Steelers Step on My Foot Again I Will Whoop Us Ass
P.J. Williams figured the moment he'd waited for the whole game just wasn't coming.
Having played the Tom Brady version of the Buccaneers more than any other team has—the Saints faced them twice in the regular season, and so again in the playoffs last year—showed New Orleans a few things. And in those three games, i was that Tampa Bay had congenital in the sort of crossing routes that leveraged the legendary quarterback's accurateness, and the open-field talent of the receivers around him to take the ball on the move and go.
And then the Saints had a robber coverage in for points of the game that allowed Williams to bladder, feign that he was dropping into the deeper function of the field and follow Brady's eyes to the ball. Problem was, until the 4th quarter, the Buccaneers had adjusted to New Orleans's desire to take away the middle.
Then came second-and-10, Buccaneers' ball from their own 25, downwards 29–27. Brady needed only a field goal to give Tampa full command of the NFC South race heading into the good day.
The quarterback took a deep drop out of shotgun, planted, hitched and decisively allow it go right to Chris Godwin—and, unbeknownst to Brady himself, Williams as well.
"Really all 24-hour interval, nosotros've been looking for those in-cuts and they didn't do a lot of that all game," Williams said over the prison cell, from the Saints' postgame locker room. "Then nosotros knew definitely in crunch-time situations they was gonna do that, and I was a free histrion, just reading the quarterback. Then he took me right to the ball, and it was at that place, man. It was the play that we were waiting for pretty much all game—and a play that I was planning to steal from the jump."
Stephen Lew/United states TODAY Sports
Williams laughed and said, "When you lot see that ball coming to you lot, man, in that location's no meliorate feeling than that. It's a crazy feeling."
Williams's eyes got big, his hands went upwardly and he burst past Godwin and teammate Chauncey Gardner-Johnson to the ball, and flew correct down the correct boundary with it. I stutter-step by Leonard Fournette, and one more burst past a slew of Buccaneer linemen, and the NFC South race was on once more.
The Saints didn't win the Super Basin last year, like the Bucs did. But they did win the division, as they had the three years previous, likewise. And even with Drew Brees now spending his Sundays in a studio, they weren't well-nigh to let get of their reign over the South so like shooting fish in a barrel.
Williams's pick, sealing the Saints' 36–27 win, was but i thing proving that on an afternoon over which the Bucs were served plenty of reminders.
Stephen Lew/United states TODAY Sports (P.J. Williams); Kirby Lee/Usa TODAY Sports (Adrian Phillips); Danielle Parhizkaran/NorthJersey.com/USA TODAY Network (Mike White)
Hard to believe it, simply we're through eight weeks now, and this coming week should exist an eventful 1. But before nosotros go at that place, we're going to take a wait back in this week's MMQB. Inside the column, yous'll find …
• A potential Patriots' rebirth.
• The AFC's new lead dog scores another impressive win.
• How the Jets punch above their weight class.
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• The Steelers' winning a street fight.
But we're starting with the world champions, and the team that'southward given them more problem than anyone the concluding two years.
When Williams and I talked, he'd already heard the news nearly Jameis Winston—he and Winston were college teammates at Florida State and have remained close since—and by now you know it'south almost certainly not adept.
Based on initial testing, the belief is Winston tore his left ACL, afterward planting his pes and getting bent dorsum in the open field by Tampa star Devin White. That is, obviously, a terrible result for Winston, and one that had motorcoach Sean Payton emotional postgame, as he reflected on how hard Winston collection himself to make sure this 2d chance he was getting worked at the highest level possible.
The Winston injury happened with 12 minutes and change left in the second quarter and the game tied at seven. A concussion had already sidelined Taysom Hill for this one, so in came journeyman Trevor Siemian, who promptly went three-and-out on his first series.
That might milkshake some teams, but not these Saints.
Where perception had forever held that Drew Brees was the Saints, reality has shifted over the years. Payton, Mickey Loomis and Jeff Ireland, specifically, caught fire in the draft through the last v cycles or so, which immune for a team less reliant on Brees to be built. So, the thinking went, the bottom wouldn't fall out whenever Brees decided to walk abroad. And that's why when Brees did walk away in March, the Saints were ready for it (mostly).
At this point, they're taking pride in it.
"That'due south been our mindset all yr," Williams said. "Simply having a new quarterback and getting used to the criminal offence this manner; that'southward been our mindset all year, that [the defence] was gonna accept to step it up for them until they caught burn, and also with a whole lot of players beingness hurt and coming dorsum and stuff like that. Nosotros knew that nosotros had to be a big staple of this team. That'southward been our mindset from the spring, I feel like.
"And nosotros know nosotros tin can be one of those acme-five, great defenses."
But information technology'south one affair to experience that way and some other to know it, and this was ane of those weeks when the Saints could find out for themselves where they stood. While New Orleans swept Tampa in the regular season final twelvemonth, there was a caveat to it—the wins came in Weeks 1 and nine, earlier the Buccaneers became the Buccaneers. So when they met a tertiary fourth dimension in the playoffs, Tampa looked like a different squad, because information technology was a different squad, and that team ran the Saints off their own field by a score of 30–twenty.
That put it on the Saints to accept it up a notch, and did they ever on Sunday.
The offensive plan was, to be fair, afflicted by the unexpected quarterback change to Siemian, whom the Saints signed off the Titans' practice squad terminal November, and who hadn't taken a unmarried snap for the team until this weekend. The run/laissez passer split up certainly reflected that (32-to-xl), as did New Orleans's seizing command in fourth dimension of possession (the Saints controlled the brawl for over 33 minutes).
On defense, the blueprint didn't waver: Have away the run, take abroad the big play and try to bait the Bucs into a turnover or two through looks like the aforementioned robber call that defensive coordinator Dennis Allen drew up.
And just in case the players needed any more than reminders, the coaches drove the signal home during the week by emphasizing how in this specific rivalry, the turnover battle has meant everything. The Saints won it 3–0 and iii–2 in their regular season wins final year, while the Bucs won it 4–0 in the divisional round of the playoffs. Of grade, creating turnovers against Brady is never like shooting fish in a barrel. But having done it before sure did help.
"We played him three times, and we played him good. It'south not like he killed us at any moment," Williams said. "Our defense played pretty adept against him all 3 times, and we knew pretty much how to beat him and how to be able to get out at that place and get a win. … Nosotros knew we had to stride it upwards for our offense, and we went out there and executed."
And then as what had been a 23–7 lead, buoyed by touchdowns on both sides of halftime, started to melt away with Brady's piloting 75- and 69-yard drives to cut the lead to two, Williams wondered if his risk would come. Things got worse when a advice mishap between Marshon Lattimore and rookie Paulson Adebo sprung Cyril Grayson, just promoted from the Tampa practice squad, for a 50-m touchdown with 5:44 left to put the Bucs up 27–26.
Siemian then led a 12-play, seventy-grand drive, setting upwards Brian Johnson for a 23-one thousand, get-ahead field goal with 1:41 left. Information technology seemed, in the moment, to be fashion as well much fourth dimension to give Brady. Only dorsum there, Williams was lurking, and with Allen'south robber phone call came a petty extra confidence also—Williams's first two picks of the year had come on the same call.
Just fifty-fifty Williams didn't envision it happening as cleanly every bit it did, with Brady's eyes locked on him and guiding the sixth-year player to one of the biggest plays of his career.
"And so running with the brawl and having the chance to get into the finish zone? That makes it fifty-fifty better, even though my coaches might get a little mad for not downing it," Williams said. "But hey, we won the game."
They did. And they proved a point pretty emphatically in the procedure—that there was ever more to the Saints than simply the quarterback.
Unfortunately for them, by the looks of it, that'll be something they're going to take to continue proving.
FAMILIAR-LOOKING PATRIOTS
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Devin McCourty's now in his twelfth yr as a Patriot. And he sees beingness in that position, with that corporeality of experience, as a responsibility.
So when I asked him over the phone from California on Sunday night whether he takes pride in passing the torch on to a squad filled with guys who lack his title bona fides, like it was once past to him, he didn't hesitate.
"Yeah, definitely," he said. "I was very fortunate, like you said, to come into this league and be on a team where Kevin Faulk taught me a lot, when Vince Wilfork taught me a lot, Jerod Mayo. Those guys told me stories about Ty Law, about Lawyer Milloy, about Rodney Harrison. Those guys told me stories near all the defenders who came before me. I think everything I've learned from those guys, I've tried to laissez passer down to these guys and create that culture here.
"As yous become older, and if you're on the aforementioned team, that's what you hope to bring."
This weekend, it sure looked like McCourty has been bringing it, because New England'south impressive 27–24 win over the Chargers in Fifty.A. had onetime Patriot markings all over it.
Takeaways at key times? Check.
Crime complementing the defense and vice versa? Check.
Bill Belichick's getting a immature quarterback to chase his tail a picayune? Cheque.
The New England quarterback's making fundamental throws down the stretch? Check.
All in all, this was equally identifiable a Patriots' type of win every bit we've seen in a while, and peradventure since going back to before Brady left for Tampa. And nowhere was that more than apparent than in the fourth quarter, starting at the ten:20 marker, with the Chargers in 3rd-and-10 from their own 22, upwardly 17–16. At that point, ex-Charger Adrian Phillips already had one pick on the afternoon, right earlier halftime, to fix up a field goal right before the break.
As McCourty saw it, Phillips's next pick tied dorsum to the that one.
"A lot of talk was if we were able to cover them and if our laissez passer rush could become home," he said. "And I thought you lot saw a mix of both of that. I mean, to take a skilful pass defence, you need rush and you lot demand coverage. And I thought the beginning interception that A.P. had was [Kyle Van Noy]—KV did a bully job. They set upwardly the play to get [Austin] Ekeler one-on-1 with him out of the backfield on the angle road, and he played expert defence and that allowed the ball to tip in the air. And then the second interception was pressure.
"We got force per unit area there. [Jared] Melt stops, you lot call back he'south gonna hook up, and [Justin] Herbert throws it trying to probably throw the brawl away."
Cook looked left, Herbert went correct, Phillips went to the ball, picked it off and covered the 26 yards left to house information technology, and requite the Patriots (subsequently a two-betoken conversion) a 24–17 pb.
From there? Because of how the offense played, the defense only needed i more cease, and it got that stop correct away, forcing a three-and-out to prepare the game-defining bulldoze from the Patriots. With 9:15 left, New England embarked on a 14-play, 54-yard drive, which took half-dozen:56 off the clock and forced the Chargers to burn down all three of their timeouts. It ended with a xxx-thou field goal to put the Patriots up 27–17 with but 2:19 left.
Mac Jones was iv-for-4 for 43 yards on the drive, and snuck for the possession's initial get-go downward on a third-and-1. And all forth the way, in that location was a steady stream of runners and receivers churning out yards and staying in bounds to keep the clock rolling, with the thought existence that the Chargers wouldn't have much of a hazard once they got the ball back, which is exactly what happened.
"Coming into the flavour, anybody kept trying to make our squad ane-dimensional—What is the defence gonna exercise to assist the offense? The defense has to practice this and that," McCourty said. "The whole fourth dimension, we talked nigh just playing complementary football. That's the only way to win football games in this league. The teams are too skillful to play on one side, and I recall you're seeing our team only develop and learning not just to play on each side of the brawl merely learning how to play off each other."
And that'south where, at present, McCourty thinks losses can become wins.
These Patriots may not be the old Patriots, only they were a missed field goal away from beating the Bucs and took the Cowboys to overtime. They lost to the Dolphins after losing a fumble at the goal line on what would've been a become-ahead touchdown. Simply put, they were losing games that the Patriots oasis't really lost over the years.
So this is where you lot'd say maybe the Patriots had to learn how to win—simply that sounds like a little much given the presence of guys like McCourty, Matthew Slater, Dont'a Hightower and David Andrews, who've won multiple championships in New England. More so, McCourty argues now, getting there this twelvemonth was nigh learning to win with the group of guys on mitt.
"I think the biggest thing is you gotta learn how to win as a team," he said. "I think, like yous said, patently [Matthew] Judon knows how to win. I would say even Mac does, being at Bama. We got winners here but you gotta acquire how to win as a team. And I remember Nib said information technology earlier this season: Information technology'southward nigh playing well in the critical situations, when offensively they know we demand to run the ball and stay in bounds and have skillful plays. And we do that. …
"I think nosotros've learned what our design is. We know what we gotta do each week to leave there and play well. Like, we're non a team that's just gonna curl it out in that location. And my whole time being here, we've never had that kind of group. And so I definitely think we accept confidence, and I said it probably a couple weeks agone, you lot're record is what it is. That's who yous are. There's nix else to actually say. At that place'southward a lot of teams who accept conviction. It's about going out and doing it. I call back that's what we're doing a good task of now."
To this point, it's gotten them from 2–4 to four–4. And given them life once more in a wide-open AFC race, with a lot more than out there for them—just like it used to be.
Ten TAKEAWAYS
Trevor Ruszkowski/U.s. TODAY Sports
The AFC'south new No. 1 seed has really shown something the last few weeks. The Titans closed out Oct with wins over last year's 2 AFC finalists and, on Lord's day, another against their main (only?) in-division contest, in the Colts. The win itself was pretty wild. The Titans had to weather an early 14–0 deficit, took a fourth-quarter lead on a pick-six thrown out of Carson Wentz's left manus, and got another pick to gear up a game-winning field goal from a safety who drew a 42-m pass interference flag at the end of regulation to aid force overtime. Through it, there were a few things I think we could take on Mike Vrabel's crew.
• They tin can definitely win in different ways now. Against the Colts, MVP candidate Derrick Henry went for simply 68 yards on 28 carries. Last week, it was 86 yards on 29 carries against the Chiefs. And over those two weeks, the Titans still managed to score 61 points in winning both games. I asked Ryan Tannehill nearly it postgame, whether they've found something at that place. He respectfully said … non actually. "Information technology's something that we've known," he told me. "Obviously, Derrick's a huge office of what we practise; he's a heck of a football actor and does some amazing things for u.s.. Only we're not all-in on ane person or one area. We have other playmakers around the field that can make plays, and they showed up today for the states."
• That includes a defence that's struggled a bunch the last couple of years. Even now, they're simply 21st in total defense. But of late, the unit'south best players proceed coming up with plays to make up for the imperfections. Ii weeks ago against the Bills, it was Jeffery Simmons'southward goal-line stop. The final two weeks, information technology's been turnovers created by Kevin Byard—a forced Patrick Mahomes fumble in Week 7, and the aforementioned interception this week, which came simply after the six-minute mark of overtime (and afterwards Byard's costly fourth-quarter laissez passer-interference call). "They came up big in big spots for the states. Especially that interception in overtime," Tannehill said. "K.B. made an unbelievable play and put us in close range for a field goal there. And we had a penalty offensively, just we were able to overcome information technology and ready Randy [Bullock] for that field goal."
• Overcoming that penalisation that Tannehill referenced—a 10-thousand illegal-block flag on A.J. Brown that pushed the Titans momentarily out of field-goal range—was simply one example of the fight the Titans showed all afternoon. And it started right away, with a nightmarish first quarter, highlighted past a Tannehill pick on his first throw, sandwiched by Colts scores that made it 14–0 less than halfway through the first quarter. "We've been down a couple times this flavour and constitute a way to fight dorsum," Tannehill said. "Nosotros got a resilient group who are able to withstand that. We knew coming in information technology was gonna be back and along, and in that location was nevertheless a lot of football game left out in front up to that point. So not the way we wanted to start, but at that place was a ton of belief up and downward that sideline and nosotros were gonna become going. All we needed to do was put some points on the board and turn the game around."
That happened a couple of possessions later, and the rest fell into identify, equally things have for a few weeks at present. And next week, Tennessee will get another examination, with a trip to L.A. to face the 7–1 Rams on Sunday Night Football game on tap.
The Jets are all over the map—and that's O.K. At i point in the summer, Robert Saleh told the media that in that location would be days when it looked similar his guys could compete for a championship, and others when information technology looked like they'd all just started playing the sport. Such, he continued, was the nature of having as young a team as he did. Sure enough, we're approaching midseason now, and it's correct there for everyone. I calendar week, the Jets are losing 54–thirteen (last calendar week, to the Patriots), the next they're knocking off the briefing's pinnacle team (this week, they beat the Bengals 34–31).
"Office of being a young football squad is seeing some inconsistencies equally they attempt to effigy out this game and they try to learn," Saleh told me, on his ride abode Sunday dark. "When they slice it all together in a game, it can be pretty explosive. And so we're playing all these young guys, and they're gaining all this feel, and the idea is they're gonna get consistent, and faster, while they're still able to access all their explosive power."
And the key to getting that sort of progress, something that showed up on Sunday for the Jets, is getting guys involved speedily. Mike White, in for Zach Wilson at quarterback, completed his first 11 throws. He got the brawl to rookies Michael Carter and Elijah Moore in the offset quarter. And the confidence White instilled in that location—"From there it was like, 'Shoot, let'due south simply go play,' " Saleh said—carried through in the Jets' coming dorsum from 17–7 and 31–20 deficits. Subsequently, a more than veteran defensive line took over. Shaq Lawson went first, showing bailiwick in getting his hands upward after ID'ing an RPO (he'd done it all afternoon) to pop a Joe Burrow throw up in the air, and option it off inside the Bengals' twenty. Then, on what wound up being Cincinnati's final possession, Sheldon Rankins chased downward Couch on third-and-11, forcing ane last punt with a hustle play of his own. Fifty-fifty after that, at that place were rookie mistakes as the Jets tried to run out the clock. Moore ran out of bounds on the ensuing first-and-10. Carter fell shy of the sticks afterwards, trying to go out of bounds. And when those guys yet constitute a way to get a couple of first downs to terminate the game? Saleh went bananas for them (and the cameras caught it too).
"This youthful group is trying to figure out how to win, and there's so many other moments where it'southward like, 'Homo, these rookies are gonna impale me,' " Saleh said, laughing. "But, information technology'south a young group, and when there's good things to cheer about, I'm gonna cheer." And beating the Bengals and the Titans in the aforementioned month, this early on in the building process, is plenty for Saleh to cheer about. "We've beaten 2 of the better teams in the AFC. And what's heady is that this youthful group is able to compete with some of the heavyweights in our briefing," he said. "As nosotros develop consistency and confidence, the explosiveness of this team as it gains experience, it gains NFL man-strength, all that stuff. It's a good confidence builder because we know we've got the correct guys in the building—we know we've got a heck of a draft class, a heck of a free bureau class, and nosotros've got the correct people hither. It'southward just a matter of going together and building this thing the correct fashion." And then yes, they've got a long manner to go. Just steps similar Sunday's are pretty good ones to take. And with the next 1 existence Thursday, Saleh affirmed to me, even after the acquisition of Joe Flacco, that the Jets are going to ride with White for now: "He's starting Thursday nighttime."
The Steelers showed the Browns who's boss. And in an old-schoolhouse game, they did it in an old-school way—by decision-making the trenches. "We knew going into the game they were gonna have to run the ball and protect Bakery [Mayfield]," veteran Cam Heyward told me, before the short drive back to Pittsburgh. "It was gonna be one of those blazon of games. Whoever won the line of scrimmage was gonna probably win the game, and that happens with guys staying in our gaps, getting off blocks. Nosotros needed every stop we got, and we had to keep battling." Heyward, as you can tell, wasn't chirapsia around the bush on this, and the implication was obvious. Mayfield came in hobbled, with a bad left shoulder, so the Steelers bet that the Browns' programme would be to take the heat off their quarterback. They also bet that it would pay off if they could shut down the vaunted Cleveland run game and forcefulness Bakery to throw it. Check and check.
The Browns rushed for less than 100 yards for merely the fifth time in Kevin Stefanski's 24 games as head coach, and Pittsburgh sacked Mayfield 4 times. "They're not gonna brand him susceptible to existence hit a lot, so they're gonna try and run the ball early, at that place'south gonna be a lot of rhythm passes early on," Heyward continued. "When we were able to stop him on first down, I think information technology really opened upwardly our chances to go a couple of sacks on him." And as the Steelers got the Browns out of that comfort zone by generating long-yardage situations for the Browns' offense, it started to wear on Cleveland. Indeed, in the fourth quarter, the Browns ran for just 21 of their 96 yards, forced to put the game in Mayfield's hands. And and then died their last two possessions, after the Steelers took the lead for good, with near xi minutes left—the first on a fumble forced by Joe Schobert and picked up by T.J. Watt, and the second on a turnover on downs deep in Steeler territory. All this, past the way, is what brought Pittsburgh existent satisfaction. They know the Browns well. They knew this fight would be waged in an former-school manner.
They drilled fundamentals during their bye week to exist ready for information technology. And so, on Sun, they carried out what they needed to in a style they're pretty familiar with. "We know the AFC North is the toughest sectionalization in football," Heyward said, "merely we like it that style."
The Lions and Texans really took information technology on the chin on Dominicus. At i bespeak, both games were at 38–0, and about as non-competitive as you could imagine NFL contests being. Texans-Rams tightened upward at the very terminate (the Rams wound up winning 38–22 after a garbage time rally) and Eagles-Lions didn't (Philly won 44–six), only in the both cases, the losing coaches struck a similar tone, falling on the swords for their players. "I got outcoached today; I didn't aid these guys at all," Lions coach Dan Campbell said. "We weren't gear up to play today, and that'southward on me." And from Texans coach David Culley: "I am disappointed and frustrated, just I am not discouraged with this football game team. I saw at the terminate that this is a squad that is not going to quit. We have to only play and coach better. Nosotros know what that procedure is, and nosotros know what we have to do. We are only non there yet." And then the best affair we've been able to say about these teams thus far really echoes what Culley said—neither have quit. But seeing the style today started did make me wonder about players league-wide. And it's non whether guys in these spots would quit. Information technology'southward whether they'd be distracted. The trade deadline'due south two days away. Guys on both teams take heard plenty from people exterior the edifice that anyone could be traded. And I'd imagine it'd exist hard non to let that get to yous, specially when the team you're with isn't going anywhere soon. Then again, the Eagles were in a like spot (with rumors swirling around their available vets) and managed it pretty well.
While we're there, I don't look too much action Monday and Tuesday. As I wrote on Friday, teams just don't accept the cap space to exercise information technology correct at present, so my guess is most of the moves will await like to what nosotros've seen then far, which hasn't exactly revved the new bike—some crumbling vets, some reclamation projects and some fleck pieces might get moved, and that'll likely be that. With, of form, 1 exception. And on that one exception? I notwithstanding think it's iffy (l-fifty at all-time) that a deal for Deshaun Watson will get done. There's still besides much take chances for teams like the Dolphins, given the lack of hard information out at that place. And Houston doesn't lose or risk much by waiting—actually, the only consequence would be if his legal state of affairs gets worse—and would have plenty to gain by kick the can down the road, starting with only knowing exactly where some of the draft picks coming back will country (remember, whatsoever picks the Texans go, they can't apply them until Apr anyway).
Photo credit: Mike Dinovo/USA TODAY Sports
I understand Niners fans' calling for Trey Lance. I also recall Kyle Shanahan's standing to play Jimmy Garoppolo is well-nigh two things. First, it's what'due south best for the team right now. I've talked to enough opponents of the Niners to know how Lance'south record is viewed across the NFL, and it's articulate he has a means to go. And that dovetails into the 2nd betoken, which is that information technology's what's expert for Lance himself, as a player who barely played at all in 2020; and even in '19, considering of the force of his college squad, rarely played from behind or out of long-yardage situation. And all that left Garoppolo to play, well, just fine in his render to his hometown of Chicago, coming back off an injury. "I don't think annihilation was bothering him equally much in the game. Seemed healthier," Shanahan said. "But I thought he had a hell of a game and thought guys made some plays for him, too. Thought it was a existent good day for the offense." Garoppolo threw for 322 yards, 83 of which, to be fair, came on a screen to Deebo Samuel. And that performance was enough to go the Niners to iii–4 heading into a critical stretch, with the Cardinals this Sunday and the Rams the Monday to follow. After those two, nosotros should accept a clearer picture of how the Niners will handle their quarterbacks the rest of the twelvemonth.
Cooper Rush made himself a lot of coin on Sunday dark. In the grand scheme of things, Dallas's twenty–xvi win on Sunday dark was an fantabulous show of the depth and rest of the squad's talented roster—with the squad's existence able to grind out a win without Dak Prescott, and buy their leader'due south ailing dogie some rest. But for Cooper Rush, this one was worth a whole lot more than that. Here'south Rush'southward history in the league …
• Fabricated the Cowboys' roster in 2022 as a UDFA, and then passed Kellen Moore that October to become the team's primary fill-in and served in that role through '19.
• In the jump of 2020, he was displaced by Andy Dalton. That May, his one-time friend Jason Garrett brought him to the Giants. He lasted 3 weeks—signed to the practice team on Sept. five and released from it on Sept. 29.
• Rush rejoined the Cowboys on Halloween of concluding year, first signing to the practice team, and so going up to the 53 for a week in early November, before then finishing the season out on the practise team.
Yes, this is the guy who sliced through the Vikings' defense, leading the Cowboys on an eight-play, 75-yard drive that popped at its end, with Zeke Elliott's converting a third-and-11 with some violent running subsequently hauling in a swing pass in the flat, and Amari Cooper Mossing Cameron Dantzler for a five-yard touchdown to win it. And yes, this guy will greenbacks in because of it, most probable in a Chase Daniel or Josh McCown kind of way.
The Packers should get more credit than they have for that win on Thursday night. Mostly, because that win showed an exceptionally high level of resilience, specially from a team that we all thought might be careening off the tracks in the aftermath of its 38–3 loss to the Saints on opening day. Since then, the Packers take won seven direct, and the seventh of those—a 24–21 smash-biter over the previously-unbeaten Cardinals in Arizona—said a lot about a group of players that's had to manage a lot of noise (some of it self-created) over the last three months. Going into the game …
• The Packers were without Davante Adams, Allen Lazard and Marquez Valdes-Scantling, having to adjust to that on the fly.
• They were already managing longer-term absences of star corner Jaire Alexander, edge rusher Za'Darius Smith and center Josh Myers.
• Left tackle David Bakhtiari even so hasn't returned to game action, coming dorsum from offseason ACL surgery.
• They lost starting tight end Robert Tonyan in-game.
• They were without defensive coordinator Joe Barry, who was knocked off the sideline past a positive COVID-xix test.
Yet, there they were, answering a 7–0 deficit after 1 quarter with 17 straight points, earlier coming up with the biggest play when it mattered most—with Rasul Douglas's thwarting a would-be, get-ahead, 99-yard touchdown drive from Kyler Murray and the Cardinals by corralling a ricochet off A.J. Green's helmet in the end zone to common salt away the win. And that cemented that this Packers squad still knows how to win. Peradventure more than to the indicate, Matt LaFleur knows how lead a winner, with a pair of NFC title game appearance in his first two years and, by the looks of it, a chance to go even farther this time around. Besides worth noting: LaFleur is now off to the best 40-game start of any motorcoach in NFL history, going 33–seven, merely outpacing Don Shula (31–vii–2), Chuck Knox (32–8) and George Seifert (32–eight).
When information technology comes to Washington owner Dan Snyder, the NFL needs to do more than. At the end of Tuesday's press conference with Roger Goodell, I had one more question to ask that I never got the take chances to (I don't think I'm lone at that place). And that ane was straight forward—I wanted to see if the commissioner thinks that Snyder has carried himself the manner an NFL owner should. My reason for wanting to know has to practice with the investigation into Snyder's workplace culture the league but spent viii figures on, yes. Just just as much, it was nearly an idea that he's pushed for years. In fact, if you look at the 2022 intermission letter he wrote to Colts owner Jim Irsay in response to charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and iv counts of possession of a controlled substance, you'll come across it's right there. "I take stated on numerous occasions that owners, management personnel and coaches must exist held to a higher standard than players," Goodell wrote. "We discussed this during our meeting and yous expressed your support for that view, volunteering that owners should be held to the highest standard."
It's impossible for anyone to believe that Goodell has actually adhered to that premise over the last decade, of course, absent perhaps for coming downward on Irsay with that six-game suspension (and even that i was actually sort of light, because it's the equivalent of a steroid suspension). And that's for reasons I detailed in my column on Wednesday on Goodell. Fact is, enough of owners have skated over the years, and based on what'southward gone on in Washington, a $ten million fine and phony suspension (Snyder hasn't missed a game, is still involved in the team's concern ops, and has PR people pushing back on the notion that he'southward suspended behind the scenes) won't cover information technology. Maybe the league can't force Snyder to sell the team. But there are ways to put pressure on Snyder—and I've heard already that the idea of doing that has been discussed in the past amidst owners. Bluntly, I think the wheels should exist turning on it now. Information technology's hard to come with a single manner that Snyder made either his squad or the league better over the last 20 years. Once one of the NFL's flagship franchises, Washington is at present in the midst of another footing-up build with hopes of reimagining a brand that'southward come up to stand for next to nothing. And Snyder'due south the constant, and that's before even getting to what was in that written report. The lesser line is, if Goodell's discussion means anything, he needs to agree Snyder accountable for that. First by letting the world know what investigator Beth Wilkinson found out. And second by working with other owners to evaluate Snyder'due south place in i of the virtually sectional clubs in all of sport.
Every bit always, I've got 10 quick-hit thoughts from you coming out of Sunday …
one) There was real, tangible progress from Justin Fields out in that location on Sunday in the Bears' 33–22 loss to the 49ers, and you could see it on tertiary and fourth down in detail.
ii) Hats off to Boston Scott, who just seems to keep hanging around. The Eagles' tailback rushed for lx yards on 12 carries on Lord's day. Ton of respect for the guys who've done their office to try to brand it that way.
3) I don't think Sam Darnold'due south head injury changes the dynamic at all for Carolina, re: Watson. The Panthers checked in with the Texans terminal week. It was the first fourth dimension they had in a couple of months. It didn't go anywhere. Barring something changing in the 36 hours to come, I think this will just become something they revisit in February.
4) The Seahawks are 3–5 heading into their farewell, and I'm not sure I tin accept a whole lot from that win over the Jaguars, who were coming off a win, and their bye, and somehow looked worse than before. Maybe Seattle just made it look that style.
5) Micah Parsons is a freak evidence. He was recruited by Alabama and Ohio State to exist an border rusher, and wound up at Penn State playing off the ball, and now he's legitimately both in the NFL. Every bit a rookie.
vi) With Jerry Jeudy dorsum, I'm hoping we get to encounter the Broncos' skill group at total force sometime soon. I think information technology'south going to make Denver an attractive location for veteran quarterbacks with wandering eyes in the spring.
7) Nice work by the Bills, methodically wearing the Dolphins down, and knocking them out in the fourth quarter. The win was no work of fine art, only these sorts of games during the dog days go a long style toward determining who's hosting in the playoffs.
8) Tua Tagovailoa, who's a flawed quarterback, is fighting his donkey off amongst all the trade rumors. The numbers weren't keen on Sunday (58.2 passer rating). Only the endeavor was.
9) The Cardinals are gearing upwardly for Kyler Murray to miss time—his injury, I'grand told, is tricky, so setting a timeline is, too. Arizona hopes to know more than Mon.
10)Greg Olsen's doing a really squeamish task as a rookie broadcaster.
Half dozen FROM SATURDAY
Nick King/Lansing State Journal/Usa TODAY Network
1) Lots of teams are scrambling at present to do piece of work on Michigan State'southward Kenneth Walker Three, who's firmly lodged his name in the Heisman discussion. He's upward to 1,194 yards and fourteen touchdowns through viii games, and came up biggest when his squad needed him most in rushing for 197 yards and five touchdowns confronting archrival Michigan on Saturday, falling simply shy of a tertiary 200-k effort on the flavor. Before in the year, Walker was seen more equally a back that played with good vision and attempt, but lacked dynamic skill. Now, teams are going back into the file on him, and the Wake Wood transfer has the await of a guy who might be a Day 2 selection.
2) While we're on Michigan State, Mel Tucker'due south done a heck of a job there, and it's non off-base to recollect NFL teams might at least explore his interest in returning to the pros at some point. Tucker spent a decade (2005 to 'xiv) in the league, serving as defensive coordinator for 3 teams over that fourth dimension (Browns, Jaguars, Bears) and even doing a stint as Jaguars interim coach after Jack Del Rio was fired in 'xi.
3) Even though Michigan couldn't concord onto a 16-point lead in Eastward Lansing, Wolverine DE Aidan Hutchinson was some other star who showed upwardly in a big fashion. I got two NFL comps for him on Sunday morning: Ryan Kerrigan and Chris Long. "I don't think he's a smashing athlete," said ane AFC exec. "Just he'south very strong and plays his ass off. He'due south not a elevation-five guy. Perhaps he gets drafted ten to xv, just he'southward not the level of, say, a Bosa."
iv) Speaking of comps, I got i for Pitt's Kenny Pickett, who threw for another 519 yards in the Panthers' 38–34 loss to Miami on Saturday: Ex-Florida QB/current Buccaneer Kyle Trask. On the surface, that might not seem like much to be excited about. Just Trask went belatedly in the second round last year, and in a year where information technology looks like teams are going to exist scratching for quarterback talent, it's not difficult to see a scenario where Pickett is intriguing plenty to become someone to reach.
5) The Georgia defense force continues to perform at an off-the-charts level, and inferior linebacker Nakobe Dean is one guy who's been peculiarly fun to spotter—he had a pick-half-dozen in Saturday's bludgeoning of rival Florida. He's non quite as fast every bit old Bulldog linebacker Roquan Smith, but is the same sort of playmaker and may exist more than versatile. He'south playing his fashion into the start-round conversation, one of four guys in the Georgia front 7 with a shot to become that high in April, joining pass rushers Adam Anderson and Travon Walker, and mountainous nose tackle Jordan Davis. What's interesting about the group is it may lack a truly aristocracy, height-10-selection type of talent (though sophomore iii-tech Jalen Carter might get in that location), merely all seven starters could go inside the kickoff two rounds.
vi) Penn State has a redshirt sophomore corner with a familiar name you'll want to know: Joey Porter Jr. The son of the old Steelers slap-up has had a fantastic third year in Land Higher, and held up well on Sabbatum night pitted against Ohio State'southward all-world receiver group.
Best OF THE NFL INTERNET
Jameis's crutches dance should immediately be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. (I'one thousand gonna go ahead and waive the waiting catamenia.)
Don't mess with Lisa Turtle!
P.J. Williams on Jameis—"Nosotros're gonna become out and win it for y'all." Love it.
Wentz has made a lot of progress the final two months. I'll become alee and call this a step back.
New Orleans people are the best
So much we're gonna miss the adjacent couple months with Jameis downwards.
Saints receiver showing support for Falcons WR Calvin Ridley, who stepped away from football this weekend to address his mental health.
I'm all for this condign a staple of halftime entertainment league-wide.
I'll high road this one and affirm Rich's feeling that Hutchinson did, in fact, force that fumble in the Michigan/Michigan Country game.
I was really with Mitch on this one. Got a different result, idea.
Fantastic clip.
Astonishing work past both guys.
Four days later, still mesmerizing.
This, too, is mesmerizing.
Tweet King stays Tweet King.
Vincent Carchietta/USA TODAY Sports
Monday Nighttime SPOTLIGHT
Every calendar week, we'll talk to a prominent player well-nigh to step on the MNF stage. This calendar week, ahead of Giants-Chiefs, we caught up with New York's third-yr quarterback, Daniel Jones.
MMQB: Have you been watching the Manning Cast at all?
DJ: A footling bit. I've watched information technology here and there; they've got some good stuff. It's been fun to watch.
MMQB: Exercise you and Eli accept rules set up for Mon dark?
DJ: I haven't talked to him however; I'm gonna talk to him subsequently today about it. But yeah, hopefully he keeps the stuff individual that should be individual.
MMQB: Because he probably knows more almost you lot than nearly quarterbacks they run into.
DJ: Yeah, definitely.
MMQB: What has he meant for your career, getting to play with him as a rookie and being around him since?
DJ: First and foremost, he'south the perfect example of what a successful guy playing for this team, playing in this city, representing this franchise, what it all looks like. How he played on the field, how he carried himself off the field, the leader he was in this organization, who he was in the building to all the people that work here—it's kind of that example that he set up, and what that looks like. And then being with him my outset year, being able to see that firsthand was really important for me. And then building the relationship with him since so, it'due south been having the ability to stay in touch on, and talk to him, ask him what he thinks about sure things. He's not in our meetings so he doesn't know this organization like he did [Pat] Shurmur's organization. But he knows football game, he knows beingness a quarterback, being a leader of the team. Those conversation, it's been really helpful.
MMQB: Alright, so existence the quarterback for that team, in that city, what have you lot constitute the central is?
DJ: I remember it's the ability in this day and historic period, people say to ignore it, and you lot definitely don't seek out what's going on, you're talking to the media every calendar week, your family sees it, your friends meet it, so you gotta know what's being said and what'due south going on. And beingness able to hear some of that, not seek it out, but understand that and exist able to focus on what y'all're doing, focus on your work, and not let that affect football game, but keeping what you're doing on a twenty-four hours-to-24-hour interval basis, preparing, studying, practicing well, making sure that'south getting your energy, that's getting your focus, that's what's virtually important. He always did that well.
MMQB: I talked to Joe Gauge afterward the game last week, and he said a central to the win was going back to basics and drilling fundamentals during the calendar week. What does that await like for a quarterback?
DJ: I think a lot of it has to practise with my footwork. Coach [Jason] Garrett talks about being able to turn on the tape, lookout your feet, and that'll tell y'all whether you played well or not. Are yous property the ball? Are your anxiety staying in place? Or are you moving up in the pocket, and the brawl's coming out? Are you lot being consistent? And y'all tin can tell by but watching your feet, watching your own movement. The urgency, the consistency in that motility from play to play is a big function of it. That's been the biggest thing, I think.
MMQB: Did information technology show up against the Panthers [in Week vii]?
DJ: Yeah, I think and so.
MMQB: Then where do you remember the difference was in the squad last week versus the i–5 start?
DJ: I call back when yous look at the start to the season, nosotros've washed a lot of good things, and played well at times. It hasn't been consistent enough. The big part almost playing these games, playing in this league, playing against proficient teams, is that they're gonna make plays, they're gonna have times where they stop you, they're gonna make big plays and score. So I idea [last Dominicus] we did a better task of handling some of that stuff, handling plays that didn't go our way. Offensively, we certainly didn't score plenty points in that first half. Nosotros got stuffed on the 1-1000 line; there were a couple things that didn't become our way. But manifestly the defense stepped up and played huge, and offensively we kept at it, kept pushing, kept doing what we could, and somewhen bankrupt for usa. I just think it was that persistence and understanding of what the game was.
MMQB: Role of that's consistency in personnel too—how tough have the injuries around you made information technology to go there?
DJ: We've certainly had our fair share of injuries to cardinal guys. But I call back overall guys have done a good job of stepping in and playing well. You look at concluding week, notwithstanding a lot of those guys out and we establish a way to tailor what nosotros were doing to the guys that were playing, and their skill sets, and those guys stepped up and played big. We've got a lot of expert players; we're deep at a lot of positions. That's understanding who we've got and how the game'due south gotta be played.
MMQB: You lot're going against a defensive coordinator, in Steve Spagnuolo, who a lot of people in your building are familiar with. Is there anything yous've been able to glean from them?
DJ: I've had a lot of those conversations with some of those people, and you await at what he'due south doing now versus what he was doing when he was with the Giants, I think some of the calls and some of the specific defenses take probably changed a little bit, from what I've gathered. Simply some of the more philosophical ideas, his approach, you run into that stuff testify upwards. Peradventure more general ways that he thinks, and how he wants to telephone call a game, rather than the specific calls and what they're running. It'south helpful to hear some of those ideas.
MMQB: Is there a key going upwardly against that defense and then?
DJ: They've got good players. They've got guys up front end who tin rush. So they like to bring pressure. So information technology's about treatment that, seeing the pressure level, existence decisive and getting the ball out—seeing where it's coming from, recognizing it and making good decisions. They're gonna be geared upwards and prepare to get; they've got a lot of guys that can affect the game. Nosotros'll have to exist ready for that.
MMQB: In a week like this, do y'all pay any attention to the QB matchup, with Patrick Mahomes on the other side?
DJ: I wouldn't telephone call information technology a measuring stick. Their defense is playing against our offense. Certainly have a lot of respect for him. He's a great actor. He's washed a lot in this league, and I look forrad to continuing to lookout him play. But I don't necessarily see it as a matchup like that.
MMQB: You gonna tell Eli to accept it piece of cake on you?
DJ: Ha! I'll probably ask him to do that.
WHAT YOU Demand TO KNOW
In low-cal of the Ridley story, I feel like anybody needs to become spotter the piece Jay Glazer did with Lane Johnson. So I'm gonna leave it here for you. Have a bully week, everyone, and we'll meet yous this afternoon for the MAQB.
More NFL Coverage:
• Calendar week 8 Takeaways: Feisty Bounded Games, Blowouts and More
• The Titans Continue to Deserve Our Appreciation
• Trade Deadline Primer: Buyers, Sellers, Dream Deals
• Snyder Won't Take Responsibility; Goodell Won't Make Him
Source: https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/11/01/mmqb-week-8-saints-beat-tom-brady-patriots-jets-titans-win
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