A tough Week 9 loss to the Patriots left Dolphins LB Joey Porter without much to say — at least nothing worthy of a bulletin board.

Porter was dressed like Johnny Cash — aka, The Man in Black — and jokingly said during his weekly Thursday appearance on NFL Network that the Dolphins’ 27-17 defeat was “like a funeral.”

“You know, even me, I know that after you lose a game and you don’t perform, at some point in time, you have to take a step back,” Porter said. “We lost a tough one that we wanted to win and was going to put us in a better situation than we’re in now. But, at the same time, they won that game. Now we’re on to the next. We have to get ready for Tampa.”

Last week, Porter expressed his belief that NFL officials treat New England’s Tom Brady differently than other quarterbacks and admitted that he had long hated the Patriots. Brady responded by telling The Boston Globe he didn’t believe he had ever influenced a call and later said after the game that Porter’s comments had motivated the Patriots.

Porter didn’t duck any questions about his previous comments and acknowledged that his stat line — zero tackles — was posted on the Gillette Stadium scoreboard after last Sunday’s game.

“Yeah, I thought it was pretty funny,” Porter said. “It’s all in fun and games. But, at the same time, we still have to see them one more time in a little bit. They didn’t put the stats up there the last time I was there. They had the upper hand and put the stats on the board when they won. They did a good job with that. I’m not mad at them.”

Porter and the 3-5 Dolphins will have time to right the ship because only one of their next six opponents has a winning record. That opponent is the Patriots, in Week 13 at Miami.

NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock will take some time out from breaking down the film to break down your questions during a live chat on NFL.com on Thursday, November 12 at Noon ET. Submit your questions for Mike now and then come back and follow along in the discussion.

Mike joins Brian Billick and host Solomon Wilcots on Playbook every Tuesday and Wednesday, breaking down the previous week’s action. Playbook airs four days a week (Tuesday through Friday) on NFL Network at 6 p.m. ET.

Billick also held his weekly live chat on Tuesday, November 10. Check out the transcript here.

As usual when these teams meet, the game everyone is looking forward to this Sunday occurs at Indianapolis where the Colts and Patriots resume their heated rivalry. The Colts may be the lone remaining unbeaten in the AFC, but two of our three NFL Network Playbook analysts (Sterling Sharpe and Joe Theismann) predict the Patriots will hand them their first loss of the year.

Not only is Brian Baldinger alone in thinking that Indianapolis will move to 9-0, he is also alone in his belief that the reeling Redskins will give the Broncos their third consecutive loss.

In the AFC’s other marquee battle, it is Theismann standing on his own picking the Bengals, while Baldinger and Sharpe both like the Steelers.

Without further ado, take a look at all of their Week 10 picks:

Playbook airs Tuesday through Friday at 6 p.m. ET. It combines Xs-and-Os analysis of each NFL game with roundtable debates on the NFL’s hottest topics. For more information, check out NFL Network’s broadcast schedule.

Giants coach Tom Coughlin charged the team’s stars — LB Antonio Pierce and QB Eli Manning — to perform better in an attempt to halt the team’s three-game losing streak.

So, what’s wrong with Manning? His performance has noticeably declined after a blistering start. His completion percentage is below 50 percent over the past three weeks, and he has a rating of 54.4 while throwing three touchdown passes and six interceptions.

NFL Network analyst Trent Green offered Tuesday that the foot injury Manning suffered in a Week 4 game at Kansas City could be messing with his mechanics. But Green himself pointed out that Manning had a perfect passer rating the following week against the Raiders.

Manning refuted Green’s assertion that the foot injury is affecting him, telling reporters Wednesday that his mechanics are fine.

“You can get off a little bit, and it is just all repetition and getting back to it at practice and working on things,” Manning said. “I think for the most part I am throwing the ball pretty accurately. There are always a couple throws that you want to have back, but for us, it is just getting back to being consistent and getting into our rhythm and not getting so down that we kind of get out of our style of offense.”

Green again said on Wednesday’s NFL Total Access that mechanics must be dogging Manning.

Or are they?

Manning’s hot start came against some of the worst defenses in the NFL — Dallas (22nd), Tampa Bay (28th), Kansas City (30th) and Oakland (26th). It’s not surprising that he put up huge numbers against those teams.

Manning also faded at the end of last season, throwing just three touchdown passes in the final five weeks and topping 200 passing yards twice in his final 12 games. So is this a matter of Manning struggling, or Eli just being Eli?

The defending champion Steelers have struggled on the road this year at 1-2, with that one victory being a pretty narrow decision against the struggling Lions. The Broncos, meanwhile, have played lights out at home, posting a perfect 3-0 mark at Invesco Field.

Consider our NFL Network Playbook analysts unconvinced. They unanimously think Pittsburgh will hand Denver its second straight loss.

Want another surprising pick that Sterling Sharpe, Brian Baldinger and Joe Theismann all agree on? How about their prediction that the Chargers will travel across the country and hand the Giants their fourth straight loss.

Without further ado, take a look at all of their Week 9 picks:

Playbook airs Tuesday through Friday at 6 p.m. ET. It combines Xs-and-Os analysis of each NFL game with roundtable debates on the NFL’s hottest topics. For more information, check out NFL Network’s broadcast schedule.

NFL Network analyst and former NFL head coach Brian Billick will be chatting live with fans Tuesday on NFL.com at  6:30 p.m. ET. Submit your questions for Brian now, and then check back and follow along as he takes a look back at the action in Week 8.

Brian joins analyst Mike Mayock and host Solomon Wilcots on NFL Network’s Playbook every Tuesday and Wednesday, breaking down the previous week’s action. Playbook airs four days a week (Tuesday through Friday) on NFL Network at 6 p.m. ET.

When Brett Favre steps onto Lambeau Field on Sunday as a member of the Minnesota Vikings, there’s sure to be a mixed reaction of boos and cheers for the former Packers quarterback.

NFL Network analyst Steve Mariucci suspects it will be more of the latter.

“It’s going to be like the Beatles going on The Ed Sullivan Show,” Mariucci said last Sunday on NFL GameDay Morning.

We’ll soon find out what Favre thinks the reaction to his return will be. Mariucci visits with Favre in Minneapolis on Thursday for a sit-down interview that will air Sunday on NFL GameDay Morning, NFL Network’s four-hour pregame show starting at 9 a.m. ET.

Favre and Mariucci have a unique relationship that goes back to their days in Green Bay. Mariucci has interviewed the NFL great several times for NFL Network, some of the lighter moments captured in the video above.

Brett Favre returns to Lambeau Field this week for the first time since the 2007 NFC Championship Game, where his final pass as a Packer landed in the hands of cornerback Corey Webster, leading to an improbable Giants victory.

Maybe it’s that memory that has all three of our Playbook prognosticators picking the Packers to beat the Vikings on Sunday. Or maybe is was Minnesota’s loss to Pittsburgh that has the trio tripping over each other to jump off the Vikings’ bandwagon. Or maybe Green Bay’s dominating performances in back-to-back weeks has them suddenly jumping on the Packers.

Whatever the reason, it’s one of eight matchups in Week 8 that Sterling Sharpe, Brian Baldinger and Joe Theismann all agree on. Here are their picks:

Playbook airs Tuesday through Friday at 6 p.m. ET. It combines Xs-and-Os analysis of each NFL game with roundtable debates on the NFL’s hottest topics. For more information, check out NFL Network’s broadcast schedule.

Alex Smith has been named the starting quarterback for the 49ers. But what happens next in his second stint as the starter is anyone’s guess.

NFL Network analyst Brian Billick was on hand to call last week’s matchup between the 49ers and Texans, in which Smith nearly led a 21-point second-half comeback by completing 15 of 22 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns. Billick was impresssed by the performance.

“It was fun to watch Alex Smith get the opportunity to get himself back into the offense,” Billick told fans during his live chat on NFL.com. “He did show he can play this game. He may have that potential, with the addition of players like Michael Crabtree and the emergence of Vernon Davis, to do it for the 49ers.”

The qualifier, Billick believes, is whether the 49ers will choose to adjust their offense to fit Smith’s strengths. Smith, who excelled in the spread offense at Utah under Urban Meyer, is at his best in that format. 49ers coach Mike Singletary, however, promised a power-running attack that focused on RB Frank Gore this season.

“I think San Francisco will have to make a fundamental decision,” Billick said. “Do they want to put him back into the formation and format of running the ball and playing good defense, which they’ve been fairly good with, or do they really allow him to open it up, much like he did in the second half of the Texans game?

“They have the assets to spread it out if they want.”

NFL Network analyst and former Pro Bowl receiver Sterling Sharpe will be back for his weekly live chat with fans on NFL.com on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET. Submit your questions for Sterling now and then check back to follow along as he discusses the latest topics around the league and looks ahead to the Week 8 matchups.

Sterling joins analysts Brian Baldinger and Joe Theismann on Thursdays for AFC Playbook and Fridays for NFC Playbook. Playbook airs four days a week (Tuesday through Friday) on NFL Network at 6 p.m. ET.

NFL Network analyst and former head coach Brian Billick will be chatting live with fans Tuesday on NFL.com at  7:15 p.m. ET. Submit your questions for Brian now, and then check back and follow along as he takes a look back at the action in Week 7.

Brian joins analyst Mike Mayock and host Solomon Wilcots on NFL Network’s Playbook every Tuesday and Wednesday, breaking down the previous week’s action. Playbook airs four days a week (Tuesday through Friday) on NFL Network at 6 p.m. ET.

Regardless whether or not Panthers coach John Fox already knows if he’s benching veteran QB Jake Delhomme, we’re not likely to find out soon, judging by Monday’s news conference. It’s a decision that Fox likely will make later in the week after breaking down the tape and meeting with his staff, but he was vague enough in his comments that which way he’s leaning is still a mystery.

Either way, Fox’s decision can’t be an easy one, given both Delhomme’s status as the NFL leader in interceptions and his tenure as the Panthers’ starter since early in the 2003 season.

NFL Network’s Mike Martz knows a thing or two about Fox’s dilemma, having gone through a similar situation with his own veteran, Kurt Warner, as head coach of the Rams. Martz offered some insight into Fox’s decision-making process.

“There’s a loyalty between John Fox and Jake Delhomme that people need to understand,” Martz said. ”This is a guy in Delhomme who took the Panthers to the Super Bowl, has been in the Pro Bowl and played at a high level. I think the first thing they need to look at is what’s happened to Delhomme, why these turnovers are happening and look at it from a very analytical standpoint — make sure Delhomme is the problem.

“If you look at it over the long haul — and I’m not just talking about one or two games but the whole season — and these issues keep coming surfacing, then perhaps it is time to make a change. But if you keep seeing other issues that are involved that are out of Delhomme’s control, you need to change what you’re doing and go with him.”

And that’s the looming question for Fox to decipher — how much of this is on Delhomme? Once that’s decided, what are Fox’s real options?

“I do know this: Turnovers will demoralize a team faster than anything else and change momentum,” Martz said. “Right now this is a huge issue for the Panthers. If these turnovers are because it’s a disconnect with someone, or problems with protection, or he’s just making bad decisions, all of these things have to be looked at closely.”

Playbook analyst Brian Baldinger may have made the lamentable choice of picking the Titans to upset the Patriots in Week 6, but he made up for it by being the only one to predict the Vikings would upend the Ravens. Mr. Limb, meet Mr. Baldinger.

One of the interesting storylines this week involves the Raiders and Jets. After a solid start to the season, Oakland was outscored 96-16 in Weeks 3-5, before rebounding with a stunning win over the Eagles on Sunday. The Jets, meanwhile have lost three in a row after starting 3-0. So will the Raiders keep the Jets reeling? Well, Sterling Sharpe and Joe Theismann think so, but Baldinger likes New York to rebound.

Here are the picks:

Playbook airs Tuesday through Friday at 6 p.m. ET. It combines Xs-and-Os analysis of each NFL game with roundtable debates on the NFL’s hottest topics. For more information, check out NFL Network’s broadcast schedule.

New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees joined NFL Network analyst Marshall Faulk for an interview Monday, breaking down the 48-27 blowout of the New York Giants in Week 6. Brees discusses the keys to the win, as well as the Saints’ running game and the improved defense this season.

“We felt like there were going to be opportunities, but it all started up front,” Brees explained about moving the ball against the Giants. ”It all started with our ability to protect. They’ve got of the best front fours in the NFL in regards to rushing the passer, getting sacks, getting turnovers, and those types of things. We put that at a premium early on, realizing if we could protect and hold the ball a little bit, that we’d be able to push the ball downfield and get some big plays. Sure enough, we were able to do that.”

For more highlights from the game, check out the Saints video channel.

NFL Network insider Michael Lombardi reports that Jets NT Kris Jenkins will miss the rest of the season with a left knee injury.

Jenkins was injured during the second quarter of Sunday’s overtime loss to the Bills after several players landed on his legs during a running play. Jenkins’ left leg was heavily wrapped after the game, and he left the stadium on crutches, according to The Associated Press.

According to NFL Network’s Jason La Canfora, Jenkins tore the ACL in the knee, but had no other damage in the knee and is expected to make a full recovery.

Jenkins, the centerpiece in the middle of the Jets’ defense, earned his fourth Pro Bowl appearance in 2008, his first season with the team.