Winner: Kirk Cousins
Two teams with playoff aspirations entered the season leaning on veteran quarterbacks coming off Achilles tears. Through nine weeks, one team (Falcons) is 6-3 and the other (Jets) is 3-6. Cousins didn’t look comfortable at the beginning of the season as his limited mobility hampered Atlanta’s offense. However, Cousins and Co. are firing on all cylinders entering Week 10. Over the last two weeks, Cousins has thrown seven touchdown passes and zero interceptions. The Falcons have won both games and five-of-six overall. The former Viking is third in passing yards (2,328) and fourth in touchdowns (17).
Losers: Matt Eberflus and the Bears
Take a breath, Chicago. Many fans had called for the franchise to move on from Matt Eberflus after last season. After all, former Bear Jim Harbaugh was willing to make the move back to the NFL — so, who better to lead the new era of Bears football? Instead, Chicago stuck with Eberflus and it is now paying the price. Chicago has lost multiple games this season that it should have won. On the heels of the Hail Mary debacle in Washington, Chicago played with poor effort in a loss to Arizona. The team appeared to quit on Eberflus and Co., but he remains in charge of the team.
Loser: Dak Prescott
How bad are things going for Dak and the Cowboys? The star quarterback was caught by cameras mouthing something along the lines of, “We f***ing suck,” during the loss to Atlanta. The loss dropped Dallas to 3-5 on the season and that was just the start of the losses for the week. Prescott injured his hamstring and was unable to finish the game. Now, Prescott is expected to miss several weeks and may be placed on the IR.
Winners: Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are the best team in football. Despite playing a good Packers team on the road and in poor weather, Detroit blasted its rival and retained control of the NFC North. The Lions held Green Bay to six points until under a minute remained in the contest and maintained a double-digit lead for the final 31 minutes of play. Only the Chiefs (7-0) have a better record than the Lions (7-1), but Detroit’s +110 point differential is 60 points higher than KC — and 23 points better than the No. 2 team, Buffalo.
Winners: Both LA Teams
Neither team that calls SoFi Stadium home entered the year with lofty expectations. The Rams reached the postseason in 2023 but Aaron Donald’s decision to retire was expected to set the team back in ’24. Meanwhile, the Chargers were pegged to be an improved team under Jim Harbaugh but were seen as being a year or two away from competing. Well, after Week 9, the playoffs appear possible for both teams. The Chargers dominated in Cleveland to improve to 5-3 and boast the league’s No. 1 scoring defense. Meanwhile, the Rams have won three games in a row and sit a half-game back of Arizona for the division lead. A Wild Card berth is the likely path to the postseason for the Chargers, but the NFC West is very much in play for the Rams.
