With the ongoing soap opera in Big D already being addressed by Jason Whitlock and Ian O'Connor, we set out now in search of drama at any of the NFL's other forgotten outposts.

These are the Sundays of Our Lives.

Gonzo Not Gonzo

Few moves in fantasy football are as sleazy as this ol' chestnut: a guy makes a trade offer, you accept it and then the guy asks for more. It usually happens if you appear too eager to do the deal. It sets off an alarm for the other guy that maybe he's not getting enough, so he amends his demands.

It seems some variation of this maneuver took place between the Chiefs and Packers as they tried to seal a deal that would have sent Tony Gonzalez to the Pack. Gonzalez left a meeting with Chiefs' GM Carl Peterson with the understanding that a third-round pick would get him moved out of the Chiefs' rebuilding project and onto a contender. Peterson must have given Green Bay the same impression because Ted Thompson said yes to a third-rounder and the Packers sent the paperwork to K.C. to complete the deal. At which point the Chiefs asked for a second-round pick instead.

The Pack responded as all fantasy owners should to this bait-and-switch: no thanks.

So Peterson is left with a further-embittered future Hall of Famer (who discussed at length with the media his diminished regard for the GM) and no additional picks with which to rebuild. Mission accomplished!

It's also worth noting that in the wake of dealing Jared Allen, the Chiefs have a pathetic three sacks this season.

NFL Week 7

Week 7 action

Saints at Panthers -- Preview | Notes
Vikings at Bears -- Preview | Notes
Chargers at Bills -- Preview | Notes
Cowboys at Rams -- Preview | Notes
49ers at Giants -- Preview | Notes
Steelers at Bengals -- Preview | Notes
Ravens at Dolphins -- Preview | Notes
Titans at Chiefs -- Preview | Notes
Lions at Texans -- Preview | Notes
Colts at Packers -- Preview | Notes
Jets at Raiders -- Preview | Notes
Browns at Redskins -- Preview | Notes
Seahawks at Bucs -- Preview | Notes
Broncos at Patriots -- Preview | Notes


---

Analysis

• Whitlock: NFL truths
  
• Hench: Sundays of Our Lives
  
• Schrager: Parity reigns
  

  ---

Video

• Schein's Week 7 picks
  
• Marvez: Drew Brees for MVP?
  
• Online OT: Complete NFL coverage
  

  ---

Photos

• Week 7's best games
  
• Fantasy: Top moves
  

L.J.'s Off Day

While Tony Gonzalez will be playing for the Chiefs against Tennessee on Sunday, Larry Johnson will not. Maybe Herm Edwards took note of what happened in the wake of the Steve Smith, Plaxico Burress and Tommie Harris suspensions. The Panthers (2-0), Giants and Bears all won with their stars being punished.

While Edwards clarified that Johnson has not been suspended for the Titans game, he has been deactivated for violating unspecified team rules. Perhaps the team has a rule against averaging 0.3 yards a carry, which is what L.J. did last time out. Sure, he has 200 yards rushing in his last two games, but 198 of those came in Week 4 against the Broncos followed by a paltry two yards (on seven carries) against Carolina.

If Johnson had to be deactivated for one game on the schedule, he couldn't have done any better than this week. He must be really broken up about missing Albert Haynesworth and Co. If the Chiefs shock the world and beat Tennessee, expect a raft of suspensions across the NFL until someone actually loses after benching a star player.

The Battle of the Bulging Disc

Jon Kitna claims he is able to play but suggests the Lions have used his back injury (a bulging disc) as an excuse to replace him as the team's starting quarterback by stashing him on IR.

This raises a few questions. First, isn't being winless this season and 1-11 in your last 12 starts with three straight games of a sub-64 QB rating worthy in itself of a benching?

Secondly, as if the guy needs to further burnish his warrior rep, does Kitna really want to play with a painful back injury behind this offensive line? I can't imagine his chiropractor would sign off on that.

And finally, has Kitna taken his last snap as a Lion? It would appear so. When asked if Kitna would be on the team next season, new GM Martin Mayhew — who earlier provided assurances that the team was not shopping Roy Williams — said, "He's on our roster." A ringing vote of confidence.

In the meantime, Lions coach Rod Marinelli hopes his new starter Dan Orlovsky can merely figure out the parameters of the playing field and not take 10 steps out of bounds along the back of the end zone as he looks for a receiver. As Army veteran Marinelli no doubt knows, not everyone is ready for that sudden battlefield promotion.

Pats Fans to See More Cassel

Apparently there is no quarterback controversy in New England. This is bad news for Patriots fans.

After inviting Chris Simms and Tim Rattay in for a workout that never happened, the Pats decided Matt Cassel was their guy. They would sink or swim with him. Too bad Cassel looks like he's regressing. His QB rating in Week 1 in relief of Brady was 116.0. From there it dropped to 89.9 and 68.1 in Weeks 2 and 3 before an uptick to 77.5 after the bye week. Last week it dropped to 61.6 as the game seemed to be moving too fast for him in a blowout loss to the Chargers.

Even in his best game as a starter, the Week 5 win over the Niners, he was sacked five times as he repeatedly held the ball too long. His reads seem to go through this progression: short, shorter, stare at your feet, move glacially out of the pocket.

Presumably the Pats drafted Kevin O'Connell in the third round as a potential quarterback of a distant, Tom Brady-less future. Maybe it's time for a glimpse of what that future might look like.

Stanky Hanky

Congrats to Ed Hochuli. Neither he nor his crew was responsible for the worst call in the league in Week 6. After the disaster in Denver, a sketchy flag on Julius Peppers and an embarrassing no-call when Reggie Bush almost had his head taken off by a facemask, Hochuli took a back seat last Sunday to field judge Mike Weir.

With the Vikings trailing Detroit 10-9 in Minny and facing a 2nd-and-20 on their own 32 with 2:22 to play, Gus Frerotte went long for Aundrae Allison who was perfectly covered by Lions corner Leigh Bodden. Despite textbook coverage, Bodden was flagged for a 42-yard pass interference penalty that essentially handed the Vikes a 12-10 win.

How many more outcomes will have to be determined entirely by atrocious calls before the NFL expands replay to include the only call that can arbitrarily move the ball 42 yards?

Chicago Bears News News » Sundays of Our Lives
Sundays of Our Lives
That giant sucking sound you hear is all the oxygen in the NFL media universe being consumed by the Cowboys. (In fairness, there are also giant sucking sounds coming out of Cincinnati and Detroit, but that's different.) Between Jerry's leniency, Goodie's hammer, Pac's suspension, T.O.'s new ball-demanding teammate and Romo's pinkie, America's team is dominating the football conversation like an overserved blowhard uncle at Thanksgiving. Action packed