It's been an impossible question for defenses facing the Colts all season -- what do we do about Peyton Manning(notes)? If you blitz him, he puts up his best numbers (54 of 78 for 719 yards and four touchdown passes and a quarterback rating of 109.9). If you back off to cover Reggie Wayne(notes), he'll kill you with bubble screens at the line and short seam routes to Dallas Clark(notes). If you give your linebackers too much help with Clark, he'll mess you up with deep inside routes to guys like Pierre Garcon(notes) and Austin Collie(notes). And if you drop eight to deal with everyone, he'll just hand off to Joseph Addai(notes) and Donald Brown(notes). The Miami Dolphins held the ball for over 45 minutes when they played the Colts in Week 2, and Manning still torched them for 303 yards and two touchdowns.

Today, this test is in the hands of the Baltimore Ravens, whose defense is not what it used to be. Edge-rusher Terrell Suggs(notes) could miss up to a month with a knee injury suffered after Browns quarterback Brady Quinn(notes) went into him with a low block last Monday night. Nose tackle Haloti Ngata(notes) will be playing on a sprained ankle if he plays at all. And cornerbacks Fabian Washington(notes) and Domonique Foxworth(notes) have not performed as expected, struggling in man coverage and allowing 7.0 yards per passing attempt, a decidedly mediocre number. The worst thing that can happen to an injured defense is to face a quarterback as conversant with the no-huddle as Manning is -- he will take Baltimore's substitution packages out of the game and limit their ability to switch from base coverage to nickel. This is one of Manning's real gifts: because the Colts go single-back, three-wide so often, and the success of his offense is based more on execution than formation diversity, he's able to bulldoze down the field with his arsenal of calls.

For the Ravens, the best strategy might be the lesser of several evils. When the Colts narrowly beat the Texans on November 8, the Texans bracketed the outside with coverage and let Clark catch stuff over the middle with stud rookie linebacker Brian Cushing(notes) in coverage. It was a mismatch in Clark's favor, but he averaged only 8.5 yards per catch on his fourteen catches and his longest play was for 17 yards. The Ravens have the inside linebackers to stop the dink-and-dunk short, and the offense to keep the game close.

While most of the cornerback/receiver battle talk will focus on Randy Moss and Darrelle Revis today, there's another interesting matchup of top talents in the Bay Area when Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco goes up against Oakland cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha. Ochocinco has been one of the prime instigators in the Bengals' resurgence this year, proving to be nearly impossible to cover on middle-to-long perimeter routes. The stats tell the tale -- Ocho's been targeted 80 times and has caught 46 balls, giving him a 58 percent catch rate consistent with other deep threats like Atlanta's Roddy White and Dallas' Miles Austin.

He's helped Cincy's new power running game as much as he's benefited from it, as his ability to get downfield prevents defenses from committing too much to what's going on in the backfield. Chad caught 10 passes against the Bears a month ago, but he only grabbed seven passes combined against the Ravens and Steelers since, and the Steelers doubled him as much as possible. You'd think he'd go off against the pathetic Raiders, but there's the small matter of one Nnamdi Asomugha on the other side of the ball.

For those in the know, Asomugha's been regarded as perhaps the best at his position in the game -- about the closest we've seen to a (wait for it!) shutdown corner since Deion Sanders turned his side of the Cowboys' defensive backfield into a vacant lot in the mid-90s. For the 2008 season, Football Outsiders charted Asomugha as the primary target 32 times, which ranked 96th -- an incredible number for a cornerback who started 15 games. When Asomugha did allow a catch, opposing receivers gained an average of 0.7 yards after catch, making him the only DB with 15 or more targets to allow less than a yard after catch on average.

These two last faced off on December 10, 2006 in Cincinnati, and it'd probably be fair to say that Nnamdi won a split decision on points. Chad caught five balls for 101 yards (including a 42-yarder), but Nnamdi brought in two interceptions in a 27-10 Bengals win. When asked about his adversary this week, Chad told the media that Nnamdi doesn't trash-talk -- he just locks down.

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If you happen to be a Packers fan who is sick and tired of hearing about Brett Favre(notes), and you're thinking of joining the National Guard and going overseas to get away from it all, stop. It's not going to work. The detainees in Baghdad are going to be just as vicious as the Vikings fans you know.

A Wisconsin National Guard unit charged with keeping watch over detainees in Baghdad decided to put up Packers colors and logos all around the camp. The prisoners noticed, started asking questions and suddenly, Favre became an unwitting ally.

From 620WTMJ's Jay Sorgi (subbing in for the injured Waylon Manning):

"They know Favre by name," said First Lieutenant Tim Boehnen, who is from New Richmond, Wis.

"One of the big words they know now is shenanigan.  They'll constantly talk about 'Favre shenanigans,' 'He's so good for the Vikings,' and 'The Packers have got to really feel bad about that one.'  "

[...] "They obviously then started up the conversations, and started talking about Brett Favre. They soon learned about Favre going to the Vikings, and things just started going downhill from there."

In retaliation, I think our troops should make the detainees watch ESPN's Week 4 Monday Night Football contest between the Vikings and Packers, including pre- and post-game shows. They'll never want to mention Favre again.

Stating that "there's nothing else to say", Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith has refused a Bob Costas interview request in anticipation of the Bears Sunday Night Football game. Jay Cutler(notes) and Bears general manager Jerry Angelo will also be unavailable to the network.

It sounds like a simple enough decision. The Bears have already been on NBC three times this year. They're in the midst of a difficult year and probably don't feel like answering any more questions aboout it. Blow off the interview, say it's because you want to focus and no big deal, right? 

Look, we know these pre-game interviews are next-to-worthless. Costas (or whomever) lobs in some softball questions, the athlete or coach talks about working hard and the desire to win and how the next opponent will be tough, there's a jokey question or two and then it's over. In almost all of these talks, nothing remotely interesting ever happens. 

But doing these interviews are part of the job. NBC pays hundreds of millions to broadcast games, money which ends up in the very deep pockets of Cutler, Angelo and Smith. The least they can do is throw a bone to Costas and give NBC some soundbites. (For what it's worth, Costas says he doesn't mind.)

An obligation to a television partner isn't the biggest problem. This thing was so foolish because it was so obviously going to become a problem. Instead of answering questions about the game for a few minutes, they're going to have to answer questions about not answering questions for the next three days. They should have thought of it like going to the in-laws for Thanksgiving. You'd rather do something else, but you know the fallout would be too great, so you suck it up and do it.

It's also a bad decision by Smith and Angelo to bring Cutler into the fold on this one. Like the new Bears quarterback doesn't have enough image problems in that city and nationwide. Now he needs to be pegged as a petulant, pampered star who won't talk to the media because he had a bad game against the 49ers? The last thing Cutler needs is to give the public more reasons to dislike him.

 Thanks, The Sporting Blog

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For his new book, "The Code", Ross Bernstein talked to dozens of current and former NFL players and coaches about the unwritten rules that have held the game together for decades. I've been reading and enjoying the book since I bought it. One play this season made me wonder if the gentrification of pro football has suppressed or eliminated the "eye-for-an-eye" factor. When Arizona Cardinals defensive tackle Darnell Dockett(notes) pressed his elbow into Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck's(notes) throat after Hasselbeck was down on a sack, the only guy who had Hasselbeck's back was head coach Jim Mora -- and that was a day after the game. Dockett wasn't penalized on the play.

"I don't like when it's our quarterback, but if they're not going to call it then I'd like to see our guys do it to their quarterback," Mora said at his Monday press conference, in revealing that he'd sent 17 plays to the NFL's head office for review. "If they're not going to call it. I don't know what the rule is. I haven't heard back yet, so I don't know what they're seeing there. But if that's not going to be called, then we should be doing it."

People have criticized Mora for going public with his complaints, and perhaps rightly so. But who else was standing up for Hasselbeck? Nobody on the field with him. According to current Ravens and former Vikings center Matt Birk(notes), that's not how it's supposed to be done. From the book:

The code to me is all about not taking unnecessary cheap shots or playing dirty. When a player is in a vulnerable, susceptible position, our code says that you have to back off. Sure, you can hit a guy hard, but you can't intentionally try to hurt or injure him. If you do, that is when you will get retaliated against ... if a guy plays dirty or does something that violates the code, we see it and make a note of it for the next time we play them.

Nobody wants more injuries. But with increased focus on what the league deems as unnecessary roughness, and Roger Goodell's insistence on a family-friendly game, is there room for "the code" anymore? Vikings linebacker E.J. Henderson(notes), also interviewed for the book, took the concept a step further by calling it "a moral code". But in the battle of the players' morals and the league's ethics, reality will trump old-school justice in the long run if that's the way the NFL wants it. If that's the way the NFL wants it, Step One has to do with throwing that flag and having officials observant enough to see what's going on. And if the refs don't do their jobs, the league can't blame the players for stepping back in.

If you're lucky enough to spend some time on Thanksgiving watching football, you might catch a glimpse of President Barack Obama tossing around the pigskin. Obama lent his time and athletic prowess to the NFL's Play 60 campaign today for a commercial shoot with some NFL stars.

[DeMarcus] Ware and fellow NFL players Drew Brees(notes) and Troy Polamalu(notes) filmed a public service announcement with Obama in October that will air during the league’s Thanksgiving games.

The 90-second spot shows Obama and the NFL stars playing touch football with local children on the White House lawn. The PSA promotes the league’s Play 60 campaign, which encourages physical activity to combat childhood obesity, and the president’s community service initiative United We Serve.

Obama wore a Chicago Bears jacket in the commercial (it would be nice if you could make that less embarrassing for him, Jay Cutler), and Ware said that the President displayed a solid knowledge of football when talking to the players.

Obama's known for being more of a basketball guy, but there's no need to worry about him humiliating himself on the football field. The Lions and Raiders play on Thanksgiving Day, ensuring that Obama won't be anywhere near the worst football player on television next Thursday.

UPDATE: Here's the video. Excellent technique from the president on that catch. Polamalu, you look a little slow in coverage.

A man who threw two interceptions in just nine pass attempts against the Chiefs on Sunday has just been named the starter for the Oakland Raiders, and that only begins to tell the story of how bad JaMarcus Russell(notes) has been this year. And yet, it still took until Week 11 for Russell to finally get the hook.

So why now? Who knows? At this point, the season is already lost. Other non-competitive teams are now in the mode where they're switching to their younger quarterbacks so they can evaluate them for the future. The Raiders are doing the opposite. Bruce Gradkowski(notes) is the older, more experienced guy and clearly is not the future of the franchise, while Russell, some believe, still might be.

It made sense to make the move in Week 4 or 5, when there might have been a season to salvage. It makes less sense now, but still, I guess there's never a bad time to bench the worst starting quarterback in the league.

My theory on the timing is that owner Al Davis calls most of the shots in Oakland, he's in love with Russell's size, strong arm and athleticism, and it took this long for him to finally say, "Okay, maybe we should try something else." I do not believe that Tom Cable -- or any other NFL head coach who is allowed to make decisions for himself -- would've stuck with Russell for this long, had it been his call.

Cable says that's not the case, and it's been up to him all along. I don't buy it. I think he's a better coach than that. I also think that he sees it as part of his job to cover for the owner in public. It's the only scenario that makes sense. No quarterback with Russell's numbers survives as a starter for that long unless it's someone other than a coach making the decision.

What does it mean for the long-term future of JaMarcus Russell? There's some speculation that it means the Raiders are done with Russell, and are finally ready to give up on him. I doubt that's the case. All along, he's been Al Davis' pet project, and really, there's no reason for that to change now. Russell is still young and still gifted. Guys like that seem to have an endless string of second chances.

It might mean, though, that his days of being handed playing time are over. From now on, he's going to have to earn it by being the better quarterback, and that should have been the case a long, long time ago.

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It's defined the Miami Dolphins since they unleashed it in Week 3 of their miracle 2008 season. It's started a run of read-option plays and direct snaps around the NFL ranging from extremely effective to completely embarrassing. And it's now an endangered species.

When Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown(notes) was put on injured reserve this week with a foot injury, the Wildcat formation went out the window to a degree. Brown has been the formation's pointman for the most part -- it's generally Brown who takes the direct shotgun snaps from center and either runs over right guard, hands to the sweeping Ricky Williams(notes), heads outside right himself, or runs a counter option that's occasionally good for a touchdown pass. With Brown out for the season and the Dolphins at 4-5 coming into tonight's game against the Carolina Panthers, it's tough to know how the team's offensive identity will change. Second-year quarterback Chad Henne(notes) isn't ready to lead the offense, Williams isn't as familiar with direct snaps or passes, and Miami's receiver corps lacks an elite target.

What may save the Dolphins in the short term is the ability of rookie quarterback/wild card Pat White(notes) to run more read-option plays as he did against the Patriots two weeks ago in a 27-17 loss. In that game, White ran left from a shotgun snap for 33 yards and pitched outside to Williams for a 15-yard touchdown. The Dolphins were having trouble getting White acclimated to the timing of the Wildcat formations, but the simpler read-option was completely in his wheelhouse. White ran six times for 45 yards in that game, compared to Brown's 48 yards on 15 carries. With Williams taking snaps, there isn't a sweep threat. If White takes the ball, there are more options available to the Dolphins as they try to fool the Panthers' defense. With fullback Lousaka Polite(notes) blocking as well as anyone playing his position, Miami may want to go with more two- or three-back sets, as they did with an option handoff from a "full house" (inverted wishbone) formation last Sunday against the Buccaneers.

There's still some mileage to be gained out of odd formations for the Dolphins, even with Ronnie Brown out of the picture. It's just a matter of doing what good coaching staffs have to do all the time -- adjust to current circumstances and make the best of what you've got.

This week's edition of the podcast takes a closer look at the resurgence in Tennessee and how Vince Young(notes) is making it happen. To help us out, Jimmy Morris of Titans blog Music City Miracles was nice enough to stop by and shed some light on Tennessee's situation.

The most fascinating thing about it is Vince Young, of course, and how on earth he managed to compile a 3-0 record as starter since taking over. Jimmy tells us what VY does for the offense that Kerry Collins(notes) couldn't do, as well as what else has been clicking for the Titans. We talk about Bud Adams and his mischievous fingers, the disappearance of LenDale White(notes) and why Chris Johnson is the best running back in the NFL.

This edition's Abusive E-mail of the Week again insults my wife, who was able to take the insult in stride, mainly because she doesn't exist. The Hot Routes touch on JaMarcus Russell(notes), Ronnie Brown(notes), Pat White(notes) and Mike Shanahan's chances of being the next coach in Buffalo. Here are the games we call for the Picks Segment, where Danks went 5-0 against the spread last week (home teams in CAPS).

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS -3 vs. Chicago Bears
PITTSBURGH STEELERS -7 vs. Cincinnati Bengals
MINNESOTA VIKINGS -16½ vs. Detroit Lions
SAN DIEGO CHARGERS -2 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS -3 vs. New England Patriots

You can listen right here.

Or download the MP3 right here. MP3, 37:25, 17.5 MB.

Any time a transcendent athlete emerges, it's always natural to talk about how he or she would fare in other sports. No one's better for this argument than NBA thoroughbred LeBron James, because of his size, speed, power and ideal athletic build.

So we say things like, "Hey, wouldn't LeBron be a great tight end or wide receiver for the Browns?! He'd be their best player immediately! Ha ha ha!" And then we go on about our day, mocking the Browns and wondering if the Shaq/LeBron pairing will work out how the Cavaliers want it to.

The Browns, though, sound rather serious about it, which in turn makes them sound rather desperate. And they are desperate, of course, being 1-8 and maybe not even as good as their record indicates. Still, though, I find the desperation in their voices here just a little bit sad.

Brady Quinn(notes) says that the Browns would be more than willing to accept LeBron. Defensive tackle Shaun Rogers(notes) took the route of challenging LeBron and calling him out. From ESPN.com news services:

"I have mixed emotions about that. A great athlete? Yes. A football player? No."

Rogers then looked into TV cameras.

"Yeah LeBron, I said it," he said. "It's a punishing game. I just don't think you can step off the basketball court after not going through this year in and year out and just play football. From that standpoint, I just don't think it's possible. You have to weather and condition your body to take this punishment."

Even head coach Eric Mangini called LeBron an athletic freak, and said he "should come on down."

To me, it all sounds like begging. "LeBron, please come save us! We're a bigger mess than the Cavs were! Did you see that Monday night game? You could play both ways and be the head coach! Pretty please?"

LeBron likes to talk about how he'd be great at football, and he's probably right. He's one of those special athletes that could dominate nearly any sport he chose. But he's not serious about playing for the Browns, so maybe everyone in the organization pining for LeBron should pause for a second, scoop their dignity up off the floor, and see if they can maybe improve on their own.

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