized the positive traits the Bengals were developing, and they won their next four, including division victories over Pittsburgh and Baltimore. A win over the Steelers on Sunday and Cincy must be taken seriously the rest of the way. WORST COACHING There are so many candidates. Spin a football on the ground and see where it stops. Probably in Cleveland, where the entire Browns organization, not just the players, is a mess. New coach Eric Mangini's hand-chosen general manager couldn't last a half-season. The best players have been traded away. And neither quarterback has shown a hint of being of NFL caliber. It's also hard to ignore what's gone on in Washington and Oakland. But shield your eyes when looking. BEST OFFENSIVE PLAYER In the NFL, it's all about the quarterbacks, and Brees, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Carson Palmer, Kyle Orton, Philip Rivers, Tom Brady and Brett Favre have excelled. But step aside, passing fraternity. Let's recognize what a running back has done: Chris Johnson of the Titans. Tennessee has been the league's biggest disappointment, a 10-0 team that fell apart in 2009, starting 0-6. Yes, the Titans now have awakened, though Johnson never slumbered. He leads the league with 959 yards rushing, not far off a 2,000-yard pace. He's averaging a phenomenal 6.7 yards a carry and has seven touchdowns overall, including a 91-yard dash. BEST DEFENSIVE PLAYER Love those sackmasters: Jared Allen, Elvis Dumervil, Dwight Freeney, James Harrison. Difference makers. Not the biggest difference makers through eight games, though. That distinction belongs to Saints safety Darren Sharper. Brought to New Orleans as much for his leadership and his savvy as his ball-hawking, Sharper has led the ascension of the Saints' D. He's filled every need, and he's tied for the league lead with seven interceptions, including three runbacks for TDs. "I wasn't trying to be a big-time free agent acquisition and be a guy that they think is going to change everything and be the savior," Sharper said. That's exactly what he's been. COMEBACK PLAYERS Fighting the temptation to suggest Brett Favre - yeah, the comebacks from retirement are tiresome, but the performances aren't - becomes easier when considering the work of running back Cedric Benson in Cincinnati and Dwight Freeney in Indianapolis. Benson was a first-round bust in Chicago, troubled off the field, unproductive on it. He was released in June 2008, eventually made his way to Cincinnati, and is making defenses pay this year. Especially the Chicago D, which he torched for a career-best 189 yards in a win last month. Freeney missed the last seven games in 2007 after surgery on his left foot. If he gets a sack Sunday night on Brady, he'll tie the record for consecutive games with a sack (10). He's been a force in every game for a defense whose secondary has been ravaged by injuries. THE SECOND HALF What might we look for in the final eight games of what has been among the most unpredictable years the NFL has seen? -More disparity. Eight teams are on pace to win four games or less. Frankly, we wouldn't be surprised if seven - Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Tampa Bay, Washington, St. Louis and Oakland - don't make four wins. Nor would it be shocking if the Titans get to six. -A surge from the Patriots, particularly now that Brady appears comfortable and fully recovered from last year's knee injury. -More empty seats throughout the cities where teams are out of contention. And maybe more blackouts, which are a certainty for Jacksonville and probable for Detroit and Oakland. -And, yes, a loss somewhere along the line for the Saints and Colts.