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Sunday, October 28
Updated: October 30, 11:32 AM ET
 
Rams still rule the NFL roost

By Joe Theismann
Special to ESPN.com

ESPN's Joe Theismann answers five key questions on Week 7 of the NFL season:

So, who's the best team in the NFL now?
Darren Howard
Darren Howard's interception off Kurt Warner was the Rams' third turnover of the third quarter. The Saints converted on all three opportunities en route to a 34-31 win.
Despite St. Louis' loss, I still think the Rams (6-1) are the best team in football, week in and week out. The Raiders (5-1) are right there as well. Those are the NFL's two best teams.

Oakland has been the most consistent team, at home and on the road. While the Raiders lost 18-15 to Miami in Week 2, they've been steady on offense and defense.

But the Rams -- with that high-powered, speed-oriented offense -- are still on top in my book.

New Orleans (4-2), Miami (4-2) and probably Chicago (5-1) would round out my top five. The Bears' offense is complementing the defense (which won the game in overtime today with an interception return for a TD). It's safe to say that most people wouldn't have put Chicago anywhere near the top five at the start of the season.

It looked like the Giants were in that top five, but they're making too many mistakes and just not scoring enough points.

Will the Bears win the NFC Central?
Green Bay and Tampa Bay -- and maybe Minnesota -- will have something to say about that. But I will say this: Chicago has been the most consistent team in the NFC Central thus far.

Every week we have to wait and see what the next week brings us. Tampa Bay blasted Minnesota this week, but last week Minnesota blasted Green Bay. This season, it's tough to predict.

The Bears have a good chance in the division. Their defense has been strong and has been putting points on the board. The past three weeks, the defense has scored for Chicago. In today's NFL, you almost count on your defense to score for you.

Chicago still has to play Green Bay and Tampa Bay twice each (and at Minnesota). So let's keep an eye on them, one week at a time, and see if they can stay in that top five.

I've been saying that as long as Jim Miller is at quarterback for the Bears, they have a chance to win. Even though Shane Matthews led the comeback today in place of the injured Miller, the Bears have struggled with Matthews at the helm in the past. With Miller at QB, anything is possible in Chicago.

Did the real Buccaneers stand up Sunday?
The bigger question is: Who are the real Buccaneers?

In recent years, the Bucs have followed this pattern: They start slowly, then get hot and go into the playoffs with people thinking they can make a long postseason run. Looking at the way Tampa Bay played Sunday, it looks like that's the way the script is going to unfold again. I expect the Bucs to start their run with this win.

By the way, Tony Dungy's job should be secure.

The Bucs have a new quarterback (Brad Johnson) and are still adjusting to a new, more wide-open offense. The Bucs still need big-play guys to boost the offense. Keyshawn Johnson is a mid-range receiver who's strong around the goal line. The Bucs need another receiver who can make plays downfield.

The idea that Dungy is in jeopardy of losing his job is ridiculous to me.

Is Matt Hasselbeck the best QB right now for Seattle?
Probably not. Trent Dilfer is probably the best quarterback in Seattle right now. But Matt Hasselbeck will be good.

It's just going to take some time for him to learn how to be starter. There's a growth process that all NFL quarterbacks go through. And this is Hasselbeck's opportunity to undergo that process.

Hasselbeck has to learn how to be a starting QB at this level. As a backup, you prepare differently in the week leading up to a game. Your expectations in practice are different. Hasselbeck is experiencing all of this for the first time.

Is head coach Mike Holmgren sacrificing the season to groom a new QB? I don't think so. As the season goes on, Seattle will get better.

Should Giants fans be worried about missing the playoffs?
I don't think so. But once a team has three or four losses at this point in the season, winning the division becomes paramount. There are lots of quality teams vying for only two wild-card berths.

A 10-6 record might not be good enough for a wild card. The Giants are 3-4 after the loss to the Redskins (after being 3-1), so you can do the math. The Eagles lead the NFC East with a 3-3 record.

The Giants are in a division where three teams are still trying to find themselves. Arizona, Dallas and Washington are not as good week in and week out as the Giants and Eagles. But the Giants need a win next week against Dallas. I expect the Giants to rebound.

Right now Michael Strahan is the defensive player of the year. Through half a season, nobody's playing better than Strahan; he's been a one-man wrecking crew.

But Giants head coach Jim Fassel needs to come up with something other than a guarantee. He needs to find more offense to go along with that stellar defense.

A game analyst for ESPN's Sunday Night Football, former NFL QB Joe Theismann won a Super Bowl and a league MVP award. He reviews the NFL each week for ESPN.com in Cup o' Joe.









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