| |
|
| Monday, October 21, 2024 |
| Welcome to the Monday edition of the Pick Six newsletter! |
| After nearly 14 straight hours of football on Sunday, I hope everyone saved some energy for tonight, because it's going to be a late one. Not only do we have another Monday doubleheader coming at us, but this one is slightly different than what we've seen before. Instead of having the games kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET and 8:15 p.m. ET, there will be a minor change with the games kicking off at 8:15 p.m. ET and 9 p.m. ET tonight. The NFL is putting Chargers at Cardinals in the late window, which sounds like the perfect game to fall asleep to. |
| Before we can get to the Monday games, though, we have to rehash all the action that happened yesterday. We've got winners and losers from Week 7, plus grades for every game. |
| As always, here's your daily reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here. Let's get to the rundown. |
| 1. NFL Week 7 grades: 49ers get low mark in loss to Chiefs |
| |
| Every Monday, we hand out grades, so that's exactly what we're going to do right now. Here's a look at the grades from two notable games that were played Sunday: |
| Packers 24-22 over Texans (Click here for full recap) |
| Texans takeaway: The Texans offense might be missing Nico Collins. With their star receiver out, C.J. Stroud threw for just 86 yards while completing less than 50% of his passes. The only reason this game was close is because of Joe Mixon, who carried the offense with 115 yards and two touchdowns, and the fact that the Texans forced three turnovers. Stroud got sacked four times and he was under pressure for a good chunk of the game. With Collins out for at least two more games due to a hamstring injury, the Texans offense is going to have to figure how to make things work without him. Grade: C Packers takeaway: The Packers did their best to give this game away, but Jordan Love decided to take it back. Although he threw two interceptions, Love made up for it by engineering a drive in the final minute that set up Brandon McManus' game-winning field goal. Love showed off his accuracy with pinpoint touchdowns to both Tucker Kraft and Dontayvion Wicks. The Packers defense also deserves a lot of credit for the win. Eric Wilson, who had two sacks, led a pass rush that sacked C.J. Stroud four times. Of course, the biggest star might have been McManus: The new kicker showed that he's reliable in the clutch, and that's exactly what this team needs if they're going to be a Super Bowl contender down the stretch. Grade: B |
| Chiefs 28-18 over 49ers (Click here for full recap) |
| Chiefs takeaway: When Patrick Mahomes has a bad game, that usually means trouble for the Chiefs, but that wasn't the case against the 49ers. Despite Mahomes' struggles, the Chiefs still won thanks to a strong rushing attack and an even stronger defense. Kareem Hunt continues to be a pleasant surprise for the Chiefs: In just his third game of the season, he rushed for 78 yards and a TD. The defense did a good job of making Brock Purdy look mortal with Justin Reid, Christian Roland-Wallace and Jaden Hicks all coming away with an interception. The Chiefs just beat a top NFC team by double digits in a game where Mahomes didn't play well, which tells you just how good this team is. They're now the final undefeated team remaining and they seem like a legit threat to become the NFL's first team ever to win three championships in a row. Grade: B49ers takeaway: If the 49ers have shown one weakness under Kyle Shanahan, it's playing from behind and they didn't do anything to shake that reputation in this game. Brock Purdy fell apart in the second half, throwing two of his three interceptions over the game's final two quarters. It didn't help that Purdy had almost no run support and he also didn't have Deebo Samuel (illness) and Brandon Aiyuk (knee), who left the game. The defense held its own against Patrick Mahomes, but the 49ers did have some serious trouble stopping the run, a problem that allowed Kansas City to control the clock. When the 49ers are fully healthy, they're one of the best teams in the NFL, but when they're not, they're very beatable, which is why they're now 3-4 heading into Week 8. Grade: C- |
| As for the other 22 grades that I handed out in Week 7, you can check those out by clicking here. |
| |
| 2. NFL Week 7 winners and losers: Saquon Barkley gets revenge on Giants |
| You can't have a week of NFL action without having winners and losers, so we have some winners and losers. |
| Cody Benjamin came up with this week's list and we're going to check out his winners below. |
| WINNERS |
| Saquon Barkley (Eagles beat Giants, 28-3). "We don't need to relitigate the New York Giants failing to retain the star running back in free agency. We do need to acknowledge that Barkley got the last laugh on Sunday, exploding for 176 yards and a score to help power the Philadelphia Eagles' 28-3 blowout. Barkley's old squad had no answers for his burst."Bills offense (Bills beat Titans, 34-10). "Days after acquiring Amari Cooper via trade, Buffalo's attack looked the part against a once-stingy Tennessee Titans defense, with Cooper scoring on his first catch in new threads and rookie Keon Coleman breaking out with 125 yards on just four receptions. Josh Allen's group is poised to make a real run."Brandon McManus (Packers beat Texans, 24-22). "Cycling through kickers this year, the Packers may have finally found one on Sunday. Days after signing with the team, McManus hit a 45-yard walk-off field goal to lift Green Bay over the Texans, elevating the Packers to 5-2 on the year. The former Broncos veteran is likely to stay put for a while." |
| If you want to see Cody's list of losers, be sure to click here. |
| 3. 13 crazy facts from Week 7: Chiefs are the last undefeated team, but that's not always a good thing |
| |
| Every Sunday night, I get an email from our research department here at CBS Sports, and every Sunday, that email always includes some amazingly wild facts about the games that were just played. |
| With that in mind, here are 13 crazy facts about Week 7: |
| Being the final undefeated team isn't all it's cracked up to be. The Chiefs are the only remaining undefeated team in the NFL, which hasn't necessarily been a good thing over the past 18 years. Over the past 15 years, the final unbeaten team has gone on to win the Super Bowl exactly ZERO times. As a matter of fact, the last time the final unbeaten team went on to win the Super Bowl came in 2006 when Peyton Manning's Colts won it all.Mahomes just pulled a Peyton Manning. Patrick Mahomes has thrown more interceptions (8) than touchdowns (6) this year and his team has started 6-0, which are two things that don't usually go together. The last QB to start a season at least 6-0 while throwing more interceptions than touchdowns was Peyton Manning, who did it in 2015 with the Broncos. The good news for Mahomes is that Manning ended up winning the Super Bowl, so don't count out the Chiefs (Not that anyone is counting out the Chiefs). Jared Goff joins elite company. The Lions QB became just the fourth quarterback in NFL history with a QB rating of 140 or more in three straight games. The previous three quarterbacks to pull that off -- Aaron Rodgers (2011), Kurt Warner (1999) and Roger Staubach (1971) -- either won MVP or the Super Bowl (or both). Goff's average passer rating of 153.1 over the past three games is the highest by any QB since 1970.Goff's accuracy is off the charts. The Lions QB went 12 of 12 in the first half, marking the third time in his career that he's started a half 12 for 12 or better. Since 1991, there have been only 16 other instances of a QB going 12 of 12 or better in a first half, with Peyton Manning being the only other QB to do it more than once, and he only did it twice (via the Associated Press). Saquon gets revenge on the Giants. With 176 yards against the Giants, Saquon Barkley rushed for the second-highest total ever for a player going up against his former team. Barkley trails only Cedric Benson, who had 189 yards against the Bears in 2009.Hurts so good. Jalen Hurts had two rushing touchdowns against the Giants and now has 45 for his career, which moves him past Steve Young for the most rushing scores by a QB in NFL history. Hurts now has the third most, trailing only Cam Newton (75) and Josh Allen (56). Hurts also now has 13 games with multiple rushing touchdowns, extending his own NFL record for quarterbacks.Rough start for Eagles. The Eagles failed to score in the first quarter, marking the sixth straight game that's happened. This marks the first time since 2008 that an NFL team didn't score a single point in the first quarter through their first six games (The 0-16 Lions pulled it off then). This also marks the first time since 1934 that the Eagles have started the season with six straight games without a first-quarter point.Jordan Love pulls off rare feat. The Packers QB has thrown 15 touchdowns with eight interceptions in just five starts, making him the first QB since 1943 (Sammy Baugh) to throw at least 15 touchdowns and eight picks in five games. Maye Day for New England. Drake Maye threw two TD passes against the Jaguars and now has five through two starts, which is tied for the third most since the AFL-NFL merger for a QB in his first two starts. Only Marcus Mariota (2015) and Dan Marino (1983) had more and they both had six. Maye and Marino are also the only two quarterbacks in NFL history to throw for a total of 500 yards or more with five touchdowns or more in their first two starts combined. Dolphins offense is painful to watch. The Dolphins have scored exactly 70 points through seven weeks, which we're only pointing out because they scored 70 in a SINGLE GAME last season. Tim Boyle might be cursed. The Dolphins QB has thrown at least one pass in 10 games over the course of his NFL career and his team has gone 0-10 in those games. The 10th loss came on Sunday when he was forced to enter the game after Tyler Huntley went down for Miami. Boyle is one of just two quarterbacks in NFL history to lose every game he's thrown a pass in, joining Zach Mettenberger, who went 0-13. Vikings find new way to lose. With their loss to the Lions, the Vikings became the first team in NFL history with a record of 5-0 or better to lose a home game coming off a bye. This situation had come up nine previous times in NFL history and the previous teams went a combined 9-0 (via Trey Wingo).Power hour for Bowers. With 10 catches for 93 yards against the Rams, Brock Bowers now has 47 catches on the season, which is the third-highest total ever for any player through seven games. Only Puka Nacua (58) and Saquon Barkley (49) topped that number. |
| If you see any other fun facts, feel free to tweet them at me. |
| |
| 4. NFL Week 7 overreactions: Has Deshaun Watson played his final down with the Browns? |
| Everyone on the internet loves to overreact to things, and that's especially true when we're talking about the the NFL. With that in mind, Jeff Kerr decided to take a look at several things that happened around the NFL in Week 7 to decide if we're all overreacting. |
Statement: Deshaun Watson has played his last game with the Browns.
Overreaction or reality: Overreaction. "Following his season-ending injury, Watson has two years and a guaranteed $92 million remaining on his contract, which the Browns still have to pay out. Cleveland wouldn't even bench Watson when he was performing as one of the worst quarterbacks in the league, so the Browns will try to get a return on their investment (unless injury provisions allow the Browns to get out of the deal). For now, Watson is likely going to play another game in a Browns uniform." |
Statement: Jordan Love is better than C.J. Stroud.
Overreaction or reality: Reality. "Love was a huge reason the Packers beat the Texans on Sunday, showcasing he's -- at the very least -- ahead of Stroud on the quarterback totem pole. The Packers quarterback had his ninth straight game with 2+ passing touchdowns, notching a season high in completion rate (72.7%), while recording 3+ touchdowns for the third time this season. ... Stroud, on the other hand, struggled on Sunday. He completed just 10 of 21 passes for 86 yards, finishing with a season low in completion rate (47.6%) and yards per attempt (4.1). The Texans were only in the game because of Love's two interceptions." |
Statement: Daniel Jones should be benched for Drew Lock next week.
Overreaction or reality: Overreaction. "The Giants are averaging just 7.8 points per game in four home games, not scoring an offensive touchdown in three of them. Jones isn't actually helping this Giants offense right now, but it may be too early to give up on him at this point in the season (even with the team at 2-5). Expect the Giants to stick with Jones for the time being, but he's on borrowed time." |
| There are plenty more overreactions from Week 7, and if you want to check those out, be sure to click here. |
| 5. Monday night preview: Picks and best bets for 'MNF' doubleheader |
| |
| For the third time this season, the NFL is throwing a curveball at us tonight by giving us a doubleheader. If you're wondering why this is happening, it's one of the perks that ESPN got in its new media contract with the NFL. This is the third of four Monday doubleheaders that we'll be seeing this year. After tonight, we'll get one more, and that will come in Week 15. |
| The first game of the doubleheader will feature Baltimore (4-2) at Tampa Bay (4-2) in a game that kicks off at 8:15 p.m. ET on ESPN/ABC. |
| Here's one reason why each team should be feeling confident going into tonight: |
| Why the Ravens can win: It's the same thing every week with the Ravens: If they can run the ball, they're probably going to win. And that specifically revolves around Derrick Henry. The Ravens are 4-0 this season when Henry rushes for at least 90 yards and that's because when he's running the ball well, it opens up everything else on offense for Baltimore. With teams focused on Henry over the past two weeks, Lamar Jackson has made them pay by throwing for more than 300 yards. This offense is on a roll and it's not going to be easy for the Buccaneers to stop them. Why the Buccaneers can win: The Bucs might not be able to slow down Baltimore's offense, but even if this game turns into a shootout, the Buccaneers can absolutely still win. Through six weeks, the Bucs have had one of the best pass offenses in the NFL and that unit will be facing a Ravens secondary that has been the WORST in the NFL at stopping the pass (They're giving up 275.7 yards per game). If Baker Mayfield can get his receivers going early, there's no reason the Bucs can't pull off the upset. |
| You can get a full preview of the game from Jared Dubin by clicking here. |
| In the late game, we've got the Cardinals (2-4) hosting the Chargers (3-2) at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN+. And yes, that is a 'plus' next to ESPN there, which means you'll have to have an ESPN+ subscription to watch. |
| Here's one reason why each team should be feeling confident going into tonight: |
| Why the Chargers can win: This is a match made in heaven for the Chargers. They've been winning games this season by running the ball well, and tonight, they'll get to face a Cardinals defense that's surrendering 153 yards per game on the ground, which is the third-highest number in the NFL. The Chargers are 3-0 this season when they top the 100-yard mark and 0-2 when they don't, and based on how Arizona has done against the run, it won't be surprising if we see L.A. top the century mark against the Cardinals. Why the Cardinals can win: The Chargers have one of the best defenses in the NFL this year. They're surrendering just 13.2 points per game, which was the lowest number in the league heading into Week 7. With the Chargers playing so well, Arizona is going to need a huge game from Kyler Murray. The Cardinals are 2-0 this season when Murray totals 275 yards or more (passing yards plus rushing yards) and in both wins, Murray ran for 59 yards or more. Basically, the Cards need Murray to keep the Chargers defense on its toes. If the Arizona QB can keep the Chargers defense guessing, that could open the door for the Cardinals offense to have a big night. |
| You can get a full preview of the game from Jordan Dajani by clicking here. The Chargers are currently a 1.5-point road favorite against the Cardinals. |
| If you're thinking about betting on the game, here are a couple of props. |
ONE PROP I LIKE FROM RAVENS-BUCCANEERS: Lamar Jackson OVER 227.5 passing yards (-115 at BetMGM) The Ravens QB has been on fire over the past two weeks, throwing for at least 323 yards in each of his past two games. He's also gone over this number in four of Baltimore's six games this year. With the Bucs likely focused on stopping the run, I won't be surprised if that opens things up for Jackson to have a big game through the air. ONE PROP I LIKE FROM CHARGERS-CARDINALS: J.K. Dobbins OVER 99.5 rushing + receiving yards (-115 at BetMGM): The Chargers running back is averaging 87.6 yards per game on the ground, which means he could hit the over by just running the ball, but with this prop, you also get his receiving yards. Dobbins has hit 100 yards from scrimmage in three of the Chargers' five games this season and I won't be surprised if he gets near that number again.
ONE KICKING PROP I LIKE TONIGHT: Chase McLaughlin OVER 6.5 points (-135 at BetMGM): The Buccaneers kicker is averaging 8.7 points per game this season and that's a big reason why he's gone OVER this total in five Tampa Bay's six games. Also, opposing kickers are hitting an average of two field goals per game against the Ravens, and if McLaughlin gets that tonight, he'll almost certainly hit the over. |
| And in case you're wondering, my props are 18-12 on the season (9-5 on kicker props and 9-7 on all other props). |
| The guys over at SportsLine also have a full betting preview for both games. You can check out Ravens-Buccaneers here while the preview for Chargers-Cardinals is here. |
| Of course, we also have some picks for tonight, so let's get to those. |
| PICKS FOR THE 'MNF' DOUBLEHEADER |
RAVENS-BUCCANEERS PICKS
My pick: Ravens 31-24 over Buccaneers
Dubin's pick: Ravens 33-27 over Buccaneers
Prisco's pick: Buccaneers 34-31 over Ravens |
CHARGERS-CARDINALS PICK
My pick: Chargers 27-23 over Cardinals
Dajani's pick: Chargers 24-20 over Cardinals
Prisco's pick: Chargers 27-14 over Cardinals |
| Over on our CBSSports.com picks page, our eight NFL experts are all taking the Chargers, but only six of us are taking the Ravens to beat the Buccaneers. If you want to see the full breakdown of our picks, be sure to click here. |
| |
| 6. Extra points: Deshaun Watson out for the season |
| It's been a busy weekend in the NFL, and since it's nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you. |
| Deshaun Watson done for the year. The Browns QB tore his Achilles during Sunday's loss to the Bengals, which means his season is definitely over . With Watson out, the big question in Cleveland revolves around who will be taking over at QB. Dorian Thompson-Robinson went in against the Bengals after Watson was injured, but the Browns also have Jameis Winston, who was demoted to third-string QB for the first time this year on Sunday. Winston would seem to make more sense, but DTR is a second-year player and the Browns might want to see what they have in him. Jayden Daniels dealing with injury. The Commanders QB only played one possession against the Panthers due to a rib injury. Daniels was listed as questionable to return, but with Washington blowing out Carolina, the Commanders saw no reason to put him back in the game. Daniels is expected to undergo tests today to determine the severity of the injury. According to The Athletic, the Commanders might not know until Wednesday or Thursday if Daniels will be available for Washington's Week 8 game against the Bears. Brandon Aiyuk might be done for the year. The injury hits keep coming for the 49ers. Aiyuk injured his knee against the Chiefs, and after the game, Kyle Shanahan said that the team is fearing that it's a torn ACL. If that's the case, Aiyuk's year will be over. You can read more about his injury here. Jets finally get deal done with Haason Reddick. The disgruntled pass-rusher finally got a deal done with the Jets, which means he should be on the field this week when New York faces New England. Rushing the passer has been a huge issue for the Jets this year, so they'll be hoping Reddick can help turn that situation around. You can check out the details of his deal here. Injury roundup. As you can probably tell, there were a lot of injuries on Sunday, and we're tracking all of them here. If you click over, you'll read about Raiders QB Aidan O'Connell, who is likely going to miss several weeks after breaking his thumb against the Rams. DK Metcalf (knee) also suffered an injury on Sunday. We covered every big injury from Week 7, and if you want to see who got banged up, once again, you can do that here. |
| |
| | | | | Golazo Network | | 24/7 Sports News | Watch LIVE global soccer coverage on the CBS Sports Golazo Network, available FOR FREE on the CBS Sports App, Pluto TV and streaming on Paramount+.
Watch Live
| | Stream CBS Sports HQ, your free, 24/7 snapshot of all the sports that matter to you. Catch highlights, in-depth analysis & breaking news anywhere you are. Download the CBS Sports App to watch today.
Watch Free
|
|
| |
| |
