NFL Week 8 - What We Learned

Written by John Edward Betancourt

What a weekend. I mean seriously, there were some amazing football games that took place on Sunday. We were witness to some instant classics, redemption for some teams and more sorrow for others and we learned a lot about several teams in the process. So without further ado, let's take a look at the top stories from the field.

1. Drew Brees and Eli Manning can ball. This was without a doubt one of the coolest games I've seen in recent years because it's not everyday you witness a record tying, record breaking shootout on the field. I mean come on, it was touchdown after touchdown and it was completely and utterly amazing to watch these two quarterbacks duke it out like this and I'm still stunned to have been witness to Drew Brees tying the single game touchdown record with seven and that Eli was right behind him with six. This game is simply an instant classic and I'm not sure if I'll ever see anything quite this amazing ever again.

2. Okay, it's time to take the Cincinnati Bengals seriously. At 7-0 this team has faced some incredible adversity and they just keep finding new ways to win games. Doesn't matter if the defense has figured out Andy Dalton, he finds a way to get the ball downfield. Doesn't matter if they stop the run, the Bengals line opens up new holes and it doesn't matter if you score on the Cincy defense, they will find a way to shut you down because this team is scary good. Teams like this, the kind that find the right weakness at the right time and never quit regardless of the odds facing them are ones to worry about and this 7-0 start is putting the league on notice that the Bengals are no longer the butt of football jokes, they're for real.

3. Something strange is going on in Atlanta, a team once undefeated is now sitting at 6-2 and while that's not exactly cause for concern, those two losses have come against absolutely abysmal teams in Washington and Tampa Bay, and that is why this is suddenly newsworthy to me. In the two games in question that Atlanta has lost, they seem...unprepared and unwilling to put down their opponent, which is odd considering their level of talent on offense and defense and well, I can only figure it's one thing in particular that caused these losses...they don't take their "lesser" opponents seriously. This simply looks like piss poor preparation on their part and that's something that needs to change quickly because if they underestimate a bigger opponent somewhere down the line...say a playoff game, it will cost them dearly. 

4. The Denver Broncos FINALLY put it all together Sunday Night and added a treat for their fans on Monday. I'm not sure exactly what changed during the bye week for the Broncos, but it worked and please don't stop doing what you're doing, but while their performance Sunday was primarily going to be the discussion in this segment of today's article, something special came up late Monday that manages to supersede all of that...the fact that the Broncos traded for Vernon Davis. This has merit simply because the Broncos basically robbed the 49ers by getting him for a pair of sixth rounders and once again, Peyton Manning has that extra weapon in the fold after losing Julius Thomas to free agency. It's just another fine example of John Elway wheeling and dealing to keep his team competitive and I know myself and other Broncos fans can't wait to see what Davis does on the field.

5. As of press time for this article, another team has decided to make a head coaching change. Yes, the Tennessee Titans have relieved Ken Whisenhunt of his coaching duties, putting an end to an era that well...was not one the Titans and their fans want to remember. Whisenhunt, an offensive mastermind who managed to take the Arizona Cardinals to a Super Bowl was expected to turn the Titans into a contender, but that simply never happened with a 2-14 record in 2014 and a 1-6 start in 2015 despite having one of the top quarterbacks from the draft on his team. He leaves the Titans with a 3-20 record and Mike Mularkey, the Assistant Head Coach/Tight Ends Coach will assume the Interim responsibilities, and here's to hoping Ken finally finds the right fit coaching job wise because unfortunately it simply didn't work out in Tennessee.

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