Our very own Chris Fries continues to take you on a twisted ride called Did'Ja Know, where he challenges you follow his "logic."

Sit back, relax and enjoy.

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Welcome back to another edition of Did’ja Know, taking a look at some of the facts, figures, stats, and quirks of the sport we all love.  As happens every week, there were a lot of wild events, games, and plays in week 9 of the NFL, like: 

• Adrian Peterson continued to have a record-breaking rookie season, setting a new individual single-game rushing record of 296 yards against the Chargers and giving the Vikings a record for single-game team rushing of 378 yards; 
• The Packers defeated the Chiefs, giving Brett Favre a win against all 31 NFL franchises, allowing him to join Peyton Manning and Tom Brady as the only QBs to ever do so;
• Clinton Portis and Warrick Dunn got their first 100+ rushing games of the year, while LenDale White notched his third in a row;
• The Patriots failed to score on their first opening drive against the Colts, marking the first time this season they’ve come up empty on their first possession (of course they still won the game).

There are always enough things each week in the NFL to fill a dozen Did’ja Know articles.  The fun part is choosing which ones to delve into. This week, let’s start out with some receiving tidbits:

Did’ja Know... who has caught at least one TD pass in each and every game so far this year?

Nope, it’s not Randy Moss or any Patriot – Moss does lead the league with 12 TDs and has caught at least one TD pass in eight of nine games, but in week five against Cleveland he was held to only 3 receptions for 46 yards and no TDs. 

Actually it’s T.J. Houshmandzadeh who has caught at least one TD pass in every game this season – 8 games in a row.  Houshmandzadeh is 2nd in the NFL in TD receptions with 10, and is also tied with Derrick Mason for the lead in overall receptions with 62.  Houshmandzadeh didn’t catch a TD in his last regular-season game (12/31/06 vs. Pittsburgh), so his TD reception streak runs only this year, but even so, Did’ja Know that he only needs to catch a TD in each of the next two games to tie the Bengals franchise record for consecutive games with TD receptions?  It’s currently held by Carl Pickens, with 10 in 1994-05.  And the NFL record?  Houshmandzadeh could also break that this year, too.  It’s currently set at 13 and held by Jerry Rice (who else), from 1986-87.  In case you’re too young to remember, Jerry Rice is famous for a lot more than “Dancing with the Stars”.

Hmmm – you knew all that, huh?  Well here’s a simple one that might not be so simple:  Did’ja Know what the letters “T.J.” stand for?   OK -- here’s an even harder one, smarty-pants:  Did’ja Know that while T.J. was the Bengals’ 7th round pick in 2001, he also shares a common bond with famed Redskins coach Joe Gibbs?

Did’ja Know... who has the longest reception so far this season?

Roy Williams of the Detroit Lions, with a 91 yard TD pass which was caught in week three when the Lions played the Eagles.   Williams had 335 yards and 3 TDs in the first three weeks for an average of 111.7 yards and 1.0 TD per game. But Did’ja Know that since then he’s only added another 233 yards in 5 weeks – an average of only 46.6 yards per game? Plus that 91-yarder was his last TD, so that’s five straight weeks with no TDs.  But even though Williams has been quiet on the field, he’s still been as vocal as ever, offering taunts, rash promises, and trash-talk each week.  Whatever happened to just letting your actions speak for you?

Too easy, huh?  Then I got another one for ya:  Did’ja Know Williams had a role in a movie?  Plus, Did’ja Know what was kind of ironic about the role given his personal history?

Did’ja Know... that even though the Colts lost to the Patriots this past week, one of their players set a franchise record?

Joseph Addai continued to give the Colts a strong rushing attack, helping everyone forget the Edgerrin James days, and showing without any doubt that he doesn’t need Dominic Rhodes around to help share the load.  In week 9 against New England, Addai carried for a career-high 26 times and racked up 112 yards (his fourth 100+ yard game of the season). He also caught 5 passes for a career-high 114 receiving yards, marking the first time in Colts history that a player broke the century mark in both rushing and receiving in a single game.  The common thought is that Addai is mainly a ground-pounder, but he can also be a solid receiving weapon out of the backfield. Did’ja Know that Addai also holds the Super Bowl record for receptions by a running back, with 10 in the Colts’ win in last January’s Super Bowl XLI?
 
OK, here’s a toughie:  Did’ja Know that while Addai has played running back since LSU, he didn’t start out that way?  Guess what position he played in high school.  The funny thing is that even in his spot for the “Fighting Apollos”, he still rushed for over 1,400 yards his senior year!

Did’ja Know... which defensive player has the most TDs so far this season?

I’ll give you a hint – the highest total so far is three.  Does that help?  OK, here’s another – the three TDs have come in the last two weeks.  Last clue:  One of the TDs is for a fumble recovery in the end-zone a TD, one is for an interception return for a TD, and the third is for a ‘special teams’ return for a TD (but not a kick-off or punt return).

Give up?  It’s San Diego Chargers CB Antonio Cromartie, and the three TDs are the only ones of his career.  Against the Texans two weeks ago he had a monster game, recovering a fumble in the end-zone and also returning one of his two interceptions 70 yards for a TD.  Last week in a disastrous loss (where the Chargers allowed Adrian Peterson and the Vikings to set both single-game individual and team rushing records), Cromartie provided one of the few Chargers highlights by returning a missed field-goal for a TD.  Did’ja Know that Cromartie’s Missed-FG-return-for-TD is also the new record-holder for longest play in NFL history (over 109 yards)?

Dang – can’t stump ya, huh?  How ‘bout this:  Did’ja Know what 2nd-year CB Antonio Cromartie has in common with famous ex-Giants CB Jason Sehorn?

Did’ja Know... that Ben Roethlisberger is starting to look like he may ultimately become the best QB in Steelers history?

Terry Bradshaw is still firmly in the books as the main record-holding Steelers QB, but so far Big Ben is on track to pass him in many categories – provided he has as long a career.  OK, to be honest, Bradshaw’s four Super-Bowl rings will probably always keep him close to the hearts of Steeltown, but it’s still impressive how fast Roethlisberger is making progress.  Roethlisberger passed for five TDs in the first half of last week’s game, tying Bradshaw’s franchise record (also tied by Mark Malone), and giving Roethlisberger 20 TDs so far this year. The Steelers season record is Bradshaw’s 28 from 1978 – Roethlisberger is clearly on pace to shatter that.  Did’ja Know that given Roethlisberger is only in his 4th season and it may take a while for him to overtake Bradshaw (who played for 14 seasons), that he’s definitely ahead of that pace so far?  Here’s how they stack up when compared through equal points in their career:

• Games:  Bradshaw 51 /  Roethlisberger 49
• Attempts:  Bradshaw  1,079 /  Roethlisberger 1,240
• Completions:  Bradshaw 522 /  Roethlisberger 781
• Completion Percentage:  Bradshaw 48% /  Roethlisberger 63%
• Yards:  Bradshaw 6,739 /  Roethlisberger 10,261
• TDs: Bradshaw 41 / Roethlisberger 72
• Interceptions: Bradshaw 73 / Roethlisberger 49

It’s true that Bradshaw was no Peyton Manning when it came to passing stats, especially early in his career -- his highest passer rating in his first five years was only 64.1, and he finished with a career rating of 70.9 through 14 seasons.  So Roethlisberger being ahead of him in stats may not count for too much.  It may take a few more Super Bowl rings before Pittsburgh fans call him greater than Bradshaw.  But Did’ja Know that Ben only needs 3 more – he already has one for his win in Super Bowl XL, when he also claimed the record of the youngest QB to ever win a Super Bowl?

Sure, sure – “common knowledge,” you say.  Well here ya go:  Did’ja Know in what way Ben Roethlisberger and “Niedermeyer” from “National Lampoon’s Animal House” are alike?

Did’ja Know... that speaking of QBs, Drew Brees has clearly shaken off his early-season struggles, and that he passed for 445 yards this past week?

Brees started out with a total of 1 TD and 9 interceptions in his first four games of this year – all losses.  But now he and the Saints have rebounded to win their last four games, and in week 9’s 41-24 win against Jacksonville, Brees completed 35 of 49 attempts for 445 yards and 3 TDs.  He also threw no interceptions for the second straight week (and was only sacked once), and ended with a passer rating of 119.9.  The 445 yards was the highest yardage passing total for him this year, and seems like a ton of yards, but Did’ja Know that it isn’t even Brees’s single-game highest?  On 11/19/06 in last year’s 31-16 loss against Cincinnati, Brees made 37 of 52 passes for 510 yards. 

But even that gaudy total isn’t the highest in NFL history – it’s not even in the top three.  Did’ja Know that the number two and three are:

• #3:  522 yards: Boomer Esiason (11/10/1996 – Arizona vs, Washington)
• #2:  527 yards:  Warren Moon (12/16/1990 – Houston vs Kansas City)

And the overall record -- Did’ja Know it was this guy?

• #1:  554 yards:  Norm Van Brocklin (9/28/1951 – Los Angeles vs NY Yanks)

How’s that for a trip in the way-back machine?