NFL Week 5 - What We Learned

Written by John Edward Betancourt

I have to say, this week brought forth one incredible week of football. Every single game I watched was ultra competitive and I honestly cannot remember the last time I saw that many games go into overtime. It was so compelling to watch and of course with each amazing game...came an amazing story to go with it and here are the top stories from the field from Week 5 in the NFL.

1. Arian Foster utterly embarrassed himself, the NFL and its Concussion Protocol policy on Thursday Night Football. For those who missed it, he took a shot to the head, went to be evaluated for a concussion and when backs were turned, put himself back into the game. They had to hide his helmet to get the evaluation done and this absolutely infuriated me. Safety protocols are there for a reason, we know concussions are an issue and for him to do this is just irresponsible. He didn't have a concussion, but good heavens what if he did? This was an incredibly boneheaded move by a player, and I hope the league and the team come down on him hard for such a silly move. All he did was set an example that it's okay to head back out whether or not you've suffered a concussion and that's something the league is trying hard to change mindset wise and his behavior brings up a bigger issue...

2. It's looking more and more like Bill O'Brien has no clue what the hell he is doing in Houston and is quickly losing this team. This team looks bad, real bad, and to make matters worse coach O'Brien keeps waffling back and forth on who his quarterback is going to be on any given down to be quite honest. First it was Brian Hoyer, then it was Ryan Mallet and now it's Hoyer again and this kind of constant change shows the players that he has no confidence in anyone on the field and they respond to that. The play gets sloppier, the team continues to lose and the players take it upon themselves to do what needs to be done. Just like Arian Foster. If Bill doesn't get this mess together soon...expect the Texans to be making a change at head coach.

3. Finally, we have something good to talk about when it comes to the Washington Redskins because for the first time in a long time...they looked good on the field. Yes, I get it, they lost yet again, but go back and watch that game one more time because they scared the hell out of the Atlanta Falcons. This was a team that was competitive and fiery and hung in there the whole way. Kirk Cousins looked like a top tier starting quarterback for most of the game, save for that boneheaded throw at the end but the key here is progress. Without RG3 screwing the whole thing up this team came together and that matters because it is something to build upon. 

4. So...the talk out here in Denver is that it is time to hit the panic button and bench Peyton Manning because holy cow...the man looks awful on the field. The Broncos offense is a shell of what it used to be, basically producing nothing in Oakland this past weekend and I'm definitely worried. This team offensively hasn't faced a powerhouse defense yet, but the day is coming and it's going to get ugly and I don't get where Peyton's head is at. Several times during this game he simply looked frustrated that it wasn't going his way and that bugs me. He's no longer the unflappable leader he once was and while I'm not 100% positive it's time to bench him for the season, because that would only rattle him more than he is, something has to be done. Manning always plays better with a chip on his shoulder so maybe it's time for Coach Kubiak and GM John Elway to have a talk with him about letting him ride the pine, just to light a fire under his ass.

5. In 2008, the Detroit Lions made the wrong kind of history in the NFL...they were the first team to lose every single game and go 0-16 in modern NFL history, and I hate to say it, but the 2015 Detroit Lions...look like a team capable of pulling off this feat once again. This is a bad, bad, football team. They can't get anything going on the ball offensively or defensively and as they sit at 0-5, I don't see any improvement from this team. In fact at times they seemed lost and confused on the field on Sunday and that means that either the coaching is that bad, or these guys flat out quit and I hope to hell it's not the latter. Something has got to give for the Lions, otherwise, welcome back to the history books as the worst team in the history of ever. 

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