Week 8 NFL takeaways: Eagles make a statement in road win
Ryan Tannehill tells reporters that even though the Titans win against the Bucs was an ugly one, as long as they are finding a way to win that’s all that matters. (0:39)
The Eagles pulled off a big win over the Bills, while the Titans, Colts and Chargers won close games. And the Saints’ offense soared in Drew Brees‘ return.
All that and more in Week 8’s biggest takeaways from NFL Nation.
Jump to a matchup:
TB-TEN | LAC-CHI | ARI-NO
DEN-IND | SEA-ATL | PHI-BUF
CIN-LAR | NYG-DET | NYJ-JAX
WSH-MIN
The Titans have found ways to win close games the past two weeks. Coach Mike Vrabel took Bruce Arians’ “No risk it, no biscuit” saying to another level when he called a fake field goal, despite the Titans having a four-point lead with 3:45 remaining in the game. It was a highly questionable decision, but Tennessee’s defense bailed him out. Tennessee is converting turnovers into points, too, scoring 14 off them against the Bucs. The marriage of an efficient offense (3 touchdown passes from Ryan Tannehill), bend-but-don’t-break defense and solid special teams play is the key to the Titans winning. If they can hit in all three areas and win the turnover margin, they’re a tough team to beat. — Turron Davenport
Next game: at Carolina (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
Ryan Tannehill tells reporters that even though the Titans win against the Bucs was an ugly one, as long as they are finding a way to win that’s all that matters.
The chatter about whether Jameis Winston is the Buccaneers’ future at quarterback won’t die down anytime soon after a two-interception performance against the Titans. Coach Bruce Arians was adamant that those picks weren’t on his QB but the result of a poor performance from his receivers. Even so, the Bucs nearly won anyway, but an early whistle by the officials cost them a late touchdown. On a fake field goal attempt by the Titans, linebacker Devin White stripped Titans punter Brett Kern of the ball, and safety Andrew Adams scooped it up and scored what would have been a touchdown had it not been for the officials calling the play dead. “The inadvertent whistle was a huge, huge play. You pick up a fumble and run it in for a touchdown to win the game, is not good,” Arians said. — Jenna Laine
Next game: at Seattle (4:05 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
Joey Bosa and the defense came up big in a game the Chargers needed. The Ohio State product was dominant, finishing with seven combined tackles, including four for a loss, and two sacks. With that effort, Bosa became the first Charger since Kevin Burnett in 2010 to post back-to-back games with two-plus sacks. “It’s very unselfish of him to play the run more than going after the passer,” Chargers coach Anthony Lynn said about Bosa. “It says a lot about him as a person and a teammate. He’s been all over the place. I can’t say enough good things about him.” After snapping a three-game losing streak, the Chargers will attempt to keep the momentum going at home next week against the Packers. — Eric D. Williams
Next game: vs. Green Bay (4:25 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
Coach Matt Nagy wants better consistency on offense. Nagy lauded rookie third-round pick David Montgomery, who rushed for a career-high 135 yards on 27 carries on Sunday, but also lamented the fact Chicago went 1-for-5 in the red zone in the Bears’ crushing loss to the Chargers. “That can’t happen,” Nagy said. The dilemma facing Nagy is that there are few options at his disposal to fix the offense. The Bears are almost entirely healthy on offense. Outside of benching quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, there are few moves left that Nagy can make. — Jeff Dickerson
Next game: at Philadelphia (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
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The Saints are only going to get better. They would have been thrilled to start this season 7-1, even before Drew Brees missed five games with a thumb injury and Alvin Kamara missed two with ankle and knee injuries. Now they should have all their key players healthy after the Week 9 bye. And they’re firing on all cylinders after the offense exploded in the second half of a victory over Arizona on Sunday. It will obviously be ‘Super Bowl or bust’ from here on out for this team again. — Mike Triplett
Next game: vs. Atlanta (1 p.m. ET Nov. 10)
The Cardinals are heading into a short week down running backs. Chase Edmonds hurt his hamstring Sunday, and coach Kliff Kingsbury said he’s “definitely concerned” about Edmonds’ availability for this coming week. If Edmonds can’t play, Arizona may be without their top two running backs, as it’s expected that David Johnson, who missed Sunday’s game with an ankle injury, won’t play Thursday, either. That means the Cardinals will be left playing Zach Zenner and Alfred Morris, both of whom signed Wednesday. — Josh Weinfuss
Next game: vs. San Francisco (8:20 p.m. ET Oct. 31)
The Colts haven’t slowed a bit without Andrew Luck. A complete effort the entire season has the Colts leading the AFC South division, and their next three games are against teams with a losing record. Adam Vinatieri made up for two missed kicks earlier in the game on Sunday with his 29th game-winning kick of his career with 22 seconds remaining against. The Colts are 14-3 in their last 17 regular-season games going back to last season. — Mike Wells
Next game: at Pittsburgh (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
The offense isn’t getting it done. After their sixth loss of the season, the third loss in the game’s final 22 seconds and the seventh game of failing to score more than 16 points, it’s clear the Broncos’ offense has done more than its part in producing dismal-looking 2-6 record. As running back Phillip Lindsay put it, “Our defense is doing its job.” Sunday was just the latest example of the Broncos not being aggressive in closing out games. First-year offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello will take the heat for this one, after the Broncos had multiple chances to put the game away in the final minutes but failed to do so. Broncos players said after the game they would prefer to go out swinging with the game on the line and would like to see a little more risk-taking. — Jeff Legwold
Next game: vs. Cleveland (4:25 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
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The Seahawks’ win over the Falcons was similar to their first half of the season in this sense: The end result was much more encouraging than the way it came about. They gave up 460 passing yards to backup Matt Schaub and let the 1-7 Falcons make a game of it after they has jumped out to a 24-0 halftime lead. Four of the Seahawks’ wins this year have come by a combined eight points. Only one of their wins was against a team that entered Week 8 with a winning record. We don’t know how good the Seahawks are, but they’ll take a 6-2 record, including 4-0 on the road, into Week 9. — Brady Henderson
Next game: vs. Tampa Bay (4:05 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
The first half was more of the same miscommunication issues and lack of tackling that has plagued the Falcons during their 1-7 start. Allowing Seahawks rookie receiver DK Metcalf to break wide open for two goal-line touchdown receptions was inexcusable and indicative of the kind of blatant mistakes the Falcons have made all season on defense, even with Dan Quinn as the defensive coordinator. Those two plays were part of the reason the Falcons trailed 24-0 at halftime. You can’t have those type of mental breakdowns eight games into the season when you’re preaching about fixing those problems every week. Now the Falcons have next week’s bye to think about all that’s gone wrong. — Vaughn McClure
Next game: at New Orleans (1 p.m. ET Nov. 10)
The Eagles responded to a tumultuous couple weeks in Philadelphia. Those included a pair of blowout losses, criticism from anonymous teammates and former cornerback Orlando Scandrick teeing off on his former club. Safety Malcolm Jenkins was asked if he was interested in seeing how the Eagles would respond. “I’m not interested to see,” he said after practice Friday. “I know we will respond.” The Eagles did in a win over the Bills that will calm some nerves both inside the organization and out. A loss in Buffalo, and the wheels could have come off this season. But the Eagles rose to the occasion, and now return home for a key three-game stretch against the Bears, Patriots and Seahawks. — Tim McManus
Next game: vs. Chicago (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
The Bills laid an egg in their best opportunity to beat a quality opponent since their Week 4 loss to the Patriots. More appalling than the loss itself was how the Eagles were able to win: Running the ball straight up the middle. Buffalo allowed 218 rushing yards Sunday, marking just the fifth time the Bills have allowed 200-plus rushing yards under Sean McDermott. It’s on the coach’s mind as his team prepares for Washington in Week 9. “Well, I’m concerned any time a team can run the ball like that on our football team,” McDermott said. — Marcel Louis-Jacques
Next game: vs. Washington (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
Nearly a year after Cooper Kupp underwent season-ending knee surgery to repair a torn ACL, the Rams’ third-year receiver has proven that he’s not only back but perhaps better than ever. Kupp caught seven passes for a career-high 220 yards and a touchdown at Wembley Stadium in London. The Rams improved to 5-3, winning back-to-back games on a 10-day road trip, and they now return to L.A. for a bye week. Next up is trip to the eastern time zone once again to play the Steelers in Week 10. — Lindsey Thiry
Next game: at Pittsburgh (4:25 p.m. ET Nov. 10)
Cincinnati’s defense has been problematic all season. On Sunday against the Rams, the Bengals couldn’t stop the Rams’ passing attack when the game was in question. Cincinnati allowed a season-high 372 passing yards, with most of that coming in the first three quarters. The Rams averaged 8.3 yards per play. While Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo is more worried about points than yards, the amount the Bengals conceded should be troubling. It’s worth noting that this unit struggled last season before Anarumo was hired as the defensive coordinator on Zac Taylor’s staff. Anarumo won’t be absolved of all blame, but the roster should undergo serious evaluations after another rough outing. — Ben Baby
Next game: vs. Baltimore (1 p.m. ET Nov. 10)
The Lions have something to build on. They found a pass-rush and did decent job against Saquon Barkley, and Matthew Stafford had his best game of the year. It wasn’t a complete performance, but was necessary after three consecutive losses. Coach Matt Patricia said he felt his players played “tough” and was happy with how the Lions handled in-game adjustments. Considering where Detroit has been, that’s progress. — Michael Rothstein
Next game: at Oakland (4:05 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
Daniel Jones made progress and showed signs that he’s a franchise QB. He went 28-of-41 passing for 322 yards with 4 touchdowns and no interceptions. The Giants lost, but Jones’ growth and development is what this season is all about for them. Tight end Evan Engram noted Jones has become more “vocal,” while receiver Golden Tate said the constant communication (texts and conversations on and off the field) is a noticeable positive. Coach Pat Shurmur said, “He battles throughout the game. All the things that we see all the time. He was in it all the way to the end to win it. He’s a gritty, tough young man that has a bright future.” The Giants (2-6) need that right now. — Jordan Raanan
Next game: vs. Dallas (8:15 p.m. ET Nov. 4)
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Gardner Minshew II is making a bid to remain the starter once Nick Foles returns. The possibility of Jacksonville being above .500 at their bye seemed remote at best the moment Foles suffered a broken collarbone in the season opener. What Minshew has done since — 1,976 yards, 13 touchdowns and 2 interceptions — has to at least make the coaching staff think about keeping him on the field, especially if he plays well next week in London. Foles returned to practice last week and has another week of practice before the earliest he’s eligible to return to the active roster. Since the Jaguars have a bye after the Houston game, Foles is on track to return for the Nov. 17 game at Indianapolis, though that timeline could get pushed back another week if the Jaguars feel Foles needs additional time. — Mike DiRocco
Next game: vs. Houston (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
The Jets’ offense is broken, and it’s affecting Sam Darnold‘s development. That’s a scary proposition for the franchise, which has pinned its future to him. The second-year quarterback has seven interceptions over the past two weeks. Darnold and coach Adam Gase face the winless Dolphins next week. If Gase can’t beat his old team, the “Fire Gase” crowd will be screaming. — Rich Cimini
Next game: at Miami (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
The Vikings clawed their way back from an up-and-down start. They squashed the frustrations on offense with a shift in playcalling, and Kirk Cousins‘ play has been the catalyst for success these past four weeks. If Minnesota can clean up penalties on both sides of the ball and drops, and keep the balance between utilizing the league’s leading rusher in Dalvin Cook and receivers Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen, this offense will be at its best in the second half. “We’re just a work in progress,” Diggs said. “Things are going good, but there was a point where things weren’t good, and the house was burning down and everybody was panicking, so at this point, we’re taking it one minute at a time, one day at a time.” — Courtney Cronin
Next game: at Kansas City (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)
Dwayne Haskins isn’t yet ready to lead the Redskins. Sure, they haven’t done well finishing drives even under Case Keenum, and Haskins has entered two games on the road with his team already trailing. But he also hasn’t helped himself with certain throws. He’s seeing things for the first time live — a few reps in practice won’t change that, but it’s a way to feel comfortable — and he needs time, something the Redskins have said since the draft. But they also do want to win, which means Keenum will return to the lineup when healthy. Washington plays the Jets after the bye week, and that could be when Haskins gets the nod for good. — John Keim
Next game: at Buffalo (1 p.m. ET Nov. 3)