Indianapolis Colts 33, Houston Texans 28 - A huge divisional game between the two first place teams in the AFC South. The Colts are generally seen as the better team, but the Texans were playing quite well so far this season. But the Texans were outclassed by a potent Indianapolis offense, and the Colts outlasted Houston in this Texas showdown. Now, the Colts are in sole possession of first place in the AFC South.
Baltimore Ravens 48, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 17 - The only thing that I liked about Tamp Bay yesterday was their uniforms, which were reminiscent of the orange creamsickle uniforms of old. Oh, and the fact that their defense played so abysmally on the day that I had Joe Flacco starting on my fantasy team against them. But otherwise, they played horrendously, and were essentially doormats to the Baltimore Ravens. Flacco had a monster day, particularly in the first half, when he threw for five touchdown passes!
Tennessee Titans 16, Jacksonville Jaguars - The Titans were on a four game skid, and they needed something to go right. And something did: the Jaguars were next on their schedule. It was not that the Titans played so well, because they only got one touchdown and three field goals total. But their defense played pretty well, and their 16 points was enough to win convincingly against the hapless Jaguars.
New England Patriots 37, Buffalo Bills 22 - I know a Bills fan who, earlier this week, was mentioning how he felt Buffalo should win the division title. But you have to get past New England to do it, and he kind of shrugged. Said, so long as they win at home in Buffalo. But the Bills failed to do that, getting blown out at home against the Patriots, who are starting to look good enough that you can dismiss that blowout loss at Kansas City as a fluke. Brady was on fire, throwing four touchdown passes, and the Pats, who started the season in sole possession of last place in the AFC East, are now, rather predictably, in sole possession of first.
Denver Broncos 31, NY Jets 17 - Peyton Manning is inching his way closer to the all-time touchdown pass record, and further cementing his status as the greatest regular season quarterback in history, at the very least. If the Broncos were to win the Super Bowl, Manning might still have a chance to be remembered as the greatest quarterback in history, period. As for the Jets, a fifth straight loss, with a short week and a Thursday showdown against the Pats at Foxboro. Doesn't get much worse than this for Gang Green. Hard to see them escaping a sixth straight loss.
Cleveland Browns 31, Pittsburgh Steelers 10 - Wanting to avenge an earlier season loss in which the Browns came back from down 27-3 at the half to tie the game, only to lose it by a Pittsburgh field goal in the last second. But with another shot at the Steelers this weekend, they left no doubt, completely dominating the game, and winning their first game as favorites against Pittsburgh in something like a quarter of a century! Crazy! And the Browns are legit, I believe! They always seemed better this season than most expected them to be. Go Browns!
Cincinnati Bengals 37, Carolina Panthers 37 (OT) - Ties are rare in the NFL, but it happened this weekend. The Panthers played surprisingly well, much better than I thought they would, while the Bengals were not able to impose their will against an opponent for the second straight week, which has to be a source of concern for them now.
San Diego Chargers 31, Oakland Raiders 28 - This was close to being one of those upsets that become so memorable during typical seasons,, and possibly have a huge impact down the line. The Raiders and the Chargers went back and forth, but Oakland seemed to have San Diego on the ropes in the fourth quarter, up by a touchdown with time running out. But the Chargers were able to bounce back, kicking a field goal to get within four, then a touchdown inside of the two minute warning to clinch the come from behind victory.
Dallas Cowboys 30, Seattle Seahawks 23 - Okay. Alright. I'll admit to not seeing this one coming, as my predictions obviously showed Seattle winning this one for sure. Apparently, the Cowboys are tougher - a lot tougher - than almost anyone expected them to be heading into this season! How often will you see a team fall behind 10-0 on the road against the Seahawks after a blocked punt for a touchdown, and then win the game? Not often! But that's exactly what Dallas did, battling back every step of the way, until they managed to pull it off in the end, very much to their credit. They are now tied atop the NFC East (and the NFC and NFL more generally) with the Eagles for the best record at 5-1.
Chicago Bears 27, Atlanta Falcons 13 - The Falcons are usually very tough at home, and were undefeated there so far during this young season. Playing a struggling Bears team, I had assumed the Falcons would find a way to win. Not so the last couple of seasons, however. The Bears had a very strong second quarter and, even after the Falcons had a 10-0 run to start the second half, the Bears were able to take over and win the contest convincingly, staying in the NFC North division race.
Arizona Cardinals 30, Washington 20 - Washington was actually winning this game for a while, and looked capable of possibly pulling off an upset. But the Cardinals just wore them down to take a 23-13 lead late in the game. Washington was able to get a touchdown late in the fourth to make it close, and then had the ball, hoping to drive for the winning score, or at least a tying field goal. But Kirk Cousins threw a pick six that iced it for Arizona, who now are 4-1.
Philadelphia Eagles 27, NY Giants 0 -You know it was a really bad game for the Giants when a shutout thrashing by a divisional opponent was not the worst news or biggest concern of the night, but rather, Victor Cruz's season ending knee injury. The Giants are without arguably their most dangerous offensive weapon, and after scoring at least 30 points in each of their three consecutive wins heading into this game, the Giants were blanked! Now, they are two games behind the Eagles and the Cowboys, each of whom are 5-1. And the Giants now go to Dallas, to take on the Cowboys, who are coming off their biggest win perhaps in years, shocking the Seahawks in Seattle! It just doesn't get better for the Giants.
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