Three games from this week stood out to me – CIN/BAL, SF/TB, and PIT/WAS. These three games were well played and very close. All three had a playoff feel to them. They were intense, there were stakes, and the quality of football was better in these three games than in most of the others from the week.

We are in November now. Teams have started to separate themselves from the pack. But not all of them are battle tested and ready for they are going to face as games gain in importance. Washington is a great example. They had a two score lead in this game, but down the stretch they simply couldn’t match the intensity of Pittsburgh. We’re going to see more of this from young teams that are getting their first taste of success.

Teams like Minnesota and Atlanta worry me. These were not intense games, and they competition wasn’t high level. Yet, both teams felt like the crumbled under the pressure of high expectations. Silly mental errors resulted in poor performances from both offenses. We’ve seen these teams play well, but can they sustain it when the pressure of a playoff berth is staring them in the face?

Not all winning records are equal in the NFL. Let’s keep an eye out for those teams that might not be ready for primetime!

CIN @ BAL
Defense optional? How else do you describe this game? What came through loud and clear in this game is that the Ravens coaching staff does not trust their secondary at all. Sending pressure would have required the back end of the defense to be in man coverage. Instead they played a lot of zone and Burrow simply picked them apart with crossing patterns. The Bengals defense wasn’t much better. Tackling, or even just pushing people out of bounds, could have changed the outcome for either team.

That said, can anyone stop either of these offenses when they are playing at such a high level?

NYG @ CAR
Early in the season, the Giants offense was pushing the ball downfield to Malik Nabors. When he went out, the offense got more conservative, relied on the run and short passes. Since Nabors has been back, they haven’t returned to that downfield passing attack and it was obvious against the Panthers. For three quarters the Giants couldn’t move the ball, dinking and dunking and running straight into the teeth of the Panther defense. In the fourth quarter, they started throwing freely and the offense finally looked better. Is this a case of Daboll not trusting Daniel Jones?

For the Panthers, this was a good win. Not because they needed a win or because the Giants are a good measuring stick team. This was a good win because Bryce Young looked like he finally found his confidence again.

NE @ CHI
This was a bad loss for Chicago, in Chicago. The lack of urgency for this team was on display again when Montez Sweat got called for offsides at the end of the first half. The Patriots won this game with hustle and grit, but they also looked like the better coached team.

Caleb Williams is broken. He’s hesitating when his guys are open. His eyes drop as soon as he feels pressure. He holds the ball too long. He’s not aggressive. Compare that to Drake Maye in this game. Maye threw some bad balls – but he threw them. He got pressured, but he escaped and made positive yards. He threw into coverage and trusted his receivers – and they caught it. Williams has gone from the best QB prospect from the draft to fourth.

Oh and the Bears defense needs to figure out how to stop the run or they might not find another win on their schedule.

BUF @ IND
Both teams were careless with the football in this game. Joe Flacco has become too predictable, lasering in on Downs. What’s funny is that the Colts were dominating with the run game early. Why not keep that going and play a ball control, keep away style game? Getting into a shootout with Josh Allen is not going to end well for most teams.

DEN @ KC
Heartbreaking loss for Denver. But the question I kept having while watching this game was “Are the Broncos playing the Chiefs tough, or are the Chiefs having an off game?”

The positives for the Broncos: the defensive line disrupted and outplayed the Chiefs offensive line. Also, Bo Nix made the plays in crunch time to get the team in position to win. On the road, against Mahomes, that is an accomplishment.

The negatives: the Broncos could not move the ball in the second half. Part of it was play calling, part of it was dropped passes. Either way, the game was lost in the second half.

ATL @ NO
Missed field goal, interception, strip sack recovered by offense but cost the final timeout. That’s how the Falcons finished the game. The problem with playing every team close is that in games you should win, a late game mistake costs you the game. They had three. Atlanta looked like a team that wasn’t very motivated in this game. There was hardly any pressure on Derek Carr, even though the entire football world knows that’s how you beat him. Just a bad game for the Falcons.

The Saints got a few big plays out of the passing game early, but then fell into the same slog of an offense late in the game. Even Kamara dropped a pass that would have iced the game for them.

SF @ TB
The Baker Mayfield stiff arm on Bosa, in the fourth quarter, on fourth down was an absolute beast move. But this game was lost in the fourth quarter because Tampa shifted what they were doing on offense. All through the third quarter, Irving was absolutely destroying the 49er defense with power runs and outside sweeps. The offensive line was pushing the 49er front seven around. For the first two series in the fourth quarter, the Bucs threw the ball and punted. They had the 49ers on their heels and then let them up. It’s too bad, because they outplayed the 49ers for large parts of this game.

What have been the biggest problems for the 49ers this year? Red zone offense and a lack of physicality. What were the problems in this game? Yep, those and apparently a kicker who had his worst game ever. The good news though is that McCaffery played the whole game and didn’t look too bad. It’s going to take a few weeks to get back into football shape. The passing game did well, even if the offensive line struggled to protect Purdy.

For those who think this game wouldn’t have been close if the kicker had made his kicks, think about this. The game wouldn’t have been close if Mike Evans had played either.

PIT @ WAS
This was a good well balanced game. The Pittsburgh defensive front did a great job shutting down the Washington run game and keeping Jayden Daniels uncomfortable in the pocket. In a game full of stars, this felt like an older brother using experience to beat a more talented younger brother.

MIN @ JAX
Ugly game for Sam Darnold and an ugly win for the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings quality control team needs to do some extra work this week. The Jaguars defense looked like they were running the routes instead of the Vikings wide receivers. There is likely a tell that teams have identified, letting them know what play/route is coming.

Jacksonville has played good football at times throughout this season, but never seem to make the winning football plays. I don’t know that this game would have ended any different if Lawrence had played.

TEN @ LAC
The Chargers offense continues to be boring. But that’s not entirely a bad thing. Being efficient, getting a good run game, and taking what the defense gives you in the passing game has done well for them so far this season. They did a great job in this game against a very good Titans defense, attacking their strength with runs up the middle and getting good yards out of it. That’s a confidence builder for some of the tough matchups they have coming up.

The pass to Ridley in the first quarter is why Will Levis continues to get chances to start. His desire to always go for the big play is what causes so many negative plays. He didn’t have the big turnover in this game, but he kept looking deep and passed up chances to hit his open underneath options. It led to sacks and killed momentum on their drives.

PHI @ DAL
There was no way Cooper Rush was going to be able to elevate this offense. But this was a disaster of an offensive game for the Dallas Cowboys. Elliot fumbling on the goal line was just a perfect example of how his season has been going. I think we’ll see Trey Lance the rest of the way as Dallas looks to next season and getting the best draft pick possible.

The Eagles played smart and didn’t do anything that could give Dallas life. Sometimes being patient is underrated and I applaud the coaching staff for keeping things simple. For this year at least, Washington, not Dallas is who they need to prepare for down the stretch.

NYJ @ ARI
Two things stopped any chance the Jets had at winning on Sunday. The first was the defense not tackling. They kept trying to be big hitters and knock the Cardinals running backs down. Instead, the Connor et al just kept driving their legs and powering out more yards. The second thing was Aaron Rodgers complete lack of accuracy. How many times did he throw the ball to an empty spot on the field? If he was any other quarterback, coaches would be starting the backup by now.

Arizona just managed two straight games without giving up a touchdown. Granted that was against the Bears and Jets who are both struggling offensively, but its still a streak you rarely see in the NFL.

DET @ HOU
I’m really not sure what I just watched here? Jared Goff throws 5 interceptions and Detroit still wins? That’s team of destiny type of stuff right there.

Houston desperately needs Nico Collins back in the lineup. In the second half, the offense got conservative and didn’t challenge the Lions defense. Instead, the Lions kept bringing blitzes to get pressure on Stroud and stifle their momentum. Collins would have kept the Lions defense honest, and maybe that would have been the difference in the game.