$.01--The NFC North has taken a rather strange turn, and the Detroit Lions are for once the hunted and not the hunter with no bullets. 

Detroit catapulted to the top of a division they’ve never won by squeaking past the Bears 21-19 in Chicago. When Nick Fairley swallowed Matt Forte on an ill-conceived 2-point conversion to seal the victory for Detroit, the complexion of the NFC North changed emphatically.

This was the kind of win which Lions fans are not used to. For years, Detroit has folded when pressured after strong starts to seasons. The Lions did not have their “A” game, but it was good enough to best the wounded Bears. Jay Cutler clearly was not ready to come back from his groin problem, and it cost the Bears as is play steadily declined throughout the game. It got bad enough that coach Marc Trestman finally yanked him after a particularly brutal series in crunch time.

The Lions are now 6-3 while the Bears fall to 5-4. However, the season sweep by Detroit effectively gives the Lions a 2-game advantage over Chicago. It was just the third season sweep by Detroit in the last 15 years. The banged up Bears are in real trouble if Cutler isn’t 100 percent quickly, but even that will not fix their gaping holes on defense.

Detroit also leads Green Bay, which has even worse injury woes than Chicago, by a full game. No Aaron Rodgers appears to mean no chance of winning for the Packers, who were routed 27-13 at home by the Eagles. Speaking of coming back too early, Clay Matthews returned with what appeared to be a papier-mâché of Chris Christie on his hand and was ineffective, to be kind. The Green Bay secondary continues to struggle, and now that they lack the firepower of Aaron Rodgers, Randall Cobb and other injured comrades on offense, they are not able to overcome freelancing safeties and Tramon Williams’ inability to turn and run with Riley Cooper. 

The Lions control their own destiny. A win on Thanksgiving over Green Bay would all but wrap up the elusive division title, presuming they can handle business against 3-6 Pittsburgh and 0-8 Tampa Bay in the meantime. One thing this Detroit team has taught us is that they are not the same old choking Lions. This is a game Detroit never would have won in years past, just as was the case with their last game against Dallas.

$.02--Validation tastes sweet for the Carolina Panthers, who went into San Francisco and knocked off the 49ers 10-9 in a defensive slugfest.

The Panthers had won four games in a row, but the quality of those victories was tempered. The combined records of those opponents was just 8-32. In order for the football cognoscenti to take the Panthers seriously, they needed to beat someone good. Mission accomplished.

Carolina proved they just might be the most physically imposing defense in the entire league. The 49ers were limited to just 151 yards of offense, which is the fewest since 2006 when they had 133 against the Vikings.

I watched most of the second half and every single San Francisco offensive play was either the run game being stuffed or Colin Kaepernick running for his life. The Panthers notched six sacks and at least eight other QB hits. Given that the Niners offensive line is the envy of the league, that’s a very impressive, dominating performance from the Carolina front. It was fitting that the game ended with a pressured Kaepernick throwing an interception to Drayton Florence. The veteran corner pointed the ball to the linemen and gave it to Luke Kuechly, who further bolstered his All Pro credentials with another fantastic performance.

The Panthers and Niners are now both 6-3 and represent the two NFC Wild Card teams. However, Carolina holds the critical tie-breaker with the victory. With several other teams (Philadelphia, Chicago, Green Bay, Arizona) all within striking distance, this beatdown could be a catastrophic loss for the 49ers.

$.03--Congrats to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who notched their first win on the season. After racing out to an early lead, the Jaguars held on for dear life as the Titans scored two late touchdowns.

As is requisite when a winless team breaks into the victory column this late in the season, Jacksonville needed a lot of help. Tennessee happily obliged. The Titans turned the ball over four times, including a late fumble which was returned for a touchdown by Will Blackmon for what turned out to be the deciding points. Rookie guard Chance Warmack, who has been a major disappointment as a top 10 pick, was rightly flagged for holding in the end zone to produce a safety.

Jake Locker was terrible before departing with an injury as well. His QB rating was 12.0, thanks to a line that reads 4-of-9 for 24 yards and one INT. Early reports are that Locker’s season is over with a Lisfranc (foot) injury. Other than a strong handful of games to start this season, Locker has proven to just not be capable of handling the starting job in Tennessee. Between inaccuracy and a variety of injuries, the Titans can no longer pencil him in as the starting quarterback going forward.

It’s been a lousy season for Jacksonville, but I’m happy to see them get a chance to bask in victory. I strongly believe in the way the team is being run by the Khan’s and Gus Bradley’s coaching staff. They lack talent at far too many positions to taste victory more than about one more time this year, but every little bit of confidence they can glean from this one will help.

$.04--What’s left of the Dallas Cowboys defense was picked apart by Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints in the Sunday Night affair. The Saints set a new NFL record by posting 40 first downs on their way to a 49-17 home romp.

It’s hard to keep track of exactly who is in the game for Dallas. Pretty much every Cowboy defender most people can name was missing for at least part of this game. DeMarcus Ware played some despite being obviously inhibited by a knee injury. Star linebacker Sean Lee left the game very early and did not return. Fellow LB Justin Durant was lost early in the second half. They joined starters Jason Hatcher, Morris Claiborne and JJ Wilcox on the sidelines, and that’s just listing the guys not already on IR.

All those injuries facilitated a team-record 626 yards allowed. It’s impossible for Tony Romo and the offense to overcome that level of ineptitude, though it was not a good night for that side of the ball either. At one point Romo was 2-of-12 and both passes were short dumps to backup tight end James Hanna.

Here’s my grand takeaway from this game: it’s not going to matter which team wins the NFC East. Dallas is now tied with the Eagles at 5-5, but neither team is going to beat any of the other potential NFC playoff teams if those squads are reasonably healthy. The Saints are so vastly superior to Dallas that even having a full complement of players probably wouldn’t have mattered.

$.05--It might be time to rethink the playoff potential of the Indianapolis Colts. Since their impressive victory over Denver and Peyton Manning, these Colts are not the same team.

Coming out of their bye week, the Colts squeaked past a Texans team playing without several starters and behind a backup QB in Case Keenum. They followed that up with a humiliating 38-8 abomination at the hands of the St. Louis Rams. You know, the Rams who had lost three in a row and were starting a backup QB of their own in Kellen Clemens. This game was in Indy, but it sure looked like the Rams benefitted from home cooking.

The Colts first play was a disaster. Robert Quinn raced around the edge and stripped Andrew Luck of the ball, which Chris Long scooped up and returned 45 yards for a touchdown. It did not get much better the rest of the day. The Colts had no answer whatsoever for tiny Tavon Austin. The diminutive rookie has been an underwhelming disappointment so far, but this game highlighted his electrifying potential. Austin scored three touchdowns from beyond 50 yards, including the longest TD for the Rams since 2005 on an 81-yard run after catch. He returned a kickoff 98 yards where he looked like those hacked Pac Man machines that had Pac Man at hyper speed and the ghosts at normal pace.

Indy’s larger problem, however, is that their offense is struggling without Reggie Wayne, who was lost for the season late in the Denver game trying to flag down a badly thrown ball by Andrew Luck. The second-year QB has not looked good without his top target, struggling to find any rhythm or chemistry with any of his replacements not named TY Hilton. In this game, he threw three more interceptions and did very little positive until deep into garbage time. At least Luck did augment his game by being the Colts’ leading rusher…with 17 yards. Trent Richardson, who will cost the Colts their first round pick next May, had 2 yards on 5 carries and lost yardage on more than half of them.

No Reggie Wayne appears to be a significant problem for the Colts going forward. It is incumbent upon Luck to raise his level of play to overcome the inadequacies around him. If he wants to be considered a great franchise quarterback, he will get it done. Right now that is not the case. At least Colts fans can take solace that they play in an AFC South division where no other team is going to top the 6 wins Indy already has on the board.

$.06--Normally I don’t use an entire cent to break down a single college game, but my Saturday experience dictates a full segment.

My son and I attended the Nebraska/Michigan game at the Big House in Ann Arbor. It was not a good game for either team, but especially the Michigan offense. This led to quite a bit of consternation amongst the maize-and-blue faithful, and I’m using that word loosely.

There is no question that the Wolverines offense was terrible. The first two drives netted -19 yards on the ground, and that number never got any closer to positive figures. Devin Gardner, who was clearly in over his head, was sacked seven times and harassed into several other wildly off-target throws. The G-C-G play by Michigan was as bad as I can recall, and I went to Ohio University when the football team twice mounted double-digit losing streaks.

Yet for all that, I was still shocked at how many in attendance were calling for coach Brady Hoke’s head. Did he make a mistake by sticking with Gardner in this game when he clearly couldn’t avoid the pressure? Yes he did, though I would quickly add that Gardner did himself no favors by being indecisive and failing to throw several balls away when he did have the chance. Yet this game was close right to the end; Nebraska won 17-13 when they scored the go-ahead touchdown with just over two minutes remaining. The Michigan defense played very well. The special teams were outstanding, notably a booming punt by Matt Wile that completely flipped the field and changed the timbre of the first half.

I think Michigan fans have forgotten just how terrible the RichRod years really were. It’s not easy to recover from that level of incompetence. The upperclassmen on this team are still RichRod recruits, and they lack the sizzle of a stereotypical Michigan team. There is only one Wolverine likely to be drafted, and that’s overhyped left tackle Taylor Lewan (who played his best game in two years). The talent simply isn’t there yet.

Does that excuse oft-ponderous playcalling and poor tactical adjustments? Not entirely. I think Hoke needs to devote more of his attention to the offense, and I would support any movement to replace Al Borges running the Wolverine offense. That’s the move that needs to be made, not whacking Hoke just as he starts to build things with “his guys.” Be patient, Michigan fans, or did you forget how bad things really can be?

$.07--NFL Quickies

 1. My draftnik heart was blessed on one play by the Giants. Damontre Moore blocked a punt and Cooper Taylor returned it for a touchdown. Both were prospects I heralded more than most draft analysts. Never mind that neither had done much of anything up to that one glorious play…

2. Those looking for more ammo against Thursday night games, check the police blotter. Minnesota wideout Jerome Simpson was arrested for DWI on Saturday night, two days after the Vikings stunned the Ethnic Slurs. Something about idle time and the devil’s hands.

3. The only thing I’m writing about the Martin/Incognito fiasco, as I’m sicker of it than you can possibly be: Jonathan Martin has always been Jonathan Martin. He was “soft” at Stanford and everyone in the NFL knew it. Scouts knew it, reporters knew it, and opponents knew it. Shame on the Dolphins for drafting him with the intention to change him. That’s their fault. Just as you don’t draft Richie Incognito and expect a perfect and proper gentleman, you don’t draft someone like Jonathan Martin and expect him to become a snarling beast.

4. Here’s no small reason why the Houston Texans are 2-7:

5. The next time I want to believe in the Cincinnati Bengals, I need to be smacked upside the head with a blunt object. Two weeks after anointing Andy Dalton as the AFC Player of the Month, the Bengals dropped their second game in a row. Baltimore beat them 20-17 in overtime, a game which had no right to going to overtime except a Dalton Hail Mary getting set like a volleyball to A.J. Green in the end zone to tie it up. At one point in the game, Dalton was 8-of-21 for 47 yards and an INT. The Ravens, and also the Browns, have life in the AFC North only because the Bengals cannot handle prosperity. Again.

$.08--College/Draft Quickies

1. It wasn’t a marquee game, but UCF held off a very game Houston Cougars team to remain atop the AAC. The Knights survived a rough outing from QB Blake Bortles and a ballhawking Cougars defense which forced three more turnovers. A late red-zone defensive stand proved enough to hold on. UCF (Central Florida) is in strong control of the new AAC, which is cobbled together from the wreckage of the old Big East. They’re an entertaining team on the rise. Bortles will get some love as a developmental draft pick, though I’m not much of a fan.

2. Buffalo’s Khalil Mack continued his assault on the MAC, beating down my alma mater, Ohio University, in one of those strange Tuesday games. He devastated the Bobcats as a pass rusher, a run stuffer, and a coverage dropper. He’s the complete package, folks, though the draft community is getting a little crazy in comparing him to Von Miller. Mack should be a top 10 pick in May.

3. One of the signs that a program is legit is how they handle adversity. A week after an undefeated Miami Hurricanes team was blown out by Florida State, they showed they are not back to the glory of The U just yet. Virginia Tech also blew them out, though the score looked closer at 42-24

They made Hokies QB Logan Thomas, one of the most disappointing players in recent memory, look very much like an elite draft prospect. Thomas completed 25-of-31 for 366 yards and two touchdowns, looking poised, sharp, and dynamic. I’m still incredibly sour on Thomas as a prospect but I do strongly believe he will be drafted on tantalizing potential like he flashed here.

4. Vanderbilt won at Florida, and the game was one-sided. I don’t know whether that says more about the Commodores or the Gators. Either way, congrats to Vandy for breaking one of the longest streaks in college football; they had not won in Gainesville since just after World War II ended.

5. I do not have a Heisman vote but if I did my ballot would look like this: 1. Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M, 2. Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State, 3. Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon, 4. Jordan Lynch, QB, Northern Illinois, 5. Lache Seastrunk, RB, Baylor. I am not down at all with rewarding Alabama QB A.J. McCarron for a career achievement award.

$.09--This is how big the college football slate was over the weekend: I’m devoting two full cents to college games.

This second cent is all about the BCS, which got some serious shaking up. When Stanford pounded Oregon 26-20 on Thursday night, an hour or so after Baylor dominated Oklahoma, the college football world was thrust to center stage.

The Baylor romp did not surprise me. Oklahoma has quarterback issues and struggles with consistency in the defensive front seven, and the only way to beat Baylor is to punch them in the mouth and try to torch their defense. The Sooners are ill-equipped to do either, and it showed.

That’s also the recipe for beating Oregon, and Stanford carried it out beautifully. The final score was a lot close than the game itself; Stanford led 26-0 into the fourth quarter before the Ducks mounted a furious rally.

This outcome surprised me very much. I expected Marcus Mariota to handle the Stanford pressure and the Oregon lines to take care of business. Instead, Mariota looked timid at best. The confident, strident presence was as long gone as LeBron James’ hairline. The defensive line of Taylor Hart, Wade Keliikipi et al, one which I thought would completely bottle up a straightforward Stanford attack, could not handle the repeated physicality of the Cardinal line.

When Alabama pounded LSU Saturday night, the BCS picture got a lot clearer. Alabama and Florida State will meet for the BCS title if both win out, no matter what anyone else does. The next two up will be Ohio State and Baylor, in that order. Even though Stanford rates ahead of Baylor right now, I cannot see a team that lost to 4-5 Utah staying ahead of an undefeated Bears team that will add victories over rated Oklahoma State and Texas. And with both Fresno State and Northern Illinois staying unbeaten, BCS busting by non-automatic qualifiers remains a distinct possibility.

$.10--This column will be published on Veteran’s Day. In honor of all who have served, today’s tenth cent will be a commemoration of Pat Tillman.

Pat Tillman is one of my heroes in life. Even before he joined the Army post-9/11, I was a huge fan of the unique man. It’s not every day you can come across a free-thinking, pensive, yet rebellious soul who happens to be an excellent football player. That was Pat Tillman. I remember hearing him interviewed by Jim Rome back during Tillman’s Arizona State days, and I loved hearing a young man who wasn’t afraid to speak his mind or not kowtow to convention.

He liked to read, and his subject matter was incredibly diverse. He loved football but it didn’t define him, a definite rarity amongst defensive players. Tillman wasn’t the most talented player. He was undersized and lacked elite speed. He made up for it with incredible instincts, outstanding application of film study, and unmatched intensity. He was the brainy underdog that so many aspire to become.

After finally making a mark with the Arizona Cardinals, Tillman stunned everyone when he turned down a lucrative contract to join the Army in the wake of 9/11. He became an Army Ranger in Afghanistan, and a damn good one.

The circumstances of his death are a tragic lesson on the fog of war, as well as the foggy leadership and folly of fighting a pointless war with directionless leadership. On this Veteran’s Day, I strongly recommend you read Jon Krakauer’s excellent work on Tillman, Where Men Win Glory. Moreso, I recommend the movie documentary The Tillman Story. I will be watching it instead of the Monday Night Football game, and you should find a way to do the same. You will be inspired, angered to blood-boiling level, but mostly, proud of those who serve our country.