The New Orleans Saints look to be the real deal after their 42-17 dismantling of the Dallas Cowboys. After falling behind 7-0 at the quarter, the Saints powered on 42 points in the next two quarters to put every other team in the league on notice.

With 384 yards and five touchdowns, Drew Brees looks like he could lead New Orleans to their first Super Bowl.

Dallas had been talked up leading into this match but with both the Eagles and Giants winning, they have a real fight on their hands if they want to win the NFC East.

The other major story of the weekend was the performance of LaDainian Tomlinson and the San Diego Chargers, who both keep on keeping on. The Bolts obliterated the Denver Broncos 48-20, which was not the welcome that rookies Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler would have been looking for.

Tomlinson now has 29 touchdowns, which is the most ever in a single season. And there are still three games to go.

The previously-strong AFC looks shaky, with both the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts losing. For the Colts, it was their third loss in four games and they look gone. The Jacksonville Jaguars, who defeated them 44-17, look to be on a roll and could potentially pose an ominous threat.

Baltimore, Cincinnati and Atlanta all had good wins while the Seahawks and Jets will be rueing the one that got away.

Next week, Philadelphia against New York should decide one of the NFC wild-card spots while Cincinnati at Indianapolis on Monday night promises to be a fascinating clash and a good gauge as to where both teams are at.

Who did you think played well on the weekend? Who do you think was awful? We would welcome your comments on this article.