It seems like every week there is a team that performs poorly after playing impressively the week before. This week that team would be the Kansas City Chiefs. A week after discussing Kansas City and Philadelphia earning impressive wins to put them at the top of the NFL picture, Kansas City fell flat on their face. Who was the team that impressed this week? Another AFC team who is looking to return to their third straight AFC Championship game. What does that mean? Probably that they will play terrible next week. Week eight had a little bit of everything: surprising outcomes, big rookie performances, a devastating player injury, and Jimmy Garoppolo missing his Raiders receivers at an unbelievable rate.
Bengals Continue Rise Up While Niners Fall Again
Joe Burrow’s state line: 28-32, 283 yards, and three touchdowns.
Yeah, I think Burrow is back which is the greatest sign that the Cincinnati Bengals are back. Struggling through a calf injury early on in the year, Burrow was really struggling to hit open receivers and limit turnovers, but it’s clear now that the calf must feel better. Burrow picked the San Francisco 49ers defense apart in the 31-17 win.
A game that could be a potential Super Bowl matchup, Cincinnati jumped to a 7-0 lead halfway through the first quarter and never looked back. The Bengals kept the 49ers from every taking a lead, only allowing San Francisco to tie the back for about three short minutes in that same first quarter. Burrow once again found chemistry with Ja’Marr Chase, who caught ten passes for 100 yards. Defensively, the Bengals forced three turnovers by Brock Purdy who played his worst game taking care of the football as a pro. With three straight wins, Cincinnati has risen right back into the AFC standings and is on a trajectory to be one of the Super Bowl contenders predicted by many in the preseason. They will look to prove that in a game against Buffalo on Sunday.
On the other hand, San Francisco has now lost three in a row and might be beginning to question if Brock Purdy should be benched for Sam Darnold. As great as Purdy has been over the past year, he has really struggled as of late, with this game being the worst of the bunch. Beyond Purdy, there’s no reason a team as talented as San Francisco should be suffering losses like they have. With the way things are playing out, it’s hard to imagine any team outside of San Francisco competing with Philadelphia in the NFC, but if they hope to do so, they better clean up their act real soon. San Francisco will get a much needed bye week to do so.
Chiefs Can’t Overcome Turnovers in Loss to Broncos
Kansas City came back down to Earth after their impressive offensive outburst over the Chargers last weekend. Against another division rival, the Denver Broncos, Kansas City turned the ball over five times, including two interceptions and a fumble by Patrick Mahomes. Denver took advantage of those turnovers and bullied their way to a 24-9 victory.
It was game that was likely lost on those turnovers. Denver didn’t do anything particularly well on offense. The Broncos only reached 240 yards, but were successful in the redzone, scoring on three of five attempts compared to Kansas City failing on all three tries. It was a surprisingly outcome to say the least as the Broncos defense has been atrocious for most of the season.
There should definitely be some concern in Kansas City with the production of the offense. It may be minimal worry right now, but this Kansas City offense hasn’t had things come as easy to them as they have in the past. Travis Kelce is still the top tight end in the game, but after him, Mahomes hasn’t found someone it seems he can really rely upon. With Mahomes at the head of the offense the Chiefs will be in the running until the very end, but this team may not have as much separation from the other opponents as they have in the past.
Cousins Phenomenal Season Ends Early
Kirk Cousins’ season is over after suffering an Achilles tear. The injury happened in the second half of the Vikings 24-10 road win over the Green Bay Packers. Cousins exited the game with 274 yards passing and two touchdowns. A class act, Cousins was seen cheering his teammates on while leaving the field on the injury cart.
For years Cousins has been the epitome of durability in the NFL. He has played behind offensive lines that have nearly left him for dead, but continued to get back up and perform at a high level. The irony is that now Cousins has been playing behind a very good offensive line and performing like a potential MVP, but saw his season end by a non-contact injury. Cousins’ season will end with 2,331 yards passing, 18 touchdowns, and five interceptions.
It leaves a sorrowful feeling for Cousins, a quarterback who has undoubtedly been a top 12 player at his position, but has had no shortage of criticism in his career. Cousins was playing the best football of his career on the final year of his contract with Minnesota. With no current front runner in the MVP race, Cousins deserved to be in that conversation to this point. He is tied for the league lead in touchdown passes and is top five in passing yards and QB rating. Now Cousins’ future is in limbo as he has yet to sign an extension with the Vikings and will be coming off a major injury. If Cousins does make it to free agency, he will once again become one of the most highly coveted free agents in the past several years.
Levis Puts on Show in Debut
Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback Will Levis made his regular season debut against the Atlanta Falcons and did not disappoint. Levis threw for four touchdowns, being the passer for all 28 Titans points in their 28-23 win over the NFC South opponent.
Levis took sometime to get his feel in the first quarter of the game, but connected on a 47 yard touchdown pass to DeAndre Hopkins with under three minutes left. Levis would continue to throw a single touchdown in each quarter, including two more to Hopkins. Beyond the first touchdown, Levis also threw a 61 yard and 33 yard touchdown, showing the ability to connect with receivers for big chunk plays. The rookie finished the day with 238 yards passing.
Levis did feel a strong Falcons pass rush, being sacked six times during the game. Despite the Falcons defense, Levis was able to form quite the dual threat offense with Derrick Henry also rushing for 101 yards.
It is only one game and will be interesting to see how Levis performs against upcoming opponents who have some film on him. If Levis really does burst into the league like this consistently, it changes a lot for the Titans. A team that has ridden Henry into the ground for several years would finally have a potential game changing quarterback who could help create an unbelievably balanced offense. Ryan Tannehill may be serviceable, but Levis provides much more potential just based on the unknown alone.
Now we also won’t get too far ahead of ourselves. As great as Levis was, we’ve seen quarterbacks open their careers with impressive starts only to fall back to the mean eventually. If Levis can continue to play at this level, it would provide the most talent the Titans have seen under center since Steve McNair.
Week Nine Game Watchability Rankings
Teams on Bye: Broncos, Lions, 49ers, Jaguars
14. Colts vs Panthers: I feel a little bad putting Carolina in last place after they earned their first win of the season, but even so, it wasn’t a win that will change many opinions. We are nearing the halfway point of the season and have yet to have a big Bryce Young moment. That’s concerning for Carolina. The Colts are just a mess now and no longer have the excitement of Anthony Richardson’s rookie season. A meaningless game between two teams that aren’t really that enjoyable to watch.
13. Giants vs Raiders: Two teams that might as well be looking toward next season. New York and Las Vegas are brutally offensively with a couple nice pieces defensively that can’t carry the entire weight of the team. This feels like a consolation bracket type game. Sure, there’s players to watch, but what’s the point of watching two teams that have little to play for. It’s time to cheer for draft position of these team’s fans.
12. Bears vs Saints: New Orleans finds themselves tied with Atlanta atop the NFC South. In a division that will likely be a tight race the entire season, every game is uber important. At this point, it seems like Chicago is a near lock to have at least one, likely two, top five picks. With Justin Fields sidelined, they also aren’t able to assess where they think he is as a longterm solution at quarterback. Hopefully Fields can return for this game in NOLA.
11. Commanders vs Patriots: Washington and New England have both played well against good teams this year. They’ve also played horrific against less talented teams. Washington will be coming off playing Philadelphia tough, but falling short for the second time this season. New England can’t get any consistency from Mac Jones at quarterback. It’s seeming more and more like Jones’ days are numbered in a New England. Despite being two poor teams, this game could be a close affair.
10. Cardinals vs Browns: Kyler Murray may be back under center for Arizona so that makes this game potentially more intriguing. It might be in Murray’s best interest to avoid this Cleveland Browns defense. As bad as the Browns offense looks at times, their defense is one of the most consistent units in the league. Cleveland has been surprising and had real opportunities to earn a big win in Seattle. A win against Arizona is a must for the Browns.
9. Vikings vs Falcons: This could have been a nice game to watch if Kirk Cousins’ season didn’t unfortunately end. Minnesota seemed like it was finding its stride with both the offensive line, defense, and Jordan Addison, but Cousins was the team’s true MVP. This season now seems lost for the Vikings. They will start the next part of their journey against an Atlanta team that nobody really believes in and was just torched in Will Levis’ rookie debut. If Atlanta can’t beat a team quarterbacked by Jaren Hall or whoever the Vikings throw out there, they definitely don’t deserve to be in the NFC South conversation.
8. Rams vs Packers: Jordan Love hasn’t been great, but dropped balls by receivers is also very much to blame. Green Bay needs better performances by its best players. Los Angeles is begging to plummet down the NFC West standings and their most recent loss to Dallas causes much concern. The Rams offense was held to just 280 yards. Despite looking impressive early on this season, it seems the Rams are fading into the low expectation preseason predictions.
7. Buccaneers vs Texans: Houston’s potential of making a surprising playoff berth took a heavy hit after a loss to the previously winless Carolina Panthers. Tampa Bay is now on a three game losing streak after starting the year off impressively. If these teams hope to salvage this season, they need to clean it up on the field soon.
6. Titans vs Steelers: Will Levis came out in week eight and put on the best rookie performance of the season in his career debut. For at least one week, Tennessee fans will have hope that Levis can be a quarterback for the Titans for the next ten years, but this week he will face a daunting Pittsburgh defense. As great as the defense is for the Steelers, Pittsburgh will need more consistency from Kenny Pickett and the offense.
5. Chargers vs Jets: Justin Herbert against that unbelievable New York Jets defense. That alone is worth tuning into. With both of these teams hoping to compete for a wild card spot, this game could have massive tiebreaker potential. Considering both teams have massive weaknesses, whether it be coaching in Los Angeles or the play of Zach Wilson in New York, expect this game to be a mess.
4. Seahawks vs Ravens: For as many poor matchups as there are in week nine, there is a strong argument that the top four games of this week feature eight of the top 10 teams in the NFL. The first of those four is the one NFC-AFC battle. Seattle and Baltimore have most football fans believing they are knocking on the door of contention, but haven’t knocked the door in yet to become true Super Bowl contenders. Winning this game won’t necessarily prove that, but will be a nice win to add to this season’s resume. This is a toss up game.
3. Bills vs Bengals: A rematch of last season’s AFC Divisional Round. Joe Burrow and Cincinnati look like they are officially back on track with their most recent victory over San Francisco. Buffalo has been a little shaky lately, but did get a win over Tampa Bay this week. This is a legitimate Sunday Night Football main event game. Two top five quarterbacks in Josh Allen and Joe Burrow. This game could very well be a playoff teaser.
2. Cowboys vs Eagles: Bitter NFC South rivals will get their first matchup of the season. Last year Dallas and Philadelphia split the season series. Much like last year, Philadelphia looks like the stronger team, but when Dallas puts it all together like they did in week eight against the Rams, they can be a machine. If the Cowboys can pull off the road upset, they will be right back in the division title hunt. An Eagles win will give them a two game separation and that could be all they need. Expect a slugfest from two teams that don’t care for one another
1. Dolphins vs Chiefs: The best game in one of the most loaded weeks of the NFL season features arguably the best two teams in the AFC and two teams that when they are playing their best are maybe the most electric offenses in the NFL. The Miami-Kansas City game also takes place in Germany which means football fans will need to be up early for this one. With electric teams like this, you may not need your coffee to wake up on Sunday morning. If ever there was an NFL game in Europe to wake up early for, it’s this one.
The Brewball NFL Power Rankings
- Philadelphia Eagles (7-1)
- Kansas City Chiefs (6-2)
- Miami Dolphins (6-2)
- Baltimore Ravens (6-2)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (6-2)
- San Francisco 49ers (5-3)
- Dallas Cowboys (5-2)
- Seattle Seahawks (5-2)
- Detroit Lions (6-2)
- Buffalo Bills (5-3)
- Cincinnati Bengals (4-3)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3)
- Los Angeles Chargers (3-4)
- Cleveland Browns (4-3)
- New York Jets (4-3)
- Los Angeles Rams (3-5)
- New Orleans Saints (4-4)
- Minnesota Vikings (4-4)
- Atlanta Falcons (4-4)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-4)
- Tennessee Titans (3-4)
- Indianapolis Colts (3-5)
- Houston Texans (3-4)
- Washington Commanders (3-5)
- Denver Broncos (3-5)
- Las Vegas Raiders (3-5)
- New England Patriots (2-6)
- Green Bay Packers (2-5)
- New York Giants (2-6)
- Chicago Bears (2-6)
- Arizona Cardinals (1-7)
- Carolina Panthers (1-6)