Week 4 Big NFL players

[Canuck Kid]

In Week 4 on the gridiron, several players stepped up and made the difference.

QB Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings : Where else could we start this list than with the man that the entire week was centered around? Favre made the 21+ million viewers of Minnesota's MNF game against Green Bay a memorable one, completing 24 of his 32 passes for 271 yards with three touchdowns. Whereas in previous weeks, the running game carried Favre, this was the week that Favre had to carry the Vikings. RB Adrian Peterson only ran for 55 yards on 25 carries, and the defense conceded over 450 yards of offense. This is one of those games that the Vikes would've lost last year with QB Tarvaris Jackson under center.

RB Rashard Mendenhall, Pittsburgh Steelers : RB Willie Parker may have just been "Wally Pipp"ed. Thanks to some nagging injuries, Parker sat out Sunday night's game for the Steelers at home against San Diego. His replacement, former 2008 first round draft pick, Rashard Mendenhall filled in his shoes more than admirably. The rushing attack for Pittsburgh has struggled mightily over the L/2 seasons, but the Illinois product toted the rock 29 times for 165 yards and two scores in the Steelers' 38-28 win in Week 4. The biggest question is whether he has done enough to unseat Parker as the black and gold’s premier back.

DB Darren Sharper, New Orleans Saints : It's pretty clear that without Sharper, Saints bettors would've had absolutely no chance of covering the spread against the Jets. In fact, they probably wouldn't have won the game. The wily veteran stepped in front of an errant Mark Sanchez pass and took it 99 yards for the TD that gave the Saints a 10-0 lead instead of leaving them with a 7-3 deficit. He also picked off Sanchez later in the game to help preserve the 24-10 victory.

QB Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts : Yawn! Just another day in the office for arguably the NFL's top quarterback. Manning had another 300+ yard passing game in spite of the fact that he's still playing who's who with his wide receivers. This time against Seattle, he went 31/41 for 353 yards and two scores. It wasn't his fault that his defense gave up a couple late meaningless scores, but the UT product did more than enough to give Colts bettors a comfortable cover.

QB David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars : Maybe the Jags have found a way to turn the corner and salvage something out of this season after starting off 0-2. They look like a completely different team now, especially since Garrard started hooking up with WR Mike Sims-Walker. Jacksonville's signal-caller went 27/37 for 323 yards and three TDs without an interception against one of the league's most feared defenses in that of the Titans. With Garrard playing better football, the Jags may have a shot of sticking around in the AFC Wild Card race and Garrard may be able to dispel thoughts about the Jags drafting Florida QB Tim Tebow to be the franchise's savior.