ESPN NFL

Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

DETROIT -- Checking in one last time from east of the Lake Michigan before heading back to NFC North headquarters. Look for full analysis of all four Black and Blue teams later in the day -- we’re calling it Third and One this year -- along with significant news updates.

For now, let’s take a morning spin around the division:

• There is a reason why Chicago traded for quarterback Jay Cutler, “[a]nd folks, this was it,” writes Rick Telander of the Chicago Sun-Times after Cutler rallied the Bears to a 17-14 victory over Pittsburgh.
• Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Tribune: “What everyone can agree on is that the Bears beat the Steelers 17-14 thanks to Cutler's precision and the imprecision of Pittsburgh's kicker. And after the Green Bay debacle, those are the only facts that matter.”
• Gene Wojciechowski of ESPN.com/ESPN Chicago: "'Didn't throw four picks,' said Cutler, when asked to explain the difference between Loss 1 and Win 1. And there you have it -- the Cutler Nutshell Version of the Bears' 17-14 victory against the Steelers. Thing is, he's right."
• Rookie Johnny Knox leads the Bears in receiving yards through two weeks, notes Jeff Dickerson of ESPN Chicago.
• Mike Vandermause of the Green Bay Press-Gazette sees widespread issues in a Packers team being celebrated as a Super Bowl contender after the preseason. Vandermause: In a 31-24 loss to Cincinnati, “[n]othing much was right about the Packers’ performance, and their problems were so widespread that it doesn’t appear a quick fix can turn things around.”
• The Packers have allowed 10 sacks over the first two games of the season -- their highest total in 17 years, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
• One of several tough questions facing Detroit coach Jim Schwartz, according to Michael Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press: “Should he protect young quarterback Matthew Stafford with conservative play-calling? Or should he let Stafford air it out, to take advantage of the Lions' best player, Calvin Johnson?”
• Mitch Albom of the Detroit Free Press has seen this thing before: “Mostly, I prefer a team that tries, loses, and doesn’t talk about moral victories, and at least the Lions didn’t do that. They had some good moments Sunday -- three sacks of [Brett] Favre, a fumble recovery, impressive bursts by Kevin Smith -- but overall, there was too much familiar and not enough original. Deja new.”
• So has Bob Wojnowski of the Detroit News: “The Lions are still outmanned in many areas, no doubt, but they also have this unrelenting knack for screwing up in astonishing and inventive ways.”
• Tom Powers of the St. Paul Pioneer Press on Minnesota’s delayed offense: “You can say that the coaches are very smart to be able to fix everything during intermission. You can also wonder why everything is out of whack to start with. These slow starts eventually will come back to bite them.”
• We barely mentioned this Sunday, but Favre did become the NFL’s position-player Iron Man on Sunday. Judd Zulgad and Chip Scoggins of the Star Tribune wrap-up his 271st consecutive start.