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One quarterback from the 2005 NFL draft class remains in the playoffs this season.

See if you can find him in the chart. A hint: Alex Smith is his name.

Kevin Kolb did not meet expectations during his first season with the Arizona Cardinals.

Looks like quarterbacks coach Chris Miller will pay the price.

The bigger question is whether or not Miller's firing Monday clears the way for Todd Haley's rehiring three years after Haley left the Cardinals to become head coach in Kansas City. Firing Miller makes less sense on the surface unless the team has other plans for its staff.

Haley could have opportunities outside Arizona. It's also not clear whether or not Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt wants to shuffle his staff beyond firing Miller. The team promoted Mike Miller to offensive coordinator a year ago. Haley presumably would not take a job as a position coach. He would need to be coordinator. That would affect Mike Miller.

Wedging in the sometimes brash Haley at the expense of two assistants would affect broader staff dynamics as well.

Miller, 46, became the Cardinals' quarterbacks coach in 2009, Kurt Warner's final season with the team. He was a finalist to become head coach at Southern Oregon University a year ago. Miller played extensively in the NFL, but he did not have coaching experience in the league until the Cardinals hired him as a coaching intern in 2007.

Chris Miller obviously wasn't solely to blame for the Cardinals' issues at quarterback or for their offensive decline.

Warner retired and the team parted with receivers Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston. Derek Anderson and Max Hall were not necessarily viable quarterback alternatives in 2010. The team went into 2011 with the unproven Kolb and John Skelton atop its QB depth chart. A lockout prevented Kolb from working with the team much before the season.

The Cardinals have done little to improve their offensive line through the draft. Injuries affected Kolb and both top running backs, Beanie Wells and Ryan Williams.

Here's a nightmare scenario for Arizona Cardinals fans: Kevin Kolb flounders while a reborn Matt Leinart leads the Houston Texans deep into the playoffs.

The 7-3 Texans' outlook minus injured starting quarterback Matt Schaub framed the biggest debate our voters faced in putting together ESPN's NFL Power Rankings through Week 10.

John Clayton ranked them fourth and Ashley Fox had them fifth. Paul Kuharsky ranked them eighth. I had Houston 11th and James Walker voted them 14th despite four consecutive double-digit victories and a No. 8 ranking last week.

"I was conflicted on the Texans," Fox said, "and decided to rank them based on past performance, rather than the potential for future failure. We will see."

Kuharsky, our AFC South blogger, suspects Leinart could outperform expectations fewer than two years after the Cardinals decided they were better off with Derek Anderson, John Skelton and Max Hall.

"I'm not going to jump to write off the Texans with the Schaub news," Kuharsky said. "Gary Kubiak knows quarterbacks and he loves Leinart."

Cardinals fans would be happy to offer their Leinart video collections. But as ESPN Stats & Information pointed out, Leinart has a slightly above average 52.9 Total QBR on 147 plays since 2008, counting playoffs. He completed 21 of 31 passes for 220 yards and a 73.9 QBR against Tennessee in his last regular-season start in 2009.

"The Texans missed on their last try at a quality backup with Dan Orlovsky," Kuharsky said. "I don't think they'll miss twice in a row. I expect they have enough to win with Leinart playing. But, like everyone, I need to see him play."

And now, a closer look at the rankings heading into Week 11 ...

Rising (12): Arizona Cardinals (+6), Oakland Raiders (+5), Tennessee Titans (+5), Chicago Bears (+4), Denver Broncos (+4), New England Patriots (+4), Seattle Seahawks (+4), Dallas Cowboys (+3), Jacksonville Jaguars (+2), Miami Dolphins (+2), New Orleans Saints (+1), Pittsburgh Steelers (+1)

Falling (15): Philadelphia Eagles (-6), Carolina Panthers (-5), Washington Redskins (-4), Baltimore Ravens (-3), Buffalo Bills (-3), Cleveland Browns (-3), Detroit Lions (-3), Minnesota Vikings (-3), New York Jets (-3), Kansas City Chiefs (-2), Tampa Bay Bucs (-2), Cincinnati Bengals (-1), Houston Texans (-1), New York Giants (-1), San Diego Chargers (-1)

Unchanged (5): Atlanta Falcons, Green Bay Packers, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams.

Deadlocked: We broke two ties this week. Cincinnati prevailed over Dallas at No. 11 based on the second tiebreaker, overall record. Denver prevailed over Tampa Bay at No. 19 on the third tiebreaker, which team won most recently. The first tiebreaker, head-to-head results, did not come into play.

Like minds: All five panelists ranked the Packers first, the 49ers second and the Colts last.

Agree to disagree: Last week, eight spots separated the highest and lowest votes for the Bears. That margin shrunk to five this week, with Chicago moving into the top five for the first time this season. Walker and I ranked the Bears fourth. I've had them in the top eight for a month after admittedly underrating them earlier in the season.

"The Bears are going to be the playoff team no one wants to face in January," Walker said. "They’re not catching the Packers in the standings, so Chicago will be a dangerous wild card. The Bears match up with anyone because they can beat you with offense, defense or special teams."

A look at the eight teams, including Chicago, producing disparities of at least five spots between highest and lowest votes:

• Texans (10): Clayton fourth, Walker 14th.
• Browns (7): Clayton 24th, Sando and Walker 31st.
• Redskins (6): Clayton 23rd, Walker and Fox 29th.
• Bears (5): Sando and Walker fourth, Fox ninth.
• Chiefs (5): Fox 19th, Sando 24th.
• Cardinals (5): Sando, Kuharsky and Fox 22nd, Clayton 27th.
• Seahawks (5): Sando 21st, Clayton and Kuharsky 26th.
• Vikings (5): Kuharsky and Walker 25th, Clayton and Fox 30th.

Power rankings histories: These colorful layered graphs show where each NFL team has ranked every week since the 2002 season.

Ranking the divisions: Teams from the NFC North fell from 10.7 to 11.3 in average ranking, but that was still good enough to keep the top spot among divisions, well ahead of the AFC North (12.5 average ranking). The NFC West, coming off its first 4-0 week since realignment in 2002, stands seventh this week, ahead of the AFC South.


A voter-by-voter look at changes of at least five spots since last week:

• Sando: Browns (-9), Eagles (-5), Cardinals (+7), Cowboys (+7), Raiders (+7), Seahawks (+7).
• Clayton: Ravens (-5), Panthers (-5), Lions (-5), Vikings (-5), Eagles (-5), Bears (+6), Titans (+6).
• Kuharsky: Eagles (-8), Panthers (-5), Lions (-5), Cardinals (+5), Bears (+6), Patriots (+8), Cowboys (+9), Broncos (+9).
• Walker: Eagles (-8), Redskins (-7), Cardinals (+5), Broncos (+5), Bears (+6), Raiders (+6), Seahawks (+7).
• Fox: Panthers (-6), Vikings (-6), Jets (-6), Redskins (-6), Cowboys (+5), Cardinals (+7).

For download: An Excel file -- available here -- showing how each voter voted this week and in past weeks.

The file includes a "powerflaws" sheet pointing out potential flaws in voters' thinking by showing how many higher-ranked opponents each team defeated this season.

Baltimore is the only one of our top eight teams with a victory over a team ranked higher this week. The sixth-ranked Ravens own two victories over the fourth-ranked Steelers. The Chargers are 18th and have not defeated any of the teams ranked higher than them. They are the only team ranked between 12th and 31st without at least one victory over a higher-ranked team.

A quick primer on the "powerflaws" sheet:

• Column Y features team rankings.
• Column Z shows how many times a team has defeated higher-ranked teams.
• Change the rankings in Column Y as you see fit.
• Re-sort Column Y in ascending order (1 to 32) using the standard Excel pull-down menu atop the column.
• The information in Column Z, which reflects potential ranking errors, will change (with the adjusted total highlighted in yellow atop the column).
• The lower the figure in that yellow box, the fewer conflicts.

The Arizona Cardinals aren't going to win many games playing offense the way they played it Sunday.

They managed only 58 yards by halftime and needed the second-longest punt return in NFL history to beat the previously 1-6 St. Louis Rams in overtime.

But if you're interested in bottom-line results without regard for sustainability, prepare to arch an eyebrow upon reviewing won-lost records for the Cardinals' starting quarterbacks under coach Ken Whisenhunt.

The chart shows win percentages for regular-season games only. Kurt Warner's percentage would climb to .583 if we counted his 4-2 starting record during postseason.

This is not a ranking of the Cardinals' best quarterbacks since 2007, obviously. Warner would be the runaway winner by that measure, and Kevin Kolb might still rank second based on potential.

Kevin Kolb is taking much of the blame for the Arizona Cardinals' 1-6 record. So is coach Ken Whisenhunt.

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic says some of the blame lies with a series of blunders in the draft. Somers: "Trade away a chance to take an elite pass rusher (Terrell Suggs, 2003), and a team could find itself trying to find a similar player for years. Miss on a quarterback (Matt Leinart, first round, 2006), and a team finds itself trying to solve the problem via free agency (Derek Anderson) or trade (Kevin Kolb). Miss on an outside linebacker (Cody Brown, second round, 2009), and a team has to gamble that an old free agent (Joey Porter) has something left. Miss on a left tackle (Levi Brown, first round, 2007), and a team might be continually reminded that it passed on a star running back (Adrian Peterson)."

Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic checks in with Cardinals backup quarterback Rich Bartel, who offers hunting advice. Bartel: "Feral hogs and javelinas are completely different, though. We've got javelinas here in Arizona, and they're smaller. They're really dangerous, and you can't use your (hunting) dogs on them because they'll kill your dog. Feral hogs you can use dogs on. They're bigger, but it's no problem for your dog."

Also from the Republic: reasons why the Cardinals' streak of no local TV blackouts has a chance to continue against the Rams even with about 2,000 tickets remaining.

Darren Urban of azcardinals.com says backup John Skelton is a popular guy with Kolb and the Cardinals struggling.

Brock Huard of 710ESPN Seattle goes to the whiteboard to break down the Seahawks' problems on fourth down Sunday, pointing to left guard Robert Gallery among the culprits for the failed Marshawn Lynch run as the first half ended.

Dave Wyman of 710ESPN Seattle says the Seahawks, and NFL referees, need to pick up their games when it comes to the rules.

Clare Farnsworth of seahawks.com says Chris Clemons has been playing at a Pro Bowl level against run and pass alike. Farnsworth: "It’s not just that the 254-pound Clemons gets sacks, it’s how he gets them -- with relentless efforts against offensive linemen who outweigh him by 70-80 pounds. And it’s not just the sacks that define his role as the 'Leo' end in the Seahawks defense. As underrated as he is as a pass-rusher, Clemons is even more overlooked when it comes to his contributions to a run defense that ranks 11th in the league and tops the NFL in per-carry average allowed (3.16)."

Danny O'Neil of the Seattle Times offers thoughts on the Seahawks, including this one: "Seattle finished with 411 yards of net offense, 159 more than the Bengals. It's the second time the Seahawks have lost despite outgaining their opponents while Seattle has been outgained in both of the games it has won this season. It's something to keep in mind as everyone goes ga-ga over the large passing totals this season. Yards don't always translate to victories."

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch sees good things from Rams linebackers Chris Chamberlain and Bryan Kehl. Thomas: "Chamberlain really has good range, doesn't he? He got to start several games last year on the weakside but wasn't nearly as effective. But he was playing hurt all last year, and is healthy this year. But he looks like he's blossoming as a player. He's a bit undersized, so he's not always going to hold up against the run. But he's looked good in space. Kehl made at least one eye-opening hit Sunday and also runs around well. Again, he's not ideal size, particularly for strongside linebacker, but he did bring some energy to the position."

Also from Thomas: a look at the Rams' patchwork secondary, which held up better than anticipated against Drew Brees and the Saints.

Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com notes in his offensive player-by-player review that Frank Gore played 53 snaps to Kendall Hunter's nine during the 49ers' victory over the Browns. Also, regarding Alex Smith: "Again, he did not have any turnovers. . . Showed athleticism in first quarter when he avoided pass-rusher Jabaal Sheard in the pocket about 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage, scrambled right, avoided cornerback Joe Haden and dove head-first, eluding defensive tackle Phil Taylor to pick up 3 yards on a third-and-2 play. . . . Opened himself up to a big hit from safety Usama Young with a late slide at the end of a 9-yard keeper in fourth quarter. . . . On next play, overshot a wide-open Michael Crabtree 20 yards down the left sideline."

Also from Maiocco: player-by-player review on defense. On rookie corner Chris Culliver: "Entered game as 49ers' third cornerback and played 35 snaps. He had another good showing in coverage and he broke up one pass and recorded five tackles. . . . Had good coverage on pass intended for Little on third down down in first quarter."

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee runs through the injury list for running backs who start games against the 49ers this season.

Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee says Gore is perfectly happy. Gore: "I'm so happy, man. We're 6-1. We're winning. I'm just having fun.” In previous season's, “I was young, man. I was thinking about the Pro Bowls and other crazy stuff. I was selfish. Now, I'm not thinking about yards, just enjoying the ride."

Mark Purdy of the San Jose Mercury News says the 49ers' Alex Boone has, by all accounts, overcome the off-field issues that threatened his career.

Kevin Lynch of the San Francisco Chronicle offers thoughts on the 49ers' first-half performance against the Browns. Second half here.

NFC West teams went 0-3 last season against the teams they face in Week 5.

They lost those games by a combined 99-31 score.

Much has changed since then. Let's take a look:

Cardinals at Vikings

Score last season: Vikings 27, Cardinals 24 (OT)

Key play: Brett Favre's 25-yard touchdown pass to tight end Visanthe Shiancoe in the final minute of regulation tied the game, forcing overtime after the Cardinals had built a 24-10 fourth-quarter lead. Favre threw for a career-high 446 yards in the game.

Biggest change: Both teams have new quarterbacks, Kevin Kolb for Derek Anderson in Arizona, and Donovan McNabb for Favre in Minnesota. Also, the Vikings have a new head coach (Leslie Frazier) while the Cardinals have a new defensive coordinator (Ray Horton).

Storyline: McNabb keeps a home in Arizona and was available to the Cardinals when their quarterback situation was in flux, but the team showed no interest in him. He is now trying to hold off a change to rookie Christian Ponder.

Lineup changes for Arizona (12): Beanie Wells for Tim Hightower at running back, Kolb for Anderson at quarterback, Daryn Colledge for Alan Faneca at left guard, Rex Hadnot for Deuce Lutui at right guard, Todd Heap for Ben Patrick at tight end, Andre Roberts for Steve Breaston at receiver, Anthony Sherman for Reagan Maui'a at fullback (although the team opened its 2010 game at Minnesota without a fullback), Dan Williams for Bryan Robinson at nose tackle, Daryl Washington for Gerald Hayes at linebacker, Clark Haggans for Will Davis at linebacker, A.J. Jefferson for Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie at cornerback, Patrick Peterson for Greg Toler at cornerback.

49ers vs. Buccaneers

Score last season: Buccaneers 21, 49ers 0

Key play: Josh Freeman's 1-yard scoring pass to tackle Donald Penn midway through the fourth quarter put an exclamation point on the 49ers' first home shutout since 1977.

Biggest change: Jim Harbaugh has replaced Mike Singletary as the 49ers' head coach.

Storyline: Alex Smith gets a shot at Tampa Bay after watching Troy Smith struggle against the Bucs as the 49ers' starting quarterback last season. Troy Smith's approach centered around striking for big plays. The Bucs took away the big plays. Alex Smith gives the 49ers a chance to be more efficient.

Lineup changes for San Francisco (12): Alex Smith for Troy Smith at quarterback, Joe Staley for Barry Sims at left tackle, Adam Snyder for Chilo Rachal at right guard, Bruce Miller for Moran Norris at fullback, Isaac Sopoaga for Aubrayo Franklin at nose tackle, Ray McDonald for Sopoaga at defensive end, Ahmad Brooks for Manny Lawson at outside linebacker, NaVorro Bowman for Takeo Spikes at inside linebacker, Carlos Rogers for Nate Clements at cornerback, Tarell Brown for Shawntae Spencer at cornerback, Donte Whitner for Reggie Smith at strong safety.

Seahawks at Giants

Score last season: Giants 41, Seahawks 7

Key play: With Seattle already down 14-0 in the first quarter, the Giants returned Leon Washington's fumbled kickoff return to the Seattle 4, setting up Ahmad Bradshaw's touchdown run on the next play.

Biggest change: Tarvaris Jackson is the starting quarterback for Seattle. Charlie Whitehurst was a fill-in starter for Matt Hasselbeck when the teams played last season.

Storyline: The Seahawks' so-far-unproductive ground game faces a Giants run defense that has struggled. Seattle's young line improved in pass protection last week. Can it take a step forward in run blocking this week?

Lineup changes for Seattle (16): Sidney Rice for Deon Butler at receiver, Jackson for Whitehurst at quarterback, Russell Okung for Chester Pitts at left tackle, Paul McQuistan for Mike Gibson at left guard, Max Unger for Chris Spencer at center, John Moffitt for Stacy Andrews at right guard, James Carpenter for Sean Locklear at right tackle, Zach Miller for John Carlson at tight end, Brandon Mebane for Junior Siavii at defensive tackle, Alan Branch for Craig Terrill at defensive tackle, Red Bryant for Kentwan Balmer at defensive end, K.J. Wright for Aaron Curry at linebacker, David Hawthorne for Lofa Tatupu at linebacker, Leroy Hill for Hawthorne at linebacker, Brandon Browner for Kelly Jennings at right cornerback, Kam Chancellor or Atari Bigby for Lawyer Milloy, depending on Chancellor's availability.

LANDOVER, Md. -- Sunday wasn't the first time a long touchdown pass to Larry Fitzgerald gave the Arizona Cardinals a fourth-quarter lead they could not hold.

They lost Super Bowl XLIII when their defense let Pittsburgh go 78 yards for the winning touchdown with 42 seconds left.

Three years and two defensive coordinators later, the Cardinals' defense is statistically worse through two games than at any point since at least 1940. While Arizona's 22-21 defeat to the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field reflected shortcomings in all facets of the game, nowhere were the problems more glaring than on defense.

If new quarterback Kevin Kolb makes the Cardinals exciting again, their defense makes them a little too exciting.

The 21-13 lead Arizona took on Fitzgerald's 73-yard touchdown reception from Kolb was no match for a defense that has now allowed 932 yards through two games, including 455 to the Rex Grossman-led Redskins. Only 14 teams in the previous 70 NFL seasons have allowed as many yards through two games, according to Pro Football Reference (Green Bay has joined Arizona on the list this season).

And what about those late-game defensive struggles?

"When did we play defense the whole day, as opposed to late in the game?" coach Ken Whisenhunt responded.

Fair point.

Indeed, the inability to make critical stops late in the game followed an inability to make them earlier, save for a couple interceptions off Grossman in the first quarter.

Ex-Cardinal Tim Hightower had more first-half total yards (93) than the Cardinals (83).

The Redskins controlled the ball for more than 21 minutes of the first half, amassing a 253-85 lead in total yardage. Arizona trailed only 10-7 at that point because Grossman tossed two picks and the Cardinals' defense held up in the red zone, allowing only one touchdown in four series inside its own 20.

The defense did mix in a few glimpses of hope amid the overall carnage.

Arizona stopped the Redskins on the tying two-point conversion try with 5:17 remaining. Pro Bowl safety Adrian Wilson and veteran corner Richard Marshall picked off passes on Washington's first two drives. Jefferson made a diving breakup on a third-down play. Safety Kerry Rhodes collected a sack.

Yet, it's clear the Cardinals will get worse on defense before they get better. The stats say they already have. The 477 and 455 yards Arizona has allowed exceed all but two of the team's single-game totals from last season. That wasn't what the team had in mind when it named Ray Horton defensive coordinator during the offseason.

Outside linebacker Clark Haggans and Joey Porter combined for one quarterback hit, according to the NFL gamebook, and the Cardinals had only two for the game despite 44 drop-backs by Grossman. Rhodes' sack was the only one for Arizona.

A trip to 0-2 Seattle in Week 3 should stop some of the defensive bleeding, and the usual disclaimers apply after only two games.

The Cardinals are learning a new defensive scheme after a lockout-shortened offseason. They'll presumably overcome some of the communication issues that have given them problems during their 1-1 start. But there's also a good chance their aging outside linebackers will wear down over the course of the season. If the outside pass-rush isn't very good now, what about then?

The Cardinals' young cornerbacks, Patrick Peterson and A.J. Jefferson, are just beginning to learn what it's like to start every week in the NFL. Does a wall await them after 10 or 12 games?

The secondary appeared out of sorts when Grossman found Santana Moss for an 18-yard touchdown to pull the Redskins within 21-19 with 5:17 remaining.

What happened there?

"Just the corners, a miscommunication down low," Pro Bowl safety Adrian Wilson said. "We practiced the play probably 100 times. Whenever games and situations like that come up, we just have to make the play. We're going to live and die with those corners, regardless of what happens. We're not going to change who we have. We have what we have and we're going to roll with it."

Kolb's addition gives the Cardinals hope where there would have been none with Derek Anderson, John Skelton or Max Hall starting at quarterback last season.

After passing for 309 yards and two touchdowns in Week 1, Kolb sometimes overstepped the line between playing aggressively and taking undue chances. He invited at least two sacks when holding the ball too long. The Cardinals were fortunate to recover his fumble following one of them. Kolb also threw into coverage for an interception on a second-and-18 play from the Washington 24 while trailing by a field goal midway through the third quarter.

But when Fitzgerald hauled in Kolb's deep pass down the right sideline for a 73-yard touchdown and a 21-13 lead with 11:09 remaining, the Cardinals had to be feeling good about moving boldly to acquire a quarterback. Kolb knew he was going to take a hard shot to the back because one Redskins defender was unaccounted for on the play. Kolb, aided immensely by Beanie Wells' physical second-half running, held the ball long enough for Fitzgerald to get deep on a slant-and-go the team had been setting up for some time.

It was the sort of play the Cardinals will need frequently this season, particularly if their defense continues to set the wrong kinds of records.

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

Five nuggets of knowledge about Week 1:

Containing the Michael Vick experience: The St. Louis Rams have fielded one of the sounder defenses in the NFL. They allowed only five pass plays of 40-plus yards last season, one off the NFL low and 13 fewer than Houston's league-worst mark. The Rams will have to be at their best against a Philadelphia Eagles offense that has made the big play appear routine. With Vick at quarterback most of the way, the 2010 Eagles completed 15 pass plays covering at least 40 yards, most in the league. DeSean Jackson had eight of them and Jeremy Maclin had four.

World's tallest cornerback: Seahawks coach Pete Carroll emerged from the laboratory this offseason with something I cannot recall seeing at any level of football: a 6-foot-4 cornerback. Brandon Browner, late of the CFL, is expected to make his first NFL start against San Francisco. Seeing him lined up at corner takes some getting used to. Early in camp, teammates initially thought he was a safety and Carroll was testing out some weird new scheme. "When they said he was a corner, I thought maybe now they wanted to go with a 'created' player," receiver Ben Obomanu said. "I have a little cousin who plays NCAA and Madden football. He always creates these 6-7, 6-6 corners. I was like, 'Well, coach Carroll is trying something new.' But when I saw him play, I could see he has been playing corner a long time." Browner is a player to watch in Week 1.

Peterson, Washington and big returns: New rules for kickoffs will produce more touchbacks this season, but return specialists had to like what they saw in the regular-season opener between Green Bay and New Orleans on Thursday night. That game featured a 108-yard kickoff return and a 72-yard punt return, both for touchdowns. The NFC West has its share of big-play returners, with Cardinals rookie Patrick Peterson joining a group featuring Leon Washington, LaRod Stephens-Howling and Ted Ginn Jr. Those last three combined for six return touchdowns last season. Peterson returned an interception for a touchdown during preseason and nearly broke a long punt return.

Familiarity breeds contempt, or at least meaning: Turnover is such in the NFL that every game is a grudge match or extra meaningful for someone. Quintin Mikell's first game with St. Louis comes against his former team, Philadelphia. Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo, the Eagles' former defensive assistant, faces his old boss, Andy Reid, for the first time as a head coach. Derek Anderson's first game with Carolina, albeit as a backup, comes against his former team, Arizona. Cornerback Richard Marshall's first game with Arizona comes against his former team, Carolina. Same goes for new Cardinals tight end Jeff King. Surprising Seattle rookie receiver Doug Baldwin's first NFL game falls against his college coach, Jim Harbaugh, who did not sign him as an undrafted free agent. Bobby Engram's first game as an NFL assistant coach, for San Francisco, comes against his former team, Seattle. Oh, and I seem to recall hearing something about Carroll and Harbaugh facing off in college. Subplots proliferate. As Carroll noted, better have those boom mikes at the ready.

Bradford and the deep ball: The Rams intend to stress defenses with more downfield throws this season. They'll rely more on scheme and creativity than raw speed to set up these opportunities. Doubters will have to credit quarterback Sam Bradford and coordinator Josh McDaniels if the Rams can beat the Eagles' stacked secondary with downfield throws. Philadelphia gave up 54 pass plays of at least 20 yards last season, ninth-most in the league, but they've since added cornerbacks Nnamdi Asomugha and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. The Rams managed only 36 such plays, third-fewest in the NFL.

The NFL couldn't have hoped for a 2011 regular-season opener better than the one Green Bay and New Orleans provided Thursday night.

Like millions, I watched it from home in spectacular high definition. Once the game ended, there was no traffic to deal with, no drunken fans to deal with, no headaches at all. I went downstairs and had finished a workout before most of the Lambeau Field faithful had probably reached the highway. Not a bad deal at all.

As Monte Poole of Bay Area News Group points out, the living room is the new luxury box in the NFL. He says the San Francisco 49ers, though riding an extended streak without local television blackouts, cannot take fans for granted in this new era. Poole: "In recent years, I've gotten hundreds of emails from fans complaining about the hassle and discomfort of going to local NFL games. They've corresponded with both teams. The decreasing number of fans showing up for games in San Francisco and Oakland indicates many have responded by staying home. Though NFL season ticket numbers declined three straight years, league spokesman Brian McCarthy recently told USA Today that the 2011 sales appear to be better." Noted: Teams will have to work to keep their stadiums full. A new stadium will help the 49ers tremendously, I would think. Improving the product on the field and creating a better stadium experience will be a top priority because it has to be. It's been critical for the Arizona Cardinals in recent seasons.

Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee sizes up Michael Crabtree's ability to play well on short notice. Noted: The way Crabtree contributed immediately upon reporting as a rookie during the 2009 season scored points with veteran players. I recall tackle Joe Staley walking over to Crabtree's locker to offer respects following Crabtree's debut performance at Houston. Crabtree had a feel for the game that went beyond his years. The 49ers could use more of the same this year.

Clare Farnsworth of seahawks.com provides visual evidence of punter Jon Ryan's first haircut since 2009. Ryan, whose father died from cancer in 2006, was raising awareness to help fight the disease. Ryan: "I was looking on the internet for ideas to raise awareness and raise money for cancer research and I just happened to stumble across 'Lock of Love'. The more I read about it, the more I just thought it was a great idea. I thought it might be something I could do and I’m kind of in a position where I have the ability to raise awareness a little bit. So hopefully if other people see this it will encourage them to do the same or maybe donate a few bucks." Ryan's formerly flowing locks will be used in hairpieces for children suffering from cancer.

Also from Farnsworth: Pete Carroll's support for Tarvaris Jackson remains strong. Carroll: "I’m not ever worried about the critics. Ever. Tarvaris knows the offense. He’s in great command of it. He’s helping others to make adjustments and fix things. That’s always where the players have a sense for it -- when the guy can help them. And he helps them. He’s talented. He can move. He’s tough. He’s got a great poise about him. He hung tough through the hard times when we weren’t doing a good job and weren’t protecting him. It never fazed him."

Dave Boling of the Tacoma News Tribune says the Seahawks' new right tackle, Breno Giacomini, has not made friends with the team's defensive linemen. Raheem Brock: "Yeah, he definitely irritates me. That’s a good thing."

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic says the Cardinals' cornerbacks will be making their first NFL regular-season starts in Week 1. Noted: The schedule makers did the Cardinals a favor by sending Carolina to University of Phoenix Stadium for the opener. Watching the Packers and Saints on Thursday night had to be a little sobering for some other teams around the league. The Rams are the only team in the NFC West to visit Lambeau this season. They'll be there in Week 6.

Also from Somers: Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb rubs his hands on the grass before each offensive series, something he's done since seventh grade.

Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer checks in with former Cardinals quarterback Derek Anderson, now with Carolina. Anderson: "I think expectations were a lot higher than what reality was. Obviously, being the guy coming in to play after Kurt (Warner) and trying to do the things that he did and try to run kind of his offense, things that he kind of put in there, was difficult for me. ... I struggled all season understanding a lot of things. We were bad on offense. We were bad on defense. I think special teams was one of the things we were actually decent (at) throughout the whole season. That's the way it goes."

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says new Rams safety Quintin Mikell is very much looking forward to facing his former team in Week 1. Mikell: "Any time you get kinda let go, or people start saying you're old or whatever, you want to prove everybody wrong. And since I've come into the league, that's all I've been doing. Every time somebody counts against me, I prove 'em wrong. So this is no different for me." Noted: Safeties and quarterbacks tend to have a better feel for schemes than players at other positions. The Rams' knowledge of the Eagles' offense through coach Steve Spagnuolo and Mikell should help them against Philadelphia in this game.

Bill Coats of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch catches up with Rams receiver Danario Alexander, who keeps the training staff busy by making every effort to fight through chronic knee trouble. Trainer Reggie Scott: "He's a chronic sweller, so we do a lot of things to control swelling: your compressions, a lot of your cold therapies. We do a lot of things at home, around-the-clock things, a lot of different modalities that help with swelling, that decrease swelling. And also what happens, a lot of times when you get this swelling, you lose muscle tone. Swelling attacks muscles, so we do a lot of maintenance work. We do a lot of single-leg strengthening work, because we've got to maintain that muscle. The stronger I get the muscles around the joint, the less stress on the joint."

Cool note from ESPN Stats & Information: First-year San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh is the last quarterback other than Peyton Manning to start a regular-season game for the Indianapolis Colts.

That will change when Kerry Collins replaces an injured Manning in the Colts' lineup for Week 1.

The first preseason game I covered as an NFL beat reporter featured Manning making his first start against the Seattle Seahawks in the Kingdome. His very first pass found Marvin Harrison for a 49-yard touchdown. Preseason games are generally without much meaning, but could there have been a more fitting beginning for Manning?

For a fuller appreciation of Manning's durability and consistency in starting 227 consecutive games, I went through Pro Football Reference counting how many quarterbacks had started for current NFC West teams since Manning made his regular-season debut. There have been 48. That figure includes 14 for the St. Louis Rams, 13 for the 49ers, 11 for the Arizona Cardinals and 10 for the Seahawks.

A few notes on the 48 players to start for current NFC West teams since 1998:

• There have been two Brocks (Berlin, Huard), two Charlies (Frye, Whitehurst), two named Chris (Chandler, Weinke), two Jeffs (Plummer, Martin), three Johns (Friesz, Navarre, Skelton), one Jon (Kitna), two Matts (Hasselbeck, Leinart), two Shauns (Hill, King), three Steves (Young, Bono, Stenstrom) and two Trents (Dilfer, Green).
• Two, Young and Warren Moon, have been enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame since Manning's streak began.
• Dilfer and Warner started for more than one current NFC West team since Manning's streak began. Warner started 57 games for Arizona and 50 for St. Louis. Dilfer started 12 for Seattle and six for San Francisco.
• Hasselbeck has the most total starts for current NFC West teams with 131, followed by Marc Bulger (95 for St. Louis), Jake Plummer (73 for the Cardinals) and Jeff Garcia (71 for the 49ers).
• Smith -- Alex, not Troy -- owns the most starts among current NFC West players with 50, all for San Francisco.
• Eight of the 48 were one-and-done as starters: Berlin, Scott Covington, Ty Detmer, Glenn Foley, Friesz, Frye, Navarre and Weinke. Nineteen have made at least 10 starts.

The NFC West will have two starters new to the division in Week 1: Tarvaris Jackson and Kevin Kolb.

The chart shows start totals by team for the 48. The NFC West changed membership with realignment in 2002. I'm going back to 1998 for the four teams currently in the division.

The latest NFC West chat flew past, which means the regular season must be approaching. Lots to consider. Please do check out the full transcript. I'll address four additional questions/comments, ones that slipped through the cracks during the hour-long chat period, in the space below.

Derek from parts unknown asks whether the St. Louis Rams' schedule hurts them by pushing back all division games past Week 8, allowing younger and/or less established NFC West rivals time to develop.

Mike Sando: This thinking seems logical to me. Arizona, San Francisco and Seattle are all breaking in new coordinators. Two of them have new quarterbacks. All have questions on their offensive lines. The Rams might have been better off playing these teams early in the season. On the flip side, though, the Rams might be best off playing Philadelphia in Week 1. The Eagles figure to improve and hit stride as the season progresses. Getting Philadelphia in the opener and in St. Louis gives the Rams a good opportunity to make a statement early.

Ken from San Francisco read a report suggesting the 49ers hadn't watched Texans tape in preparation for the third preseason game. He wondered what the logic would be behind such a move.

Mike Sando: I don't know specifically what the 49ers did to prepare for Houston, but some coaches turn the focus on their own teams at this stage. Also, in my experience, coaches running West Coast offenses have focused more on their own execution than on what opponents might be doing. This would be particularly true during a preseason game and while installing the offense. Also, coach Jim Harbaugh might not want to tip off opponents as to how the 49ers will block certain looks. For now, he might be more concerned seeing how players hold up without scheming. Like the Seahawks, he has gotten his answer.

Kevin from Arizona questions whether the Cardinals have done enough defensively this offseason to improve on that side of the ball.

Mike Sando: They will have a new starting nose tackle in Dan Williams. They'll be better at inside linebacker now that Daryl Washington has played and Stewart Bradley is part of the rotation, if not a starter outright. They should be better across the board up front with Darnell Dockett healthier and Calais Campbell having finished strong last season. They got more talented at cornerback on paper with Patrick Peterson's addition, though we might not see results right away. They brought in a new coordinator with ties to Dick LeBeau and the Pittsburgh Steelers. And then the Cardinals helped out their entire team, including the defense, by improving at quarterback. So, there is potential for improvement. On the down side, the team appears marginally better or the same in the outside pass-rushing department. Williams has been overweight. Adrian Wilson is injured. Peterson has not yet emerged. Bradley hasn't cracked the lineup, counter to expectations. There are real concerns, too. They've got to upgrade the outside pass rush next offseason.

Mort from Scottsdale sees the Seattle Seahawks' Tarvaris Jackson as the 2011 version of Derek Anderson in the NFC West. "Wouldn't it be ironic," he asked, "if the Seahawks played so horribly that they got the first pick and Carroll gets to pick Harbaugh's boy, Andrew Luck?"

Mike Sando: Now that would be unreal, for sure. It gets at a question teams must consider when rebuilding. Would a team be better off scratching and clawing for a couple extra victories that mean nothing in the bigger picture, or would they be better off sometimes going young across the board, not with an eye toward a high draft choice, necessarily, but more in an effort to develop young talent? Seattle is taking that latter route.

Thanks for keeping the conversation moving.

Thoughts on the Arizona Cardinals after checking out ESPN's 300 highest-rated fantasy players for the 2011 season:

Arizona Cardinals running back Beanie Wells became more valuable from a fantasy standpoint once a knee injury knocked out Ryan Williams for the season. Wells figures to get most rushing attempts for Arizona if healthy.

Larry Fitzgerald was only the sixth-ranked receiver from a fantasy standpoint, trailing Andre Johnson, Roddy White, Greg Jennings, Hakeem Nicks and Calvin Johnson. I could see Fitzgerald's touchdown total spiking now that Derek Anderson, John Skelton and Max Hall are not his primary quarterbacks.

Kevin Kolb ranked only 18th among fantasy quarterbacks, just ahead of the New York Jets' Mark Sanchez. He's already shown an eagerness to force the ball to Fitzgerald, with encouraging results.

The No. 18 ranking seems a bit low for a quarterback with Fitzgerald at the ready, but in looking at the names above Kolb on the list, the ranking seems about right.

Aaron Rodgers, Michael Vick, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Philip Rivers, Tony Romo, Matt Schaub, Ben Roethlisberger, Josh Freeman, Matt Ryan, Eli Manning, Joe Flacco, Sam Bradford, Jay Cutler, Matt Cassell and Matthew Stafford rank ahead of Kolb.

Unranked Cardinals sleeper: Rookie tight end Rob Housler. The third-round draft choice needs seasoning as a blocker. He has flashed ability as a receiver through two preseason games. Crowding at the position will hurt him, however. Todd Heap and Jeff King give the Cardinals veteran options. They have a combined 16 touchdown receptions over the last two seasons.

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FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. -- Leave it to Darnell Dockett to capture Kevin Kolb's immediate impact on the quarterback position for the Arizona Cardinals.

"It's like night and day from last year," Dockett said following practice Friday afternoon at Northern Arizona University. "I don't want to disrespect nobody, but I mean, he's good."

No disrespect taken. It's not like he mentioned Derek Anderson by name.

Kolb, acquired by trade from Philadelphia eight days ago, completed his second full day practicing with his new team and had his moments. He connected with Larry Fitzgerald on a deep pass that was in the air for a couple seconds before Fitzgerald turned to catch it. Fans lining the practice fields responded appropriately.

Kolb also entertained the crowd with a scramble around the corner and up the left sideline. One or more of the defenders chasing him seemingly could have taken out Kolb's legs from behind if this had been a game, but no matter.

The Cardinals and their fans are still going through Kurt Warner withdrawals. They'll embrace every sign of quarterback competence they can find. Kolb has provided a few during the first two days since ratification of a new labor agreement allowed newly signed players to practice with their teams.

"He's the leader, goes out there and gets the job done," Dockett said. "You can tell the last couple days when he wasn't practicing, he was just so anxious to get out here. That is what you want from a quarterback. You want a true leader that is going to get the ball there and lead the offense down the field, no matter what pressure -- just go ahead and get the job done."

Kolb and his receivers are still getting acquainted.

Kolb leaned over and pounded the grass following one missed opportunity on a pass over the middle. He was also working through the snap and cadence issues cropping up at camps around the league as players pick up where they left off before the lockout intervened five months ago. Teams are just now experiencing for the first time plays and situations they normally would have drilled repeatedly through minicamps.

Kolb has known for some time Arizona was a likely destination for him. He met with Fitzgerald at the Super Bowl and discussed the possibilities, but Kolb said he couldn't realistically learn the offense before the trade.

"I’m a believer that the offseason is more for the physical," Kolb said. "Until you get in here and are put in a pressure situation, a two-minute drill and you’re trying to make calls, you can’t emulate that in offseason workouts. I didn’t stress myself with it too much. I knew once I got here I’d just work hard and catch up."

The next step comes Saturday when Kolb leads the offense in the Cardinals' annual camp scrimmage.

"I have been impressed with how he has handled himself, his demeanor," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "I think he'll quickly adapt and get better as we go, and that is exciting. He has the right makeup mentally and physically to be successful."

Note: That's it for me from Flagstaff. The trip was different this year in so many way. Key players weren't practicing until Thursday. Free agency overshadowed camp on some of my days here. I'm heading back to Phoenix shortly and flying to Seattle. Then it's off to see the San Francisco 49ers next week. My Cardinals "Camp Confidential" piece runs Monday.

The late Don Smith never claimed his passer-rating formula was perfect.

Quite the opposite, in fact.

"Some people call it a quarterback rating system, but that really is not what it is," Smith told me during a 2002 interview. "It’s simply a passing statistic."

I've actually defended Smith's rating system because the quarterbacks with the highest ratings -- Tom Brady, Philip Rivers and Aaron Rodgers led the way last season -- usually are the best quarterbacks. But there's so much more to quarterbacking than passing stats for touchdowns, interceptions, attempts, completions and yardage.

Game situations should count for something, and now they do.

With input from football people, including ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer, our statistical analysts have developed a 100-point ratings scale for quarterbacks taking into account advanced stats, game situations and relevant non-passing stats, including fumbles and sacks, to evaluate quarterbacks far more thoroughly. The methodology is complex -- one of the formula's key algorithms spans some 10,000 lines -- but the resulting "Total Quarterback Rating" (QBR for short) beats the old passer rating in every conceivable fashion. The ratings scale will debut this season.

I've been bugging the Stats & Information team for a sneak peak ever since learning former NBA statistical analyst Dean Oliver had joined our production analytics unit and was playing a prominent role in QBR development. Oliver, a Caltech grad with a Ph.D. in statistical applications, revolutionized how NBA teams use advanced statistics. Menlo College professor Ben Alamar, who has consulted with the San Francisco 49ers, is also part of the team.

Our stats team has been using game video to track stats relating to pressure, personnel, formation, game situation and more since 2008. The QBR stat represents a significant leap in harnessing those statistics for something more.

The old formula Smith created treated stats the same regardless of circumstance. A touchdown pass thrown against a prevent defense during a blowout defeat equals one thrown against pressure to win the game. A 5-yard completion on third-and-4 counts the same as a 5-yarder on third-and-15. A critical quarterback scramble, sack or fumble doesn't even factor.

"There is no way to statistically say how effective a guy is under fire," Smith lamented during our 2002 conversation. "None of that can be put into something like this."

Now it can, along with a whole lot more.

The QBR formula takes into account down, distance, field position, time remaining, rushing, passing sacks, fumbles, interceptions, how far each pass travels in the air, from where on the field the ball was thrown, yards after the catch, dropped balls, defensed balls, whether the quarterback was hit, whether he threw away the ball to avoid a sack, whether the pass was thrown accurately, etc. Each play carries "clutch weight" based on its importance to game outcome, as determined by analyzing those 60,000 plays since 2008. The stats adjust for quarterbacks facing an unusually high number of these situations.

"If it is a running clock late in the game, maybe you only get a few yards here or there, that is the right football play to make," Jeff Bennett, senior director of ESPN's production analytics team, said Sunday. "We spent a month learning about ratings to make sure quarterbacks couldn’t game the system, so they're not afraid to throw that deep pass at the end of the first half and risk an interception."

I've seen an outline for the rating system breaking down 2010 quarterbacks into six general categories, from top tier to poor. Precise rating numbers were not yet available. The quarterbacks under consideration broke down as follows:

• Top tier: Brady, Peyton Manning, Matt Ryan, Michael Vick, Rodgers and Drew Brees.
• Well above average: Josh Freeman, Eli Manning and Philip Rivers.
• Above average: Ben Roethlisberger, Tony Romo, Joe Flacco, Matt Schaub, David Garrard and Kerry Collins.
• Around average: Matt Cassel, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Mark Sanchez, Carson Palmer, Colt McCoy, Kyle Orton and Jon Kitna.
• Below average: Shaun Hill, Jason Campbell, Jay Cutler, Matt Hasselbeck, Chad Henne, Donovan McNabb, Sam Bradford and Alex Smith.
• Poor: Derek Anderson, Brett Favre and Jimmy Clausen.

ESPN plans to enlist several quarterbacks when introducing the stat during an hour-long "SportsCenter" special Friday at 8 p.m. ET. We'll be referencing the stat on the blogs and elsewhere. Bennett said he's allocating enough manpower to produce ratings on game days, a huge help for those of us analyzing player performances shortly after games.

"We want to reward a good football play," Bennett said.

Thoughts on the Arizona Cardinals' trade for Kevin Kolb and contract agreement with veteran center Lyle Sendlein (thank you, ESPN's Adam Schefter).

More thoughts:

• Challenging perception: The Cardinals have taken criticism for what has been portrayed as unwillingness to pay Marc Bulger last offseason after reaching agreement with Derek Anderson. To review, the timing worked out poorly for Arizona. The team considered acquiring Charlie Whitehurst, then decided to sign Anderson while he remained available. Meanwhile, the St. Louis Rams were waiting to release Bulger, a player the Cardinals otherwise would have targeted. After adding Anderson, the Cardinals weren't going to pay similar money for Bulger, despite apparent pleas from coach Ken Whisenhunt. Whether or not the criticism was valid, the Cardinals aren't holding back now. Perhaps a 5-11 disaster season gave Whisenhunt the power he needed. Whatever the case, if the five-year, $63 million contract Kolb plans to sign does include more than $20 million in guarantees, as advertised, it's tougher to say the organization is afraid to spend on a quarterback, even an unproven one.
• Offensive focus: Arizona is transforming its offense. Third-round pick Rob Housler projects as a receiving tight end. Veteran Jeff King, who agreed to terms with Arizona recently after beginning his career in Carolina, projects as more of a blocker. Ryan Williams, a surprise pick in the second round, projects as a running back with big-play ability. The offense has evolved significantly. The team could use a speed receiver after Steve Breaston left for Kansas City, but San Diego's Malcolm Floyd apparently isn't on the radar, Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic noted.
• Jump start?: After a quiet start to the negotiating period, the Cardinals appear to be operating with urgency as the signing period approaches Friday. Kolb's addition was a big step. Keeping Sendlein was a key for a line that needs to move forward, not take steps in the other direction. Sendlein has quietly become a consistent, solid contributor on the line. He and newcomer Daryn Colledge, formerly of Green Bay, should help the line develop more of an enduring identity. I still think the Cardinals could use help at tackle, but that doesn't appear to be a priority.

The Cardinals also reached agreement with former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman Nick Eason. His ties to new defensive coordinator Ray Horton made this a natural fit. Eason, 31, has started five games in each of the past two seasons.