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...
Puka Nacua Injury Fallout Puts Commanders Collision Under Spotlight
Puka Nacuas afternoon against Washington was as productive as it was unsettling for the Rams. He piled up 14 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown in Los Angeles win over the Commanders, then left with a knee injury that immediately shifted the postgame conversation from a big offensive showing to his availability moving forward. An MRI is scheduled, and the team is reportedly optimistic the injury is not an ACL tear.
For a Rams offense that leans so heavily on Nacuas volume and reliability, any knee issue carries real weight beyond one game. The immediate result over Washington still counts, but the bigger question now is how much of that production can be counted on going forward, and whether the Rams have dodged a much more serious setback than the one they feared in the moment. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Face A Delicate Matthew Stafford Problem On Offense
Matthew Staffords arm soreness has become one of those quiet issues the Rams have had to manage without letting it take over the week. He practiced fully and was not listed on the injury report, but the broader trend around him has been hard to ignore: Los Angeles has been leaning more on the run game as it tries to keep his passing load in a more manageable range.
The Rams have already seen how much their offense can shift depending on how often Stafford is asked to throw, with the better results generally coming when he stays under 30 attempts. That puts the coaching staff in a delicate spot, balancing the need to protect its veteran quarterback with the reality that the passing game still runs through him, and the way they handle that balance could shape how this offense looks going forward. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Win Exposed One Problem They Still Havent Solved
The Rams got the result they needed against Washington, a 20-13 win that moved them to 5-4 and kept their season on steadier ground. Myles Garretts return gave the defense a jolt with three sacks and a forced fumble, and Puka Nacua again looked like the engine of the passing game, piling up 14 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown.
Still, the victory also put a familiar issue back in focus. The run defense settled in after halftime and did enough to help close out the Commanders, but the receiving room beyond Nacua did not offer much support, with drops and limited production leaving the passing attack too dependent on one target. For a team trying to build momentum, that kind of imbalance is hard to ignore even after a win. [Read more 🡒]