First the New York Jets traded for Brett Favre. Then Tom Brady was injured in the first quarter of the season's first game, evening out the AFC East. Now the Jets can take the lead in a division dominated by the Patriots for most of this decade if they win Thursday night in New England. | Orton may start | U Pick 'Em | Pantagraph picks blog | NFL page

The Patriots are favored by three, the home-field spread, which means the teams are rated even.

Why shouldn't they be?

While Matt Cassel has developed nicely at quarterback, he's hardly Brady. Meanwhile, Favre has learned more about his receivers and running backs; nose tackle Kris Jenkins has made the Jets difficult to run against; and a young secondary has been forcing turnovers.

Still, New York is a hard team to figure.

The Jets lost 19-10 in their second-week meeting at the Meadowlands, Cassel's first start and a game in which the Jets played very conservatively. And they lost in Oakland a month ago, something no self-respecting NFL team should do.

Beyond that, Bill Belichick still seems to be able to plug in backups and backups to backups and do the job. Last week's hero in a 20-10 win over Buffalo was BenJarvus Green-Ellis, sixth on the depth chart at running back at the start of the season and relegated to the practice squad at the beginning of the year.

"Mr. Humility. That's what we love about him," fullback Heath Evans says. "He fits in so well here. He's a guy that just comes to work. So smart. For a young guy, you rarely see that these days."

Backups or not, it's hard to imagine the Patriots losing an important game at home.

PATRIOTS, 20-16

Chicago (off) at Green Bay

Rex Grossman or Kyle Orton at QB for the Bears? That's why the game is off the board.

PACKERS, 20-10

Dallas (minus 2½) at Washington

America's fans seem to like the Cowboys so much, they think that Tony Romo's return will work magic.

REDSKINS, 27-24

Baltimore (plus 6½) at New York Giants

Joe Flacco is a remarkable rookie, but he hasn't seen a defense like New York's yet.

GIANTS, 23-14

Tennessee (minus 3) at Jacksonville

A blowout win in Detroit doesn't mean the Jaguars are ready for Tennessee.

TITANS, 17-12

San Diego (plus 3½) at Pittsburgh

The Chargers are not the team people thought they were.

STEELERS, 23-16

Cleveland (plus 4) at Buffalo (Monday night)

The Bills are sliding. Brady Quinn's first win.

BROWNS, 24-13

Denver (plus 5) at Atlanta

The Falcons improve to 5-0 at home.

FALCONS, 31-13

Minnesota (plus 4) at Tampa Bay

Adrian Peterson won't run for 192 yards against the Bucs.

BUCS, 17-14

Detroit (plus 14) at Carolina

The Lions really could be heading for 0-16.

PANTHERS, 38-3

Houston (plus 8½) at Indianapolis

It's hard to see the Colts losing to the Texans after beating the Patriots and Steelers. Although they should have lost the meeting in Houston.

COLTS, 31-21

St. Louis (plus 6) at San Francisco

Mike Singletary's lads tried hard Monday night. He gets his first win here against the once-again-awful Rams.

49ERS, 28-16

Arizona (minus 3) at Seattle

The Cardinals aren't good on the road. The Seahawks aren't good anywhere.

CARDINALS, 29-24

Oakland (plus 10½) at Miami

Maybe Al Davis, who once coached Bill Parcells in a college all-star game, should have hired the Tuna to run his franchise.

DOLPHINS, 20-5

Philadelphia (minus 9) at Cincinnati

The Eagles could probably win the AFC North.

EAGLES, 31-10

New Orleans (minus 5) at Kansas City

The young Chiefs are competitive.

CHIEFS, 20-19

Records

LAST WEEK: 5-9 (spread); 8-6 (straight up)

SEASON: 71-70-3 (spread); 85-59 (straight up)

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