Sunday’s Week 9 slate handed out a little bit of everything: statement performances, breakout games, and a few teams that looked like they were running in place. The Green Bay Packers made the loudest noise of the day, but they weren’t the only ones leaving with momentum. A handful of players turned in defining games, while several teams and coaches walked away with more questions than answers.
Myles Garrett wasted no time reminding everyone why the Rams traded for him. Back in the lineup on Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams edge rusher piled up three sacks in a 20-13 win over the Washington Commanders, and all three came as his first sacks with his new team. It was the kind of impact game that changes the feel of a defense immediately.
Another defensive standout came from the New York Giants, where Arvell Reese put together the kind of performance that announces a player to the league. In the Giants’ 19-11 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, the first-round pick finished with 12 tackles, three sacks, three tackles for loss and three quarterback hits.
John Harbaugh brought a sense of credibility to the Giants when they hired him as head coach, but a big-name coach and a mindset only go as far as the talent on the roster. That has also been upgraded, and Reese is a huge part of that.
The Packers, though, were the day’s full-team hammer. In a 45-27 rout of the New England Patriots, they looked dominant everywhere.
Jordan Love and his receivers Matthew Golden and Christian Watson were too much to handle, and the defense forced four takeaways. Pick any player.
Pick any aspect of the game. Pick any side of the ball.
They were all winners. It was one of the most impressive wins any team has had this season, and it came with Micah Parsons return looming.
Joe Burrow kept his name at the front of the quarterback conversation, and he did it with another clean, efficient performance in the Cincinnati Bengals’ 34-17 win over the Atlanta Falcons. He went 24-of-29 for 271 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Over his past six games, he has 20 touchdowns and five interceptions, and right now nobody is playing the position better.
C.J. Stroud also turned in a huge day for the Houston Texans.
In a 44-22 win over the Los Angeles Chargers, he threw for 384 yards and five touchdowns, continuing what has been one of the best stretches of his career. Stroud’s contract bet on himself this season is going to pay off in a big way.
Kenneth Walker kept doing Kenneth Walker things for the Kansas City Chiefs. He topped 100 rushing yards again and scored three touchdowns in a 35-12 win over the New York Jets. It was just another day at the office.
Caleb Downs answered after a rough Week 8 showing against the Arizona Cardinals. The Dallas Cowboys defensive back made his presence felt in a 27-23 win over the Indianapolis Colts with a sack and a game-clinching interception. After getting trolled and run over a week ago, he came back with a swing-back performance.
On the other side of the ledger, Aaron Glenn’s New York Jets had another ugly Sunday. The team looked undisciplined and lifeless, and the defense still hasn’t found the takeaway column in any meaningful way. They have one interception in Glenn’s 26 games as a head coach.
Indianapolis Colts fans had a rough one too. They watched another loss, and they may also have watched the end of the Jonathan Taylor era. If he does get traded, his tenure here ended with him fumbling in a crucial spot in the fourth quarter against the Cowboys.
Kirk Cousins had his toughest outing of the season in the Las Vegas Raiders’ 38-17 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. He has played well this year, but this was a game that showed the limits of what the Raiders can ask from him. It also featured a play he will probably want to forget.
The New England Patriots were also firmly on the wrong side of the week. Their loss to the Packers was described as one of the worst games they have ever played at Gillette Stadium, and they’re now 5-4 with major questions still hanging over whether they can consistently beat good teams.
The Los Angeles Chargers offense belongs in the loser column too. They finally found the end zone after going 12 consecutive quarters without a touchdown, but that was about the only bright spot. Justin Herbert was sacked eight times and benched in the loss to Houston, and the whole operation is starting to look like it needs wholesale changes from top to bottom.
And then there was Carolina’s bad luck. In the Panthers’ 26-21 loss to the Denver Broncos, an interception had to be reviewed before it was overturned, and it probably should have been pass interference anyway.
In Other News...
Jordan Love Is Giving Packers Fans A Very Familiar Feeling
Jordan Love spent Sunday looking every bit like the quarterback Green Bay has been waiting for, carving up the Patriots in a 45-27 win with a command that felt increasingly familiar to Packers fans. He completed 23 of 29 passes for 372 yards and three touchdowns, added a rushing score, and kept the offense humming from start to finish in one of the cleanest outings of his career.
The numbers now put Love at the top of the league in passing yards and third in touchdowns, a striking place for a quarterback still shaping his own identity in Green Bay. After the game, he said the performance ranked among the best he has had, and the bigger question for the Packers is how often this version shows up as the season moves on. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Offense Exposed A Patriots Weakness Fans Will Love
The Packers left New England with a 45-27 win, and one of the clearest takeaways from the game was how often Green Bay found success attacking Christian Gonzalez in coverage. The Patriots cornerback had a rough afternoon, and it became a central part of a loss that exposed some real issues in New Englands secondary.
Afterward, Mike Vrabel was direct about Gonzalez not meeting expectations and also accepted some responsibility for the defense not being ready for what Green Bay brought. Gonzalez owned his performance and said he would move on and get ready for the next game, but the bigger question now is how the Patriots plan to respond after a matchup that left them with plenty to clean up. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Just Sent A Dangerous Message With More Help Coming
The Packers 45-27 win over the Patriots was the kind of statement that travels well beyond one Sunday afternoon. Jordan Love was sharp, the defense kept creating short fields and the offense looked comfortable piling on points while the pass rush and takeaway game kept New England from ever settling in. Evan Williams and Trey Smack also turned in notable performances, adding to the sense that Green Bay is getting contributions from all over the roster at the right time.
What makes the message even louder is what could be on the way next. The Packers are already playing with the kind of balance and aggression that can make them dangerous, and the possibility of Micah Parsons returning only adds another layer to the picture. If this is the version of Green Bay that shows up now, the rest of the league has reason to pay attention to what comes when the lineup gets even stronger. [Read more 🡒]