By Matt Sohn
Feb. 11, 2008

It happens every year. Groundbreaking achievements. Monumental flops. Shocking revelations. As voted on by the Pro Football Weekly editors, here are the top 10 stories that defined the 2007 NFL season.

1. Eli channels greatness in leading Giants to title

A Giant celebration

2. Patriots let perfection slip away in Super Bowl XLII

The Boston Globe had already begun advanced sales of the book that chronicled the Patriots’ undefeated season. In a city that had exemplified athletic excellence by virtue of its baseball team winning the World Series and its basketball team’s barnstorming start, the Patriots were the standard bearers. With the greatest coach and greatest quarterback of their generation leading the way, the Patriots had done the unthinkable. They proved that in a league structured to ensure parity, one team could emerge victorious each and every week. But on the brink of history on the grandest stage in American sports, the Patriots finally lost. Tom Brady was merely ordinary. The defense choked late in the game. In the teams’ second meeting of the season, the Giants exposed a vulnerability in their undefeated adversary that few believed existed.

3. Redskins rally around Sean Taylor tragedy

The Redskins’ world was torn apart in the early-morning hours of Nov. 27. Sean Taylor, the 24-year-old safety who was well on his way to superstardom, was dead. It was just a day after a bullet pierced the femoral artery in his leg, the result of a break-in at Taylor’s Miami, Fla., home. He left behind his girlfriend, their 18-month-old daughter and a grieving Redskins team. In his fourth NFL season, the introverted Taylor had begun asserting his identity in a big way on the gridiron, looking every bit like the star he was projected to be after coming into the league as the fifth overall pick in 2004. But in the wake of such tragedy, the Redskins rallied. After losing a nail-biter to the Bills on coach Joe Gibbs’ botched double-timeout debacle in the first game without Taylor, the Skins rattled off four wins to close out the regular season, securing the NFC’s final playoff spot in the process. Making it all the more impressive was how the Skins did it with lightly regarded Todd Collins at quarterback. Collins replaced an injured Jason Campbell in Week 14.

4. Michael Vick sentenced on dogfighting charges

The news inundated the national airwaves. It resonated not just throughout the sports world, but throughout American society. Michael Vick, the electrifying quarterback of the Falcons and one of the biggest sports stars in the country, had been indicted on federal dogfighting charges. With a contract worth in excess of $100 million, Vick was not only the face of the Falcons, he was one of the most recognizable players in the biggest professional sports league in the country. Along with three other co-defendants, Vick was charged with running “Bad Newz Kennels,” an illegal dogfighting ring out of his 15-acre property in southeastern Virginia. Ordinary citizens and anti-cruelty organizations such as the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) began protesting at the Falcons’ training camp and at the courthouse, demanding a harsh sentence for the heinous act. Like his co-defendants, Vick pleaded guilty to the charges. But the judge opted against leniency, sentencing Vick to 23 months in prison, leaving any future in the NFL in serious jeopardy.

5. ‘Spygate’ draws ire from around NFL

The Patriots had dominated the Jets in their Week One meeting at Meadowlands. With QB Tom Brady and WR Randy Moss as his leading men, coach Bill Belichick taught Jets coach and former protégé Eric Mangini a lesson, hammering New York, 38-14. But days after the destruction, it was revealed that Belichick had been illegally videotaping Jets coaches’ hand signals. Moreover, Mangini had blown the whistle for his old boss’ seedy actions. “Spygate” became a leaguewide obsession, with sportswriters and fans all having their own opinion on what the punishment should be. Commissioner Roger Goodell was quick and resolute in meting out sanctions, stripping the Patriots of their first-round draft pick as well as fining the team $250,000 and Belichick $500,000. The half-million dollar fine was the largest fine ever bestowed upon an individual in league history. Nevertheless, “Spygate” has remained a rallying point for the numerous Patriots detractors who have longed for a hook for their disdain of the Patriots’ juggernaut. It remained an issue leading up to the Super Bowl, as Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) stated his desire to meet with Roger Goodell about why he destroyed all the tapes that the Patriots handed over.

6. Brett Favre taps into fountain of youth

Brett Favre had heard it all before: Hang it up, Brett. You’re not what you once were. You’re souring your Hall of Fame career. But at the age of 37, ancient in NFL years, the Packers’ venerable leader decided he had more football left in the tank. And so he trotted back out onto the gridiron with a team that few believed to be playoff worthy and began making a mockery of all those who proclaimed him a has-been. There was the 369-yard, three TD performance against the Chargers in Week Three followed by the 344-yard effort in Minneapolis the following week. Brett was back to being Brett, the playmaking, freewheeling, improvising and awe-inspiring quarterback that had earned him the adulation of Packer Nation and the football world since stepping onto the hallowed Lambeau Field turf back in 1992. Alas, Favre’s season ended one game shy of a return to the Super Bowl, but No. 4 had once again captured the NFL’s imagination and led the Packers back to prominence.

7. Roger Goodell ushers in new player conduct policy

Roger Goodell made it clear: The NFL will not tolerate deviant behavior. In his second season after replacing Paul Tagliabue as commissioner, Goodell began executing a far stricter player-conduct policy than the league had ever seen before. Mess with the law, and wave good-bye to the gridiron. No longer was the league-mandated four-game suspension for violating the substance-abuse policy enough. Now, players would have to pay for their brushes with the law not only in court, but on the field. The season-long suspension for Adam “Pacman” Jones, the dynamic CB-RS for the Titans who had a litany of arrests on his record, served as the most visible and publicized execution of the new policy, but he was hardly the only one. There were also eight-game suspensions handed out to Bengals WR Chris Henry and Cowboys DT Tank Johnson, among others.

8. Kevin Everett’s recovery inspires hope in Buffalo

The fans stood in silence, the players kneeled in horror. All hoped for the best but feared the worst as Bills TE Kevin Everett laid motionless on the turf at Ralph Wilson Stadium. It was Week One, and all the excitement surrounding the new season in Buffalo had been suspended when the third-year pro out of Miami (Fla.) collapsed to the ground after jamming his neck into the Broncos’ Domenik Hixon while covering a kickoff. For the next few days, Everett showed signs of quadriplegia. Even worse, the doctors ominously stated that he was in danger of losing his life. But little by little, Everett defied the medical prognostications. First, he began moving his fingers. Then, the bulk of his upper extremities. He regained sensation in his legs. Rehabilitating in his hometown of Houston, Everett actually started walking with the aid of a walker. While he’ll never play football again, Everett’s miraculous recuperation served as an inspiration to millions.

9. Norv Turner quiets the San Diego skeptics

The expectations were heaped upon Norv Turner when he was named head coach of the Chargers. He inherited a team that was arguably the league’s most talented, a squad whose 14-2 record the previous season was the NFL’s best. But following an early exit from the playoffs, Marty Schottenheimer was ushered out the door, and Turner got another chance for redemption as a head coach. The season got off to an ugly start in San Diego. Following an opening-week triumph over the Bears, the Bolts dropped their next three games, prompting chants of “Marty! Marty!” to rain down from the Qualcomm Stadium stands. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, a 5-5 mark after 10 games was an unmitigated disaster — as far as the fans were concerned. But starting with a Week 12 domination of the Ravens, the Chargers went on a tear, winning their final six-regular season games to run away with the AFC West title, Turner inched his way toward vindication. By beating the Titans in the wild-card round and pulling off a shocking upset of the Colts in the postseason’s divisional round — with QB Philip Rivers, RB LaDainian Tomlinson and TE Antonio Gates all sidelined for varying amounts of time with injuries — Turner assured himself that he wouldn’t be a one-and-done flop.

10. Adrian Peterson announces his arrival

Adrian Peterson came into the NFL with much fanfare. Although injury-prone, the seventh overall pick out of Oklahoma arrived in Minnesota with limitless promise, boasting a rarely seen combination of size, strength and speed. His vast potential quickly materialized into enormous production. After three 100-yard rushing outings in his first four games, Peterson boldly announced his arrival as a potentially revolutionary talent at Soldier Field in Week Six, romping over Brian Urlacher and Co.  for 224 yards. Three weeks later, he set the single-game rushing record with 296 yards against an overmatched Chargers’ defense.  A knee sprain that sidelined him for two games curbed his season statistics, but that did little to keep Peterson from running away with Rookie of the Year honors.

Other notable stories that received consideration from the PFW staff:

The Dolphins flirt with a winless season.

Distractions mount in Philadelphia.

Legendary 49ers coach Bill Walsh dies.

Derek Anderson steals Brady Quinn’s thunder.

The NFL plays in London.

The Bears fall to the NFC North cellar.