Tom Brady hasn't been on the field since Sunday but look . . . he just threw another touchdown pass.  And another one.  And there's one more.

How many weeks in a row can we keep up this rollicking slap-stick humor?  How many more weeks before somebody figures out how to stop Brady and Randy Moss?  The idea that somebody might actually do it leads off this week's fantasy Ten-Pack.

1.  Patriots need to "run" up some scores.

The crack in this New England machine is the lack of a regular, consistent running game.  Sammy Morris had his moments before getting hurt, but supposed star Laurence Maroney was nothing special against Miami, nor were Kevin Faulk or any of the other fullbacks who split time.  The Patriots might have been conserving Maroney after he missed three games to injury by limiting him to six carries, but you'd think that a team with a 42-7 lead would finish with some noteworthy rushing stats.

Not the Patriots.  And until they quit throwing all over the place and Brady stops hogging all of the offensive TDs, this could be the best team ever without a notable fantasy running back (or just the best team ever, period).  The Patriots are smart enough that one of these weeks they will come out and run on 24 consecutive plays (and win, of course), but until then, Maroney is a very questionable starter.

2. Hello London, and Jesse Chatman?

You might have thought things would not get worse for the Dolphins after getting thrashed at home by the Patriots; you would, of course, be wrong.  Now they go to England without running back Ronnie Brown, their only effective offensive threat, after he tore his ACL, sidelining the league leader in yards from scrimmage.

Instead of heading to England with a starting lineup featuring Brown, Trent Green, and Chris Chambers, the Dolphins can showcase Jesse Chatman, Cleo Lemon, and Ted Ginn Jr. 

Those lucky British fans.

Chatman might score a junk TD or two and he will catch some passes because the wide receivers are not good enough to catch most of them.  Patrick Cobbs and Lorenzo Booker also could figure in the mix.  Chatman is worth picking up because of the success Brown was having, though he will have trouble duplicating it.  It might be nice if the Dolphins just forfeited the rest of their games, though that would rob opponents of a chance to post some huge stats against them.

3. Haven't we seen enough of Trent Dilfer?

Here's an idea for the 49ers:  Even if Alex Smith still is not healthy, or if he can barely throw the ball, start him.  He can't be any worse than Trent Dilfer, who had a direct hand in 24 of the Giants' 33 points against them last week.  Not that this offense was exactly rolling in the first three games under Smith, but it has gone backward, literally, under Dilfer.  His fumbles, interceptions, and otherwise dumb decisions wind up being turnovers going the other way.

No 49er is worth playing.  Including a total junk-time TD against the Giants, the 49ers have averaged 8.3 points in Dilfer's three games.  Frank Gore at least showed some potential in rushing for 88 yards on just 14 carries last week.  But with Dilfer putting the 49ers in such a hole, he had no chance to do anything productive in the second half.  So please Mike Nolan, start Smith.  If all he does is hand off, at least Gore might then have a prayer.

4. How Kellen Clemens impacts the Jets.

The 'if' appears now to be 'when' Clemens takes over for Chad Pennington, so it is reasonable to assess how Clemens would impact the offense.  The biggest hit might be on Laveranues Coles, who caught two long TD passes against the Bengals and always has been a favorite of Pennington's.  Clemens likely would not play any such favorites and, indeed, in his lone start this year against the Ravens, Jerricho Cotchery had his best game, with 165 yards.

Two of Cotchery's catches in that game were for at least 44 yards.  Coles' 57-yard TD against Cincinnati was Pennington's first completion of over 30 yards this season.  You'd also expect a more balanced offense with greater emphasis on the run to help protect the young quarterback.  Coles would not see as many passes from Clemens, though he still could be the leading scorer, and Cotchery and Thomas Jones would get upgrades.

5. Sticking with Schaub.

Mike Florio raised the possibility of a quarterback controversy in Houston after Sage Rosenfels rallied the Texans in relief of Matt Schaub from a 32-7 deficit against the Titans to briefly take the lead.  They should stick with Schaub.  Playing from 25 points behind in the fourth quarter with nothing to lose is significantly different than playing from the start or in a competitive game.  And Rosenfels first four series?  Two interceptions, fumble and a three-and-out.

The real problems in Houston are a run game that has gone in the tank, and taken Ahman Green with it, and the continued absence of game-breaking receiver Andre Johnson. Schaub might miss some time to his injuries, but promoting Rosenfels over a healthy Schaub would shatter what's left of the offense. Receivers Andre Davis and Kevin Walter and tight end Owen Daniels would cease being regular threats. Schaub will be much better off if Johnson ever returns.

6. Tarvaris Jackson is hopeless.

And while we're ripping quarterbacks, the Vikings are a long way from having a consistent offense under Tarvaris Jackson.  Hope for Jackson to make any of his receivers a regular starter is long gone.  All we wanted was for Jackson to be good enough to regularly create room for Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor to run.  Even that is difficult to fathom after he completed just six passes for 72 yards and took three sacks and nearly a safety.

Maybe the Vikings should take the ball out of Jackson's hands completely and just give it to Adrian Peterson every down.  And Jackson's broken right index finger also might be a convenient way to yank Jackson again.  Coach Brad Childress is the only guy who can stop Peterson, who had five touches and a 20-yard TD run on the team's first drive but finished with just 12 carries for 63 yards -- both season-lows.  The problem is not Peterson splitting carries with Chester Taylor; it is in allowing Jackson to attempt 19 passes.

7. The more things change . . . .

Stop us if you've heard this before:  The Rams failed to score a touchdown and Marc Bulger was beat up.  The Rams' only touchdown in four road games has been on a punt return and the Seahawks sacked Bulger seven times as he returned after missing two games because of a rib injury.  But call me a sucker because I still think there are better days ahead.

The biggest thing is that they finally are getting a little healthy, with running back Steven Jackson possibly joining Bulger this week.  And the beauty of their next game is that it is at home against the Browns, who are 30th in points allowed, 32nd in yards allowed, 32nd in passing TDs allowed (17), 29th in passing yards allowed, and 30th in rushing yards allowed.  If the Rams can't score with Bulger and Jackson against that defense, I will loudly and proudly put a stick in them.  Because, you know, that would really tick them off.

8. Running back shift for the Titans.

The big stories from the Titans' win against the Texans were Rob Bironas' eight field goals, the team's near collapse from a 25-point lead and Kerry Collins' generally solid play. But the most lasting impact is kind of overlooked -- the debut of rookie running back Chris Henry. The second-round pick looked horrible in the preseason and then was inactive until Chris Brown could not go Sunday because of a sprained ankle.

With a big lead, the Titans gave Henry 11 carries and he had 57 yards and a TD. The promising sign is that he appears to have improved with time on the sideline and the Titans might not be eager to rush Brown back. Starter LenDale White is playing well but is not exactly reliable and Henry has more upside than the pedestrian Brown on a team that loves to run.

9. How to play without a real No. 1 receiver.

Hopes for a Broncos' revival took a big hit when Javon Walker needed knee surgery on his reconstructed knee last week, and he could miss much of the rest of the season.  Where does this offense go, especially with Travis Henry struggling under the possibility of an impending drug suspension?  Try a lot of Brandon Marshall, Brandon Stokley, and Tony Scheffler, with a sprinkling of a bunch of other guys you've never heard of.  Those three players combined for 16 of Jay Cutler's 22 receptions.  Pick up any of them if you need help at those positions.

Problem is, Scheffler also hurt his left leg late in that game; he missed the preseason and was slowed early in the year because of a broken foot.  Losing him would be a problem because he can be a threat in the middle of the field.  The Broncos could use Daniel Graham more as a receiver, but he is almost too valuable as a blocker.

10. Should Daunte Culpepper still be Oakland's quarterback?

We probably could talk every week about the problems with the Raiders' offense.  There have been a few nice moments, like Daunte Culpepper's five-TD game against the Dolphins.  But running back LaMont Jordan has slowed considerably because of his back injury and there is no consistent passing threat.  Against the Chiefs, the Raiders went conservative so they would not expose Culpepper to the turnovers that doomed them the week before against San Diego.

But something needs to change.  Maybe it is Dominic Rhodes taking over for Jordan.  Maybe it is Josh McCown returning, or JaMarcus Russell taking over for Culpepper.  Maybe it is getting Jerry Porter more than one catch in a game.  Don't play any Raiders this week against the Titans, but following that are two home games against Houston and Chicago.  That is two struggling defenses the Raiders need to find a way to score against.  Expect changes before then.

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