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Madden '13 cover voting has reached the quarterfinal stage, and our division is down to one representative. New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz easily defeated Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, collecting 62 percent of the vote and scampering 99 yards for a victory in his second-round matchup. Next up for Cruz, the No. 2 seed in his half of the bracket, is 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis, the No. 11 seed who has already knocked off running backs Matt Forte and Maurice Jones-Drew and will be a formidable opponent. Should Cruz get past Willis, he's almost certain to see Carolina quarterback Cam Newton in the semifinals, as Newton is enjoying a Kentucky-line run so far.

The only other NFC East player to survive the first round was Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy, but he lost a close second-round matchup against Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald. McCoy got 46 percent of the vote in what was the second-closest match of the round.

So Cruz is all we have left if we want someone from our division on the Madden cover. The whole point of this, of course, is that you do the voting, so go to this link right here and vote early and often.

We have arrived in the second round of the "Madden 13" cover vote bracket. Two of our division's four representatives survived the first round and two did not.

New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz absolutely demolished Washington Redskins linebacker Brian Orakpo in the all-NFC East first-round matchup, collecting 82 percent of the vote in the third-most-lopsided matchup of the round. (Brian, your vote totals are hurtful. I'm taking the bus and you will NOT see me at the pancake social in the morning!)

Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy easily beat Dolphins running back Reggie Bush 68 percent to 32 percent. I thought this would be closer, but McCoy should be grateful for the easy win, because as we discussed here last week, his road to the final four is not an easy one.

And Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware lost a tough first-round matchup to Vikings defensive end Jared Allen. Ware got 42 percent of the vote in this matchup of sack artists.

Cruz's second-round matchup is against Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, and I predict an easy win for Cruz in the all-New York showdown. If Cruz wins, he gets a quarterfinal match against the winner of the second-round match between Patrick Willis and Maurice Jones-Drew. My bracket has Cruz making it all the way to the final.

McCoy's second-round matchup is a big one against Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald. No guarantee McCoy wins this, and even if he does, he'll likely have to take out Cam Newton in the third round. Tough sledding for Shady, but you never know. And you can go and vote if you really want him to win.

So we have this thing where you can go on and vote for who you think should be on the cover of "Madden NFL 13," and perhaps because it's March it's been set up as a bracket. There are 32 players in the bracket. The idea was that there'd be one for each NFL team, but as you can see the Patriots and Jets each now have two. All the Jets had to do to get their second was spend Wednesday completely embarrassing themselves.

But I digress.

New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz is the 2-seed on the left side of the bracket, matched up in the first round against 15th-seeded Washington Redskins linebacker Brian Orakpo. We all like Orakpo, and he's sure to get a bit of a boost from the small measure of fame he's earned giving the caveman a hard time on the Geico commercials. But Cruz is the popular breakout star of the surprise Super Bowl champs, and he's sure to roll through the first round. In fact, as I break down the bracket, Doug Gottlieb-style, I don't see too many potential tough matchups for Cruz until the final. Fourth-seeded Larry Fitzgerald could give him a run, but I think the winner of that stellar second-round matchup between Fitz and the Philadelphia Eagles' LeSean McCoy is going to be spent. And I like Cruz's chances even against top seed Cam Newton in the semis. I'm picking Cruz to salsa right into the final.

McCoy is the fifth seed on the same side of the bracket, and he's got a tough draw. A first-round matchup against an underseeded Reggie Bush, who has a Kardashian history and may pull in some tabloid votes, is brutal. Then he's likely to see Fitzgerald in the second round and Newton in the third. If McCoy makes it to the semis, he'll have earned his way there, no doubt about it.

On the other side of the bracket, Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware is the No. 10 seed and matched up in the first round against No. 7 seed Jared Allen of the Vikings. I like Ware to pull the upset here, and while there's trouble looming in the second round from No. 2 seed Rob Gronkowski, I think Ware's won enough "Madden" games over the years that he can upset Gronk as well. I have Ware in my Elite Eight, but that's where his dream ends. He's going to get either Tim Tebow, Arian Foster or Calvin Johnson there, and those guys are heavyweights.

My bracket has Cruz meeting Aaron Rodgers in the final and Rodgers getting his discount double-check revenge for the Giants' victory over the Packers in the NFC playoffs. But what do I know? I picked the Packers to win that game, and I never do well in the bracket pools.

Anyway, go vote. It'll give you something to do while you wait for London Fletcher to sign or the Giants to do something or whatever it is you're doing these days as a fan of a team in the super-quiet NFC East.

Getting cold in the East as we arrive at December. What can we expect for this month? A spirited Cowboys-Giants race? A hot finish by the Eagles or Redskins to make things fun or interesting? A daily serving of links? I can only promise the last.

Dallas Cowboys

Gerald Sensabaugh says it's amazing to watch film and see how good Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald is at getting open even when double-teamed. Fitzgerald will be the greatest challenge Sunday for a Cowboys defense that needs to shut down Arizona and get a win heading into the first Giants game. There's some talk in that Dallas Morning News story about how having already seen top wideouts Calvin Johnson and Brandon Marshall will help the Cowboys against Fitzgerald. No mention, though, that those two guys combined for 13 catches for 199 yards and three touchdowns in their games against the Cowboys. So I mention it. So there.

Despite early week optimism that wide receiver Miles Austin would return from his second hamstring injury of the year and play against the Cardinals, Austin missed practice again Wednesday and his status remains in doubt.

New York Giants

Former Giant Michael Strahan stopped by practice and spoke with the Giants' current defensive line, which hasn't been as good at sacking the quarterback lately as it usually is. This is a big deal here in the New York metropolitan area because it recalls a time last season when Strahan gave a pregame pep talk and the defense went out and sacked Jay Cutler nine times in the first half. Should this indeed be a similar situation, it would be well timed, as the Giants have the Packers coming to town this week. The Packers are currently on a 17-game winning streak that began with a 45-17 victory over the Giants last Dec. 26 in Green Bay and includes a Super Bowl victory, so they're pretty hot. Or maybe due for a loss? One or the other.

Dave D'Alessandro says the Giants have been asking too much of Eli Manning and that he can't do it all.

Philadelphia Eagles

Kevin Callahan says the only way things are going to be better for the Eagles in the final five games than they were in the first 11 is if they give running back LeSean McCoy the ball more. Why does it increasingly seem like the only people who don't believe this are the ones making the Eagles' game plans each week?

One of the things Jeff McLane and Jonathan Tamari are watching tonight in Seattle is DeSean Jackson, since whatever he does is going to be making headlines in the coming days, good or bad. We're at the point where Jackson is almost a bigger story than what's going on on the field for the Eagles, since everybody's looking ahead to next year and beyond and wondering what chance remains that he's a part of the team going forward.

Washington Redskins

Barry Cofield was a bit of a surprise signing for the Redskins back in the offseason -- a 4-3 defensive tackle signed to play the nose in Washington's 3-4. But Cofield was game, and has played it fairly well, though he and the team acknowledge that he's still learning it and should expect to eventually be better at it than he is now.

It seems as though safety LaRon Landry's groin injury is worse than the Redskins initially thought it was. Landry missed practice Wednesday, and his injury-plagued season continues.

As you get ready for this afternoon's home game against the Arizona Cardinals, here's one reason for Philadelphia Eagles fans to feel good and one reason for concern:

Feeling good: Even with DeSean Jackson benched for missing a Saturday meeting, the Eagles still have plenty of passing-game weapons with which to take advantage of the Cardinals' suspect secondary. Assuming the Eagles can keep the heat off of Michael Vick with the offensive line and the running game as they have been lately, Jeremy Maclin, Jason Avant and Brent Celek ought to be able to get open and make some big plays down the field. The Cardinals can be run on, too, which bodes well for Philadelphia's No. 1-ranked rush offense. Expect a lot of LeSean McCoy and a couple of designed run plays by Vick.

Cause for concern: Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald is the major cause for concern for every team the Cardinals play, and the Eagles' coverages have been a cause for concern this season even against lesser wideouts. It will be interesting to see how much Philadelphia uses Nnamdi Asomugha in coverage on Fitzgerald and, when they do, whether he plays 5-to-10 yards off of him the way the Eagles have been playing their corners most of this season. If they can't tighten up on Fitzgerald, he's likely to burn them at least once.

Right guard Danny Watkins, the Philadelphia Eagles' first-round pick in this year's draft, wasn't ready to be a starter Week 1. He was ready Week 5, and he's done well with the job since claiming it.

Safety Jaiquawn Jarrett, the Eagles' second-round pick in this year's draft, wasn't ready to be a starter Week 1. Or Week 5. But the Eagles are hoping he's ready in Week 10, because that's apparently what's going to happen.

The concussion that starting safety Nate Allen suffered in Monday night's loss to the Bears looks fairly certain to keep him out of Sunday's game against the Cardinals, which would likely press Jarrett into a starting safety role alongside Kurt Coleman. This shouldn't be a major issue, since the Eagles drafted Jarrett thinking he could start right away. But best-laid plans being worth what they're worth, that's not the way it worked out. Jarrett took a back seat behind Coleman and Jarrad Page earlier this year, and according to Jeff McLane he says he's not upset his chance didn't come sooner:

"I was never frustrated -- it's all about learning," Jarrett said Thursday as the Eagles prepared for Sunday's game against the Arizona Cardinals. "We didn't have [spring practices]. I had a slow start."

That's the way the narrative reads around this season's Eagles -- that they weren't the team they thought they were going to be because they didn't have enough time to prepare and jell. There are holes in this narrative, of course, chiefly that every other team in the league operated in the same compressed time frame and that they managed to look awful in a home loss to the Bears one week after everything had seemed to be jelling pretty sweetly against the Cowboys. But this is what the Eagles are telling themselves, and at least in some individual cases, like that of Watkins, they appear to be correct.

Jarrett is a very specific kind of safety -- a big hitter who's more of an asset in run support than he is in coverage. And given the way the Eagles' cornerbacks have covered this season and the fact that Larry Fitzgerald is on his way to town, that's a bit of a cause for concern. But he's what they've got, and he was a second-round pick, so it's time for Jarrett to show his stuff.

As you get ready for Sunday's game against the Cardinals in Arizona, here's one reason for New York Giants fans to feel good and one reason for concern:

Feeling good: Osi was on the plane

Injured defensive ends Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck both made the trip to Arizona on Saturday with the team, which is a strong sign that the Giants are at least optimistic that they'll play. We're a few hours away from knowing for sure, but if both are active, it can only strengthen a Giants pass rush that has been a critical part of the team's 2-1 start. Umenyiora has yet to play this season following knee surgery he had in August, and Tuck has been limited with a neck injury. But second-year man Jason Pierre-Paul has five sacks already, and a rotation that includes all three of them would serve to keep everyone fresh and make that pass rush even more fearsome against an Arizona offensive line that doesn't offer quarterback Kevin Kolb much in the way of protection.

Cause for concern: Larry Fitzgerald

The Cardinals' star wideout is a mismatch for anyone the Giants try to use to cover him in their secondary. As well as cornerbacks Corey Webster and Aaron Ross have played, they haven't faced anything close to the threat Fitzgerald poses with his size, strength, speed and instincts. They know Kolb will look Fitzgerald's way often, and they're certain to use lots of safety help in coverage against him. But assuming the Cardinals can generate enough in the run game to keep the Giants from pressuring Kolb on every single play, it's a sure thing he'll find Fitzgerald at some point for the kind of big play the Giants didn't give up last week against the Eagles. The key will be trying to limit those big plays and the damage they cause -- no easy task.

Larry Fitzgerald and Antrel Rolle were teammates for years with the Arizona Cardinals, so Fitzgerald is looking forward to seeing Rolle on Sunday when Rolle and the New York Giants head to Arizona for their Week 4 game. Whether the Giants are looking forward to seeing Fitzgerald is another story. As one of the elite wide receivers in the league and the clear No. 1 target for Arizona quarterback Kevin Kolb, Fitzgerald looms as perhaps the most important person on the field for the Giants to stop if they want to come out of this game 3-1.

Stopping him is easier said than done, but with Rolle, Kenny Phillips and veteran Deon Grant at safety, the Giants have enough depth there to give them a puncher's chance. As Mike Garafolo points out in that link up there, the only way teams seem to have a chance against Fitzgerald is to use bracket coverage against him, doubling him with a cornerback and a safety on pretty much every play.

Fitzgerald is 6-foot-3, which gives him a three-inch height advantage on each of the Giants' starting cornerbacks, Corey Webster and Aaron Ross. The Giants would be wise to assign Webster to him for a couple of reasons. First, Webster has the leaping ability to at least compete with Fitzgerald and give him a chance to help make up for the height differential. And second, Ross is still finding his way as a starter in place of the injured Terrell Thomas. Ross had a rough game in Week 2 against the Rams but played well in Week 3 against the Eagles, and it would probably make more sense to keep him on other Cardinals receivers and help him continue to build confidence.

But even if they assign Webster to Fitzgerald, he's going to need help, and that's where one of the Giants' defensive strengths comes in. Their depth at the safety position, and their ability and willingness to put three safeties on the field when they go down to two linebackers on passing downs, should enable defensive coordinator Perry Fewell to constantly have a safety help out Webster over the top against Fitzgerald. There's no guarantee it will work, of course. Fitzgerald wouldn't have fashioned the career he has so far if he weren't able to beat double-teams. But unlike a lot of teams, the Giants have a lot of options and flexibility when it comes to making those double-teams as strong as possible. Phillips, Rolle and Grant are as solid a group of safeties as there is in the league.

LANDOVER, Md. -- The play that could have broken the spirit of the Washington Redskins' defense happened with 11:09 left in Sunday's game. Linebacker London Fletcher was just a quarter of a second too late in getting to Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb, who found Larry Fitzgerald deep down the right side of the field for a 73-yard touchdown that stretched Arizona's lead to eight points. After a day of missed opportunities, a game in which they'd dominated time of possession and should have had things well in hand, the Redskins were staring at the strong possibility that they'd let one get away.

"There was no panic on our sidelines," Fletcher said after a 22-21 victory that pushed the Redskins two games over .500 for the first time since 2008. "We were disappointed to give up the touchdown, of course, but I was really stressing to the guys that there was a lot of football left to be played."

The Redskins still had a lot going for them. They knew they'd been stopping the Cardinals pretty much all day. Their offense was marching down the field behind Rex Grossman and Roy Helu for a touchdown drive. And perhaps just as important as either of those two things, they had Fletcher, their inspirational leader, urging them on, as he always does.

"He's obviously still got a lot left in his tank," Redskins nose tackle Barry Cofield said. "If a guy who's played as long as he has can still be that fired up and that hungry, it makes you feel bad if you can't be that same way yourself."

There were some who predicted that the Redskins would play this whole season and not win any more games than the two they've already won. Those who did so ignored the improvements Washington made on defense, the benefits the returning players would draw from the season they spent in Jim Haslett's 3-4 defense in 2010, and the veteran leadership the Redskins have on that side of the ball. Fletcher was all over the field Sunday, making five tackles, hitting Kolb twice and collecting an interception. He blitzed out of the Redskins' shifting, confusing defensive fronts as if he'd been playing in them his whole career. The Redskins' linebackers were the stars of the defensive show as the banged-up secondary kept losing players to injury, and Fletcher led them.

"He's the captain of our ship," said reserve cornerback Byron Westbrook, who forced the Chansi Stuckey fumble that sealed the game for Washington in the final minute. "He's vocal. He has a lot of passion. He's always positive and upbeat. Guys want to follow a leader like that."

It was Fletcher who organized those Redskins player workouts during the lockout, scribbling down plays he remembered Haslett running (or trying to run) last season and keeping them on a piece of paper tucked into his back pocket so he could make sure those workouts were directed and productive. It was Fletcher who set the attacking tone the Redskins wanted to set against Kolb and the Cardinals Sunday -- a plan that resulted in three sacks. It was Fletcher who made sure, once the Cardinals started to have success running the ball and then hit that monster pass play, that no one got discouraged.

"When he sees guys in the huddle with their heads down, he's always bringing them back up," linebacker Brian Orakpo said. "That's what I really respect about him. He's always the same."

The great leaders are, and Fletcher-as-leader is a bit of a secret weapon for the Redskins, who aren't as surprised as you are that they're 2-0, by the way.

"We really don't get caught up in what's said about us outside our locker room," Fletcher said, affably, not angrily. "What matters is the way we feel about ourselves."

And in case you're wondering how they feel about themselves ...

"There's just a belief on this team that we're going to win," defensive end Adam Carriker said. "We honestly believe we have one of the best defenses. We believe we're going to win. We believe we're good. And when teams have that belief, they're not going to fold."

And so it was that the Redskins, after Grossman went down the field and cut the lead to two points with a touchdown to Santana Moss, went out and got the three-and-out that put the ball back in their offense's hands. And Westbrook, pressed into service thanks to an injury to starting cornerback Josh Wilson, jumped up from the back end of the depth chart to make the game-clinching play.

"Our young guys, they have resolve," Fletcher said. "And they study."

They probably do so because of the example Fletcher and the other defensive veterans on the Redskins set. And while that may not be the kind of thing that shows up in statistical projections, the belief and confidence it inspires can be hugely valuable to a team, like this one, that's growing and figuring out what it's going to be.

"We know we have a long way to go," Fletcher said. "But the thing we can be happy about is the character of the football team."

He probably won't, but Fletcher should take a bow for that.

Two weeks of preseason football in the books, and some made it through better than others. We take a look at where things stand in the links.

Dallas Cowboys

Running backs DeMarco Murray and Tashard Choice will return from their injuries and practice Tuesday. Perhaps they'd been watching Felix Jones and figure they need to get back soon or else they won't get any carries. Perhaps, in Choice's case, he's been watching Phil Tanner and Lonyae Miller and figures he needs to get back soon or else he might not make the team.

Carlos Mendez has a somewhat detailed look at the communication issues the Cowboys are still trying to work out as they attempt to master Rob Ryan's defense in time for the start of the season.

New York Giants

Terrell Thomas' season-ending ACL injury was the one and only important story of Monday night for the Giants, who beat the Bears handily but in a game that didn't count and cost them one of their starting cornerbacks. They did get some good news when X-rays on left tackle Will Beatty's foot came back negative. It would have been tough to weather two major injuries to starters in one preseason game. One's certainly bad enough.

The player most directly affected by Thomas' injury is cornerback Aaron Ross, who will have to play a lot more than originally anticipated and probably a lot better. The game he played Monday night was very encouraging.

Philadelphia Eagles

Position battles continue to rage in Philly, and it looks as if free-agent signee Jarrad Page has become a threat to Nate Allen at the free safety spot. The main reason for this is that Allen does not appear to be completely back from his knee injury. As Nick Fierro writes here, Kurt Coleman is also playing a bigger role in the safety mix, which appears to be unsettled at the moment.

DeSean Jackson has a very sober and reasonable take on the Larry Fitzgerald deal and how it affects him: "The things he's done, he's been in the league, of course, longer than me, this is his third deal . . . There's really no comparison of the type of receivers we are." This is all true, but again, Fitzgerald's deal pushed the top end of the market higher, and while Jackson can't expect to get the same type of deal, the Fitzgerald deal can only help him make more. The question is still how much more the Eagles want to pay, and if the figures don't jive, it's possible the Fitzgerald deal could even portend Jackson's departure from Philly next offseason.

Washington Redskins

Kyle Shanahan explains some of the specific things the team is evaluating while deciding between John Beck and Rex Grossman for the starting quarterback job. We still don't know who's starting Thursday against Baltimore, let alone Sept. 11 against the Giants. But you know where my money is if you ever read this blog.

Chris Cooley says he "can't imagine" not being ready for that Sept. 11 opener, which is good news for whoever the quarterback turns out to be.

Good morning to all, and to all some good, piping-hot links:

Dallas Cowboys

Dez Bryant says "one drop is too many" and seemed to be beating himself up a bit over that ball he dropped on third down with the Cowboys driving in the first half of Sunday night's preseason game. It was indeed a bad drop, and if it were to keep happening we could add it to the list of concerns. But the fact that Bryant didn't wave it off as a "just preseason" thing is encouraging for Cowboys fans. When Bryant has the ball in his hands, he's pretty tough to bring down.

Jason Garrett was unhappy, too, pointing out that his team committed three turnovers and forced none. At first I thought it was silly for the coach to be upset over a preseason loss, but that specific critique made me change my mind. Garrett sees a loss in which the Cowboys didn't look very good as a chance to teach a lesson. More intensity on defense, more care taken on offense. And the fact that the starting quarterback was directly responsible for one of the turnovers helps drive home the point without making anyone further down the roster feel as though he's taking it out on only them.

New York Giants

Zach Berman looks at Travis Beckum, the disadvantages he faces as a small tight end and what he's doing to overcome them so he can take the place of Kevin Boss as the Giants' starter at the position.

Aaron Ross is happy to be back playing the position he loves -- cornerback, instead of spotting in at safety and nickelback. The Giants want to see something, though. With Prince Amukamara and Bruce Johnson hurt, they're looking for depth behind their very good starting corners, and Ross should get a chance in tonight's preseason game to show what he offers in a backup corner role.

Philadelphia Eagles

The chances of the Eagles starting two rookies on the offensive line took a big step forward over the weekend. They've informed Jason Kelce that he, not Jamaal Jackson, will be the starting center in the next preseason game. And while that could be a matter of wanting to take a longer look at the rookie, it could mean much more. New offensive line coach Howard Mudd is the one, they say, who hand-picked this guy. He's light and athletic, the way Mudd likes his linemen. And he's been sharing first-team reps with Jackson since the first day of training camp. Kelce is a legitimate candidate to be the starting center soon, if not right now. I wouldn't be surprised if the Eagles decided to line him up next to rookie right guard Danny Watkins in Week 1.

The headline on this notebook says, "DJax likes Fitz deal," and I'll just bet he does. I'd be more than willing to bet that DeSean Jackson does, indeed, approve of the eight-year, $120 million deal Larry Fitzgerald just signed with the Cardinals. I believe Jackson likes Fitzgerald's $50 million guarantee, too. Currently in a dispute with the Eagles over his own contract, and with one year left until free agency, a deal that moves the market for top receivers the way Fitzgerald's just did is manna for Jackson and his agent. Not that Jackson's as good as Fitzgerald, but a deal like that moves the price up for everyone at or near the top.

Washington Redskins

After watching the tape of Friday's game, Mike Shanahan came away impressed with quarterback John Beck. Said Beck made good decisions, which I thought was one of the most important takeaways from that game. They rolled him out a lot to try and take advantage of his speed and athleticism, but at the end of the rollouts he made smart plays. He threw the ball away when there was nothing there and, as this story points out, he didn't look for something downfield just for the sake of doing that. The Redskins' offense right now isn't going to offer much in the way of deep downfield options. Maybe as the year goes along, but not right now. Beck did a good job of taking what he was given, and it appears the right people noticed.

The Redskins are getting a bit healthier on defense. A hamstring problem has slowed LaRon Landry's recovery from his Achilles injury, but it sounds as though fellow safety O.J. Atogwe, cornerback Josh Wilson and linebacker London Fletcher are all back practicing and gearing up for Thursday's preseason game. Not as encouraging on the other side of the ball, where tight end Chris Cooley and kick returner Brandon Banks don't seem to be making much progress.

Coincidentally, I am in Washington, D.C., for a couple of days, doing some sightseeing with the wife and kids. So unless something huge goes down, you're not likely to hear from me again until I'm online tweeting during the Giants-Bears game. But I promise I won't forget about you, and you can always come back here to the links to yell at each other.

So once the lockout ends and the league year begins, one of the first deals everybody expects to happen is the one that will send quarterback Kevin Kolb from the Eagles to the Cardinals. This is not a done deal, but a lot of people seem to be expecting it. Including, apparently, Kolb himself and the Cardinals' best player.

According to a report by Fox Sports Arizona, Kolb and Arizona receiver Larry Fitzgerald have spent some time working out together this offseason at Arizona State University. There is nothing illegal or untoward about this -- players from various teams have been working out on their own during the lockout and sometimes with players from other teams. But the idea that Kolb has spent time throwing passes to Fitzgerald surely indicates that the two have at least imagined the idea of playing together. It's also smart on both players' parts to do something like this, because there's nothing to lose and they might even derive some benefit from it when and if they're paired together.

Anyway, it remains to be seen whether Kolb goes to Arizona and whether the Eagles get draft picks, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie or some combination of the two in exchange. But if it does happen, Kolb will already have a head start on his relationship with his most important receiver.

Dallas Cowboys

Jason Garrett was not among the head coaches on hand Tuesday at Auburn quarterback Cam Newton's pro day.

NFL.com's Pat Kirwan is a fan of Rob Ryan coming over from Cleveland to run the Dallas defense.

New York Giants

The New York Daily News' Gary Myers on Tuesday's announcement that Tiki Barber is coming out of retirement: "There was a better chance of Tom Coughlin calling up Frank Gifford -- who happens to be 80 -- to coax him out of retirement than the Giants coach letting Tiki Barber walk back into the Big Blue locker room and poison it again."

Brandon Jacobs said he considered the idea of getting in a few boxing matches if there happens to be a work stoppage.

Philadelphia Eagles

Eagles offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg says quarterback Michael Vick "could end up being one of the greatest of all time."

Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald says he never made a push for the Cardinals to acquire Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb.

Washington Redskins

Former Redskins general manager Vinny Cerrato says ex-coach Jim Zorn was done in by his ego.

Offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan weighs in on the state of the Redskins' offense and where things stand heading into the draft.

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- This is how a game ends between two bad teams. Arizona kicker Jay Feely made a 48-yard field goal with five seconds left to give the Cardinals a dramatic 27-26 victory in University of Phoenix Stadium.

A missed point-after attempt by Cowboys kicker David Buehler with 1:41 to play -- just after Miles Austin’s 37-yard go-ahead touchdown reception -- gave the Cardinals the chance to win the game.

Terrible.

What it means?: The Cowboys now have 10 losses on the season. That's the first time that's happened since 2004, when a 6-10 mark finished Bill Parcells' second season. The mistakes the team made in this one are another example of just how bad it is.

Jon Kitna gets knocked out: The Cowboys were down to one quarterback when Jon Kitna went out with a hip injury in the first half. Kinta was replaced by Stephen McGee, who completed 11 of 17 passes for 111 yards and one touchdown. McGee rallied his team from a 24-20 deficit with 3:45 to play. He drove the Cowboys 73 yards in eight plays, finding Austin for the 37-yard score. But Buehler missed the extra point, allowing the Cardinals a chance to win in the final two minutes.

Defense is solid until. . . : The defense, which has struggled the past few weeks, gave up only one big play, a 74-yard touchdown pass in the first half. It held the Cardinals' Larry Fitzgerald to one key catch that kept the game-winning field goal drive alive. Terence Newman and Mike Jenkins did a good job of taking him out of the game for the most part. But the Cardinals were able to get a 49-yard Feely field goal to push their lead to 24-20 in the fourth quarter. However, another wide receiver gained over 100 yards, this time Cardinals rookie Andre Roberts, who had five catches for 110 yards and one touchdown. It's the fifth consecutive week the Cowboys defense allowed a receiver to get more than 100 yards. And rookie Skelton moved the Cardinals 46 yards in about 90 seconds to set up Feely’s game-winning kick.

Run game excels: There was concern about how the Cowboys would run the ball with the return of Marion Barber, who missed the past three games with a strained calf. All three backs got their touches, and when the night was over the Cowboys rushed 34 times for 183 yards. Barber did get a touchdown, for 24 yards, but committed a bad penalty by taking off his helmet to celebrate following the score.

What's next?: The Cowboys finish the season on the road Jan. 2 against the Eagles. The game might mean something for the Eagles -- playoff seeding and NFC East title could be on the line depending on what happens Sunday. The Cowboys have decisions to make regarding the quarterback position. Should they bring one in? How healthy is Kitna?

Ashley Fox of the Philadelphia Inquirer, co-author of the newspaper's epic "The Deciders" series, has turned her attention to Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson. Her premise is that Kevin Kolb's inexperience is contributing to poor numbers for one of the league's most explosive players:

"Kolb simply doesn't have the experience or the patience to wait for Jackson to create downfield," writes Fox. "It is understandable. Kolb is not as mobile as [Michael] Vick and certainly at this point in his young career doesn't have the vision that Vick does. So he sees Jackson blanketed, then turns and looks for Option No. 2 and Option No. 3. After that, there isn't time to go back to Option No. 1."

With Vick in the lineup, Jackson has caught 14 of the 23 passes thrown his way and averages 23.1 yards per catch. With Kolb, Jackson has caught four of the 13 passes in his direction for 9.5 yards per catch. Fox looks at these numbers and concludes that Jackson's lost without Vick.

I'm not sure we have enough of a sample to make that declaration at this point in the season since Kolb has only played one full game. I agree that Vick's ability to extend plays gives Jackson a better chance to come free, but it's not like Donovan McNabb was Vick-like last season when he and Jackson connected on a regular basis. And in two starts last season for the Eagles (as long as we're using small sample settings), Kolb completed 10 passes to Jackson for 250 yards and two touchdowns. That appears to be exactly 25 yards per catch.

"The last couple of ball games our opponents are doing almost everything in their power to take DeSean away, and even a little bit more last week [against Washington]," Marty Mornhinweg said. "These are things that Jerry Rice saw, and you've got to deal with them, and it's my responsibility. You saw we moved DeSean basically all over. We've got to continue that, because people are really going uncommonly out of the way to make sure they get a jam on him, to make sure he doesn't get a free release, to make sure he's doubled."

If Kolb starts against the Atlanta Falcons -- and I'd be surprised if he doesn't -- you'll see him make Jackson more of a priority. But let's not put all of this at his feet. I seem to recall Jackson struggling to do anything against the Dallas Cowboys in three games last season when McNabb was starting.

He's an unbelievable playmaker, but teams have showed that he can be taken out of a game. It will be up to him to beat some of these jams and double teams at some point. Players such as Andre Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald see that type of coverage on a weekly basis. It's a sign of respect as a wide receiver.

And Jackson doesn't have time to wait around for Vick.