Week 8 was a weekend of action-packed football, and what a weird one it was. The weirdness was summed up by the Broncos pulling off a huge upset against the Chiefs, snapping a 16-game losing streak to their divisional rivals. I would consider the Broncos as honorary winners for the week, but really it has just been Russell Wilson. With that being said, these are my winners and losers from Week 8!
Winner – Will Levis and the Tennessee Titans
For the first time in a long time I felt excitement while watching a Titans game. And on Sunday, second round pick Will Levis may have won over the fanbase. This was an unpopular pick from the start – a Kentucky quarterback playing in Tennessee? Just that alone was enough to turn fans away from Levis almost instantly. But after his performance against the Atlanta Falcons, plenty of doubters may be having second thoughts.
One thing that impressed me was his deep ball, connecting twice with receivers 20+ yards down field for touchdowns. The Titans have been your good old fashioned smashmouth offense for years now – that was essentially their whole brand. But in Sunday’s game it was all about the pass game, and it was electric.
Levis connected with DeAndre Hopkins twice for not one, not two, but THREE touchdowns. In the second quarter the two connected for their second touchdown on the game. Levis caught Falcons linebacker Nate Landman on DeAndre Hopkins on a crossing route and the rest is history. It was nice to see the rookie pick up on the clear mismatch and make the most out of it. Hopkins turned back the clock with an impressive four catch performance for 128 yards. But my one question after this game is whether we have seen the last of Tannehill?
Loser – Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers currently sit 2-5 after Sunday’s loss to division rival Minnesota. Plenty of blame is going Jordan Love’s way, and whilst he has had problems with turnovers, I don’t think he’s the only issue. It’s clear that there are more problems plaguing this this roster than just quarterback play.
After Sunday’s game, Matt LaFleur estimated that the Packers receivers dropped six passes. Entering this game, the Packers receiving corps already had nine drops to their name per PFF. This can be extremely frustrating for an offense and these drops continue to stack up in Green Bay.
This defense is not free from criticism either. This defense entered the year as one that could keep this Packers team competitive, but they struggled to get the Vikings offense off the field. Note that this is a Minnesota team that were still without the league’s best receiver Justin Jefferson. The Vikings converted 10 of 18 third downs on Sunday, with one of those coming off a 15-yard defensive penalty. This roster has proven to be undisciplined and are constantly shooting themselves in the foot. The Green Bay Packers are falling behind in the NFC and their 2023 season could be over sooner than anybody expected.
Winner – The Cincinnati Bengals are Back
Much like last season, the Cincinnati Bengals got off to a slow start to 2023. This sent many fans into a frenzy with plenty of speculation of them being potential sellers at the deadline. Some even tossed around the idea of shutting down quarterback Joe Burrow for the year and cutting their losses. But don’t look now, the Bengals have now rattled off three straight and are getting hot. I could go on about all the things that were wrong with this team to start the year, but I would much rather talk about what has gone right!
This was the Bengals’ most complete game of the season, and it came at just the right time against the 49ers. Joe Burrow played excellent, completing 28 of 32 passes for 283 yards and three touchdowns. This opened up the run game as well, which had struggled in weeks prior. Joe Mixon went on to average 5.4 yards per carry and even found the end zone for the second time this season. And while the offense was great, one may argue that the defense was slightly better.
The Cincinnati defense has shown up big time the last few weeks in the redzone. On Sunday that turned out to be the turning point of this game. On first and goal from the eight, Brock Purdy rolled out to his right after the fake hand off to Elijah Mitchell. The ball would go on to be tipped and intercepted by Bengals linebacker Germaine Pratt. At the time of this costly turnover it was just 17-10 late into the third quarter. Winning the turnover battle was just another one of the many reasons that Cincinnati won this game.
Loser – New York Giants
This feels a bit like a cheap shot as the New York Giants are currently without their starting quarterback Daniel Jones. But at the end of the day, this late-game collapse cannot go without being mentioned. The Giants defense allowed Zach Jones to march downfield in 24 seconds after a failed Graham Gano field goal.
You might ask why they trotted out the injured kicker, even with the offensive struggles. It was 4th and 1, and you would win the game if you pick up just one yard. You have Saquon Barkley, the same running back you had practically been leaning on all game. At the time of this play, the New York Jets had a 0.01% chance to win this game.
But it wasn’t just this one series of events that led to me having the Giants in my losers column. It was the fact that this offense finished with a net total of -9 passing yards. Even with the injuries to their quarterback position, it is an impressively bad stat. Overall this game was just weird as their combined punts (24) was higher than the total score (23). If you are an avid special teams enjoyer then this was your Super Bowl.
Winner – The Carolina Panthers
Bryce Young played an incredible game on Sunday against a very competitive Texans team. If the first year quarterback proved anything, it is that he has got ice in his veins. Trailing late in the game, the No. 1 overall pick orchestrated a 15-play, 86-yard drive that led to a game-winning field goal. This is the first win for the young Panthers quarterback, and it came against his long-time friend C.J. Stroud.
Young’s early career has been heavily criticized by fans and media alike, and usually it’s in comparison to Stroud. And that makes sense – Young was the No. 1 overall pick, and Stroud was No. 2. But on Sunday, it was Young who got the best of Stroud and essentially out-duelled him. The rookie went 22 of 31 (71%) with 235 yards and a touchdown. This while also not turning the ball over set the Panthers up for their first win of the season.