Drew Brees, QB, Saints
Eli Manning’s New Orleans homecoming was spoiled by the Big Easy’s favorite quarterback. Brees completed 24-of-38 passes for 363 yards, four TDs and zero INTs, while scrambling for another score on the ground — after which the 6'0" passer attempted to dunk the ball over the goal post, settling instead for a finger-roll — during a 49–24 rout on Monday night.
Chris Johnson, RB, Titans
During a sloppy game in cold, rainy conditions played on a newly-sodded LP Field in Nashville, CJ proved to be a mudder. The much-maligned Johnson had 23 carries for a season-high 190 yards, his 27th career 100-yard performance and his best effort since Nov. 1, 2008 in a 23–17 victory over the Buccaneers. It was not a flawless effort by Johnson, who lost a fumble — one of nine combined turnovers on the day.
Beanie Wells, RB, Cardinals
Ottis Anderson, Emmitt Smith, Edgerrin James and every running back in Cardinals history now trail Wells, who set a new franchise standard with 27 carries for a team-record 228 yards and one TD during a 23–20 win at St. Louis — the Cardinals’ hometown from 1960-87 before the team moved to Phoenix in 1988.
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Tom Brady, QB, Patriots
The three-time Super Bowl champion was in rare form, even by his own lofty standards, in a 38–20 victory on the road against the Eagles in a rematch of Super Bowl XXXIX. Brady picked apart Philly’s vaunted secondary, completing 24-of-34 passes for 361 yards, three TDs — two to Wes Welker and one to Rob Gronkowski — and zero INTs in the win.
Tim Tebow, QB, Broncos
Superman continued his meteoric rise, improving to 5–1 as a starter this season following a 16–13 overtime win over the AFC West rival Chargers. Tebow completed 9-of-18 passes for 143 yards, one TD and zero INTs, while tucking the ball on 22 carries for 67 rushing yards. The polarizing lefty now has 11 total TDs and only two turnovers, while the Broncos remain alive in the division race despite their 1–4 start.
Terrell Suggs, LB, Ravens
As expected, the Harbaugh Bowl — the NFL’s first head-coaching matchup between brothers, the 49ers’ Jim and Ravens’ John — was a defensive battle between two of the top stop-units in the game. Baltimore outlasted San Francisco on Thanksgiving night, thanks in large part to a dominant performance by Suggs, who had three sacks and a forced fumble in a 16–6 win.
