The Sports Monitor

Adrian Peterson just capped one of the greatest seasons in NFL history. The Minnesota Vikings running back rushed for 2,097 yards, just a few feet short of Eric Dickerson's record of 2,105 set in 1984. Oh, he did it less than a year after a gruesome knee injury. Yet it's not a lock for him to win the league's MVP award. Some guy named Peyton Manning is getting a lot of the love. Manning finished the season with 4,659 yards and 37 touchdown passes with the Denver Broncos after missing the 2011 season with a career-threatening neck injury. Pretty impressive numbers, but A.P. is my pick, and it's not even close. Manning took over for a Broncos' team that made the playoffs in 2011. He has two high-end wide receivers in Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker. They have a solid running game with Knowshon Moreno and, before him, Willis McGahee. Peterson? He was the Vikings' offense. The Vikes lost their top receiver, Percy Harvin, and had no one else. The...

After going out and celebrating the Steelers' 27-17 win late Sunday night, I turned on a national talk radio show. I wanted to hear what they were saying about the Steelers' win. It turned out, the host wasn't all that impressed. He kept saying there was something missing from this Steelers team. Maybe he didn't watch the game. He could be going on accounts from stories or highlights. There wasn't much missing Sunday from the Steelers' win. In fact, it looked like their wins against the Chargers and Cowboys last season. Those were victories triggered by huge defensive plays. Their win against the Ravens in the AFC Championship Game had one too, if I remember correctly. The point is, the Steelers defense provided the signature moments throughout the 2008 season, except for that brilliant catch by Santonio Holmes in the Super Bowl. But the defense is back. The Minnesota Vikings have one heck of an offensive line, but the defense got pressure o...