NFL Week Seven Winners and Losers

As October ends there’s a separation of which teams are closer to clinching playoff seeds and which ones will have a high draft pick. Coaching plays a part in who advances or goes home. A lot stood out in week seven’s action, so it’s time for the winners and losers.

Winners: D’Onta Foreman

While Chicago started a rookie quarterback, veteran runningback D’Onta Foreman provided stability on offense and made sure the Bears had an easy win.

Foreman ran 16 times for 89 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught three passes for 31 yards and one more score to give the Bears 18 points. He provided enough points alone for Chicago’s victory, and his three touchdowns were the first three scores for the Bears.

Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said at the end of September that Chicago’s offense was slowly improving and would soon show progress. It’s been mostly true since the blow-out loss in Kansas City. Foreman being the lead runningback is a reason the offense keeps improving.

Lamar Jackson

Many had Detroit going into Baltimore and scoring a lot of points on the Ravens. Well, someone put up a lot of numbers on offense but it wasn’t anyone on the Lions.

Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson looked like his former MVP self. He completed 21 of 27 passes for three touchdowns and a 155.8 passer rating. He also ran nine times for 36 yards and an additional score.

The most important part of Sunday’s win for the Ravens was how well the receivers looked when Jackson looked comfortable. There have been concerns about how there wasn’t progress with the new receivers and old habits (i.e. Jackson creating most plays by running the ball) still being the focus of the offense. Three of Baltimore’s new receivers had at least four catches for 45 yards. Detroit’s defense is also hard to constantly throw against and score on. It’s possible Sunday was the turning point for Baltimore’s offense for the rest of the regular season.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers went into late Sunday afternoon knowing two division rivals won important early games and one was on a bye. They needed to leave Los Angeles with a win to stay alive in the AFC North race against a surprisingly good Rams team. Pittsburgh wound up having one of their most complete games of the season.

Sophomore quarterback Kenny Pickett threw for 231 yards and a 97.1 quarterback rating while the offense scored three rushing touchdowns (Pickett ran for one of them). Receiver George Pickens had five catches for 107 yards on eight targets. Diontae Johnson had no rust in his first game back from injured reserve with five catches for 79 yards. This was one of the few games where the Steelers offense looked balanced and comfortable.

The defense contributed by intercepting Los Angeles quarterback Matthew Stafford once and sacking him twice. Once they negated rookie receiver Puka Nacua’s contributions, it became hard for the Rams to move the ball downfield. Outside of an eight point scoring drive in the second half, head coach Sean McVay had no answers against the T.J. Watt-led defense. This was the best outcome for Pittsburgh coming out of a bye.

Tyrod Taylor

The Giants have fielded a bottom three offense since September. Franchise starting quarterback Daniel Jones might not be the full problem but he sure doesn’t have solutions. Since Jones is out with a neck injury, the offense looks better with Tyrod Taylor under center.

New York didn’t score much again in their second win of the season but there’s progress and hope for the Giants when Taylor leads. He finally got major offseason addition Darren Waller involved in the offense, completing seven of eight passes to him for 98 yards and a touchdown. Taylor also kept plays alive by using his legs, running eight times for 25 yards.

It’s taken seven weeks for New York to score a touchdown in either the first quarter or first half of any game this season. Both times it’s happened with Tyrod Taylor starting at quarterback. The Giants will win more games the more he plays.

Losers: Darrell Baker Jr.

American football is a team sport consisting of eleven players on each side making sure to either score or defend every part of the field. Usually when a team loses, it’s for a multitude of reasons. Rarely is it on one player in critical moments. Unfortunately for Indianapolis cornerback Darrell Baker Jr., he’s a big reason the Colts lost Sunday.

Most defensive players take penalties at some point in their career but to have two penalties in a row when the opponent is close to scoring a game-winning touchdown is a bad look. Baker first committed a correctly called illegal contact penalty. That gave Cleveland’s offense not just a first down and extended possession, but negated a turnover Indianapolis forced that would’ve sealed a five point win.

The following play was a questionable pass interference penalty that was called due to how Baker Jr. couldn’t let go of the receiver he covered. That error gave the Browns one yard to go and four tries to get the lead, which of course they did.

It’s gutting to lose a game with those mistakes. It’s also a lesson that all it takes is for one player to negate a lead and cost a team a win.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense

Well, the feel-good start of the season for Tampa Bay is over. After heading into the bye week at 3-1, the Buccaneers are at .500 and haven’t scored 20 total points in their last two games.

Atlanta’s sophomore quarterback Desmond Ritter tried losing Sunday’s game in Tampa Bay with his three lost fumbles. The Buccaneers struggled on offense minus one perfect scoring pass from quarterback Baker Mayfield to Mike Evans. Outside of that throw, Mayfield threw 41 passes for 235 yards and the leading receiver was Chris Godwin with 66 yards.

The running game has been worse. While Rachaad White averaged two and a half yards per carry, Tampa’s a bottom five team in the league running the ball. The offense heavily relies on deep passes downfield and not enough on long, steady drives.

If there’s any positives from back-to-back losses, it’s how great the defense plays. Offensive coordinator Dave Canales has to find long-term solutions moving forward.

Brandon Staley

There’s no team looking more mis-managed and out-coached than the Chargers. Even if Los Angeles finds a way to win, they make it difficult and the mistakes stand out more than the positives.

The Chargers blew so many chances Sunday it’s a wonder they kept their loss in Kansas City close for over three quarters. Kansas City’s number one receiver is tight-end Travis Kelce and he gashed Los Angeles’ defense for 179 yards. Staley was brought in to fix the defense and has the right players to make it one of the best units in the league, but it’s gotten worse since his hiring.

It’s bewildering when their offense does well or has an average performance and the opposition can go down the field and either tie or take leads at ease. Los Angeles’ offense did well in the first half but broke down and struggled in the second half. Turning the ball over on long drives cemented a bitter loss to a division rival. A roster that was constructed to be one of the best in not just the conference but in the division has gradually fallen apart with a head coach who couldn’t even win a playoff game with a 27 point lead.

The Miami Dolphins hype train

Miami’s a fun team to watch most of the time because of their high-paced, super fast offense. They’re pretty good compared to most of the other 31 NFL franchises. However, they aren’t great and Sunday night showed it.

While they weren’t fully healthy on the offensive line and at runningback, Philadelphia came ready to play and were relentless on every side of the ball. The Dolphins had no answer for Eagles receiver A.J. Brown, and Vic Fangio’s defense gave up a score on all but one possession. Both teams entered Sunday night’s game each with one loss.

It’s not like Miami didn’t try. They rushed at Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts most of the night, but the difference is both coaching and the Eagles’ veteran mindset. The Dolphins aren’t there yet and it has shown when they’ve played postseason-ready teams (like their division rival Buffalo Bills). For Miami to be considered elite in the NFL, they have to beat teams that are favored for the conference championship or the Super Bowl.