The ninth Sunday of NFL play shed some light on how the teams stack up. Here’s how I see it …

Vikings coach Brad Childress said Pro Bowl CB Antoine Winfield was able to take part in practice Monday — a portion of practice that wasn’t open to the media — as the team returned from its bye week.

The 2009 Bengals are no longer the same old squad, as evidenced by their 17-7 win over the Ravens on Sunday. They are, according to Cincinnati Enquirer columnist Paul Daugherty, the New Same Old Bengals (NSOBs).

As we reported last week, Steelers safety Ryan Clark will not play in Monday night’s game against the Denver Broncos, according to a league source.

This is an ultra competitive league, and if Larry Johnson is on the street as an unrestricted free agent, I’d expect someone to bring him in on the cheap.

Ken Whisenhunt isn’t concerned that Anquan Boldin was upset over not playing in Sunday’s 41-21 win over the Chicago Bears. In fact, it’s what the Arizona Cardinals coach wants to see out of one of his most competitive players.

Joey Porter said it, and the New England Patriots used it. Patriots QB Tom Brady said Monday that his team used Porter’s trash talk last week as motivation in Sunday’s 27-17 win.

The Kansas City Chiefs announced Monday that they’ve decided to release troubled RB Larry Johnson, a move that will have fantasy implications.

The Kansas City Chiefs released RB Larry Johnson on Monday, the same day he was eligible to return to the team following a one-week suspension.

Eagles coach Andy Reid will continue to be cautious with RB Brian Westbrook, who was held out of Sunday night’s game against the Cowboys after experiencing symptoms of a mild headache on Friday.

With all of the Week 9 action in the books, here’s a look at some of Sunday’s notable injuries we’re tracking.

Good news for Donovan McNabb and the Philadelphia Eagles — Pro Bowl LT Jason Peters has returned to Sunday night’s game against the Cowboys.

Philadelphia Eagles starting LT Jason Peters left Sunday night’s game against the Dallas Cowboys during the first quarter with what appears to be a serious left leg injury.

Fantasy owners should look to add Redskins RB Ladell Betts off the waiver wire next week.

The Philadelphia Eagles confirmed an earlier report by NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora that RB Brian Westbrook will miss Sunday’s game by listing him as inactive against the Dallas Cowboys.