The NFL is never short on drama, but even for its own standards, Week 10 felt like absolute chaos. Here are the 3 biggest takeaways from a Monday Night Football-less slate of games:
1. Detroit Lions Are The Team To Beat
The Lions entered Sunday Night Football’s matchup against the Houston Texans as the prohibitive favorite in the NFC. They left NRG Stadium as the favorite to win the Lombardi Trophy.
Despite FIVE interceptions from Jared Goff, the Lions outscored the Texans 19-0 in the second half to pull off a miraculous victory. Taking on a legit AFC threat in the Texans, the Lions would probably give themselves a C+ overall for their performance, yet it was still enough to secure the victory.
Even with the loss of Aidan Hutchinson, the defense has the ability to shut down high-powered offenses (as seen by Houston’s second half goose egg). However, it’s the offense that has the Lions looking unbeatable. Capable of winning in a multitude of ways, no defense has figured out how to slow down Goff and Co. for a full 60 minutes. They may not be undefeated, but over their past seven games (seven victories), it has become all too clear that no one else is on the Lions’ level.
2. Kansas City Chiefs Are NOT The Team To Beat (Right Now)
Speaking of undefeated, the back-to-back champs remain the only unbeaten team at 9-0. However, it’s hard to say they have done it in convincing fashion. Undefeated is undefeated, but seven of Kansas City’s nine victories have been decided by seven or fewer points. They saved the most dramatic performance thus far for this week – needing a blocked 35-yard field goal as time expired to knock off the Denver Broncos.
It has certainly become the Chiefs’ specialty to win close games, but the Broncos aren’t a team that Super Bowl contenders should be struggling with (look no further than the fact that Denver lost by 31 last week to the Baltimore Ravens). Although the defense continues to be phenomenal, Kansas City’s offense still hasn’t found its stride. That should obviously scare teams considering the Chiefs are unbeaten despite not firing on all cylinders, but it feels like there’s a much bigger gap for them to close than in previous seasons.
It would be foolish to count out Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs becoming the first team to ever win three straight Super Bowls, but right now, they are looking up at the Detroit Lions.
3. It’s Already Mock Draft Season For Jets and Cowboys Fans
For the 29th consecutive NFL season, neither the Dallas Cowboys nor New York Jets will be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. Both teams entered the year with Super Bowl aspirations, and with the season barely halfway complete, those hopes and dreams can be thrown away.
Every down year is an embarrassment for the Cowboys, but this season was significantly more disastrous for the Jets. The return of Aaron Rodgers instantly made this a Super Bowl or bust season, but the result has been a fired head coach (Robert Saleh), a desperate trade for Davante Adams, a young defense that has regressed, and a 3-7 record.
Sure, the Jets hypothetically could rattle off seven straight victories and sneak into the postseason, but have you watched them play? There isn’t a less cohesive team in the entire league. The Aaron Rodgers of old could maybe pull it off. Unfortunately for Jets fans, now it’s just old Aaron Rodgers.
