Man, after a relatively quiet first quarter of the season, that week five was a banger! Some incredible individual performances, points everywhere and our first coach gets canned.
Feels like the preseason is officially over and the gloves are off. Buckle up.
Lucky Birds
Between this improbable win and last week's 26-24 victory over New Orleans, where the Falcons didn't score an offensive touchdown, Atlanta's stolen two games that they probably didn't deserve. They could realistically be 1-4 right now, but some clutch performances by Kirk Cousins and Younghoe Koo have them pulling out close ones.
Passing Yards
Kirk Cousins threw the football little over a quarter of a mile on Thursday Night Football, finishing with 509 on the evening. He's the only quarterback ever to throw for 250+ yards in the first and second half of a game. Uncle Rico would be proud.
Haunting Loss
Tampa could've been 4-1 with tiebreakers over the Falcons, Lions and Commanders in the NFC. Instead, the offense stumbled late and the defense couldn't make a critical stop, leaving the Bucs sitting in second place in the NFC South. Plenty to be optimistic about, but can't gas up the hype train just yet.
Gang Green...From Watching the Jets
A glance at the box scores will tell you Aaron Rodgers is the problem, which holds some weight, but this New York offensive line is garbage. They're averaging 2.7 yards per carry over the last two weeks on the ground, with one of the premier tandems in the league at running back. Rodgers is running for his life routinely, rarely finding time to settle into the pocket. Tension's everywhere, even with Robert Saleh getting the boot on Tuesday. Can't feel good being a Jets fan right now.
5-0
Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings. Seriously, who saw this coming? A bye next Sunday ensures the Vikes another undefeated week while priming them for a massive matchup on the 20th versus the Detroit Lions. Get your popcorn ready.
Un. Be. Lievable.
I've seen some crazy Ravens games in my day, on the good and bad end of things. What we saw on Sunday in Cincy was quite possibly the best football game ever played. A crazy comeback, huge plays, backbreaking turnovers, missed field goals, refs generally staying out of the way. Not sure I've come down from it yet. If you haven't checked the replay, do yourself a favor. Unreal.
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| Photo: Jeff Dean/ AP |
Shiesty
Can't pin that loss on Joe Burrow, the man made one bad throw on the afternoon. Unfortunately for him, in a battle against a true MVP, that single mistake ended up making a world of difference. Bengals sitting on a frost-tipped 1-4 record currently.
More Passing Yards
730 yards between Trevor Lawrence and Joe Flacco on Sunday, many of which coming in a hectic fourth quarter that saw the two teams combine for 41 points. Absolutely wild battle between two AFC South rivals, extending the Colts' losing streak in Jacksonville to ten. Not a banner you want hanging!
No More Winless Teams!
The Jaguars have now entered the ranks of 1-4, happily taking that goose egg out of their win column. It wasn't pretty, but Trevor Lawrence showed some promise-- and at the end of the day, a win's a win. Vibes couldn't have been lower in Duval,
The Patriots and Dolphins Played
15-10 was the final score in a predictably boring affair. Not really sure how Jerod Mayo can justify not giving Drake Maye a look. Jacoby Brissett was pedestrian again, at best, going 18/34 for 160 turnover-less yards. No way Maye's looking this bad in practice.
Jameis Winston?
Yes, the Browns' offensive line is porous on their best days, but what the fuck has Deshaun Watson become? Between walking off the field on fourth and goal while down 21, the lost fumble and the 4.5 YPA, how can you look at your team in good conscious and say, "That's our man, that's our leader?" Watson's a disgrace, one that almost makes me sympathize for the Dawg Pound. Almost*
The First Place Washington Commanders
Not a misprint! The former Football Team has a dynamic young quarterback, a solid tandem at running back, a mean defensive line and a secondary that's starting to slowly figure it out under head coach Dan Quinn. While their schedule hasn't been the most challenging, you're doing something right when you sit at 4-1 overall. Future's looking bright in our nation's capital.
Josh Allen in His Own Head?
The unanimous MVP through the first three weeks of the season was objectively bad for most of this game, starting 1/9 for 24 yards en route to a 9/30 day-- a 30% completion percentage. For what it's worth, he was missing his top wideout Khalil Shakir, but that shouldn't have impacted Allen's performance this much. Really bad showing that could've helped reestablish Buffalo as a top member of the AFC.
Get Better Nico
Speaking of injured wideouts, the Texans surely possess more depth at the position than Buffalo, being able to plug in Tank Dell or Stefon Diggs for their banged up WR1. But it was concerning how ineffective the offense looked after Collins went out. Perhaps that was the Bills defense making them work, but Houston's been a little clunky offensively.
Season's Over Raiders
Vegas was up 10-3 and going into the end zone before an atrocious Gardner Minshew interception was housed by Patrick Surtain II, the first of his two picks on the day. Aidan O'Connell ultimately replaced Minshew and managed to look worse, leaving the Raiders with virtually no viability at the position. Scrappy team with some pieces, but it'd behoove them to trade away some of those assets to set themselves up for future drafts.
No Love Lost
Didn't hate seeing that Bo Nix/Sean Payton shouting match on the sidelines. Nix has his shortcomings but he's shown growth these last few weeks, with Payton setting him up for success by not asking him to do too much. It's usually not pretty in Denver, but they're a competitive bunch; thanks largely in part to a ferocious defense.
A White Cornerback!
And it isn't Cooper DeJean! Denver's Riley Moss was the first Caucasian corner to record an interception in 22 years...an impeccable streak. The whities are happy to be back on board.
Niners Exposed?
They might just be the best 2-3 team of all time, but that's not a trophy many teams are chasing. While San Francisco may be dealing with some major injuries, they're still at full-enough strength to not be losing home games to inferior teams when leading by 13 at the half. No reason to think the Niners are falling off, but they've got to tighten some things up.
Guts
Arizona tallied 14 unanswered points in the second half to pull off a major NFC West upset on the road. Marvin Harrison needs to be more involved, only recording two catches on the afternoon, but they got James Conner going and made some plays defensively for the first time in two weeks. They're a volatile bunch who'll occasionally put it all together for a win.
Rams-Packers
Pretty unexciting game. Jordan Love threw his first career pick six, his 5th interception in 3 games. Kyren Williams cleared the century mark, reestablishing himself as the premier back he is. Not much else of note!
Tyrone Tracy Jr. Wants More Carries
Starting running back Devin Singletary's had been having a solid year for New York, but a groin injury sidelined him Sunday, opening the door for backup Tyrone Tracy Jr. The rookie did not disappoint, rolling off 129 yards on just 18 carries, consistently gashing the Seahawks front seven. Singletary may be good to go against Cincinnati this weekend, but it appears he may be returning to more of a committee than he left.
NFC West Ain't the Best
Seattle sits alone atop this usually strong division at 3-2, but they haven't really notched an impressive win. The Niners have issues, Arizona's up and down and the Rams are out to pasture. Unless a few of these teams get hot, it seems like this group is no longer the cream of the NFC
WR2 Jalen Tolbert
With Brandin Cooks out, Jalen Tolbert had a huge chance to entrench himself as the secondary receiver in Dallas. His performance in Pittsburgh was a positive step toward that goal, posting an 8/87/1 line against a pretty stout secondary. CeeDee's the unabated WR1 on the Cowboys, but there's plenty of receptions to go around.
George Pickens Load Management?
Rumors have been gaining steam that the Steelers' top wideout's been on a bit of a pitch count lately, a surprising development because he seems to be physically fine, per the eye test anyway. The team has no depth at the position, making this move surprising. Stay tuned to see if there ends up being any truth to the reports.
That Derek Carr Interception...
One of the funniest plays you'll ever watch in a professional football game. Unfortunately, an oblique injury later in this game has Carr on the mend for the foreseeable future. The Saints have come crashing down to Earth spectacularly since their 2-0 start.
The Gang's Back
Juju Smith-Schuster, Travis Kelce and Kareem Hunt were all key contributors to the Chiefs' Monday night victory.
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@Choppinglines
*I own no rights to any images found in this blog
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