Final Thoughts on Week 1

- Controversial ending or not, you have to give kudos to Carson Palmer and the rest of the Bengals for limiting their mistakes and outplaying the Baltimore Ravens Monday night. Of course, it didn't help the Ravens when Ray Lewis was injured early on, but their defense is one of the league's elite and yet they managed only one sack. A very entertaining matchup.

- The 49ers-Cardinals game, even with the exciting finish, was, for the most part, unwatchable. Both teams played as if it were Week Three of the exhibition schedule. Matt Leinart desperately needs to get on track with his fine receivers as soon as possible. Edgerrin James will not stand up to the pounding for a full season if he continues to get 20+ carries a game.

- The NFL ought to exempt Chad Johnson and only a few others from the "No Celebration" rule. Johnson's antics are fun to watch. They're creative and entertaining. For the most part, though, the rule is a good one. It cuts down on my personal least favorite showboating tactic, the Finger to the Lips to "shush" the crowd. Hey, back-up TE who caught a touchdown pass in the preseason: Don't attempt to quiet the fans. They paid good money to come to a game where they should be free to express themselves in whatever civil manner they choose to.

- Speaking of fans expressing themselves, the Jets fans who cheered when Chad Pennington was injured are really setting a fine example for their children. Personal opinions notwithstanding, it shows an absolute lack of class (not to mention basic Human Decency) to applaud an injury to any player. It gave a black eye to the entire organization and the true Jets fans. Do us all a favor and leave your drunken, boorish and disgusting behavior at the stadium entrance. You are pathetic.

- Finally, I would like to wish Kevin Everett a full recovery from his horrific accident. My eyes welled up with tears last night when I heard that he had some voluntary movement in his extremities and there is finally some hope of at least a partially normal life. Godspeed, Kevin.