NFL Grades: Bills, Eagles and Seahawks top performers from Week Eight
Wednesday 1 November 2017 06:02, UK
There's top marks for the Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks in Week Eight in the NFL, while Miami Dolphins' scoreless effort earns them an F...
Which other teams also stood out and impressed, and which ones failed to show up?
Here's a look at our weekly team grades...
AFC EAST
Buffalo Bills (W 34-14 v Oakland)
This looked like a cracking match-up on paper between two potential AFC contenders, but it ended up being a Buffalo rout. Tyrod Taylor continues to 'game manage' with success at QB, while there's no game management with running back LeSean McCoy, who ran riot for 151 yards and one score on the ground. The Bills are now 5-2, and with the addition of Kelvin Benjamin at wide receiver off a trade with the Panthers, that post-season drought since 1999 really could be coming to an end... Grade A+
New England Patriots (W 21-13 v Los Angeles Chargers)
The Patriots continue to find a way to just about get it done, despite being nowhere near their best. Nowhere near their best, but yet they find themselves at 6-2 on the season. I tell you who is playing his best though, a certain 40-year-old QB - Tom Brady threw for 333 yards and one TD in this one. Grade A-
New York Jets (L 20-25 v Atlanta)
The Jets were competitive once again, very nearly inflicting a fourth straight defeat on Atlanta. But, the Falcons managed to pull away in the second half as New York only managed to add a field goal to their tally. Grade C-
Miami Dolphins (L 0-40 @ Baltimore)
Wow! Quite possibly the ugliest performance of any team this season, and Miami had already put in a few of those, particularly their offence. Head coach Adam Gase did warn it wouldn't be tolerated, and so out the door goes Jay Ajayi in a blockbuster trade deal with the Eagles! Obviously the blame doesn't lie with Ajayi solely and, in fact, it seemed as if Gase would have been quite content to trade the whole team if he could. Grade F
AFC NORTH
Baltimore Ravens (W 40-0 v Miami)
Baltimore won by 40 points! But, bizarrely, they weren't all that impressive. But there were some notable exceptions - the defence continues to score, with another pair of pick sixes picked up, while Alex Collins (113 yards off 18 carries) continues to impress at RB. Grade A
Pittsburgh Steelers (W 20-15 @ Detroit)
Remember the name JuJu Smith-Schuster! In truth, it was already pretty hard to forget it, even before his stunning 193-yard day in Detroit. That outing included a 97-yard catch and run for a TD to ice Pittsburgh's sixth win of the season. Grade A
Cincinnati Bengals (W 24-23 v Indianapolis)
The Bengals' blushes were spared as they escaped with an edgy one-point home win over the Colts courtesy of Carlos Dunlap's pick six late on. Grade B-
Cleveland Browns (L 16-33 v Minnesota @ Twickenham)
Well, that was more like it. Or as like it as you can get in a 16-33 defeat that sees you slip to 0-8 on the season. The Twickenham crowd certainly appreciated Cleveland making this game a contest, for the first half at least. The Browns even led at the break for the first time this season! Progress? Grade D+
AFC SOUTH
Houston Texans (L 38-41 @ Seattle)
Wow! Just wow! That's all you can say really about Deshaun Watson. Against the Seahawks, he became the first player in the Super Bowl era with 400+ passing yards, 4+ passing touchdowns and 50+ rushing yards in a game, and his 19 touchdowns on the season are the most by a QB through his first seven career games since 1970. He did, however, throw three interceptions which in part cost them the win in this stunning shootout. But, we choose to ignore that… Grade B
Indianapolis Colts (L 23-24 @ Cincinnati)
No wonder Andrew Luck is in no rush to return! Poor Jacoby Brissett just continues to get hit - the young QB taken down four times this weekend behind that atrocious offensive line. Even so, he helped keep his team be competitive in the game, throwing for 233 yards and two touchdowns, until his only interception came at exactly the wrong time to gift the Bengals the win at the death. Grade E
Jacksonville Jaguars (Bye)
Tennessee Titans (Bye)
AFC WEST
Kansas City Chiefs (W 29-19 v Denver)
After two down weeks with back-to-back defeats, the Chiefs were back looking like one of the best teams in football on Monday night, easing to victory over decisional rivals Denver without really ever breaking out of second gear. Unlike most weeks this season, Alex Smith and Kareem Hunt were kept relatively quiet, but the defence, along with Travis Kelce (133 yards, one TD) and Harrison Butker (five FGs) did enough. Grade A-
Los Angeles Chargers (L 13-21 @ New England)
The Chargers got off to an ideal start in New England, with Melvin Gordon disappearing through the Patriots defence for all of 87 yards and a first quarter touchdown, but the team did very little thereafter. Opportunity missed. Grade D
Oakland Raiders (L 14-34 @ Buffalo)
The Oakland offence had looked back to its best in the thrilling Week Seven besting of divisional rivals Kansas City, but they took a costly step back here… QB Derek Carr has come in for a little criticism, which is hugely unfair given he's only a couple of weeks removed from injury. He threw two picks, sure, but he'll get back to his best soon enough. The 3-5 Raiders will just be hoping it doesn't come too late for them. Grade D-
Denver Broncos (L 19-29 @ Kansas City)
It's all going badly wrong for the Broncos! A fourth defeat in five sees them slip back to 3-4 on the year. Trevor Siemian's dodgy display - 198 yards, one TD, three INTs - has kicked the rumour mill into gear that Denver are to make a change at QB, with the crisis apparently so severe that they're even contemplating starting Brock Osweiler! Grade E
NFC EAST
Philadelphia Eagles (W 33-10 v San Francisco)
How does 7-1 on the season sound Philadelphia fans? Pretty good, huh? And, how about Jay Ajayi's arrival via Miami in a trade for a fourth-round draft pick? Even better, I bet. This team has just got even stronger in the East. Grade A+
Dallas Cowboys (W 33-19 @ Washington)
While the Eagles have got stronger, Dallas have been weakened by the news that Ezekiel Elliott's six-game suspension has been reinstated. But, we've been fooled by this story before and it would be no great surprise to see the Cowboys running back suited up come Sunday courtesy of another legal loophole. Dallas fans will be desperately hoping that's the case after their superstar's 150-yard and two-TD display in beating the Redskins Grade A-
Washington Redskins (L 19-33 v Dallas)
The Redskins lose further ground in the division. Holding a first-half lead over the Cowboys, it began to go wrong with a blocked field goal in the second quarter that, rather than resulting in them stretching their advantage to 16-7, ultimately saw them fall behind 14-13, a position from which they would not retake the lead. Grade D
New York Giants (Bye)
NFC NORTH
Minnesota Vikings (W 33-16 v Cleveland @ Twickenham)
Minnesota made hard work of beating the Browns at Twickenham, but they got the job done eventually. They're sitting pretty at 6-2 for the lead in an Aaron Rodgers-less division. Grade A-
Chicago Bears (L 12-20 @ New Orleans)
Jordan Howard continues to get it done - 102 yards off 23 carries - but Mitch Trubisky is badly suffering from rookie rust at QB and doesn't seem to be too greatly trusted by the coaching staff to lead this offence. The defence was competitive, forcing two fumbles, but the Bears failed to capitalise on those turnovers late in the game. Grade C-
Detroit Lions (L 15-20 v Pittsburgh)
Worrying for Detroit. 482 yards of total offence, of which Matthew Stafford threw for 423, but yet they failed to find the endzone once! Five field goals is simply not good enough, and so it proved. Grade D
Green Bay Packers (Bye)
NFC SOUTH
New Orleans Saints (W 20-12 v Chicago)
The Saints have now won five in a row, but even by their own admission, they have yet to really hit their stride. A win (one that looked in doubt for long periods) over the struggling Bears is nothing to shout about, but it keeps their run going one more week. When this team do suddenly find their best form, look out! Grade B+
Atlanta Falcons (W 25-20 @ New York Jets)
It's still not vintage Falcons football… far from it. But, a win is a win, and after three straight defeats, this one will feel better than most. Grade B
Carolina Panthers (W 17-3 @ Tampa Bay)
Carolina break a two-game skid with an important divisional win that keeps them in the race with the Saints and Falcons either side of them… The battle for South supremacy is set to go right down to the wire. Grade B
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (L 3-17 v Carolina)
What's going wrong with Tampa Bay? A much-fancied outside bet for a playoff (and, by some, Super Bowl) run, they have now lost four straight. Leadership seems to be lacking, and the man that should provide it, quarterback Jameis Winston, had one of his poorer days, throwing two picks. Grade E
NFC WEST
Seattle Seahawks (W 41-38 v Houston)
Texans rookie QB Watson rightly took plenty of plaudits for his 400-yard and four-TD day in defeat to the Seahawks, but what about Russell Wilson? Somewhat forgotten in the shootout, Wilson had a first career 400-yard day himself, in fact, his 452 through the air was 50 better than Watson, plus the fourth of his TDs to Jimmy Graham with seconds remaining iced a stunning win. Seattle deserve an A+, if not for just keeping us thoroughly entertained! Grade A+
San Francisco 49ers (L 10-33 @ Philadelphia)
Good luck Jimmy Garoppolo! Sure, the recently acquired QB from the Patriots will be itching to play after sitting behind a certain Tom Brady in New England since entering the league, but this is a desperate 0-8 team he is joining, one whose current starter C.J. Beathard was taken down four times at the weekend. Ouch! Grade E
Arizona Cardinals (Bye)
Los Angeles Rams (Bye)
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