FanHouse VinnyTestaverde

A month into the season the Chiefs remain winless. Not really news given that they managed just six wins the previous two seasons, and entered 2009 with a new general manager, head coach and franchise quarterback. Plus, they were facing possibly the NFL's best team, the New York Giants, Sunday.

The confluence of bad luck, young players, lack of talent, and a formidable opponent all led to a predictable result: another loss. Still, the Chiefs' defense remains so in name only (according to Football Outsiders, they ranked 23rd against the pass and 26th against the run during the first three weeks), but the Arrowhead Stadium turf monsters did their part to keep the Giants offense in check.

Bernie Kosar spent his first eight NFL season with the Cleveland Browns. A native of Youngstown, Ohio, he was a fan favorite, although Bill Belichick, hired in 1991, was less enamored with the immobile quarterback and eventually benched him for Vinny Testaverde in 1993, before releasing him in Week 8.

Doug Flutie and Vinny Testaverde ain't walkin' through that door. Not yet, anyway. It's May, the first round of minicamps are over, and the Patriots are still without a veteran backup quarterback.

Just like the previous two years when Matt Cassel served as Tom Brady's understudy. And last fall when Cassel started 15 games after Bernard Pollard blew up Brady's knee 15 minutes into the 2008 season. But this summer is different; New England traded Cassel to Kansas City and despite a glut of available veteran free-agent quarterbacks, the Patriots decided to keep it in-house.

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

Heading into this year's draft, Josh Freeman was considered to have the highest upside of any quarterback entering the NFL in 2009, while also possessing the biggest downside. The Buccaneers, in need of a true franchise quarterback for the first time since ... well, they've never really had one, were not only willing to take the chance on Freeman, but they were also willing to move up two spots to get him.

If Eric Mangini is trying to win friends and influence people in the greater Cleveland area, he sure has an odd way of doing it. In one of his first orders of business as the Browns new head coach, Mangini has decided to change the culture in Cleveland by ripping down a mural containing Jim Brown, Otto Graham, Lou Groza and Paul Brown. Because nothing says change in culture like removing a tribute to the most important people in franchise history and replacing it with, well, nothing.

The mural was located at the team's practice facility in Berea, Ohio, and in its place is a spectacularly bland, plain white wall. Exciting. I'm guessing this is to represent what the Browns have accomplished since the players mentioned above hung up their cleats. Or, perhaps, it represents that Mangini has absolutely lost his mind and is about to get a face full of fist from Jim Brown.

Tom Brady's season ended back in Week 1 and he spent the next four months having knee surgery and mustering the courage to ask for his ladyfriend's hand in marriage.

Good news: SHE SAID YES. Bad news: Brady's rehab is behind schedule, which could complicate the Patriots' offseason quarterbackin' plans. Specifically: what to do with Matt Cassel, Brady's backup who has fared surprisingly well as the starter.

NBC.com's Tom Curran has the details on Tommy Terrific's knee:

As Ryan has already pointed out, this game, despite the "Homefield Throughout" nature in which it will be played, isn't the most "important" of the season, since both teams are all but playoff locked (if the Panthers lose out and the Bucs, Falcons and Cowboys win out ... well, then I'm a jackass).

But there's still puh-lenty at stake here. Namely: home-field advantage throughout the playoffs and the likelihood of being favored to rep the NFC in the Super Bowl. The last one of course, is really just a semantical bonus for those that like to gamble.

Make no mistake though -- HFA is a huge deal to both of these teams, considering that they're a combined 14-1 this season at home. So, yeah, it's kind of important.

And as such, this should be a great game, even if it's kind of odd to see the seasonal arc that each team is taking. The Giants were, just a few weeks ago, already being penciled in to rep the NFC in Tampa. However, in just the course of two losses to the Eagles and the Cowboys, people have started to wonder how they can perform when they're not a full strength.

But, as Giants early season roll has slowed, the Panthers have only picked up the pace, moving from a tough team that looked like a contender to a powerhouse that rumbled over Tampa Bay for 300+ rushing yards in a Monday night blowout. Of course, there's the whole matter of DeAngelo Williams being secretly hurt -- yeah, it's weird. It also seems unlikely; he was, after all, tutored by Vinny Testaverde and that goes a long way towards maintaining health. But still, a shoddy performance or an early exit from "Dash" would make this a pretty big deal going forward.

DeAngelo Williams has had plenty of promise since he was drafted as a first rounder in 2006. But after two so-so years in terms of totals (his YPC were still stout) toiling behind DeShaun Foster -- for whatever reason -- he has finally exploded onto the scene in 2008, racking up 16 total touchdowns and 1,229 yards on the ground.

It was entirely possible that Jonathan Stewart could have taken over the roll of primary back this year too, keeping Williams from starting ... but obviously he didn't. So something must have happened, obviously, to spark this change in Williams' play. Turns out, it was a convo with Vinny Testaverde. Really.

[...]the once ageless quarterback who, before finally retiring at the end of last season, sat down the young running back and gave some wise, fatherly advice.

"I think he's probably impacted my season the most this year than anybody because of the conversation that we had before he left," Williams said Wednesday.

[...]"We had a lengthy conversation and everything he said to me made perfect sense," said Williams, Carolina's first-round pick in 2006. "From the film room down to work ethic and everything of that nature. He really left me with some things that really touched me and stayed on my heart, as you can tell from this season."

It makes complete sense -- Testaverde didn't have a 4,000 year NFL career by not preparing. But it's still odd to think about Vinny, who only played in Carolina for half a season, having such an impact on Williams, when they're two totally different players from, well, different generations.

The lesson, as always: Vinny >>> Mittens.

This season, FanHouse writers take their cameras to NFL stadiums to document what happens when you stop being polite and start getting real. Or something. We've cleverly titled it "FanHouse in the Stands."

Okay, I've seen some weird stuff at NFL games like tailgating snakes and lame gameday attire, but this picture that my friend Andy sent me is truly inexplicable.

Why would someone wear a David Carr PANTHERS jersey to a Houston Texans game against the Titans?

How did such a jersey even exist? Mister Mittens lost his starting job with the Panthers to Vinny Freaking Testaverde, a guy who wasn't in camp with the team and didn't know the names of the guys he was playing with when he took over the offense. Matt Moore, a rookie from Oregon State got on the field over Carr.

Did the Panther Mittens guy lose a bet? If he loves the man so much, why not rock a Carr Giants jersey? Does this guy want someone to *accidentally" spill a big plate of nachos on him? Because I can't think of any jersey you could wear to a Texans game that would cause more abuse being flung your way.

Anyhow, I felt compelled to put together a photoshop essay to share my thoughts on this. Enjoy....

Just another limp-D 8-6 week. I wonder when I'll finally break through and sniff a double digit win week? Hmm. Maybe this week? Nah. Probably not. The season record now stands at a "creeping-on-a-comeback" 47-53-1 record. And somehow I forgot to post my locks. They will be there this week and indicated by **Guaranteed Loss Team** some sort of thing. Onto the picks.

Atlanta Falcons @ Philadelphia Eagles (-9)
The Falcons are a bizarre story -- I know they're winning but I watched the Panthers beat them and ... well, I just don't think they're as good as their record. I also think the Eagles are better than their record. So I'll take the ridiculous nine points.

Eagles -9

Kansas City Chiefs @ New York Jets (-12.5)
What a stout freaking line that is, and I suppose it's indicative of just how crappy the Chiefs are; the Jets, if you recall, did actually just lose to the Raiders. Which, while embarrassing enough, still isn't as bad as having to start Tyler Thigpen at quarterback. This really will be a true test of Herm Edwards' crappiness.

Jets -12.5 Chiefs +12.5

St. Louis Rams @ New England Patriots (-7)
Ummm, did I miss something? Because Jim Haslett is undefeated this season. Oh right. I didn't watch any football Monday night. That's why they're so heavily favored. Still, Haslett.

Rams +7

Buffalo Bills (-1.5) @ Miami Dolphins
Well, that's just not enough. What a slap in the face to the Buffalo Bills ... yoooooooour 2008 AFC Champions*.

Bills -1.5