Buffalo's Bay Day Opens Patriots Route to Top Spot - Best of NFL Week 10
- Published:
- Comments: 3
Week 10 once more provided excitement, with a huge upset for the Buffalo Bills demonstrating the 'any given Sunday' saying that draws so many fans into the National Football League
This outcome may have opened opportunities for the Patriots to move back into a leading position they used to occupy, with a schedule that gives them an edge over their 8-2 competitors
Meanwhile in the National Football Conference the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams had perfect results to arrange a major confrontation next week, while our player of the week is pursuing milestones as well as the MVP award
The Breakdown - Simply an Off Day for the Bills?
Could it simply have been an emotional letdown from beating the Chiefs the previous week or something more? This remains the question for the Buffalo team to address
The Bills had secured seven victories in a consecutive games against Miami but were second best from the beginning as the Dolphins emerged as 30-13 winners in an surprising outcome - and performance
MVP Josh Allen only achieved the team's opening first down in the third quarter and initial scoring in the fourth - admittedly the Dolphins had ten days to get ready but it was still a significant failure produced by one of the NFL's top offences
Tua Tagovailoa passed for two touchdowns but rusher Achane was the game-changing factor, with 225 combined yards and two touchdowns
Bottling up the league's best rushing attack was crucial too, with James Cook and teammates recording just eighty-six yards, their fewest of the year and slightly more than half their 161.5-yard average
Then there were the three crucial ball losses, and the pair from Josh Allen specifically. An pass caught by defense in the scoring area meaning a nine minute possession produced nothing, and his fourth-quarter dropped ball that the Dolphins converted to a touchdown just two plays
It was typical 'previous Bills teams' as they shot themselves in the foot, getting into a hole on defense and Allen trying to do too much to dig his team out of it - rather than the composed, controlled, well-balanced Buffalo team we've seen this year
The Dolphins have demonstrated a bit of everything this year so the jury's out on whether this is the start of something, but for Buffalo they'll need an instant response in a tough game against Tampa Bay next week as the Patriots are quietly moving into a nice lead at the top of the AFC East
Spotlight - Patriots Identify Route to Unexpected First Place
Speaking of the Patriots, they're one of three 8-2 teams in the league, all AFC teams, but are they the top team?
One could pick holes in New England, the Broncos and Indianapolis actually for dominating the lesser sides, with only five of their total twenty-four wins coming against teams with a winning record - and one of those was the Indianapolis defeating the Broncos
The Broncos beat the reigning champion Eagles in Philadelphia and are kings of the final quarter while Indy can ride Jonathan Taylor, but the New England including Sunday's win in Tampa Bay to their primtime success in Orchard Park appears to be a declaration
Their two defeats occurred in recently appointed coach Mike Vrabel's first three contests, with seven straight wins, just like the Broncos, since then - but defeating Mayfield after the Buccaneers had a week off to prepare was huge
Maye's MVP claims won't go away, and he definitely earns credit for bravery after absorbing some hard tackles in Tampa Bay but hanging in there to guide his team to victory
The defense is reliable and first-year rusher TreVeyon Henderson exploded on Sunday with 147 yards and two exciting scores of 55 and 69 yards - establishing himself as just the fifth ball carrier to exceed 22mph this year on his first score
While you can debate who 'the best' is technically, the Patriots should be favourites to end with the best record thanks to their remaining opponents - which includes just a single matchup against a winning team, albeit a huge one against the Bills
Traveling to Baltimore is challenging too, but the Broncos have it even tougher in the AFC West division with the Kansas City to face two times, the Chargers (who could also challenge for first place but face the same problem) and additionally the Packers on the schedule
The Colts also play the Kansas City, and have the Seahawks, San Francisco and two matchups with the five and four Jacksonville to face. There's a considerable distance to go but the door is open for a shock top seed in the American Football Conference
Coming Up - Rams & Seahawks Set for Next Week Showdown
Two teams with strong arguments to be superior to all of the three different 8-2 teams are National Football Conference West rivals the Seattle and Rams, who each put up forty points to go to 7-2 ahead of next week's Hollywood blockbuster meeting between the pair in LA
Both have won four in a row, have quarterbacks in Matthew Stafford and Sam Darnold performing at an high standard (although Darnold had turnover issues on game day) with excellent pass catchers, and defensive units giving up fewer than twenty points a game
Both could easily be without a loss as too - particularly the Los Angeles as their two defeats came in extra time against the San Francisco and then that agonising loss in Philly when they had a game-winning field goal with the last kick deflected and run back by the Philadelphia for a touchdown
Seattle were also defeated to San Francisco, with a last-minute score in week one, before falling to the last kick of the game against the Buccaneers - so they are genuinely two of the top teams in the NFL
The next matchup on Sunday could be the most exciting of the season so far
Top Performer - Jonathan Taylor
Taylor might be on for a record season after his incredible display in Berlin - rushing for 244 rushing yards, scoring three touchdowns and adding another 42 {receiving yards