In somewhat surprising news, Lions’ head coach Jim Schwartz wouldn’t rule out Matthew Stafford (shoulder injury) for Sunday’s game against he Vikings.

Of course, Schwartz isn’t above playing mind games with the media when it comes to injuries, so this could just be a ploy to throw the Vikings off. (Not that they’re paying much attention anyway while trying to decided whether or not to trade for Vincent Jackson.)

Stafford sprained the AC joint in his throwing shoulder and was originally expected to miss 4-6 weeks. But there was a report out of Detroit last Tuesday that said Stafford may only miss 1-2 weeks, which is why Schwartz’s deceptiveness is interesting.

Still, Stafford missed practice today and if isn’t able to practice Thursday or Friday, don’t expect him to play on Sunday. Shaun Hill is likely to start under center for the Lions for the second straight week.

While it’s still early, if you held a gun to my head and asked me what team I thought was the best in the NFL right now, I’d say the New York Giants. Mario Manningham and Steve Smith have stepped up nicely to fill the void left when No. 1 receiver Plaxico Burress was released in the offseason and Eli Manning is off to a tremendous start.

Defensively, the Giants have shown signs of that pass-happy bunch that caused major issues for Tom Brady in Super Bowl XLII now that end Osi Umeyiora is healthy again after missing all of last season with a knee injury.

But there seems to be a troubling trend developing for the Giants, one that could potentially put a damper on whether or not they can build a lead in the tough NFC East.

Injuries are starting to mount for New York on the defensive side of the ball, with the latest victim being rising star Kenny Phillips, who was placed on injured reserve today due to a knee injury. Other defensive players who are currently banged up for the Giants are Chris Canty (calf), Justin Tuck (shoulder), Aaron Ross (hamstring), Kevin Dockery (hamstring) and Clint Sintim (groin).

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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that defensive tackle Peria Jerry, who was the Falcons first round pick in April, will miss the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury in a win over the Panthers on Sunday.

This might not sound like a significant loss given that Jerry was a rookie and defensive tackles are rarely in the limelight, but this is a blow to the Falcons’ defensive line. Jerry was quickly emerging as a solid interior pass-rusher and offered a nice complement to John Abraham and Jonathan Babineaux on Atlanta’s D-line.

The Falcons rotate their defensive linemen on game days, so Trey Lewis, Thomas Johnson and Vance Walker will all see playing time at the tackle position next to Babineaux. Unfortunately, none of the three provide the pass rush that Jerry does, although maybe the big-bodied Lewis (who was impressive as a rookie in 2007 before a knee injury sidelined him for the entire ’08 season) can help the Falcons fix a leaky run-defense that is allowing 5.1 YPC.

This is a bad time for the Falcons to lose a pass rusher with a trip to New England and a pissed-off Patriots team on the docket.

Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress is concerned about his star running back. 2007 Rookie of the Year Adrian Peterson was held out of Thursday’s practice because of a hamstring injury.

“He didn’t participate today so that probably says what it says,” Childress said. “DNP. He was limited [Wednesday]. It’s a concern. Your legs are your legs. We’ll just see how he comes out by the time we get to Sunday.”

Peterson said earlier in the day that his hamstring is sore. He felt it tighten up on a run late in the fourth quarter. He said he hopes to be ready to play Sunday.

The Panthers (Minnesota’s opponent on Sunday) have to be licking their chops. Chester Taylor is a solid backup, but he certainly doesn’t bring what Peterson brings to the field. Plus, the ageless one Gus Frerotte is starting at quarterback and the Vikings’ secondary looks brutal again this year. Good time for WR Steve Smith to be coming off a suspension.

I know this will come back to bite me in the ass, but how good does Carolina look getting 3.5 points as a road underdog?

Update: Peterson practiced Friday and is expected to play Sunday.

Sunday’s Best: Cowboys (2-0) at Packers (2-0) 8:15 PM ET NBC
General NFL fans and fantasy football owners alike are pumped for this Sunday Night Football matchup. The home team generally has the upper hand, with the host going 14-2 in the last 27 years of this underrated rivalry. Before becoming a starter this season, Packers’ QB Aaron Rodgers only saw significant playing time one other time in his career – last year in a regular season loss to the Cowboys after Brett Favre was injured following two interceptions. Rodgers did well, too, completing 18 of 26 passes and tossing one touchdown. The Dallas defense will be well prepared for Rodgers this time, although the Cowboys are coming off a short week after beating the Eagles on Monday night.

Upset Watch: Saints (1-1) at Broncos (2-0) 4:05 PM ET FOX
If there’s one thing the NFL has taught fans over the years is to expect the unexpected. After two weeks, the Broncos look like world-beaters and after losing last week in Washington, the Saints appear to be vulnerable. But Denver’s defense didn’t play well in the second half last week and even without WR Marques Colston, New Orleans has more than enough offensive weapons to make things interesting this weekend in Denver. The Broncos are coming off an emotionally draining win last Sunday against San Diego, not to mention an emotionally draining week having to answer questions about Ed Hochuli’s blown call. Could the pissed off Saints be catching Denver at the right time?

Intriguing Matchup: Steelers (2-0) at Eagles (1-1), 4:15 PM ET CBS
If it weren’t for the mega matchup in Green Bay on Sunday night, the Steelers-Eagles game Sunday evening would be the best of the Week 3 schedule. Pittsburgh has looked very good in its two victories, but questions remain about the health status of QB Ben Roethlisberger, who is dealing with a bad shoulder (although head coach Mike Tomlin says Big Ben’s shoulder isn’t separated). Philadelphia will be coming off a short week after playing on Monday night, but the Eagles are always tough to beat at home. Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook will also look to bounce back after fumbling away an opportunity to beat the Cowboys. This should be a physical game between two very good teams.

Other Notable Games:
Jaguars at Colts, 4:15 PM ET CBS
Jacksonville’s offensive line is incredibly beat up, which hasn’t bode well for the usually-explosive Jag running game. But Indy lost its best run-defender in Bob Sanders for 4-6 weeks and the Vikes’ Adrian Peterson ran wild on them last Sunday. Could the Jaguars really start the season 0-3? Could the Colts really start 1-2? Neither team looks like the potential Super Bowl contenders everyone thought they would be entering the season.

Panthers at Vikings, 1 PM ET FOX
The Vikings are looking for their first win of the season while the Panthers are looking to gain even more of an edge in the NFC South. Can Carolina keep Adrian Peterson in check? Will Steve Smith take advantage of a weak Minnesota secondary in his first action of the season after serving a two game suspension?

Cardinals at Redskins, 1 PM ET FOX
Usually this game would be a bore-fest, but Arizona is 2-0 and Washington might have gotten on track after beating the Saints last Sunday. The Cardinals could open up a decent size lead in the NFC West with a victory.

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the Vikings will start Gus Frerotte at quarterback this Sunday against the Panthers, not Tarvaris Jackson.

Vikings coach Brad Childress wasn’t kidding when he said he’d consider starting whatever quarterback gave his team the best chance to win.

Gus Frerotte will replace Tarvaris Jackson at quarterback in the starting lineup Sunday against Carolina.
That was quick.

Jackson battled a knee injury for much of the preseason and that could have affected his play the past two weeks. Then again, his knee could have nothing to do with it and his poor play has just been a result of Jackson not developing as a quarterback. The bottom line is a change had to be made because the Vikings are wasting brilliant rushing performances by Adrian Peterson. A couple of big plays in the passing game and maybe Minnesota is sitting at 2-0 or at least, 1-1 right now instead of 0-2. This team has too much talent not to at least contend for a Wild Card in a weak NFC. Frerotte isn’t anything special at this point in his career, but he should give the offense a boost.

Hey JP, should Bernard Berrian fantasy owners rejoice?

JP’s Fantasy Spin: Well, “rejoice” might be a strong word. Berrian is suffering from an injured toe that is affecting his ability to make cuts. Meanwhile, Sidney Rice has a sprained PCL and hasn’t practiced yet this week. That said, Frerotte is an upgrade for the Vikings’ passing game. Jackson has a strong arm and is athletic, but he isn’t accurate and doesn’t make very good decisions. Frerotte should be a boost to the entire Minnesota offense, though expect more of a Trent Dilfer than a Peyton Manning.

Indianapolis Colts’ safety Bob Sanders will miss the next four to six weeks with a high ankle sprain.

“He’ll be back, that’s for sure,” Polian said. “At this point we’re not sure of the severity, but I would say four-to-six (weeks) is probably the reasonable assumption.”

Sanders, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, injured his right ankle during the second half of Sunday’s 18-15 victory at Minnesota.

Polian indicated Sanders also might undergo arthroscopic “cleanup” surgery on one of his knees while he is recovering from the ankle injury. That would enable Sanders to avoid offseason surgery, “which is always a good thing,” Polian said.

Terrible news for the Colts. They were already having issues stopping the run and now they lose their best overall defender. The Jaguars’ running game could potentially get back on track this Sunday in Indy.

Dallas Cowboys’ safety Roy Williams will miss roughly four weeks after fracturing his forearm during Monday night’s 42-37 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Jerry Jones said Roy Williams suffered a spiral fracture in his forearm and will miss about four weeks. That means Pat Watkins, who was playing in the nickel and dime packages, will start at strong safety for the next month.

While he’ll be missed in run defense, Williams has never been a factor against the pass. In fact, the Cowboys usually take Williams off the field in obvious passing downs and use three cornerbacks. Still, Dallas will certainly miss him in run defense seeing as how he was basically an extra linebacker.