10.20.08 MONDAY SUCK-OFF: WASHED-UP OLD QB’S

Plenty of suckiness to go around yesterday, especially if you had the misfortune of watching the dreary Raiders-Jets overtime game or the Browns-Redskins slog.  Some teams performed with the expected amount of suckiness — the Lions, Chiefs, Seahawks, and Bengals all looked like their usual crappy selves — while others took the opportunity to look at their level of sky-high potential and skill and say, “Let’s take the week off, fellas.”  This latter category includes the Saints, whose high-powered offense was stifled by the Panthers, and the Colts, who just look old and slow and generally bad this season.

Our special category for sucking today, though, focuses on aging journeymen quarterbacks whose best qualities have always been how good they look holding a clipboard.  Sometimes in the NFL, these men start games.  And they end up playing like Gus Frerotte, whose four interceptions single-handedly kept the Vikings from winning the 48-41 slugfest in Chicago.  (Although to be fair, the Vikes’ special teams deserves equal blame for that one.  Who knew punting was so hard?)

Frerotte, however, comes in second place behind this week’s Suck-Off winner, Brad Johnson and the Cowboys.  Two weeks ago, the Cowboys were the cream of the NFC crop, a Super Bowl favorite if they could escape the crucible of the NFC East.  Well, Dallas couldn’t even escape the lukewarm Tupperware of the NFC West.  After a loss to the Cardinals last week, the Romo-less ‘Boys turned to Brad Johnson to get them past the Rams, who two weeks ago were the worst team in the league.  He threw three interceptions, and St. Louis, which had scored four offensive touchdowns all year, doubled its output in a 34-14 beatdown in whatever they call the dome in St. Louis these days.