In a week that had a handful of highly anticipated games amongst top teams, the biggest statements were mostly made by last year’s Super Bowl participants. There may not be a single team that has entered the same level of playing field as the Eagles and Chiefs, but a recent Super Bowl participant has continued to rise from the ashes of the early season. We also had some unexpectedly great quarterback performances including one rookie having a record setting day and a journeyman quarterback having a career day after spending less than a week with his new team. Week Nine had a balance of good, bad, and wild.
Eagles Sneak Past Cowboys in NFC East Showdown
In a weekend with some great matchups, one of the NFL’s greatest rivalries provided the most thrilling game. The Philadelphia Eagles held on for a 28-23 win over the Dallas Cowboys to improve their league best record to 8-1.
Dak Prescott continued his recent hot streak and gave the Cowboys a great opportunity to win a big road game. Prescott threw for 374 yards and three touchdowns without a turnover, out dueling Jalen Hurts for most of the game. Prescott connected with CeeDee Lamb for 11 catches and 191 of those yards.
Prescott’s performance should’ve been enough to win the game, but the final score really came down to two nail biting plays. Down by 11 with about 10 minutes to play, Dallas went for a 4th & Goal from the Philadelphia one yard line. Luke Schoonmaker caught the pass, but had hit the ground before the ball had cross the end zone line resulting in a turnover on downs.
Following that play, the Cowboys eventually forced a punt and then marched right back down the field for an eventual touchdown. With the score 28-23, the Cowboys went for a two point conversion that looked successful via a Prescott run, but upon review it showed that Dak had stepped out of bounds one step prior to entering the end zone. The missed two point conversion removed the opportunity for the Cowboys to kick a game tying field goal on their final drive before losing the game.
The Eagles have slowly improved each week, buy still don’t necessarily look like an unstoppable one loss team despite their league best record. It could be argued that Dallas actually performed better and deserved to win this game if it weren’t for the two aforementioned missed opportunities. At this point in the season, it seems like both the Eagles and Cowboys are two of the top three teams in the NFC, including the 49ers if they are able to rid themselves of their recent cold streak. In another five weeks, these two teams will meet again, this time in Dallas. It will be interesting to see the top two teams in the NFC East stand at that point and how that game potentially changes the landscape of the playoff picture.
Chiefs Take Care of Fins in Germany
Every time it feels like the Kansas City Chiefs might have met their match, they remind everyone that is easier said than done. With the high octane offense of the Miami Dolphins facing the Chiefs in Frankfurt, Germany, it seemed like the type of game Kansas City could actually drop during the regular season. In typical Chiefs excellence, they put that to rest with a 21-14 win.
The way the first half played out, it felt like Kansas City was about to beat the breaks off of Miami. The Chiefs went into halftime with a 21 lead after a fumble was returned 59 yards for a touchdown just before the half. Prior to that moment, Patrick Mahomes had already connected for two passing touchdowns.
To the Dolphins credit, Mike McDaniel’s squad made some strong adjustments at halftime. The Dolphins shutout Kansas City for the entirety of the second half. Offensively, Miami was able to find the end zone twice in the third quarter to put themselves in a position to complete the comeback.
That opportunity to complete the comeback went right up to the final minute of the game. Tua Tagovailoa led the Miami offense to the Kansas City 31 yard line with just about a minute to go to game. On 4th & 10 with one more chance to extend the drive deep into Chiefs’ territory, a bad snap caused Tagovailoa to drop the ball, causing a broken play and never getting a throw off. Kansas City would kneel out the clock for the remainder of the game.
Kansas City continues to be one of only three two loss teams, including Baltimore and Jacksonville. The Chiefs have had some consistency issues on offense, but their much improved defense has helped make up for any of those unusual difficulties. With Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs will continue to be in every game.
Miami is a tad bit harder to to figure out. When the Dolphins offense is cruising they look like a video game team. That being said, the Dolphins wins have come against the Chargers, Patriots, Broncos, Giants, and Panthers, who are some of the league’s worst playing teams. With losses to Buffalo, Philadelphia, and now Kansas City, the jury is still out on the Dolphins.
Bengals Continue Rise Up AFC Standings
At this point there can be no question, the Cincinnati Bengals are back being a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Hell, outside of Kansas City and Philadelphia, the Bengals might be the next best bet in the NFL. Cincinnati’s most recent statement game that they are in fact “back” was Sunday evening’s 24-18 win over the Buffalo Bills.
Joe Burrow continued his success against the best quarterbacks in the NFL, improving to 5-1 against Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen in his career. His calf injury once again looked like it was in the rear view mirror, throwing for 348 yards and two touchdowns without a pick. Considering the lack of true MVP candidates, it’s not crazy to say Burrow could enter that conversation if he continues to perform this way and the Bengals continue to win down the stretch.
The difference in the score may not have been much, but it did feel like Cincinnati was performing on a much different level than Buffalo. The Bills offense felt incredibly limited again beyond Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs. Beyond Burrow playing better than Allen, the Bengals just had more versatility with a semi-reliable running game through Joe Mixon.
Buffalo now finds themselves out of a current playoff spot. The Bills still have remaining games against Philadelphia, Kansas City, Dallas, and Miami, who are four of the top ten teams in the NFL. They also have two remaining games against the New York Jets and New England, two teams they have already lost to. As surprising a statement it would’ve been at the beginning of the year, the Bills are looking less like a playoff lock as the season plays out.
Cincinnati still finds themselves in last place in the gauntlet of the AFC North despite their 5-3 record. With several games remaining within the division, the Bengals should be able to determine their own fate and considering how they’ve looked lately, that should mean good things ahead.
C.J. Stroud Takes Massive Leap Toward Rookie of the Year
It already appeared that C.J. Stroud was the most impressive rookie quarterback in this year’s class, but his performance on Sunday gives reason to debate whether he is already playing at a top ten in the NFL level. Stroud torched the Tampa Bay defense with 470 yards passing for five touchdowns without throwing an interception in a 39-37 win.
Stroud was on fire all day in a performance that now holds the rookie record for total passing yards in a single game. Even crazier, Stroud’s average yards per pass was a whopping 11.2 yards. The Bucs defense, which has some quality players, could do nothing to stop the roll that Stroud was on.
The second overall pick saved the best for last in the Texans’ comeback win. After giving up a lead with 46 seconds left in the game, Stroud marched Houston right back down the field and connected with Tank Dell on a 15 yard dart in the back of the end zone, leaving only six seconds left on the game clock.
Stroud now has 14 touchdowns and only one interception on the season. He is also in the top 10 of the league in passing yards. Halfway through this season it looks like Stroud is on pace to have one of the all time great rookie years. If the Texans could find a running game they could be one of the elite offenses in the NFL. A little more team consistency and Houston might even be in the realm of battling for a playoff spot. Things are starting to look bright in Houston.
Week Ten Game Watchability Rankings
Teams on Bye: Chiefs, Rams, Dolphins, Eagles
14. Panthers vs Bears: After a week of some great games, week nine is full of some complete trashcan worthy games. None are worse on paper than Carolina and Chicago. Two of the NFL’s worst teams battling it out in a meaningless Thursday Night Football game. If ever there was an example of bad Thursday Night Football, this is it.
13. Colts vs Patriots: New England is just a shit show and Bill Belichick looks miserable. The Pats have lost five of six and it’s time to officially start looking towards the NFL Draft. Mac Jones had a lot of pressure following in the footsteps of Tom Brady, but it seems more clear than ever that he cannot be a long term answer at quarterback. Indianapolis is now in a “house money” year as they really don’t have any expectations once Anthony Richardson went down. These former AFC rivals have taken a great fall from the days of Brady and Manning.
12. Falcons vs Cardinals: With Atlanta’s recent loss to Minnesota and quarterback who only joined the team a couple days prior, it would seem Arthur Smith should start being on the coaching hot seat. In a mediocre NFC South, the Falcons look once again destined to fall short of the playoffs thanks to losses like Sunday. Following up that game with a loss to this Arizona team that is clearly not looking to compete anymore in the 2023 season might just turn the heat up to scolding levels.
11. Titans vs Buccaneers: Will Levis may not have had quite the performance or earned the win against Pittsburgh on Thursday, but he still showed excellent poise for a rookie making his second start for a game he only had three days to prep for. Tampa Bay has dropped four in a row and just gave up a record breaking amount of passing yards to a rookie when C.J. Stroud torched them this weekend. With how the NFC South performs, the division may never actually be out of reach but this is a great opportunity for Tampa Bay to make some ground. Unfortunately for the Bucs, you can trust them as much as a hitchhiker in a horror movie.
10. Jets vs Raiders: No team has a larger disparity between their defense and offense than the New York Jets. New York held Justin Herbert to less than 150 yards passing, but couldn’t put points on the board to gain any value from it. Las Vegas got off to a good start with Antonio Pierce as interim head coach. The Raiders posted 30 points against the other New York team whose going through their own struggles. Aidan O’Connell will have his hands full though playing against the dynamite Jets defense. It’s just a matter of whether Zach Wilson the New York offense can do anything to supplement one of the best units in football.
9. Giants vs Cowboys: As if things couldn’t get worse for New York, it looks like Daniel Jones season is now over with an ACL injury. It’s been a rough year for the Giants after returning to the playoffs last season. With a road game against Dallas, it’s likely to get worse. The Cowboys had their opportunities to get a big road win against Philadelphia, but fell just short. Dak Prescott will look to continue his hot level of play.
8. Packers vs Steelers: Green Bay stopped the bleeding on their season with a home win against a Matthew Stafford-less Rams team. Despite the 20-3 win, Green Bay still looks unimpressive. It will be interesting to see how the Packers offense stacks up against T.J. Watt and the Pittsburgh defense. A big game for the Steelers as they must continue to keep ground with the rest of their AFC North competition as Baltimore, Cleveland, and Cincinnati continue to keep winning.
7. Commanders vs Seahawks: Washington is such a weird team. Will play the Philadelphia Eagles well twice, but then look like one of the league’s worst teams on another day. The Commanders responded to the Chase Young and Montez Sweat trades with a win against New England and as crazy as it sounds, a wild card playoff berth may not be impossible for Washington. Speaking of playoffs, Seattle seems like they are definitely a top five NFC team, but their ass kicking in Baltimore shows they are still a ways off from competing with the best teams. Seattle should win this game, but it may not be a wallk in the park.
6. Broncos vs Bills: This feels like a sneaky competitive game because Denver may not be as poor as we originally thought and Buffalo may not be an elite AFC team now. Let’s first start with Denver. Yes, they have a 3-5 record, but Russell Wilson has played much better this season under Sean Payton. The Bills are also coming off bye week with a two game winning streak, including a win over Kansas City. Now, onto Buffalo. Are we sure about this Bills team? They are 5-4 now and only have one marquee win against Miami earlier in the season. The offense seems so one dimensional now and do they really have anything that stands out as better than the best in the AFC? Conclusion: I think this game is much more competitive than one would expect.
5. Saints vs Vikings: This Minnesota team has plenty of heart. One week after losing Kirk Cousins for the season and then being acquired via trade, Joshua Dobbs led a Vikings comeback win in the final minute of regulation against Atlanta, This, after the Vikings rookie back up Jaren Hall had to exit the game after the first drive. Minnesota keeps acquiring plenty of injuries, but has now put together four wins in a row and Justin Jefferson may be returning soon. New Orleans has put together some wins to take an NFC South lead. On paper these teams seem really even and who knows, maybe these are two playoff teams.
4. Texans vs Bengals: If this game had a stock it would be shooting to the moon. C.J. Stroud will be leading Houston after his record breaking performance. Stroud is currently the favorite for Rookie of the Year and I’m not sure anyone is even in his stratosphere right now. On the other side of the field we have Cincinnati who is officially back in the mix as an AFC and Super Bowl contender after their win over Buffalo. Joe Burrow looks great and the early season calf issues look like they are long gone. This could be a really fun AFC matchup.
3. Browns vs Ravens: Part I of this matchup was a Baltimore blowout. Both teams have only gotten better since that matchup and look like they have elite defenses. Baltimore undoubtedly has a better offense, but Cleveland will be entering off a shutout win. The Ravens stand atop the AFC North, but it’s still a wide open race. Every matchup in this division is an important game.
2. Lions vs Chargers: Detroit returns from their buy looking to eliminate the taste of their brutal loss in Baltimore. They will do that by traveling to Los Angeles to play a Chargers team that is far from impressive, often frustrating, and somehow has a .500 record now. On paper, the Lions team is playing like one would expect the Chargers to play. When you look at these rosters, you don’t see much that’s drastically different. We will see if the game plays out as competitive as it should be. It’s a bad week of football matchups, but this one has some high upside.
1. 49ers vs Jaguars: Week ten has a couple of good teams on bye and plenty of poor games, but the San Francisco vs Jacksonville matchup is very captivating. Will San Francisco get back on track? Will Brock Purdy play better? Is Jacksonville for real? As it stands right now these are two of the best teams in the NFL, but ones that many people still have questions about. This also seems like a game where Kyle Shanahan and Doug Pederson may have a few sneaky plays up their sleeves.
The Brewball NFL Power Rankings
- Philadelphia Eagles (8-1)
- Kansas City Chiefs (7-2)
- Baltimore Ravens (7-2)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (6-2)
- Cincinnati Bengals (5-3)
- San Francisco 49ers (5-3)
- Miami Dolphins (6-3)
- Dallas Cowboys (5-3)
- Detroit Lions (6-2)
- Buffalo Bills (5-4)
- Seattle Seahawks (5-3)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (5-3)
- Los Angeles Chargers (4-4)
- Cleveland Browns (5-3)
- New Orleans Saints (5-4)
- Minnesota Vikings (5-4)
- Houston Texans (4-4)
- New York Jets (4-4)
- Atlanta Falcons (4-5)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)
- Tennessee Titans (3-5)
- Indianapolis Colts (4-5)
- Washington Commanders (4-5)
- Denver Broncos (3-5)
- Las Vegas Raiders (4-5)
- Los Angeles Rams (3-6)
- Green Bay Packers (3-5)
- New England Patriots (2-7)
- New York Giants (2-7)
- Chicago Bears (2-7)
- Arizona Cardinals (1-8)
- Carolina Panthers (1-7)