Carolina 37, Green Bay 29

Carolina keeps beating contenders and it’s time to give them the respect they deserve.  The Panthers can beat anyone, anywhere with Cam Newton.  Green Bay is looking more and more like a mediocre team with a great quarterback.  Weird stat of the day: Aaron Rodgers has an 0-25 record when trailing by two scores in the second half of a game.

New England 27, Washington 10

The Patriots look like the best team in the NFL, but they’ll have to do it the rest of the way without Dion Lewis, who tore his ACL. Tough loss.  Washington has issues under center and in the locker room.  Major changes are necessary in the offseason.

Tennessee 34, New Orleans 28 (OT)

The Titans certainly made the right pick with Marcus Mariota, who gives them hope.  Just a few years ago, it was unthinkable that a last place team with a rookie quarterback could enter the Superdome and beat the Saints with Drew Brees and Sean Payton.  Sunday was a costly loss for New Orleans.

Buffalo 33, Miami 17

Tyrod Taylor makes all the difference for the Bills, as we is able to turn Sammy Watkins into a real weapon.  If he continues to progress, Buffalo could be good for a long time.  The Dolphins are officially back to Earth and that means they’re just a mediocre team with an overpaid defensive tackle.

Minnesota 21, St. Louis 18

The Vikings lost Teddy Bridgewater to a concussion, but they will be just fine in the meantime with Shaun Hill.  The Rams proved that they aren’t a legitimate playoff contender until they get a real quarterback, again.

New York Jets 28, Jacksonville 23

The Jets can simply do things on defense that few other teams can do thanks to Darrelle Revis.  The Jaguars committed four turnovers and only lost by five points.  It’s a sign of progress.

Pittsburgh 38, Oakland 35

It appears that 2015 is simply not going to be the Steelers year as Ben Roethlisberger went down again and might miss a few weeks.  The Raiders were impressive in their loss, and they are a legitimate opponent for anyone.

New York Giants 32, Tampa Bay 18

New York struggled more than a first place team should with the Bucs.  With that said, each win is a bonus in a bad NFC East.  No turnovers for Jameis Winston, but he needs to be better in the red zone.

San Francisco 17, Atlanta 16

Blaine Gabbert won an NFL game as a starting quarterback; that’s more of an indictment on the Falcons.  Dan Quinn didn’t trust his team to get one yard with the game on the line.  Playing not to lose causes…well, you know.  The Falcons are a sinking ship.

Indianapolis 27, Denver 24

Andrew Luck looked like Andrew Luck again, and the Colts registered their most impressive win of the season and again look like the best team in the AFC South “tallest midget contest.”  Peyton Manning isn’t good enough to get the Broncos where they need to be, and their running game isn’t good enough to carry him.   

Philadelphia 33, Dallas 27

Philly did just enough to get by in Dallas, but they really don’t look like a contender.  The Cowboys need to give Tony Romo a raise.

Chicago 22, San Diego 19

Quietly, Jay Cutler is playing very good football, and he has all year.  Maybe he’s not the problem in Chicago?  The Chargers simply have too many injuries to win, but they should get some credit for competing week in and week out.