Happy Wednesday y'all, hope everyone's Halloween was as great as mine was. Week eight...a great week for many, a season-derailing week for others. Not sure I've ever seen so many quarterbacks go down on the same Sunday-- a cruel homage to Myles Garrett's annual QB graveyard.
Big questions marks moving ahead for a couple franchises as a result, we'll surely be writing and talking about it here! But for today, let's get into the action
Bills 24- Buccaneers 18
-One of Josh Allen's better games of the year, against a defense that had been playing well. He threw for 324 yards with just one turnover on a batted ball interception. His distribution was key, completing at least five passes to four different pass catchers
-James Cook ran well once again, averaging just under five a carry on fourteen totes. Felt like he should've been even more of a bell cow with how Buffalo lead the whole second half
-Rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid took advantage of Dawson Knox' absence, posting a 5/65/1 line
-Baker's box score passes the eye test much more so than his performance on field, he was pretty ineffective all Thursday evening
-Rachaad White looked good in the ground game, but the game script wasn't in his favor to build on that. No matter, adding 7 for 70 through the air was a fine way to stay involved, really helping pace the offense
-Chris Godwin found the end zone for the first time in 2023, one of his five receptions
Cowboys 43- Rams 20
-What a throttling by Dallas here...it was 17-3 before you could blink, then 33-3 just minutes after that. They put their foot on the gas and didn't let up until halfway through the final frame
-Dak Prescott was incredible, completing 25 of 31 passes for 304 yards, 4 touchdowns and 1, admittedly bad, interception. His first quarter touchdown to Jake Ferguson was a dot, special performance for Dakota
-CeeDee Lamb was his favorite target on the afternoon, going nuclear with 12 catches for 158 and two end zone trips. The man was unguardable
-Matthew Stafford was really bad. Their first drive went for ten plays and a field goal, seemingly able to keep pace with the Cowboys. Their next four drives went for ten total plays, including a safety and pick six, that effectively ended the game before halftime
-The quarterback also suffered a thumb injury after hitting a defenders helmet on an incomplete two point conversion pass. He did return for part of the third quarter before getting benched. Worth monitoring over the coming days
-Cooper Kupp caught a lowly 4 of 10 targets for 21 yards. Just a terrible day for Rams fans. At 3-5 now overall, probably safe to say they're not that good
Vikings 24- Packers 10
-3rd and 19, up by 14 points with 10 minutes left in the game. Well within field goal range, against a Packers offense that could not move the ball to save their lives. Kevin O'Donnell decides it's a good idea to drop back Kirk Cousins. He was sacked by Kenny Clark, awkwardly twisting his ankle as they fell to the ground. The prognosis: a torn Achilles'. Horrendous news for a team that was storming into the playoff picture and had virtually no reason to be risking the play there. Fast recovery Captain
-First Minnesota rushing touchdown of the season! Cam Akers was given the honors, with the team as a whole averaging a sad 2 YPC
-Jordan Addison, TJ Hockenson and KJ Osborn are a pretty damn good trio. Throw in a name like Justin Jefferson, if you've ever heard of him, and this might be secretly the best pass catching unit in the league. Now with no quarterback
-Speaking of no quarterback, the Packers are in an unfamiliar spot. Not the biggest sample size yet, but it's becoming pretty clear that Jordan Love ain't the guy. No need to bench him or intentionally tank, but there's no way many can feel comfortable with him as the long-term solution
-Rookie Jayden Reed has been a nice player for Green Bay, making a few more big plays downfield to add to his highlight reel. No other receiver had more than 33 yards
Titans 28- Falcons 23
-What a SPLASH by Will Levis to start his NFL career. Four touchdowns, including two that were on absolute bombs, against what had been a top five pass defense. Not about to anoint the rookie as a future MVP or anything, but this should affirmatively mark the end of the Ryan Tannehill era in Tennessee
-Deandre Hopkins was a tremendous benefactor of the explosion under center, catching 4 balls for 128 and 3 touchdowns. He got open deep and was rewarded
-Derrick Henry cleared the century mark for the first time since the beginning of the month. Who'd have thought competent quarterback play could help him get going?
-Speaking of competent QB's, Desmond Ridder ain't it. He was evaluated for a concussion and allegedly cleared, yet remained on the benched in favor of Taylor Heinicke. No word yet on how that'll look next week, but the offense looked a little stronger with the latter leading the way
-Bijan Robinson scored his first rushing touchdown of his career, decisively cashing a thirteen yard sweep to the left
-Drake London was playing well before suffering a groin injury halfway through the second. If this sidelines him for any extended period of time, Atlanta's going to be rolling out a receiving core of Mack Hollins, KhaDarel Hodge, Scotty Miller and Van Jefferson. Yikes.
Saints 38- Colts 27
-Nice game for Derek Carr, to give credit to someone I regularly talk shit about. He diced the Colts' secondary, connecting with all of his top guys for 310 yards on just 19 completions
-Rashid Shaheed was a massive contributor to those numbers, catching all three of his targets for 153 and a touchdown. Dude's so fast
-Alvin Kamara continued his multi-faceted attack, taking 17 carries and 4 receptions for 110 total yards, scoring through the air and on the ground
-It's great to have a great backup quarterback, especially with an injury prone starter. That's what Gardner Minshew is, the best of the backups. Cleaner game, just couldn't keep pace
-Jonathan Taylor and Zack Moss each sprung long runs to boost their YPC to 7.9 and 6.0, respectively. JT is rounding into form, but Zack Moss isn't going anywhere in this offense
-7 for 72 from Josh Downs, finishing October on a high note. The rookie averaged just under 70 yards per game in the month, emerging as a true threat for Minshew
Dolphins 31- Patriots 17
-This can't be fun for Bill Belichick. Yeah, the Patriots competed in this game, but it never felt like Miami was in danger
-Demario Douglas led the team with five catches, that he turned into just 25 yards. He looks quick and has been logging a lot more snaps recently
-Tua's bomb to Tyreek Hill was a moonshot, their chemistry is something else. 324 passing while completing 67% of passes, plus three scores. Nice day for the QB
-Speaking of Hill, the man made history Sunday, becoming the first player in the Super Bowl era to eclipse 1,000 yards through the first eight weeks. He's on pace for 130 receptions, 2,154 yards and 16 touchdowns. Video game shit
-Big day for Jaylen Waddle too, posting a 7/121/1 line. He's only outgained his speedy counterpart in their two games versus New England this year
-Loved seeing Jalen Ramsey undercut a terrible Mac Jones throw for an interception in, not just his first game back from injury, but with Miami in general. He's a crucial addition to a defense that needed a boost
Jets 13- Giants 10 (OT)
-This game was atrocious
-Zach Wilson sucks, but he made two good throws on that miracle drive late to tie things up. So that was cool I guess
-Breece Hall's really fast, Garrett Wilson is nearly QB-proof
-Graham Gano missing a 35-yarder is inexcusable. Not sure Daboll should've elected to kick it anyway with how Saquon was running. Bad, bad, bad
-Tyrod Taylor got rocked on the sideline, resulting in a rib injury that forcing the Jersey boy Tommy DeVito into action
-The Giants, as a team, passed for seven (7) yards in this game. Account for sacks and it was a net of -9. You may never see something like that again
Jaguars 20- Steelers 10
-Sloppy, wet game out on the Steel City. Perfect set up for Travis Etienne to go off for 149 total yards. Dude's really emerging as a focal point of this offense
-Trevor Lawrence had a horrendous interception, but played pretty well outside of that. Evan Engram was his favorite target on the day, leading the team in receptions and yards with 10/88
-Two more sacks for Josh Allen, bringing him up to nine on the season. He'll be entering DPOY conversations if this keeps up
-Don't look now, but the Jags have won five straight
-Kenny Pickett was dealt a rib injury on a huge hit at the end of the first half. He didn't reenter the game, opening the door for Mitchell Trubisky to stink it up for the final 30 minutes. Situation worth monitoring in Pittsburgh
-7 carries for 13 yards by Najee Harris. Just your weekly mediocrity check in
-Diontae Johnson got open all afternoon, reeling in 8 of 14 targets for 85 yards. But he dropped what would've been a huge play early in the game. Same old, same old
Eagles 38- Commanders 31
-Wild game here. I respect Sam Howell for dicing Philly's secondary the way he did for 95% of the afternoon. He was electric, nearly 400 yards and four touchdowns. And one, season-crippling interception
-Brian Robinson ran well against a top run defense, firmly cementing himself over Antonio Gibson as their RB1
-Jahan Dotson finally showed up, nearly doubling his season totals for receiving yards with an 8/108/1 day. Jamison Crowder randomly added 95 and a score of his own, announcing to the world that he is still in the league
-Couple of really bad drops bad Terry McLaurin in this one, unlike him
-As dramatic as Philadelphia's comeback was, lest not forget they also fumbled twice at the goal line. They moved the ball at will in Landover, completely outmatching the occasionally opportunistic Commanders' D
-Jalen Hurts had one of those fumbles, but also went 29/38 for 319 and 4 touchdowns. The man was unstoppable
-Speaking of which...history for AJ Brown this week. Six straight games of over 125 receiving yards, never before seen in the NFL. His first of two touchdowns is going to be hard to top for catch of the year also, just absurd
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| Photo: ESPN |
-Devonta Smith made his presence felt as well, snagging 7 balls for 99 and a score
Panthers 15- Texans 13
-If for only one week, Bryce Young can say he was better than CJ Stroud. The top overall pick outperformed #2 in virtually every facet of the game, elevating the Panthers' to their first win of the year
-Carolina cannot run the ball though. Chuba Hubbard looks noticeably more explosive than prized free agent Miles Sanders, but even still averaged under 2 YPC
-Adam Thielen has really proven his worth as a viable receiver in this league, catching another 8 passes for 72 yards. He just manages to get open, even with his weak supporting cast doing him no favors
-This'll be a loss the Texans look back on with regret. No easy ones in the NFL, especially on the road, but seemed like one they should've locked up
-Dameon Pierce almost notched a touchdown, and even approached 4 yards per carry! Can't wait to see Stroud with a competent running game
Seahawks 24- Browns 20
-Really gritty win for the Seattle Seahawks. Up three with less than two minutes to go, PJ Walker threw a mind boggling interception, setting up Geno for the game winning drive. He found his rookie wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba for the go ahead score with 38 seconds to go, vaunting the Hawks' into first place of the NFC West
-Smith did throw two interceptions however, getting bailed out on a third that would've easily been a house call. Some of the concerns I have with the quarterback against top defenses
-Kenneth Walker's box score looks better than the on-field product, but no excuse for him to only hand eight carries
-Very Tyler Lockett day for the speedster, pacing the way with an 8/81/1 line
Broncos 24- Chiefs 9
-Did not expect this result. Five (5) turnovers doomed the Chiefs, including three from Patrick Mahomes. Some of the questions surrounding the overall talent of their offense are starting to come to a head. Outside of Travis Kelce, they're an incredibly weak core of pass catchers
-George Karlaftis had 2.5 sacks, raising his total to 6 on the season. He's been a pretty consistent performer on this KC defense
-12/19 for 114 and 3 touchdowns. That's how Denver is going to win games moving forward, playing actual defense and taking the ball out of their overpaid QB's hands as regularly as possible
-Javonte Williams was the driving force of this Broncos' attack, handling thirty touches for 98 total yards. Seems like he's all the way back from that ACL tear
-Touchdowns salvaged Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton's days, combining for just 4 catches and 79 yards otherwise
Ravens 31- Cardinals 24
-This final score looks much closer than the actual game. Outside of the first quarter and final two minutes of the fourth, the Ravens were completely in control
-Lamar Jackson wasn't his MVP-esque self, but he took what the defense gave him underneath en route to an efficient, turnover-free day
-Gus Edwards was the bus that drove Baltimore's scoring, racking up 80 yards and 3 end zone trips
-Shoutout Geno Stone for leading the league in interceptions, who saw that coming?
-It was a fun ride for Josh Dobbs, but he stinks. Career backup
-Emari Demercado actually ran pretty effectively against a good Ravens front seven. He's clearly got more pop than Keontay Ingram and Damien Williams
-I've been pretty high on Trey McBride since he came out of Colorado State. He's emerged as a productive safety blanket in Zach Ertz' absence, posting an impressive 10/95/1 line Sunday
Bengals 31- 49ers 17
-Called this one. Joe Burrow absolutely annihilated the Niners. 3 touchdowns, just 4 incompletions and 283 passing. Shiesty might be back
-Joe Mixon had a nice game too, rushing for 87 and a touchdown while helping keep the defense off balance
-Ja'Marr Chase was the biggest producer on the day though, catching ten passes for 100 yards and a score
-Sound the alarms in San Fran. This is still an elite team that's going to get better when some guys return from injury, but they've been tailing off quickly
-Brock Purdy's deteriorating play has been a key component of this losing streak. A hiccup, product of injuries, or maybe the league's finally catching on?
-17 straight games finding pay dirt for Christian McCaffery. The man's on another level
-George Kittle though...blasted this Cincy defense. 9 receptions for 149 yards, one of the better outings from any tight end this year. He'd have happily traded it all for a dub though
Chargers 30- Bears 13
-Good to see the Chargers come out and throttle an inferior opponent. They never make things easy on themselves, but this game was a blow out from the jump
-Justin Herbert was dialed in, going 31-40 for 298 and 3 touchdowns. Easily his best game of the month
-Austin Ekeler couldn't do anything on the ground, but happily chipped in 94 yards on 7 catches in the pass game
-Rookie wideout Quentin Johnston with the best game of his young career, bringing in 5 for 50
-Turns out that Tyson Bagent isn't very good, who saw that coming? Tough day for the Shepard alum
-Cole Kmet went a caught a perfect 10-10 of his targets for 79 yards. DJ Moore managed 55 of his own
-The Bears are bad
Lions 26- Raiders 14
-I needed a bunch of field goals for fantasy purposes, so it was cool of Riley Patterson to go get me four. The Lions moved the ball at will, dominating the time of possession 40:20 and outgaining the Raiders 486 to 157. Massacre
-The only reason this score looks close is because of a pick six by Jared Goff at the beginning of the third quarter. He was surgical outside of that. Shoutout Marcus Peters for the interception
-Jahmyr Gibbs has arrived, handling the rock 26 times for 152 and a score on the ground, plus 5/37 through the air
-Sam LaPorta also chipped in 8 catches for 57 yards and a score, as Detroit continues to get big dividends from their polarizing rookie class
-Jimmy Garoppolo was special kind of terrible Monday night, going 10 of 21 for 126 sad yards, while taking 6 sacks along the way. The offense never felt like it had any traction
-Davante Adams is living in hell right now, with no exit in sight as the trade deadline passes. If you're looking for him, it's in the bottom of the box score. One catch for 11 yards...unreal
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@Choppinglines
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