CBSSports.com pro football writers Pete Prisco and Clark Judge face off weekly throughout the season.
| Pete Prisco | Clark Judge |
| Who is the NFL's best running back not named Adrian Peterson? | |
 Right now, I will go with Tennessee's Chris Johnson. It's too bad his team isn't very good. He's having a good season, but since the Titans stink on defense he isn't getting the carries he should. Tennessee is always playing from behind, so Johnson is averaging 15.6 carries per game. That's the fewest for any of the top five rushers in the league. Yet he's third in rushing, just 21 yards behind league-leader Cedric Benson. Johnson has 468 yards, but his 6.0 average is the best of any of the top five rushers. His five 20-plus runs lead the league and his two 40-plus runs are better than anybody in the top 20. He also has 16 catches, which is better than Peterson and Benson, the two runners ahead of him. A case could also be made for Steven Jackson of the Rams. He is putting up big numbers for an offense that isn't good. But for now, I'll go with Johnson, who has done more with fewer carries. | When he's healthy, it's San Francisco's Frank Gore. He can run. He can catch. He scores touchdowns. And he produces a ton of yards. In short, he is the San Francisco offense. But Gore is hurt again, which makes me turn to another favorite of mine, Miami's Ronnie Brown. I want someone who does more than just run the football, and Ronnie Brown is that someone. He's a tough inside runner. He has the speed to turn a corner. He runs the Wildcat better than anyone out there, and, yes, that includes Michael Vick. He can block, catch and throw. He doesn't fumble. I think you get the idea: There is almost nothing he can't do well. He averages 4.8 yards a carry, is third in the league in scoring, fifth in rushing and hasn't committed a turnover. But he's more than versatile; he's dependable. When the Dolphins had one play to find the end zone Monday, they turned the offense over to Brown. He delivered. That tells you what the Dolphins think of him. There is no one I trust more with one play in a short-yardage or goal-line situation. |
| Vince Young and Brady Quinn: Would the Titans and Browns be better served by starting them? | |
 As strange as this may sound, especially as it relates to Young, the answer is yes to both. Did I just say the Titans should play Vince Young? I did, and the reason is simple: Find out what you have. This Tennessee team isn't going anywhere, and Kerry Collins isn't the long-term answer. In fact, I think he's been part of the problem. So play Young and see what he can do. If he plays like he has in the past, the Titans have their answer about him. That will tell them they have to draft a quarterback high next spring, somebody like Sam Bradford. Playing Collins doesn't do anything for the long-term future. As for the Browns, Derek Anderson clearly isn't the guy. They need to find out if Quinn can be. Three games didn't decide that. So put him back and tell him the rest of the season is his. If he stinks, they need to draft a QB as well. | Yes in Tennessee. No in Cleveland. The Titans are better than 0-5, but they need something, anything to shake them out of their funk. So Jeff Fisher says Kerry Collins isn't the problem. But I also know the Titans need a lift. So start Young and see what happens. I know there's not a conviction about him, but this is about giving the club a jolt. What's the worst that can happen? You lose another game? So you're where you started. The situation in Cleveland is more complex. Quinn should be the long-term solution, but once the Browns changed head coaches he was finished. Eric Mangini didn't draft him and has no allegiance to him. He gave him a shot, then benched him. He's not going back to him. At least in Tennessee you don't know what you have in Young because he has barely played. You do with Quinn. No sense in jockeying back and forth. Go with Anderson, Brett Ratliff, Mike Pagel, Paul McDonald, it doesn't matter. There's as much hope there as there was with the Indians. |
| Is there a possibility we see another winless team in 2009? If so, which team? | |
 I don't think so. My choice might have been the Cleveland Browns, but they proved that even really bad offensive teams could win games. They won with their quarterback completing two passes last week. Yecch. The leading candidate in my mind is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Have you seen their schedule? It's murderous. But they play a winnable game this week against Carolina. If they lose, 0-16 is possible. After that, they have no home games against teams with a losing record. They're it. The Rams play in a division that isn't that great. The Seahawks, 49ers and Cardinals aren't that good right now. So would it be shocking to see one of them lose in St. Louis? No. The Rams also play winnable games at Detroit and at Tennessee. So I think they will win a game. The Chiefs play the Raiders again. That's at least one victory. The Titans will find a way to win at least one. Sorry, Detroit. If Tampa Bay wins this week, your 0-16 season from 2008 will not be duplicated in 2009. |  Yes, and there are a couple of possibilities: St. Louis and Tampa Bay, and both are qualified. In fact, I make this one a split decision. At least the Bucs have a pulse, but have you looked at their schedule? Do it, and tell me where they find a victory outside of Carolina. I don't see it. St. Louis once had hope because it plays in the NFC West, but now there are two problems: 1) The division is better overall, and 2) you can't win without an offense. The Rams are the dregs of the league, but at least they have Detroit and Tennessee on their schedule. That's the good news. The bad: Both games are away. I can't recall a season with so many dreadful teams, nor one where there were two that could make serious runs at the Lions' 0-16. I know, Kansas City isn't much better, but at least it is better. The Chiefs nearly beat Dallas, they should push Washington this weekend and they have another game with Oakland. Somewhere, they will win. I can't say the same about the Rams and Bucs. |
