WEEK 9 : Purdy Back In The MVP Race, Broncos Steal Another, Shedeur vs Shough Goes To OT*
Brock Purdy pushed his name back into a very competitive MVP conversation as he led the Niners to victory over the Raiders with a touchdown performance as the Niners move to 7-1.
No Sam Darnold, no problem. The Seahawks handle the Cardinals with backup Drew Lock in for Darnold. Seattle's offense needs someone who can get the ball to Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Through eight games, he has over 1,000 receiving yards, with 51 receiving yards in a 17-3 victory.
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Broncos 26, Panthers 14
The Football Gods continue to conspire to give the Denver Broncos unexpected victories.
The Broncos trailed 14-13 in the third quarter, with the Panthers at the Broncos' one-yard line thanks to a pass interference call drawn by Panthers tight end Darren Waller. Young tries to connect with his other tight end, Tommy Tremble, and the ball appears to fall incomplete — but the replays show Tremble tipped the ball into the hands of Broncos safety Devon Key.
The Broncos offense flipped the scoreboard, scoring touchdowns on their first two fourth-quarter drives — one after the interception and another after a Panthers punt — to put the Broncos back up 26-14.
Bo Nix found his fourth-quarter magic again with Jaylen Waddle in the second half. Nix's play in the pass game set up Jonah Coleman's nine-yard red zone touchdown. Nix took care of business himself on the Broncos' next drive, connecting with receiver Patrick Bryant for a 26-yard touchdown as the Broncos held off the Panthers.
Bo Nix finished 25/37 for 237 yards, majority of which came in the fourth quarter, 2 TDs, 1 INT, 91.8 passer rating.
Nix's second-quarter interception off a deflection led to the Panthers' first touchdown drive — a Bryce Young touchdown pass to Tommy Tremble that got the Panthers on the board after the Broncos jumped out to a 10-0 lead to start the game.
Young and the Panthers offense had one more shot to pull off the upset late in the fourth, but the Denver pass rush and Nik Bonitto crushed the Panthers offensive line and got in on Young for a sack-fumble to end the game.
The Panthers tight ends put in work against the Broncos. Darren Waller went vintage: 8 catches for 90 receiving yards, 1 TD. Tommy Tremble caught one touchdown, and Panthers receiver Tet McMillan added another score.
The Panthers' breakout game against the Lions feels long in the past, and now they've dropped three straight, sinking right into the mix in the NFC South.
Bryce Young and the offense reawakened. Young looked more like his earlier-season form as he hit splash plays downfield with a couple of big downfield passes. Even with a loss, can the Panthers build on a mostly positive offensive outing: 353 offensive yards, 5.7 yards per play, but just 3/10 on third down and 14 penalties for 119 penalty yards?
Can anyone defeat the Broncos, who seem to have favor on their side and the unmeasurable clutch gene coursing through their veins?
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Saints 23, Browns 22 (OT) — Shedeur vs Shough
Tyler Shough leads the Saints to two late-game touchdowns — one in the waning moments of the fourth quarter and another in the early portion of overtime — to help the Saints beat Shedeur Sanders and the Browns 23-22.
Neither team or quarterback played sterlingly, but Shedeur outplayed Shough, his draft mate from the 2025 Draft class, for much of the game. But with a chance to close out the game in the fourth after securing Cleveland the comeback lead, Shedeur couldn't make enough plays to drain the clock, and the Saints offense that hadn't done much all game forced their way through into the end zone twice.
Shough finished 21/35 for 265 yards, 93.2 passer rating, with one touchdown in overtime. 92 of Shough's passing yards came on the Saints' final two drives, including a 15-yard game-winning touchdown.
The hype and positivity surrounding the Cleveland Browns season hit a wall in Week 8 in a heavily anticipated matchup with division foe Pittsburgh. The Browns got pressed and flattened, edge rusher Jared Verse got dropped on his head, and quarterback Deshaun Watson got sacked six times as Cleveland scored just six points in defeat. Watson threw for 300 passing yards, cleared concussion protocol, but the Browns will start second-year quarterback Shedeur against the New Orleans Saints, who at 2-5 still have something to play for in the NFC South.
In an alternative universe, Shedeur could have made this start for the Saints. Shedeur famously fell in the 2025 draft, with some speculation that the Saints had interest in Shedeur at ninth overall. New Orleans passed on the Colorado star quarterback and chose Tyler Shough in the second round over Shedeur, who fell to the Browns. Maybe the Saints will get a taste of what they could have had?
Both Shedeur and Shough struggled to make much happen in this contest. Shedeur and the Browns scored the first touchdown of the game with five minutes left in the fourth quarter to lead the Browns to victory. With Deshaun Watson peering on from the sideline — he's led Cleveland to multiple game-winning drives (5) this season — Sanders in his place connects with rookie wide receiver KC Concepcion for what looks like a game-winning 64-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Saints, facing a 13-9 deficit, match Shedeur's touchdown. Tyler Shough registers an impressive 33-yard pass to Chris Olave to set up what looked like a Saints game-winning touchdown with less than a minute remaining in the game. Could the Saints pull off the upset?
Shedeur Sanders pulls another big throw downfield out of his hat. Sanders performed well at keeping the ball alive on the move and with pressure in his face, Shedeur connects with wide receiver Jerry Jeudy on a big 30-yard catch as part of a 7-play, 41-yard drive to set up a game-tying 51-yard kick by Andre Szmyt.
Saints quarterback Tyler Shough stayed hot in the fourth quarter as he led the Saints' opening drive touchdown in overtime, connecting with his tight end, Juwan Johnson. The Browns get their answer from Shedeur Sanders and tight end Harold Fannin on a 39-yard catch-and-run touchdown, one of four explosive passes for Shedeur in the game. The Browns go for two points, and the pass falls incomplete, and the comeback falls short.
Shedeur finished 19/31, 297 passing yards, two passing touchdowns. He took five sacks, including a bad one late in the fourth quarter that opened up a chance for the Saints to mount a comeback and ultimately prevail.
Did Shedeur Perform Well Enough To Keep The Starting Gig?
Losing one of the easier games on his team's schedule won't help Shedeur's cause; neither will some of the bad sacks he took through the course of this game. His stats look strong, but they're composed of a handful of explosive pass plays and a weak down-to-down success rate. I don't believe Shedeur played well enough to snatch the starting job from Watson.
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Lions 19, Dolphins 9
The mighty Detroit Lions, the top offense in football, conquerors of the once-undefeated Vikings, traveled to Miami to face the lowly Dolphins, winners of just one game this season, with the worst pass defense.
The Dolphins haven't made a splash this season, but the defense kept Detroit's offense from completely railroading a rebuilding effort in Miami. Jared Goff threw his second interception of the season in the first quarter on the Lions' second possession of the game. Goff and the offense thumbed through this matchup, taking a 6-3 lead into the half over the Dolphins.
Eventually, Jahmyr Gibbs, the hero of the Vikings game, punched in a forceful 8-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to put Detroit ahead by a touchdown as the Lions took off on the Dolphins in a non-emphatic way, 19-9. The Lions went 4/4 on fourth down and defeated the Dolphins 19-9, moving to 6-2 despite a mediocre performance.
What To Make Of The Lions' Offensive Performance?
Look, sometimes talent needs a break. The Lions exhausted a lot of emotion, exercised some defensive demons, and downed the Vikings in Week 8. Detroit faced the Dolphins out in Miami for the week. Jared Goff and the boys turned the throttle down, handed the controls to the defense, and got the win over one of the worst teams in football.
Goff made just enough plays in passing: 17/25 for 170 passing yards, zero touchdowns, one pick. He took three sacks to keep the Lions trending in the right direction.
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Packers Over Patriots — Love Goes Nuclear
The A.J. Brown deal has not worked out for New England, and not in the way he became famous for in Philly, looking despondent on the sideline as endless rumors of his deteriorating relationship with quarterback Jalen Hurts spiraled. The media has not gotten a chance to record or take pictures of A.J. Brown on the sideline for the Patriots because he hasn't been there. The former Eagles and Titans star will miss another game this season, this time with a knee injury. The injury report came as a surprise, as the former Patriots head coach claimed Brown's long-rumored injury concern had no merit, but here we are without A.J. Brown for another run.
On Sunday, Drake Maye caught the yips — three first-half interceptions — Matthew Golden and Christian Watson catch everything, they go nuclear, and the Patriots defense catches a fade as Jordan Love and the Packers offense register their best offensive performance in a runaway victory over the Patriots.
Can The Packers Continue To Thrive Down The Field Against Every Defense?
A receiver with speed alone in football has no value, but a talented speedster like what we witnessed from the Packers could shift the league. Christian Watson and Matthew Golden constantly raced past the Patriots' corners for downfield plays on their way to 7 catches and 171 receiving yards, and 10 catches for 164 receiving yards and a touchdown each.
Both receivers also won in the intermediate game. Watson had an incredible one-handed catch and a few other tough grabs, while Matthew Golden went 10/10 with no drops on the game.
Jordan Love: 23/29, 372 passing yards, 12.8 yards per attempt, 153.2 passer rating as he scorched the Patriots with no fear in attacking New England's top corner Christian Gonzalez. According to Next Gen Stats, Gonzalez allowed 7 receptions for 105 yards to Matthew Golden and 3 receptions for 82 yards to Christian Watson, and the film shows he couldn't maintain stride-for-stride with either receiver.
What Should Patriots Fans Make Of This Performance?
This isn't an elite team. The Drake Maye interceptions hurt the effort, but if he needs to play perfect football to save the team from getting slowed to bits, then the Patriots won't win many competitive games this season.
Drake Maye: 21/38 for 299 yards, three touchdowns, three picks — a lot of good plays by the Packers' secondary, a lot of late reads, a lot of passes that need more zip on them. The Patriots will now turn to fighting for their playoff lives as their reality as a contender fizzles with each matchup against a competitive team.
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Texans 44, Chargers 22 — Stroud Goes Bonkers
I didn't have the Texans and Chargers on my watch list for Sunday because both teams have a 2-12 record, with the two wins belonging to the Texans. But two eye-popping touchdowns garnered my interest, both by the Texans as the Chargers offense struggled once again.
First, Houston wide receiver Tank Dell, in his second game back after a near two-year absence, got his first score of the season — first score since the touchdown that resulted in the devastating injury — on a 63-yard catch-and-run for the Texans' second touchdown.
Kayshon Boutte also registered a 63-yard catch-and-run touchdown, one of two of his scores. However, Texans No. 1 wide receiver Nico Collins had a viral 13-yard one-handed touchdown grab, getting two feet down as the Texans dominated the Chargers completely.
Of course, the Texans defense had to give up an explosive play: Quentin Johnston breaks the Chargers' touchdown drought in the fourth quarter with a 64-yard catch-and-run, with the game well in hand for the Texans.
C.J. Stroud goes bonkers with five passing touchdowns: 21/35 for 384 passing yards, one interception, and a 125.5 passer rating. The Texans win 44-22.
Can Houston Still Make The Playoffs And How Dangerous Can They Be?
The Texans running the table, i.e. winning every game on the rest of their schedule, remains a possibility. The offense has really become a dropback-centric attack, as the run game remains peripheral.
Some of Houston's periphery receivers made a major imprint on this game: Kayshon Boutte, with four catches for 125 yards and two touchdowns, and Tank Dell added another four for 105 yards. Sunday, against the Chargers, wasn't an anomalous performance; Houston's receivers can really go and score points with any team.
What might be anomalous is the defense. Houston sacks Justin Herbert eight times and held the Chargers to 4.6 yards per play, and even that seems high for a moribund team like the Chargers. With Cleveland up next, the Texans have an opportunity to move closer to.500, but I get the feeling that Houston will play down to their competition for the rest of the year.
