Bleacher Report's NFL Awards Week 5: Handing Out Hardware

Sunday's action is all wrapped up, and now it's time to hand out the awards for some of the best action of Week 5.

From nail-biting finishes to a surprise blowout to a few "How did he do THAT?" catches, there was a lot to like from the action across the league.

In addition to the usual MVP and LVP awards, this week's slideshow will also highlight the best replacement of the week and an award dedicated to the late Al Davis.

Here are the awards for the action of Week 5...

Game of the Week: New England Patriots vs. New York Jets

The latest in what has become an exciting rivalry between the New England Patriots and New York Jets did not disappoint. 

In addition to solid outings from both quarterbacks Tom Brady and Mark Sanchez, the two teams kept the game interesting for most of the afternoon.

The key moment of the game was the overturned call of a fumble by Patriots receiver Deion Branch. Taking advantage of the re-do, Brady quickly connected with Branch again for a touchdown. The Patriots wouldn't look back the rest of the day.

Stinker Game of the Week: Minnesota Vikings vs. Arizona Cardinals

The battle of the former Philadelphia Eagles quarterbacks was less than exciting, with both Donovan McNabb and Kevin Kolb failing to either throw a touchdown or complete more than 50 percent of their passes.

An ugly passing display all around.

Fortunately for the Vikings, a standout performance by running back Adrian Peterson was the difference as the Minnesota Vikings won 34-10.

"Nice Catch Guy!" Award: Victor Cruz

The overarching theme of this Sunday was the incredible number of circus catches going on throughout the day (Deadspin has a nice collection of them). 

The catch that stood out from the rest was this spectacular grab from the New York Giants' Victor Cruz. With an Eli Manning pass into double coverage tipped up in the air, Cruz spun around and found the ball on the way to a 68-yard touchdown.

A later pass in Cruz's direction was intercepted as the Seattle Seahawks defeated the Giants 36-25.

"Just Win, Baby!" Award: Oakland Raiders

The game of football lost a legend Saturday in Oakland Raiders coach, general manager and owner Al Davis. He will be remembered as both a fiery competitor and as a vocal face of the league. 

Davis probably would have been proud of the effort of his Oakland Raiders yesterday as they held off the Houston Texans.

With the Texans driving for what looked to be the winning score, the Raiders intercepted a Matt Schaub end-zone pass with only seconds left in the game.

It may not have pretty, but the Raiders organization may be the least likely to worry about style points.

"Just win, baby!"

"Who ARE You?" Award: San Francisco 49ers

The performance the San Francisco 49ers put on Sunday was a completely unrecognizable display for those who have watched the team the past few seasons. 

Moving the ball effectively? Playing shutdown defense (the Niners have only allowed six points the past six quarters)? 

Who ARE you?

The Niners sit at 4-1 for the first time since the 2002 season (the last time the team made the playoffs), and now have a great matchup with the red-hot Detroit Lions (who like the Buccaneers will be on a short week after their Monday Night Football game versus the Chicago Bears).

"What Now?" Award: Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia Eagles fans have to be asking "What now?" after another troubling loss Sunday to the Buffalo Bills. 

Quarterback Michael Vick said at the beginning of the week that the "Dream Team" talk in the locker room was over, and that was confirmed Sunday as the Eagles took themselves out of the game with sloppy play on both sides of the ball.

The defense was porous (Fred Jackson put up a combined 196 yards), and Vick chucked four interceptions on the day. 

Holding a 1-4 record, the Eagles now find themselves in what has to be considered a must-win game against NFC East rival Washington Redskins.

Surprise of the Week: Kansas City Chiefs

It would have been pretty easy to write off the 1-3 Kansas City Chiefs after they went down 7-24 to the Indianapolis Colts with only a minute left in the first half. 

However, Chiefs' quarterback Matt Cassel moved his offense at laser pace on a six-play drive capped by a 16-yard pass to Steve Breaston.

The momentum from the score carried on to the second half, as the Chiefs scored 14 unanswered points as they went on to win 28-24.

"What Was That?" Award: D'Brickashaw Ferguson

New England Patriots safety Patrick Chung lost his helmet in the most unlikely of places Sunday…on the cleat of New York Jets offensive lineman D'Brickashaw Ferguson.

Shoe gotta be kidding me!

Neither player was hurt on the play, and the shoe and helmet were eventually separated (with some help from the referee).

Dirty Hit of the Week: Roman Harper

New Orleans Saints safety Roman Harper was out for blood as he laid a late hit on Carolina Panthers Steve Smith, who had entered the end zone for a touchdown after making a difficult catch over Saints corner Jabari Green.

The hit, which was immediately flagged, nearly caused a fight to break out between the two squads.

Real classy stuff.

Replacement of the Week: Charlie Whitehurst

With all due respect to Denver Broncos' Tim Tebow, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Charlie Whitehurst had the best game for a fill-in Sunday.

Replacing an injured Tarvaris Jackson, Whitehurst was able to move the offense for two scoring possessions, including a late touchdown pass to Doug Baldwin that would give the Seahawks the 29-25 lead.

The Seahawks, adding an interception touchdown return from Brandon Browner, would go on to win 36-25.

MVP: Adrian Peterson

Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson ended the team's game against the Arizona Cardinals early, powering through for three touchdowns in the opening  quarter.

With six touchdowns in five games this season, Peterson is halfway to matching the 12 rushing touchdowns he totaled last season.

LVP: Brady Quinn

With the Denver Broncos underperforming against the San Diego Chargers, the fans at Mile High were demanding the backup quarterback be placed in.

Starter Kyle Orton was yanked, and was replaced by Tim Tebow…who has been listed as No. 3 on the team's depth chart for the entire season behind Brady Quinn. 

While Tebow did manage to rally the team into making the game very close (including a late Hail Mary that may have warranted a pass interference call), it was odd that Broncos coach John Fox would go against his own previous decision-making with Quinn as the next in line.

I understand that it's tough to be the least valuable player without playing a snap, but it sure has to be disappointing for Quinn to be passed over completely in what should have been his big moment.

Special Interview

Listen to featured columnist Gordon Block talk about his awards on the Outside the Pocket podcast with Bleacher Report front page editor Thomas Emerick.