There are so many stories emerging from week 9 of the NFL that I decided to spend this opening paragraph brushing the surface. First, spare a thought for Aaron Rodgers and Devante Adams. On Sunday, Rodgers threw two red zone interceptions on back-to-back drives to start the game and was held to eight points by one of the worst defenses in the Detroit Lions. Ouch! Adams had a great day with ten catches, 146 yards, and 2 TDs and had to take home another loss after giving up 17 points to the Jaguars. Boy, those guys must miss each other! Another fanbase struggling to come to grips with their season is the Indianapolis Colts. Last year, the team was contending for the playoffs until they lost to the Jaguars in the finale. Then, on Sunday, their horrible season culminated with an abysmal performance highlighted by 0-16 on 3rd and 4th down. The nightmarish result led to their coach getting fired the very next day. On the positive side, the Bengals’ offense has struggled for consistency in protecting Joe Burrow but in week nine, they suddenly discovered that a ready-built solution is running the ball through Joe Mixon. The former Sooner tallied 27 touches for 211 yards and five touchdowns in a scintillating performance. Yet, there is more to talk about, and below are the three biggest stories from the weekend.
1. Quarterback Heroics- it is a monotonous phrase, but the NFL is a quarterback-driven league. It was on full display in Week 9. The Tampa Bay offense laid an egg right into the 4th quarter with dropped passes and a glaring lack of cohesion. However, the Los Angeles Rams offense was not much better and clung to a 3-point lead with 54 seconds left in the game and no timeouts. However, it was too much time for Tom Brady, who rose to the occasion. Brady took a deep shot in the middle to Cade Otton for 28 yards. Then, he dinked his way down the field with Scotty Miller on the sideline and capped the comeback with a short play-action touchdown pass to Otton. It was yet another reminder to never bet against number 12, and congrats to the Bucs staff for keeping his 100,000 career pass game ball locked away before it ended up in the stands. Another heroic performance came from Patrick Mahomes. The Cheifs led the game 9-0, but the Titans scored 17 unanswered points. However, late in the 4th quarter, Mahomes engineered a 13-play, 93-yard drive that took 6 minutes and 58 seconds. The backbreaking plays were scrambling conversions on 3rd and 17, and 3rd and 9 to score the touchdown. On the 2-point conversion, Mahomes scrambled to make the conversion. Yes, Mahomes ran for 63 yards on six carries and won the game because he put the team on his back.
2. Bills upset- the Bills came into this game looking to stretch their lead at the top of the AFC East. The Bills started disastrously with Josh Allen throwing an interception in the red zone to stall the drive. The offense settled in and scored two touchdowns to grab a 14-10 lead. However, after the second half, the Bills’ offense was terrible with their four possessions ending with an interception, field goal, punt, and turnover on downs. The credit must go to the Jets for dominating the time of possession 32.5:27.5 minutes. Sauce Gardner and the defensive backs contained Buffalo’s weapons on the outside, and the running game brought the physicality to neutralize the pass rush. The Bills are now tied with the Chiefs atop the conference but have the lead based on their head-to-head. However, if they fail to secure the number one seed, they can look back at this blown opportunity, and they are now 0-2 in the division.
3. Fireworks in Chicago-the most exciting game of the weekend was the Soldier Field shoot-out between the Bears and Dolphins. The Dolphins won the game 35-32, but both teams will walk away feeling satisfied with where they are heading. The Dolphins will be thrilled with Tua Tagovailoa completing 21 of 30 passes for 302 yards and three touchdowns. The Dolphins are very difficult to stop because Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle can beat man-to-man coverage with speed, and Tua can beat zone coverage with arm accuracy and IQ. On the other hand, the Chicago Bears are starting to see the patience with Justin Fields pay off. Fields had a virtuoso performance completing 17 of 28 passes for 123 yards and three touchdowns to go along with 15 carries and 178 yards and a touchdown. It included a massive 61-yard scamper that made football fans’ jaws drop with flashbacks to Michael Vick. The sky is the limit for the Dolphins, but the Bears may have an even brighter future with picks and deep pockets to spend in free agency in the off-season.