by Gerry Leavens on October 16, 2017

It was a very eventful week in the NFL, as the 6th week of the season just ended Monday night. Dating back to the previous Thursday, the Carolina Panthers were defeated by the Philadelphia Eagles 28-23. Eagles QB Carson Wentz had a decent game, completing 16 of 30 passes for 222 yards and 3 touchdowns. As for the Carolina Panthers, starting QB Cam Newton went 28 for 52 for 239 yards and 1 touchdown. The game was extremely close the entire time but the Eagles were able to stop the Panthers late surge. The Eagles move onto 5-1 and remain in first place in the NFC East Division. The Panthers drop down to 4-2 but remain first in the NFC South Division.

      The Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, and Seattle Seahawks all had bye weeks this week. Starting with an AFC East matchup, the New England Patriots faced off with division opponent New York Jets. New England defeated New York in an away game 24-17. Patriots QB threw for 257 yards and 2 touchdowns and RB Dion Lewis rushed for 52 yards and 1 touchdown. Jets QB Josh McCown passed for 354 yards and 2 touchdowns and RB Matt Forte was held to 22 yards with 0 touchdowns. The Patriots remain first in the AFC East (4-2) while the Jets are now last in the standings (3-3).  In an AFC West matchup, the Oakland Raiders hosted the Los Angeles Chargers, and the Chargers defeated them 17-16. The Chargers are now third in their division (2-4) and the Raiders are still last in the division at 2-4. The Chicago Bears defeated the Baltimore Ravens 27-24 in overtime, remaining last in the NFC North. The Ravens are 2nd in the AFC North.

      The Houston Texans hosted the winless Cleveland Browns, who remain winless after being beaten by the Texans 33-17. The Browns remain last in the AFC North with a 0-6 record while the Houston Texans stand at 3-3 and third in the AFC South. The Minnesota Vikings hosted their bitter rival and division opponent Green Bay Packers, defeating them 23-10. The Packers’ struggles on offense are due in large part to starting QB Aaron Rodgers getting injured early in the game. Rodgers injured his collarbone and could miss the rest of the 2017 season. The Vikings are atop the NFC North at 4-2 while the Packers are second with the same record.

        The New Orleans Saints hosted the Detroit Lions in an absolute offensive shootout, defeating them 52-38. Saints QB Drew Brees completed 21 of 31 passes for 186 yards and 2 touchdowns. RB Mark Ingram was stellar, getting 25 carries for 114 yards and 2 touchdown. Lions QB Matthew Stafford completed 25 of 52 passes for 312 yards and 3 touchdowns. RB Ameer Abdullah had 14 carries for 54 yards. The Saints are second in the NFC South with a record of 3-2 while the Lions are third in the NFC North with a record of 3-3. The Dolphins are third in the AFC East with a record of 3-2 while the Falcons are now third in the NFC South. The Washington Redskins defeated the San Francisco 49ers at home 26-24 in a very close game. The Redskins remain second in the NFC East with a record of 3-2 while the 49ers are still winless and last in the NFC West.

      The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost to the Arizona Cardinals 38-33. The Bucs drop down to 2-3 and are last in the NFC South while the Cards move up to 3-3, third in the the NFC West.  The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars in an away game 27-17. The Rams move up to 4-2 and are first in the NFC West while the Jaguars drop down to 3-3 and are second in the AFC South. The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 19-13. The Steelers move up to 4-2 and are first in the AFC North while the Chiefs drop down to 5-2 but remain first in the AFC West. The New York Giants defeated the Broncos 23-10. The Giants, with their first win, are now 1-5 and remain last in the NFC East while the Broncos are now 3-2 and are second in the AFC West.  On Monday night, The Tennessee Titans defeated the Indianapolis Colts on their turf to move onto 3-3 while the Colts dropped down to 2-4. The Titans are now first in the AFC South while the Colts are last in the same division.

      Also, a special congratulations to Patriots QB Tom Brady for breaking yet another record. Brady passed Peyton Manning and Brett Favre for the most regular season wins by a quarterback in NFL history.