3-Wide: Can Adrian Peterson challenge the rushing record?
Can Adrian Peterson challenge the rushing record?
Joe Thomson: Currently 50 yards ahead of the four-game pace he set in 2012, when he rushed for 2,097 yards, Peterson clearly hasn't lost a step after sitting down for a year. Needing to average 145 yards per game, Peterson has a long road to 2,106 yards but another outlandish eight-game, 1,313-yard stretch could be just around the corner for AP and, in the Vikings offense, you know he'll get the touches.
Dan Wilkins: Why not? Already one of the most dominant backs in the history of the game, Peterson only seems to be getting stronger with every passing week. The Vikings should continue to feature him as the centerpiece of their offense and the team's status as an emerging playoff contender will put him in position for plenty of late-game opportunities to run out the clock.
David P. Woods: None of of the seven players (Peterson included) in the 2,000-yard club were over the age of 30 when they accomplished the feat. That's no coincidence. It's a grueling physical journey that almost requires a career-high in carries. With the wear on 30-year-old Peterson's tires, it's exceptionally unlikely he can hold up to such a workload - and equally unlikely the Vikings will be foolish enough to ask him to.
Which team will stay undefeated the longest?
Woods: The Patriots are on the same mission they were on in 2007 after Spygate: embarrass the rest of the NFL. They have the pieces they need to match that magical 16-0 season, too, with Rob Gronkowski starring in the role of uncoverable pass-catcher previously played by Randy Moss and Julian Edelman as Wes Welker. The Patriots won't just stay undefeated longer than any other team, they might just stay undefeated straight up.
Thomson: The Falcons have the best chance to stay undefeated longer than anyone else. Consider their next five games: at home against the Redskins, on the road against the Saints and Titans, at home against the Bucs and on the road vs. the 49ers. The 1-3 Saints may be their toughest test in that stretch, and consider this, they play the Colts coming off a Week 10 bye and then face the Vikings and the Bucs again. If the Colts are still without Andrew Luck, 13-0 is an actual possibility. Who'd of thought.
Wilkins: Led by the NFL's most dominant quarterback, as well as a defense that appears to be much improved over seasons past, the Packers have an opportunity to run their undefeated streak well into the second half of the year. Beyond a Week 8 matchup with the Broncos, where Aaron Rodgers and a strong group of receivers should be the first to take down the league's top-ranked defense, Green Bay's most challenging game comes against the Cardinals in Week 16.
Who is the most disappointing player of the season so far?
Wilkins: Andrew Luck hasn't exactly put forth the MVP-caliber year many had expected, easily making him the most disappointing player now a quarter of the way through the regular season. While the Colts' front office has dissatisfied in its efforts to surround the star quarterback with the necessary talent, that's really nothing new. Luck will have to play at a much higher level after returning from his should injury if this team is to challenge for the playoffs, let alone make good on its Super Bowl potential.
Woods: Even more worrying than Ndamukong Suh's anemic stat sheet is the fact that he isn't making the players around him better, either. Through four games, the Dolphins have a grand total of one sack on defense, dead last in the NFL. Throw in rumors that Suh has ignored defensive play calls and freelanced and he appears to be on a fast track to Albert Haynesworth Island. Who could have possibly seen this coming? Oh, right ... everyone.
Thomson: Calvin Johnson has shown flashes of the talent that propelled him to the top of the wide receiver mountain in 2012, but the production isn't there. The yards have dried up as Johnson's failed to break the 100-yard receiving mark so far and with just one touchdown, Megatron's notorious red-zone presence has not been felt. With the Lions averaging only two trips to the red zone per game, one could argue Johnson's not at fault, but the signature mark of Calvin's greatness has always been his ability to produce on teams that aren't very good.