NFL Week 5 Review

Week 5 of the NFL season is complete (except for the Jets-Dolphins), so let's take a look at the highs and lows.

The first high is the New York Giants. They were unmerciful against the Oakland Raiders, allowing them less than 200 yards of total offense, while the G-men piled up over 400.

This game actually covers the best and the worst.

The Giants had this game in the bag so early that Tom Coughlin pulled Eli Manning midway through the second quarter.

The Giants did exactly what a top-notch NFL team is supposed to do to a miserable team like the Raiders. If Dallas expects anyone to take them seriously, they need to watch New York and see how it's done. They certainly did not impress anyone by having to go into overtime to beat the Chiefs, another of the league's miserable teams.

The Giants ran and threw all over Oakland all day, and the defense was superb, as Justin Tuck sacked JaMarcus Russell twice and Osi Umenyiora had a down lineman's trifecta: forcing a fumble, recovering the fumble, and then taking it to the house for a touchdown. All together, Big Blue sacked Russell six times and limited him to just eight completions for 100 yards.

Minnesota and Philly romped, which was no surprise since they were playing the Rams and the Bucs, disrespectively.

Cincinnati won in surprising fashion yet again, as they won in Baltimore in the last seconds. What an unbelievable season the Cardiac Cats are having. First, they lose to the Broncos on a last-second play, and then went out and won four straight games in the last minute of the game. And how about that hit that Ray Lewis put on Senor Ochocinco? It was ugly, and it clearly showed how frustrated the Ravens defense was getting.

Atlanta won in impressive style, as they thumped the 49ers on the road. San Francisco has not been very good the last few years, but this season they have been known for their defense, as they have been one of the top defensive units in the league thus far.

Not yesterday. Matt Ryan threw for over 300 yards and a pair of TD's, and Michael Turner ran for just under 100 yards and three TD's. Good win for the Falcons.

The Colts improve to 5-0, and again it was not difficult, as they were in Tennessee to play the winless Titans (or is it the Titanics?). Peyton was terrific, as he's been all season, and this just may be his finest season to date. Which doesn't bode well for the rest of the top teams in the AFC who may have to find a way to defend him in the postseason.

And, the Colts are playing amazing defense. The most amazing point to me is that they have been doing it all without Pro-Bowl defensive back Bob Sanders. What is this defense going to become when he comes back? Scary stuff.

Seattle laid a good old-fashioned whipping on the Jaguars, but seriously, who didn't see that coming? Jacksonville is another of the league's teams that are not very good. Jacksonville plays well twice a year: when they play the Colts. For some reason, the Jags match up well with Indianapolis. They don't match up well with anyone else, but they do, for whatever reason, play like a contender against Indy. Too bad they don't play them 16 times a year. Maybe they would have a winning season.

That's about all of the games worth talking about. Shut up Pittsburgh fans. If you have to fend off Detroit, you get no love from me. Ciao for now!