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Aaron Brooks out 4-6 weeks

Per Jonathan Feigen…

Just visited with Aaron Brooks. Said he’ll be out four to six weeks.

The Rockets are 1-5 and can ill-afford to lose Brooks for any length of time, though they have one of the best backup point guards in the league in Kyle Lowry.

Complicating matters, the Rockets play five of their next six (and 14-of-23) games on the road.

Houston is scoring well (112.0 ppg, second only to the Lakers), but they’re giving up the second-most points as well. Their FG% allowed (44%) isn’t bad, but the Rockets are 26th in the league in defensive rebounding, so teams are getting loads of extra possessions.

Brad Childress picks an odd time to poke fun at Brett Favre

NEW ORLEANS - JANUARY 24: Head coach Brad Childress of the Minnesota Vikings looks on against the New Orleans Saints during the NFC Championship Game at the Louisana Superdome on January 24, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Do you know that guy that can’t help but to say stupid things at the most inopportune times? The guy that’s trying to be funny but everything comes out wrong and he only winds up looking like an idiot?

I think Brad Childress is that guy.

Following the Vikings’ dramatic come-from-behind win over the Cardinals on Sunday (a game in which Brett Favre threw for a career-high in yardage and rallied Minnesota from two touchdowns down in the fourth quarter), Childress took the opportunity to poke fun at his aging quarterback.

Asked if he wanted any assurances from owner Zygi Wilf that he would be retained as the Vikings’ head coach for the remainder of the season, Childress said, “No, I’m not going to stand her like Brett Favre and tell you, compassionate, I need a hug. I’m all right.”

Childress’ comment was referring to Favre’s answer to a question on Wednesday in which the quarterback joking said, “Is [Childress] compassionate as in give us a hug or something? Boy, I sure could use one, too.”

Granted, Childress was only taking a stab at some lighthearted humor but a) it wasn’t funny and b) it didn’t make sense to anyone who didn’t hear Favre’s original comment. So Childress came off sounding like a jerk just moments after Favre essentially saved his job with that thrilling victory.

At the end of the day, what Childress said wasn’t a big deal. But this is a man who waived Randy Moss without anyone (most notably Wilf) knowing, was booed by his home crowd when he stepped on the field for pre-game warm ups, then needed Favre to orchestrate a come-from-behind win against a lousy Arizona team and yet he found it appropriate to make a joke at his quarterback’s expense following the game. Just shut up already and be thankful you still have a job.

Fantasy Fallout, Week 9: Where Philip Rivers doesn’t care if he has anyone to throw to

I saw a funny line on Twitter yesterday that went, “At some point, Philip Rivers is going to drop back, look down field and see nothing.” With all the injuries the Chargers have suffered to their receiving corps — Malcom Floyd, Legedu Naanee, Antonio Gates — Rivers is seemingly running out of options, but you wouldn’t know it by the numbers (295 yards, 4 TDs) he put up against the Texans. I mentioned rookie Seyi Ajirotutu (4-111-2) as a good desperation play in my weekly Love ‘Em & Leave ‘Em picks, and I wish I would have taken my own advice. (I picked up Michael Jenkins instead, on Falcon super-fan Anthony Stalter’s advice. Thanks for nothing, Stalter.) Randy McMichael (2-23-2) caught only two passes, but they were both TDs. Ryan Mathews (11 touches, 60 yards) had a nice thing going before he left the game with an ankle injury. For the Texans, Owen Daniels was a scratch and Joel Dreessen (5-66) had the second-most yards of any Texan receiver. Andre Johnson (4-41) was quiet.

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Wade Phillips must go

ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 19: Head coach Wade Phillips of the Dallas Cowboys reacts during a 27-20 loss against the Chicago Bears at Cowboys Stadium on September 19, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

The Packers showed up to Lambeau Field on Sunday night and to their surprise, it was “Free Win Night” at the stadium.

I hear the Giants have the same promotion schedule for next Sunday in East Rutherford.

Pathetic, unmotivated, horrendous, brutal, horrible, terrible – they all work when describing the 2010 Dallas Cowboys. They don’t tackle, they don’t block, and they sure as hell don’t care. They’re laughingstock of the NFL right now.

And losing Tony Romo isn’t an excuse. Jon Kitna is useless but he doesn’t play defense. He doesn’t stand in the backfield and allow blitzing linebackers to have a free shot on the quarterback. He’s a part of the nightmare in Dallas but a small one at that.

So is Wade Phillips for that matter. What do you want Phillips to do? He has a roster full of players that are clearly only interested in picking up a paycheck every two weeks, so do you want him to hop up and down? Scream and yell? Do the rah-rah speech? That’s not his style and it never has been. The only thing he can do is go about his daily routine until Jerry Jones says, “Hey Wade, we need to talk. Come into my office…now.”

Which should be soon, by the way. After the Cowboys were destroyed 45-7 by the aforementioned Packers on Sunday Night Football, there’s no way Jones can retain Phillips for another week, day, minute or second. The big picture (making the playoffs) has been destroyed, but Jones might as well see what he has in Jason Garrett. Garrett has completely lost whatever touch he had as a playcaller, but what the hell – Jones is paying him top dollar so he might as well see what the redhead can do over the next eight weeks.

I hate to see anyone lose their job but this is a performance-based business and the Cowboys ain’t performing. I’m sure Jones would like to jettison a handful of players as well, but he has to start with the head coach first. Phillips is done; what more is there to see?

As for the Packers, this was a great win (especially with how banged up this team is) but it’s hard to talk them up given how unmotivated the Cowboys were. That’s not the Packers’ fault, of course, and I’m not taking anything away from their truly dominating performance. But I’m not going to sit here and tickle their balls after the sewer water the Cowboys just made us swallow.

Still, despite all of their injuries, the last two weeks have reaffirmed that the Packers’ Super Bowl hopes have not been dashed.

Michael Vick has matured as a quarterback

ARLINGTON, TX - JANUARY 9: Michael Vick #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on from the sideline in the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys during the 2010 NFC wild-card playoff game at Cowboys Stadium on January 9, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

When everyone was drinking the Michael Vick Kool-Aid earlier this season, I told anyone that would listen to hold off on naming the Philadelphia quarterback Comeback Player of the Year. The reason being was that I was waiting for him to revert back to the quarterback he was in Atlanta (i.e. a player who would frustrate you with his poor decision making just as quickly as he would dazzle you with his highlight reel skills).

But after observing him in the Eagles’ 26-24 win over the Colts on Sunday, the only thing I’ll say now is pass the Kool-Aid because I would love to take a sip.

Vick is a different player now than what he was in Atlanta. Not only is he making better in-game decisions, but he seems more prepared, calmer in the pocket and is allowing the game to come to him. He used to try to get by on his God-given talent but he appears to be reading defenses better now than at any point during his tenure with the Falcons.

Against Indy, he completed 17-of-29 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown while rushing for 74 yards and a score on 10 carries. But stats don’t tell the whole story. When he had time to throw, he went through all of his progressions before finding open receivers. When Dwight Freeney (who played an undisciplined game, might I add) would race up the field trying to crash the pocket, Vick would make one move before picking up first downs with his legs. Sounds simple enough, but these are things he would only do part of the time in Atlanta.

The old Michael Vick may have found a way to lose on Sunday. He would have run too much, tired himself out and then fumbled with the game on the line when he could barely catch his breath. Or he would have forced a pass over the middle thinking the rocket launcher he has for an arm could throw the ball through any window.

But not this year’s Vick. This year’s Vick is patient, smart, and he’s careful with the football. He’s a team player now and a different quarterback – a mature one.

Maybe Vick will eventually revert back to the way he was in Atlanta and this fairytale will have a horrible ending. There’s still a lot of season left and Vick will have plenty of chances to either will his team to victory or succumb to failure. But if he continues to play like he has this season, the Eagles will be dangerous come January.

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