Vikings stay No. 3 in power rankings

Some random thoughts with Week 10 nearly complete (all that's left is for the Browns to humiliate themselves on national television tonight at home against the city that stole the original Browns) ...

. A weird week in my power rankings. Teams 5-9 all lost, which meant the Patriots actually climbed from eighth to sixth this week after a loss to the Colts. The Saints stayed No. 1, although their 19 giveaways are starting to concerrn me. Only the Panthers, Browns and Raiders have turned the ball over more than the Saints. The Colts stayed No. 2, while the Vikings are still No. 3. I thought about moving the Bengals ahead of them, but kept Cincy No. 4.

UPDATE: Upon further review, I moved the Colts to No. 1 and the Saints to No. 2 for tomorrow's paper. I'm sure Drew Brees is quite upset about this latest development. 

. Here's Bill Belichick's take today on last night's failed decision to go for it on fourth-and-2 from his 28 with 2:08 left at Indy:

"It's what I said after the game, I felt it was our best chance to win," Belichick said. "I felt we needed to make that one play and then we could basically run out the clock. But we weren't able to make it."

Asked what he told the team, Belichick said, "I told the team, and I think they believe I do what I feel like is best for our football team to win every game. I put the team first, I put those decisions first. I just hope everybody understands that."

It was a bad decision, but let's not crucify the guy. He still has a two-game lead in the AFC East and probably will end up back in Indy for the AFC title game.

. Is there a better slot receiver in football than Wes Welker? No.

. Randy Moss became the 11th NFL player with at least 900 catches. And he's still running faster than most of the guys covering him.

. I loved Jack Del Rio's decision to have Maurice Jones-Drew take a knee at the Jets' 1-yard line rather than score too soon. There was less than two minutes left and the Jets didn't have a timeout. The Jets didn't try to tackle Jones-Drew and actually were upset when he took a knee. The Jags then ran the clock down and kicked a 21-yard game-winning field goal as time expired. There was little risk in allowing Josh Scobee to make that kick. But can you imagine the uproar had he missed that kick or if it had been blocked?

. It was a good day for a lot of special teams play. Redskins punter Hunter Smith threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to tie the Broncos 14-14 en route to a Washington win. Smith also has run for a touchdown this season. Bengals rookie Bernard Scott returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown and also filled in nicely at running back after Cedric Benson injured his hip. Not bad for a sixth-round draft pick and a former D-II guy from Abilene Christian.

. Speaking of special teams, when are the Steelers going to plug those holes on kick coverage? My goodness. Three kickoff returns for a touchdown allowed in the past four games? Somebody tackle somebody.

. Did you know Bears QB Jay Cutler has saved his worst for prime time? As in 11 picks in 12 quarters of nighttime play?

. I wonder how much Titans owner Bud Adams will be fined for flipping off Buffalo fans from his loge in Tennessee on Sunday. If you haven't seen the video, I linked to in my previous post. Check it out. It's clear as day. I'm sure some of the heavily-fined players -- like a Chad Ochocinco -- will be anxious to see how the commish handles Adams.

. Some are suggesting an 8-8 record will be good enough for a playoff spot in the NFC. They might be right, since 5-4 would get you in right now. Four NFC teams -- including the Packers -- have 5-4 records.

. After four straight losses, the Giants (5-4) take a week off and gain a game on both the Cowboys (6-3) and Eagles 95-4). Granted, the Eagles had to play at San Diego. But doesn't it seem like they should be so much better? They might be the most inconsistent team in the league.

.  The Saints are 9-0 for the first time ever. They've already improved on last year's win total of eight.

. Bills rookie safety Jarius Byrd had yet another INT, giving him eight on the year and at least one in five consecutive games. Note to future teams: The kid can play.

. The league is filled with teams streaking in opposite directions. The Giants have lost four in a row, while the Chargers have won four in a row. The Jets have lost five of six since starting 3-0. The Titans have won three straight after losing their first six. Denver has lost three in a row.

. How in the world did the Chiefs win while converting 1 of 15 third downs. Oh wait. They played the Raiders.

. Speaking of the streaking Chargers, I find it interesting that Norv Turner has a rep as a bad coach. Yet the Chargers are 9-0 in December with him as their head coach.

. Keep an eye on KC's Jamaal Charles. The running back was part of the Jared Allen trade. I don't know if you've noticed, but that trade has been a tad lopsided in favor of the Vikes. With surly Larry Johnson out of KC, Charles has an opportunity to succeed. He had 117 yards from scrimmage on Sunday.

. I'm pretty sure the Raiders will have to pull the plug and get rid of JaMarcus Russell. What a shame, and what a salary cap nightmare.

. Seattle's T.J. Houshmanzadeh comes to the Metrodome riding his 15th 100-yard game. But Seattle running back Julius Jones could be sitting this one out with a broken rib.

. The Cowboys' loss in Green Bay was totally predictable. Even a certain person with a 2-7 Upset Special record felt good about taking the Pack to beat the Boys. It's the natural ebb and flow of the NFL. The Pack had just been humiliated in Tampa. The Cowboys had won four in a row. The Pack played like a team that knew another loss would essentially end its season. Congrats to the Packers for staying in the playoff picture for another week.

Green Bay's next two games are against San Francisco (4-5) at home and at Detroit (1-8). Don't be surprised if the Packers are still hunting for a wild card spot at 7-4 heading into December.