ClutchPoints
Lines were drawn in Week 8 of the NFL season, as blowouts permeated throughout the slate of games on Thursday, Sunday and Monday alike. Some of it just made for boring football, while some of the other results showed us who is for real and who is not as a playoff contender this season.
Take one of the games of the week on paper, between the Denver Broncos and the Dallas Cowboys, for example. Dallas came in at 3-3-1 after an impressive win over the Commanders, while the Broncos sat at 5-2 despite not exactly passing the eye test in a win over the Giants in Week 7. However, the Broncos crushed the Cowboys, dominating on both sides of the ball.
Now, it’s clear that Denver is a playoff contender in the AFC, while the Cowboys are not at that level in the NFC. Results like that took place throughout the league, but who came out as the big winners of the weekend?
The Baltimore Ravens were an early candidate for a the cursed season in the NFL as they dealt with a 1-5 start and a number of key injuries on both sides of the ball. Those issues got even worse when, even after a bye week, Lamar Jackson was still not ready to play after missing time with a hamstring problem in Week 8 against the Bears.
Fear not, as Cooper Rush was out as the Baltimore backup and Tyler Huntley was in, and the longtime Raven balled out in his first start with the team this year. Huntley played some of his best football and the defense played well in the big moments to help Baltimore secure a 30-16 win and get to 2-5.
At the same time, the Bengals inexplicably handed the Jets their first win of the season. Hours later, the Steelers lost at home to the Packers on Sunday Night Football and dropped to 4-3, leaving the Ravens just two games out of first place with two games still to come against Pittsburgh.
Baltimore is getting healthy on both sides of the ball, and now Jackson is back in the lineup for Week 9 against the Dolphins. The defense also seems to be turning a corner, making this a very dangerous team in the AFC playoff race.
The Broncos offense was completely lifeless for the first three quarters in Week 7 against the Giants before coming alive with 33 points in the fourth quarter. On Sunday against the Cowboys, that momentum continued with a 44 point outburst to get a 20-point win over a very capable NFC foe.
Bo Nix threw four touchdowns in the win and the Broncos finished with the third-best EPA per play on the week, including a mark that led the league on passing plays. Denver also ran for 179 yards on 28 carries against a Dallas defense that really had no answers.
The Denver...
