Cleveland Browns still lead field for Matt Barkley

We've reached the quarter point of the 2012 season and some teams are in serious danger of completely falling out of the race for No. 1, the No. 1 pick in the 2013 NFL Draft that is.

Take one of the early favorites, the Arizona Cardinals. A perennial contender for the No. 1 spot, and buoyed by a quarterback controversy, the Cardinals were a darkhorse pick in the Matt Barkley sweepstakes. Now the Cardinals are 4-0, and you can never say never in the NFL, but it would take a historic collapse for the Cardinals to get back into the race.

And to be honest, I'm not sure a program like the Cardinals could even take a swan dive like that. Oh wait, who am I kidding? It's still the Cardinals. Thursday night's game will be a true test.

And a quick note about the Dallas Cowboys: Is anybody else delighted the Cowboys' loss made LeBron James so unhappy?

And without further ado ...

Others receiving votes: Detroit Lions (1-3); Pittsburgh Steelers (1-2); Kansas City Chiefs (1-3); Carolina Panthers (1-3); Jacksonville Jaguars (1-3) and Dallas Cowboys (2-2).

The Buccaneers had a huge home game with another contender, the Washington Redskins in Week 4. And while I really hate to use clichés, sometimes these games come down to the team who wants it more. And if you watched the Buccaneers during the Redskins' final drive, they clearly wanted it more. Seriously, if you let Billy Cundiff beat you, this might be a special season.

Some thought the Raiders turned a corner with a huge win over the Steelers, but the club got back to what it does best -- losing games. The Raiders were awful in all three phases of the game: offense, defense and special teams. And poor coaching decisions by Dennis Allen has us thinking this team will move up the charts in no time.

No team has been horrifically outscored this season like the Titans, who currently hold a -70 point differential. But on the bright side for Titans fans, Chris Johnson looked great against the stout defensive line of the Texans. Not that it mattered, but it had to be nice, right?

Here is a scary thought for those teams in the NFC South -- the Saints could very well be on the verge of pulling a Tim Duncan here as a highly talented team that finds itself with the top pick in the draft. The Saints would have no need for Matt Barkley, but could you imagine this team with Barkevious Mingo next season?

The Dolphins really found a way to come from ahead to lose. They managed to squander a 13-0 lead. And when the team got the ball back with over two minutes left and a chance to put the game away, again, the Dolphins just found a way. And the touchdown reception to Andre Roberts to send the game into overtime? Inspired.

The Browns' loss to the Ravens was so long ago (seriously, Thursday seems like forever ago), you forget the team had a chance to win it at the end, but Brandon Weeden showed great maturity in throwing the ball out of the end zone to preserve the loss. Weeden also showed he was a great teammate as he saved Greg Little the embarrassment of dropping another touchdown pass.

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