We’re officially at the midway point of the NFL season and there is no shortage of storylines to dissect.
From one rookie quarterback breaking records and another struggling to one sorry franchise that is down to its third-string signal caller and in desperate need of help elsewhere too.
Plus, which so-called Super Bowl contender heading into this season looks way off where they need to be?
All that in more in the latest NFL Talking Points!
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WHAT’S GOING ON IN BUFFALO?
Hands up if you envisaged the Bills on the outside of the playoff picture at the midpoint of the season? If so, well done.
The fact the Bills are 5-4 and up against it to make the postseason is shocking. This is a team who was meant to contend for a Super Bowl. This is a team with a rare, transcendent talent at quarterback who can beat you with his arm and legs.
The defence entered the season full of expectations on the back of an All-Pro campaign from linebacker Matt Milano and star safety Micah Hyde returning from injury.
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Unfortunately, the defence is one of the more banged up units in the entire NFL. Milano is out for the season, luckless cornerback Tre White tore his ACL for the second time in three years while underrated defensive lineman DaQuan Jones is sidelined indefinitely.
QB Josh Allen has flashed brilliance all season as expected, but he is becoming good at throwing interceptions at the worst possible moment. He has tossed nine this season, tied for first in the league (Sam Howell, Jimmy Garoppolo, Mac Jones).
Coaching has been a constant criticism of this team in 2023, with offensive co-ordinator Ken Dorsey the most under fire with head coach Sean McDermott not far behind.
Dorsey just hasn’t been able to create as prolific an offense his predecessor and now Giants head coach Brian Daboll installed in Buffalo and that hasn’t gone unnoticed by the diehard Bills Mafia.
What is also a point of frustration is the lack of trust in the running game. James Cook has shown he is a more than capable when given the opportunity, averaging 4.7 yards a carry this season. However, he’s only been given 108 carries, which equates to a paltry 12 per game.
Buffalo were Winx-like odds to make the playoffs before the season kicked off, now, they are even money.
A record of 5-4 may seem like it isn’t all doom and gloom, but a peek at the Bills’ upcoming schedule doesn’t make for great reading for any Buffalo fan.
BILLS UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Week 10 – Broncos
Week 11 – Jets
Week 12 – Eagles
Week 14 – Chiefs
Week 15 – Cowboys
Week 16 – Chargers
Week 17 – Patriots
Week 18 – Dolphins
It’s a brutal run of games and realistically, the Bills will need to win at least five of those to have a chance of making the postseason.
Can they do it? You’d think they will find a way – they are too good a team not to – but there is plenty to fix up if they are to contend for a Super Bowl.
$69 MILLION REASONS WHY GIANTS CAN’T EASILY ESCAPE QB NIGHTMARE
Coming to a stadium near you: “Bad To Worse,” the story of the Giants’ 2023 season. If you were enthralled by the first episode of this series, released in 2022 and entitled “Hope, Restored” then you will be shocked and alarmed with the plot turn that befell this team and its collection of characters.
That they lost, 30-6, to the Raiders in Las Vegas is an afterthought, as one-sided losses are commonplace in year No. 2 of the Joe Schoen-Brian Daboll regime. That Daniel Jones, paid as the franchise quarterback, went down on the first play of the second quarter with what is sure to be diagnosed on Monday as a season-ending torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee turned into the headline on a day that left the entire organisation sombre, sad and wondering where the next body-blow will hit.
Let us try to unravel all this:
The timeline of it taking one full year to recover from ACL surgery is not valid any longer. Receiver Wan’Dale Robinson tore his ACL on Nov. 20 last season, missed the remainder of his rookie year, went through the typical months of rehab and was cleared to return to practice on August 29. He played in Week 3.
Another receiver, Sterling Shepard, tore his ACL in Week 3 last season and was ready for this year’s season opener. Different players, different bodies, different positions.
The standard recovery span is 8-9 months. Jones should be able to play all or most of the 2024 season, as long as everything goes well with his surgery and his recovery.
Those predicting that Jones will never throw another pass for the Giants might want to store those prognostications in the overhead compartment.
There is a salary cap and there are ramifications for cutting a high-priced player, and no one has forgotten that the Giants last March gave Jones a four-year contract worth $160 million.
His salary cap number for 2024 is $47.5 million and if the Giants decide to cut ties with him after the season — they will not do that, for several reasons — the salary cap dead money hit would be $69 million. That is untenable.
The four-year deal contained an “out” after two seasons but even then, if the Giants parted ways with Jones after the 2024 season, he could count $22 million in dead cap money in 2025. That would be a Giants record. Contracts have consequences. Jones will be on the team in 2024.
Just as Jones will be back, it is inconceivable that the Giants will await his return to health without significantly upgrading the position.
First of all, he will be coming off a major injury. Secondly, he was an ineffective quarterback this season, playing one outstanding half of football in Arizona and not much else to get excited about.
Plus, he missed three games with a neck injury, the second time in three seasons he missed time with a neck issue. Availability is a talent and Jones is not available enough. As it stands today, the Giants would own a top-five pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
They need help — everywhere. They thought they were out of the quarterback procurement business and now they get dragged back in, having to think about Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Bo Nix, Michael Penix Jr and maybe Shedeur Sanders because Jones’ season unravelled so painfully and completely.
Would the Giants actually use a high first-round pick on a quarterback, with Jones financially obligated to the team for at least another year? Everything must be on the table and this must be considered.
– This was originally published in the New York Post
THE AEROSPACE ENGINEER READY TO TAKE VIKINGS TO THE MOON
If you want an example of just how quickly things can change in the NFL, look no further than the Minnesota Vikings.
Right now, the vibes are immaculate. But just a week ago, one look inside the Minnesota locker room would have convinced you their season was already over.
In reality, the Vikings had just won their third-straight game without star wide receiver Justin Jefferson to keep pace with the Detroit Lions at the top of the NFC North.
The win came at a cost though and according to The Athletic it produced a “pretty emotional” scene post-game, with “multiple players and leaders tearing up” inside the locker room.
That is how much starting quarterback Kirk Cousins means to this franchise. But now he is planning for next year after tearing his Achilles in the fourth quarter of that win against Green Bay.
Vikings players wore shirts to honour Cousins before Monday’s game against the Falcons, just further proof of how big a loss he would be – and that’s not even taking into account what it meant to not have him on the field.
Cousins was enjoying the best season of his career, ranking third in the NFL in passer rating (103.8) and second in passing yards (2,331).
With the trade deadline fast approaching Minnesota was quick to hit the phones and ended up making a low-risk move for Josh Dobbs, who had been starting for Arizona while Kyler Murray ramped up his recovery from a torn ACL.
Dobbs wasn’t supposed to be playing on Monday. He’d only arrived in Minnesota days before. He’d never taken a snap from their centre and none of the team’s receivers had caught a pass from him at practice.
But on Monday he found Brandon Powell for the game-winning touchdown after a first-quarter concussion to rookie starter Jaren Hall forced Minnesota’s hand, with Dobbs called on to take over for the remainder of the game.
Dobbs completed 20 of 30 passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns while adding another score and 66 yards on the ground as he flashed his athleticism and scrambling ability.
Dobbs, who graduated from Tennessee with a degree in aerospace engineering and perfect 4.0 GPA, was once told by a member of the media when coming out of school that he was “too smart” to play quarterback.
“I’m like, playing quarterback’s the most cerebral position in all of sports,” Dobbs said back in August.
Dobbs certainly proved it on Monday. Earlier in the week Minnesota head coach Kevin O’Connell described the team’s new quarterback acquisition as “very smart and intelligent”.
How about after the Falcons win? Well, O’Connell simply described it as “remarkable”.
“What he was able to do in really five days’ time was as impressive as I’ve seen a quarterback be able to do,” O’Connell said.
Dobbs went viral earlier in the season after he helped the Cardinals to a 28-16 upset win over the Dallas Cowboys, filming himself at the team store trying to buy a custom jersey with his name on it.
There was no such option at the time. The Cardinals quickly changed that but the Vikings made sure not to make that mistake in the first place.
And unlike last week, where there was a sombre mood in the locker room after the win over the Packers, things were very different this time around. The hope is that this is only the beginning.
And unlike last week, where there was a sombre mood in the locker room after the win over the Packers, things were very different this time around. The hope is that this is only the beginning.
BIG MVP CALL ON RECORD-BREAKING ROOKIE MAKING PANTHERS LOOK SILLY
With every stumble from Bryce Young comes a referendum – both on the rookie quarterback and the Carolina Panthers as a franchise.
Last week, the Panthers did what they needed to do to quiet the noise, defeating the Houston Texans and C.J. Stroud – the man they could have taken but passed on with the first overall pick.
It took just one game though for the debate to start up again, with Stroud exploding for a historic showing against Tampa Bay while Young threw a pair of pick-sixes in a three-interception day against Indianapolis.
Young looked every bit like a rookie quarterback on Monday, although some of the more experienced signal callers in the league may have struggled against a relentless Colts pass rush that pressured him on 47.9 per cent of his dropbacks, per NFL’s Next Gen Stats.
Stroud, on the other hand, did what he has been doing all season – navigating pressure with the poise of a veteran while flashing his elite accuracy with pinpoint passes to fellow rookie Tank Dell on the final, game-winning drive.
“C.J. Stroud doesn’t look like a rookie to me,” Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield said post-game.
“That guy, he’s so impressive. Looks like a polished NFL quarterback. So, hats off to him. He played extremely, extremely well.”
Stroud passed for a rookie record 470 yards and five touchdowns in the win and what makes his performances this season all the more impressive is the fact it has come behind a patched up offensive line and without a strong running game to lean on.
Instead, the Texans have often had to put their trust in Stroud’s arm talent and mental processing. So much for Stroud failing the S2 cognitive test, which is said to measure how quickly and accurately an athlete processes information.
Forget Offensive Rookie of the Year. Former NFL quarterback turned ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky went as far as to claim Stroud should be in the league-wide MVP conversation too.
“He was poised, never wavered, locked in,” running back Devin Singletary said.
“He had that killer instinct in his eyes. I could tell he had that leadership vibe to him. He keeps growing into that role and keeps proving why he should be the guy he is. That boy is the truth.”
As for Young, Monday’s game against the Colts was ugly and while Stroud is certainly looking like the better quarterback at this stage that doesn’t mean the Panthers wasted the first overall pick.
Rather, it is hard to truly judge Young until he has a better supporting cast around him. After all, there were reports before the trade deadline that Carolina was after a ‘No. 1’ receiver.
It makes sense too. Adam Thielen has proven a solid safety blank for Young but rookie Jonathan Mingo is, like Young, a work in progress while DJ Chark and Terrace Marshall Jr. aren’t consistent target earners.
Meanwhile, the team’s big free agency splash on Miles Sanders has backfired spectacularly and meant Carolina hasn’t been able to effectively establish the run to ease the pressure on Young.
The offensive line has also been banged up and struggle to protect Young, who has been sacked 26 times. Only Daniel Jones and Sam Howell have been sacked more.
Now, of course, as mentioned earlier Stroud has been able to overcome some of these challenges at Houston so there is absolutely a need for Young to be better too.
But it is not like he is a lost cause either. Former NFL quarterback Trent Green was empathetic to what Young is dealing with when speaking on CBS Sports HQ after Carolina’s loss to Indianapolis.
“I think he’s made good progress up until this game,” Green said.
“I think if you look at the games each week he’s progressively gotten better – completion percentage, decision making – his best game of the year was last week against Houston when he came up with that 15-play, game-winning drive.
“Today, he just ran into a buzz saw of a Gus Bradley defence that was sick and tired about hearing how bad they had been… they just brought the heat. It was a different attitude… and you’re going to have some games and some mistakes when you’re a young quarterback like Bryce Young where you’re going to get confused and try force some things.”
Green also pointed towards the lack of weapons at Young’s disposal, something which the Panthers may be able to address in next year’s draft – although the fact they traded away their first-round pick to Chicago to take Young in the first place makes that trickier.
“I’m a little bit more forgiving having played the position,” added Green.
“If you look at C.J. Stroud and the weapons he has at Houston, who do the Carolina Panthers have that scares you if you’re the defense? Who do they have that scares you from a vertical standpoint? Who is going over the top? Who is taking the top end off it?
“Right now it’s Adam Thielen doing his five to ten yard routes in the middle of the field… that’s generally where they’re getting their plays. The only big play was Hurst on a play-action corner route that they were able to get behind the secondary in a Cover-2 look. They don’t have the big-play potential so when comparing him to the other guys you have to compare what he has around him.”
A NEW DAWN IN VEGAS
The scenes within the Raiders’ state of the art Allegiant Stadium locker room post their 30-6 win over the New York Giants resembled those seen after an AFC Championship win, not a Week 9 fixture against a struggling non-conference opponent.
Players were smoking cigars, hooting and hollering with huge cheers accompanying the presentation of game balls. The locker room felt reinvigorated. It was reinvigorated.
These Raiders weren’t just celebrating a win though, but what was clearly a massive weight lifted off their shoulders after owner Mark Davis gave maligned coach Josh McDaniels his marching orders last week.
McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler were fired effective immediately and replaced by Antonio Pierce and Champ Kelly respectively in interim roles for the remainder of 2023.
The decision was met with joy from Raiders players, notably star wide receiver Davante Adams, who has cut a disgruntled figure all season.
McDaniels led the Raiders to a disappointing 9-16 record in his time as head coach. His relationship with QB Derek Carr deteriorated so badly last season that it led to the holder of many Raiders passing records being benched and then released just 10 months after signing a three-year extension.
The way Carr’s tenure with Las Vegas ended left a sour taste in the mouths of many in the franchise and there were a few who just never bought into McDaniels’ heavy-handed approach to coaching.
It was reported that a contentious team meeting before the Raiders’ loss to Detroit where players weren’t shy to air their grievances. That would be the beginning of the end of McDaniels time in Vegas as just a few days later, he was gone.
McDaniels’ faith in QB Jimmy Garoppolo played a role in the firing as well. The two have a relationship dating back to their time in New England, but Garoppolo has been an interception machine this season, leading the league in that stat (9).
He has since been replaced by rookie Aidan O’Connell, who picked up his first NFL win against the Giants.
O’Connell was poised, in control and importantly, didn’t turn the ball over. He’ll likely start for the remainder of the season barring a catastrophe.
Pierce, who played nine years in the NFL as a linebacker, joined the Raiders in 2022 as a position coach at the same time McDaniels linked up with Las Vegas.
The decision from Davis to name Pierce was a surprise considering the latter has no head coaching outside of high school football.
What is clear though is his ability to connect with the men he is coaching, already a stark difference from McDaniels, who just never seemed to be on the same page as many of his players.
“It makes it a lot easier for us to connect with him because he understands the mind of a player,” Adams told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“And he’s done a really good job just making sure we understand that it’s not about him, it’s about this team.”
Running back Josh Jacobs added: “We wanted to do it for AP (Pierce)”.
“We’re going to play with everything we got for that man, just because of the position he’s in.”
With Pierce at the helm, there’s no doubt the Raiders will compete every play so with a current record of 4-5 and just 1.5 games off a playoff spot, why can’t Vegas make a postseason push?
The defense is one of the most improved units in the game, Jacobs and the offensive line are regaining their mojo after a sluggish start to the season and Adams is arguably the best WR in football on his day.
It would be a minor miracle, but with the team seemingly ready to run through brick walls for their new coach, playoffs aren’t outside the realm of possibility.
