Week 3 of the NFL football season again showed us the three best teams in the league reside in the AFC (New England, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh), but that there is only one true power team in the NFC so far.
That would be "America's Team," the Dallas Cowboys.
Dallas, behind QB Tony Romo and a potent offense, routed Chicago 34-10 in what most thought was an NFC Championship Game preview.
Well, Dallas looks like a championship-caliber team. With Romo looking polished, Terrell Owens breaking down defenses and a two-headed monster at tailback in Julius Jones and Marion Barber, Dallas can score on almost anyone. The Cowboys' defense had been in question until Sunday night's effort, but Dallas allowed only 239 yards to Chicago and had four takeaways.
So while Dallas is on a high, Chicago is in the depths, and a quarterback change could be in the offering on Wednesday.
Much-embattled Rex Grossman was terrible again Sunday night, going 15-for-32 for 195 yards and three interceptions. Grossman hasn't had a quarterback rating higher than 56.0 in any of the three games this season, and on Sunday it was an awful 27.5. Grossman
is 23rd in the league with 500 yards, has an overall 45.2 rating and is 47-of-89 (52.8 percent) with a league-leading six interceptions and just one touchdown.And Coach Lovie Smith may be ready to pull the trigger on a QB change, as he said Monday:
"Will Rex Grossman start Sunday (against the Lions)?" Smith said. "Well, our evaluation process is going on right now, and if you come out to practice Wednesday, you'll have a better idea of who will be starting at all positions."
The Chicago Tribune is reporting Brian Griese will get the call before Chicago's season self-destructs. Griese's last start was Oct. 16, 2005, a 27-13 win over Miami as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That same season, Griese threw for 302 yards in a 17-13 win over Detroit, this week's opponent. In six games with the Bears last season, Griese completed 18 of 32 passes for 220 yards with one touchdown and two
interceptions.
"You know, I haven't been part of very many quarterback changes in the middle of the season that I can remember," receiver Muhsin Muhammad said. "From what I've seen around the league, it could ignite a spark, it could be a time of struggle, it could go back and forth. I'm not sure exactly how this thing is going to play itself out."
Meanwhile, in addition to a bad offense, the Chicago defense saw starters Lance Briggs, Tommie Harris, Nathan Vasher and Ruben Brown all suffer potentially serious injuries.
The Bears are somewhat surprising 2.5-point favorites on WagerWeb.com for Sunday's game at 2-1 Detroit. This could be the rare instance of a line actually going up with a team's starting quarterback being benched, although one could argue this game is already make-or-break for the defending NFC champions.
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