We've hit the halfway point in the National Football League season. Week eight provided plenty of stuff for us to talk about. We got a tie game for the second week in a row in the league for the first time since 1997. There were shanked kicks in overtime, comeback victories, second-half collapses. These are just a few of the big events that unfolded this past week in the NFL. Tom Brady reminded Rex Ryan and the Bills who runs things in the AFC East. The Cleveland Browns reminded us all why they’re referred to as the Factory of Sadness. Green Bay spread the ball around a lot, but it couldn't help them out against Atlanta. Dallas established themselves as a big threat to come out of the NFC East, Jacksonville sucks and the Panthers are starting to look like themselves from a year ago. A lot went down in week eight. Here's some of the best and worst from the week that was.
Best:
Derek Carr, Quarterback Oakland Raiders
I think its now safe to be able to go on record and say that he's better then his brother David. There's little debate to at this point in their careers. Oakland put a beating on the Bucs, coming away with a 30-24 win. Carr had himself a fantastic day, going 40 of 59 for 513 yards and four touchdowns. Amari Cooper did have a fine day in his own right, with 12 catches for 173 yards and a score, but Carr has been the big leader for Oakland this year. Oh yeah, all of this coming with the Raiders having one of the worst days in league history by racking up 23 penalties for 200 yards. Oh and most of the numbers Carr put up came in the 2nd half, after he helped the Raiders erase a Bucs 10-3 halftime lead. Carr became the 3rd QB in NFL history with 500 pass yards, 4 TD passes and zero picks in a singe game, joining Ben Roethlisberger (2014) and Y.A. Tittle (1962) (ESPN Stats and Info).
Worst:
National Football League Officials
Its a rough life of an official in professional sports, and the National Football League officials are no exceptions. They are getting ripped on a lot around the sports world, by the players, the fans and the media. Well there was plenty of trashing of the officials that was going on around the league in week eight. A lot of players went off about the refs this week. Washington Redskins cornerback Josh Norman can expect a fine after ripping field judge Brad Freeman (Norman got hit with five flags, four for “hands to the face” of WRs, which tells me that Norman needs to change his style of play a little if he knows the flags are coming). Cam Newton got in on the act as well. After taking a low hit from Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Calais Campbell that didn’t result in a flag, Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton said he is sick of not being protected like other quarterbacks. Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman thought most of the calls went in the New Orleans Saints’ favor on Sunday, and let people know about it. It’s not uncommon for players to be upset with officials, but it is rare when they call officials out publicly. The NFL office won’t like that. Not a good look on the league.
Best:
Matt Forte, Running Back New York Jets
Well well well, what have we here. The Jets are actually really using their running backs. What a novel idea! The Jets are now riding a two game winning streak and they've been using Matt Forte pretty well the last two games. He caught two passes for sixteen yards and carried the ball 25 times for 82 yards and ran in two touchdowns. Think about the numbers here. In the three wins that the Jets have they've given the ball to Forte a lot. Sure he had a lot of carries in the loss to the Bengals week one, but the Jets should have won the ball game. In the Jets losses this year, the passing game has looked awful. A lot of it has to do with the fact that Forte never really touched the ball. In their three wins, Forte got plenty of touches of the football. So I hope the New York Jets take notes. Unless the Jets feed Forte like the beast he is the rest of the way, they can count on missing the playoffs.
Worst:
Cleveland Browns
They had the Jets right where they wanted them. Cleveland had a 20-7 halftime lead and they were dominating the football game like it was nobody's business. Josh McCown, playing in his first game back since his injury, and Terrelle Pryor were cooking early in this one. They connected on six passes for 101 yards and a touchdown. McCown showed no signs of rust and finished the first half with two touchdowns. Then the Browns took the field for the second half and the wheels fell off the wagon. McCown threw two second-half interceptions that led mercifully to just three points. Unfortunately for him, the Browns and their long-suffering fans, that was the difference in the 31-28 win for the Jets. While the Browns offense crapped the bed, the Jets offense woke up. Cleveland now sits at 0-8 on the year. No matter how bad things may look for your NFL franchise, you have no right to complain out loud anywhere near a Browns fan.
Best:
Jordan Reed, Tight End Washington Redskins
He's missed the last two weeks dealing with a concussion. First game back ended in a tie with the Cincinnati Bengals in London, but it was a statement game for both Reed and Tyler Eifert (who had nine catches for 102 yards and a score). Reed had nine catches for 99 yards and a touchdown, showing that he has a flash for brilliant play still. Lets face facts, there's a good chance that behind Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots, Jordan Reed will probably be the best tight end in the game of football. Oh yeah, reed made nine catches out of thirteen targets from Kirk Cousins. Reed is good and looks like he may have found his game again.
Worst:
Jim Caldwell, Head Coach Detroit Lions
There's no promise made that this ruling could have turned the game around at all, but you never know. Detroit came up short against the Texans on Sunday, falling 20-13. With the Houston Texans leading 14-3 in the third quarter, it seemed like the Detroit Lions caught a break. DeAndre Hopkins caught a pass over the middle, seemed to gather himself with two short steps, then the Lions knocked the ball loose. Detroit clearly recovered. But it was called an incompletion. Caldwell never challenged. Instead of the Lions having the ball, the Texans kept possession and went on to kick a field goal. Even though it’s hard to get a play like that overturned on review, it could have been a turning point. According to the Detroit Free Press, Caldwell said his assistants told him “it did not look like it would be one that would be overturned because I think they applied the [catch] rule correctly.” Sometimes human error is made, so you did still have a chance to get the call overturned. If all else failed it gave your team a chance to rest and maybe come up with a plan to get back in the game
Best:
Dak Prescott, Quarterback Dallas Cowboys
Romo who? Yeah exactly. Dallas is without their star QB but they haven't really seemed to be missing him. Dallas is 6-1 and are on top of the division. After dropping the opener against the Giants the first week, they have won six straight, including a come from behind 29-23 overtime win over the Eagles. Dak had a rough start to the game, but managed to settle down nicely and finished the game strong. Dez Bryant had 113 yards receiving, including a 22-yard TD catch with 3:04 left to tie the game and help the Boys overcome a 10-point deficit. Dak finished the day going 19 of 39 for 287 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Prescott's TD pass to tight end Jason Witten tied Troy Aikman's rookie franchise record of nine scoring passes. With the way he's played, Romo shouldn't be put under center the rest of the way, Dak has played that well.
Worst:
Seattle Seahawks Offensive Line
You'd like to think that the Seahawks would be contenders in the NFC. They have one of the best defenses in the league. You've got an offense that has talent with Russell Wilson, Doug Baldwin and Jimmy Graham. So why are the Seahawks struggling this year? Seattle let starting left tackle Russell Okung and starting right guard J.R. Sweezy walk this past offseason, and looked to fill the void with a collection of first-contract draft picks and veteran journeymen. Unsurprisingly, Seattle’s offensive line struggled to protect Wilson throughout Sunday’s 25–20 loss to New Orleans, he was sacked once and hit three times by the Saints, but was under pressure on almost every snap , and the normally dominant Seahawks run game once again failed to launch. Seattle had one game last year where they didn't rush the ball over 100 yards. Now, against the Saints, they ran the ball only 74 times, the fourth straight game that the Seahawks couldn't run the ball for over a hundred yards.
