Top 25 Most Pressing NFL Questions Heading into Week 7

Quarterback changes are usually the biggest questions facing an NFL team in midseason: anytime a franchise decides to bench one player in favor of another or is forced to do so via injury it’s news.

And heading into Week 7 there are several such cases on the horizon.

But a quarterback shuffling isn’t the biggest concern facing every club this week. Some teams have their fingers crossed that an injured player will return on time (or ahead of schedule) while others have to figure out how to best contend with their next opponent. 

Each of the 13 games on this week’s docket will be greatly influence by the outcome of these 25 pressing questions.  

No. 25: Will Jonathan Baldwin Finally Make His Debut in Kansas City?

The Chiefs surprised many experts back in April when they spent their first round pick on Pitt wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin.

Part of the reason eyebrows were raised was because he earned a reputation as a "troublemaker" in college, and since then he's validated the concerns, getting into a fight with his teammate Thomas Jones during the preseason, an incident that resulted in a broken thumb. 

That injury has kept him sidelined since early August and he has yet to suit up for the Chiefs, who certainly could use someone to draw attention away from Dwayne Bowe. 

Head coach Todd Haley said Monday "I don’t think it’s a lock that Jonathan will be active or not...Right now, we’ll go through this week. There are a lot of factors that will play into that decision."

With the Raiders offense in serious trouble this Sunday against the Chiefs—Romeo Crennel can focus much more attention on Darren McFadden and that great rushing attack—Baldwin might provide just enough extra fire power on offense to push Kansas City back to .500. 

No. 24: Is Sean Peyton Going to Do His Joe Paterno Impersonation?

By now you know that Peyton was injured on the sideline in Tampa Bay and it’s impossible to say that his somewhat incapacitated state on Sunday afternoon did not contribute to the Saints loss.

He’s their playcaller and not only was he probably in some pain, but he had trouble seeing the field and making decisions.

And now that he’s had surgery on that leg—for a torn meniscus—he’s probably going to have to be up in the booth: he said as much yesterday. 

Since the Saints will be hosting the winless Colts, it shouldn’t have much impact on the outcome. But don’t be surprised if there are a handful of delay of game penalties and miscommunications for the Saints against the Colts fine pass rush that could make the game interesting. 

No. 23: Is Peyton Hillis Still an Elite Back?

The Browns have reportedly been negotiating with Hillis’ agent about a new contract and there were rumors that those negotiations played a part in his sitting out a few weeks back against the Dolphins for a “sore throat.”

That incident coupled with the fact that he hasn’t been nearly as productive this season as he was in 2010, should be somewhat concerning to the Browns front office.

Hillis doesn’t have a 100-yard game, he’s averaging well under 4.0 yards per carry, and most notably, he’s only scored a touchdown in one of his four starts.

With Seattle—one of the NFC’s top run defenses—coming to town, the Browns could use Hillis' performance as gauge for what they want to pay him.  

No. 22: Will St. Louis or Indianapolis Put Up a Better Fight on the Road?

With the exception of the Miami Dolphins, each winless club (St. Louis and Indianapolis) has road games this week against teams that are likely to keep them winless.

The Rams travel to Dallas to play the Cowboys while the Colts also head south to New Orleans to play the Saints.

Because the Saints are still a fairly elite club and the Superdome is going to be so loud, conventional wisdom suggests the Colts are a safer bet to remain winless than the Rams...especially since the Cowboys have their share of issues.

But the Colts have repeatedly fought and played down to the wire against teams like Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, Kansas City and last week against Cincinnati.

Aside from their 17-10 loss at home against Washington, the Rams haven’t put up much of a fight at any point this season. And Sunday in Lambeau Field was a great example.

If I had to choose one of these clubs to pull off the stunning upset, I’d take Indy.

No. 21: Will the Vikings Keep Aaron Rodgers Offense Under 50 Points?

Unless you’re a Packer fan, the fawning over Green Bay’s offense—and particularly Aaron Rodgers—is soon going to approach annoying proportions.

Yes, they’re the defending Super Bowl champions and they’re the last remaining undefeated team. But no one should be ready to put them in the same class as the 2007 Patriots, “The Greatest Show on Turf” or  any of the 49ers teams of the late 1980s. At least not yet.

Still, given the performance of Leslie Frazier’s defense this year, the Packers have a great shot at hanging half-a-hundred on the Vikings Sunday afternoon in Mall of America Field.

Not only did Minnesota surrender 39 points to a fairly average Bears offense, but they’ve allowed an average of 270 yards per game through the air.

Against Rodgers and that stacked corps of pass catchers, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them allow almost double that. Would you? 

No. 20: Will Pete Carroll Start Tarvaris Jackson or Charlie Whitehurst?

This is easily the least interesting quarterback “controversy” in today’s NFL. Some will say it's “east coast bias,” but a better explanation is the fact that neither man has accomplished much.

Nevertheless, Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll has a tough decision to make when Seattle heads east to play the Browns. Assuming Jackson is healthy, you’d figure that he will be the choice: sure he’s played below average thus far, but they shelled out a lot of money for him this offseason.

But—in relief of Jackson—Whitehurst was extremely efficient two weeks ago against the Giants, completing 11 of his 19 attempts and throwing the game winner to Doug Baldwin late in the fourth quarter. 

No. 19: Will Derrick Mason Contribute More After a Full Week in Texans System?

You’ve really got to give Derrick Mason a ton of credit for his play last week against his old team, the Ravens, on Sunday.

Yes, they lost and he only caught three passes for 27 yards. But since he was traded just five days earlier and had to learn a completely new offense in that time, that’s impressive.

Given a full week of practice and more familiarity with the system, Mason should be able to produce more, something they greatly need—given they’ll again be without Andre Johnson—in Week 7 against the Titans. 

No. 18: Will Anyone in London Care About the Bears and Buccaneers?

Last year, when America exported football to Merry Old England we delivered a poor product: the 49ers and Broncos played an extremely sloppy game between two terrible clubs.

In the 2011 edition of An American Football Game In London, the chances of a better show are improved: the Bears went to the NFC Title Game and the Bucs are one of the “up and coming” clubs in the league. 

Still, American football has been about as warmly received in Europe as soccer has been here in the States. So there probably won’t be much buzz across the pond.

But perhaps the Brits will prove me wrong. 

No. 17: Will Anyone Besides Maurice Jones Drew Help Blaine Gabbert?

The Jags played Pittsburgh tough in the second of Sunday’s 17-13 loss at Heinz Field, but most of the credit should go to Jack Del Rio’s defense.

Maurice Jones-Drew again had an outstanding day rushing and  Blaine Gabbert made some plays, but the rest of the offense was well below average. The offensive line couldn’t protect Gabbert—he was  sacked  four times and nearly brought down on several other plays—and his receiver dropped passes and failed to get open time and time again.

With the Ravens coming to EverBank Field on Monday night, Marcedes Lewis, Mike Thomas and that offensive line had better step their game up or Gabbert will take a beating...and Jack Del Rio will be another step closer to receiving a pink slip. 

No. 16: How Many Sacks Will the Cowboys Pass Rush Collect Against St. Louis?

There’s no doubt that the Sam Bradford has failed to take the proverbial “next step” in his sophomore year. There are a lot of contributing factors to that fact: new offensive coordinator/system, essentially no offseason, limited production from an already subpar receiving corps, etc. 

But the issue few people are talking about is the lack of protection for the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year. Bradford has been sacked a league high 22 times six games, a stat that would slow down even the most veteran quarterback, let alone a 23-year-old.

Things don’t get any easier for the Rams and Bradford (who is currently in a walking boot) Sunday when they go to Dallas to play the Cowboys, led by DeMarcus Ware, who has seven sacks and is one of the early front runners for NFL Defensive Player of the Year. 

Since Bradford is injured and the Rams season is already in the tank, A.J. Feeley is looking pretty good right now. 

No. 15: Will Patrick Peterson Cover Mike Wallace?

NFL defense are so complex and there is so much variation during a 60-minute game that we rarely see straight man-to-man coverage on a consistent basis. Teams play so much zone that corners are not often put on an island against top receivers: Darrelle Revis is the exception, not the norm.

And for a rookie to be given that type of responsibility is almost unheard of. But Ken Wisenhunt has to at least consider repeatedly sticking Patrick Peterson on the Steelers speed-demon Mike Wallace when the Steelers play the Cardinals Sunday afternoon in Glendale.

This season, it seems as if no one has been able to slow down Wallace, who still has an albeit (long) shot at his ridiculous goal of 2,000 yards receiving.

So Wisenhunt and defensive coordinator Ray Horton might as well try pitting their fastest player against Pittsburgh’s. 

No. 14: Will Sunday Be Tony Sparano’s Final Game as Dolphins Head Coach?

There’s almost always a midseason firing in the NFL: last year, we were treated to three: Wade Phillips, Brad Childress and Josh McDaniels.

This year, if a coach is going to get canned far before January, the Dolphins Tony Sparano seems to be the best bet: he was almost fired last winter, his club is 0-5 and they’ve failed to win at home dating back to last November.

So if Sparano’s Fins cannot defeat the Broncos—who had the worst record in the AFC last season and will likely be starting Florida legend Tim Tebow—he might be on his way out.

The best way for Sparano to keep his job? Improve the Dolphins woeful pass rush, which will be severely tested when they square off against Tebow. 

No. 13: Will Julio Jones Return for Falcons?

It’s a stretch to say that the Falcons win Sunday was a “season defining” victory. It was at home against a one-win team that had the NFL’s worst record a year ago, it only brought them back to .500, and it came largely on the strength of a rookie quarterback’s (Cam Newton) mistakes.

But going up to Ford Field and defeating the 5-1 Lions? Now that would be a defining win for Mike Smith’s club.

That task is made much easier if they have their full complement of offensive talent, something they didn’t have Sunday against Carolina with rookie Julio Jones sidelined thanks to a sore hamstring.

It’s still too early to tell if Jones will be available Sunday but with Jones on the field, Ndamukong Suh and the Lions pass rush won’t be quite as intimidating for Matt Ryan. 

No. 12: Which Joe Flacco Will Show Up for the Ravens?

Has there been a more inconsistent starting quarterback this year than Baltimore’s Joe Flacco?

He was fantastic against the Steelers in the opener, awful the next week against Tennessee and followed that up with a similarly Jekyll and Hyde stretch in Week’s 3 and 4 against the Rams and Jets.

So since he had a pretty solid effort Sunday against the Texans, that means he is due for another stinker Monday night in Jacksonville, right?

Maybe: after all, the Jags defense was impressive in the second half last week against Pittsburgh.

Still, that Ravens defense will probably put Flacco and the offense in great position to score, so look for him to buck the recent trend and play above average for a second straight week. 

No. 11: Under Any Circmustance Do the Bucs Kick to Devin Hester?

If there is a player capable of captivating the disinterested English audience when the Bears take on the Buccaneers Sunday in Wembley Stadium, it’s Devin Hester.

He excels at the sports most exciting single play, the special teams return and owns just about every such record in NFL history.

So why on Earth would Raheem Morris let either his kicker or punter kick the ball to Hester? Well, you’d think he wouldn’t, but you’d also think Leslie Frazier wouldn’t have either Sunday night in Minnesota...but low and behold, Ryan Longwell did and they paid for it, as Hester returned a third quarter kick 98 yards for a touchdown.

Obviously, it’s much easier to keep the ball away from Hester on punts, not kickoffs: there’s not penalty for sending the ball out of bounds on punts, where there is on kickoffs. But because Hester is so dangerous on both, is giving the Bears the ball on their 40-yard line really so bad?

No. 10: Will Rex Ryan Consider Sending Mark Sanchez to the Bench?

Mark Sanchez made some plays in the second half of last night's win over Miami, but that performance almost deserves an asterisk: they were playing the Dolphins who seemed to have very little interest in winning. 

Against a team that had one of the NFL's worst pass rushes and worst pass defenses, Sanchez had a great opportunity to shine and silence some of his critics and he didn't. (One a side note, the same should be said about offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, but I expect a quarterback-benching would come before a coordinator-firing). 

Sanchez is aided a bit by the fact that the Jets have almost no one to replace him: Mark Brunnell is 41 and hasn't played a meaningful offensive snap since 2006, while Kevin O'Connell and Greg McElroy are nowhere near ready to handle the spotlight and the offense. 

But this team came into the season with such high expectations and they've underwhelmed so greatly that something needs to change and the most drastic move would be a switch of the man under center. 

No. 9: How Will the Steelers Protect Ben Roethlisberger?

Even under the best of circumstances, the Steelers offensive line has not been good the past three seasons. But with all the injuries they've suffered as of late (and their quarterback's penchant for holding on to the ball too long) they might have the worst pass protection in the NFL.

And although he wasn't exactly an All Pro, the injury to guard Doug Legursky only makes things worse going forward. 

That makeshift, patchwork offensive line won't have the toughest test imaginable this weekend (the Cardinals pass rush is below average) but Arizona does have players who are capable of getting to the quarterback, including former Steeler Joey Porter. 

How offensive coordinator Bruce Arians (and Roethlisberger himself) adjust this week is going to be the difference in the ballgame. 

No. 8: Will Chris Johnson Rise to the Occassion?

It's too early to say that the Titans-Texans showdown this weekend in Nashville will decide the winner of the AFC South, but Tennessee can make a huge statement with a win. 

In order to pull that off, however, you'd figure they need more production than they've been receiving lately from Chris Johnson.

It's a minor miracle that the Titans are in first place in the division despite the fact that Johnson—easily the centerpiece of the franchise—has not contributed his usual gaudy numbers on the ground. 

There was a built in excuse for Johnson throughout the season's fist month—his contract holdout cost him all of the preseason and there was rust to shakeoff and a new offense to learn—but now that he's had a bye week and the Texans run defense is vulnerable (especially without Mario Williams) Johnson needs to be able to move the chains with regularity. 

No. 7: Is There Any Reason for the Redskins Not to Start John Beck?

After Sunday's brutal loss to the Eagles, Mike Shanahan refused to name John Beck his starter during the postgame press conference, opting to delay that decision until Wednesday.

But Rex Grossman was just so bad, throwing four interceptions, that Shanahan has to hand over the reins to Beck, right? After all, when Shanahan swapped out Grossman for Beck, he at least gave his team a chance: Beck produced the club's lone touchdown to pull the Skins withing seven points late in the fourth quarter.

Beck doesn't have the physical tools or experience that Grossman does, but if Shanahan believes he will do a better job protecting the football, then he almost has to make the switch. Washington is still a (surprise) contender in the NFC East and given how difficult the remainder of their schedule is, this matchup with the 1-5 Carolina is game they really have to win. 

No. 6: Will Antonio Gates Return to Play the Jets?

Say what you will about the Jets and their pitiful offense, but there's little denying their pass defense has been fantastic in 2011. 

And even though Philip Rivers is having another fine season, the Chargers have a huge uphill climb on Sunday when they travel east to play the Jets. Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie should again do a fine job on the opponent's collection of wide receivers. 

But if Antonio Gates is able to return from his foot injury that would completely change the dynamic of the game: he presents such a mismatch and can make plays down the field or over the middle that he would neutralize the Jets greatest strength, their corners. 

Gates—who hasn't played since Week 2—is up in the air for Sunday's game but if there is any way he's even close to ready, they have to play him, if for no other reason than he can be a decoy and game-planning issue for Rex Ryan. 

No. 5: Are Vikings Willing to Throw Christian Ponder to the Wolves?

I don't envy Leslie Frazier for the decision he has to make this week regarding a starting quarterback.

For a variety of reasons there is such pressure to send Donovan McNabb to the bench. Much of that is due to McNabb's poor play this year, but Vikings fans and the front office know that at 1-5 there is basically no hope of a playoff berth this year so they might as well see what they can get from Christian Ponder, who they spent a first round pick on last April.

But the problem with making that change this week is the fact that the defending Super Bowl champions and undefeated Green Bay Packers are on the schedule.

Ponder played decent in relief of McNabb last week against the Bears, and the Packers pass defense has been borderline terrible this year. But they still have a very good pass rush and with their run defense, they'll probably keep Adrian Peterson in check. In short, Ponder would really be behind the eight-ball if he makes his first NFL start this week. 

No. 4: Will Andrew Luck's NFL Fate Be Decided on Sunday in Miami?

Although the "Suck For  Luck" campaign is starting to become a major story throughout the NFL right now, it's worth noting that two of the clubs that have a good shot at finishing with the NFL's worst record (St. Louis and Carolina) won't be interested in drafting the Stanford quarterback. 

And although people seem to think that the Colts, should they have the top pick, are a lock to tab Luck as the heir apparent to Peyton Manning, I don't think that's a given. Assuming Manning can return from his neck injury, he has a handful of years left and Luck is reportedly NFL ready now. 

So if you take those three clubs out of the equation, the winless Dolphins and 1-4 Broncos are in the driver's seat for Luck's services. Coincidentally those two clubs square off in Week 7. 

In late April, we may look back at this game and realize that the loser locked up Luck this Sunday afternoon in Sun Life Stadium. 

No. 3: Will We See Terrelle Pryor Sunday?

After Jason Campbell's season-ending injury Sunday afternoon, the rumor mill was replete with gossip about what move the Raiders would make to replace him. But neither Carson Palmer nor David Garrard will be donning the Silver and Black anytime soon so it seems as if they have no choice but to start Kyle Boller against the Chiefs. 

But don't forget that Terrelle Pryor will be eligible to make his NFL debut that very same day. 

Barring injury to Boller, there's almost no chance that Pryor would take over the regular quarterback duties on Sunday. But Hue Jackson should at least consider putting Pryor on the field in specific situations like goal line or short yardage.

He is a rookie who hasn't even practiced with the team in over a month, and was never a refined passer in college, but his pure athleticism and ability to make something happen outside of the pocket could mask a few of the problems Oakland will have without Campbell. 

And putting Pryor on the field would be a fitting way to honor the late Al Davis, who was the only one willing to roll the dice on Pryor and was such a maverick in terms of taking risks no one else would. 

No. 2: How Will the Detroit Lions Bounce Back?

It's hard to believe, but prior to Sunday, the last time the Detroit Lions lost a game was the first week of last December. So Jim Schwartz should be concerned with how his team will handle that adversity...and less hung up on the force with which Jim Harbaugh slaps his hand back. 

The Lions do not have the luxury of facing a cup cake or easy test this week: the borderline desperate Atlanta Falcons come to Ford Field.

Michael Turner has seemingly hit his stride, averaging over 100 yards the last three games and collecting five touchdowns during that same stretch, so the Lions woes against the run (they allowed over 200 yards on the ground to the 49ers last week) really couldn't have come at a worse time. 

Detroit is one of the NFL's youngest teams so it will be very interesting to see how they will deal with the adversity of that first loss and whether or not they can put it behind them in short order. 

No. 1: Is Tim Tebow Ready to Make a Splash Versus the Dolphins?

It's fairly remarkable that in today's super-competitive NFL—with a handful of great showdowns on the horizon for Week 7—that the 1-4 Denver Broncos trip to Miami against the 0-5 Dolphins could be such a spotlight game. But that's just the stranglehold Tim Tebow seems to have on the national media. 

John Fox has already declared Tebow his starter for the Broncos game in Miami, but he didn't exactly do the former Heisman Trophy winner any favors by dealing the club's best wide receiver, Brandon Lloyd, to the St. Louis Rams. An already mediocre passing attack should be even more so this Sunday at Sun Life Stadium.

That being the case, Tebow is going to have to rely on his feet to make plays and the Dolphins certainly know that. 

What Tebow does have in his favor, besides his running ability, is the fact that Miami has one of the NFL's worst pass rushes and a secondary that is not nearly as good  as it seems to think it is: See Vontae Davis.