Two names were notable for their omissions from the inactive list ... Adalius Thomas is one, and for obvious reasons. The other is Shawn Springs, who will suit up for the second straight week after being inactive for a solid month.

And that means Springs is set for another showdown with Terrell Owens. It's not the first time. But it might be the last.

Their history extends back to the Sharpie incident in 2002. That was the first notable moment -- the then-Niner Owens beat the then-Seahawk Springs, signed the ball in the end zone, and handed it to the publicist the two players shared -- but the more recent ones might be more instructive.

I was in Dallas last September when the Redskins dealt the Cowboys their first loss of the 2008 season. And in doing so, Washington drew a blueprint. They had Springs jam Owens at the line. When Springs went down in third quarter, Carlos Rogers stepped in and did the same thing. The next week, Arizona used Rod Hood to employ a similar strategy. And that, in a roundabout way, wound up leading to Owens and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett's feud elevating that November.

Not saying the Patriots will do the same thing (might be risky with their abysmal pass-rush), just mentioning it as a possibility, whether it's Springs or Leigh Bodden executing the strategy, and that could lead to the Bills moving Owens around and getting him in stack release situations.

Either way, it's weird how these guys seem to have followed each other around, at least since 2002 -- when Seattle joined the NFC West, where T.O. and the 49ers were. From there, the two were together in the NFC East the last five years, and have been reunited again in the AFC East here.