In the last 9 weeks, we have seen upsets, standout performances, many injuries to quarterbacks, and a whole lot of punts. What would we see this week?
Let’s review week 10 of the 2023 NFL season.
Browns Kick and win
The Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Ravens are both having strong seasons so far. In fact, every AFC North team is going well. Coming into this week’s games, every AFC North side is in a playoff spot. But, would the meeting of these two teams change that?
The Browns had the opening possession of the game, but could not hold on to it for long. On the second play of the game, Browns’ quarterback Deshawn Watson had his first throw of the game. His throw was intended for David Njoku, but it was intercepted by the Ravens defense, who would then return the ball into the endzone for a pick 6 touchdown to hand the Ravens the lead.
The Ravens would add to this lead on their first offensive drive of the game. Led by quarterback Lamarr Jackson, the Ravens were able to make it to the Browns’ 39-yard line. From there, Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell would find the endzone for a 39-yard rushing touchdown to double their lead.
The Browns were able to improve on offense during their next drive. In a drive that started from the Browns’ 33-yard line, Watson and company were able to drive down into the Ravens’ red zone, aided by a penalty against the Baltimore defense. However, this drive would stall at the 18-yard line, setting up Browns kicker Dustin Hopkins with a 36-yard field goal attempt. Hopkins would be successful with this, putting the Browns on the scoreboard.
However, the Ravens would immediately score again. Starting from their 25-yard line, Jackson and company very quickly made it down to the Browns’ 19-yard line, where their drive would stall. This set up long-time Ravens kicker Justin Tucker with a 37-yard field goal attempt that he would be successful with.
The field goal scoring would continue later in the half. Cleveland’s drive would stall inside the Ravens’ red zone at the 10-yard line. This set up Hopkins with a 28-yard field goal attempt, which he would successfully make. On the next drive, Baltimore would be forced to kick a field goal, this time from the Browns’ 37-yard line. Tucker’s kick would be blocked, handing possession back to Cleveland, who would successfully make another field goal from this drive.
The bad luck from Baltimore would continue near the end of the first half. From their 34-yard line, Jackson would attempt a long pass down the field. However, he would be intercepted by the Browns’ defense. This meant that at halftime, the Ravens had a 17-9 lead over the Browns.
The Ravens would have the opening possession of the second half and would take full advantage of this. Starting from their 22-yard line, the Jackson-led offense would be able to make their way down to the Browns’ 40-yard line. From there, Jackson would pair up with Odell Beckham Jr for a 40-yard touchdown pass to extend the Ravens lead.
In reply to this, the Browns would go on a slow drive down the field. The drive started on their 25-yard line, and Watson and company would be able to slowly march themselves down to the Ravens’ 3-yard line. From here, Kareem Hunt would find the endzone for a 3-yard rushing touchdown. The Browns then decided to attempt a two-point conversion, which they were successful with. This made it a one-possession game going into the final quarter.
The one-possession game would not last long. On the Ravens’ next drive, they would struggle to move the ball and punt. However, the Browns would muff the punt, and the Ravens would recover the ball deep inside the Browns’ red zone, giving Baltimore a very strong field position to score.
The drive would start on the Browns’ 12-yard line, and the Ravens would move forward and backwards due to a whole range of penalties and gains. They would be at the 10-yard line when a mistake would occur. Jackson’s deep pass into the endzone would be intercepted by the Browns defense and the ball would go out for a touchback. However, there was a penalty against the Cleveland defense on this play, removing the interception from the game, thus handing possession back to Baltimore. The Ravens would then be able to move down to the Browns’ one-yard line. From here, Gus Edwards would find the endzone for a one-yard rushing touchdown to make it a two-touchdown lead for the Ravens.
This lead would become smaller from the next drive of the game. Starting from their 20-yard line, Watson and company very quickly made it into the Ravens’ red zone and down to the 11-yard line. This was partly aided by a large penalty against the Baltimore defense. From the 10-yard line, Watson would find Elijah Moore for the touchdown pass to make it a one-possession game again.
This did not last long. On the second play of the Ravens’ drive, Jackson would throw an interception, which would be returned to the endzone for a pick 6 touchdown. However, Hopkins would miss the extra point attempt, meaning that the Ravens would have a one-point lead with time running out.
Embed from Getty ImagesIn reply to this, the next Ravens drive would end in a punt. So, with the game on the line, could the Browns complete the comeback?
The drive started at their 15-yard line, and the Browns very slowly made it down into field goal territory at the Ravens’ 22-yard line. This set up Browns’ kicker Dustin Hopkins with a 40-yard field goal attempt to win the game. Hopkin’s attempt would be successful, and the Cleveland Browns defeated the Baltimore Ravens 33-31.
With this victory, the Browns improve to 6-3 for the season, while the Ravens fall to a still respectable 7-3 record. Next week, both teams face their fellow AFC North sides, with the Browns facing the Pittsburgh Steelers, while the Ravens face the Cincinnati Bengals.
And on the subject of the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Texans Do It Again
For the last few years, the Cincinnati Bengals have been a strong team that took full advantage of a high draft pick to draft a franchise quarterback to lead them to success. This year, the Houston Texans are that team. After winning 3 games all season last year, the Texans are a completely different team with C.J. Stroud. These teams faced each other this weekend. Could the Texans’ strong form continue?
The Bengals would have the opening drive of the game and would be able to immediately find the endzone from it. On their first play of the game, they moved forward 15 yards due to a penalty against the Texans. This only fueled the Bengals offense. Led by quarterback Joe Burrow, Cincinnati was able to reach the Texans’ 32-yard line. From here, Burrow would find Trenton Irwin for the touchdown pass to take the early lead.
A few drives later, the Texans would strike back. Led by rookie quarterback C.J Stroud, who at this rate is the rookie of the year, the Texans offense would advance down to the Bengals’ 21-yard line. They would then move down to the 6-yard line due to a penalty against the Bengals’ defense. Then, from the 6-yard line, Stroud would find Tank Dell for the touchdown pass to tie the game.
Embed from Getty ImagesHouston would try again to find the endzone on their next drive and were able to reach the Bengals’ 31-yard line. But then, Stroud would be sacked and then fumbled the ball. This would be scooped up by the Bengals’ defense. Luckily for the Texans, Cincinnati was unable to do anything with this possession.
The Texans’ next drive would have some success. Their drive would stall at the Bengals’ 27-yard line, setting up the Texans backup kicker Matt Ammendola with a 45-yard field goal attempt. He would be successful with this and would mean that at halftime, the Texans would have a 10-7 lead over the Bengals.
Houston would open the second half in the same way that they ended the first half. In a drive that started from their 25-yard line, Stroud and company were able to make it down to the Bengals’ 3-yard line, before their drive stalled. This set up Ammendola with a 22-yard field goal which he would be successful with.
The Texans would add to their lead soon after. A defensive interference penalty against the Bengals’ defense would take the Texans down to the Cincinnati 6-yard line. From there, Devin Singletary would find the endzone for a 6-yard rushing touchdown to increase Houston’s lead.
The Bengals would then score something to close the gap. The Burrow lead offense would reach the Texans 32-yard line before stalling, setting up Bengals kicker Evan McPherson with a 50-yard field goal attempt, for which he would be successful.
After this, Cincinnati would really start to the close to gap on Houston. It took them 3 plays to do, but the drive would end with Burrow throwing a 64-yard touchdown pass to JaMarr Chase to make it a 3-point game.
However, the Texans would quickly strike back with a score of their own. Stroud would be able to move his offense down to the Bengals’ 8-yard line. From there, he would scramble for an 8-yard rushing touchdown to extend their lead over the Bengals to 10 points.
The luck would soon continue for the Texans. On the Bengals’ next drive, they would reach the Houston 35-yard line. But then, Burrow would make a mistake. His deep pass would be intercepted by the Texans’ defense. On his next drive, Burrow would be somewhat more successful, reaching the Texans’ 14-yard line this time. But, then the same thing happened. Burrow’s deep pass was intercepted by the Texans.
However, the interceptions did not end there. From their 28-yard line, the Texans would then be intercepted. Stroud would attempt a pass to Dell, but it would find the hands of the Bengals instead, who would return the ball to the 4-yard line. Then, unsurprisingly, Joe Mixon would find the endzone for the Bengals to make it a 3-point game with 3 minutes left.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe 3-point game would become a tied game soon after. The Bengals drive would stall at the Texans’ 13-yard line, setting up McPherson with a 31-yard field goal attempt. He would be successful with this, and with 1 minute left to play, the scores would be level. Could the Texans score the winning field goal?
The final Texans drive of the game started at their 25-yard line. Stroud and company were able to quickly advance down the field and reach the Bengals’ 20-yard line. This set up Amendola with a game-winning 38-yard field goal try. He would be able to make the kick, meaning that the Houston Texans had defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 30-27
This victory continues the strong season that the Texans are having. While I still do not think that they are Super Bowl contenders, they could definitely be seen as a potential dark horse to win it all. The victory improves the Texans to 5-4 for the season, while the Bengals fall to the same record. Next week, Cincinnati faces the Baltimore Ravens, while the Texans face the Arizona Cardinals.
High Scoring in Los Angeles
Throughout this season, if you have wanted to see high-scoring football, you need to watch the Detroit Lions. They are 6-2 coming into this week, and are on track to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Whether they will get that illustrious playoff win is something that needs to be spoken about closer to the time. This week, the Lions faced the Los Angeles Chargers, who may be a 4-4 side, but 3 of those losses have been within 3 points. Would this happen again?
The Chargers had the opening possession of the game but were unable to move the ball far and had to quickly punt to the Lions. In reply to this, the Lions were able to drive down the field. Led by quarterback Jared Goff, the Detroit offense was able to drive down into the Chargers’ red zone and then down to the 10-yard line. From there, Goff would throw to Jameson Williams for the touchdown pass. But, this would not stand. There was a penalty against the Lions for a low block on the play, forcing the Lions to move back 15 yards. This would cost them and the Lions would struggle to return to where they were, and were soon forced into a field goal situation. Lions kicker Riley Pattinson would make the 33-yard field goal to take the early lead.
The Chargers would reply with a field goal of their own on their next drive. Led by quarterback Justin Herbert, the Chargers were able to make their way down to the Lions” 30-yard line before their drive stalled. This set up Cameron Dicker, the Chargers kicker with a 48-yard field goal attempt, which he would make to level to scores.
The scoring would continue soon after. On a previous drive, the Lions were denied a touchdown due to a penalty against their offense. This time, Detroit would be successful, as the Goff-led offense was able to make it down to the Chargers’ one-yard line. From there, Jahmyr Gibbs would score the touchdown to retake the lead.
Embed from Getty ImagesThings would get even better for the Lions on the next drive. Deep into the Chargers’ territory, Herbert would throw an interception, handing the Lions possession with a good field position. Fortunately for Los Angeles, the Lions were unable to convert this into a touchdown, even after making it down to the one-yard line.
The Lions would though extend their lead on their next drive. Like their previous two, the Detroit offense would make their way down to the Chargers’ one-yard line. From here, Gibbs would find the endzone again. In reply to this, the Chargers would also find the endzone. Herbert and company would move his offense down to the Lions’ 29-yard line and then would pair up with Keenan Allen for the 29-yard touchdown pass.
The scoring would not end there. On the very next play of the game, Lions running back David Montgomery would find the endzone from the other end of the field to record a 75-yard rushing touchdown to extend the Lions lead. This would be cut a drive later, as Los Angeles would reach the Lions’ 2-yard line, and then Austin Ekeler would find the endzone for another rushing touchdown.
After all of this scoring, we reached halftime. As the teams returned to the locker rooms, the Lions would have a 24-17 lead over the Chargers.
The Lions would have the opening drive of the second half, and would not be able to do anything with it. This would lead to the only punt of the second half. The rest of the half would be an utter score fest.
The Chargers would have the next drive and would start from their 8-yard line. Herbert would then lead his offense down the field to the Lions’ 18-yard line. From here, he found Jalen Guyton for the touchdown pass to tie the game early in the third quarter.
But this tie did not last long. On their next drive, the Lions would quickly advance down the field and reach the Los Angeles 20-yard line. Then, on the edge of the red zone, Goff would find Amon-Ra St Brown for the touchdown pass to retake the lead.
This lead would last for 8 minutes or one drive. The Chargers were in possession and slowly made their way across the field. They were aided by many consecutive penalties against the Lions’ defense. The Chargers would eventually reach the one-yard line. On 3rd down from here, Los Angeles would fail to gain anything. This led to a fourth down conversion attempt, which would fail. However, there was a penalty against the Lions’ defense on the play. This gave the Chargers a fresh set of down. In other words, 3 more attempts to find one yard. They would fail on all of these, forcing another 4th down conversion attempt. However, it would be 6th time lucky for Los Angeles on this play, as Herbert found Quentin Johnston for the touchdown to again tie the game.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut, as you can guess with this game, the tie did not last for long. On the Lions’ next drive, Goff and company would advance down to the Chargers” 25-yard line. From there, Goff would find Brock Wright for the touchdown pass. In reply to this, the Chargers would be able to find the Lions’ 38-yard line. In contrast to their previous attempt to score, the Chargers only needed one attempt. Herbert would find Allen again for a 38-yard touchdown pass to tie the game again. With time running out, would we see another walk-off field goal?
Detroit would have the ball for one final time and would be able to advance down into the Chargers’territory and to the 22-yard line. This set up Riley Patterson for a game-winning 41-yard field goal attempt. He would be successful with this, and the Detroit Lions would defeat the Los Angeles Chargers 41-38 with another walk-off field goal.
This game was back and forth. It is the kind of high-scoring affair that you do not see much in the NFL these days. The victory improves the Lions record to 7-2 for the season, while the defeat means the Chargers fall to 4-5. But, they are in no way playing like a 4 win team. Next week, the Lions will face the Chicago Bears, while the Chargers travel to Wisconsin to face the Green Bay Packers.
The Bills Lose Their Own Game
The Buffalo Bills have had a mixed season so far. Their dominance in the AFC East is at risk by a strong Miami Dolphins side. This week, the Bills faced the Denver Broncos, who infamously conceded 70 points to the Dolphins earlier in the season.
The Bills had the opening possession of the game, but would immediately lose it. On the first play of the game, Bills quarterback Josh Allen would pass to wide receiver Cook. However, Cook would fumble the ball, which would then be recovered by the Broncos defense at the Bills’ 28-yard line. This mistake would prove costly for Buffalo, as while the Broncos were unable to move the ball far, this set up a 40-yard field goal attempt for kicker Will Lutz. He would be successful with this attempt, giving Denver the early lead.
For the last few years, while the Bills offense has been strong under Josh Allen, he is been prone to make numerous mistakes in a game, some of which have cost them the game. We have already seen it once in this game, and we will see it again. On this drive, the Bills were able to make their way down to the Broncos’ 28-yard line and challenge for the endzone. However, Allen would make another mistake here, as his deep pass intended for Gabe Davis would be intercepted by the Broncos defense. Fortunately for Buffalo, Denver did not score any points from this mistake.
However, they were able to score points on a drive later on in the half. The Broncos offense, led by quarterback Russell Wilson, advanced his offense down to the Bills’ 7-yard line. From there, Wilson would pass to Courtland Sutton for the 7-yard touchdown pass to add to their lead.
Embed from Getty ImagesThen, we finally got to see the Bills offense shine. The Allen-led offense was able to make it down to just outside the Broncos’ red zone at the 22-yard line. From there, Allen would find Dalton Kincade for the 22-yard touchdown pass. Buffalo would then attempt a two-point conversion, which they would be successful with. This reduces the Broncos lead to one point.
This lead would be widened soon after. The Broncos drive would stall at the Bills’ 30-yard line, setting up a 49-yard field goal attempt for Lutz, which we would be successful with. In reply to this, Allen would throw another interception. This would again be costly for Buffalo, as it led to another field goal just before halftime. This meant that the Broncos would return to the locker rooms with a 15-8 lead over the Bills.
The Broncos would have the opening drive of the second half but would be unable to do anything with the ball on their first drive. However, their second drive of the half would be more important in relation to the game.
The Denver offense was at the Bills’ 43-yard line. Wilson would pass to Sutton, but he would fumble the ball, which would be scooped up by the Bills defense. In reply to this, Allen and company were able to make it down to the Broncos’ 3-yard line. From there, Latavius Murray would find the endzone for the rushing touchdown to tie the game.
Buffalo would try again on their next drive to break the deadlock. However, the problems that have plagued the Bills returned. In simple terms, the ball was fumbled and recovered by the Broncos. Luckily for the Bills, Denver was unable to capitalize on this.
A few drives later the Broncos were able to score. In a drive that started on their 46-yard line, the Wilson-led offense was able to drive down the field to reach the Bills’ 3-yard line. From there, Wilson would find Javonte Williams for the touchdown to give Denver the lead.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut this lead would not last long. The Bills were able to advance down the field to reach the Broncos” 6-yard line. They would be lucky to do this, however, as unsurprisingly, the Bills fumbled the ball but were able to recover the ball. Then, from the 6-yard line, Josh Allen would scramble for the rushing touchdown to tie the game again. With time running out, would we see another walk-off field goal?
The Broncos had the final drive of the game. Wilson and company were able to reach the Bills’ 43-yard line. However, they would advance much further than this on one play, due to a costly defensive interference penalty against the Bills. This allowed the Broncos to reach the Bills’ 23-yard line, setting up Lutz with a game-winning 43-yard field goal attempt. Lutz would miss this, but there was another penalty against the Bills on this play, getting Lutz another chance of victory. On his second attempt, he would be successful.
The Denver Broncos had defeated the Buffalo Bills 24-22.
With this victory, the Broncos improved to 4-5 for the season. The defeat was costly for the Bills. They fell to .500 on the season, and a day after the game, the Bills fired their offensive coordinator. Next week, the Broncos face the Minnesota Vikings, while the Bills face the New York Jets.
What happened in the other games?
The Thursday night games have returned to being between two poor teams. This week the 1 win Carolina Panthers faced the 2 win Chicago Bears. In a game of mostly field goals, D’Onta Foreman would score the winning touchdown as the Bears recorded a 16-13 victory.
In the last international game of the year, the Indianapolis Colts faced the New England Patriots in Frankfurt. Last week, we had an amazing game. This week’s game was awful. Patriots quarterback Mac Jones was benched before the last drive of the game, only for Bailey Zappe to throw an interception. The Colts would win the game 10-6
The Minnesota Vikings would have an extremely strong 2nd quarter to seal their victory over the New Orleans Saints. Joshua Dobbs would shine again, as the Vikings won 27-19
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Pittsburgh Steelers left it late to defeat the Green Bay Packers. A last-minute interception from quarterback Jordan Love ended any of the Packers’ hope for victory, and the Steelers would win 23-19
Could Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis do it again? No, he couldn’t. Levis would struggle, while Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield would thrive as the Buccaneers would win 20-6
In what was described by me as the game of the week, the San Francisco 49ers faced the Jacksonville Jaguars. In reality, this game was utterly disappointing. San Francisco demolished the Jaguars to record a 34-3 victory
The Atlanta Falcons faced the Arizona Cardinals, who welcomed back Kyler Murray. Murray would be able to make a difference in this game, giving the Cardinals a narrow 25-23 victory over the Falcons
Embed from Getty ImagesWe would see another walk-off field goal in the game between the Washington Commanders and the Seattle Seahawks. Seahawks kicker Jason Myers would kick a 43-yard field goal to give them a 29-26 victory over the Commanders
The Sunday Night Football game this week was a game that should have been moved, but it wasn’t in time. So the whole country had to see the Las Vegas Raiders defeat the New York Jets 16-12
And finally, our weekly installment of “How bad did the Giants ruin my weekend?” This week, the New York Giants faced the Dallas Cowboys. Due to Daniel Jones and Tyrod Taylor being injured, backup quarterback Tommy DeVito started his first-ever game. We learned this week that DeVito still lives with his parents and has his bed made for him. So, with all that free time to focus on football, would we see an upset? No. The Cowboys would demolish the Giants. Dak Prescott would score 5 touchdowns, and the Cowboys would win 49-17.
That was week 10 in the NFL. Next week, without a doubt the standout game comes on Monday night, as the Kansas City Chiefs meet the Philadelphia Eagles in a rematch of the previous Super Bowl. Let’s hope this game lives up to expectations.
