As The Calendar Turns: Top 5 NFL Storylines in Week 4

The Bears are entering Week 4 as one of only three teams in the NFL with a perfect 3-0 record (the Chiefs and Steelers are the others). 

There are five teams sporting 0-3 records, desperate for a win on Sunday, or else they could be waving their 2010 season goodbye far too soon. 

There are coaches already on the hot seat, along with players making returns to long-tenured cities.

And yes, no matter how early it may be, there's already a battle for first place.

This will be by far the most intriguing week of the season so far.  With that, we're diving into the top five storylines in Week 4.

No. 5: The Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots Battle For First Place

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MIAMI - SEPTEMBER 26: Receiver Brandon Marshall #19 of the Miami Dolphins celebrates a touchdown against the New York Jets at Sun Life Stadium on September 26, 2010 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images)

Chad Henne and the Dolphins were this close to going 3-0, but their late-game drive down the field was thwarted by a Drew Coleman interception in the end zone to give the New York Jets a 31-23 victory.

That aside, the Dolphins are still in good position.  They go into their Monday night game in a three-way tie atop the AFC East with the Jets, and Miami's Week 4 opponent, the New England Patriots.

The Patriots are fresh off a Week 3 scare from the Buffalo Bills, where they were able to hang on by a final score of 38-30. 

New England is a one-dimensional team (all offense, no defense), and Miami's offense has been surprisingly explosive.  Enough to the point where they scored 23 points on the Jets defense, one less point than New York had allowed in its first two games combined. 

With Henne airing it out to wide receiver Brandon Marshall all night, and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady doing the same with Randy Moss, this game has the potential for both teams to score well over 30 points. 

If the Jets are upset by the Bills on Sunday afternoon, this game will be for the right to stand alone in first place in the AFC East.  If the Jets are victorious, the winner will remain in a first-place tie with New York going into Week 5.

No. 4: New York Giants Trying to Avoid Falling to 1-3 Against the Chicago Bears

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EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - SEPTEMBER 26: Head coach Tom Coughlin of the New York Giants yells after a penalty during a game against the Tennessee Titans at New Meadowlands Stadium on September 26, 2010 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Titans beat the Giants

After dropping two straight against Indianapolis and Tennessee, Giants head coach Tom Coughlin appears on the hot seat.  Again.

Rumors have been swirling about Coughlin's job security since the season began.  Gasoline was poured on those rumors when running back Brandon Jacobs demanded a trade, and there were reports that safety Antrel Rolle was unhappy because he wasn't "having fun" on the Giants. 

Aw, poor guy.  Maybe I'll be nice and trade him my illustrious job as a server in a chain restaurant so he won't have to burden the horrors of being an NFL player.

A win would put a stop to those rumors of Coughlin being canned for awhile, at least. 

But a victory will not come easy against the Chicago Bears, who will come into the Sunday night game with an undefeated 3-0 mark. 

Jay Cutler has been one of the best quarterbacks in the league in the first few weeks, and Matt Forte has been his main beneficiary. 

For the Giants to be successful, they will need to exploit the lousy pass defense of Chicago, which gives up almost 280 yards a game. 

Giants fans have been unhappy with Eli Manning early on in the season, but he can make a lot of that negativity go away with a big performance against Chicago on Sunday. 

If the Giants win and Eagles lose, they'll be tied atop the NFC East, and Coughlin will feel a lot better about his job than he did a week ago.

No. 3: San Francisco 49ers Trying to Avoid 0-4 Start

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KANSAS CITY, MO - SEPTEMBER 26: Head coach Mike Singletary of the San Francisco 49ers talks with quarterback Alex Smith #11 during the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on September 26, 2010 in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs won

The 49ers began the season with a tremendous amount of hope that they could make the playoffs for the first time since 2002, benefiting from a weak NFC West and a surplus of talent they haven't had in a while, from quarterback Alex Smith to running back Frank Gore to wide receiver Vernon Davis. 

They laid an egg in Seattle Week 1 and another one in Kansas City in Week 3.  On the bright side, they competed all game with the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints in Week 2, proving that when they play to their full capabilities they can beat anyone. 

It would look pretty near impossible for the 49ers to rebound enough from an 0-4 start to make the playoffs, even in a bad division like the NFC West.

Even if they went 8-4 after an 0-4 start, they'd still just finish the season 8-8.  That might be enough to give the 49ers the division, but it wouldn't be overly shocking to see Arizona or Seattle go 9-7.

The Niners will have to go into Atlanta to try and pick up their first win of the season against quarterback Matt Ryan, who is beginning to establish himself as one of the better QBs in the game. 

This is as close as it gets to a must-win game in Week 4.  If San Francisco loses, head coach Mike Singletary's seat might be a little warm on Monday morning. 

No. 2: Steelers Look To Go 4-0 Without Ben Roethlisberger

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TAMPA, FL - SEPTEMBER 26: Defensive end Brett Keisel #99 of the Pittsburgh Steelers scores a touchdown after incepting a pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the game at Raymond James Stadium on September 26, 2010 in Tampa, Florida. The undefeate

The Steelers could be going into Week 5 getting star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger back from suspension, and be undefeated.  That's scary.

It won't necessarily be easy, however.  The Steelers will have to take a game from the Ravens, who never just give a game up. 

Good news for the Steelers, however, is that they're 4-0 at home against the Ravens under head coach Mike Tomlin.

If they can take the victory in this rivalry game, it's quite possible the Steelers could meet up with the Saints in Week 8 with a 6-0 record with two games between then and now against the Browns and Dolphins.

No. 1: Donovan McNabb Returns to Philadelphia As a Washington Redskin

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ST. LOUIS - SEPTEMBER 26: Donavan McNabb #5 of the Washington Redskins passes against the St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome on September 26, 2010 in St. Louis, Missouri. The Rams beat the Redskins 30-16. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

After being the No. 1 quarterback in Philadelphia for 11 years and bringing the Eagles to the playoffs eight of those years, Donovan McNabb is back in town.

His love/hate relationship with the fans of Philadelphia is well documented.  Regardless of how scapegoated he was at times in Philadelphia, he is still returning fully expecting to be cheered.

Philadelphia fans booed Santa Claus, and they'd probably boo the end of child starvation.  There's no way that a substantial amount of the fans in the stadium will cheer for McNabb enough to where it is noticed.

McNabb's current replacement, Michael Vick, has been doing quite well.  He had a spectacular second half against the Packers in Week 1, and two equally impressive games against the Lions and Jaguars in Weeks 2 and 3, respectively.

The main storyline of this game is how Philadelphia welcomes McNabb back.  After that, it will be interesting to see if McNabb has any tricks up his sleeve with how to handle his old defense. 

And of course, it will be fun to see if Vick can continue his hot start to the 2010 campaign.