NFL- Week Four Review

After the first quarter of the season, there are some surprises and disappointments in the 2009 NFL season.
The Denver Broncos, led by a totally rejuvenated defense, are 4-0 and face a bear of a schedule to prove the doubters wrong as they lead the AFC West division with their perfect record. The Broncos beat the Dallas Cowboys 17-10 as wide receiver Brandon Marshall took a pass from quarterback Kyle Orton and raced 51 yards for the winning touchdown with 1:46 remaining in the game.
Denver has a two-game lead on perennial AFC West favorite San Diego, which lost their game to the Pittsburgh Steelers, 38-28 on Sunday night. The Steelers (2-2) raced out to a 21-0 halftime lead and led 28-0 midway through the third quarter as running back Rashard Mendenhall (career high 165 yards rushing) scored his second TD of the game.
Philip Rivers (254 yards passing and three TD passes) led a furious comeback for the Chargers in the final quarter as San Diego (2-2) battled to within 35-28 with 4:31 left to play. But Jeff Reed nailed a 46-yard field goal for the Steelers with 43 seconds remaining to seal the game.

Indianapolis reclaimed the top post once again in the AFC South as they continued to dominate the opposition with a 34-17 trouncing of the Seattle Seahawks. The Colts (4-0) are rolling on the right arm of QB Peyton Manning and a defense that suffocates opposing offenses... The New England Patriots topped the Baltimore Ravens 27-21 to gain a share of the AFC East lead with the New York Jets, which lost their first game of the season at New Orleans, 24-10.

The Saints (4-0) defense scored two touchdowns in the win and like Denver, has been a big reason for the improvement this season in New Orleans... The New York Giants ran their record to 4-0 with a 27-16 win at Kansas City (0-4) as quarterback Eli Manning left the game in the third quarter with a heel injury... The Chicago Bears improved to 3-1 with a 48-24 win over the Detroit Lions. Bears' rookie Johnny Knox ran the second half kickoff back 102 yards for a TD to ignite the Bears after a 21-21 halftime tie... San Francisco is 3-1 after shutting out the St. Louis Rams, 35-0 with the defense scoring three touchdowns and QB Shaun Hill throwing two TDs... The Cincinnati Bengals, another early season surprise, are now 3-1 after escaping Cleveland with a 23-20 overtime victory... And a major disappointment is the Tennessee Titans (0-4) as they were creamed by the Jacksonville Jaguars, 37-17 with Jaguars QB David Garrard throwing three TD passes and 323 yards... and finally, the MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL game saw the Minnesota Vikings, led by quarterback Brett Favre (three TD passes) and a tenacious defense that sacked Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers eight times, win the game 30-23 to improve to 4-0 in the NFC North.

Key games upcoming in Week Five: New England (3-1) at Denver (4-0); Cincinnati (3-1) at Baltimore (3-1); Atlanta (2-1) at San Francisco (3-1); Houston (2-2) at Arizona (1-2)... Sunday Night Game- Indianapolis (4-0) at Tennessee (0-4)... Monday Night Game- NY Jets (3-1) at Miami (1-3).