NFL Week 7 In Review

Week 7 of NFL action brought us a handful of eye opening losses. Perhaps the most noteworthy were the likes of Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers losing to the Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders respectively, who were both starting back up quarterbacks. Combine that with the fact that the defending champion Los Angeles Rams have struggled to start the season, and it feels like the NFC is completely up for grabs in 2022.

Let’s take a quick look at all of the action from across the league in Week 7.

Cardinals 42, Saints 34
Arizona: This game proved one thing in my opinion when it comes to the Cardinals offense. It’s a
completely different product when Deandre Hopkins is on the field. This trend surely can’t continue, but
D-Hop accounted for half of the passing yardage, hauling in 10 catches for 102 yards in his first game
back from suspension. Although a heated exchange between Kliff Kingsbury and Kyler Murray didn’t
look pretty, Arizona rallied from that point to get a possibly season-saving win. Yes, the offense found its
rhythm late but the defense was the story here causing 2 pick-6s before halftime to aid the comeback.
They look to get back to .500 on the road in Minnesota next Sunday.

New Orleans: It seems as though a season where the team and its fans thought it could compete is
quickly spiraling out of control. It’s 5 losses in 6 games in another frustrating defeat. With a chance to put
the struggling cardinals away late in the first quarter resulted in a pick in the end zone. It’s tough for any
team to have as many key pieces out of the lineup and be successful but Dalton once again showed his
ability to turn the ball over, and it may not get better. The Saints host the Raiders next Sunday.

Bengals 35, Falcons 17
Cincinnati: Joe Burrow and company are starting to look like the team most thought they’d be after
struggling through the first month of the schedule, and that could be scary for the rest of the league.
The defending AFC champs torched a pretty good Atlanta secondary en route to a cruising victory, going
over the .500 mark for the first time this year. Burrow by far had his best game of the year throwing for
481 yards and 4 total TDs. The performance gave him 5 such games with over 400 yards in his first 3
seasons, he’s the first QB in league history to do that. It’ll be a Halloween edition of the battle for
Cleveland when they visit the Browns next Monday.

Atlanta: Being down quickly 21-0 in the blink of an eye is not ideal for any game plan and that’s exactly
the situation the Falcons found themselves in. Marcus Mariota has played well but that offense isn’t
built for shootouts, and the uphill battle proved a bit too much to overcome. It certainly didn’t help that
one of the league’s best rushing attacks was held under 4 yards a carry. The Falcons will need to get
back to being much more effective on the ground when they host the suddenly surprising Panthers on
Sunday.

Cowboys 24, Lions 6
Dallas: The good news for Cowboy nation is the defense got back to forcing turnovers and Dak Prescott
looked OK in his return to the lineup, and for now all’s right with the world. Most expected a
dominating win against perennial bottom-feeding Detroit but forgive me if the performance left more
on the table. The game, and the offense, looked more like it did when Cooper Rush was at the helm and
if that’s the recipe moving forward so be it. I wouldn’t count on the opposing QB to cough it up 4 times,
however, and I expect a bit more explosiveness next week against the Bears.

Detroit: Stop me if you’ve heard this before Lions fans, “we were competitive, but just couldn’t get it
done”. That’s not a direct quote but that’s been the sentiment under coach Dan Campbell, all while he
remains without a road win in his tenure (0-11-1). Detroit was only down 4 when Jamaal Williams
coughed it up at the 1 and while plenty of time remained on the clock the game was essentially over.
The Lions have another chance to not be the Lions this Sunday against the Dolphins.

Titans 19, Colts 10
TEN: It wasn’t pretty, but the recipe that has led the Titans to so much success in recent years once
again proved it’s a winning one. Derrick Henry had 30 carries and while I don’t have an official win-loss
record for the team when he does that, I’m sure the record’s a good one. The win is the team’s 4 th in a
row and the first sweep of their division rivals in 20 years. They try to make it 5 straight in Houston this
Sunday.

IND: Another week and more turnovers for Indianapolis, this time 3 of them in a second consecutive
loss. Of course, it’s not all Matt Ryan’s fault but he threw a costly interception that staked the Colts to a
10-0 deficit in the second quarter, and threw another on the very next possession. The lack of ball
security has forced coach Frank Reich to go with backup Sam Ehlinger to provide a spark for the rest of
the year. Strap yourselves down Indy fans, it could be a long second half. They host the Commanders
this Sunday.

Commanders 23, Packers 21
WSH: As an outsider, I somehow knew the Commanders would pull this game off, it just felt right given
all that’s happened to the team this year. Taylor Heinicke was able to shake off some rust to lead the
upset and send Green Bay to its third L in a row. Heinicke started things 1 for 4 with a pick-6 before
finding his rhythm and favorite target Terry Mclaurin for a score. Washington can get to .500 ball with a
road win Sunday in Indy.

GB: There isn’t enough divine intervention in the world that can help the passing game, and things may
still get worse before they get better on the offensive side of the ball. Rodgers won’t admit it but that
a thumb injury looks like it’s bothering him a lot and you couple that with subpar receivers and a 3-game
losing streak what you get. Green Bay totaled just 232 of offense but a goose egg on third-down
conversions. The streak may get to 4 games after a trip to Buffalo on Sunday night.

Panthers 21, Bucs 3
CAR: Trust me I’ll get to the Bucs but how’s about the Panthers? They have no quarterback to speak of
yet somehow, they were able to give TB12 and company a good old-fashioned beatdown, and this was
right after you basically waved the white flag in trading away Christian McCaffrey. D’Onta Foreman
rushed for 118 on the ground and Chuba Hubbard added another 6o-plus against a defense that was
supposed to be tough in that aspect of the game. This may just be the most entertaining division to
watch folks, Carolina can move into a tie for first place with a road win Sunday in Atlanta.

Tampa Bay: Read the above statement. Among other issues for the Bucs is how gashed they were in the
run. Included in that list is a 46-yard rushing total in response. I won’t use the “O” word for how Brady
and the team looked against the Panthers but I will say something is definitely “off”. If the concept of a
“must-win” exists in the league it’s Thursday when the Ravens come to town.

Giants 23, Jaguars 17
New York: Can the G-Men keep this up? That’s the big question after another heart-stopping game in
Jacksonville. This time Julian Love and Xavier Mckinney are the heroes after denying Christian Kirk at the
1-yard line to get the team’s best start since 2008. New York also became the first team in history to
start 6-1 with every single game being decided by one possession. They try to keep the road magic alive
in a tough location when they visit Seattle next Sunday.

Jacksonville: The signs of growth just a month ago have quickly turned to frustration for the young
Jaguars, and the frustrations come from within. 13 penalties for over 80 yards certainly are concerning
but it’s hard to overcome a fumble that turned a near touchdown into a touchback from Travis Etienne.
Discipline will certainly be a point of emphasis this week, especially on a trip to London to battle the
Broncos.

Ravens 23, Browns 20
Baltimore: Welcome back Gus Edwards! The back crossed the goal line twice in his return from injury
and provided a much-needed second-half spark for the Ravens who narrowly got above .500. At some
point, however, this team has to put together a more complete and consistent effort if it truly wants to
contend, and that means closing teams out. They’ve blown double-digit leads in their 3 losses and
escaped another with a late Cleveland fumble in its own territory. Baltimore travels to Tampa Bay for
TNF.

Cleveland: The Browns did something very Browns-like and literally handed the game to the other team
at a crucial juncture. In, I guess more positive news, Nick Chubb is still good at running the football (91
yards on 16 carries). The Deshaun Watson clock continues next Sunday at home against the Bengals.

Jets 16, Broncos 9
New York: Fantasy managers (including myself) and fans across the crunchy let out a few expletives after
rookie sensation Breece Hall went down early in the contest and I’m not one to get emotional usually,
but this one breaks your heart. Hey may be gone for a year plus given the diagnosis and now the Jets
need to focus on getting newly acquired RB James Robinson acclimated as quickly as possible. They also
need to focus on keeping that winning mentality, the other surprise team in Gotham looks to hit the
halfway point with a 6-2 mark with a home date Sunday against New England.

Denver: I still won’t make the obvious joke with the Broncos HC’s last name but darn it I’m getting
closer. This Denver offense is reaching historically bad levels and it sputtered again to no touchdowns.
At this point, the defensive side of the ball might stage a walkout in protest. They’ll try to avoid a 5 th
straight defeat across the pond Sunday against Jacksonville.

Raiders 38, Texans 20
Las Vegas: I’m guessing the big fellas up front were treated to a nice juicy steak after the game after the
way they’ve been opening up lanes for Josh Jacobs and they may get something nice for the holidays as
well. 140-plus and 3 scores on the ground was what did the trick in a post-bye victory. A run of 4 straight
scoring possessions helped turn an early 4 th quarter deficit into a runaway over Houston who put up a
valiant effort in keeping the game close. The Raiders hit the road to visit New Orleans next Sunday.

Houston: Lovie Smith has a reputation for being a defensive coach but that side of the ball continues to be
disappointing. The unit gave up 400 yards of offense to Las Vegas and over 225 of that in the second
half. Davis Mills threw for over 300 yards but couldn’t lead a response as the game slipped away. They
host King Henry and the Titans next Sunday.

Seahawks 37, Chargers 23
Seattle: Geno Smith and company are making the NFC West very interesting after this impressive road
showing. I knew the Seahawks had something when they drafted Kenneth Walker and the young stud so
far is proving me right. Rack up another 168 on the ground and 2 scores for the rookie Sparty country
and you mix that in with Smith hooking up with Marquise Goodwin twice and you’ve got a team atop
the division. The injury to DK Metcalf is obviously one to keep an eye on.

Los Angeles: I am not surprised the Chargers’ defense has played poorly, because it’s not like they
poured money into it in the offseason, right? Oh, they did you say? Look I know JC Jackson got a lot of
flak for his performance this year but his going down is still a blow to an already reeling defense. Yikes,
awkward, just when you thought the Bolts could get right, they lay an egg in Seattle. There was no
rhythm to the offense in the second half either with many drives stalling out prematurely. They hope to
clean things up after the bye in Atlanta on November 6 th .

Chiefs 44, 49ers 23
Kansas City: Breaking news from the department of repetitive behavior: Patrick Mahomes is good at
throwing the football. I’m sure Chiefs fans won’t like having to rally all the time but it sure is fun, isn’t it?
A 10-0 deficit was quickly erased thanks to 6 TDs in the next 7 drives and the team moved to 13-9 when
falling behind double digits with Mahomes under center. They come off their bye hosting the Tennessee
Titans.

San Francisco: I feel like in the grand scheme of things this game meant nothing to the team after the
psychological boost it got from acquiring CMC. Sure, they lost but getting a game-breaker like him will
keep the franchise in win-now mode. The Niners host the Rams Next Sunday with a full week to get
McCaffrey comfortable with the offense.

Dolphins 16, Steelers 10
Miami: The biggest win of the night was getting its quarterback through the game. That was my
prevailing thought when things ended in south beach and I know I’m not the only one that felt that way.
He looked OK in getting the team off to a fast start but if you saw the game there were multiple
interceptions dropped by the defense. It took an incredible interception of Miami’s own to thwart a late
Steelers charge. The Dolphins and Tua look for a sharper effort on the road Sunday in Detroit.

Pittsburgh: If I’m a Steelers fan I am encouraged by the poise of their young quarterback. It was a rough
night and the first-rounder from Pitt faced a tough dolphin defense but he hung in there and almost
completed an improbable comeback. Pickett-to-Pickens is a combo I’d like to see for years to come.
They’ll try and knock the Eagles from the unbeaten ranks next Sunday in Philly.

Bears 33, Patriots 14
Chicago: Finally, a real glimpse into the real talent of Justin Fields was on display Monday night in the
second-year QBs best performance as a pro. He ran for a score while totaling 80-plus on the ground and
threw for another while taking a big hit to spur the Bears to an unlikely victory on the road. Oh, and here’s a message just in case management wants to hear it, pay Roquan Smith please (12 tackles, a sack,
and a pick). Chicago visits Dallas next Sunday.

New England: The Patriots have more questions than answers after a sloppy performance. I think Mac
Jones’ status as QB 1 is set for now but that was by far his worst performance as a pro. Bailey Zappe
provided a brief spark but was no better in throwing 2 picks of his own. I would expect Jones to start but
don’t be surprised if Belichick has a short leash again next Sunday in a road game against a tough Jets
squad.