2007 NFL Preseason: NFC North vs. AFC

Heading into Week 3 of NFL football preseason action, the NFC North has three teams at 2-0 while the AFC heavy hitters are getting off to a slow start.

NFC North

The Bears, Lions and Packers are all 2-0 before their third preseason game, and the Bears gained a small bit of Super Bowl revenge with their 27-24 win at Indianapolis on Monday. However, the inconsistency of Rex Grossman reared its ugly head as the young quarterback threw an interception and fumbled three times, including twice from snaps. Grossman was accurate with his short passing, but he cannot afford to turn the ball over. The Lions' offense has looked very potent so far this preseason, following a 548-yard performance with another 310 yards in a 23-20 at Cleveland. Jon Kitna was brilliant at Cleveland by going 12-for-16 for 137 yards and a touchdown, but allowing 20 fourth-quarter points to the Browns could be a cause for concern. Of course, those were third and fourth-string players out there at that point. The Packers may be the most surprising as they destroyed the Seahawks 48-13 at home last week. Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre combined to go 17-for-28 for 171 yards and three touchdowns, and the defense forced an outstanding six turnovers out of the Seahawks while returning two for major scores. But the Packers committed five turnovers themselves, and were fortunate that none came back to bite them. Taking care of the ball is priority number one for a team of Green Bay's talent level.



AFC

Even though it is only preseason, who would have thought that both the Colts and Patriots would be 0-2 heading into Week 3? The Patriots had an uncharacteristic four turnovers in last week's 27-24 loss at home to Tennessee Titans, including two interceptions from Tom Brady. The Patriots will also want to rectify their average of 2.7 yards per carry on the ground so teams will not be able to key on Brady and receiver Randy Moss as they attempt to forge a good understanding in their first year as teammates. The usually-efficient Colts also had four turnovers in a 27-24 loss to the Bears at home, but thankfully none of those came from the arm of Peyton Manning. The Colts' main problem has been defense, but they only allowed 68 yards to the Bears, which is a promising sign. The Colts were terrible against the run last season and could be even worse this season, so head coach Tony Dungy will be looking at solutions for this dilemma as the season wears on.

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