TJ's Take

Tom Jackson

Keyword
NFL
Scores
Schedules
Standings
Statistics
Transactions
Injuries
Players
Message Board
NFL en español
CLUBHOUSE


SHOP@ESPN.COM
NikeTown
TeamStore
ESPN Auctions
SPORT SECTIONS
Sunday, December 2
Updated: December 4, 1:51 PM ET
 
Steel Curtain's No. 1

By Tom Jackson
Special to ESPN.com

Here's my quick review of everything we saw in Week 11 of the 2001 NFL season:

TJ'S TOP 10 W-L TJ SAYS
1. Steelers 9-2 Black and Gold hold on for dear life against Vikings.
2. Rams 9-2 Took care of the football and coasted at Atlanta.
3. 49ers 9-2 Ran all over Bills on Sunday night.
4. Raiders 8-3 Slumping defense caught up with them against Cards.
5. Packers 8-3 Brett Favre does it again as Pack escape with a win.
6. Bears 9-2 Another ugly and low-scoring win within division.
7. Jets 7-4 Let the Pats hang around and it cost them dearly.
8. Dolphins 8-3 Saved the best for last with 21 fourth-quarter points.
9. Ravens 8-4 Defense shaky, but made timely plays when needed.
10t. Eagles 7-4 Andy Reid's team continues to be road warriors (5-0).
10t. Patriots 7-5 Huge road win for those very-for-real-Patriots.

Offensive player of the week:
Rams running back Marshall Faulk. Six catches for 128 yards and three touchdown receptions gives the versatile performer 100 career touchdowns.

Defensive player of the week:
Ravens free safety Rod Woodson. Clinched the 39-27 win over the Colts with an interception return for a score, his NFL-record 10th interception return for the future Hall of Famer.

Special team player(s) of the week:
The Gramatica Brothers: Buccaneers kicker Martin booted a 21-yard field goal in OT to beat the Bengals; Younger sibling/Cardinals rookie kicker Bill nailed a 36-yarder, also in overtime, to stun the Raiders.

Number of the week:
0. For the second straight year, no teams will go undefeated at home. Before 2000, that hadn't happened since 1994.

Surprise of the week:
Cardinals over Raiders. Jake Plummer and company survived a see-saw affair and stunned the Silver and Black in Oakland in overtime.

Coaching move of the week:
Dave Campo. The Cowboys heard all week that they would finally lose to the Redskins. But Dallas' brain trust stuck with their game-plan and extended their winning streak over Washington to nine straight.

Rising this week:
Arizona Cardinals. Three wins in a row and Dave McGinnis' team is now tied for second in the NFC East.

Falling this week:
Denver Broncos. The rollercoaster ride continues as Mike Shanahan's club owned a 10-0 lead in the fourth quarter, then gave up 21 unanswered points.

Store it away:
The Rams have gone turnover-free in only two games this year and have won them by a combined score of 77-16 (42-10 over Dolphins, 35-6 over Falcons). Mike Martz finally acknowledged that they needed to cut down on the mistakes and his team responded.

Tom Jackson is an NFL analyst for ESPN.







 More from ESPN...
Mort: Favre adds to folklore
Add another brilliant ...

Cup o' Joe: Gruden great for Irish
Raiders coach Jon Gruden ...

Week 12 infirmary report
Check out all the key ...

Prime Time Players
Week 12's list is led by ...

Week 12 wrap-ups
Get the key plays and top ...

Tom Jackson Archive

 ESPN Tools
Email story
 
Most sent
 
Print story