ATLANTA -- Last week the Dolphins were the recipients of heaps of defensive praise. But after giving up 16 points to the lowly Bengals, Miami has fallen off the radar screen.
Into their place fly the stingy Ravens. Baltimore recorded its third shutout in five games, tying nine other teams for the second-most shutouts in a season since the AFL-NFL merger.
The 1976 Steelers top the list with five shutouts, but they fell 24-7 in the AFC championship game to the Raiders. Pittsburgh allowed 80 points in its first five games that year (16 points per game), but then allowed only 28 points in its final 11 games (2.55 ppg), including five shutouts in its last eight.
Eight of those nine previous teams with three shutouts in a season made the playoffs, with only the 1970 Cardinals missing out with an 8-5-1 record. Two teams won the Super Bowl (the '72 Dolphins and '91 Redskins), one team lost in the AFC championship game (the '71 Colts), three lost in the divisional playoffs ('71 Vikings, '77 Rams and '84 Seahawks) and one team lost in the wild-card round ('78 Dolphins).
But the Ravens are hardly the only team with shutout mania this fall. There already have been six shutouts in the 71 NFL games played so far (8.45 percent), compared with seven shutouts in 248 games last year (2.82 percent).
At their current rate, the Ravens will finish with 9.6 shutouts in 16 games. OK, that's impossible. Even eight or nine is highly unlikely. But a run at the Steelers' record of five in one season certainly isn't.
| Week 6 NFL Preview |
| Saints (1-3) at Bears (1-4), 1 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 16.7: Yards per catch for Bears wide receiver Marcus Robinson in his breakout season of 1999 (84 catches, 1,400 yards) as well as in the 2000 season so far (25 catches, 418 yards). Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Bears cornerbacks Thomas Smith and Walt Harris against Saints wide receiver Joe Horn (led NFC with 28 receptions after Week 4). |
| Player to Watch |
| James Allen, RB, Chicago: Averaged only 3 yards per carry at Green Bay last week, but needs only 93 yards to top his preview career total of 389 yards. |
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Bills (2-2) at Dolphins (4-1), 1 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 42-25-1: Dolphins' record against the Bills, though Buffalo has won the past three.
Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Dolphins defensive ends Trace Armstrong (6 1/2 sacks, three fumble recoveries) and Jason Taylor (four sacks, 1 1/2 stuffs, two fumble recoveries) against Bills tackles John Fina and Robert Hicks. |
| Player to Watch |
| Rob Johnson, QB, Buffalo: Sacked eight times by Miami in previous start against them on Sept. 13, 1998. |
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Packers (2-3) at Lions (3-2), 1 p.m. |
Key Stat |
| 9: Combined interceptions by Lions free safety Kurt Schulz (five in five games) and Packers free safety Darren Sharper (four in five games), the two highest totals in the league. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Lions running back James Stewart against Packers linebackers Nate Wayne (36 tackles, two stuffs), Bernardo Harris (26 tackles, two sacks, 1 1/2 stuffs) and Na'il Diggs (14 tackles, 1 1/2 stuffs. |
| Player to Watch |
| Ahman Green, RB, Green Bay: Has carried 41 times for 203 yards and one touchdown and caught 15 passes for 145 yards, but has fumbled twice and dropped several passes. |
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| Colts (3-1) at Patriots (1-4), 1 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 36-23: Patriots' record against the Colts, including wins in seven of their past eight meetings. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Colts Pro Bowl wide receiver Marvin Harrison (335 catches for 4,545 yards and 36 touchdowns in 64 career games) against Patriots Pro Bowl cornerback Ty Law (21 interceptions in 77 career games). |
| Player to Watch |
| Drew Bledsoe, QB, New England: Posted a 123.6 rating against the Broncos en route to Week 5 Player of the Week honors, and has career-best 10 wins against the Colts. In his last seven games against Indianapolis, Bledsoe has a 6-1 record and has thrown for 16 touchdowns and only two interceptions. |
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| Steelers (1-3) at Jets (4-0), 1 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| .923: Steelers' winning percentage against the Jets, with wins in 12 of their 13 meetings. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Steelers running back Jerome Bettis (80 carries for 315 yards and four touchdowns) against Jets linebackers Marvin Jones (39 tackles, two stuffs, one fumble recovery), Roman Phifer (eight tackles, one sack), James Farrior (19 tackles, one sack, two stuffs) and Bryan Cox (21 tackles, two stuffs, one fumble recovery). |
| Player to Watch |
| Curtis Martin, RB, New York: Averaging only 3.8 yards per carry (88 rushes for 331 yards and two touchdowns), but has caught 17 passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns, putting him on pace for a career-high total of 68 catches. |
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| Redskins (3-2) at Eagles (3-2), 1 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 22-6: Redskins' scoring advantage over opponents in the third quarter, while they are being outscored 66-65 in the other three quarters and overtime. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Redskins wide receivers Albert Connell (11 catches for 250 yards) and Irving Fryar (16 catches for 197 yards and one touchdown) against Eagles cornerbacks Troy Vincent (tied with Tampa Bay's Donnie Abraham for most interceptions in 1999 and 2000 with 10) and Bobby Taylor (nine interceptions in 69 career games). |
| Player to Watch |
| Brad Johnson, QB, Washington: Has thrown for 496 yards and three touchdowns in the past two games, recording a quarterback rating of 115.5. |
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| Titans (3-1) at Bengals (0-4), 1 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 703: Rushing yards by Eddie George in eight games against the Bengals, his most against any team. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Titans running back Eddie George (100 carries for 316 yards and three touchdowns) against Bengals defense that is 26th in the league in rushing yards allowed per game with 131.0. |
| Player to Watch |
| Steve McNair, QB, Tennessee: Has a 5-1 record in six starts against Bengals and has thrown for 11 touchdowns and one interceptions in seven total games against them. |
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| Giants (3-2) at Falcons (2-3), 4:05 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 235-231: Falcons' advantage in points scored in 13 games between these two teams, with Atlanta holding a 7-6 edge. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Falcons defensive line (six sacks and four stuffs) against Giants offensive line which has allowed only eight sacks in 167 pass attempts. |
| Player to Watch |
| Jamal Anderson, RB, Atlanta: Averaging 3.45 yards per carry this season (87 carries for 300 yards and two touchdowns) and only 3.37 yards per carry (106 rushes for 359 yards and two touchdowns) since his monster 1,846-yard season in 1998. |
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| Browns (2-3) at Cardinals (1-3), 4:15 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| .744: Browns' winning percentage (32-10-3) in 45 games against Cardinals, including wins in three of the past four meetings. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Browns quarterback Tim Couch (five touchdowns, one interception in Weeks 1-3, one touchdown, five interceptions in Weeks 4-5) against Cardinals' perennial Pro Bowl cornerback Aeneas Williams (41 interceptions in 148 games). |
| Player to Watch |
| Travis Prentice, RB, Cleveland: Errict Rhett's replacement scored a I-A record 73 touchdowns in his career at Miami of Ohio, fumbled only twice in four years and once went 862 carries without coughing up the ball. |
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| Broncos (2-3) at Chargers (0-5), 4:15 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 4: Consecutive games at Qualcomm Stadium that the Broncos have topped 30 points, including a 31-24 Super Bowl XXXII victory over the Packers. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Broncos running back Mike Anderson (91 carries for 429 yards and three touchdowns) against Chargers front seven that has only six sacks and seven stuffs in five games. |
| Player to Watch |
| Jim Harbaugh, QB, San Diego: Harbaugh doubled Ryan Leaf's and Moses Moreno's combined touchdown total from the first four games in his first start against the Rams, throwing for 348 yards and two touchdowns in a losing effort. |
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| Raiders (3-1) at 49ers (2-3), 4:15 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 23.6: Driving distance in miles across the Bay Bridge between Network Associates Coliseum in Oakland and 3Com Park in San Francisco, according to Mapquest. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Raiders fans against 49ers fans in the stands could be as interesting as any matchup on the field. Although Raiders cornerback Charles Woodson (seven interceptions in 36 career games) against future Hall of Famer Jerry Rice (172 touchdown catches in 227 career games) will be interesting as well. |
| Player to Watch |
| Jeff Garcia, QB, San Francisco: Has led the 49ers to the second-highest point total in the NFC (142) behind only the other-worldly Rams. Garcia has already equalled his 1999 total of 11 touchdown passes and has helped San Francisco average 10 points more per game this season (28.4 through first five games) than it did last season (18.4). |
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| Seahawks (2-3) at Panthers (1-3), 4:15 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 0: Lifetime meetings between the two teams. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Panthers head coach George Seifert against Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren, who served as Seifert's offensive coordinator in San Francisco from 1989-1991. |
| Player to Watch |
| Reggie White, DE, Carolina: Likely to be inspired playing against his former coach, under whom he recorded 69 sacks in their six years together in Green Bay. White has 2 1/2 sacks this season for Carolina, bringing his all-time leading career total to 195. |
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| Ravens (4-1) at Jaguars (2-3), 8:35 p.m. |
| Key Stat |
| 128: Combined point total in the past two meetings (average of 32 points by each team per game), including a 39-36 Baltimore win in Week 2. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Jaguars running back Fred Taylor (29 carries for 81 yards in two games this season) against Ravens middle linebacker Ray Lewis (38 tackles, 3 1/2 stuffs, one interception). |
| Player to Watch |
| Peter Boulware, LB, Baltimore: Has three sacks and two stuffs this season, and has dominated Jacksonville for nine sacks in his seven career meetings with the Jaguars. |
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| Buccaneers (3-2) at Vikings (4-0), 9:00 p.m. Monday |
| Key Stat |
| .659: Vikings' winning percentage against the Buccaneers, although Tampa Bay has won two of the past three. Stats matchup | Preview |
| Key Matchup |
| Vikings wide receiver Randy Moss (fastest to 3,000 yards in league history -- 36 games) against Buccaneers cornerback Donnie Abraham (10 interceptions since beginning of 1999 season, tied with Philadelphia's Troy Vincent for the most in the NFL). |
| Player to Watch |
| Jacquez Green, WR, Tampa Bay: Outperforming Keyshawn Johnson with his big-play ability. Green has 12 catches for 309 yards (25.8 average) and one touchdown, while Johnson has caught only 21 passes for 233 yards (10.6 average) and one touchdown. |
