Lines were drawn in Week 8 of the NFL season, as blowouts permeated throughout the slate of games on Thursday, Sunday, and Monday alike. Some of it just made for boring football, while other results showed us who is for real—and who is not—as a playoff contender this season.
Take one of the games of the week on paper, between the Denver Broncos and the Dallas Cowboys, for example. Dallas came in at 3-3-1 after an impressive win over the Commanders, while the Broncos sat at 5-2 despite not exactly passing the eye test in a Week 7 win over the Giants. However, the Broncos crushed the Cowboys, dominating on both sides of the ball. Now, it’s clear that Denver is a playoff contender in the AFC, while the Cowboys are not at that level in the NFC.
Results like that took place throughout the league, but who came out as the big winners of the weekend?
### Ravens Keep in Touch in AFC North Race
The Baltimore Ravens were an early candidate for a cursed season in the NFL after a 1-5 start and a number of key injuries on both sides of the ball. Those issues got even worse when, even after a bye week, Lamar Jackson was still not ready to play due to a hamstring problem in Week 8 against the Bears.
Fear not, as Cooper Rush was out as the Baltimore backup and Tyler Huntley stepped in. The longtime Raven balled out in his first start with the team this year. Huntley played some of his best football, and the defense made key plays in crucial moments to help Baltimore secure a 30-16 win and improve to 2-5.
At the same time, the Bengals inexplicably handed the Jets their first win of the season. Hours later, the Steelers lost at home to the Packers on Sunday Night Football, dropping to 4-3. This left the Ravens just two games out of first place with two games remaining against Pittsburgh.
Baltimore is getting healthy on both sides of the ball, and now Jackson is back in the lineup for Week 9 against the Dolphins. The defense also seems to be turning a corner, making this a very dangerous team in the AFC playoff race.
### Broncos Offense Finds a Groove
The Broncos offense was completely lifeless for the first three quarters in Week 7 against the Giants before exploding for 33 points in the fourth quarter. On Sunday against the Cowboys, that momentum continued with a 44-point outburst, earning a 20-point win over a very capable NFC foe.
Bo Nix threw four touchdowns in the win, and the Broncos finished with the third-best EPA (Expected Points Added) per play on the week, including the league’s best mark on passing plays. Denver also ran for 179 yards on 28 carries against a Dallas defense that had no answers.
The Denver defense forced Dak Prescott into one of his worst games of the season, and Vance Joseph’s unit is once again one of the most reliable in football. If Sean Payton can keep this running game clicking and Bo Nix continues to protect the football as he did for most of Sunday, the 6-2 Broncos will be tough to beat down the stretch.
### Justin Fields Bounces Back
How can you not be happy for Justin Fields? Well, unless you’re a Bengals fan.
Fields has already been rejected by two NFL teams, and it looked like the Jets were ready to do the same after benching him for Tyrod Taylor in Week 7. However, Taylor missed Sunday’s game against the Bengals with an injury, leaving Fields to start again.
It couldn’t have been easy to take the field for a team whose owner publicly criticized him just days before the game. But that’s exactly what Fields did—and he responded.
The Ohio State product completed 21-of-32 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 31 yards. He led a Jets offense that scored 39 points to earn New York its first victory of the season. Fields poured his heart out at the podium after the game.
He is clearly still a limited player at the quarterback position, and his job might not be safe despite the good performance Sunday. Still, it was great to see a feel-good story from a journeyman QB leading his team to its first win of the season.
### Saquon Barkley Finally Looks Like Himself
The Eagles haven’t been bad this season—far from it—but they have been extremely frustrating at times.
The passing game has been inconsistent, with a few big plays to AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith mixed in. Meanwhile, the running game has nowhere near matched the peaks it hit last season with Saquon Barkley.
Those problems came to a head in a Thursday night loss to the New York Giants earlier this season. The Eagles had their chance for revenge on Sunday, and they didn’t waste it.
Philadelphia ran away with a 38-20 win, improving to 6-2 despite Brown being out of the lineup. The Eagles finally ran the ball effectively, rushing for 276 yards on 33 carries. Both Barkley and Tank Bigsby surpassed 100 yards, as Philly ground the Giants down throughout the game.
Philadelphia still has a clearly limited passing game, and the defense isn’t playing at quite the level it was last year. Therefore, the team will need to continue running the ball like this if it wants to make a run at a repeat.
The schedule will present tougher tests than the Giants, but this was a great step in the right direction for the defending champs.
https://clutchpoints.com/nfl/nfl-stories/nfl-week-8-winners-ravens-hanging-around-broncos-crush-cowboys
