This Week in Football

 

Famously error-prone gunslinger Brett Favre is on pace to set the single-season record for accuracy, completing 70.61 percent of his passes this year. Ken Anderson set the existing record in the nine-game 1982 season, when he completed 70.55 percent of his passes.  

 

Indy's Adam Vinatieri has booted 22 game-winning field goals in his career in the last minute of regulation or overtime.

 

The Saints tied a franchise record by scoring 51 points on the Packers last week – more than the historically inept franchise has scored in entire months. Back in 1973, the Saints scored 20 points in September. As recently as 2005, the Saints scored 42 points in December.

 

The Packers led the league with a 59.5 Defensive Passer Rating before New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees torched them for a 157.5 passer rating on Monday.

 

New England receiver Randy Moss hauled in three TD passes against the Dolphins last week, his first game with more than two TD receptions in more than a full calendar year. He's now third on the career TD reception list with 132.

 

Tom Brady's Patriots were a sterling 5-1 vs. the Steelers, while Brady routinely played his best ball against the perpetually tough Pittsburgh defense – including the single greatest game of his career.

 

New York's NFL entries, the Jets and Giants, are on pace to each win 11 or more games in the same season for the first time in history.

 

Penn State coaching legend Joe Paterno has coached five undefeated teams and finished in the Top 10 22 times over the past 42 seasons. As a player, Paterno holds the all-time interception record in Brown University history.

 

The Giants reached the top spot this week in two key indicators, the Cold, Hard Football Facts Power Rankings and our Relativity Index. 

 

The Lions are so bad on pass defense that they've allowed opposing quarterbacks to post a cumulative 111.1 passer rating (and that was before their 47-10 loss to the Titans on Thanksgiving). To put that 111.1 Defensive Passer Rating into perspective, consider that only four quarterbacks in history have surpassed that mark over the course of a season: Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Steve Young and Joe Montana.