The RedZone - Week 3 in the NFL

Ryan's Top 5

5. Tony Gonzalez - 8 catches, 110 yards, 1 TD - Matt Ryan is a great QB but has limited receiver options. With Roddy White marked out of the first 3 quarters by Saints CB Jabari Greer, Gonzalez rolled back the years to keep so many drives going for Ryan. The Falcons dominated offensively again in a 27-24 OT win over the Superbowl champions. Narrowly beats out the Jets' Dustin Keller as TE of the week

4. DeSean Jackson - 5 catches, 153 yards, 1 TD - With Mike Vick inserted as the Eagles' official starting QB, he needed a big game to prove Andy Reid correct against the Jags. Fortunate then that he has an explosive playmaker like Jackson at his disposal. A 61-yard TD was just the start of this beautiful combination, as the Eagles were consistently able to keep the chains moving in a 28-3 victory. Jeremy Maclin also contributed in a big way.

3. Adrian Peterson - 23 carries, 160 yards 2 TD's - with Favre Watch proving a fairly masochistic experience (23/34, 201 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT's this week), it's important that somebody on the offense makes some plays. Who better than the Lions as opposition to kickstart your season? Peterson dominated the game, which included a career-high 80-yard TD to lead the Vikings to a first victory 24-10.

2. The Chiefs' running game - Jamaal Charles - 12 carries, 97 yards, Thomas Jones - 19 carries, 95 yards, 1 TD - it would be unfair to forget about Matt Cassel's big day as well, with 3 TD's, but it was on the ground that the situations were created. We always knew that Charles was the lone brightspot for this side but Jones has come in from the Jets and has proven that he does not just thrive in a favourable environment. The woeful 49ers were the victims of a 31-10 pumping and their offensive co-ordinator has bitten the bullet as a result.

1. The Seahawks' safeties - Lawyer Milloy - 7 tackles, 5 assists, 1 FF, Earl Thomas - 4 tackles, 2 assists, 2 INT's - this game will be remembered for the performance of Leon Washington on special teams (I'm sure Graeme will have something to say about that in a little while), but the Chargers always have the ability to put up more points than anybody, especially on a day where Philip Rivers throws for 455 yards. By forcing three important turnovers, Milloy and rookie Thomas kept the ball in the hands of their offense, winding the clock down in the process in a 27-20 victory, handing them the initiative in the NFC West.

Graeme's Top 5

5. Rashard Mendenhall - 19 carries, 143 yards, 1 TD - When you are on the road against a surprisingly 2-0 team and your QB hasn't started a game since 2007, a solid contribution from the running game is most welcome. Thanks Rashard.

4. Matt Cassel - 16/27, 250 yards, 3 TD's - Fine, the current 9ers aren't exactly in the same class as Montana's men, and he had help from his ground game. But the sweet double reverse fake deep ball play gets Cassel a spot in this article.

3. Flacco to Boldin - 3 TD's - Boldin caught 7 consecutive targets for 135 yards, producing 4 first downs and 3 TD's. Again, the opposition wasn't that taxing but Eric Wright, the corner responsible for covering Boldin, is (nominally) pretty decent

2. Cowboys D - 2 INT's, 1 Forced Fumble, 13 points conceded - The experts suggesting that the Cowboys were done and telling us that this Texas Derby was a sure money win for Houston are proved to be nothing more than 60%-of-the-time luck-merchants and reactionaries. The Dallas D sacked the previously unphased Schaub 4 times, 3 by Demarcus Ware, and picked him twice. They also limited Andre Johnson to a mere 26 ineffectual yards and restored some confidence in Big D's playoff bid.

1. The Franchise and The Sanchize - Sam Bradford 23/37, 235 yards, 1 TD, Mark Sanchez 15/28, 256 yrads, 3 TD's - This isn't a particularly subjective award. I simply feel that this week Bradford deserves credit for getting his first NFL win, eating up my Redskins admittedly pitiful D. Sanchez gets his mention because he managed to go to a hostile road game and not screw up at any point. Maybe he IS going to live up to the hype. Or some of it at least; as far as I know, there can only be one Son of God

FavreWatch (TM) - 23/34, 201 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT's - Against the Lions, Brett resembled the Mitchell and Webb sketch of an elderly, dementia-suffering Sherlock Holmes, living in his own detached world while the younger Adrian Peterson's around him win the games he used to win by himself.