The Indianapolis Colts firmly established themselves as true contenders on another vibrant NFL Sunday, while the Denver Broncos staged the mother of all comebacks.
The Colts lead the league, but rivals come from all angles: the New England Patriots continue their resurgence and the Kansas City Chiefs are firmly back in business.
Jalen Hurts finally got the Philadelphia Eagles offense moving, the Green Bay Packers showed their fighting qualities and the Dallas Cowboys remain the league’s gunslingers.
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Why the Colts are real contenders
There’s no denying the Colts are the real deal now, as they lead the NFL at 6-1 after dismantling the Chargers 38-24 in Los Angeles, with Daniel Jones banishing doubts that their hot start to the season is a flash in the pan.
Running back Jonathan Taylor is a touchdown machine, scoring his third hat trick of the season to bring his total to 11 in seven games.
That star power has been key to Indianapolis being the NFL’s leading scorer with more than 33 points per game, and their main strength is how clinical they are in possession.
They entered the game with the best points per drive stats in the league and against the Chargers they scored five touchdowns and a field goal on their nine possessions.
When they don’t have the ball they are the third best at forcing turnovers (11) and when they do have it they rarely give it away and almost always score.
The defense gives up a lot of yards, but at 20 points a game is seventh best, and it all combines to create a growing juggernaut that really looks tough to stop.
Nix leads Denver’s epic comeback
Without a doubt the game of the week, with Bo Nix going crazy and leading the Denver Broncos to a mind-blowing 33-32 victory over the plucky and hapless New York Giants.
With a 19-0 shutout after three quarters, Nix became the first quarterback to have two passing and two rushing touchdowns in a fourth quarter, with Denver’s 33-point haul being the second-best ever.
Even as Nix somehow put Denver in front, the Giants’ impressive rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart generated a response with his fourth total touchdown of the game, seemingly winning with just 37 seconds left.
However, that was enough time for Nix to lead a field goal and get Denver out of jail again, but they’ll have to do better if they want to go far this season.
Eagles and Chiefs let him fly
The Super Bowl champions came back strong after back-to-back losses and Hurts finally opened his shoulders to throw for 326 yards, three touchdowns and a perfect 158.3 passer rating as the Eagles beat the Vikings 28-22.
Hurts hasn’t been on the same page as his receivers lately, but DeVonta Smith had a career-high 183 yards and a score, while AJ Brown caught two touchdowns in a free exhibition that Eagles fans have been clamoring for.
There’s typically a more conservative approach from Philadelphia, but with Hurts throwing for the most yards on 20-yard throws (215) in his career, it could be a sign they’re taking off the handbrake.
Patrick Mahomes also let the ball fly in his 93rd regular-season win, while receiver Rashee Rice sparked a 31-0 shutout against the rather woeful Las Vegas Raiders.
Much bigger tests lie ahead, but it’s now four wins in five for the 4-3 Chiefs after a rocky start, averaging 31.5 points per game over the last four and with only the most clinical Colts in possession.
The Chiefs are definitely on the rise.
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Drake Maye will push his way into MVP contention if he continues with such poise and precision for the Patriots.
He set a team record with a 91.3% completion rate in his win over the Titans, and when you consider this is a team that had Tom Brady at quarterback for two decades, that’s quite an accomplishment in just his second season.
The Pats are 5-2 and have won all four road games, including the last three, although this last one was against the Titans.
Green Bay outscored Arizona 27-23, but was far from convincing: Micah Parsons had three sacks that proved decisive, but Cardinals backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett still had some joy against the Packers defense.
They also looked a little toothless on offense when Josh Jacobs wasn’t on the field, so the key to their progress is keeping their star running back fit moving forward.
There was a fourth straight three-touchdown game for Dak Prescott as the Dallas Cowboys again showed off their offensive prowess to beat a struggling Washington, which lost Jayden Daniels to a hamstring injury.
That’s a big concern for the Commanders, who had no answer for CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens and Javonte Williams, who combined for 308 yards and two touchdowns.
At 3-3, Dallas could easily run away and with their offense could beat anyone, but they still have a lot to prove on defense.
Only the Patriots can match Chicago’s four-win streak after the Bears overcame a hot-and-cold Caleb Williams to beat the struggling Saints.
The Bears rushed for 222 yards and two touchdowns as the defense leads the league with 16 turnovers, following three interceptions and a Spencer Rattler fumble, and that combination can take you far in the NFL.
But they will want more from Williams.
The San Francisco 49ers have injury problems, but as long as they have Christian McCaffrey they will have a chance.
The Niners are now 5-2 after McCaffrey racked up 201 total yards and two touchdowns to beat the Atlanta Falcons 20-10.
The hapless Miami proved to be the antidote to Cleveland’s woes, as the Browns put up 31 points to beat the Dolphins (they had never scored more than 17 in a game before).
And finally the New York Jets, who benched Justin Fields during their 13-6 loss to Carolina, fell to 0-7 for the third time in their history.
NFL Week 7 Results and Highlights
- Los Angeles Rams 35-7 Jacksonville Jaguars
- New Orleans Saints 14-26 Chicago Bears
- Miami Dolphins 6-31 Cleveland Browns
- New England Patriots 31-13 Tennessee Titans
- Las Vegas Raiders 0-31 Kansas City Chiefs
- Philadelphia Eagles 28-22 Minnesota Vikings
- Carolina Panthers 13-6 New York Jets
- New York Giants 32-33 Denver Broncos
- Indianapolis Colts 38-24 Los Angeles Chargers
- Washington Commanders 22-44 Dallas Cowboys
- Green Bay Packers 27-23 Arizona Cardinals
- Atlanta Falcons 10-20 San Francisco 49ers