Favre Plays Santa Claus in Latest Packers Loss ... Apparently Brett Favre is already in the charitable holiday spirit after throwing five interceptions in the Packers 21-14 road loss at Cincinnati. Favre actually turned the ball over six times if you count the fan who stormed the sidelines and stole the ball from him during a last minute unsuccessful drive. When asked about his performance after the game, Favre responded admitted me might have had ulterior motives: "I am close to the end with this horrible team and I am just preparing for life after football. So I want to show the guys at the mall hiring Santa Clauses that I can be just as generous as anyone." It was the third time this year that the Orange Cats"who easily lead the NFL in picks"intercepted five passes in a game. More good news for the Bengals: They are 3-1 SU and 3-0-1 ATS on the road and travel to Baltimore this week.

Chargers Find Spark At End of Game ... San Diego finally finished what they started in a 28-20 win over Kansas City. After four excruciating losses to the Cowboys, Broncos, Steelers and Philadelphia by a combined 12 points where they led all four teams in the 4th quarter, SD made sure not squander an 18-point lead this week. Interestingly, the Chiefs had three red zone possessions in the final 17 minutes but managed just one field goal. SD is now 5-2-1 ATS this year despite playing seven of eight games against teams currently with winning records. The Bolts are actually 18-5 ATS going back to last season and get a small break on the schedule this week against the 2-5 New York Jets. FYI: Marty Schottenheimer's bunch is 10-1 ATS on the road the past two seasons!

Eagles Clipped... Philadelphia surrendered 564 yards and 49 points in a 28-point drubbing courtesy of Denver this week. There is something not quite right about Philly this year. Heading into this season, the Eagles were a bookie crushing 67-38-3 ATS since Andy Reid took over in 1999. But this year, Reid's bunch is an overvalued 2-5 ATS and have dropped three straight against the number. For that matter, they are damn lucky to be 4-3 SU on the season. Don't forget about last week's miracle win against San Diego where their prayers were answered with a block field goal-turned TD late in the 4th quarter. This came after the Cowboys pasted them 33-10 in Big D the game prior. And the Dallas thrashing came one week after they snatched victory from the Jaws of Defeat by rallying from a 17-point deficit against the Chiefs at Arrowhead. It seems to us that the only person luckier than the Eagles right now is the head photographer for Playboy magazine. We've talked on these pages about the Eagles ineffective 32nd ranked running game. And injuries have really turned McNabb into Mc-Not from a running perspective as the Eagles signal caller has tallied just 21 rushing yards on the entire season. But don't expect much sympathy from their upcoming opponent, Washington, which will be itching to get on the field after taking a butt kicking themselves this past week at Denver.

Oddsmakers Plead Temporary Insanity After 49ers Game ... You think you have seen it all in this business until you open up the paper last Monday morning and find Chris Simms as a 11-point road favorite in the NFL. It's like suddenly waking up and discovering that Jessica Simpson has been inducted to the MENSA society. Hindsight is of course 20-20 and few things are more annoying than listening to a gambler talk about the games he should have played after the fact. But in the 15-10 road loss against the 49ers, Simms threw just one TD and two interceptions against one of the worst NFL defenses in recent memory. Interestingly, SF accumulated only 208 total yards on the day and has actually been outgained in each of their three pointspread wins this year. But the Buccaneers 23rd ranked offense wasted a fine performance by the team's No.1 ranked defense in the NFL. For what it's worth, TB host Carolina this week and is 3-0 SU (2-1 ATS) at the Pirate Ship as well as 13-4 ATS as a host their last seventeen after a road loss.

New York Delivers Washington Giant Butt Whooping ... Perhaps playing with a bit of extra emotion following the death of their late owner Wellington Mora this week, New York throttled division rival Washington 36-0. It was surprisingly the first time all year that the Giants outgained an opponent in handing Joe Gibbs his first regular season shutout ever. Even more startling is New York's 31st ranked defense holding Washington No.2 offense to a pathetic 125 yards. Washington doesn't have a whole lot of time to lick their wounds with Philadelphia on deck this week which is coming off their own embarrassing loss at Denver. Note that PHI is 9-4 both SU and ATS their last thirteen meetings in the Beltway.

Jags Not Ready For Prime Time ... What is wrong with this picture. Jacksonville racks up 400+ yards on offense. Fred Taylor rushes for 125 yards. The Jags are coming off a bye week after two straight impressive wins against Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. Their opponent, St. Louis is playing without their starting QB (Bulger), two starting receivers (Bruce, Holt), their best pass rusher (Little) and their head coach (Martz). Final Score: St. Louis 24 - Jacksonville 21. As Jack Del Rio said after the game, "We're not an elite team." Apparently not. Your team missed two field goals and had a punt blocked by an opponent whose special teams over the years have been anything but special. Your team had a chance to turn the corner just like they did last year when all you head to do was beat the Terrible Texans in the season finale at home to make the playoffs for the first time in four years. But you choked on your own vomit then as you seemingly did this week against a depleted Rams team. Don't worry though ... There is talk your team may jettison out of Florida and head to L.A. Other than all of this, it's great to be a Jags fan in Jacksonville these days. And by the way, if revenge is a dish best served cold then lucky for you those same Texans pop up on the schedule this week at home. The same Texans who grabbed their first win of the season against the hapless Browns on Sunday but who are 0-6 ATS after a home win the past three seasons.

Patriots Turf Vulnerable? ... It was hardly a thing of beauty but New England rallied late from a 4th quarter deficit to defeat divisional rival Buffalo 21-16. The Bills easily grabbed the green though as a 9.5-point dog and outgained the Superbowl Champions 394 yards to 273. BUF also controlled the ball for 39 minutes and held NE to just 1-of-7 on third down attempts. Perhaps some might say that the Pats were caught looking ahead to their huge Monday Night Football showdown this week against Indianapolis. But there should be concerns in the Boston area and not just the effect that those horrible accents are having on unsuspecting tourists. They rank just 28th in rushing and 26th in total defense. We are not sure this team is as strong as the recent versions of the past, but note that NE is 5-0 SU and 4-0-1 ATS the past five meetings against the Colts. Then again the Colts are 7-0 SU and 5-2 ATS. That said, Tony Dungy's bunch has played only one opponent currently with a winning record. In fact, Indy's seven opponents are a combined 17-33 SU on the season. And yes, those trucks you see outside the NFL Commissioner's office are in fact presents and gifts sent by the Indy faithful.