Editor's note: ESPN senior NFL writer John Clayton's weekly "First And 10" column takes you around the league with a look at the best game of the week followed by primers for 10 other games. Here's his look at Week 4.

First ... New England Patriots at San Diego Chargers: A year ago, the Chargers were 3-1 against an easy early schedule heading into what they thought would be a winnable game against a 1-3 Patriots team.

An unknown at the time named Tom Brady was the Patriots quarterback. Little did anyone know that this game would define the fates of these teams. The Chargers blew a 26-16 lead in the final 11 minutes. Losing seven games in the final minutes of a 5-11 season cost Mike Riley his head coaching job in San Diego.

	Second-year QB Drew Brees has the Chargers off to a 3-0 start.

After the Patriots tied it up and sent the game into overtime, kicker Adam Vinatieri kicked the game-winning 44-yard field goal. The Patriots got hot. Brady got hot. The Patriots turned out to be the Super Bowl champs with Vinatieri being the ice-veined kicker who won it over the Rams. Brady turned out to be the young superstar who has been unstoppable.

Sunday's rematch in Qualcomm Stadium should be as interesting. The Patriots are now the best team is football. Brady looks like Joe Montana only on a more pass happy scale. He's throwing 44 passes a game, completing 70.5 percent. He's averaging 324 yards a game. He has nine touchdowns and only two interceptions. His quarterback rating is 107.6.

While no one anticipated that the Patriots would emerge as the Super Bowl champs, this will be a test to see if the Chargers can become this year's surprise playoff team. Marty Schottenheimer has taken over as head coach and his disciplined system should eliminate a lot of those close losses from a year ago.

It was the talent on defense, the steady play of the quarterback and the coaching of Schottenheimer that drove me to the conclusion that the Chargers would be this year's surprise team. Even though it's not vital that they win this game, this game against the Patriots is a good chance to start to prove it.

Drew Brees, like Brady, is getting the chance to start in his second season in the league. He's had a year to learn under Doug Flutie. Like Brady, Brees has the look of a winner in development. He's completing 60.3 percent of his passes and he's not committing many turnovers.

For the Chargers, though, this doesn't have to be looked at as a must-win game. If anything, the pressure is on the Patriots, who showed some cracks in their defense by barely holding on to beat the Chiefs at home last week.

The Chargers are 3-0 against teams 2-7 records, but they rank No. 1 on defense and have the talent to rank in the top 10 every season. Perhaps the most interesting subplot to this game is how Schottenheimer defenses Brady and whether Patriots coach Bill Belichick will continue to win games through the air.

Schottenheimer might be the first coach to come up with a plan to slow down Brady. The Chargers have great talent in their front seven on defense and have experience in the secondary. Unlike a year ago, the Chargers shouldn't blow 10-point leads in the fourth quarter.

The question will be whether the Patriots allow the Chargers to take a lead. If the Chargers lose, they should bounce back. They begin a critical three-game stretch against AFC West teams that are more important before getting a bye week.

The Patriots, meanwhile, are enjoying being atop the league, but unlike a year ago, everybody worries about them coming into games. That's a lot of pressure. So far, the Patriots love that pressure. We'll see if the Chargers can create a little discomfort.

And 10. Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers: One of the bad parts of the four-team divisions is that there are fewer divisional games each week. This week, this is the only game involving division opponents. There's only been 13 in the first four weeks. This one should be a dandy. Imagine how strange it would be if linebacker Dwayne Rudd hadn't taken his helmet off and lost the opener against the Chiefs. The Browns would be coming into Heinz Field with a 3-0 record, 2½ games ahead of the Steelers. The Steelers have had a week to reflect on their problems. The Raiders and Patriots spread the field with receivers and took advantage of holes in Pittsburgh's pass defense. Who knows if the Browns will try the same trick. Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians has plenty of experience doing that from his days working with Peyton Manning in Indianapolis, so it's not out of the question. Plus, the Browns haven't generated a solid running attack so far with rookie William Green. The Browns rank 24th running the football. The bigger question involves quarterback Kordell Stewart, who has been put in the uncomfortable position of having to throw the ball because the team has been behind. Stewart's four interceptions has his quarterback rating at a subpar 68. The Steelers need to get the running game going by starting to ride the Jerome Bettis bus. The pressure in this game is on the Steelers, who can't afford to fall 3½ games behind the Browns.

	Lamar Smith would give the Panthers a great shot of another upset with a solid performance.

9. Carolina Panthers at Green Bay Packers: Who would have thought this would be a spotlight game? The Panthers entered the season with a 15-game losing streak, but new coach John Fox made all the right moves to take advantage of an easy schedule. Of course, his first three victims, who have 0-8 records, all thought that the Panthers were going to be the easy mark on their schedules. So, to some degree, Fox loses the surprise element, and the Packers certainly have to be more focused on defense. Poor tackling and injuries have the Packers off to a poor defensive start. They are surrendering 33 points a game, and they are giving up way too many big plays. They rank 30th on defense in yards per play and 31st in rushing yards per play. Losing defensive end Vonnie Holliday and safety Antuan Edwards makes their job tougher. The Panthers' strength this year has been two things. Rodney Peete isn't making mistakes at quarterbacks and he's coming up with enough big plays to win some games. Second, the defensive front seven is the strength of the team, and Fox is letting them be aggressive on every play. This will be the Panthers' first real test and trying to stop Brett Favre might be impossible. But then who would have thought they would be 3-0?

8. Dallas Cowboys at St. Louis Rams: Suddenly, the Rams season is on the line. The offensive line can't stop any four-man defensive rushes. The defensive line isn't getting consistent penetration. Marshall Faulk is questionable with a knee injury. Kurt Warner doesn't look like the same quarterback and has a lower quarterback rating than Quincy Carter. If the Rams lose, their season might be over because they would head to San Francisco the next week as possible underdogs, starring at an 0-5 start. This is the game that the Rams try to start digging themselves out of the hole, but even the Cowboys smell blood. They can create plays along their defensive line, and unless coach Mike Martz commits more bodies for protection, Warner will continue to take more unnecessary hits. Still, if the protection tightens up, Warner and the talented Rams receivers should exploit the coverage problems of the Cowboys in the secondary. Coach Dave Campo has been concerned because the Cowboys are giving away too many big plays on defense. Big plays are what makes the Rams offense work. It better start Sunday.

7. Tennessee Titans at Oakland Raiders: The Titans can't figure out what's wrong. It's got to be more than just missing Jevon Kearse. But you would never figure that the Titans, one of the possible elite teams in the AFC, would blow a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter at home to Cleveland. It was hard enough for them to swallow a loss to the Cowboys the week before. Last year, the Titans gained some satisfaction by beating the Raiders on the road in a Saturday night game, but now they need to pull an upset to keep themselves in the early playoff race. The Raiders had a nice chance to rest during the bye week. They will continue to switch between 4-3 and 3-4 defensive schemes to thwart the Titans running attack. The question is whether or not Eddie George can get back on a roll. Last week, he couldn't practice until Friday because of swelling in his left foot from tight foot wrapping. What's also been wrapped up is his rushing average. He's only getting 2.8 yards a carry. For confidence, George needs a good first quarter. The Raiders tightened their run defense with the signing of Pro Bowl defensive tackle Sam Adams. Adams should take part in more than 30 snaps.

6. Chicago Bears at Buffalo Bills: The Broncos slowed down Drew Bledsoe to a small degree last week, but the Bears face a battle for their respect. Despite last year's playoff run, the Bears head into Ralph Wilson Stadium as underdogs. They are down three key starters on defense. Pro Bowl defensive tackle Ted Washington's absence leaves them vulnerable to the run. Cornerback R.W. McQuarters' absence leaves them vulnerable to the pass. The key to this game will be how cornerbacks Jerry Azumah, Reggie Austin and Todd McMillon match up against receivers Eric Moulds, Peerless Price and Josh Reed. The Bears defense is wondering how it blew a 20-point lead to the Saints. Figuring that this might be a high-scoring game, the Bears will have to open it up more on offense. The Bills are thin and weak on the defensive line. The Bears will need to use Anthony Thomas on more running plays to take time off the clock to protect the defense. And the offense can't settle for field goals when they are in Bills scoring territory.

5. New York Jets at Jacksonville Jaguars: This doesn't look like the same team that excited the league by making the playoffs. Offensive coordinator Paul Hackett isn't opening up the passing offense like he did during the preseason. Quarterback Vinny Testaverde is averaging only 9.15 yards a completion. That's not enough. The six starting changes on defense haven't worked yet, either. Last year, the Jets knew their weakness was stopping the run. They allowed 134.6 yards a game on the ground. This year, they are allowing 172 yards a game. That's ridiculous. It's time to tighten up the defense. Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin had a bye week to gear up his running offense, and will try to get more than 100 yards for halfback Fred Taylor. The Jets can't afford another loss because they are going to fall too far behind the Patriots and Dolphins in the AFC East.

4. Minnesota Vikings at Seattle Seahawks: You have to admit this Sunday night game does draw more interest than you would normally expect for a battle of two 0-3 teams. Randy Moss' strange driving incident creates an interesting buzz for this game. If Moss is suspended, can the Vikings rally around quarterback Daunte Culpepper and coach Mike Tice to pull out the team's first victory? If Moss plays, can he stay focused enough to have a big game on national television? Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren can't be embarrassed again with a loss at home and an 0-4 start. The good news for the Seahawks is that the Vikings have problems on defense, which should allow Holmgren to get the running attack started for the first time and create some holes in the pass defense to get some big plays. But if the Seahawks defense can't stop the Vikings offense, there could be problems. Wouldn't want to be the team that walks out of Seahawks Stadium with an 0-4 record.

3. New Orleans Saints at Detroit Lions: Jim Haslett can do a great favor for his buddy, Randy Mueller, the former general manager. If the Saints march into Ford Field and showcase their talent, it could provoke a possible change at general manager in Detroit. Mueller did it the right way in turning around the personnel of the Saints. The Saints started off by whipping three top opponents and now have a chance to make a big jump for the top seed in the NFC playoffs. The Ford family, frustrated by the downturn of the team since Matt Millen took over as general manager, might be watching this as they contemplate what to do after the season. The Lions look better on offense with Joey Harrington at quarterback, but a lot of Harrington's big plays came after missed tackles or poor play of the Packers defense. At least, Lions fans had some excitement last Sunday. Can coach Marty Mornhigweg build upon that momentum and pull an upset?

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Cincinnati Bnegals: The Bengals look like the most desperate team in football. Coach Dick LeBeau looked at a passing offense that was producing only 3.7 yards per attempt. LeBeau pulled a Hail Mary Monday by choosing Akili Smith, having no idea if he can do anything different with this underachieving offense. Either Smith will provide a spark or the Bengals will look like a lost, uncompetitive team against the talented Bucs defense. The Bucs need an easy game this week following their emotional victory over the Rams. They spent a lot of energy in winning that game, and they could be prone to a letdown. But if Smith comes out and starts committing turnover after turnover, the Bucs should be able to breeze through this one. The Bucs biggest worry is how thin they are on the offensive line. They lost guard Kerry Jenkins and Kenyatta Walker Monday night. One more injury will create more disasters.

1. Denver Broncos at Baltimore Ravens: The only reason to mention this Monday night game is that it's the one chance to see the Broncos and how much they have changed. This team is so different from most Mike Shanahan teams. They rank 19th on offense, one of the lowest ever in the Shanahan era. They rank 30th in passing. That's amazingly low for a Shanahan team. But it doesn't matter because this is now a defensive team. The defensive line is burying teams that try to run against them. Chester McGlockton and Lional Dalton form a blockade in the middle of their defense. They free up the quick Broncos linebackers to make the plays. This is a mismatch. It might be one of the lowest scoring games of Week Four. But it's a showcase for a Broncos team that is undefeated and is one of the best of this season.

John Clayton is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.