Russell Wilson takes lead in MVP race Jets’ Gase on hot-seat
The second half of the NFL season kicked off with some unexpected results. One of what had been two undefeated teams, the New England Patriots, fell, leaving the San Francisco 49ers as the lone unblemished squad.
Another contender that looked like it was just hitting its stride – the Green Bay Packers – also stumbled in a game in which they were favored. Still, there’s plenty of football left to be played and playoff battles are just now heating up. Here are the Week 9 winners and losers:
WINNERS Baltimore Ravens:
They made their case as the AFC’s top team. Baltimore’s 37-20 victory against the previously unbeaten Patriots exposed some flaws in New England’s once-dominant defense, namely a rushing defense that suddenly doesn’t seem so invincible. The problem for the rest of the AFC is that not many teams – you can make the argument that it’s actually no other team – are built the way Baltimore is. The Ravens (6-2) have a quarterback in Lamar Jackson who might be more dangerous keeping the ball in his hands than he is throwing it, despite ever-improving accuracy. The defense had the bye week to figure out how to stifle Tom Brady, but the unit is starting to play more cohesively regardless of that. The pass rush smothered Brady and the secondary jammed Pats receivers. For the Ravens, it’s now all about consistency and stacking performances just like this one.
Russell Wilson: He has appeared on this list before this season, but Wilson is starting to build a nice cushion in the MVP race. In the Seahawks’ 40-34 victory in overtime against the Buccaneers, Wilson threw for 378 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions. The paradigm of efficiency this year in the NFL, Wilson is just the second quarterback since 1950, joining Drew Brees in 2018, to have 20 or more touchdown passes through nine games of a season with only one interception. Wilson is at 22 passing scores and three rushing touchdowns. While the MVP race is wide open, Wilson has been the clearest example in the NFL through nine weeks of one player completely elevating those around him.
AFC West: In three games against the NFC North on Sunday, the AFC West swept the division. The Chargers beat the Packers, the Chiefs beat the Vikings (more on that in just a bit) and the Raiders beat the Lions, 31-24. Then, in the Broncos-Browns game, Denver prevailed, 24-19.
Andy Reid: Backup quarterback Matt Moore might seem like the obvious winner from the Chiefs’ 26-23 victory against the Vikings. He was efficient and effective, completing 25 of 35 passes for 275 yards and one touchdown. He drove the Chiefs down the field to set up a game-winning 44-yard field goal by Harrison Butker. But it’s coach Andy Reid who – when including the Week 7 game in which starter Patrick Mahomes went down with a dislocated kneecap – has gotten Kansas City to win two of the three contests in which Mahomes has been hurt. Perhaps the best news for Reid was that his offense was good enough, but it was his defense that shined and made just enough plays to bottle up Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and running back Dalvin Cook.
Quarterbacks named Allen:
For the first time in the Super Bowl era, three starting quarterbacks with the same last name each won their games in the same week. Josh Allen (Bills over
Redskins, 24-9), Kyle Allen (Panthers over Titans, 30-20) and Brandon Allen (Broncos over Browns, 24-19) each carried their teams.
LOSERS John Dorsey:
It might feel like it’s easy to pile on the Browns, but that’s what happens when a team woefully underperforms. And, even though Dorsey, the team’s general manager, was lauded for his offseason moves, he has to be held accountable when they don’t work. The mark of a bad team, Cleveland makes the same mistakes over and over. The Browns constantly had to settle for field goals and went 1-5 in red zone trips. Quarterback Baker Mayfield didn’t turn the ball over, but he missed open targets late in the game. Coach Freddie Kitchens, the offensive play caller, continues to make some confounding decisions in game management. The Browns are 2-6 and it’s not crazy to think that Kitchens is a candidate to lose his job after his first season in Cleveland.
Washington Redskins: For the first time in franchise history, Washington failed to score a touchdown in three consecutive games, all of them losses. The latest, a 24-9 defeat against the Bills, continued a couple of concerning trends. Rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins, forced to start because of a concussion to Case Keenum, offers small flashes, but he clearly needs some time to develop in the NFL. Against the Bills, Washington converted just two of 11 third-down tries and did not score a touchdown on either of its two trips inside the 20. In its last three games, Washington is averaging six points per contest. Normally, struggling franchises seek a boost when they fire a coach, as the Redskins did to Jay Gruden on October 7. In Washington, the opposite looks true under interim Bill Callahan. This team looks like it has relapsed.
Adam Gase: We’re now approaching the territory where Gase’s tenure in New York – as short as it has been with only eight games – might be over sooner rather than later. While one-anddones are rare for NFL head coaches, Gase’s team has no positive momentum and there’s no excuse for the team’s 26-18 loss against the previously winless Dolphins. New York has dealt with injuries, but quarterback Sam Darnold has regressed in his second season, and his mechanics have broken down. As a result, the turnovers and poor decisions are mounting. Since Darnold returned from his bout with mono four weeks ago, he has 11 turnovers overall, including at least one in each game. His confidence appears compromised behind a leaky offensive line. And Gase, who is an offensive specialist, can’t seem to scheme points for a unit that looks worse by the week.
(USA Today/TNS)