- Matthew Stafford played well, but was far from the main reason the Lions won Sunday. The Lions beat the Redskins because they stopped the run and ran the ball effectively. Stafford fed off that. Not the other way around.

- Kevin Smith's shoulder injury is a major concern. The dropoff from him to Maurice Morris is major. The Lions' offensive coaches will have to come up with more packages for Aaron Brown and fullback Jerome Felton. They are both better suited as specialists than every down backs.

- As dramatic as the Tigers' victory was Saturday night, the overall series in Chicago was disappointing. The White Sox have tanked on their season, and the Tigers had the pitching matchup clearly on their side Sunday. With Zack Greinke pitching against the Twins in Kansas City, it was a very good opportunity to start inserting the dagger. Instead, the Tigers took a lot pressure off the Twins heading into this weekend's series.

- It will be interesting to see how Michigan reacts to its first road game Saturday in East Lansing. That reason - and perhaps a sense of desperation - will give MSU a chance to beat the Wolverines. But the Spartans' problems are obvious, and not necessarily easily corrected. Their run defense is not good. They aren't running the ball effectively. And State's quarterback play has been spotty.

- Yeah. I did think of Marty Mornhinweg and the "we'll kickoff" overtime game against the Bears, when Redskins' coach Jim Zorn accepted the Lions' penalty rather than having Jason Hanson kick a 50-yard field goal. That, and not kicking a field goal earlier, ultimately cost the Redskins the game. And perhaps Zorn his job.