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NFL Quick Hits: Week 7 In Review

Andrew McKagan |
October 22, 2013 | 2:28 p.m. PDT

Staff Writer

Leon Hall's season-ending achilles injury means the loss of an elite player for the Bengals. (Wikimedia Commons)
Leon Hall's season-ending achilles injury means the loss of an elite player for the Bengals. (Wikimedia Commons)

The Denver Broncos are no longer undefeated, the Kansas City Chiefs have the NFL's best record, the Patriots continue to stumble and the New York Giants are no longer winless. Week 7 was an unpredictable one on the NFL, so check out what you might have missed. 

Thursday Night

Seahawks 34, Cardinals 22

The Seahawks defensive line is so deep with talent, as eight different Seahawks defenders combined to have seven sacks on Carson Palmer. Defensive tackle Clinton McDonald, who was unemployed to start the season and previously had no career sacks to his name, now has 3.5 on the season. What a great story.

In the wise words of Tom Gower, an analyst for FootballOutsiders.com: “Any team that starts Bradley Sowell at left tackle is essentially kidding.” But perhaps even more alarming than the poor offensive line play is the consistent erratic performances from Palmer, who always seems to bail out his stat line with some serious garbage-time production.

Sunday

Falcons 31, Buccaneers 23

Tony Gonzalez didn’t do much, but Atlanta still but up 31 points. It’s going to be hard for the Falcons to go on a run with such an inconsistent pass rush, though.

Really, Bucs? You have Darrelle Revis and you let Harry Douglas go off? Also, Vincent Jackson is a very good wide receiver, but 22 targets from Mike Glennon seems a bit extreme. The Bucs are talented, yet they are 0-7. Greg Schiano’s NFL coaching career could very well be over after this season, and maybe sooner.

Panthers 30, Rams 15

Speaking of NFC South coaches, Ron Rivera might keep his job just yet.

With Sam Bradford done with a torn ACL, this season looks like a wash for the Rams. But with such a high cap number for next year and no guaranteed money left on his contract, has Bradford played his last snap with St. Louis?

Bengals 27, Lions 24

Don't look know, but Philip Rivers and the Chargers look good. (Jeffrey Beall/Flickr)
Don't look know, but Philip Rivers and the Chargers look good. (Jeffrey Beall/Flickr)
Leon Hall is a really, really good player. The front four will now have added pressure on them to put bother the passer now that their secondary is down its best player.

That catch by Calvin Johnson over triple coverage was great, but we’ve seen it from him before. Yawn.

Chargers 24, Jaguars 6

I’m telling you, the Chargers are a legitimate playoff contender. Believe it or not, with Philip Rivers and King Dunlap playing the way they’re playing, the Chargers match up well with their division-rival Chiefs.

Justin Blackmon, Cecil Shorts III and Ace Sanders make up a Jaguars receiving corps that is probably at least Top 10 in the league. Throw in a red zone target like Marcedes Lewis and a running back like Maurice Jones-Drew, and whoever Jacksonville’s quarterback is has no excuse to perform badly.

Bills 23, Dolphins 21

Mario Williams is good at football. Credit Buffalo defensive coordinator Mike Pettine for using zone blitz calls to create the illusion of pressure and force Ryan Tannehill into throwing multiple interceptions.

That Brandon Gibson touchdown leap was one of the coolest touchdowns I have ever witnessed. And I’ve seen a lot of touchdowns.

Jets 30, Patriots 27

In seven career starts, Geno Smith had three game-winning drives. (slgckgc/Wikimedia Commons)
In seven career starts, Geno Smith had three game-winning drives. (slgckgc/Wikimedia Commons)
Geno Smith now has three fourth quarter comebacks (against the Bucs, Falcons and now Patriots) to his name in his first seven starts. He has shown clearly the types of attributes that, if displayed consistently, will make GM John Idzik look like a genius for years to come.

It's a shame that the penalty called on Patriots defensive tackle Chris Jones that enabled New York to kick that last-second field goal overshadowed the rest of his performance. Other than that call, Jones played a fantastic game (10 tackles, 2 sacks).

Cowboys 17, Eagles 3

Cowboys defensive tackle Jason Hatcher is a beast. He is an elite 4-3 defensive linemen in every facet of his play.

The major critique on college-style offenses like Chip Kelly’s is that it leaves the quarterback too susceptible to injury. And now after the first two quarterbacks have gone down to injury in the first half of this season, this flaw is more evident than ever.

Redskins 45, Bears 41

Jordan Reed is the real deal— he looks like a wide receiver in his route running yet possesses the size of a tight end. The Redskins should get him on the field as much as possible.

The Bears’ defense isn’t what it used to be, and that’s being kind. They can’t rush the passer nor can they defend the run. Lance Briggs sitting out due to injury for the next four weeks won’t help that much.

49ers 31, Titans 17

The 49ers dominated this game doing what they do best— running the ball. Colin Kaepernick hasn’t had a good game through the air since Week 1, but as long as they’re winning, it doesn’t matter.

Jake Locker hasn’t had a clunker of a game yet this year and continues to put up solid numbers. That’s a great sign for the Titans.

Packers 31, Browns 13

Not enough has been made of all the injuries at receiver Aaron Rodgers has had to deal with. Between losing Greg Jennings in free agency, and Randall Cobb, James Jones and Jermichael Finley all to injury, nobody has done more with less than Rodgers.

Brandon Weeden’s poor play makes it hard to notice anything else of significance about the Browns.

Chiefs 17, Texans 16

The Chiefs' pass rush is the best in the league right now. Their secondary, however, got a bit exposed by Case Keenum. Watch for teams to try more deep shots on Kansas City.

Keenum looked like the best quarterback on Houston’s roster right now. He should start until that fact is proven wrong.

Steelers 19, Ravens 16

Lawrence Timmons is ridiculously athletic, and isn’t often mentioned with the linebacker greats in the game. He should be.

Did you know that Torrey Smith now leads the league in receiving yards? He’s been quietly exceptional this year.

Sunday Night

Colts 39, Broncos 33

The Colts’ secondary is playing like one of the best in the league right now. They manned up with Denver’s elite receiving corps all night and stayed with them.

Self-inflicted mistakes are what killed the Broncos in this one. Ball security on both offense and special teams along with a ton of penalties on the offensive line made it remarkable that they even finished the game within one possession of winning.

Monday Night

Giants 23, Vikings 7

Well, Eli Manning didn’t turn the ball over for the first time this season. And the Giants’ run defense played great against a team who couldn’t throw worth a lick… so that’s something, right?

The Vikings are a disaster. Josh Freeman was horrendously inaccurate with the football. This might be a basketball-type move, but they might be better off trading both Adrian Peterson and Jared Allen while they still can.

Reach Staff Writer Andrew McKagan here or follow him here



 

Buzz

Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

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