Another week of football has come to a close and now that the dust has settled, this is a weekend of football that was downright brutal. So many teams left their hearts on the field this weekend, and well, that's simply amazing. It feels as though that this year, so many more squads flat out understand, that every game truly counts and to be a champion, you have to give it your all. It made for some stunning upsets, some hard fought victories and some fascinating stories and here is what we learned from Week 9 in the NFL.

The Dallas Cowboys are the team to beat in the NFC.
Sure this team has a quarterback controversy brewing in the wings, but right now...that's something that Dallas is giving little thought to at the moment for one simple reason, they just keep on winning. It doesn't matter what their opponents throw at them, they find ways to wear down defenses and make big plays and well, as the season rolls on, it's inherently obvious now that they are the team to beat in the NFC. No other squad has shown this kind of resilience on the field and while it may be too early to call them a Super Bowl bound team, don't be shocked to see them lock up a high seed in the playoffs and go far in the tournament as well because the run and pass formula they are using right now is downright devastating and as long as they stick wth that, they'll keep that win streak alive.

Was Travis Kelce's ejection a sign of things to come?
I won't sit here and pretend that NFL Referees are perfect in the slightest. They are human, they make mistakes, sometimes ugly ones and yes, I am a firm believer that the NFL should make them full time employees. But while we usually move on from their mistakes and chalk it up to human error, something interesting is happening this year. Flags are flying and players no longer seem happy about it, and over the past couple of weeks criticism of officiating seems to be everywhere, and well, for those who missed it...a call by an official on Sunday at the Chiefs game got under TE Travis Kelce's skin and he uh...threw his towel at the ref in protest and was promptly ejected. Clearly the bad blood the players harbor toward the refs is boiling over with a move like that and well...is this something we are going to see more of? Hopefully not, because being angry like that on the field could eventually cost a team the game if an important enough player is ejected, but don't be surprised if we see a few more players challenge the refs in wild fashion. Either way, clearly frustration with officiating is at an all time high and I certainly hope the league does something soon to improve the quality of officiating on the field. 

The time has come for the 49ers to make a coaching change. 
As the old saying goes, hindsight is 20/20, unless of course you work in the National Football League where your mistakes can come back to haunt you every single day, as is the case in San Francisco where Trent Baalke is reminded of the fact that he could have gone another direction at Head Coach earlier this year. Chip Kelly was brought in over seasoned veteran Mike Shanahan to lead a new era for the 49ers and the end result of that choice has been an outright disaster. It doesn't matter who is at quarterback, the offense remains anemic and the defense is an outright joke. Which means, it's time for Trent to suck it up, and own his mistake, and promptly relieve Chip of his coaching duties...and start over again in the offseason. I know that sounds harsh, but let's be honest. Chip Kelly is not a good NFL football coach, everyone has his playbook figured out and even after being removed from personnel decisions to just coach, the end result is still bad. So for the sake of the fans everywhere, just part ways. 

The Denver Broncos offense, is in dire need of leadership.
Yes, the Broncos blew it on Sunday night. Yes, the run game is nonexistent. Yes, the defense could have played better. But despite all of those issues, there is one thing of great concern that caught my attention during this game; Denver has zero leadership on the field when the offense has the ball. That was what made a Peyton Manning offense effective, even when he was not because he would find a way to bring the best out of his teammates at just the right time, and while it's great that Trevor Siemian is captain cool on the field, he is not a 'field general', which sometimes a quarterback has to be in order to lead his team to victory. While it may be impossible to expect Siemian to bring that extra intensity to the field, it's not impossible to have someone on the offense become that leader and well, someone has to, otherwise the anemic performance they suffered on Sunday...will continue for the rest of the season.

The Seattle Seahawks shook off their rust in impressive fashion.
As it turns out, the Monday night game turned out to be the must see game of the week because holy cow, this old fashioned shootout between Buffalo and Seattle was simply magnificent. This was about two teams fighting to get back on track, but let's be honest, it mattered more to Seattle. The loss to New Orleans and the tie with Arizona has weighed heavy on their heads and made their game play rusty and cautious. But clearly they had enough of playing it safe and went for broke last night, hanging with the Bills all night long and well, when the dust settled, it was great to see this team come together for a team win at last. Of course questions will still remain as to whether or not the Seahawks can continue to be a tough team on the field, but if they continue to play like they did last night...those doubts will quickly be put to rest.

As the second half of the NFL season kicks off, there's a sense of routine that suddenly comes with it, and thus...the excitement of football can diminish just a bit and all of this is thanks to the fact that a vast majority of the teams out there are settling into a certain mold, they're either winners or losers. 

That means we're now seeing matchups where powerhouse teams take on sub par teams, and the end result of those games is pretty easy to call. But there's still plenty of excitement to be found in the league this time of year. There are still teams struggling to find their identity or turn their seasons around or flat out show the rest of their division that they are the team to beat, and there are plenty of games that feature all of those elements this weekend and those are the ones that we will be keeping an eye on come tomorrow and Monday. 

The NFC East has suddenly become one of the most competitive divisions in the league this year, and while it's amazing to watch these squads compete in fierce fashion week in and week out, there's a good chance that one or more of these feisty teams will likely miss out on the playoffs this year. That means every game matters a bit more to these teams and that also means the divisional matchups become all the more important, especially when both squads have something to prove. Philadelphia is still working to show that they are a force to be reckoned with in the league, and the Giants are fighting to prove that they are no longer a perennial loser, meaning this game is going to be outright fierce and don't be surprised if this one finishes close or goes into overtime as these divisional foes duke it out in classic fashion.

This is the kind of game that on paper predicts a Minnesota win, but there are special circumstances to be found in this one that make it seem like anything but an easy victory for the Vikings. Minnesota is a team that is suddenly struggling to put it together. Their vaunted defense is easy to wear down, Sam Bradford looks like a rookie out there and that could be a problem since Detroit...has shown flashes of brilliance this year. When the Lions are good, they are damn good and if they can get into a rhythm early and score some quick points, they may have this one in the bag. If anything, this is really Minnesota's game to lose, because the flip side to Detroit is that when they are bad this season...they are shockingly bad so if the Vikings can stun them with some big plays...they should be able to wash away the bad taste of losing the past two weeks and get their season back on track.

Of all the games Week 9 has to offer, this one is shaping up to be the one to watch this week. After all, it's a classic AFC West Rivalry in prime time and for a change...both teams are stunningly good. Now, that endorsement of this game does have to come with a warning. If you're hoping to see an old school gunslinger shootout, that's likely not going to happen. Both teams feature a powerful defense that keep Quarterbacks honest so in reality, one should expect heavy doses of the run from both squads and a focus on precision and execution. Now while it suddenly sounds like the game of the week is going to be slow and boring...that would be incorrect. Eventually the passing game will come into play and one of these teams will give in to frustration, and that's when things will get interesting because frustration gives way to mistakes and mistakes...mean opportunity and the team to make the least amount of errors in this one, will walk away with the win and the bragging rights that they are the absolute best in the AFC West.

Monday night's game has my attention for one particular reason...this is another matchup with two teams desperate to prove themselves. Buffalo has shown that they can win tough games and dominate their opponent, but...they have also been embarrassed on multiple occasions, including last week's loss to the Patriots. They are a team trying to prove more so to themselves that they can be more than a mediocre squad and they face off against a team in the Seahawks, that are desperate to prove they still know how to win. After all, in the past two weeks, Seattle has tied with Arizona and lost to the Saints and their play on the field reflects their shattered psyche, which means that this game should have a little more intensity to it as both of these teams try to shake off the clouds hanging over their head and get back to their winning ways.

There's a thrill in the air hanging over Week 9 in the NFL and with good reason. Normally as we enter the pseudo second half of the season, patterns start to emerge, we have a good idea of what to expect for the rest of the season...but not this year. With ties happening on a regular basis and coordinator changes popping up left and right, it truly feels as though anything can happen this weekend, which means we are likely in for some fun surprises when teams take the field which should make for some fascinating stories and here are the ones that we will be keeping an eye on this weekend.

​Does Norv Turner's resignation fix the Vikings recent offensive woes?
In a stunning turn of events this week, the league saw another coaching position become available with Norv Turner's exit from the Minnesota Vikings. But what made this one so perplexing is the fact that Norv  just flat out resigned. Sure the team has been in free fall mode the last two weeks, but at no point was Norv's job in jeopardy so to see him just walk away is shocking to say the least. But, what's done is done, and while we can spend our day discussing the why, Norv Turner isn't coming back which begs the question...was his play calling and game planning the reason to blame for the Vikings woes, and more importantly, does his resignation fix it? The answer is simple...nope. Sam Bradford has regressed a bit since the Philadelphia game, suddenly becoming gun shy to pressure and he appears to be having major trouble reading what defenses are throwing at him and to top it all off, it's not just the offense suffering here, the defense is an absolute mess as well. Either way, there's obviously trouble in Purple Paradise, and it's up to the players to get this season back on track. 

The Jacksonville/Kansas City game is a big deal for QB Nick Foles.
Nick Foles has had quite the interesting career in the National Football League. Drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2012, it seemed as though Nick was going to be the long term answer at franchise quarterback for the team, especially when one considers the fact that the young man eventually won the starting job in Philly and even went to a Pro Bowl in 2013. But fortunes change on a moment's notice in this league and it didn't take long before Nick was sent packing to Los Angeles (then St. Louis) in a trade before being released and eventually picked up by the Chiefs to serve as the #2 QB behind Alex Smith. But come Sunday, Nick gets another shot at starting in the NFL and this start is important for so many reasons. For one, the Chiefs need him to do a great job to keep their playoff hopes alive in the ultra competitive AFC/AFC West and because, in a league where he has in essence fallen out of favor, this is Nick's big chance to show everyone in the NFL that he can still play at a high level and lead a team to victory.

What do the Rams have to do to get their season back on track?
A few weeks ago, we were celebrating the Rams elevated play on both offense and defense as they pulled themselves back from the abyss of what looked like a dismal start to the season. But after that surge the Rams have regressed. They have lost three in a row, and were utterly embarrassed in London...so where do they go from here? The wise move would be to shake up the roster, specifically at quarterback and bench Case Keenum but let's be honest...that's not going to happen. Jeff Fisher is hell bent on making sure that Jared Goff rides the pine for as long as possible which means if this squad wants to see any measure of success, the team has to return to an old school mentality. That means Keenum has to be a game manager and hand off the ball to Todd Gurley as often as possible, and their defense has to play physical and fast and get off the field as quickly as possible.  If they can do all of that, they'll find themselves back in the playoff hunt and if not...then whether he likes it or not, Fisher will need to make a change at QB, and other positions on the team otherwise their season will slip away.

The Denver Broncos/Oakland Raiders matchup may turn out to be the best game of Week 9.
The Broncos have enjoyed some serious supremacy in the AFC West for some time now, handily beating their division rivals year after year at home or on the road. But that kind of beating changes your opponent, and eventually they simply have enough and that's clearly the case when it comes to the Oakland Raiders. They've made big moves on their roster, drafted quality players and finally have a coach that's willing to take big chances and make tough calls and that's why both of these teams are sitting at 6-2 right now and that means Sunday's game is going to be one hell of a knock down drag it out fight between these two teams. Expect to see some stifling defense from both squads and big plays from both offenses. As to who wins, well that's still up in the air since these teams are so evenly matched but this is definitely one to watch this week as two bitter AFC West rivals battle it out in classic fashion.

The Seattle Seahawks are a team at a crossroads.
The last couple of weeks have been extremely unique for the Seattle Seahawks. The New Orleans Saints stunned them with an upset, and they tied with the Arizona Cardinals the week before that. Clearly this is a team that is suddenly having trouble flat out winning games and closing out their opponents so what then do they have to do in order to start winning again? Well first and foremost, they have to get their run game back on track. The Seahawks are a team that have always relied upon the run and getting a whopping 63 yards from their tailbacks last week is quite a glaring problem. But in addition to the run game, there's something else going on. The tie is clearly bothering them considering how cautious they looked in New Orleans last week which means when all is said and done the team needs to let the past go and come out with a little bit of confidence if they want to get back to their winning ways, and if they can't shake off prior games, then the rest of their season will be a non stop battle mentally...and an outright disappointment.