The sad part about the season-ending knee injury to Dolphins halfback Ronnie Brown is it ends a great story about how Brown rebounded from a so-so offseason.

During training camp, Dolphins coach Cam Cameron challenged Brown, who responded by being willing to do anything to help the team. He even returned kickoffs during the preseason, something you don't see from starting running backs.

Brown got his weight down from 248 to 222 pounds. Each week during the regular season, Brown got better and better and was one of the most dangerous backs in football. It's a huge loss for the Dolphins.

McCown in, Culpepper out? The Raiders might have a quarterback controversy brewing this week. Josh McCown, coming off a broken big toe, told Bay Area reporters he plans to start on Sunday against the Titans. Coach Lane Kiffin didn't disagree, but he didn't name a starting quarterback. Daunte Culpepper is 1-2 in his three starts for the Raiders, who scored only 10 points in their Week 7 loss to the Chiefs.

The Raiders' 12-10 loss to the Chiefs was Oakland's 17th consecutive divisional loss, a modern-day NFL record. Even though the Raiders are playing better, they still can't get over the top in AFC West games.

Guarded optimism: The Lions are elated about their 4-2 start. As much as the city of Detroit is starting to get excited, fans have to be cautiously optimistic. The Lions have had five 4-2 starts since 1990, but only twice has the team finished better than .500. A 4-2 start in 2004 ended as a 6-10 season. In 2000, the Lions turned a 4-2 start into a 9-7 season and didn't make the playoffs. Their weirdest 4-2 start was in 1999: The Lions finished 8-8 and made the playoffs. Lions fans are crossing their fingers.

Schaub hurting: E ven though he doesn't get sacked as much as David Carr does, Texans QB Matt Schaub is a physical mess after seven starts. He has a bad hip bruise and has been dealing with a thigh injury for weeks. His ankle is aching. Coach Gary Kubiak says Schaub's status is day to day. Though he may play against the Chargers in Week 8, Schaub needs the Nov. 11 bye week to get his body healthy.

So is Leftwich, again: B yron Leftwich's ankle injury was too predictable. In Jacksonville, Leftwich was still trying to shake the after-effects of the broken ankle he suffered in college. In Atlanta, Leftwich was playing behind a line that had two new tackles and had Joey Harrington among the most-sacked quarterbacks in the league. Now, Leftwich has a high ankle sprain that will sideline him for several weeks.

Coming off easy street: The stunning part of the Ravens' 4-3 start is they didn't take advantage of the easiest opening schedule in the NFL. The teams Baltimore has faced are a combined 13-32. The Ravens lost to the Bills, Bengals and Browns. Injuries have played a big factor, but the schedule gets harder after their Week 8 bye. In the second half of the season, the Ravens face the Steelers twice and have a three-week stretch against the Chargers, Patriots and Colts. Take away their Dec. 16 road game against the currently 0-7 Dolphins, and the Ravens have a closing schedule of teams with a combined 32-17 record.