Ladell Betts

PLAY OF THE WEEK Ravens defense vs. Buffalo -- At M&T Bank Stadium with much to gain Sunday, the Ravens' top-ranked defense likely will overwhelm the Bills' inexperienced offensive line and contain running back Willis McGahee and quarterback J.P. Losman. The Ravens are second in the league with 37 take-aways and bring pressure with 57 sacks. Trevor Pryce (12 sacks) and Adalius Thomas (11 sacks) lead the way. POSITION ANALYSIS QUARTERBACK STARTING NOD -- Marc Bulger, St. Louis at Minnesota: Expect Bulger to throw with the Rams facing a Minnesota defense that has shut down the run. Coming off a 388-yard, four-touchdown performance against Washington, Bulger has thrown for 4,053 yards and 23 touchdowns this season.

ASHBURN, Va. -- Talk about role reversal. After three games and a measly two take-aways to show for its effort, the Washington Redskins' defense changed its ways and forced the New England Patriots to commit four turnovers in Sunday's victory at FedEx Field. Cornerbacks Champ Bailey and Rashad Bauman and strong safety Ifeanyi Ohalete each intercepted New England quarterback Tom Brady. Bailey also stripped running back Kevin Faulk on a critical fumble that led to Washington's first touchdown in the 20-17 win. "We hadn't had a lot the last couple of weeks," said Ohalete, who noted that the defense has a weekly goal of collecting three turnovers.

ASHBURN, Va. - Under the gun, the architect of the Fun `N' Gun is firing back. Facing widespread criticism after the Washington Redskins stumbled their way to a fourth consecutive loss, 21-14, to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, second-year coach Steve Spurrier yesterday defended his system, his coaching staff and his ability to adapt to the NFL. Washington (3-5) had just 213 yards of total offense - 124 through the air - against the Cowboys (6-2), and quarterback Patrick Ramsey was sacked four times and left the game with a dislocated pinkie finger on his non-throwing left hand.

ASHBURN, Va. -- Steve Spurrier knows a good thing when he sees one. That's why the Washington Redskins coach said yesterday that offensive coordinator Hue Jackson will continue calling the plays from the sidelines when the Redskins (4-5) visit the Carolina Panthers (7-2) at 1 p.m. on Sunday. After a phone conversation with Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan, Spurrier decided on Wednesday to turn over the play-calling duties to Jackson, and the move paid dividends as Washington ended a four-game losing skid by upending the Seattle Seahawks, 27-20, at FedEx Field two days ago. Spurrier had been the primary caller since the Redskins hired him in January 2002, while Jackson monitored things from the coaches' box upstairs.

ASHBURN, Va. - Besides their days at the University of Florida and an affinity for playing under center, Washington Redskins coach Steve Spurrier and quarterback Danny Wuerffel can agree on one more thing. Wuerffel will not unseat Patrick Ramsey as Washington's starting quarterback. After a well-attended morning practice at Redskins Park yesterday, Spurrier stated in no uncertain terms that Ramsey's status as the team's No. 1 quarterback would not change despite the return of Wuerffel, who started four games for Washington last season.

ASHBURN, Va. - If only the Washington Redskins could've shown this much emotion last weekend. After a listless performance in a 20-0 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Saturday, Washington opened the last week of training camp yesterday at Redskins Park with tempers flaring. Running back Chad Morton and linebacker Jessie Armstead tangled twice, linebacker LaVar Arrington went after wide receiver Rod Gardner, and defensive coordinator George Edwards berated linebacker Jeremiah Trotter for a hard hit on running back Sultan McCullough.

ASHBURN, Va. - Washington Redskins coach Steve Spurrier said yesterday that he is optimistic that running back Stephen Davis' sprained right knee won't keep him out of Sunday's game against the Seattle Seahawks. But Spurrier also said that if Davis can't go, Kenny Watson could make his first career start at running back. On a day when many players stayed home after they were told they weren't required to come to Redskin Park after closing out a 26-21 victory over the Indianapolis Colts late Sunday night, Spurrier was the only source who could comment on Davis' latest injury.

LANDOVER - The way the Washington Redskins played yesterday against the Minnesota Vikings, one would've thought the Redskins were in the hunt for an NFC playoff spot. With nothing left but pride on the line, Washington put a scare into Minnesota's hopes for a wild-card berth by outlasting the visitors, 21-18, before 76,876 at FedEx Field. The Vikings (8-8), who were denied a playoff berth last season when the Arizona Cardinals beat them on a last-second touchdown pass in the regular-season finale, yesterday qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2000 courtesy of the New Orleans Saints' 21-18 victory over the Carolina Panthers.

NEW ORLEANS -- This rebuilding city and its reborn football team were ready to celebrate their first division championship since 2000 with a playoff-clinching victory over the Washington Redskins inside the raucous Superdome yesterday. The New Orleans Saints have won the NFC South and will be going to the playoffs, but the party was ruined by the Redskins, who used their best defensive performance of the season and another triple-digit effort from running back Ladell Betts to win, 16-10.

A season of unfulfilled expectations and forgettable performances comes to its merciful end tonight for the Washington Redskins when they meet the New York Giants at FedEx Field. What started last summer with talk of a Super Bowl will conclude with a laundry list of deficiencies to fix in the offseason. The Redskins are looking to avoid finishing with the worst record ever by a Joe Gibbs-coached team. Even a victory for the Redskins (5-10) over the Giants (7-8) might not prevent this from being called the most disappointing season in franchise history.