Week Four of the NFL season marks the beginning of the byes. This week finds six teams enjoying a Sunday of staying at home and enjoying the football games the way the rest of us do. Those lucky teams are the Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, New York Giants, and Seattle Seahawks.
Other than the New York Giants, everyone of these teams have struggled to begin the season and have issues to address. The Lions just fired their GM and desparately need to address the entire organization. Will they come out in Week Five with a commitment to building towards next season?
The Colts o-line has been decimated, and QB Peyton Manning missed vital time in the pre-season to gel with his team. The off-week should help re-establish his typical comfort level.
The Miami Dolphins are young and starless beyond RB Ronnie Brown. Can the passing game improve enough to keep defense honest? Will WR Ted Ginn Jr. continue to be one of the 2007 NFL draft's most disappointing players?
The biggest surprise of this week is the lack of news about the New England Patriots QB situation. Back-up Matt Cassel has offered no hope that he can utilize the weapons at his disposal. Will the extra week between games get the rapport with WR Randy Moss strengthened? If not, the Patriots will severely disappoint.
Finally, the Seattle Seahawks need WRs. Hopefully, Deoin Branch and Bobby Engram will return. Regardless, the extra week can only help QB Matt Hasselback get more confortable with a crew of no-name receivers.
Week Four of the 2008 NFL seasoCleveland Browns at Cincinnati Bengals 1:00 PM
Q: Will 2nd-year QB Brady Quinn take any snaps?
Q: Can QB Carson Palmer repeat last week's effort and make everyone forget about the first two games of the season?
Minnesota Vikings at Tennessee Titans 1:00 PM
Q: Will the Vikings be able to run enough to make-up for a poor passing game?
Q: Can the Titans stop the Minnesota rushing attack?
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs 1:00 PM
Q: Do the Broncos stick with the passing game or take a breather and let the rushing attack pound the spongy KC defense?
Q: With a poor Broncos' pass defense, can Damon Huard & Co. pull the upset of the week?
San Francisco 49ers at New Orleans Saints 1:00 PM
Q: Which WRs set-up against the poor Saints pass defense?
Q: Is this the week the Saints passing game crumbles after losing TE Jeremy Shockey?
Arizona Cardinals at New York Jets 1:00 PM
Q: Will RB Tim Hightower have his 2008 breakout game?
Q: How does the Brett Favre-led passing game look?
Green Bay Packers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1:00 PM
Q: Rookie WR Jordy Nelson caught four passes last week. Does he follow-up with another quality WR3 effort?
Q: How does RB Earnest Graham rebound from last week's struggles against the Chicago Bears?
Atlanta Falcons at Carolina Panthers 1:00 PM
Q: Does RB Michael Turner have a good game?
Q: Does WR Steve Smith have a big game or will RBs D'Angelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart lead the team?
Houston Texans at Jacksonville Jaguars 1:00 PM
Q: How well does RB Steve Slaton follow-up his 116 yard/1 Td coming out party?
Q: Can the Jaguars' rushing attack repeat its Week Three efforts?
San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders 4:05 PM
Q: Is the San Diego defense back? Can Ladainian Tomlinson have a #1 overall pick type of game?
Q: Can QB JaMarcus Russell have a good passing game against the Chargers without a 100% healthy Darren McFadden or Justin Fargas?
Buffalo Bills at St. Louis Rams 4:05 PM
Q: Will this be a the Bills 2008 statement game?
Q: Does the benching of QB Marc Bulger in favor of Trent Green do more than risk the health of Green?
Washington Redskins at Dallas Cowboys 4:15 PM
Q: Can QB Jason Campbell have a third good game in a row and completely erase the memory of Week One?
Q: Does the Marion Barber Express get derailed?
Philadelphia Eagles at Chicago Bears 8:15 PM
Q: Will RB Brian Westbrook play, and, if he doesn't, will it matter against a stout Bears' rush defense?
Q: Will RB Matt Forte be able to do enough to give his team's passing attack room to operate?
Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers 8:30 PM
Q: How does the three-headed RBBC distribute its carries amongst Willis McGahee, Le'Ron McClain and Ray Rice?
Q: With a sieve of an o-line, an injured Ben Roethlisberger and a d-line missing Casey Hampton be able to protect its home turf on Monday Night football? How does 1st round pikc Rashard Mendanhall do in front of a national audience?