NFL Season So FarThe two undefeated teams are Chicago and Indianapolis. Coming into Monday Night Football, everybody pretty much thought Chicago was showing every sign of being an elite team. But the Cardinals made their offense look less than ordinary, and even the defense, despite the two amazing fumble recoveries for TD, still allowed a rookie quarterback to drive confidently upfield for a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter.
Indianapolis, of course, is battling their own past. Nobody's going to get excited about the Colts right now because they have been here before; in the last three years they have won 12, 12, and 14 games in the regular season. There's not much doubt they're going to the playoffs; there's just considerable doubt they can win once they make it.
So who's out there to get excited over? San Diego looks pretty good, but they've beaten the doormats to get that gaudy record--Oakland, San Francisco, and Tennessee. They're 1-1 against real teams, beating the Steelers and losing to the Ravens. New England? An impressive win at Cincinnati, a good win over the Jets at the Meadowlands, a bad loss to Denver at home and two very unimpressive wins over the Bills and Miami at the Blade. The Saints are winning, but they're winning close games at home against tough competition and easy games on the road against creampuffs like Cleveland and Green Bay.
So it looks wide open at this point. There's no one team that has put the hammer down and established beyond doubt they're going all the way.
MVP: Donovan McNabb.
Rookie of the Year: Matt Leinart. This kid is the real deal; I'm not sure even the Cardinals can screw this up.