Philip Rivers, Ed Reed and Justin Miller were named the AFC Players of the Month for December. Rivers joins Jay Cutler, Andre Johnson and Thomas Jones to be recognized on offense in 2008. Reed joins Albert Haynesworth, Joey Porter and Dwight Freeney to win the defensive award. Miller joines Darren Sproles, Stephen Gostkowski and Dan Carpenter to be a special team player of the month.

During a recent spot on KNBR Radio, Steve Young suggested that a team's performance over the final six games of the season is an excellent indicator of how well a team will perform in the postseason. Using the Trench Counter as an objective barometer, which teams are entering the playoffs playing the best football? Click here for more information on the Trench Counter Notes: Teams that qualified for the playoffs in italics. Record over final six weeks of season is in parenthesis. 1. Baltimore Ravens: 13.3 (5-1) The only thing keeping the Ravens from finishing their final six games undefeated was that controversial Santonio Holmes touchdown in their 9-13 loss to Pittsburgh. 2. New England Patriots: 8.4 (5-1) Like the Ravens, the Patriots' only loss over their final six was to Pittsburgh when Matt Cassel was held to just 169 yards passing and a season low 39.4 passer rating. They are very clearly the one team the six teams in the AFC Playoffs are lucky to be missing. 3. Minnesota Vikings: 7.9 (5-1) The Vikings were one team I was expecting to finish strong after an unlucky 0-2 start to the season. They are 9-3 since that 17-30 loss to Tennessee. 4. Pittsburgh Steelers: 7.7 (5-1) The Steelers' lone loss down the stretch was in Week 16 against the Titans when they turned the ball over four times. 5. Carolina Panthers: 7.3 (4-2) The Panthers narrowly missed out on homefield advantage in the playoffs in their 28-34 overtime loss to the Giants. DeAngelo Williams is averaging 122 yards per game over those six games. 6. Indianapolis Colts: 6.9 (6-0) The Colts have won nine in a row, but during that stretch beat New England by three, Pittsburgh by four, Houston by six, San Diego by three and Cleveland by four. 7. San Diego Chargers: 6.5 (4-2) After losing three in a row (all to playoff teams) and six of eight, it looked like the Chargers were done, but got some good breaks in Kansas City and a little help from Buffalo and Carolina. 8. Philadelphia Eagles: 5.1 (4-2) The Eagles mark here was heavily aided by their 48-20 win over Arizona on Thanksgiving, the 30-10 win over the Browns on Monday night and the 44-6 rout of Dallas in Week 17. 9. New Orleans Saints: 4.0 (3-3) The Saints had a positive Trench Counter in their three wins, as well as the overtime loss in Chicago. 10. Houston Texans: 2.7 (5-1) The Texans were 8-4 after their 0-4 start and very well could be in the playoffs when looking at both Colts' losses and the loss to Jacksonville in Week 4 in overtime. This team is clearly on the cusp. 11. Miami Dolphins: 2.3 (5-1) The Dolphins won their final five games to win the AFC East. During the final four games, Chad Pennington threw eight touchdowns and just one interception. 12. Tennessee Titans: 1.5 (3-3) I think the ceiling of Kerry Collins' play will keep the Titans out of the AFC Championship, let alone the Super Bowl. He has four touchdowns and three interceptions over the final six games (though he threw just two passes in Indy). 13. San Francisco 49ers: 1.2 (4-2) Mike Singletary passed his dress rehearsal with flying colors and Shaun Hill played well enough to convince the Niners that they could live and possibly compete with him behind center. 14. Atlanta Falcons: 1.1 (5-1) With the exception of the Carolina win in Week 13, the final six games of the season were decided by an average of 4.8 points. 15. New York Giants: 0.5 (3-3) I'm not really sure what to make of the Giants' final six games. The win in Arizona doesn't look quite as good as it did given the Cardinals' slide and they looked very bad against Philadelphia and Dallas. The overtime win over Carolina was critical and impressive and the way they competed against Minnesota with nothing to really play for was clearly a positive sign. 16. Chicago Bears: 0.5 (4-2) The Bears threw away those two primetime overtime victories against New Orleans and Green Bay by losing in Houston 24-31 with a playoff berth at stake. 17. New York Jets: -0.3 (1-5) The losses to Denver at home and Seattle, Oakland and San Francisco on the road is what makes the from 8-3 to 9-7 a particularly difficult pill to swallow. 18. Cincinnati Bengals: -0.8 (3-3) The Redskins, Browns and Chiefs of 2008 are not the teams they were in the late 80's, but that was a nice quiet finish for a team that struggled horribly. Cedric Benson averaged 118 yards per game over the final three. 19. Green Bay Packers: -1.0 (1-5) The Packers narrowly were defeated by Carolina, Houston, Jacksonville and Chicago before moving to 6-10 with their historic win over Detroit. Aaron Rodgers was easily better before the bye than afterwards, but the quarterback position is a clear area of strength for the Packers that they can build around. 20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: -2.3 (2-4) The Buccaneers lost their final four games to just miss the playoffs and though three of the four losses were to playoff teams, the loss to Oakland with the season on the line is simultaneously inexcusable and unexplainable. 21. Kansas City Chiefs: -2.9 (1-5) The Chiefs were outgained on the ground 204 to 31 by the Bengals in the Week 17 finale. 22. Dallas Cowboys: -3.2 (3-3) While fingers point to Wade Phillips, Terrell Owens, Jason Garrett, Roy Williams (WR) and Tony Romo, the injuries in the backfield to Marion Barber and Felix Jones took away the ground game that was so valuable in their early season wins. 23. Oakland Raiders: -3.4 (3-3) The Raiders finished the season with a two-game win streak, something I thought I might have to go back a ways to find the last time it was done, but each of the Raiders four wins last season were part of two-game streaks. 24. Washington Redskins: -3.7 (2-4) Jason Campbell had a passer rating over 90 six times and the Redskins were 5-1 in those games; Campbell had three games in the 60's and three in the 80's over their final six. 25. Buffalo Bills: -4.0 (2-4) The Bills were 2-8 after starting the season 5-1. 26. Denver Broncos: -4.4 (2-4) The performance of no single player had a greater impact on his team winning or losing in 2008 than Jay Cutler. In their eight wins, he had passer ratings of 137.5, 109.6, 96.1, 107.9, 106.4, 94.8 and 102.7. In Denver's eight losses, his passer ratings were 71.9, 77.8, 64.3, 60.7, 49.8, 74.3, 72.4, 74.9. 27. St. Louis Rams: -4.8 (0-6) The Rams lost the final three games by a combined eight points. 28. Seattle Seahawks: -5.2 (2-4) The Seahawks had just four 100-yard rushing performances in 2008. Back in 2005, Shaun Alexander alone had 11 games where he rushed for at least 100 yards. 29. Arizona Cardinals: -5.4 (2-4) Three of the four losses over the final six were to playoff teams and the other one was to the Patriots who have finished the season as strong as anyone. While common sense suggests the Cardinals are stumbling into the postseason badly, looking at their final six through that prism changes the perception to a definite degree. 30. Jacksonville Jaguars: -7.9 (1-5) The Jaguars averaged 14.9 points over their final seven games. 31. Cleveland Browns: -12.3 (0-6) The Browns were shutout in their final two games and had scored just 10, 9, 6 and 6 in their previous four following their 29-27 win at Buffalo. 32. Detroit Lions: -15.2 (0-6) The Lions were outscored 95-209 over their final six compared to 173-308 during the first 12.

Baltimore receiver Derrick Mason will reportedly play on Sunday against Jacksonville despite a shoulder injury. "The shoulder is getting better, but he's dealing with some related spasms in his neck. We'll work those out before game time with some deep tissue massage, and he'll go," Ravens' Coach John Harbaugh said. Baltimore will qualify for the AFC playoffs if they win or tie on Sunday.

Ravens' quarterback Joe Flacco recently earned $3 million in bonuses based on his first-year performance with the team. The rookie eclipsed a huge playing-time escalator in his contract for participating in 80 percent of Baltimore's snaps. He will have $750,000 added to his base salary in the remaining four years of his contract. Flacco signed an incentive-laden, five-year deal worth up to $30 million in July, but he wasn't expected to achieve many of the goals. Flacco's play has placed Baltimore one win shy of securing a wild-card playoff berth.

Matt Stover kicked four field goals to wipe out an early deficit, then Willis McGahee and Le?Ron McClain ripped off long runs each time the Cowboys got close in the final minutes, sending the Ravens to a 33-24 victory on Saturday night and a step closer to the playoffs, according to an Associated Press report.

The NFL is backing referee Walt Coleman's decision to overturn a call on the field and rule Santonio Holmes' catch a touchdown that gave the Steelers a 13-9 victory against the Ravens on Sunday. "Walt Coleman determined via high-def video review that the receiver had possession and two feet down with the ball in the goal line, meaning it broke the plane," an NFL spokesman said via e-mail.

Ravens' coach John Harbaugh reportedly doesn't believe Steelers' punter Mitch Berger when he says Baltimore cornerback Frank Walker spit in his face during Sunday's game. Berger was quoted in The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette after the game as saying, "I tried to get in the middle to separate him, but he got in my face and spit right in my mouth. He spit right in my mouth. I'm still trying to spit that ... out. I was talking to him, trying to separate everybody and he spit right in my mouth." During his weekly news conference, Harbaugh said, "That's the first I heard that. I don't believe it for one second," according to the Sun. "Frank Walker wouldn't do it, none of our players would do it. I don't believe it for one second."

Steelers' punter Mitch Berger has accused Ravens' cornerback Frank Walker of spitting on him after Pittsburgh kicked the extra point following their game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter on Sunday. "The guy dove, he tried to take out Jeff's knee," said Berger, who holds for Reed's kicks. "I went over there, and he got up and he spit in my face -- and they called it on Jeff for pushing him!" Reed drew a 15-yard penalty that was marked off on his kickoff after the score. "I tried to get in the middle to separate him but he got in my face and spit right in my mouth. He spit right in my mouth. I'm still trying to spit that ... out. I was talking to him, trying to separate everybody and he spit right in my mouth."

The scoreboard is where games are officially won and lost, but they are largely decided by the team that wins the battles of yards per pass, yards per carry, penalty yards lost, first downs, and turnovers. For this reason, I created the following formula called the ?Trench Counter? to look at which team truly controls the game: (2x Yards per pass) + (2x Yards per carry) + (.5 First downs) - (Penalty yards/10) - (2.5 Turnovers) - (Opposing Team's Trench Counter) Click here for more information on the Trench Counter For the 2008 season, our weekly team rankings will be based solely off this formula. In parenthesis is the Trench Counter average and rank over the past four games. 1. New York Giants: 7.9 (4.1, 10th) The Giants lead the league in rushing but are just 17th in passing yards. When they won the Super Bowl a season ago, the Giants were 23rd in passer rating. 2. Baltimore Ravens: 6.4 (8.8, 1st) The Ravens are 5-0 when Joe Flacco has a passer rating of 95 or better. 3. Pittsburgh Steelers: 6.2 (6.5, 3rd) Ben Roethlisberger is 23rd in passer rating with a mark of 80.1, a drop of 24 points when he was second behind Tom Brady in 2007. 4. Tennessee Titans: 6.0 (8.0, 2nd) I'm not sure how, but LenDale White has the longest rush of 2008 with an 80-yard run. 5. Philadelphia Eagles: 4.8 (-0.9, 19th) Donovan McNabb's receivers have had 28 drops this season, most in the NFC. 6. Carolina Panthers: 4.7 (6.5, 4th) DeAngelo Williams leads the NFL with yards per rush with 5.4 and also TD's with 15. 7. Miami Dolphins: 4.6 (3.7, 11th) The Dolphins are fourth in passer rating this season (93.1) and were 30th (67.4) a season ago. 8. Minnesota Vikings: 4.5 (5.7, 5th) Five of Adrian Peterson's nine touchdowns have been in the fourth quarter. 9. Atlanta Falcons: 4.3 (0.2, 16th) The Falcons have had 56 runs of 10 or more yards, second in the NFL. Both Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood are capable of a big run on any down. 10. Washington Redskins: 3.7 (-1.5, 21st) Without Clinton Portis, as the Redskins were on Sunday at Baltimore, makes winning nearly impossible for Jim Zorn's squad. The Redskins are 6-1 when Portis rushes for at least 90 yards. 11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 3.3 (4.9, 8th) Jeff Garcia has thrown an interception in just 1% of his attempts. 12. Arizona Cardinals: 3.1 (0.2, 17th) The Cardinals are dead last in rushing yards. 13. New York Jets: 2.7 (-1.4, 20th) Brett Favre has had 15 passes intercepted, which ties him for Gus Frerotte for the NFL lead. 14. New England Patriots: 2.0 (2.2, 15th) Wes Welker leads the NFL in receptions with 96. If he finishes the season with the lead, he will be the first player since Sterling Sharpe in 92 and 93 to lead the NFL two consecutive seasons. Kellen Winslow, in 80 and 81, is the only other receiver to accomplish this since the merger. 15. San Diego Chargers: 1.6 (4.6, 9th) The Chargers are 30th against the pass this season. 16. Dallas Cowboys: 1.0 (2.5, 13th) The Cowboys have been erratic and sloppy all season, and the laid back attitude of Wade Phillips doesn't work when Jerry Jones keep bringing in the kind of players that undermine that mentality. 17. Chicago Bears: 1.0 (-1.8, 22nd) Matt Forte is averaging 5.1 yards per carry on third down. 18. New Orleans Saints: 1.0 (5.4, 6th) Drew Brees has thrown for 15 more yards per game than Brady did in 2007 and 38.9 more than he did in 2006 when he led the NFL. 19. Indianapolis Colts: 0.1 (2.4, 14th) The Colts have been completely inept on the ground (78,1 yards per game, (only Arizona has been worse), but they have an NFL-best 49.1% success rate on third down. 20. Houston Texans: 0.1 (5.4, 7th) The Texans have had four balls intercepted within their opponents' 20. 21. Green Bay Packers: -1.3 (-2.5, 24th) Nick Collins has returned three interceptions for touchdowns. 22. San Francisco 49ers: -1.7 (2.6, 12th) While many teams are going with a dual-back system, the only other member of the 49ers other than Frank Gore with at least 100 yards rushing on the season is J.T. O'Sullivan. 23. Buffalo Bills: -1.7 (-2.3, 23rd) Since scoring 54 points against Kansas City, the Bills have scored 3 in each of their losses to the 49ers and Dolphins. 24. Denver Broncos: -1.9 (0.0, 18th) The Broncos are the lowest ranked division leader in our rankings. 25. Jacksonville Jaguars: -3.8 (-8.1, 28th) David Garrard had a passer rating of 0.0 with just nine seconds left in the first half against Chicago. 26. Cleveland Browns: -4.7 (-2.6, 25th) D'Qwell Jackson leads the NFL in tackles with 130. He had 101 last season. 27. Kansas City Chiefs: -5.0 (-2.9, 26th) The Chiefs, along with the Lions, have yielded 6.2 yards per play on defense. 28. Seattle Seahawks: -7.0 (-9.4, 29th) Deion Branch's first and only two TD's this season came in their loss against New England. 29. Oakland Raiders: -9.2 (-7.1, 27th) The Raiders are surprisingly not the worst offenders in offensive penalty yards, but they are second behind the Packers with 739. 30. Cincinnati Bengals: -9.2 (-10.4, 30th) The Bengals have been outscored 96-16 since they tied the Eagles. 31. Detroit Lions: -10.8 (-12.4, 32nd) Detroit had their best chance of winning on Sunday against the Vikings but were outscored 10-3 in the fourth period. 32. St. Louis Rams: -12.5 (-10.5, 31st) Stephen Jackson's two fumbles against Arizona gave the Rams an almost impossible hill to climb.