Good news I didn't croak! So welcome to Part II of my Monday Morning Quarterback Post for Week 8. This post will cover the rest of the games on Sunday plus the Monday Night matchup. Some of them were really good. Of course some weren't. They can't all be winners you know.

As usual the NFL trade deadline came and went with very little action to speak of. The only name player to change teams was Von Miller, who the Broncos sent to the Rams in exchange for a second and third round draft pick. Sorry Broncos fans, that's a sure sign a rebuild is coming. Los Angeles meanwhile has mortgaged their next several drafts to win it all this year. Why not? They know they have a chance to win it all this year and you can't let that golden opportunity slip by. Things can change in a hurry in the NFL and if you are not prepared to go all in you might get left out. Just ask the Packers.

Anyway time to move on to the rest of the Week 8 slate. The Ravens and the Raiders both had a bye this week. Just remember I am a Dallas Cowboys fan and I'm extremely biased. Feel free to agree or disagree about anything mentioned here. All comments are welcome.

On March The Saints

_{Tom Brady has been feeling the heat against the Saints since he came to Tampa Bay
Source}

Saints 36 Buccaneers 27

A few weeks ago it looked like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would run away with the NFC South. The New Orleans Saints had something to say about that on Sunday, reminding the Bucs they aren’t ready to surrender the division crown just yet.

Last season Tampa dropped two of three against New Orleans and Tom Brady didn’t look good in any of them, the defense bailed him out in the playoff game. This time Brady lit up the Saints secondary, but a serious case of butterfingers was his doom. His three turnovers led to 16 points for the Saints.

The game was tied 7-7 early in the 2nd quarter when disaster struck for the Saints as Jameis Winston tore his acl after an 18 yard run. Enter Trevor Siemian, who was last seen slumming it up with the Jets in 2019. Propped up by a strong rushing attack, Siemian helped turn Tom Brady’s two 2nd quarter turnovers into a TD and FG as the Saints took a 16-7 lead into halftime.

New Orleans took the opening kickoff of the second half and marched down the field, Alvin Kamara capped off the drive with a TD to increase the Saints lead to 23-7. The game was quickly getting away from the Bucs, but at that point Brady was ready to fire back. Tampa Bay scored a TD on three of their next four possessions, retaking the lead 27-26 with roughly five minutes left in the game.

New Orleans still had fight left in them though. Starting on their own 25-yard line, Siemian led a drive deep into the redzone, but it stalled on the 5-yard line. The Saints kicked a FG to go ahead 29-27, but there was still a minute and a half left on the clock. Plenty of time for some classic Tom Brady last second magic right?

Not today. Tampa took over on their own 25-yard line and after an incompletion Brady threw his second interception of the day, this one a pick-six that extended the Saints lead to 36-27. That was the ballgame as the Bucs couldn’t put together a miracle on the final minute.

Huge win for the Saints. Jameis Winston (6/10, 56 yards, 1 TD) went down early, but Trevor Siemian (16/29, 159 yards, 1 TD) was solid off the bench. Most importantly neither quarterback made a turnover. The ground attack provided plenty of support as Alvin Kamara (19 rushes, 61 yards, 1 TD) led a group that gained 152 yards on 32 carries. All that running gave New Orleans a seven minute advantage in time of possession, keeping the Bucs offense off of the field.

The defense gave up some yards and points, but also forced three turnovers that were all converted into points. New Orleans 3-0 turnover advantage was the difference in the game. The Saints improved to 5-2, second place in the NFC South. They’ll host the Falcons next week, but they need to pick a quarterback first since Winston is done for the season. Will it be Taysom Hill if he is cleared from concussion protocol? Or will Sean Payton stick with Trevor Siemian after this win against a tough Bucs defense?

Tom Brady (28/40, 375 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INTs, 1 fumble) was stellar when he wasn’t turning the ball over. He spread the ball around to ten different receivers, but Chris Godwin (8 receptions, 140 yards, 1 TD) was his top target. The running back committee didn’t do much (14 carries, 71 yards), but then again they didn’t get a lot of opportunities either. Bruce Arians tends to forget about running the ball quite often and sometimes it comes back to bite the Bucs. Maybe the Saints wouldn’t drop so many guys into coverage if they were more concerned about the run.

The Bucs defense was pushed around on the ground, something that rarely happens. They were also taken advantage of at times by Siemian, who is a third string quarterback. Not the best showing for the Tampa defense. Off kilter showing by the defense, three turnovers by Brady and 11 penalties doomed the Bucs. Tampa Bay dropped to 6-2, first place in the NFC South. They have a bye next week so they have time to fix the problems that cropped up in New Orleans.

Brown Out

_{Rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth was able to haul in this TD pass to give the Steelers the win
Source}

Steelers 15 Browns 10

Defense was alive and well on both sides of the field in Cleveland. No three hundred yard passers or hundred yard rushers to be seen. Shootouts can be thrilling, but it is nice to see a defensive battle sometimes. They are becoming rare with all the rules that constantly favor the offense.

Scores were hard to come by in the first half. Cleveland kicked a field goal in the first quarter, the Steelers kicked their own in the second. Right before halftime Pittsburgh drove deep into Cleveland territory, trying to take the lead. It turned into a disaster.

The Steelers drive stalled with a 4th and 9 on the Cleveland 10-yard line. Head coach Mike Tomlin sent out the field goal unit, but he was feeling frisky. Eschewing the kick, the Steelers faked instead as kicker Chris Boswell attempted to pass. It couldn’t have gone worse:

https://twitter.com/i/status/1454875453362159618

Boswell had a concussion after that big hit, meaning the Steelers had to play without a kicker the rest of the game. Ouch. The score remained tied 3-3 at the half.

The offenses perked up a bit in the third quarter as both teams put together a TD drive, but Pittsburgh had to go for two since Boswell was out. The conversion failed so Cleveland took a 10-9 lead into the final quarter.

It didn’t last long as the Steelers scored a TD with their first possession of the 4th quarter. Still no kicker so another two-point conversion attempt which failed again. Steelers took their first lead of the game 15-10. That ended up being the final as Cleveland failed to score with their last two cracks at the ball.

Pittsburgh’s offense was O.K., but it was the defense that brought this win home. The Steelers sacked Baker Mayfield four times and forced the game’s only turnover, a fumble by Jarvis Landry. Cleveland only converted 3/10 third downs and were skunked 0/2 on fourth down.

Ben Roethlisberger (22/34, 266 yards, 1 TD) had a good game without any turnovers. The Steelers running game has been up and down this season, but this week it was solid as Najee Harris (26 rushes, 91 yards, 1 TD) ground out yardage.

Pittsburgh had balance on offense, which is something they can struggle with. Still this team will only go as far as the defense can carry them. The Steelers improved to 4-3, third place in the AFC North. They will host the Bears next Monday night.

The Browns could never get their offense rolling. Playing with a broken shoulder, Baker Mayfield (20/31, 225 yards) looked alright, but you have to wonder how long he can keep playing through the pain. Cleveland is a run first offense, but the ground assault was contained by Pittsburgh as Nick Chubb (16 rushes, 61 yards) led a group that combined for 96 yards. Mayfield is going to need more help from them moving forward.

Cleveland’s defense was strong until late in the game when they seemed to tire out. Several three and outs from the offense didn’t do them any favors. The Browns fell to 4-4, last place in the AFC North. They’ll have another tough divisional matchup next week as they head to Cincinnati.

Desperate Times

_{Eli Mitchell faced little resistance from the Bears defense
Source}

49ers 33 Bears 22

This battle in the Windy City featured two teams desperately needing a win as they both continued to fall behind in the ultra-competitive NFC. I guess it wasn’t too surprising the most desperate team won as the 49ers halted their four game losing streak.

Early on it looked Chicago was going to be the better team. Justin Field started off hot in the air and on the ground. The Bears scored on all three of their first half possessions. The Niners were able to gain yardage, but they couldn’t find the endzone. Chicago took a 13-9 lead into halftime.

Things changed quickly in the second half. Justin Fields cooled off considerably as the Bears drives started to stall. On the other side the 49ers finally figured out where the endzone was and began finishing there drives in there. The Niners scored TDs the first three times they touched the ball in the second half to pull away from the Bears and leave Chicago with the victory.

The 49ers offense has been suffering since laying 41 points on the Lions way back in Week One, but they finally found their mojo in Week 8. Not one punt all afternoon for San Francisco. The only two drives that didn’t end up with scores were a missed FG attempt in the 1st quarter and their final possession where they took some knees.

Jimmy Garoppolo (17/28, 322 yards, 2 rushing TDs) seems to be fighting for his job from week to week, he came up big here. He got a lot of help from Deebo Samuel (6 receptions, 171 yards) and Eli Mitchell (18 rushes, 137 yards, 1 TD). Both of those guys had several explosive plays. San Francisco averaged a staggering 8.6 yards per play on offense.

The Niners defense sacked Fields four times and held the Bears offense to a paltry 4.8 average yards per play. The win improved the 49ers record to 3-4, third place in the NFC West. San Francisco needs to keep this momentum going forward as they will host the Cardinals and the Rams in the next two weeks. The outcomes of those games will determine if their season can be saved.

Justin Fields looked good in the first half, but after that the Niners defense were able to catch up to him. Fields (19/27, 175 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) still isn’t able to drive the ball down the field with his arm. He did more damage on the ground (10 rushes, 103 yards, 1 TD), having a much better day than running back Khalil Herbert (23 rushes, 72 yards).

The Bears other Khalil, Khalil Mack, was out with injury and the defense suffered for it. Without Mack the Bears were able to get little pressure on Garoppolo and he made them pay. The Bears are like the Steelers, they will only go as far as the defense can take them. The Bears will head to Pittsburgh next week for a Monday night game. We’ll see which defense can carry the day. The Bears fell to 3-5, third place in the NFC North.

Around The League

Patriots 27 Chargers 24

Remember a few weeks ago when the Chargers were looking like one of the best teams in the AFC? Boy that has changed in a hurry.

The Patriots knew they were outmatched on offense in this game, so the offensive game plan called for a lot of runs and short passes (with the receivers being smart enough to stay in bounds) to keep the clock moving and keep Justin Herbert off of the field. It worked as New England held a nearly eleven minute advantage in time of possession and ran 17 more plays on offense than Los Angeles.

Defensively the Patriots dropped back into coverage, willing to give up yardage on the ground in order to avoid giving up big passing plays. The idea there is you hope the opposing quarterback gets frustrated with his limited chances and starts to force things. That’s exactly what happened as Herbert threw two interceptions. New England was able to cash both in (the first set up a short field goal, the second was a pick-six with a two-point conversion) and those 11 points were the difference in the game.

New England’s offense needed that help from the defense as Mac Jones (18/35, 218 yards) wasn’t very sharp with his passing. Damien Harris (23 rushes, 80 yards, 1 TD) led the running back committee that totaled 141 yards. Harris numbers should have been better, he had a couple of big plays wiped out by penalties.

Nice road win for the Patriots, who improved to 4-4. That record puts them in second place in the AFC East. The Pats will head down to Charlotte next week to face the Panthers.

The Chargers were coming off of their bye, but maybe they needed two weeks to recover from the beating the Ravens laid upon them. Justin Herbert (18/35, 223 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs) fell victim to one of Bill Belichick’s infamous defensive game plans for young quarterbacks. The ground game was much better as Los Angeles gained 163 yards and a TD on just 20 carries. Maybe the Chargers should have stuck more to the ground.

The Chargers dropped to 4-3, second place in the AFC West but only half a game ahead of the Chiefs and Broncos. They need to right the ship quick and they will get a good opportunity to do that next week in Philadelphia. Hopefully for them it goes better than their last trip to the east coast.

Seahawks 31 Jaguars 7

Coming off of a bye week and before that their first win of the season, it wouldn’t be wrong to think the Jacksonville Jaguars came into this game with their best momentum of the season. Instead it looked like the Jaguars spent their bye grabbing ass in bars in lieu of practicing.

The Jags couldn’t move the ball at all against one of the worst defenses in the league until garbage time. The defense may have even been worse as the Seahawks were able to exploit one mismatch to run up the score and cruise to an easy win. Worst game of the season for the Jags on both sides of the ball.

Geno Smith (20/24, 195 yards, 2 TDs) was able to complete his first fourteen pass attempts. It was easy as Jacksonville had no answers for Tyler Lockett (12 receptions, 142 yards), who ran roughshod over the secondary. Seattle didn’t even have to bother running the ball until they were ready to bleed the clock, they only rushed for 69 yards total. Seattle needed a game like this since they had been floundering since Russel Wilson went down. The Seahawks improved to 3-5, last place in the NFC West. They have a bye next week and are hoping Wilson can return for their next game.

Just an awful performance by the Jaguars. Seattle had given up more yards than any other defense heading into this game and the Jags struggled to move the ball. Trevor Lawrence (32/54, 238 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) strained to crack 200 passing yards on 54 throws. The running game was nearly abandoned after Jacksonville fell behind early. The defense never adjusted to trying to even slow down Tyler Lockett. Very fitting the Jags played like this on Halloween because it was a horror show. Jacksonville fell to 1-6, good enough for third place in the AFC South because they share a division with the Texans. They host the Bills next week. Oh boy.

Broncos 17 No-Names 10

For the first time this year the No-Names defense came to play, so in typical Washington fashion the offense and special teams decided to take a powder. Being a Cowboys fan I just have to laugh, I’m sure that isn’t the reaction in D.C.

The No-Names only had to punt once the entire game and still only scored 10 points. Good grief. Twice they drove into the red zone and neither trip resulted in points. One drive ended with a turnover on downs and the other was killed by an interception. Washington also had two field goal attempts blocked, Denver took advantage of the blocks to score ten points. That was the difference in the game.

Denver won this game in spite of their offense. Teddy Bridgewater (19/26, 213 yards, 1 TD) has been uninspiring at quarterback. The running back committee (21 rushes, 83 yards, 1 TD, 1 fumble) was lackluster. Special teams and defense saved the day. The defense sacked Taylor Heinicke 5 times and only permitted Washington to convert 1/5 4th down plays. The special teams blocked two field goals.

The Broncos evened up their record at 4-4, tied with the Chiefs for last place in the AFC West. Imagine before the season started if you were able to tell Denver after 8 weeks they’d have the same record as the Chiefs, they would have been thrilled! Haha. They’ll face much stiffer competition next week as they travel to Dallas.

Nothing is going well for the No-Names these days, both on and off the field. Taylor Heinicke (24/39, 270 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs) has come back to earth and Washington hasn’t had more than one TD in a game for about a month. The defense finally showed life but were undone by special teams miscues that set up the Broncos with excellent field position. Washington fell to 2-6, tied with the Giants for last place in the NFC East. They have a bye next week and better double down in their practices during the break.

Chiefs 20 Giants 17

After a couple of rough weeks, the Chiefs needed to face a patsy like the Giants to help get things right. It didn’t help and Kansas City damn near blew a game against one of the worst teams in the league. At home no less.

The Chiefs drove straight down the field on their opening possession and in a scene that is becoming way too familiar Patrick Mahomes tossed an interception in the endzone. Luckily for them turnover machine Daniel Jones was on the other team and he promptly proceeded to give the ball right back with an interception of his own. KC was able to score a TD with their second shot in the redzone.

Yet things didn’t get better for the Chiefs after that as they were only able to score 13 points in the final three quarters against a defense that surrendered 38 points to the Rams and 44 points to the Cowboys. The Giants sacked Mahomes twice and him under pressure nearly every single time he dropped back to pass. Is the Chiefs talent on offense slipping or has the league finally figured their tricks out? Probably a little bit of both.

Patrick Mahomes (29/48, 275 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) wasn’t bad, but he wasn’t real good either. In the past his great play has covered up a lot of deficiencies by Kansas City, this year so far he has lost that magic touch. At least Andy Reid didn’t forget to run the ball as Darrell Williams and Derrick Gore combined to gain 97 yards and a TD on 24 carries. The Chiefs need balance on offense more than ever with Mahomes still being out of whack.

At least the Chiefs defense was decent for a change, but holding down the Giants isn’t exactly a herculean task. Kansas City improved to 4-4, tied with Denver for last place in the AFC West. They need to figure things out fast as the schedule is looking rough over the next few weeks. They get a break next week as they’ll host the Packers and Aaron Rogers has been ruled out after testing positive for covid.

I have to give the Giants some credit here as on paper they were vastly outmanned by Kansas City yet still kept this game close to the very end on the road. The effort was there, but the execution was not. The Giants had a few chances to steal this game that were undone by a turnover and bad play calling. Daniel Jones (22/32, 222 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) was up and down. He doesn’t have a great set of receivers to throw to and the running game has been lacking without Saquon Barkley. Jones is being asked to carry too much of the load on offense.

The defense was able to contain Patrick Mahomes and prevented the score from getting out of hand. You can’t ask for more than that since the defense lacks playmakers as well. Overall a good effort, but they still lost a winnable game. The Giants fell to 2-6, tied with Washington for last place in the NFC East. They’ll host a Raiders team coming off of a bye next week.

That's a wrap for Week 8. I'll have plenty of time to recuperate for Week 9 now that the World Series is over. I predicted the Astros would win in 5 or 6 games, the Braves won in six. That is why I don't gamble on sports.

Thanks for reading and feel free to leave a comment below.