Week eight, what a time it was. We got a few major upsets thanks to a busy witching hour, raising plenty of question marks for some teams.
We'll get some answers to those soon, but in the meantime:
Off The Block!
Less than a week after a hurricane of trade rumors began to swirl surrounding Cooper Kupp and Matthew Stafford, Sean McVay and the Rams took down the Vikings to emphatically put those reports to bed. Suddenly, LA's sitting at 3-4 in a wide open NFC, healthier than they've been all season. Maybe the boys have another run in them?
Puka Nacua looked outstanding too, especially since he nearly didn't play.
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| Photo: Gary A. Vasquez/ Imagn Images |
Don't Worry This Week Vikings Fans
After starting out 5-0, losses versus Lions and at the Rams are forgivable. Minnesota's got some get-right games coming up versus the Colts, Jags and Titans. If they drop two or more of those matchups, then we'll start sounding the alarms.
A Vintage Trio
Jalen Hurts punched in 3 rushing touchdowns, bringing him up to seven for the season. He looked back to his old self, connecting well with his receivers while making the Bengals pay with his legs when necessary. The Eagles might be back.
Paper Tigers
The 3-6 Cincinnati Bengals. Nothing more than the façade of an explosive offense coupled with a defense that'd struggle to stop many quality collegiate attacks. Joe Burrow's good, but perhaps he's more hype than substance overall at this point-- or at least with this current Cincy unit.
Trap Game
The 8.5 point favorites slept walked through this entire game, somehow still managing to lead late. Then one, final let down by the secondary-- a single snap after Kyle Hamilton dropped an interception he makes 99 times out of 100. Gross loss for the Ravens that probably knocked them out of contention for the #1 seed in the AFC.
Why Was Jameis Not in There Sooner?
The Browns looked like a competent offense with Winston under center for the first time this season. Not sure who was making the call to keep Deshaun Watson in there, but they deserve some reprimand.
Super Bowl Favorites
Detroit was in a dog fight with Tennessee for a minute there, tied at 14 apiece early in the second quarter. They went on to score 38 unanswered from there, absolutely decimating a far inferior opponent. For the first time in my lifetime, the Lions are not just contenders, but favorites to win the Lombardi. Wild.
Calvin Ridley SZN
You know what they say about squeaky wheels. After trading Deandre Hopkins to KC, the Titans really only have on option in the passing game, and the man stepped up Sunday. Ridley went off for 143 yards on 10 receptions, reinstalling faith that he can be a productive fantasy player.
What Keeps You Coming Back
Kyler Murray and the Cards can be so frustrating, but on the occasions they choose to flash, the results can be brilliant. Arizona torched a top defense in the league, specifically on the backs of Trey McBride (9/124) and Marvin Harrison Jr. (6/111/1). Suddenly, this 4-4 squad's very alive in the NFC West.
Tua and Five
Shame on me for believing the Dolphins could win what's been a pretty wide open AFC East. Tua's absence surely contributed to this 2-5 record, but at some point you have to wonder how deep of a hole they should attempt to dig out of, given their quarterback's long-term mental wellbeing.
Screw the #1 Pick!
Gutsy win by Patriots over their hated rivals New York. The victory cost them some spots in the race for the top overall pick, plus Drake Maye suffered a concussion, but you've got to have some moments to hang your hat on. Essentially ending the Jets season is a good way to go through that.
Broadway Low
The New York Jets are 2-6. All the hype, all the "talent", all the expectations. 2-6. What a disastrous experiment this Aaron Rodgers situation has devolved into. And it's going to haunt the franchise for years.
Your NFC South Champions
The Atlanta Falcons are a game ahead of Tampa in the divisional standings and have already swept them for the season. Carolina and New Orleans are not in the race. It'd take a pretty impressive collapse to mess this up, but we've seen the Dirty Birds do it before.
Not Enough Juice
With Chris Godwin and Mike Evans sidelined, the Bucs predictably lacked firepower on offense. Cade Otton did his part, leading the way with 9 catches, 81 yards, 2 TD. The committee of Jalen McMillan, Trey Palmer and Sterling Shephard combined for just 82 yards on 9 catches. Going to be hard to trust Tampa's passing attack moving forward.
In Malik Willis We Trust
The man's 3-0 in games that he's played, making some big throws down the stretch to steal a win in Jacksonville. He's not only solidifying himself as a top tier backup in the league, but he may earn himself a spot in a QB competition next offseason. Yet another negative indictment on Titans, who gave him away for dirt cheap a few months ago.
Falling Soldiers
Like their Floridian counterparts down in Tampa, the Jags lost all their receivers, with Christian Kirk, Brian Thomas Jr. and Gabe Davis all exiting during this game. Kirk, who was a prime trade candidate, is now out for season with fractured collarbone, while BTJ and Davis should be fine within a week or two. Getting grimmer by the minute down in Duval.
AR 2-15
Pretty impressive that a quarterback can go 2/15 at the half and not have that be the main talking point of the performance. No, that honor belongs to Anthony Richardson's tap out on a third down play late in the third quarter because, "he was tired." Colts fans are tired of you Anthony, time to relax on the bench now behind Joe Flacco.
Joe Mixon's Renaissance
102 more yards for Joe Mixon Sunday, helping pace the Texans all game on the ground. He's been incredible since shipping down to Houston, clearing the century mark in 4 out of the 5 games he's played thus far. You think Cincy's missing that kind of rushing threat?
Bozeman the Watchdog
Love seeing center Bradley Bozeman pouncing on Saints' defender Nathan Shepherd after the defensive lineman very intentionally rolled over Justin Herbert's bad ankle. It was a scumbag move by a nobody on a terrible team, so much so that the ref didn't even throw the flag after the fact. Nathan Shepherd: you're a loser in many, many ways.
Jake Haener!
Spencer Rattler found his way back to the bench, opening the door for Mr. Haener to get some live snaps. The end results weren't much better. New Orleans is a really sorry bunch.
Back to Earth Seattle
After smashing the Falcons last week in Atlanta, the Seahawks came crashing back to reality against the Bills. They had two turnovers, high snaps and played shotty defense all game, really failing to recapture any of that dominant aura. One of the tougher teams to get a read on.
Amari Who-Per?
After an emphatic debut for Buffalo, Amari Cooper managed just 1 catch for 3 yards up in Seattle. However, his presence allowed for some more favorable matchups for Khalil Shakir and Keon Coleman, who took advantage, combining for 177 yards on 14 catches and a trip to the end zone. The trade might've helped the Bills round into form as a complete offense.
Small Step in the Right Direction
Bryce Young made his mistakes against one of the NFL's top secondarys, but he also made a few, semi-aggressive throws downfield. The kid has a long way to go, but he didn't deserve to be benched (again) from this outing.
11-2
That's Patrick Mahomes' record against the Raiders. This go round was far from a cake walk, but it was encouraging seeing him have as much success as he did targeting Travis Kelce. Deandre Hopkins had two catches for 29 yards in his debut, likely pulling safety help to help free up space over the middle for #87.
The Gardner Minshew- Desmond Ridder Platoon?
Curious coaching by Antonio Pierce to try and insert Ridder in the middle of the third quarter. We'll never know if he was out there for a wildcat or some other gimmick, as the Raiders had a presnap penalty called on them to kill the play. Very strange.
Dak's Not Very Good
This felt like pretty common knowledge to those who know ball, but ESPN and the media love to spin the narrative that Dak Prescott is anywhere near the elite quarterbacks. Against a tough opponent, he came up drastically short yet again, throwing two crucial interceptions for the Cowboys while failing to regularly drive them down the field. Enjoy that long term deal Dallas.
It Was Fun Jordan Mason
The impromptu top dog in San Francisco's backfield reinjured his shoulder after an inefficient first half, opening the door for third stringer Isaac Guerendo to rack up 102 total yards on 17 touches. Word on the street is Christian McCaffery could be back after the Niners bye, which would mean Mason's run as the RB1 is done.
Pittsburgh is Good?
They're 6-2, playing good defense, actually running the ball with success and now Russ has posted back to back quality starts. They felt like a bit of an anomaly under Justin Fields, but this group's rounding into a legitimate contender for the AFC North, and possibly beyond.
Tyrone Tracy Jr.!
The rookie from Purdue's taken full advantage of the opportunity Devin Singletary's injury presented him, churning out another 145 yards on 20 carries Monday night. By contrast, the now-healthy Singletary got just 4 touches. Tracy's dealing with a concussion, but when if he gets cleared from that, he's the clear RB1 in New York moving forward.
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@Choppinglines
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