Beating up Big Ben It's hard to believe the Steelers are this good with pass protection that's this bad. Pittsburgh has given up the fifth-most sacks in the league this season (41). Ben Roethlisberger has absorbed 38 of them in 376 attempts. The Lions' 49 sacks allowed are the most in the NFL, followed by the Bengals (48), the 49ers (45) and the Patriots (43). Like Pittsburgh, New England has a winning record. But the Patriots have a first-year starting QB in Matt Cassel and have thrown 58 more passes than Pittsburgh.

And then there were six The Lions became the sixth team to start a season 0-13. The others were the 1962 AFL Raiders, the 1976 expansion Buccaneers, the 1980 Saints, the 1986 Baltimore Colts and the 2007 Dolphins. The Raiders, Colts and Dolphins each won their 14th game. The Bucs, of course, finished 0-14 two years before the NFL expanded the regular season to 16 games. The Saints started 0-14 en route to a 1-15 season. The Lions travel to Indianapolis (9-4), return home to face the Saints (7-6) and finish the season at Green Bay (5-8).

Hall vote for LeBeau Dick LeBeau belongs in the Hall of Fame. The Steelers defensive coordinator has spent the past 50 years of his life in the NFL. He played 14 seasons for the Lions (1959-72) and had 62 interceptions. Only six players have had more. Four of them are in the Hall of Fame. A fifth -- Rod Woodson -- is a finalist this year. As good as he was as a player, LeBeau is a better assistant coach. He's the father of the Fire Zone blitz and one of the best coordinators in NFL history. At 71, his Steelers rank first in total defense, pass defense, run defense and scoring defense. No team has led all four categories for an entire season since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger.

Turnover time in Denver Talk about a weird combination. The Broncos could claim the AFC West and the NFL's worst turnover differential in the same season. They have a three-game lead in the division but trail the 49ers by two in turnover differential. The 49ers are minus-14. The Broncos are minus-12. Denver isn't the only surprise near the bottom of the turnover differential. Dallas (minus-8) is tied for 27th with the 1-11-1 Bengals.