Is the AFC still the NFL’s dominant conference? Probably not. The reigning Super Bowl champion New York Giants reside in the NFC. Two of the AFC’s best players (New England Patriots QB Tom Brady, San Diego Chargers LB Shawne Merriman) are lost for the entire season. And the NFC is 4-2 vs. the AFC in interconference play after two weeks of the season.

The NFC has not had a winning record against the AFC since 1995. Last season, the conferences were even (32-32) in head-to-head competition for the first time since 2001. And entering last season’s Super Bowl, the AFC had won six of the last seven title games.

Improved offensive play is a big reason why the NFC is flourishing once again, as 13 of the 16 NFC teams are averaging 20 or more points per game this season. A few star players in the conference have successfully returned from injury this season. Donovan McKnabb is healthy, rejuvenated, and the Philadelphia Eagles are once again one of the top scoring teams in the league. And Jake Delhomme has brought his signature enthusiasm and gunslinger personality back to the undefeated Carolina Panthers after missing all of last season due to ligament-replacement surgery in his right elbow.

Scoring has been a staple in the AFC, thanks largely to the play of Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Historically, the AFC has always been considered “the conference of the quarterback, “and on most Sundays they will have more first-round starting quarterbacks than their NFC rivals. But Brady’s season-ending knee injury and the struggles of Carson Palmer have hurt the QB quality in the AFC.

Typically, the NFC has been a conference that features strong defenses and solid running games. But that philosophy could be changing, as some NFC teams are copying the AFC formula: basing their success on the play from the quarterback position. The statistical numbers do not lie; Tony Romo, Aaron Rodgers, Eli Manning, and Drew Brees are all having hot starts to their seasons. The passing numbers haven’t been this good in the NFC since the Kurt Warner era in St. Louis. And during this recent AFC’s domination, Brett Favre and McKnabb have been only premier quarterbacks the NFC had to offer in competition.

The supremacy of the AFC could be ending this season, as the gap seems to be closing between the two conferences. Perhaps now the NFC will get the respect it deserves.

The Seahawks were supposed to be the favorites to win the NFC West again this year. The Browns were supposed to contend for a playoff berth in the AFC. The Vikings were the chic-pick in the NFC. The Jaguars and Chargers were supposed to be Super Bowl contenders.

But all five of these teams have started the 2008 season 0-2. And all five teams have major issues.

So is it time for these teams to the hit the panic button? Let’s take a closer look.

Cleveland Browns

What’s gone right: Not much. The only real bright spot offensively has been TE Kellen Winslow Jr., who has 12 receptions for 102 yards and a touchdown. And DT Shaun Rogers, the team’s top offseason acquisition, has made an immediate impact with 10 tackles, one sack and two tackles for loss.

What’s gone wrong: Everything. The defense was brutal in Week 1 against Dallas, but bounced back in Week 2 against Pittsburgh (thanks in large part to bad weather conditions and Ben Roethlisberger’s bum shoulder). The offense that averaged over 25 points a game last year has managed just 16 points total in two games this year. Turnovers, penalties, poor quarterback play (Derek Anderson currently has a QB rating of 57.1), and bad coaching have buried this team so far.

Time to hit the panic button? Yes. The Browns’ poor preseason play has carried over into the regular season and the schedule doesn’t get any easier with the Ravens, Giants, Jaguars, Broncos and Bills coming up over the next eight weeks. Outside of Rogers, the offseason acquisitions Cleveland made on defense have not paid off and the offense has been non-existent. Worse yet, the Browns aren’t sneaking up on anyone this year and Romeo Crennel is starting to look overmatched once again.

It’s very hard to criticize Shawne Merriman’s passion to play football. After five separate medical opinions, all unanimously recommending immediate reconstructive surgery to repair torn LCL and PCL ligament damage in his left knee, he still went out and played in the San Diego Chargers season opener. Merriman was a non-factor with just two tackles against the Carolina Panthers last Sunday. He had no explosiveness off the line of scrimmage and was unable to apply pressure on the quarterback.

Clearly, his knee was hampering him. Merriman then decided to forego the rest of the season, have the surgery and start preparing for the 2009 season. I had a similar knee injury, and I think he made the best decision for long term success both on and off the field.

In describing his knee injury, the term “career-threatening� was floated by various media outlets. If he continued playing with the injury, he risked having early onset of arthritis settling inside the knee. The stress of playing football with ligament damage puts undue pressure on the cartilage in the front of the knee. The three most feared words any athlete can hear are “severe cartilage damage.�

Cartilage damage cannot be rebuilt the way ligament injuries can, and they’re very hard to recover from. Once all the cartilage has been chipped away, it cannot be restored, and the knee is left in an arthritic state.

His effectiveness on the field and the longevity of his career do remain in question, but the consensus is that having the surgery gives Merriman the best chance to return to Pro Bowl status once again.

Merriman’s contract expires after the 2009 season, and before the injury became public, he was expected to receive a huge new contract as an unrestricted free agent. That is up in the air now, but do not rule out Merriman turning the lights out on quarterbacks again next season.

Kansas vs. South Florida
Seeking a repeat of their 2007 season, Coach Mark Mangino leads the 13th-ranked Jayhawks into Miami’s Raymond James Stadium on Friday night, when they face-off against #19 South Florida. This will be the second meeting between the two schools, the other was in 2006, a 13-7 Jayhawk victory in Lawrence. (click here for Anthony Stalter’s game preview)

Ohio State vs. USC
This game is being billed as “The Collision at the Coliseum,� but the Jaws of Life might be needed to save the Buckeyes if they do not bring their “A� game to Los Angeles. The key to this matchup is for OSU’s offensive line to get physical with Southern Cal’s defensive front. If they do not win the battle at the line of scrimmage, it will not matter who is running the football for Ohio State (RB Chris “Beanie� Wells, ankle, is a game-time decision). Road wins against the Trojans are a scarce commodity in the Pete Carroll era, as they hold a 39-3 mark at the Coliseum. This contest will played on Saturday night in front of a nationally-televised audience on ABC at 8:00 PM EST.

Wisconsin vs. Fresno State
The Badgers will travel to Central Valley, California to play in the most important game in Bulldog football history. Fresno State dominated Rutgers in their season opener, but they will need a victory Saturday night to keep their hopes of a BCS bowl berth alive. Wisconsin just needs a win to stay in the national title hunt. Tune in Saturday night at 10:30 PM EST on ESPN2 for this pivotal non-conference game.

Milwaukee Brewers vs. Philadelphia Phillies
The Brewers are trying to avoid another late-season collapse after coughing up an 8 ½ game lead in the NL Central last season. The Phillies will try to use this series as a springboard in getting back to the post-season. This is a key four-game series for both teams, with the Brewers three games ahead of the Phillies in the NL Wild Card race after losing the series opener last night 6-3 in Philadelphia.

San Diego Chargers vs. Denver Broncos
Too many injuries for the Chargers to overcome this week, with Shawne Merriman on the mend until 2009 and now LaDainan Tomlinson and Antonio Gates each nursing injured big toes. (But both are expected to play on Sunday.) The Broncos offense appeared to be in mid-season form in their opener on Monday night.. Were they that good or were the Raiders that dreadful? That question will not be answered for at least another month, but a victory in this game could go a long way in establishing the Broncos as an AFC contender. Check your local CBS affiliate to see if they are televising this game at 4:00 PM ET.

After “not feeling right� during and after his team’s loss to the Carolina Panthers last Sunday, Chargers’ linebacker Shawne Merriman has decided to pull the plug on the 2008 season and opt for surgery to repair two torn ligaments in his knee. He’ll miss the remainder of the season.

The loss of Merriman, whose hard hits earned him the nickname “Lights Out,” is a big one for a team that has Super Bowl expectations.

“Shawne informed me he did not feel right and thought it best to shut it down,” Chargers general manager A.J. Smith said in a statement. “The road to winning the AFC West just got more difficult, but not impossible. Nothing is impossible. Shawne is a great player and an inspirational leader. He will be missed. We wish him a successful surgery and a speedy recovery.”

I’m no doctor but this had to be the right decision all along. Merriman was risking his career by playing on his damaged knee, a knee that four doctors advised him he had to have surgery on. Now he can have the surgery, go through the proper rehab steps and get back on the field again when he’s ready.

Obviously this is a huge blow for the Chargers, though. Merriman is a tad overrated given he’s not that great in coverage and really only provides an edge rush, but he often disrupts opposing teams’ rhythm by getting pressure on the quarterback and in the backfield. And it’ll be interesting to see if San Diego can bounce back from their last-second loss to the Panthers with a trip to division rival Denver this week.

1.Peyton Manning’s bursa sac/Colts’ offensive line play without Jeff Saturday. Manning had a bursa sac removed in one of his knees and might not be 100% by Sunday night when the Colts take on the Bears. Saturday is dealing with his own knee problems and will miss up to the first six weeks of the season. Chicago blitzes well, so it’ll be interesting to see how Manning moves in the pocket and if his timing will be off in the first quarter or half.

2. Ricky Williams. The Dolphins host the Jets on Sunday, a team that didn’t play well against the run last year. Williams looked good in preseason and might be a candidate to win the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year.

3. Tom Brady’s foot. Does he have a broken bone in his foot or not? The Patriots won’t tell, but it should be obvious if Brady looks hampered. He practiced all week and was taken off New England’s injury report so all indications are that he’s healthy. The Chiefs’ secondary is weak, but they do have a decent pass rush and could give Brady and the Pats some trouble.

4. Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco’s debuts. Forget about previous history – the Falcons and Ravens don’t care. They’re starting rookie quarterbacks and they’re ready to sink or swim with their young signal callers. Neither rookie QB plays a tough defense on Sunday (Ryan and the Falcons host Detroit, while Flacco and the Ravens host the Bengals) so maybe they could build some confidence in their first career starts.

5. Shawne Merriman’s knee. Merriman will play with a brace for most if not all of the season because of ligament damage in one of his knees. One hit could end his season (and possibly his career), but assuming he stays upright it’ll be interesting to see how well he moves with a brace on.

Growing up in the shadow of a famous father can be overwhelming for a child, and the challenge of following the footsteps of an older sibling can also be harmful for a kid’s ego. Then, there is Eli Manning’s childhood; his father (Archie Manning) was a football hero in the Deep South and his brother (Peyton Manning) is the advertising face of the NFL with countless commercials. And all he does is become the MVP of Super Bowl XLII, in which he led the New York Giants to an upset victory over the previous undefeated New England Patriots.

While having a successful senior year as a high school football player, Manning was still undecided on which university to attend in the fall. That changed after receiving a call from David Cutcliffe. The Manning family was familiar with him, as Cutcliffe was offensive coordinator at the University of Tennessee, and helped older brother Peyton elevate his overall game. He was named Head Coach of the University of Mississippi football team, and was hoping Eli Manning would become his first prize recruit in rebuilding the Rebel program. Upon hearing Cutcliffe’s recruiting pitch; Manning followed his father’s footstep, and became starting QB at Ole Miss.

Manning’s collegiate career was a lot like his personality: quiet but successful. He set or tied 45 single-game, season, and career records at Ole Miss. In his senior year, Manning won the Maxwell Award as the nation’s best all-around collegiate player, the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, and finished in third-place for the 2003 Heisman Trophy Award behind eventual winner Jason White, quarterback of Oklahoma, and University of Pittsburgh wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald.

Despite four different doctors advising him to have major reconstructive surgery on his knee, San Diego Chargers’ linebacker Shawne Merriman told FOX Sports.com columnist Jay Glazer that he will play in 2008.

“I know what’s at stake,” Merriman said Wednesday. “But I had a goal with the team before the season started, and I’m sticking to it.”

When asked how sure he was about playing, Merriman replied, “100 percent.”

Merriman has a torn PCL and LCL in his left knee, but has postponed the surgery necessary to deal with those issues. He sought the opinion of several noted specialists in the last week. While all of them recommended surgery, the decision was ultimately left to the player.

“I’m putting the surgery off until I need it,” he said.

Last weekend, as Merriman pondered his upcoming decision, he acknowledged the inherent risks in playing this season.

“It could be career-threatening if I did (play),” Merriman told The Associated Press. “It’s a possibility. That possibility is still open.”

Far be it for me to question an athlete regarding whether or not he should play injured, but I have to believe Merriman would be better off listening to the doctors on this one. It’s not like he sought out two medical opinions and got a split vote – four separate doctors told him that he needs major reconstructive surgery.

Merriman is incredibly tough and it’s admirable that he’s fulfilling a promise to help his team this season. I know it would kill him not to play the game he loves. But I hope for his sake that he doesn’t ruin his career by further damaging his knee.

Rotoworld.com reports that San Diego Chargers’ linebacker Shawne Merriman has not one, but two torn ligaments in his knee. The injuries are a threat to Merriman’s career.

Shawne Merriman revealed Saturday that his career could be over. In addition to a torn PCL, Merriman has a torn LCL in his left knee.

His knee requires extensive reconstructive surgery. Perhaps Merriman will chance it and play this year, but that would be foolish. His contract is up after the 2009 season and if he has the procedure, Merriman could try continuing his career afterwards. He’d risk more damage by playing on the knee in 2008. He needs to be removed from IDP draft boards.

That’s quite a reversal from Friday’s report, which stated that Merriman could play this year if he avoids surgery, or miss the entire season if he opts to have a procedure done. This is horrible news for such a young, productive player and while the Chargers’ defense is still quite good, losing Merriman would be a huge blow.

The San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that Chargers’ linebacker Shawne Merriman has ligment damage in his left knee and might miss the entire season if he opts for surgery.

“It’s finding out what do I need to fix, what I need to do,â€� Merriman said by phone. “If it’s left up to me, I want to play football. I can’t stand sitting out.â€�

Merriman’s options for fixing what he said was a torn posterior cruciate ligament (among other issues) in his left knee range from doing nothing to having a surgery that would delay the start of his season to undergoing reconstructive surgery that would keep him out all season.

On a semi-related note, the Tribune also noted that Chargers’ GM A.J. Smith isn’t too pleased with Merriman’s activities off the field.

Asked yesterday how he felt about Merriman’s latest venture, wherein the linebacker will fly from San Diego to Los Angeles after practice each Thursday and tape a show about the NFL on Fox Sports Net, Smith said this:

“My feeling about any of his off-the-field activities will be between me and Shawne. Shawne has many, many activities off the field, and that’s his business, along with his agents, marketing people, publicist and business partners. My only hope is that he remembers his high-level football performance is what drives his off-the-field attraction.â€�

Smith should be reminded that these players have lives off the football field. While it’s true Merriman is being paid millions of dollars to play football, it’s still only a job. If he wants to pursue other things off the field, it should be nobody’s business but his own.

Sources around the NFL are reporting that San Diego Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman will be suspended four games for violating the league’s substance abuse policy.

ESPN.com’s Chris Mortensen is reporting that Merriman’s suspension is likely due to actual steroids and not a dietary supplement like some athletes get caught with.

Merriman’s positive test was “definitely for steroids … not one of those supplement deals,” said a source with knowledge of Merriman’s suspension. Both the initial A sample and backup B sample came back positive, Mortensen reported.

Merriman was honored with the Defensive Rookie Player of the Year award last season in which he posted 54 tackles, 10 sacks and two forced fumbles. That award will undoubtedly be questioned with this suspension.

However, in due time, fans of the NFL have proven that they are much more forgiving than Major League Baseball fans. Just look at Julius Peppers. Nobody remembers that he was suspended in 2002 for violating the league’s substance abuse policy too.

It’s a shame that Merriman cheated, but it’s a bigger shame that we as NFL fans will most likely forget and forgive him as soon as he is back to entertaining us on the gridiron.