ESPN analyst Joe Theismann answers five key questions after NFL Week 8:

Did Emmitt Smith prove on Sunday he should be the focus of the Dallas offense?
No, although he proved he's one of the best and most durable running backs in NFL history. There's plenty of debate about who is the NFL's best back ever -- I ranked Emmitt Smith behind Jim Brown and Walter Payton on ESPN.com's list of the top 10 RBs ever. But there's no debating who has the most career yards (hint: his initials are E.S., and Sunday he eclipsed Payton's former record of 16,726 yards).

	Theismann's Top 10 RBs
	1. Jim Brown 2.Walter Payton 3. Emmitt Smith 4. O.J. Simpson 5. Gale Sayers 6. Terrell Davis 7. Barry Sanders 8. Eric Dickerson 9. John Riggins 10. Marshall Faulk

It must be a relief for the Cowboys that Emmitt now has the career-rushing record -- it takes some pressure off the team. But I still believe that the answers to their questions lie at quarterback. Quarterback Chad Hutchinson, the new starter, looked on Sunday like a guy who hadn't played football in a long time -- which is exactly what he is due to his hiatus to play minor-league baseball.

Actually, I think it would be foolish to make Emmitt the focus of the offense. If the Cowboys want him to last 16 weeks, they need to be careful how they use him. Now that he has the record, they can make a transition to using him in a somewhat limited role so he's able to stay healthy. While there are exceptions, players in their mid-30s aren't like players in their mid-20s. Their recovery time is slower and they're more susceptible to injury.

Defensively, the Cowboys play hard, but offensively they struggle to generate points. It must be especially frustrating for wide receiver Joey Galloway. When Troy Aikman was still their QB, the the Cowboys used two No. 1 draft picks to bring Galloway to Dallas so he could stretch the field. But it hasn't quite worked out that way.

Could you have projected that Vick would be this good, this soon?
I'm not sure anyone thought Michael Vick would be this good this soon, but I knew he had the tools to be this good. I've been impressed not only with his incredible running ability but also with his pinpoint passing accuracy.

He still has lots to learn as a quarterback. But so do other young quarterbacks. Watching Peyton Manning over the past few weeks, I see that he still has lots to learn. That's the nature of the position -- it's a continual learning process.

Even if Vick couldn't run at all, his quarterback attributes are amazing in their own right -- from his release to his arm strength to his athletic ability. He's the total package. How can a defense prepare for such a double threat? A defense might use a "spy" (a defensive back or maybe a linebacker) to track Vick, mirroring his every move. But then you've lost a player for coverage -- and anyway, I don't think there's anyone who can stay with him!

How do you contain Vick? You can't let him step up and run, because the shortest distance to the goal line is straight up the middle. You can't let him get outside. And all the while you need to be wary of his rocket-launching arm. He puts enormous pressure on every defense he plays against.

By the way, you may have heard that Vick played against his cousin, Saints quarterback Aaron Brooks, on Sunday. I never played against a relative, but as the Redskins' QB I did play against a former high school teammate. Ex-Cowboys wide receiver Drew Pearson was one of my receivers at South River (N.J.) High School. Pearson was two years behind me, and he played quarterback after I graduated.

Later, we played against each other in the NFL from 1974 until 1983, when he retired. I always rooted for our guys to hit him hard -- and I was always ready to go help him up after they did. He was such a great player.

What has happened to the Colts in the past two weeks?
The Colts' inability to run the ball has not allowed them to run the offense they want to run. I'm not convinced that running back Edgerrin James is 100 percent. I believe it takes two years for someone to come back from knee surgery, and James had surgery only a year ago.

James had no preseason to get in shape. Often, a player gets nicked and banged up in preseason and it helps prepare him for the long haul of the season. If James gets beat up now, it may linger longer than if he'd had a preseason.

Quarterback Peyton Manning has also made some poor decisions. Overall, he has 10 TDs and eight interceptions (including two picks Sunday night). After one pick Sunday, you could see him walking off the field and mouthing, "Why?" I think he was questioning his own decision-making -- basically saying to himself, "Why did you do that? Why would you do that? Why are you doing that?"

Manning is a bright guy who knows what it takes to win, but he's forcing throws because the Colts aren't running the ball well. That needs to change for the Colts to reverse their recent fortunes.

What's happened to the Raiders and Patriots?
The Raiders have lost key running backs to injury, like Tyrone Wheatley and Randy Jordan, while Charlie Garner has hamstring issues. The common denominator for teams that have excelled lately -- like Green Bay, San Diego, New Orleans, Kansas City -- is a strong running game (Ahman Green, LaDainian Tomlinson, Deuce McAllister, Priest Holmes).

In the NFL, you need to be able to run the ball -- you need a balanced attack. Raiders QB Rich Gannon threw 55 passes Sunday. That's too many! And the Patriots haven't utilized Antowain Smith enough. They also seem to believe that the way to go is through the air. But even when the yards are tough to come by, I believe you need to commit to running at least some.

As far as the playoff race, we're just at the midway point, so there's still time for the Patriots (3-4) to turn things around and for the Raiders (4-3) to get back on track. But with four- and three-game losing streaks, respectively, each team is desperate for a win.

How will the extra week benefit the Giants against the Eagles on Monday night?
It's allowed the Giants to get healthy, because the Eagles will make it an especially physical game. The Giants are coming off a tough loss to Atlanta, and the extra time could cause them to dwell on it more -- or it could cause them to steel their resolve for a huge "Monday Night Football" game with first place at stake in the NFC East (ABC, 9 p.m. ET).

The key for the Giants' offense is RB Tiki Barber. The way to control Tiki is to blitz enough so that Barber becomes a blocker. He needs to have a big game for the Giants. So does WR Amani Toomer. The Giants must win one-on-one battles -- in the trenches and down the field -- to win this game.

Defensively, the Giants must contain -- guess who? -- QB Donovan McNabb. The Giants are big underdogs in this game, especially playing in Philly. But if they can get some superlative individual efforts and steal a victory, they'll be tied with the Eagles for first in the division.

A game analyst for ESPN's Sunday Night Football, former NFL QB Joe Theismann won a Super Bowl and a league MVP award. He reviews the NFL each week for ESPN.com in Cup o' Joe.