The way to beat the Ravens is simple. Get Brett Favre to throw passes on first down which means that the "Fat Boys" - Tony Siragusa and Sam Adams - are in as pass rushers and not run stuffers.

Don't give me the Antonio Freeman is back crap; you couldn't slide a piece of paper between him and the Ravens secondary most of the day. Favre made some great throws and Freeman caught them. Some days those are drops or interceptions.

Jeff Blake owners should hold on before cutting him, as Aaron Brooks can't hit the barn with a cruise missile. The game against Carolina was much closer than it should've been because Brooks couldn't move the team through the air. Typically, it will take a couple weeks and maybe a big loss for a switch.

Ricky Watters owners it is time to toss in the cards. Alexander is the real deal.

Terrell Owens is the best receiver in the NFL and was last season, too. Problem is that there is no reason to look over at the other side of the field. We would think eventually this would catch up to the 49ers passing game.

Speaking of Terrell, how did he get so open in overtime against the Falcons? That may be the worst defensive play in the history of the NFL. Owens is the 49ers offense. Amazing! Dan Reeves should resign on the spot.

It is funny what determines a team's win-loss record. The Falcons are 2-3 but could've been 4-1 if they had held on twice against the 49ers. The 49ers would be 2-3 if they don't come back twice against the Falcons. As Bill Parcells always said, "You are what your record is."

You get the feeling that Corey Dillon circles the good matchups on his calendar before the season begins. This Sunday had a few circles around it. He has the Lions in two weeks; there may not be enough ink in Cincinnati for those circles.

If you are a football fan and think that it is time to replace Elvis Grbac with Randall Cunningham, turn in your Andre Rison Kansas City game jersey. You must go back to football watching school. Or head to rehab.

Steve McNair, is that really you?

If there is a Warrick Dunn owner in your league be warned that the first thing out of his or her mouth will be about having lost with Warrick on the bench. Slap them once for me.

You know your fantasy football team sucks when you've become enthralled with the save percentage of Nikolai Khabibulin or the drafting slot of Chauncey Billups.

Fantasy football is a funny game. We had a person in our league trade Randy Moss and Charlie Garner receiving Priest Holmes and Jerome Pathon in return. The office looked like downtown Islamabad after the trade was announced. For one week, he is a genius and we look like fools for burning him in effigy. Made a mess of the carpet, too.

The only time West Coast pizza tastes any good is on a Sunday morning with the first game blaring from the square and a cup of joe and the funnies spread on your lap. The rest of the time I wouldn't feed it to the dog.

Tiki Barber fans get used to the diminutive one going back to his Dave Meggett routine - sans the hookers and 18 illegitimate kids.

Didn't you used to be Randy Moss?

How many fantasy fans run out and grab Charlie Batch after this past week? Forget all those yards. They were accomplished against a grade school defense playing prevent. Gilligan could've thrown for 300 yards.

Speaking of Gilligan, how bad is the imagination of CBS if they are showing a two-hour movie about the hi-jinks behind the scenes at Gilligan? Did Ditka write the script?

Speaking of CBS, the between the halves highlights are less coordinated than a carload of drunken teens pulling a "Chinese fire drill" at a red light in downtown Tehran.

Think if Ditka didn't have menus and cocktail napkins, he'd never read.

Green Bay fans I await your e-mails. I implore you to use spell check.

Those people not grabbing Charlie Batch are sure to be picking up Tom Brady.

I am honest when I say that there is no way I would've run Ricky Williams at the end of the Saints/Panthers game. First, I hope that my team would've held onto the lead but even in that situation, we pass. Jim Haslett, my hat is off to you.

Of course, we sat Cam Cleeland this week.

I have never met Mike Shanahan but if he were coaching against Satan, I'd be rooting for the team coached by the guy in red with the funky tail.

We said this last week and will say it again, but without a viable threat outside of Rod Smith, the Broncos are ordinary. And don't talk about their defense; the Seahawks tore it to shreds.

Life won't be right until a manufacturer comes up with a Cheeto that goes well with tequila.

Another reason life will be a continuous mystery. If someone had told you that one quarterback, in the Miami/Jets game, would throw 34 times and the other only 22, Vinny Testaverde would be the guess as to who had the sore arm. Nope, it was Fiedler. The Dolphins couldn't run the ball against the porous Jets.

Denver/Seattle is another example of why bookies never file chapter 11.

Mike Holmgren has brass ones if he starts Matt Hasselbeck over Trent Dilfer. Dilfer has 12 wins in a row as a starter. Always respect a streak, Mike.

Bobby Engram made one of the great highlight plays on an onside kick. He went up high, grabbed the egg, was hit, and flipped landing on his noggin. Pure football.

The best announcing crew, bar none, is the Sunday night crew on ESPN. They are by far better than the rest of the announcing crews, even the ones with Brent Jones.

Playoff teams as of this writing are St. Louis, New Orleans, Giants, and Green Bay - that will stop the e-mails - in the NFC. The AFC is messy as the whole league is 3-2 or 2-3. Give us Oakland, Baltimore, Miami - grudgingly --, and Pittsburgh. A half dozen teams could qualify.

An emergency session of the California state legislature banned Tyrone Wheatley from handling babies or eggs.

:: comments to mark bond