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Since the NFL is tight with their broadcast video, we have to revert to re-enactments to show you what happened. Not really, but someone decided to do one of the Tom Brady injury and throw it on YouTube (nice Brady jersey).

Being a human being, you should not celebrate another person getting hurt. Sports are able competition -- being your best and beating their best. You want to see everyone be as healthy after the game as they were when in started.

But, get real. This is the bloodthirsty NFL crowd and injuries happen to everyone. The fact that the major injury happened to the saturated Brady and the hated New England Patriots means that people aren't as sad as they would be for ... well ... pretty much anybody else.

T.J. Houshmandzadeh (he's the smart Bengals wide receiver) gets points for frankness, although, unfortunately, that doesn't do much to change the sorry state of Cincinnati's offense. It's all very confusing, really, since this group has been routinely been one of the most explosive unit's in the league in three of the last four seasons.

Following yesterday's totally uninspiring effort against the Ravens, Houshmazilly lost it:

"We just suck on offense right now. That's terrible. We can't move the ball. We can't get a first down. We can't run. We can't throw. The defense played great, and we just didn't play good on offense, bottom line."

A quick look at the numbers confirms that the Bengals offense was indeed sucky. Carson Palmer finished 10 of 25 for 99 yards and a pick, and Chris Perry, allegedly the key to this offense, managed just 37 yards on 18 carries.

As for Houshmandzadeh's contention that "the defense played great," I can only assume he was being a smart-ass since that outfit allowed the Ravens to rush for 229 yards, including a 38-yard Joe Flacco touchdown scamper. And that's rookie Joe Flacco, who was making his first NFL start and runs like he's wearing cement moon boots.

I understand why Cincy's front office cut ties with Rudi Johnson and Willie Anderson (to save a few buck) but they could've used both of them yesterday. Luckily, Chris Henry made an immediate impact: he didn't register a catch despite being on the game-day roster, which is what happens when you're serving a league-mandated suspension.

Each week in the NFL, there are players that impress and players that distress. One week a certain quarterback might toss four touchdowns and run around with his finger in the air while the next he's laying on his back, holding his face-mask as the other team returns one of his three interceptions for the game-winning score. With that in mind, here's our new feature, Studs and Duds:

Here's Week 1 at a glance, where we point out the horses destined for the Kentucky Derby and jeer those headed to the glue factory.

Studs

Michael Turner, RB ATL (220 yards, 2 TDs): I guess this would be one way to introduce yourself as a starter. On a new coast that is as far from the initials "LDT" as possible, Turner ran all over a Detroit Lions defense that would have been out-hustled by a Madame Tussuad's exhibition. Breaking one for 66 yards, Turner looked like the second coming of the Dirty Bird in Atlanta.

LaMarr Woodley, OLB PIT (2 tackles, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception): I guess it would be fair to give this award to the entire Steelers defense, but the second-year man out of Michigan sure had a pretty salty line. A funny fact about Lamarr -- while at Michigan, T-shirts were sold that said, "Guns don't kill people, LaMarr Woodley kills people." The Houston Texans will testify to that.

Sorting the Sunday Pile looks back at the NFL weekend that was. It's also an unofficial Mittens blog.


Sunday was supposed to be a coronation of sorts; Tom Brady would take his first snap in seven months, the Patriots would resume their quest for perfection, and the rest of the football-watching world would have front-row seats for the awesomeness that was sure to ensue. And then, in the time it took New England running back Sammy Morris to block Kansas City safety Bernard Pollard to the turf -- and into Brady's knee -- the Patriots' season was over.

Obviously, they'll still play the remaining 15 games on their schedule, but as Peter King so somberly explained during "Football Night in America," "Tom Brady is football." That's a bit much, I think, but I take the point; the Patriots go as Brady goes, and without him, they're just a team and Bill Belichick is just a coach.

There's still much to sort through, especially in terms of tailoring the offense to highlight backup Matt Cassel's strong suits (more broken plays that result in awkward quarterback scrambles?), but one thing is certain: in no way was the hit on Brady dirty. Following the game, Randy Moss disagreed, but I suspect that had more to do with being in shock at the situation he currently finds himself. Brady saved Moss' career a year ago and the prospect of having to catch passes from a guy who spent his college career handing out water to Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart whenever they came to the sidelines has to be disconcerting.

Thanks to CBS Sportsline breaking the news that Tom Brady may or may not be out for the year, the Patriots have to think about finding somebody -- anybody -- to serve as Matt Cassel's backup. (I hear Drew Bledsoe's not doing anything).

According to Al Michaels during tonight's Sunday Night Football telecast, New England will workout Chris Simms, presumably tomorrow. What this means for Cassel's immediate future is uncertain, but after spending three years in this offense, I can't imagine he'd lose his job in a few weeks to a street free agent. Then again, we're talking about a guy who's been riding the pine ever since he left high school, so nothing's outside the realm of possibility.

No idea if the Patriots will have other quarterbacks in to compete for a roster spot, but, frankly, I'm shocked that Doug Flutie or Vinny Testaverde weren't first on Bill Belichick's "in case of emergency" list. They know the offense, are virtually indestructible, and Flutie can even drop-kick in a pinch.

Oh, and if you haven't heard, Peter King announced on "Football Night in America" that Tom Brady is the NFL. We must find a way to carry on, however; Tom would want it that way, I think.

It's finally here, people: the NFL season is upon us. In the seven months since the Giants beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl, front-office types have wheeled and dealed, players have trained, and coaches have game-planned, all for this moment.

Today everybody's upbeat -- ecstatic, even -- especially the fans, many of whom use football as an escape from real-world drudgeries that can sometimes make the offseason seem unbearably long. And by "everybody", I mean "everybody but Greg Cosell." Cosell is the guy behind the guy behind the guy at NFL Films, and he's basically Ron Jaworski's off-camera alter ego.

His most recent column is about as uplifting as a funeral procession, but without all the ceremony. The title pretty much sets the tone, and if you're a Raiders or Jets fans, it just gets more depressing/infuriating from there: "McFadden, Gholston have look of NFL busts."

Now this could very well be the case, but jeebus, man, we haven't even seen either of them play a snap in a regular-season game. It's one thing to call out Alex Smith and Matt Leinart for their shortcomings -- there's plenty of film of those two in various states of underachievement -- but Darren McFadden and Vernon Gholston? Okay, let's hear it.

As we get ready for week one matchup of the Dolphins and Jets, I chatted with longtime blogging friend John Butchko, aka "George Coztanza", from his own Coztanza's Commentary blog. John was nice enough to offer some insights on the Jets for this week's Behind Enemy Lines feature.

Attempting to compare Olympic gold medals and NFL touchdowns is an apple-orange type debate. One is a four-year culmination of hard work (unless you're a backstroker, then you just need to learn how to swim on your belly like everyone else) condensed into several hundred seconds celebrated on a world stage. The other is a week's worth of hard work condensed into several seconds celebrated on a ... Oh.

Well, maybe they are kind of similar, value and frequency aside. Which would explain why pool-pals Michael Phelps and Braylon Edwards are making a bet on quantity, which was confirmed by an NBC halftime report during the Notre Dame - San Diego State game.

The foot injury wasn't a complete loss. Edwards used the time on his couch to catch up with swimmer Michael Phelps' chase for history at the Olympics.

Edwards and Phelps have University of Michigan ties and struck up a friendship. Edwards bragged before Beijing that he would more than double Phelps' gold-medal total with touchdown catches. After Phelps' record eight golds, Edwards needs to set another franchise record.

So, as you can see, they actually made this bet before the Olympics. Whoops, Braylon.

Back in June, when the news was still relatively fresh, CBSSports.com's Clark Judge spoke to various personnel types to help explain why Shaun Alexander's NFL career was probably over. Short story: "soft runner" label + Curse of 370 = forced retirement.

And two and a half months later, Alexander's still looking for work, although the Associated Press reports that the 2005 NFL MVP has no plans on getting on with life after football, and he expects to be signed any day now.

...[T]he 31-year-old Alexander believes his signing is imminent with one of a handful of teams that have provided "a constant flow of calls," including his hometown Cincinnati Bengals. So imminent, his extended family members in Northern Kentucky are suggesting a new name.

In Seattle, Alexander wore No. 37. ... "They want me to be Tres Siete," Alexander said Friday in a telephone interview with The Associated Press, laughing at the twist on the Bengals star receiver formerly known as Chad Johnson now being officially recognized as Chad Ocho Cinco, to match his uniform number 85 in Cincinnati.

And things continue to get worse in Alex Smith's professional life. Two weeks ago, the 2005 first-overall pick got the news that he had been demoted to second-team quarterback behind journeyman J.T. O'Sullivan, all while enduring a constant verbal barrage from offensive coordinator No. 4 in his NFL career, Mike Martz.

And today we learn that Smith will be listed as doubtful on the 49ers injury report for tomorrow's opener against the Cardinals.

From the Sacramento Bee's Matt Barrows:

There's been a late development on the injury report. Alex Smith injured his surgically repaired right shoulder this week and is doubtful for tomorrow's game. That means Shaun Hill will be the back-up and that Michael Robinson would be the emergency back-up. I'm told that it was a non-contact injury but there are no other details about the injury at this time. Here's a quote from Mike Nolan:

"Yesterday Alex Smith sustained a non-contact injury to his surgically repaired right shoulder. He will be consulting with his surgeon in Birmingham for treatment recommendations. At this time there are no specifics to the injury or a timetable. "