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GLENDALE, Ariz. — Football in the NFC West was fun again Sunday.



Two teams with top-tier quarterbacks traded punches, sometimes literally, and the best team won.



Arizona’s 31-20 victory at University of Phoenix Stadium had the feel of a last stand for the Seattle Seahawks and an early NFC West coronation for the Cardinals.



“They gave us a helluva dogfight,” Cardinals defensive tackle Darnell Dockett said.



Seattle built a 14-0 lead by arming quarterback Matt Hasselbeck with an enterprising plan and a healthier offensive line. Seattle’s Justin Forsett rushed for 123 yards. The Seahawks landed their best shot squarely, but they couldn’t do any lasting damage, a harsh reminder of where they stand in relation to the defending and likely future division champs.



It felt to me as though Kurt Warner looked at his watch midway through the second quarter, stifled a yawn and then took over the game almost at will.



“I don’t think we wanted [the deficit] to get much bigger than that,” Warner said after passing for 340 yards and two touchdowns, “but I don’t think there was any panic at that point in time.”



And with rookie running back Beanie Wells growing into a more prominent role — he had 85 yards and two touchdowns — the Cardinals made progress toward fielding the type of offense that can compete and win come playoff time.



Arizona takes a 6-3 overall record and 4-0 road record to St. Louis in Week 11. The Seahawks take a 3-6 record to Minneapolis. The San Francisco 49ers, though still in the race, will have a hard time overcoming their two-game deficit in the standings — particularly with Warner playing so well.



Five more observations after Arizona defeated Seattle for the fourth consecutive time and sixth time in seven meetings:



1. It’s the quarterbacks



Hasselbeck’s final numbers suffered from two interceptions he threw while trying to rally Seattle in the final 6 minutes, but he and Warner made this game so much more fun to watch than, say, the Bears-49ers game Thursday night.



“We really set out and did everything that we talked about doing,” Hasselbeck said. “We just missed some opportunities in the red zone.”



Warner averaged 8.9 yards per attempt against Seattle even though the Seahawks surprised him with their scheme.



“The one thing that really surprised me is that they didn’t bring very much pressure,” Warner said. “That was something that was different to me from a coach [Jim] Mora team. He likes to change it up and he likes to bring a variety of pressures, and that’s one thing we didn’t see.”



Seattle dropped eight defenders into coverage, sometimes using veteran safety Lawyer Milloy as a linebacker. The Seahawks badly needed defensive end Patrick Kerney to win one-on-one matchups against the Cardinals’ tackles, something Kerney did routinely when this rivalry wasn’t so lopsided. It didn’t happen.



2. Fines could be forthcoming



Any game featuring 934 yards, 51 first downs and 26 called penalties is going to be wild.



Both teams took questionable shots at the quarterbacks, and the Seahawks lost running back Julius Jones to a broken rib.



Dockett appeared to tackle Hasselbeck out of bounds early in the game, though he avoided a penalty. Hasselbeck also accused Dockett of elbowing him in the throat after a sack. Dockett denied the charge.



Seahawks safety Deon Grant shoved Wells after the ninth play of the Cardinals’ 13-play touchdown drive to open the third quarter. Wells responded with a roundhouse punch/slap to the helmet, drawing a 15-yard penalty.



Seattle’s Cory Redding made a hit on Warner count by laying on the quarterback as if attempting to grind him into the turf. Officials later flagged Cardinals nose tackle Bryan Robinson for a personal foul.



In the end, though, there was respect.



“To come back with all the injuries and adversity and missing some of his line, to go out there and compete, I take my hat off to him,” Dockett said of Hasselbeck.



3. Seattle did make progress, but …



The Seahawks had all 53 players healthy enough to play for the second week in a row. And with Sean Locklear back in the lineup at left tackle, the offensive line was as good as it could be without Walter Jones, who remains on injured reserve.



“It doesn’t feel like it right now,” Mora said, “but I think when we look back at this, we’ll see that we did improve as a football team.”



T.J. Houshmandzadeh caught nine passes for 165 yards. The diminutive Forsett hid behind his linemen and gave the Cardinals problems all game. Hasselbeck pushed the offensive tempo effectively throughout, helping Seattle amass 472 yards and 29 first downs while converting 40 percent of its third downs.



I’m torn, though, on what to make of it.



All of those things were true, but the Seahawks still weren’t all that close to winning, even with the fast start.



Rookie fourth overall draft choice Aaron Curry did not stand out. Kerney could not dominate a matchup that once prevented the Cardinals from functioning offensively. The Cardinals’ offensive linemen sometimes moved Seattle nose tackle Colin Cole off the ball to clear running lanes. Arizona overwhelmed the Seahawks’ protection with all-out blitzes.



And with Minnesota on the schedule, it’s a stretch to think the Seahawks will build upon this effort right away.



4. An angry Boldin isn’t always a bad thing for Arizona.



Anquan Boldin was furious last week when the Cardinals named him inactive at the last possible moment, allegedly without informing him properly. He played with obvious passion Sunday, reaching the ball ahead for extra yardage and avoiding the fumbles that sometimes result from such tactics.



Boldin hurt the Seahawks with eight receptions for 105 yards. The Cardinals have won five of the last six games Boldin has missed, but they needed him Sunday. Boldin’s 37-yard catch-and-run in the fourth quarter helped put away Seattle.



5. Nate Burleson should hold off on the predictions.



Seattle’s leading receiver entered Week 10 predicting a Seahawks victory.



Burleson finished the game Sunday with zero catches. Cardinals cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie dominated their matchup. And when the Seahawks needed a reception in the fourth quarter, Burleson and Hasselbeck weren’t on the same page, resulting in an incomplete pass even though Burleson was open.



Houshmandzadeh had more room to talk after averaging 18.3 yards per reception.



“I don’t see nobody on our schedule that can beat us, in my eyes, not if we play the way we should play,” Houshmandzadeh said.



The Vikings must be trembling.

INDIANAPOLIS — The Colts got a big sack from Robert Mathis, but they’ve generally been unable to harass Tom Brady and that’s been a big piece of their problem Sunday night.



Mathis just got Brady and forced a fumble, but Dan Koppen recovered and New England retained possession.



Dwight Freeney came into the game as an under-appreciated defensive player of the year candidate, I thought, with at least a sack in every game and 9.5 total.



Pregame thinking was that Freeney would be able to get underneath the pads of rookie left tackle Sebastian Vollmer, who’s 6-8. But while Vollmer’s had some help, more from backs than tight ends, Freeney’s not found any avenues for using the size to Vollmer’s disadvantage.



I just locked in on the matchup for a couple snaps. Vollmer appears to be having no difficulties.

SAN DIEGO — Perhaps the Philadelphia Eagles should just save themselves the jet fuel in future West Coast trips. Sunday’s 31-23 loss to the San Diego Chargers wasn’t quite as embarrassing as going belly up in the Black Hole, but it had its moments.



With the defense short on quality personnel, the Eagles needed their offense to realize its explosive potential and beat the Chargers in a shootout. But by the time wide receiver Jason Avant decided to take over the game, the Eagles had already dug themselves too deep a hole to overcome.



Donovan McNabb‘s eye-popping 35-of-55 for 450 yards and two touchdowns will please fantasy owners, but those are empty numbers when it comes to this team’s win total, which by the way is stuck on five. By taking the weekend off, the New York Giants leaped into a second-place tie with the Eagles at 5-4, and the Dallas Cowboys fell to 6-3 with a 17-7 loss in Green Bay. The Eagles are still in the thick of the playoff race, which says more about the watered-down NFC than it does about anything this team has actually accomplished.



The Eagles’ defense found a way to revive LaDainian Tomlinson‘s fading career, allowing him to rush for 96 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Eagles defensive coordinator Sean McDermott paid homage to Tomlinson after the game, but he tacked on a few harsh words for his players.



“When you play passive football, and not attacking, any running back’s going to have a good day,” McDermott said.



But it’s hard to pick on a unit that was filled out by such immortals as Dimitri Patterson and Ramzee Robinson. On the play that the Chargers basically sealed the win late in the fourth quarter, McDermott called for safety Quintin Mikell to cover Pro Bowl tight end Antonio Gates. The Eagles actually have a puncher’s chance in that matchup, but someone on the field checked out of that coverage, which forced Patterson to cover Gates instead. Rivers connected with Gates for a 17-yard completion — and the Eagles began preparing for the in-flight movie.



“Yeah, if we could go back to that, we’d probably make a different check,” Mikell deadpanned.



But at least the defense had some legitimate excuses for yielding 31 points. The Eagles’ offense had all of its weapons on the field during the second half. They were missing left tackle Jason Peters (ankle), but McNabb had plenty of time to deliver the ball throughout the game.



After falling behind 14-0, the Eagles drove 77 yards and had first-and-goal at the Chargers’ 1-yard line after Jeremy Maclin drew a pass interference penalty from Quentin Jammer. Three failed plays later, the Eagles were forced to settle for an 18-yard field goal.



On first down, Eagles fullback Leonard Weaver was stuffed for no gain, and on the next play McNabb fired an incomplete pass to Brent Celek in the corner of the end zone. On third-and-goal from the 1, coach Andy Reid decided it was a good spot to give rookie Eldra Buckley the first meaningful carry of his career. Former Cowboys linebacker Kevin Burnett blew up the play.



“When we get in there, we take a lot of pride in scoring touchdowns and not field goals,” Reid said. “When you’re that close with a first down, you expect to get in there, especially when you’ve seen [the Chargers] do it the week before, you want to use that and better yourself off somebody else’s errors. We weren’t able to do that.”



The Eagles made two other trips inside the Chargers’ 10-yard line that resulted in field goals. Trailing 21-6 in the third quarter, Reid opted to kick the field goal when the Eagles had a fourth-and-1 at the Chargers’ 7-yard line. Avant could be seen mouthing the words, “C’mon coach!” in frustration as Reid sent David Akers onto the field.



For all of his offensive genius, Reid may be among the worst multi-taskers in the league. His problems with game management (burn those timeouts early) are well-documented, but you also have to question his game planning after Sunday’s loss.



It took another Brian Westbrook concussion for rookie LeSean McCoy to get involved Sunday. McCoy had only two carries in the first half. And we’re not talking about a guy who’s been a fringe participant on this team. He’s been one of the top rookies in the league, but Reid couldn’t find a way to get him involved.



The coach said last week that Westbrook and McCoy probably would rotate series, but that’s not what happened. At halftime, the Eagles had eight carries for 9 yards. McCoy, who finished with three carries for 5 yards, was at a loss for words as he was asked to explain his limited role.



“I really can’t answer that,” said McCoy. “It was kind of a normal week. There really wasn’t a big difference.”



I’ve heard some people within the organization suggest that Reid doesn’t trust McCoy as a pass-blocker, but that’s not a concern as long as McCoy has the ball in his hands. I think Reid spent the week trying to make sure Westbrook was featured in the game plan — to the detriment of McCoy.



Reid devoted more time to calling plays for Reggie Brown (yes, still on the roster) than he did for one of the league’s most talented rookie running backs. The Eagles had so much success with the big play in the first half of the season that they’ve forgotten how to score from point-blank range.



The silver lining for the Eagles is that they appear to be surrounded by mediocrity in the NFC East. Oh, and the West Coast portion of their schedule is complete.

INDIANAPOLIS — NBC “Football Night in America” host Bob Costas sat down for an interview with Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning as part of Sunday night’s pregame show.



A couple of passages from the segment …



Manning’s thoughts on Tom Brady:

“I can’t tell you where he ranks. I can tell you what a great quarterback he is or what a great leader he is. Certainly, when the stakes are at their highest, that’s when he seems to shine and make the most plays. At the end of the AFC Championship [Game] a few years ago, I don’t usually pray during a game but I just knew I gave Brady a minute, 23 [seconds]. That’s just way too much time. … He’s made the hard look easy. He’s one of the best.”

Manning on the great quarterbacks who didn’t win a Super Bowl:

“I still defend [Dan] Marino. I still defend [Fran] Tarkenton. I still defend Jim Kelly. All I know is what great quarterbacks they were. I’ve seen guys change when they’ve won one. They kind of say, ‘I’m out of that club now. I’m in this new club.’ I kind of like being in the old club with guys who just played their butts off every single Sunday. Jim Kelly, Marino, Tarkenton, John Stockton, you get guys not just in the NFL. I admire those guys for how long they played, how well they competed, how hard they competed. That’s really all I want.”

Bengals WR was fined $20,000 for pretending to offer a ref a $1 bribe, but Shannon Sharpe thinks that fine should be much steeper.

INDIANAPOLIS — A few quick observations from Lucas Oil Stadium, where the New England Patriots lead the Indianapolis Colts by 10 points and will get the ball to start the second half.



Tom Brady and Randy Moss have been the stars of the show so far. Brady has completed 11 of 19 attempts for 237 yards and two touchdowns. Moss has 144 of those yards on four catches.



The Patriots’ offense looks intriguing if they stay with Julian Edelman and Isaiah Stanback — two college quarterbacks who could help them get creative in the future.



Edelman returned after missing two games with a broken right forearm. He has two catches for 14 yards and his first NFL touchdown. Stanback has one catch for 9 yards, but he has been on the field often.



Colts tight end Dallas Clark singed the Patriots for 25 yards on the first play of their second drive but otherwise has been rather quiet. He had one more grab for 12 yards, but that has been it so far.



The Patriots lost outside linebacker Tully Banta-Cain (ribs) and his replacement Rob Ninkovich (knee).



Rookie left tackle Sebastian Vollmer has done well a second straight game. He shut out Joey Porter last week and has kept Dwight Freeney from getting to Brady so far Sunday night.

INDIANAPOLIS — A lot of bad things have converged for the Colts, who trail the Patriots 24-14. Certainly New England is making much of it happen.



Peyton Manning has been hit a bunch, which has affected his accuracy, as you’d expect.



Linebacker Derrick Burgess, coming from Manning’s left, has applied heat a couple of times. Jerod Mayo blitzed untouched to nail Manning for an 11-yard loss on a play that left left tackle Charlie Johnson with his palms raised in a “what happened” expression.



The drops are harder to explain. Austin Collie had a bad one, and while Pierre Garcon has been well defended, he’s going to wish he had a couple back.



But the offense is under pressure to close the gap because of defensive failures, and it’s not just Randy Moss who has been running free. Ben Watson and others have had turns.



Now we see what sort of halftime adjustments Jim Caldwell and his staff can make and how well prepared they are for what Bill Belichick and his assistants have in store going forward.

LaDainian Tomlinson scored twice to continue his climb up the career rushing and scoring lists, and the San Diego Chargers beat the Philadelphia Eagles 31-23 on Sunday to pull into a tie atop the AFC West with the slumping Denver Broncos.

After the Denver Broncos outclassed the San Diego Chargers at home on Oct. 19, Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman remained calm.



“We’ll see those guys again,” Merriman said. “This thing isn’t over.”



The next week, when the Chargers began the first of their four-game rehabilitation tour, San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers preached patience.



“We just have to start winning games and hopefully in a month we’ll look up and be in good shape,” Rivers said.



These Chargers are masters of knowing how a season can suddenly change for the better. And the Broncos apparently are masters of blowing commanding leads.



It sets the stage for a juicy showdown in Denver on Sunday between two 6-3 teams that will go a long way toward settling the AFC West. San Diego has an easier schedule down the stretch. The Broncos must sweep the Chargers to get the tiebreaker in the division.



A season after Mike Shanahan’s 14-year reign in Denver ended because of a historic three-game collapse that resulted in San Diego remarkably winning the division, Josh McDaniels’ Broncos have put together a three-game collapse of their own.



When Denver flew home after its 34-23 win over the Chargers 27 days ago, it had a 3.5 game lead in the AFC West. The Broncos were 6-0 and the Chargers were 2-3. No NFL team has ever had a 3.5-game division lead and not made the playoffs.



It seemed over in the West. Not anymore.



Denver, the feel-good story of the early season, has soiled its perfect start with three straight losses.



The Broncos hit rock bottom with a loss at Washington on Sunday. Losing to Baltimore and Pittsburgh was understandable. But losing to the Redskins is inexcusable for a team in a serious playoff hunt.



While Denver, which has fallen apart on both sides of the ball in the past three weeks, has crashed back to earth, the Chargers have ignited. They’ve won four straight games, including wins over the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles in consecutive weeks.



While Denver, which played in the second half without quarterback Kyle Orton because of an ankle injury, couldn’t avoid a trap in Washington before next week’s showdown with the Chargers, San Diego did what it took to defeat the Eagles. San Diego — which was aware of Denver’s loss — was in control all game Sunday in a 31-23 win over the Eagles.



The Chargers are starting to play their best football of the season. Running back LaDainian Tomlinson had his best game of the year Sunday, running for 96 yards. The passing game remained strong and the Chargers’ rushing game, which entered the game ranked last in the NFL, came alive. Defensively, the Chargers have been solid during the four-game streak.



Denver is falling and San Diego is rising. We’ve seen this movie before.



The Chargers, who have won three straight AFC West titles, were 5-5 in 2007 before winning six straight games. Last season, San Diego started 4-8 and ended up becoming the only 4-8 team ever to make the playoffs. San Diego gained three games on Denver in the final three weeks.



We never thought we’d see it happen again. Or, at least, not so soon. But the Rocky Mountain meltdown watch is officially on again.