• Kirk Cousins took advantage between the numbers: Cousins completed 23 of his 28 passes for 338 yards and three touchdowns when targeting the area inside the hash marks, earning a 75.4 PFF grade on those throws. The Buccaneers struggled to defend the middle of the field, and Cousins took full advantage of the mismatch.
• MVP, MVP… Lamar Jackson finished 26-of-42 for 348 yards and four touchdowns, and he added another 55 yards on the ground. Jackson was sacked just once, showcasing his ability to escape pressure from all angles. He earned a 78.1 passing grade and registered three big-time throws.
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Atlanta Falcons 36, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30
Why the Falcons won: Kirk Cousins‘ heroic performance was the driving force behind the Falcons' victory, but his real impact came between the numbers. He completed 23 of his 28 passes for 338 yards and three touchdowns when targeting the area inside the hash marks, earning a 75.4 PFF grade on those throws. The Buccaneers struggled to defend the middle of the field, and Cousins took full advantage of the mismatch.
Why the Buccaneers lost: The Buccaneers defense has been hit with injuries this season, and the secondary was picked apart by Cousins, who threw for a career-high 509 yards. The defense allowed 228 yards after the catch, while Lavonte David and slot cornerback Tykee Smith allowed 18 catches on 22 targets, with most of those catches coming over the middle of the field.
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Minnesota Vikings 23, New York Jets 17
Why the Vikings won: The Vikings did an excellent job of getting to Aaron Rodgers. The veteran quarterback was blitzed on 54.4% of his dropbacks, and he completed 17 of his 28 pass attempts for 118 yards on those plays, throwing an interception and recording two turnover-worthy plays. The quick game was all the Jets' passing attack had, and Rodgers averaged 4.2 yards per attempt when blitzed, earning a 37.1 passing grade on those throws.
Why the Jets lost: The Jets' offense lacked balance. The passing game struggled, but they had no rushing attack to lean on. Breece Hall and Braelon Allen carried the ball 14 times for 36 yards and forced zero missed tackles on their attempts, both averaging 2.6 yards per attempt.
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Houston Texans 23, Buffalo Bills 20
Why the Texans won: C.J. Stroud completed 21-of-26 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown when operating out of a clean pocket and performed almost perfectly against the blitz, completing eight of his nine passing attempts to earn an 86.4 passing grade on those throws.
Why the Bills lost: On the opposite end of the spectrum, this might be one of the worst games of Josh Allen’s career. Allen didn’t complete any of his 13 pass attempts when pressured and completed just nine of his 30 attempts in the entire game. It’s a miracle the Bills were in this game late.
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Miami Dolphins 15, New England Patriots 10
Why the Dolphins won: The Dolphins' offensive line was excellent against the Patriots' defensive front, as the group allowed just five total pressures between them, and Tyler Huntley was pressured on just nine of his dropbacks.
Why the Patriots lost: New England just lacks juice in the passing game. Demario Douglas led the way with 59 receiving yards, but quarterback Jacoby Brissett averaged just 4.7 yards per attempt — and an even worse 1.7 yards per attempt when blitzed, plays where he finished 3-of-12 for 18 yards.
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Jacksonville Jaguars 37, Indianapolis Colts 34
Why the Jaguars won: Trevor Lawrence had his best game of the season in Week 5, and he picked the Colts defense alive from a clean pocket. Lawrence completed 28 of his 33 attempts for 371 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 11.2 yards per attempt and earning an 86.3 passing grade.
Why the Colts lost: On the flip side, the Colts pass rush put in an abysmal showing. Lawrence was allowed to work from a clean pocket so often because the pass rush offered nothing. The Colts pressured Lawrence on just one dropback, which was simply not good enough.
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Baltimore Ravens 41, Cincinnati Bengals 38
Why the Ravens won: The Lamar Jackson MVP campaign is alive again. Jackson finished 26-of-42 for 348 yards and four touchdowns, and he added another 55 yards on the ground. Jackson was sacked just once, showcasing his ability to escape pressure from all angles. He earned a 78.1 passing grade and registered three big-time throws.
Why the Bengals lost: The Bengals' inability to turn pressures into sacks cost them. The defense generated 28 total pressures and pressured Jackson on 42.6% of his dropbacks, but the unit only sacked the quarterback once. Jackson had a pressure-to-sack rate of just 5%, and his ability to extend and keep plays alive hurt the defense in a big way.
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Chicago Bears 36, Carolina Panthers 10
Why the Bears won: Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams was excellent, but the Bears defense continued to run the show. The defense combined for 27 pressures and six sacks, pressuring Andy Dalton on 45.5% of his dropbacks.
Why the Panthers lost: Most teams have had Williams running for his life multiple times this season, but not the Panthers defense. Carolina pressured Williams on 17.1% of his dropbacks, allowing him to throw for 304 yards in a clean pocket.
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Washington Commanders 34, Cleveland Browns 13
Why the Commanders won: This was the best the Commanders defense has looked all season, and they ripped the Browns apart. They sacked Watson seven times and combined for 28 total pressures, with Dorance Armstrong, Daron Payne and Frankie Luvu all registering five or more.
Why the Browns lost: A quarterback change is probably due in Cleveland, but Watson was still pressured on 47.4% of his dropbacks. Still, he completed only three of his 10 attempts for 21 yards when pressured.
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Denver Broncos 34, Las Vegas Raiders 18
Why the Broncos won: The Denver defense was excellent once again, and the efforts of their starting cornerbacks gave them the boost. Pat Surtain II and Riley Moss each snagged interceptions, while Surtain returned his for a pick-six. The pair earned 92.1 and 80.1 coverage grades, respectively, and they allowed just five receptions for 58 yards between them.
Why the Raiders lost: Gardner Minshew’s benching was down to his inability to push the ball downfield. The veteran quarterback finished just 2-of-6 on passes thrown 10-plus yards downfield and earned a 38.0 grade on attempts between 0-9 yards.
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Arizona Cardinals 24, San Francisco 49ers 23
Why the Cardinals won: The Cardinals came back from behind in the fourth quarter, and they were able to rely on the ground game to create yards. James Conner rushed for 86 yards on 19 attempts, forcing eight missed tackles and earning a 76.5 rushing grade, while Kyler Murray ripped off a 50-yard touchdown run, too.
Why the 49ers lost: Brock Purdy was forced to hold onto the ball too often, and plays out of structure just didn’t materialize. His average time to throw in the game was 3.7 seconds, and Purdy completed just 54.3% of his pass attempts. When pressured, he held onto the ball for an average of 5.35 seconds and was sacked twice.
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New York Giants 29, Seattle Seahawks 20
Why the Giants won: The Giants might have something in rookie running back Tyrone Tracy, who rushed for 129 yards on 18 attempts. Tracy forced just one missed tackle but produced four runs of 10 yards or more and earned a 77.3 rushing grade. The offense was able to lean on his production.
Why the Seahawks lost: The Seahawks just couldn’t protect Geno Smith. The veteran quarterback was pressured 18 times and sacked seven times, completing just 3-of-10 passing when pressured.
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Green Bay Packers 24, Los Angeles Rams 19
Why the Packers won: The Jordan Love–to-Tucker Kraft connection was the difference in the game. Kraft caught four passes for 88 yards and two touchdowns, with one touchdown coming on a 66-yard screen play. Kraft earned an 87.7 receiving grade, and Love had a 109.7 passer rating when targeting him.
Why the Rams lost: The Rams offensive line continues to struggle. Stafford was pressured on 33.3% of his dropbacks, completing just 46.2% of his pass attempts under duress. Starting left guard Logan Bruss allowed seven pressures and earned a pass-blocking grade of 0.0.
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Dallas Cowboys 20, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
Why the Cowboys won: The Cowboys' run defense has been heavily criticized in 2024, but the unit was solid for the second straight week — and they were without Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence. The Cowboys held Najee Harris to just 42 yards on 14 attempts; they shut the Steelers' running game down and held them to just 3.4 yards per carry.
Why the Steelers lost: The Cowboys did a good job of congesting the field, and nothing downfield worked for Justin Fields and the offense. Fields averaged just 4.9 yards per attempt and was 0-for-6 on attempts of 20 yards or more. On top of that, he only completed two passes of more than 10 yards.
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Kansas City Chiefs 26, New Orleans Saints 13
Why the Chiefs won: The Chiefs' pass rush was a disruptive force all night, generating 26 total pressures and eight quarterback hits. All of the pressure only led to one sack, but the defense was electric. Chris Jones notched nine total pressures and earned a 93.6 PFF grade.
Why the Saints lost: The efficient run game that helped the offense all season disappeared on Monday night. The Saints carried the ball 15 times for just 41 yards, with Alvin Kamara averaging a season-low 2.4 yards per carry. Kamara’s 62.0 rushing grade was his second-lowest of the season, and without the balanced offense, the Chiefs pass rush was able to affect Derek Carr even more.
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