Here's one reason for the Rams' 1--2 start: Last season St. Louis led the league in takeaways, with 46; this year the Rams have none. Against the Saints on Sunday, a fourth-quarter pass in the end zone deflected off the hands of St. Louis cornerback Aeneas Williams and into the arms of New Orleans wideout Joe Horn. The Saints won in overtime 28--25.... Before their teams met on Sunday, Colts president Bill Polian told Packers coach Mike Sherman that the game could turn into a "gunfight at OK Corral." He was right. With the secondaries of both teams decimated by injuries--neither defensive backfield was very good to start with--Peyton Manning and Brett Favre put on a show to remember: 751 passing yards, nine touchdown tosses and no interceptions.... The Bengals' run defense isn't nearly good enough to justify the team's optimistic expectations entering the season. In its last seven games, dating to last December, Cincinnati allowed an average of 186 rushing yards per game, including these gaudy individual performances: 180 yards by the Ravens' Jamal Lewis; 186 yards by the Browns' Lee Suggs; 196 yards by the Jets' Curtis Martin; and, in a 23--9 loss to Baltimore on Sunday, 186 yards by Lewis.
