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Larry Johnson Cut by Kansas City

Larry Johnson Cut by ChiefsLarry Johnson's time in Kansas City is apparently over as the Chiefs announced Monday that they have released the oft-troubled running back into the ether of NFL free agency.

Johnson was, of course, fresh off a suspension based on his recent social media activity and attitude towards reporters, although the official release from the Chiefs doesn't really indicate why he's gone (though it should be obvious):

Bengals a Win Away From Controlling AFC North

Bengals FansThe AFC North is not shaping up as expected. After three black and blue Steelers-Ravens games last year, everyone expected that Pittsburgh and Baltimore would face off for the control of the division again this year. But when Cincinnati finished off its sweep of the Ravens on Sunday, they put themselves in prime position.

The Bengals effectively have a three-game lead against the Ravens -- two games in the standings plus the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage. Baltimore and Pittsburgh also have two head-to-head games left on the schedule while Cincinnati only has one game against the Steelers and one nearly guaranteed win against the Browns left in the division.

Four 'Contenders' in Serious Trouble

Eli ManningHalfway through the season, the Giants, Ravens, Packers and Bears are alive for playoff spots.

Mathematically.

Based on what happened to them Sunday, it looks like time to start preparing for 2010. For not only did they lose, the way they lost and the psychological ramifications make it even harder to recover.

You could throw Houston in there too, but the Texans can still have a good season -- at 5-4 they are on course for their first winning season ever, although the way they lost Sunday to unbeaten Indianapolis opens up enough "what ifs?'' for 16 games. And the way they've played the Colts during their eight-season life makes losses to Indy inevitable. Last season, they managed to blow a 27-10 lead at home in half a quarter; they are now 0-8 lifetime in Indianapolis and 1-14 lifetime overall.

Reborn Bengals Shut Up Ravens

Cincinnati BengalsCINCINNATI -- He is the king of smack, both verbal and physical. That is what Ray Lewis brings.

He called Cedric Benson's 120-yard rushing day last month against the big-time, big-mouth Ravens defense a fluke. And Benson said Lewis brought an extra assortment of jive here on Sunday.

"He started telling me how he was going to be there all day, on every play,'' Benson said. "I laughed and kind of smiled. Then he says, 'We are the team to go through, man!'

"So, I told him we'd just go through them to the playoffs and the Super Bowl.''

Philip Rivers Redeems Self in 'Eli Bowl'

Philip RiversWith 3:30 left in the game and his team trailing by three points, Philip Rivers had a chance.

He had a chance to win in New York with much of the nation watching. He had a chance to best Eli Manning, a man who refused to play for the Chargers and was eventually swapped for Rivers and another draft pick (which turned into Shawne Merriman). He had a chance to prove he was a winner, despite the fact that his team hasn't helped him win a ring yet. He had a chance to prove he belonged in the same conversation as the game's elite, and that he's just as qualified a quarterback as Eli.

And on the first play of the series, Rivers threw an interception. What happened next, though, rallied San Diego to a 21-20 win and defined the essence of Rivers as a player.

Bucs Find Old-School Mojo in New QB

Tampa Bay BuccaneersTAMPA -- A very amusing story died on Sunday. A better one might have been born.

We came not to bury the Bucs, but laugh at them with their rookie quarterback and creamsicle uniforms. Instead, the joke is on the Packers.

"I don't think it's embarrassing," Packers guard Daryn Colledge said after the 38-28 loss. "The fact is they are a professional football team."

Just barely. The Bucs were so inept in their first seven games they gave us real hope we'd see another 0-16 season.

It's not that I enjoy watching Raheem Morris suffer. It's just that if you're going to stink, you might as well really stink to keep things interesting. These Bucs will never be the novelty act their forefathers were.

Patriots Taking Control in AFC East

If the Dolphins had been able to march into Foxborough Sunday and find a way to beat the vaunted New England Patriots Sunday, the AFC East would have been quite the muddled division. Even the Buffalo Bills would have been within striking distance, while the Jets and Dolphins would have trailed the Pats by a single game with eight to play.

After a Ronnie Brown touchdown pass -- which was surely a flashback to last year's Wildcat-fest in New England -- the Patriots found themselves facing a 17-16 deficit with 4:51 left in the third quarter, and the Dolphins appeared on the verge of the critical road upset.

But Tom Brady, Randy Moss and company weren't having that.

Report: Mike Holmgren on Browns' Radar

Mike HolmgrenWith a bevy of big name coaches likely ready-for-hire heading into the 2010 season, in addition to a lot of really poor NFL teams in 2009, we can expect rumors to be swirling all over the place for the rest of this season and on into the offseason. Thus, it's not surprising to see Mike Holmgren mentioned as a possibility. Of course, most thought he'd have to at least wait until next season to get involved.

According to Adam Shefter of ESPN, Holmgren may not have to wait. Shefter reports that the Browns want to hire Holmgren as their vice president of football operations -- similar to the role Bill Parcells has with Miami -- and that the job is immediately Holmgren's for the taking.

DeAngelo Hall Accuses Falcons Assistant Of Throwing Punches

ATLANTA -- When the NFL schedule came out at the beginning of the year, the Washington Redskins game at the Atlanta Falcons wasn't necessarily a matchup you expected to be volatile. But DeAngelo Hall sure did.

Hall, who spent the first four seasons of his career playing in Atlanta, did a lot of trash-talking this week. He claimed that Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff lied to him on multiple occasions regarding roster issues, and he dared the Falcons to make him a target this week -- since he knew they probably would anyway.

Was there any doubt that if a skirmish broke out between the two teams that Hall would be involved?

Colts Turn Up Tempo to Stay Unbeaten

Peyton Manning and the Colts stayed unbeaten with a win over the Texans, but it sure wasn't easy.INDIANAPOLIS -- You expect the Colts to throw, and throw a lot, but even for Peyton Manning and his band of merry, pass-happy men this was a little bit nuts. Indy ran nine plays -- eight of them passes -- in the first two minutes of the game, averaging one every 14 seconds, completely disregarding the play clock and leaving their star offensive players more than a little bit tuckered out.

"I wouldn't call it fun," said tight end Dallas Clark, who caught 11 passes in the first half and 14 -- for 119 yards -- in the game. "When you run 60 plays in the first half, you're going to feel that on Wednesday and Thursday. But the win makes it feel a lot better."


Awful Bears, Packers Making NFC North Title Easy for Minnesota

Though most had the Minnesota Vikings as the favorites to win the NFC North heading into the season, nearly everyone agreed that either the Chicago Bears or Green Bay Packers -- or both -- would at least pose a challenge to the Vikes' second straight ...

Concussion Sidelines Clinton Portis

As if the slumping Redskins needed any more bad news, running back Clinton Portis left Washington's game in the first quarter after suffering a concussion. Portis took a couple of hard shots on a running play, with Atlanta's Chevis Jackson and ...

Bears' Tommie Harris Ejected for Punch

Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris was ejected from Sunday's Chicago-Arizona game after throwing a punch to the face of Cardinals guard Deuce Lutui. The incident occurred just four plays into the contest. Lutui, who was blocking Harris on a ...

NFL Week 9 Live Tweet

It's week 9 in the 2009 NFL season, and we've got some big games ahead of us. Can the Baltimore Ravens stay in the AFC North race by winning on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals? Can the Indianapolis Colts effectively end the AFC South race by ...

Fantasy Football Tailgate: Week 9

Anquan Boldin, Calvin Johnson, Roddy White, Devin Hester, Antonio Bryant. All questionable, meaning a huge majority of our readership is likely pessimistically cursing his/her options at receiver this week. Luckily, most of those guys have 1:00 PM ET ...


Latest Fantasy Football Notes

  • Jonathan Vilma (LB) NO
    Vilma had a big game Sunday, recording 10 tackles against Carolina.
  • Chris Horton (S) WAS
    Horton will be out four-to-six weeks and, possibly more because of an injury to his toe, the Washington Post reports.
  • Roman Harper (S) NO
    Harper had a big game Sunday, recording 10 tackles against the Panthers.
  • Jason Peters (OT) PHI
    Peters, who left Sunday's game against the Cowboys with an ankle injury in the first quarter, returned in the second half, the Allentown Morning Call reports.
  • Fabian Washington (CB) BAL
    Washington limped off the field early in the second quarter of Sunday's game against the Bengals with a thigh bruise, the Baltimore Sun reports.
  • Read More Notes»