Amid the backlash of his recent comments that black quarterbacks are scrutinized more than white field generals, Donovan McNabb silenced his critics with a monster performance against Detroit. He had over 300 yards passing the first half alone as Philadelphia jumped out to a 42-21 halftime advantage. He threw four touchdown passes in all – three to Kevin Curtis, who broke out with a career-best 221 yards on 11 receptions. En route to a 21-for-26 passing display, McNabb completed 18 straight passes at one time as the Eagles flew away with their first W of 2007.

The game was a fantasy league’s fantasy. The first half was highlighted by 200 yards receiving by Curtis, 100 yards rushing and receiving by Brian Westbrook and 300+ yards passing by both McNabb and Lions QB Jon Kitna, who proved last week’s concussion was no longer an issue.

Also around the league, Brett Favre tied Dan Marino’s NFL record of 420 touchdown passes, Tom Brady connected for two more TDs with Randy Moss, L.T. and L.J. were held in check again, and a slew of players were hit with the injury bug. We’ll take a look around this Sunday’s action in Chutes ‘n’ Ladders and break down the most recent black and blues and free agent possibilities.

Free Agent Possibilities
Quarterbacks
Joey Harrington, ATL 31-for-44, 361 yards, two TD
Chad Pennington, NYJ 15-for-22, 124 yards, two TD, rushing TD
Kurt Warner, ARI 15-for-20, 258 yards, two TD
Derek Anderson, CLE 18-for-37, 248 yards, TD, two INT, 12 yards rushing, TD
David Garrard, JAC 14-for-20, 154 yards, TD, 52 yards rushing
Kelly Holcomb, MIN 14-for-28, 165 yards
Daunte Culpepper, OAK 8-for-14, 118 yards
Trent Edwards, BUF 10-for-20, 97 yards, INT
David Carr, CAR 3-for-4, 56 yards
Kyle Boller, BAL 8-for-10, 83 yards

Several quarterbacks went down with injuries this week, opening the door to the possibility for a new starter next week. Carr is expected to relieve Jake Delhomme, Edwards will start in J.P. Losman’s stead, Culpepper is expected to get his shot in Oakland after McCown went down this week, Boller was forced into action again because of another Steve McNair injury, and veteran Warner relieved an injured Matt Leinart.

Running Backs
Earnest Graham, TB eight rushes, 75 yards, two TD
Kenny Watson, CIN nine rushes, 60 yards, TD
Reuben Droughns, NYG three rushes, three yards, two TD
Sammy Morris, NE 12 rushes, 46 yards, TD
Najeh Davenport, PIT five rushes, 47 yards, TD
Samkon Gado, HOU six rushes, 12 yards, TD
Correll Buckhalter, PHI seven rushes, 43 yards, TD
Justin Fargas, OAK eight rushes, 50 yards

When Brandon Jacobs went down with an injury, many people expected Droughns to be inserted into the Giants backfield. However Derrick Ward received those honors – and he’s definitely deserved it. Droughns finally got some burn this weekend through, plunging in for two short-yardage touchdowns. It looks like he’ll be the short-yardage option until Jacobs returns and has some value in deeper leagues if you’re hurting at the position. … Watson filled in admirably after Rudi Johnson struggled and left with an injury this weekend. Rudi has vowed to play next weekend, but Watson will likely start cutting into the RB workload to ease the burden from here on out. … Morris got 10+ carries for the third straight game and is on pace for 805 yards rushing and 10 TD. He’s got more scores than starter Laurence Maroney, who has yet to find the end zone. … Cadillac Williams left Week 3 with sore ribs and his backups looked very impressive in mop-up duty. Graham broke out with eight rushes for 75 yards and a pair of TDs, while Michael Pittman had seven carries for 56 yards on the ground. Afterwards coach Jon Gruden downplayed the running back controversy. “We're going to keep giving (Williams) the ball,” Gruden said. “I'm not going to defend him anymore than I have to. I think he's a hell of a back.”

Wide Receivers
Kevin Curtis, PHI 11 receptions 221 yards, three TD
Roddy White, ATL seven receptions, 127 yards, TD
Brandon Marshall, DEN seven receptions, 133 yards
Derrick Mason, BAL eight receptions, 79 yards, TD
Vincent Jackson, SD six receptions, 98 yards, TD
Nate Burleson, SEA six receptions, 76 yards, TD
Shaun McDonald, DET five receptions, 76 yards, TD
Dwayne Bowe, KC five receptions, 71 yards, TD
Bobby Engram, SEA five receptions, 62 yards, TD
James Jones, GB six receptions, 79 yards
Andre Davis, HOU four receptions, 70 yards
Mike Furrey, DET five receptions, 43 yards

Curtis broke out with over 200 yards receiving in the first half of Sunday’s win over Detroit, equaling his production over his previous six games combined. Reggie Brown continues to struggle for Philly though. He entered the season as the No. 1 WR, but has been held to just five catches and 64 yards through the first three games. He’s going against the awful secondary of the Giants next week though and should be considered a strong WR3 option. … If you don’t realize it by now, McDonald is the real deal in Motown. Despite being listed as the fourth receiver on the squad, he’s on pace for 96 receptions, 1264 yards and 10 TD. He goes against the stingy Bears defense in Week 4 though so Jon Kitna and the boys will be tested. … Marshall should be owned in all leagues at this time – his numbers have improved each week and he’s poised to challenge Javon Walker as the Broncos top receiver.

Tight Ends
Jeff King, CAR four receptions, 56 yards, TD
Heath Miller, PIT four receptions, 82 yards
Owen Daniels, HOU seven receptions, 56 yards
John Madsen, OAK three receptions, 61 yards
Visanthe Shiancoe, MIN three receptions, 51 yards
Donald Lee, GB four receptions, 44 yards
Desmond Clark, CHI two receptions, 58 yards

Major Offensive Injuries 
Brian Westbrook showed he was truly the king of the jungle in Week 3 thrashing the Lions with over 100 yards receiving and rushing in the first half alone. After being listed as questionable all week because of a knee injury, he found pay dirt three times in the first two quarters. Unfortunately, his amazing day was tarnished a bit when he was forced to leave the contest in the third quarter because of bruised ribs. He underwent X-rays and they returned negative, but the stud running back is expected to undergo a CT scan on Monday. He downplayed the injury after the Eagles first victory, saying, “They feel all right. Thankfully it's not broken so it feels all right.” Obviously monitor his health throughout the week, but Westbrook is accustomed to playing through aches and pains so he should be fine for Sunday night’s tilt with the division rival Giants.

After being held in check for just nine yards rushing on 17 carries, RB Rudi Johnson departed Week 3 because of a hamstring injury. The suffocating Seattle defense limited him to a meager negative three yards on 13 rushes in the first two quarters. Kenny Watson filled in mightily at running back, rambling for 60 yards on nine carries – including an eight-yard TD scamper that put Cincy temporarily in the lead in the fourth quarter. Although Rudi vowed to be ready to roll for next Monday Night’s showdown against the undefeated Patriots, Watson is worth adding for an insurance policy just in case.

Jake Delhomme injured his right elbow during Sunday’s game against the Falcons and is expected to miss next week’s contest against the Bucs – David Carr would get the call behind center if he is unable to go. Carr finished 3-for-4 for 56 yards after be inserted, but the Panthers went predominantly to a rushing attack in the second half of the win. "I'm ready if I need to be," Carr said. "I feel comfortable with this offense now." Delhomme has a lights-out 8-1 TD-INT ratio through three weeks – that equals his TD total through the first eight games of 2006.

Starting in place of injured receiver Andre Johnson, who is expected to miss five weeks of action because of a knee sprain, Jacoby Jones sustained a separated shoulder Sunday and is listed as out indefinitely. Teammate WR Andre Davis got some increased playing time because the Texans were so short-handed at the position and led the team with 70 yards receiving, but he suffered a dislocated finger in the contest, putting his status for next week’s contest against Atlanta in doubt. Kevin Walter is the lone healthy receiver now at the injury ravaged position.

J.P. Losman left Sunday’s contest against New England early in the first quarter because of a Grade 1 knee sprain and is expected to miss a few games. Once he was evaluated by the Bills’ medical staff, he was seen on crutches on the sidelines and Trent Edwards took over behind center. In the post-game news conference head coach Dick Jauron said Losman would miss at least two games because of the injury. Once he takes some more tests on Monday, his status is expected to be clearer.

RB Frank Gore was held to 14 carries for 39 yards against the mighty Steelers and underwent precautionary X-rays on his right hand afterwards. They came back negative so the former Miami Hurricane is expected to ready for next weekend’s matchup with Seattle. … Teammate TE Vernon Davis was forced out of the game in the fourth quarter due to a sprained right knee, but the Niners didn’t think he would have to miss any time. He will be re-evaluated on Monday and is expected to undergo an MRI to determine the extent of the injury. He posted four receptions for 56 yards before departing.

Other injuries
In Sunday’s close loss the G-Men, Santana Moss strained his groin. It’s an injury that he’s been dealing with the past couple months and it isn’t expected to keep him sidelined at all. Fortunately, the Skins have a bye in Week 4 so the speedster will have a chance to rest before Week 5’s home game vs the weak defense of the Lions. … The Ravens lifted Steve McNair after he aggravated his groin Sunday and replaced him with backup Kyle Boller. The oft-injured veteran said he thought he could have continued to play, but coach Brian Billick took him out to be cautious. Boller has played better thus far and could be in line to replace him in the immediate future. … WR Calvin Johnson sustained a bruised lower back injury after making a spectacular leaping catch between two Eagles defenders in the first half. He was carted off the field and did not return. He’ll undergo more tests early this week. His absence would just open up more opportunities for Mike Furrey and Shaun McDonald.

Up-and-coming rookie RB DeShawn Wynn left early in the fourth quarter of this week’s victory against San Diego when he sprained his ankle. He did not return to the game and Wynn said that his ankle was sore afterwards. He’ll be evaluated throughout the week. The Packers ground game was virtually non-existent all game though – Wynn had just nine yards on two carries. Favre went 28-for-45 passing, while the team rushed for only 42 yards on just 13 attempts. … TE Todd Heap got a mild concussion in this weekend’s victory versus the Cards. He’s considered day-to-day. … QB Jay Cutler sustained an ankle sprain during Week 3’s loss to the Jags, but the injury isn’t considered serious at this time. … Isaac Bruce got hit in the head in the second quarter this weekend and was “a little dazed” the remainder of the game. He was limited to just one catch after halftime and is considered questionable for Week 4. Drew Bennett would be in line for more reps if he’s out.

Week 4 Schedule
Sunday, 9/30 1:00pm ET
Baltimore @ Cleveland
St. Louis @ Dallas
Chicago @ Detroit
New York Jets @ Buffalo
Houston @ Atlanta
Oakland @ Miami
Green Bay @ Minnesota

Sunday, 9/30 4:00pm ET
Pittsburgh @ Arizona
Tampa Bay @ Carolina
Seattle @ San Francisco
Denver @ Indianapolis
Kansas City @ San Diego

Sunday, 9/30 8:15pm ET
Philadelphia @ New York Giants

Monday, 10/1 8:30pm ET
New England @ Cincinnati