Tuesday 15 November 2016 15:54, UK
A superb week 10 for the NFC East with four excellent wins but the persistent, and somewhat baffling, struggles for the NFC North continue.
Miami Dolphins (W 31-24 at San Diego)
An efficient display from Ryan Tannehill (17-of-24 for 240 yards and two touchdowns) made up for a relatively light (in recent terms) 79 yards on the ground from Jay Ajayi, who was hobbled by injury from an early stage and lost a couple of potential scores to back-up Damien Williams. In the end, it was a Kiko Alonso pick six that secured a vital victory for the Dolphins and kept them well in the play-off hunt. Grade A-
New England Patriots (L 24-31 v Seattle)
There is no stigma in being beaten by the Seahawks, who have improved a great deal as Russell Wilson has edged closer to 100 per cent fitness, but this still goes down as something of a disappointment. Tom Brady failed to pass for a touchdown, missing out on a match-winner in the closing stages, and all of their scores came from hard-charging running back LeGarrette Blount. Grade C+
New York Jets (L 6-9 v Los Angeles)
The Jets defence excelled, limiting Los Angeles to only three field goals, but that was still enough for a loss as they could manage only one touchdown in response, missing the extra point as well. Bilal Powell hauled in the touchdown, a first for rookie quarterback Bryce Petty, but that was the sole highlight for him as he threw an interception which sealed their fate. Grade D
Buffalo Bills - bye
Baltimore Ravens (W 28-7 v Cleveland)
There were a few mistakes on offence from the Ravens, including two Joe Flacco interceptions, but the veteran quarterback threw three touchdown passes and didn't have to do a whole load more against a hopeless Browns team that could get nothing at all going against an excellent defence. Grade B
Pittsburgh Steelers (L 30-35 at Dallas)
An inexplicable loss for the Steelers and questions must surely be asked of coach Mike Tomlin and his obsession with going for two-point conversions. They scored four touchdowns and went for two each time, with none of the attempts succeeding. Leaving points on the table against a team as good as the Cowboys came back to haunt them in the last two minutes of a sensational game. Grade B-
Cincinnati Bengals (L 20-21 at NY Giants)
Not a good day for the Bengals offence, with Giovani Bernard having an off night and Andy Dalton proving inaccurate, a third of his yardage coming on a 71-yard pass to Tyler Eifert that set up Dalton's only TD pass. Their defence was decent but they lost receiver Sterling Shepard late on to hand the Giants victory and fall further back in the play-off hunt. Grade C
Cleveland Browns (L 7-28 at Baltimore)
It just gets worse for the Browns, who managed a paltry 144 of net yards and still somehow managed to lead at half-time. Another quarterback change could be in the offing after Cody Kessler was replaced, this time for inefficiency rather than injury, and it's 10 straight defeats to start the season for the first time. Grade F
Tennessee Titans (W 47-25 v Green Bay)
If there is a more exciting offence in the NFL than Tennessee's at the moment then I haven't seen them. Marcus Mariota has emerged as an elite quarterback and threw four more touchdown passes and DeMarco Murray also hurled one, as well as rushing for a score. Aaron Rodgers was sacked five times too, as the Titans defence also stood up. Grade A+
Houston Texans (W 24-21 at Jacksonville)
The Texans ended their road struggles, although they were handed plenty on a plate by the mistake-ridden Jaguars, who gave them a touchdown in the opening minutes on a Blake Bortles interception. Brock Osweiler didn't even reach 100 yards of passing but he had two touchdown throws, one of which was set up by their special teams - a positive all-round display but, like the Ravens, tempered by the opposition. Grade B+
Jacksonville Jaguars (L 21-24 v Houston)
You do wonder how long coach Gus Bradley and quarterback Blake Bortles have. Bortles threw another pick six to put the Jags in a hole and again padded his stat line late in the game long after the worst damage had been done. Defensively they just do not offer enough despite all their high draft picks in recent years. There's probably another one coming in the 2017 draft. Grade E
Indianapolis Colts - bye
Denver Broncos (W 25-23 at New Orleans)
Special teams to the rescue this time for the Broncos, who were a blocked kick away from a probable defeat and then managed to return the block for victory. Not their best defensive display of the season, with their secondary losing top receivers Willie Snead and Brandin Cooks on occasion, but Trevor Siemian had a better day despite a couple of picks, converting a couple of drives into touchdowns. Grade A-
Kansas City Chiefs (W 20-17 at Carolina)
A cracking comeback from the Chiefs, who looked like being shut out for much of the game with quarterback Alex Smith completely ineffective. But Eric Berry's pick six gave them a chance and Cairo Santos hit his third and fourth field goals of the game to win it, the latter coming after a superb Marcus Peters strip. A win for defence and special teams. Grade B+
San Diego Chargers (L 24-31 v Miami)
What happened to Philip Rivers? The Chargers quarterback played so well for most of the game and then threw four interceptions in the fourth quarter, the last two of them particularly costly as Kiko Alonso returned one for a touchdown and Tony Lippett's second of the day brought the game to an end, probably along with their play-off hopes. Grade D
Oakland Raiders - bye
Dallas Cowboys (W 35-30 at Pittsburgh)
This was a quite remarkable game with the lead changing hands three times in the last two minutes, the Cowboys ending on top thanks to Ezekiel Elliott's second late touchdown. Rookie sensation Elliott had 209 yards from scrimmage, Dak Prescott firmed his grip on the starting quarterback role and Dez Bryant looks close to 100 per cent, but their defence will have to be better if Dallas are to keep this going all the way to the Super Bowl. They allowed Ben Roethlisberger to pass for more than 400 yards and that has to be a cause for concern. Grade A
Philadelphia Eagles (W 24-15 v Atlanta)
Ryan Mathews had a day to remember, rushing for 109 yards and two touchdowns, and the Eagles defence did the rest as the red-hot Falcons were quietened in Philly. Free-scoring Atlanta barely made it past 300 net yards and they were unable to stop the Eagles running attack, which made more than 200 yards with Wendell Smallwood (19 rushes, 70 yards) also impressing. Grade A
Washington Redskins (W 26-20 v Minnesota)
Kirk Cousins continues to impress, throwing a pair of touchdown passes in the opening 30 minutes, and Dustin Hopkins did the rest with his boot, kicking four field goals in the second half after a series of Redskins drives stalled. Preston Smith also had a great day on defence, with two sacks and an interception of Sam Bradford on a drive that threatened to be costly for the home team. Grade A-
New York Giants (W 21-20 v Cincinnati)
Just call Giants coach Ben McAdoo 'The Gambler' from now on. A key call to hand Eli Manning the chance to pass on fourth down early in the fourth quarter led to a three-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Shepard and that proved to be the winning score. Manning threw another two interceptions but the Giants did show an improvement in their running game and their defence was very good, not for the first time this season. Grade A- on a great week for this excellent division!
Minnesota Vikings (L 20-26 at Washington)
Their 5-0 record is in the dim and distant past now, but such is the weakness of the division they remain in contention for the title. Sam Bradford threw for two touchdowns and more than 300 yards but the Vikings were unable to get much going after half-time and that meant restricting the Redskins to four field goals ended with a narrow (fourth straight) defeat. Grade C
Green Bay Packers (L 25-47 at Tennessee)
The Packers' season is disintegrating quickly and they were made to look amateurish on defence for long spells of this game. The Titans scored almost at will and had consistent success passing and running, while Aaron Rodgers spent plenty of time under pressure and was sacked five times. His two touchdown passes in the second quarter were of little consequence. Grade F
Chicago Bears (L 10-36 at Tampa Bay)
So impressive in week eight, the bye came at a poor time for the Bears as they were humiliated in Tampa. Jay Cutler reverted to type with an interception returned for an early touchdown and a sack costing the Bears a safety. Jordan Howard ran for 100 yards on only 15 carries but that was about the only positive and he was unable to finish the game because of injury. Their only touchdown came on a Hail Mary but this team needs more than divine intervention. Grade F
Detroit Lions - bye
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (W 36-10 v Chicago)
Victory for the Bucs after two defeats in which their defence was all over the place. Things improved a great deal in that sphere as the Bears turned the ball over four times and Jay Cutler was placed under almost constant pressure. Jameis Winston threw two touchdown passes, one of them after wriggling away from about 40 attempted tackles, and running back Doug Martin returned to action with a score as well. Grade A
New Orleans Saints (L 23-25 v Denver)
A costly blocked point-after means a fifth defeat of the season for the Saints, who are probably going to need help from elsewhere to make the post-season. Drew Brees mixed in the good of three touchdowns with two costly interceptions and the Broncos made life much harder for their in-form rushing attack. Unlucky perhaps, but this goes down in the loss column anyway. Grade C+
Carolina Panthers (L 17-20 v Kansas City)
A defeat that is hard to take for the Panthers, who looked to be getting their rhythm back after two wins and then easing into a 17-0 lead. In the end, it was mistakes that came back to haunt them with a Cam Newton interception returned for a touchdown and a Kelvin Benjamin fumble costing them a game-winning field goal. Grade C-
Atlanta Falcons (L 15-24 at Philadelphia)
Quarterback Matt Ryan is having a great season but he will want to forget this game, with a 76-yard touchdown pass to Taylor Gabriel his only highlight. He was inaccurate for much of the afternoon and had little running game to fall back on with Devonta Freeman only given the ball 12 times and the Eagles dominating time of possession to an alarming scale. Grade D
Seattle Seahawks (W 31-24 at New England)
A game of hat-tricks in Foxboro, where Russell Wilson and Doug Baldwin's treble came out on top thanks to some stout Seahawks defence in the closing minutes. The Patriots were one of the league's two hottest teams so this is a massive scalp for Pete Carroll's team and a modicum of revenge for their agonising defeat in Super Bowl XLIX. Grade A+
Los Angeles Rams (W 9-6 at New York Jets)
A dour defensive game at MetLife Stadium ended in victory for the Rams thanks to three field goals by Greg Zuerlein. Kenny Britt went for 109 yards on seven catches but that was the only solid stat line for the LA offence on a day when their defence dominated Jets rookie quarterback Bryce Petty. Grade B+
Arizona Cardinals (W 23-20 v San Francisco)
The Cardinals left it late, with a Chandler Catanzaro field goal winning them the game as time expired. They had dominated for long spells, with Carson Palmer throwing for 376 yards and Larry Fitzgerald hauling in 12 of his passes for 133 yards, but mistakes (two Palmer interceptions and two fumbles) kept the 49ers in the game until the last second. Grade B
San Francisco 49ers (L 20-23 at Arizona)
The 49ers look set for a top-three pick in the 2017 Draft but they were a little unlucky in their eighth loss of the season. Although they were outgained in yardage, Colin Kaepernick continued his NFL rebirth with two touchdowns, one passing and one on the ground, and they do have Carlos Hyde bac as well, albeit he was very ineffective on his first game back. Grade C+
