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Former New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has been suspended indefinitely for his role in the Saints' bounty program after the NFL concluded that he'd offered players financial rewards in exchange for injuring opposing players. Not surprisingly, Williams had apparently done this before. Per David Elfin:

It was the Wednesday before Washington opened the 2006 "Monday Night Football" season against visiting Minnesota and former Redskins quarterback Brad Johnson. Assistant head coach/defense Gregg Williams knew about the bad blood between Redskins owner Dan Snyder and Johnson and decided to do something about it in the defensive meeting room.

"Gregg came in and dropped $15,000 on the (table) and said, 'Brad Johnson doesn't finish this game. This is Wednesday and the money will go up later in the week. It could double or triple by the end of the week,'" one of the players recalled. "A couple of guys kinda got excited. (Defensive line coach) Greg Blache said, 'If you get fined, it will be taken care of.'

Elfin's story has a lot of details, supplied by anonymous players, that aren't hard to believe in light of the practices of which Williams and others have been found guilty in New Orleans. And it strikes at the issue that this bounty thing has gone on for some time in several different locations before the Saints got caught for their wide-reaching violations.

It also points out, with the help of one of those anonymous players, that it's pretty hard to knock an opposing player out of a game even if that's what you're trying to do. Johnson finished the game in question, just as Vikings quarterback Brett Favre finished the NFC Championship Game three years ago in spite of the Saints' best efforts.

The upshot of this isn't much other than more damage to Williams' already-shredded reputation. The NFL investigated Williams' time in Washington as part of its investigation of the Saints, and in announcing the discipline earlier this week against Williams and the Saints it also announced that it had found no reason to discipline other teams for the same kind of stuff. The release said the league reserves the right to impose discipline if new evidence comes to light, but it's hard to imagine this story constitutes anything the league couldn't have already learned about Williams' time in Washington. It's also pretty tame in comparison to what appears to have gone on in New Orleans.

Doesn't make it any less interesting, of course. I just don't want Redskins fans to start worrying that their team might be about to get fined or lose draft picks for anything that happened when Williams was there, because it's not. The only thing the NFL is angry at the Redskins about is all the money they spent against a phantom salary cap in 2010.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Eli Manning admitted he wasn't supposed to try that throw. Rich Cimini has a detailed account of Manning's pinpoint 38-yard sideline throw to Mario Manningham that began the drive that would win Super Bowl XLVI for the New York Giants, and in it the Giants' quarterback is perfectly willing to admit it was a throw he never should have tried:

Just before the snap, the Patriots rotated into a two-deep look, with their two safeties dropping into deep "halves." Manning recognized it. Quarterbacks aren't supposed to throw deep sideline routes against a Cover 2 -- too risky -- but Manning looked to his right and didn't see anyone open.

Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks ran corner routes on the strong side, but they were well-covered. Manning did something the great quarterbacks do, using his eyes to freeze the safeties for a nanosecond. That opened the smallest of windows for him to throw to the back side, to throw to Manningham.

"It was Cover 2. Usually, that's not the matchup," Manning said, admitting that what he did went against the Quarterback Handbook.

But doesn't Manning himself go against the handbook? Hasn't that become the beauty of Manning? The gunslinging daredevil aspect of it all. His faith in himself and his receivers is so complete, honed during hours of weekly Friday film sessions -- the ones in which, the receivers say, he does all of the talking and they just listen -- that he brings no fear with him on game day. And that's why there's no quarterback in the league who tries -- and makes -- more dangerous throws than Manning does.

He's vintage Tiger Woods, bending an impossible five-iron around a tree. He's Greg Maddux living on the corners of the plate while dominating the National League with the Atlanta Braves. He's Brett Favre with better endings. Manning knew he wasn't supposed to throw that ball, but he had a pretty good idea he could hit that teeny, tiny spot, and that if he did Manningham could make the catch of his life. And as he was so often during the Giants' season-ending six-game winning streak, he was right.

Hey, so, bad news for all of you Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins fans. If you thought last week on the blog was Giants-heavy... you ain't seen nothing yet. Links.

New York Giants

Ian O'Connor points out that Eli Manning has now beaten Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers in playoff games in Green Bay, and that the only reason he didn't take out Bart Starr too is that he's too young to have had the chance. "Manning plays better than better quarterbacks," Ian writes, and while that's a nice way to put it, it seems pretty clear by now that Manning is a fairly great quarterback in his own right.

The play of Sunday's game may have been Hakeem Nicks' catch of Eli Manning's Hail Mary pass as time ran out in the second quarter. Brandon Jacobs said he saw Packers players walking to the locker room with their heads down and "pretty much knew they were done." Not sure about that, but the play had a strong whiff of significance. Kevin Seifert had just told me that the Packers specialized in scoring right before the end of the first half and then getting the ball to start the second half and scoring again. The opposite happened in this game. The Giants scored right before the end of the first half and the Packers turned the ball over on the first drive of the second. Game-changing stuff, that.

Philadelphia Eagles

The 700 Level looks at the likelihood of Steve Spagnuolo returning to the Eagles as defensive coordinator. With rumors now abounding that Gregg Williams will leave the Saints to join Jeff Fisher in St. Louis, you can add New Orleans to the list of interested Spagnuolo suitors. It won't be easy for the Eagles to get him, and there's also the troubling little fact that their defensive coordinator job is not, currently, open.

Sheil Kapadia wonders if Eagles defensive line coach Jim Washburn could go to St. Louis with Fisher, since the two had success together in Tennessee. Another reminder that the issues on the Eagles' defensive coaching staff are complicated and intertwined and don't seem to present any simple solutions.

Dallas Cowboys

Hudson Houck isn't saying the Cowboys will or should move Tyron Smith from right tackle to left tackle. But Smith's first NFL position coach, now retired, says that Smith could be "very, very good" at left tackle if such a move were made. With a new offensive coordinator and offensive line coach coming in, I imagine that decision has yet to be made. But it would seem to make a pile of sense, given Doug Free's struggles on the left side this past year.

Two weeks may be enough time to have softened some fans who were bitterly disappointed by the way the Cowboys' season ended. Blogging the Boys has a post expressing "rampant and disproportionate optimism" about the Cowboys' future and direction. Kind of refreshing, really.

Washington Redskins

Rich Tandler watched Saturday's Saints-49ers playoff game with an eye on some potential offseason targets for the Redskins, including Saints receivers Marques Colston and Robert Meachem. Mike Shanahan will definitely be looking for a No. 1 receiver this offseason, but as Rich suggests, the Saints' guys come with questions about whether they'd perform the same way in a different system.

Rick Snider ponders the idea of the Redskins bringing in Peyton Manning to play quarterback for them next year. Some say it's farfetched. I'm not sure it is. But I know they'd have to be sure he's healthy before they decided to do it, and I'm not sure how anybody's going to be able to be sure of that.

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Greetings from the frozen north, where Weather.com tells me it's 19 degrees right now outside my hotel room. And while, yeah, that's cold, the same site is telling me it's 18 degrees back at home in New Jersey. So you'll hear no complaining from me, and surely none from the New York Giants, who have to feel as though they caught a huge break drawing a Lambeau Field playoff game on a day with a high temperature of 28 and no precipitation.

I'll be headed over to Lambeau Field a little bit later, as will NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert, NFL columnist Ashley Fox and a cast of thousands from ESPNNewYork.com. So we'll have you covered from there. Seifert reports this morning that Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin, who tragically lost his 21-year-old son earlier this week, will be at the game, likely coaching from the press box as he normally does.

The winner of this game gets the San Francisco 49ers next Sunday in the NFC Championship Game. If the Giants win today, that game will be in San Francisco. If the Packers win today, the 49ers will travel to Green Bay for that game and this blog won't care nearly as much.

Meantime, though, a playoff edition of "How you feeling?" As you get ready for this afternoon's playoff game against the Packers in Green Bay, here's one reason for Giants fans to feel good and one reason for concern.

Feeling good: The Giants aren't going to be intimidated. First, there are a number of players left on the roster from the team that came in here four years ago and defeated Brett Favre's Packers (on a much colder day than this) in the NFC Championship Game. But perhaps more importantly, just five weeks ago this Giants team played Aaron Rodgers' Packers to the wire at home, tying the game with 58 seconds left and losing on a last-second field goal. That was the game that got the Giants feeling good about themselves again, even though they lost it. They're 4-1 since and playing defense at a much higher level than they played it in that 38-35 loss. And that game proved to them and everyone else that Eli Manning and the Giants have a good enough passing offense to go toe-to-toe with the Packers' own deadly air attack.

Cause for concern: Rodgers presents a challenge that's just different from any the Giants have seen in recent weeks. They were able to get pressure on Matt Ryan in last week's playoff victory over Atlanta, but Ryan is a stationary quarterback who hangs out in the pocket and isn't a threat to run. Rodgers isn't just mobile -- his legs are a legitimate offensive weapon. In the Week 13 game, Rodgers led the Packers in rushing with 32 yards on four carries. He picked up 6 yards on a third-and-5 in the third quarter. And he picked up 11 yards on a third-and-10 and 18 yards on a second-and-9 during a second-quarter touchdown drive. The Giants will need to get pressure on Rodgers with their great defensive ends, but they'll also need to make sure that pressure results in hits or sacks or hurried throws, because if they don't finish, Rodgers can escape and do them harm.

Friday the 13th, huh? Well, we'll get through it together. Or something like that. Links.

New York Giants

Johnette Howard writes of Corey Webster, and how much has changed for both him and the Packers since that game four years ago when he intercepted Brett Favre in overtime.

Packers defensive lineman B.J. Raji says the Giants' offensive line is "not the toughest" against which he's played. Meh. I'm sure he's right, but why do these guys keep saying stuff like this?

Philadelphia Eagles

LeSean McCoy went on the NFL Network and said the team is sticking by coach Andy Reid and that next year will be the Eagles' year. Why didn't he tell us this five months ago? Really could have covered the season a lot differently if we'd known. Next year. Not this year. Next.

The Minnesota Vikings are striking out like crazy in their efforts to find a new defensive coordinator, and Tom Pelissero suggests a possible target that will cause Eagles fans to spit their milk and Cheerios through their noses: Juan Castillo. Seriously, read it.

Dallas Cowboys

Looks as though the "offensive coordinator" part of Bill Callahan's title is a formality, as all of the coverage of the Cowboys' Thursday announcement indicates that head coach Jason Garrett will continue calling plays. Regardless, former Jet Damien Woody has lots of good stuff to say about the Cowboys' new offensive line coach.

The Cowboys also will be in the market for a veteran backup quarterback, as Jon Kitna has told them he's retiring. This is not a surprise.

Washington Redskins

This is day-old news but bears mentioning: Redskins linebacker London Fletcher has won this year's Bart Starr Award for outstanding character and leadership. Fellow NFC East players Nnamdi Asomugha and Jason Witten were also finalists.

What will the teams at the top of the draft do about quarterback -- even the ones who already have one? Dan Daly muses on that and what it could mean for the Redskins' pursuit of their new signal-caller.

» NFC Final Word: East | West | North | South » AFC: East | West | North | South

Five nuggets of knowledge about Week 17:

Ware QBs dare not tread: Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware could become the first player to lead the NFL in sacks in three different seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Ware led the league with 20 sacks in 2008, with 15.5 last season and currently has 18 with one game to go. Minnesota's Jared Allen has 18.5 and Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Jason Babin has 18, so this is a race that's going down to the wire. Of those three, Ware's the one with something to play for Sunday other than the league sack lead.

You take it. No, you take it: The game between the Eagles and the Washington Redskins has a chance to be sloppy. The Eagles are tied with the Buccaneers for the league lead in turnovers with 36. Right behind them are the Redskins, who rank third in the league this year with 34 turnovers. Washington quarterback Rex Grossman, who is tied for the league lead with 19 interceptions in spite of having played just 12 games, is also tied with San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers for the league lead in turnovers with 24.

Romo's signature season: If Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo throws at least one touchdown pass and no interceptions in Sunday night's game against the New York Giants, he will become the sixth player in NFL history, according to ESPN Stats & Info, to throw at least 30 touchdown passes and fewer than 10 interceptions in the same season. Aaron Rodgers did it in 2009 and will again this year unless he throws four interceptions Sunday. Tom Brady did it in 2007 and 2010. Brett Favre turned the trick in 2009, Peyton Manning in 2006 and Donovan McNabb in 2004.

Eagles history: Babin enters the game with an outside shot at Reggie White's team record of 21 sacks, set in 1987. Babin had three sacks each in his Week 14 and Week 15 games, so it's not out of the question that he could get three here against the banged-up Redskins line and match White's record. The Eagles will be playing hard, as LeSean McCoy has an outside shot at the league rushing title and the team is trying to stave off what would be just the third losing season in Andy Reid's 13-year tenure as its head coach.

Holding on when it counts: The Giants' receivers have had an issue with dropped passes this year. They are tied for the league lead with 31 drops. But according to ESPN Stats & Information's "Next Level" numbers, 23 of those 31 drops have come in the first half of games. Their 23 first-half drops are five more than any other team has this year, but 22 teams have more than the eight drops the Giants have in the second half or overtime. So the Giants' passing game does seem to correct itself as the game goes along. Those same "Next Level" stats say Giants quarterback Eli Manning was 4-for-11 with 8.6 yards per attempt when the Cowboys sent five or more pass-rushers in the first half of the Week 14 game in Dallas, but he was 8-for-11 with 12.7 yards per attempt and a touchdown against Dallas blitzes in the second half of that game.

You may have heard something about Peyton Manning maybe not starting the Colts' opener because of his neck injury. And if you have, you've surely heard mention of the fact that Manning has made 208 consecutive starts -- the longest active consecutive-starts streak of any player in the NFL. So if Manning doesn't make the start, that streak ends, and Mike Sando of the NFC West blog did a chart that lists the players with the longest such streaks after Manning.

Should Manning miss the game, the longest consecutive-starts streak in the league would belong to Buccaneers safety Ronde Barber, currently at 183. But next on that list is Washington Redskins linebacker London Fletcher at 163. And a little further down that list, at No. 13 overall currently and No. 2 among quarterbacks behind only his brother, is the New York Giants' Eli Manning at 103.

Fletcher, as Redskins fans know, is one of the most consistently productive defensive players in the league. The fact that only Peyton Manning and Ronde Barber among active NFL players have made more consecutive starts is a testament to his durability, his consistency and his ability to thrive in the leadership role he has assumed in the latter stages of his career. He's 36 years old, so he'd be 38 if and when his streak got to 200. And he'd have to play (and start every week) until the age of 45 to match Brett Favre's all-time record of 297 consecutive starts. So it's not as though Fletcher is likely to get too many accolades for this. But it's worth noting, especially about a player who's not always talked about among the best defensive players in the game but does enough to warrant a place in that discussion.

And speaking of underappreciated players ... Yeah, Eli Manning has the second-longest current streak of consecutive quarterback starts in the league. We have this running debate here on the blog about Eli vs. Tony Romo, and I'm on record saying I rate Romo slightly ahead of Eli in a close race. And some people get very upset about that when I say it and use all kinds of crazy arguments to shoot me down. But the one argument (that doesn't come up enough, actually) for which I have no real answer is the durability one. Romo has been injured, and Eli has not. He plays. He takes the ball, and he shows up, every single week, to lead his team. That's clearly a point of pride in the Manning family, and I don't expect Big Brother to give up his streak easily. But if he does, and all of a sudden Eli Manning is the reigning iron man quarterback in the NFL, that would have to make people take notice of something very positive about a player who seems to attract a lot of negative thought.

Incidentally, if he kept his streak alive, Eli Manning would pass Favre in the third game of the 2023 season, at the Favre-ian age of 42.

All right, look. I don't think Brett Favre is going to come back and be Michael Vick's backup quarterback with the Eagles in 2011. I don't think the idea of Favre as a backup for anyone makes any sense at all. But Favre and sense have never found themselves on the same offseason Mississippi front porch swing, so I can't be sure I'm right. We haven't even heard from Favre yet, and even if we do, we can't believe a word he says on this stuff. So speculation will swirl, and while we wait for final word on the start of free agency, we're allowed to have fun with it.

Which brings me to this post by NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert, who shares with us two somewhat depressing photos intended to show the reasons why Favre might or might not consider a return to the NFL with the Eagles or any other team. Enjoy them. And don't worry that Favre's about to take over another offseason.

Yet.

Aaaand, we're back.

By the midday, the NFL's new labor deal should be approved and we'll have a schedule of events for what should turn out to be a wild week. There are reports very early Monday morning that suggest free agency could open as early as Tuesday, and that training camps that had been scheduled to begin Wednesday or Thursday would do just that.

Amid the chaos, you will be looking for order. Stability. Something on which you can count. Something like ... the NFC East blog's breakfast links.

Dallas Cowboys

Anybody see this deal where Rex Ryan wrote in his book that Jason Garrett provided motivation for a speech he made before a big Ravens-Cowboys game in 2008? Anybody else think it has any chance to matter at all when the teams play each other in September? Anybody else excited that we're going to be talking about meatier stuff real, real soon? Yeah. Thought so.

The Cowboys are apparently still hoping to open training camp Thursday in San Antonio. Yeah, as in three-days-from-now Thursday. Assuming that players' vote goes through today, a lot of people are going to be making a lot of short-notice travel plans.

New York Giants

I found it interesting that the extremely plugged-in Mike Garafolo puts Ahmad Bradshaw's chances of returning to the Giants at "50-50" in his free-agent look-ahead piece. Mike likes the Giants' chances of keeping Steve Smith, Kevin Boss and Mathias Kiwanuka, but he's skeptical on Bradshaw due to his "lower-leg issues, fumbling problems, ever-present character concerns, a deep class of free-agent running backs and Bradshaw’s hinting he'd love to play for the Dolphins." I mean, I guess when you put it that way ... Yeesh. Pretty long list of stuff, right there. Mike speculates that Dolphins free-agent running back Ronnie Brown could be a target to replace Bradshaw if he leaves.

Bob Glauber spoke with John Mara, who said that Osi Umenyiora and Jerry Reese need to sit down "man to man" when this mess is all over and work out their issues. Lots of people keep asking what'll happen with the Umenyiora situation. If I had to bet, I'd say the Giants call his bluff, dare him to hold out and/or make their lives difficult in the final year of his deal. With the depth they have at defensive end, I think it's a chance worth taking. Worst case, they end up having to decide whether to pay him as a top free agent after he has a big year.

Philadelphia Eagles

Still can't quite get to closure on this Brett Favre thing, which is par for the course with all things Favre. Jeff McLane thinks it's a long shot, but the report has plenty of overtones that suggest the Eagles are interested in pursuing it. Of course, whether Favre has interest remains a topic of nothing more than pure speculation. You can also read here about the odd incidence of Michael Vick tweeting Sunday that he'd love to play with Favre and then that tweet being deleted.

One free agent who does have interest in the Eagles is Stewart Bradley, whose agent told Tim McManus he'd like to re-sign in Philadelphia. It'll be interesting to see what the injuries of the past two seasons have done to the market value of Bradley, whom the Eagles would like to bring back but probably not on a contract that requires them to assume too much risk.

Washington Redskins

Gary Myers sets up a bidding war between the Redskins and the Jets for free-agent receiver Santonio Holmes. He thinks Holmes will go to the highest bidder, and if that's the case it gives Washington more than a fair shot. But while I can see Holmes being a free agent who's not necessarily chasing Super Bowl dreams (he's already won one), there is the quarterback situation to consider. Holmes likes Mark Sanchez and did very well playing with him last year. Does he want to jump to John Beck's offense? And how much money will it to take to convince him to do so? The Redskins have a lot of holes. Overpaying for a stud receiver when your quarterback situation is a huge question mark might not be the best plan of action.

Acme Packing Company takes a look at potential destinations for Packers free-agent defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins, with the Redskins at the top of the list. I think he's a more realistic target than Holmes, but I also think Jenkins is going to be a very intensely pursued individual, given his pass-rushing skills and his ability to play in either a 3-4 or a 4-3 defense. He's about to add a lot of zeroes to his annual salary to go with the Super Bowl ring he just won.

And with that, I'm going to go enjoy one final quiet morning before all you-know-what breaks loose.

John Clayton on rumors that the Eagles are interested in Brett Favre as backup quarterback.

So, there's a new "True Blood" on HBO tonight. And speaking of vampires, Brett Favre is in the news again!

Philadelphia sportscaster Howard Eskin went on the air Saturday night and said the Eagles could be interested in bringing in Favre as Michael Vick's backup quarterback. Said it was "possible." And the Philadelphia Inquirer's Jeff McLane, who would presumably have absolutely loved to shoot down the report if he found out it was untrue... didn't shoot it down. Said it was a "long shot," but left open the possibility.

But there are a few reasons to think Favre may be willing to accept an offer from the Eagles. He has a close bond with Eagles head coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg, having worked with both in Green Bay. And he may also want one last shot at winning a Super Bowl.

But... but... Favre said he was retiring, right? Said he really, really, meant it this time. Right? When has he ever gone back on his word on something like this? Just give me one example.

Oh. Right.

So, does this make sense? I don't think so. Assuming they trade Kevin Kolb once the lockout ends, the Eagles will be looking for a game-ready backup quarterback to play behind Vick because of the risk of Vick getting injured. If healthy, Favre could surely be that. But what did we see last season to indicate that Favre was remotely healthy? And why do we think a dude with this kind of ego is suddenly willing to come back and be somebody's backup?

The problem here is that Favre can't even end this kind of speculation by coming out and saying he's not interested. Because no one will believe him. Because no one should believe him. Because he can't be trusted, especially on this particular topic. So speculation will linger, probably well into the season. I've said it before many times, and I'll say it again: When the 2011 season ends without Favre having played a game, that's when I will believe Favre isn't playing in 2011. And not one day before.

This is how we know the lockout has gone on too long: The Brett Favre speculation is bubbling up again.

Yeah. In a live chat on NFL.com, Gil Brandt answered a question about Favre and said, "I do think Favre would be interested in talking to a team about returning. But I don't see a team out there right now that would bring him back as a starter."

What do you guys think? Vick's backup in Philly? Beck's mentor in Washington?

Nah, I'm only kidding. No way this happens again. Right?

Right?????

Least we have links to keep us sane.

Dallas Cowboys

This is a weird and kind of sad story about Roy Williams proposing to a former Miss Texas USA by mail and now wanting back the $76,000 ring he sent her. By mail. The story earns an element of hilarity because when you open the link, you see Williams with Ragnar, the insane Viking guy from the Vikings home games, and your first thought is, "Roy Williams proposed to that guy?" Anyway, weird and kind of sad, that story. Except the Ragnar part.

And because I know you've all been sitting there for years thinking, "Man, I wish I could buy a pair of underwear that shows Spider-Man wearing Cowboys colors," here you go.

New York Giants

Yes, Matt Dodge is still thinking about that punt that DeSean Jackson ran back for a touchdown at the end of the game that sunk the Giants' season. No, I don't think the Giants are going to look to replace him before training camp. Kid has a big leg. He needs to show improvement to keep his job all year, yes. But he hasn't lost it yet.

Chad Jones still hopes to come back and play football for the Giants after the car accident that nearly killed him a year ago. In this story, he says he'd think about baseball if football didn't work out.

Philadelphia Eagles

Marcus Hayes offers a profile of Eagles offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg. Somebody asked in the chat Tuesday whether Mornhinweg would be a head-coaching candidate next year, and the answer is yes. Especially if Vick goes off again and the Eagles have another big offensive season. That's all addressed in Marcus' story, which is worth the read.

One of Andy Reid's sons was apparently cited for some traffic violations, which is only news because of the history here and the effect that history has had on Reid.

Washington Redskins

Rich Tandler says people in the building at Redskins Park are talking about the lockout possibly ending Sunday. I honestly wouldn't be surprised at this point. The talks that are going on seem so directed, so focused and so technical that it's very easy to believe stories like this one, which says a resolution is closer than people realize. Some people reported Tuesday that it would take 10 days after a resolution to get everything formalized, and based on the indications we're getting, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that we are already inside that 10-day period.

When it all does end, Dan Daly says, the Redskins need to start getting some players. Dan can't believe the only Redskin in the NFL Network's top 100 was Donovan McNabb, who really shouldn't have been there and won't be a Redskin much longer anyway.

That's it for now. Back later after I do some online shopping for Cowboys Underoos.

The Philadelphia Eagles sent out a press release Tuesday saying that right tackle Winston Justice had his left knee cleaned out. There had been at least one report that Justice might have to undergo the more serious microfracture surgery, but so far, that's not the case.

The potential lockout could make things difficult for players attempting to rehab from injury. Players such as Justice would not be able to use the Eagles' practice facility. And last I checked, the club was trying to figure out if a medical facility adjoining its facility would also be off limits.

My guess is that Justice wouldn't be able to remain anywhere on campus. The famed surgeon Dr. James Andrews from Birmingham, Ala., performed the procedure on Justice. No Brett Favre sightings were reported.

Tony Romo made an appearance on ESPN's "First Take" this morning and he smiled quite a bit while saying nothing. He wouldn't even make a Super Bowl prediction, saying the team that runs the ball best would win the game.

He said the 2010 season was "tough to swallow" and that he's ready to begin the 2011 season "right now." Romo was a big Packers fan growing up in Wisconsin and he worshiped Brett Favre. He's sort of distanced himself from Favre since becoming a starter in the league, telling reporters that John Elway was actually his hero.

Romo told "First Take" that the weather in Burlington, Wisconsin, today was worse than in North Texas, which is hard to believe.

Romo said he plans to attend Sunday's game, but said it will be difficult to watch other teams play in Cowboys Stadium.

DETROIT -- Thoughts on the New York Giants’ 21-3 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Monday.

What it means: Mother Nature couldn’t extend Brett Favre’s streak and she couldn’t slow down the Giants either. After flying to Kansas City and then to Detroit, the Giants finally faced the Vikings and beat them for the first time in the past five meetings. They won their third straight game by avenging a 44-7 loss to the Vikings in the season finale last year while keeping pace in the NFC East with the Philadelphia Eagles. They also took advantage of Green Bay’s loss here in Detroit the day before. The Giants showed that despite being jet-lagged and weary from all the havoc created by the snowstorm, they remained resilient and took care of business against a team that was without Favre, Percy Harvin, Steve Hutchinson and Ray Edwards.

Iron man streak finished: Favre’s streak of 297 consecutive starts ended in Detroit against the Giants when he was unable to play because of a shoulder injury. The Giants have been bad luck for Favre. He played against them in his final game as a Packer in the NFC Championship Game and now his streak ends against the Giants.

Eli's streak continues: Eli Manning made his 100th consecutive start and it started off looking like another streak would continue. Manning entered the game 0-4 against the Vikings with nine interceptions and two touchdowns. He threw two more picks in the first half but he finally beat the Vikings. He wasn’t at his sharpest but the bottom line is Manning got the win. Manning did have another streak end when he was sacked. The Giants had a five-game streak of surrendering no sacks.

Home-field advantage: Ford Field painted a Vikings logo at midfield over the Lions logo, which looked like it had been erased with a pencil eraser. The stadium also played the Vikings horn several times but it never quite felt like home for Minnesota. Even though there were more Vikings fans in the building than Giants’ fans, the crowd of 45,910 seemed more concerned with doing variations of the wave than with the Vikings’ performance. While tickets were distributed for free and the Lions stopped distribution after huge crowds braved the frigid cold in the morning, the stadium was not filled to the capacity of 64,500. It appeared that many of the fans who had original tickets to this game, and those who went to Sunday’s Lions-Packers game and were eligible to come to the game, chose to stay home.

Welcome back: The Giants welcomed back wide receivers Steve Smith and Hakeem Nicks and tackle David Diehl from injuries. Nicks started the game opposite Mario Manningham while Smith opened as the third wide receiver. However, Manningham injured his hip flexor in the first half and Smith replaced him. Then Smith injured his hamstring and did not return in the fourth quarter. Smith finished with one catch for 12 yards. Manning looked like he needed a game to get back on the same page with his top two receivers. Smith had missed the previous four games with a partially torn pectoral. Nicks, who finished the game with seven receptions for 96 yards, returned after a two-game absence following surgery to relieve swelling in his leg.

Keep on trucking: The Giants' running game continues to look better and better as the season progresses. Brandon Jacobs started the game and busted a 73-yard run down the left side in the first half. He finished with 116 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries. Ahmad Bradshaw also had a huge run, scoring on a 48-yard sprint down the left side that gave the Giants a 21-3 lead with under three minutes left in the third quarter. Bradshaw finished with 103 yards on 11 carries.

Fewell-injected: Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell does it again as the Giants smothered Tarvaris Jackson, Adrian Peterson and the Vikings' offense. Without Favre and Hutchinson, the Vikings' offense looked inept at times. Peterson was stuffed numerous times and finished with 26 yards rushing on 14 carries. Jackson started off strong, completing 10 of his first 13 passes, but he kept going in and out of the game with injuries.

What's next: The Giants have only a few days to prepare for their biggest game of the season against the Eagles. The NFC East could very well ride on this game as the winner will take a lead with two games remaining. The Giants made Michael Vick look somewhat human last time in Philadelphia, but turnovers and a late defensive breakdown led to a crushing loss four weeks ago. If the Giants want to be a serious contender, they must make a stand against the Eagles and beat them at home.