A bunch of donuts Good night, Tennessee: The Titans' puzzling fall from 13-3 continues. At 0-4, they have matched the starts in Tampa, St. Louis, Cleveland and Kansas City. Carolina (0-3) goes for an 0-4 start at home against Washington on Sunday. The only team to ever make the playoffs after starting 0-4 was the 1992 Chargers. They won 11 of their final 12 regular-season games, won a wild-card game and then were bounced in the divisional round.

Who's the genius now? Yes, Broncos coach Josh McDaniels is making fools out of those of us who mocked the 33-year-old first-year head coach this summer. He traded franchise quarterback Jay Cutler after a squabble and suspended No. 1 receiver Brandon Marshall during the preseason. But look who now has the most surprising 4-0 record in recent memory. The key to Denver's success isn't the offense, which it was known for last season. It's the offseason investment in the defense and the hiring of former 49ers coach Mike Nolan as coordinator. Denver has given up a league-low 26 points. For his next trick, McDaniels will try to beat his mentor, Bill Belichick, when the Patriots (3-1) visit on Sunday.

About that 4-0 start The Vikings' victory over the Packers on Monday put them at 4-0, joining the Saints, Giants, Colts and Broncos. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, 29.1 percent of the teams to start 4-0 during the Super Bowl era (34 of 117) reached the Super Bowl. Of those 34, 17 won it.

Sharper closing in on hero Lott Darren Sharper never liked the restrictive Tampa 2 defense the Vikings employ. With freedom to freelance in New Orleans, the 13-year veteran is making up for lost time -- and interceptions. He had two more in Sunday's 24-10 victory over the Jets, including a 99-yard return for a touchdown to go with the 97-yard return for a touchdown he had earlier this season. Sharper has five picks on the year and 59 for his career, the most among active players. He moved past Hall of Famer Emmitt Thomas into ninth place on the career list. Sharper wants to catch another Hall of Famer, Ronnie Lott, whose 63 interceptions are sixth most in NFL history. "Ronnie Lott's my guy, a guy I looked up to growing up," Sharper told reporters Sunday. "If I could catch him, that would be special."