USA TODAY International Edition
Saints offense keeps marching on in NFL
32 things learned during Week 10
The 32 things we learned from Week 10 of the 2018 NFL season.
1. No doubt: Who Dat > Who Dey
2. New Orleans piled up 509 yards on the way to embarrassing the Bengals 5114. Cincinnati’s effort — or lack thereof — earned some NFL history. Its defense became the first scorched for at least 500 yards in three consecutive games. 3. Dez Bryant won’t get to “Threaux up the X” this season after tearing an Achilles on Friday, days after signing with New Orleans. But his new teammates have apparently taken an immediate liking to him, using the opportunity afforded by their scoring outburst to pay tribute by throwing up the X all day at Paul Brown Stadium. Mark Ingram, Alvin Kamara and Mike Thomas all did so.
4. The Saints’ 51 points were the second most scored in a game this season.
5. The Steelers’ 52 points in Thursday’s win over Carolina were the most.
6. However, it must be noted that New Orleans’ Thomas Morstead didn’t punt Sunday, while Pittsburgh’s Jordan Berry was pressed into service twice against the Panthers.
6a. Big Ben Roethlisberger had all of three incompletions (compared with five TD passes) on a night when he posted a perfect 158.3 passer rating for the fourth time in a 15-year Steelers career.
6b. Only Drew Brees (10) and Peyton Manning (9) have more games with five TD passes than Big Ben’s six.
6c. But leave it to Steelers coach Mike Tomlin to throw cold water on his team’s stellar performance — one that came against a Carolina squad that looks like a solid playoff bet. “Really big performance, against a really good team on a very short week. So it’s a lot to be proud of,” Tomlin said. “But we’re probably not that good, you know?”
7. If you say so, Coach T. But y’all are pretty damn good — so good, in fact, that it’s worth wondering if seeing the Steelers’ well-oiled machine was enough for RB Le’Veon Bell, in conjunction with Bryant’s ill-fated injury, to determine there really is very little upside for him (aside from collecting the remaining $6 million from his prorated $14.54 million franchise tag) to play this year, a decision he must make by Tuesday afternoon.
7a. A final note on the Steelers, who are again playing defense, too. After a slow start on that side of the ball, Pittsburgh hasn’t allowed more than 21 points during its winning streak, and only one team (Atlanta, 324) has eclipsed 300 yards of offense during that five-game stretch.
8. Does anyone want the AFC’s final playoff berth? The Ravens are regressing while the Jaguars, Dolphins and Bengals all lost Sunday. The Titans, maybe even the Colts might just fill the breach.
9. Chasing a GOAT? Manning probably isn’t the GOAT in a Tom Brady-dominated quarterbacking universe, but he does have the most touchdown passes in NFL history (539). For now. Brees added three to his total Sunday and now has 509, a figure that propelled him past Brett Favre for second place.
10. Chasing a GOAT? Larry Fitzgerald has 15,902 career receiving yards, overtaking Terrell Owens for second all time but still nearly 7,000 shy of Jerry Rice’s (perhaps unbreakable) record.
11. Patrick Mahomes didn’t manage to establish an NFL record for consecutive 300-yard passing games — his streak ended at eight — but he did set a singleseason Chiefs standard for TD passes with his 31st while passing Hall of Famer Len Dawson.
12. Kudos to the Cardinals, who held the Chiefs to a season-low 26 points and 330 yards at Arrowhead and, to the surprise of many, covered a 17-point line.
13. It continues to fall short of the greatness (and maybe the Hall of Fame) bar, but Frank Gore’s consistent production is worthy of further praise. Sunday, he became the first man in league history to post at least 500 rushing yards in 14 consecutive seasons.
14. How good is Sam Darnold? We’re not sure yet, but the Jets’ first six losses had come by an average of 12 points (and never more than 20) with him on the field. They lost to lowly Buffalo 41-10 Sunday. New York gained 1 yard in the first quarter.
15. How bad is Todd Bowles’ Jets defense? Matt Barkley posted a passer rating better than 100 (117.4) for the first time in his career against it ... on his 12th day as a member of the Bills. Buffalo had a season-high 451 yards (118 more than any other game this season).
16. Bears K Cody Parkey missed four of six kicks Sunday, drilling the upright on two PATs and two field goal tries. Maybe he was working on trick shots during a day Chicago cruised 34-22.
17. Welcome back, Khalil Mack. He collected two sacks of Matthew Stafford after missing two weeks (ankle).
18. With the victory, the NFC Northleading Bears (6-3) defeated a division rival after losing 10 in a row to Black and Blue opponents.
19. No one struggles with “Kamara,” so why is “Amukamara” a bridge too far — especially when the Bears corner is playing so well?
20. Since the Chargers last played at home in StubHub Center on Oct. 7, they’ve traveled more than 14,000 miles while competing in Cleveland, London, Seattle and Oakland. The Bolts won all those games and, now, six in a row overall after dispatching the Raiders on Sunday. 21. I was struck by how cool and collected the Redskins were while visiting them in Ashburn, Virginia, last week even as they were scrambling following the loss of three offensive starters to injured reserve. But despite having three subs start on the O-line Sunday in Tampa, Washington improved to 6-3 and remained alone atop the NFC East.
22. Bill Belichick and the Patriots are 0-2, losing by a collective score of 6020, against rookie head coaches who used to work in New England.
23. #TB1K update: Tom Brady rushed once for 0 yards Sunday, leaving him stuck on 996 for his 19-year career.
24. Empty Calorie Award to the Buccaneers. Their offense put up 501 yards ... and three points. Per Elias, that had never happened in the league’s 99 seasons. 25. Todd Gurley’s MVP case continues to build steam. He’s one of four players ever to score a touchdown in 10 consecutive games to start a season. The others? All Hall of Famers (O.J. Simpson, Lenny Moore, Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch).
26. Aaron Donald’s defensive MVP case continues to build steam. His 121⁄2 sacks are already a career best.
27. The Seahawks’ 273 rushing yards were their most ever in defeat.
28. Recent decades notwithstanding, the Browns have a long and illustrious history. But no Cleveland player — not Jim Brown, not Leroy Kelly, not Bobby Mitchell, not Marion Motley — had ever had a 92-yard run ... until rookie Nick Chubb did it Sunday.
29. Congrats to Julio Jones, who reached 10,000 receiving yards in his 104th game, 11 faster than anyone else. His average of 97.1 receiving yards per game is the best ever.
30. But no congrats offered to Jones’ Falcons, whose winning streak died at three in Cleveland.
31. Playing for the first time since Sept. 30, Leonard Fournette posted 109 yards from scrimmage and two TDs.
32. Meaning ... @CaptAndrewLuck > @BortlesFacts