Review: NFL Week 5

Top shocks of week 5:

Shock 1: The Cardinals getting thumped by the Rams
Okay, so putting my Arizonan bias on the shelf for a second, the Cardinals were admittedly the weakest of the undefeated teams coming into Week 5, and although I thought they WOULD beat the Rams, there are many who aren't all that surprised by this result.

And honestly, I am not gob-smacked by St Louis nabbing the win, but I am a little shocked/impressed by the fashion in which they did. Sure, the Cardinals offence has somewhat over-performed for a unit with NO offensive linemen, two halves of a QB and the still-shaky legs of sophomore stable of backs. Thank God for Fitzgerald, but even he couldn't find the end zone when not getting any service from Kolb, who, in fairness, might have been more concerned with staying conscious given the amount he was getting hit.

So this is not a HUGE shock in itself, but what it DOES mean, is that the NFC West, long derided as being the weakest division in football, is the ONLY division in which all four teams have a winning record. WOW. The 49ers are still the pick of this bunch, but any one out of the Seattle Seahawks (3-2), Cardinals (4-1) or the Rams (3-2) could make the playoffs at this rate.

Now that...that WOULD be a shock.

Shock 2: The Colts edging the Packers
Andrew Luck is pretty good, isn't he? Sure the Colts are an up and down team and they won't make the playoffs this year, but they definitely look to have found themselves a long-term starter the very season Peyton Manning switched ends of the spectrum.

The Colts are lucky. Luck is just plain decent. The way he drove the Colts down the field against the Pack - who WILL make the playoffs and, I believe, the NFC Championship game AT LEAST - was damn scary. I thought we could expect to see old blue and white languishing in the doldrums for a few years, but Luck is going to keep them in the mix for a long time to come.

Other notable incidents:
The Dolphins beat the Bengals, one of the teams I fancy to make it as an AFC Wild Card. The Steelers aren't the Steelers this year and the Bengals can get a WC spot in their place if they beat them twice in their head-to-heads. The Dolphins have also picked a winner in Ryan Tannehill, who is being asked to do an awful lot for a supposed project guy. Looks like his shoulders are broad enough to handle it.

The Saints FINALLY got on the board with a win against the crumbling Chargers. Normally Norv's nearly-men leave it late to collapse. This year, after a 3-0 start, the Chargers look ready to capitulate. Let's not take anything away from the plucky Saints, though. They are playing in the shadow of bounty-gate and need any reason they can to smile. Drew Brees broke Johnny Unitas's record for consecutive games with a TD pass thrown and they have a BYE week coming up to celebrate. SO they should. Sitting at 1-4 there will be no more time for partying if this season is to be saved, which, thanks to the incredible parity thus far, is still a very real possibility. 10-6 may be enough for a WC in the NFC so the Saints are still in with a shout.