NFL Week 7: Complete Report Card For Every NFL Team
NFL Week 7 has brought a lot of surprises, some upsets, and a lot fewer helmet-to-helmet hits.
Buffalo put up a heck of a fight against the Baltimore Ravens, while the Cleveland Browns surprised everybody in New Orleans.
Some teams are coming out of the week with an unexpected "A," while others are hoping their parents don't see the report card.
So click on to see how each team did this weekend.
*NOTE: This piece will be updated at the conclusion of the late afternoon games and the Sunday Night Football game between Minnesota and Green Bay.
Chicago Bears
1 of 26
Grade: F
The Bears are who we thought they were, and the record is starting to show it.
Four picks from Jay Cutler, no running game worth talking about, and even a lost fumble added up to another day Cutler would rather forget.
The defense kept the turnovers from turning the game into a complete rout, but there's only so much one unit can do.
Denver Broncos
2 of 26
Grade: F
The Oakland Raiders may be improving as the 2010 season progresses, but they are by no means an elite team, and they put up 59 points against the Broncos on Sunday.
Kyle Orton, previously a yardage machine, couldn't get 200 yards on the day and the Bronco's complete lack of a running game came back to haunt them as the Raiders were able to hold the Broncos to just 75 total rushing yards on the day.
Jacksonville Jaguars
3 of 26
Grade: D
The only reason this grade isn't an "F" is because Todd Bouman was the starting quarterback for the Jaguars; what did you expect to happen?
Still, the Jaguars were unable to fully utilize Maurice Jones-Drew, who had only 47 yards on 16 touches on the ground. He had 74 receiving yards, including a touchdown, but again, Jones-Drew should have had more impact on the ground, and the Chiefs just shut the running game down.
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Arizona Cardinals
4 of 26
Grade: D
The Cardinals are starting to look like the team many thought they were turning into: A bad team with no quarterback.
Max Hall left the game in the third quarter after a "blow to the head," and in came Derek Anderson, which usually only lasts a few games because Derek Anderson never has been the answer to a struggling offense. See: Browns, Cleveland.
Despite limiting the Seahawks offense to one touchdown, it was the five field goals that made the difference in the game for Arizona.
New Orleans Saints
5 of 26
Grade: D
These are supposed to be the defending Super Bowl Champions, and the Saints now have lost to the Cleveland Browns, and almost lost to the San Francisco 49ers.
These all were supposed to be winnable games, and the Saints aren't winning them. Three first-half interceptions were too much to overcome in the second half, and the Saints still have to figure out how to fix their problems.
The Browns started a rookie quarterback and have one of the worst secondaries in the league, yet the Saints had no answers out there, with one of their two touchdowns coming essentially in garbage time.
San Diego Chargers
6 of 26
Grade: D+
The Chargers rapidly are running out of excuses why they can't win games despite having one of the best offensive units in the game.
While the Patriots are no pushovers, it seemed like the Chargers had about 10 chances to win the game in the closing minutes and couldn't capitalize on any of them.
It doesn't matter how "good" the Chargers are at moving the ball and scoring points if it's always less than what the opponent put up.
Minnesota Vikings
7 of 26
Grade: C-
The Vikings hung in there with the Packers, but they are refusing to admit Brett Favre is hurting them as much as he is helping them. Favre threw three interceptions on the night and was not able to rekindle any of his old magic in the final minutes of the game.
Cincinnati Bengals
8 of 26
Grade: C
The Bengals really came out and played the Falcons hard, but it wasn't good enough despite great days from Carson Palmer, Terrell Owens, Chad Ochocinco and Jordan Shipley.
Palmer threw for more than 400 yards, but the Bengals still couldn't win after scoring 22 points in the third quarter while capitalizing on two turnovers.
Seattle Seahawks
9 of 26
Grade: C
Seattle may have won, but 15 of their 22 points were field goals against a team whose starting quarterback was an undrafted free agent rookie, replaced in the second half by Derek Anderson.
This is not a win to keep showing highlight clips of.
Philadelphia Eagles
10 of 26
Grade: C
The Eagles got beat out there today, but the Tennessee Titans are a very good team.
Kevin Kolb looked okay, but the Titans defense kept him on the run and most likely kept the Eagles' offense from settling in and executing their game plan.
LeSean McCoy didn't have much of an impact on the game, only 48 rushing yards, and the defense let Kerry Collins throw for three touchdowns.
Miami Dolphins
11 of 26
Grade: C+
The Dolphins hung in there with one of the best defenses in the league right now, as Chad Henne threw for 257 yards and a touchdown, but it wasn't enough as the Steelers shut down Ricky Williams, who had 11 touches for 48 yards.
Henne couldn't come through at the end of the game.
The Dolphins defense limited the Steelers to just 58 rushing yards, but Ben Roethlisberger had 302 yards and two touchdowns on the day.
You're probably not going to beat the Steelers this year if you let Roethlisberger throw for more than 300 yards.
San Francisco 49ers
12 of 26
Grade: C+
The Niners stayed in the game and they established the run as Frank Gore ran for 102 yards.
But Alex Smith only threw for 129 yards and one touchdown, making one wonder if it will be enough for him to keep his job, especially now that he's dealing with a sprained shoulder.
The defense gave up more than 300 passing yards and allowed the Carolina Panthers to win their first game of the year, but for San Francisco, this wasn't that bad of a showing.
St. Louis Rams
13 of 26
Grade: B-
The Rams played well in a losing effort, as Sam Bradford thew for two touchdowns and Steven Jackson had 110 rushing yards.
However, the defense did allow Josh Freeman to throw for 212 yards and a touchdown in a low-scoring game.
Overall, Rams fans can be pleased with the progress even if the results aren't very good. The Rams already are way ahead this year in the win column.
Pittsburgh Steelers
14 of 26
Grade: B-
Ben Roethlisberger threw for more than 300 yards, 101 of those to Hines Ward.
The Pittsburgh Steelers defense finally had a bad day, though, allowing the Miami Dolphins to score more than 20 points, but did stop Chad Henne at the end of the game.
However, the Steelers needed a controversial call to go their way toward the end of the game when Roethlisberger apparently fumbled on the goal line.
The Dolphins aren't a bad team, but the Steelers should have had this game in hand by the fourth quarter.
Baltimore Ravens
15 of 26
Grade: B-
The only reason this grade isn't lower is because the Ravens won. The Ravens allowed the Bills, one of the worst teams in the league, to get a lead and keep the game close, needing overtime to win it with a field goal.
The Ravens defense gave up a total of 505 yards and looked nothing like the unit that usually strikes fear into opposing head coaches.
It's true the Ravens may have been a victim of the new enforcement policy for helmet-to-helmet hits as replays clearly showed Bills receivers catching the ball unmolested in situation where they probably would have been destroyed previously.
But the enforcement is universal and it is up to the Ravens to adapt.
Washington Redskins
16 of 26
Grade: B
The Redskins won, but managed only 17 points in a game that featured four Jay Cutler interceptions.
Donovan McNabb threw for 200 yards and Ryan Torain had a great day with 125 rushing yards.
Still, this is a game the Redskins should've have completely dominated and didn't. Instead it feels like they were lucky to get out of Chicago with a win.
New England Patriots
17 of 26
Grade: B
The New England Patriots are grinding out wins by being just a little bit better than their opponents and not making game-changing mistakes.
Today, the Patriots kept giving the Chargers a chance to win the game and the Chargers refused to take the bait.
While the Patriots got the victory, Phillip Rivers was the better quarterback on the day, and the Patriots had nothing resembling a running game.
Green Bay Packers
18 of 26
Grade: B
The Packers pulled out a victory Sunday night, and they did it by not killing themselves with penalties and mental errors.
The Packers definitely are looking improved after their game with the Vikings, but no one there will tell you there still isn't more work to do.
Carolina Panthers
19 of 26
Grade: B
There's nothing about this performance that would make you want to give them an "A," but a win is a win is a win, and the Panthers didn't have any of those before today.
Matt Moore reclaimed his starting position and threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns.
The defense shut Alex Smith down but allowed Frank Gore to get 102 yards on the ground.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
20 of 26
Grade: B
The Buccaneers showed they still are an improving team as they beat the St. Louis Rams, but not by much.
Josh Freeman threw for more than 200 yards, but the win was far from dominating against a team that clearly is a year or two behind Tampa Bay in the rebuilding process.
Buffalo Bills
21 of 26
Grade: B+
The only reason this grade isn't an "A," is because the Bills lost. That being said, the Bills, who still have yet to win a game, actually had a lead on the Baltimore Ravens, and the Ravens only won by a field goal.
Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for four touchdowns, but the two interceptions and the failure to execute at the end of the fourth quarter and in overtime are just a few of the many reasons the Bills are winless.
Atlanta Falcons
22 of 26
Grade: B+
The Falcons' offensive stats show they put a really good game together, but the fact their defense allowed both Jordan Shipley and Chad Ochocinco to have more than 100 receiving yards brings this grade down.
The defense allowed Carson Palmer to throw for more than 400 yards total, and Cedric Benson got 70 yards on the ground.
The Falcons did outlast the Bengals, though, as Matt Ryan threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns.
Michael Turner ran for 129 yards, and at the end of the day, the Falcons won the game.
Oakland Raiders
23 of 26
Grade: A
You put 59 points on the board, you get an A.
The Raiders turned into an unstoppable juggernaut versus the Broncos on Sunday as Jason Campbell threw for 204 yards and two touchdowns while Darren McFadden ran for 165 yards and three touchdowns.
McFadden also had one receiving touchdown, making him one of the more popular fantasy players on the day.
Cleveland Browns
24 of 26
Grade: A
The Browns defense flat-out flummoxed Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints offense with no consistent blitz package or "look," intercepting Brees four times, three in the first half.
The Browns offense and special teams pulled a few trick plays out like a fake punt and a lateral pass, gaining 150 yards off of trick plays.
Colt McCoy once again proved why he could be the quarterback of the future for Cleveland by committing no turnovers, but throwing for only 74 yards on a day where the defense dominated.
Tennessee Titans
25 of 26
Grade: A
The Titans came out and beat the Philadelphia Eagles with their backup quarterback and a receiver who may be facing suspension for allegedly being involved in a bar brawl on Friday night.
Kenny Britt had 225 receiving yards and three touchdowns while Chris Johnson only managed 66 yards on the ground.
The Titans defense, meanwhile, kept the Eagles from settling in and kept Kevin Kolb on the run.
Kansas City Chiefs
26 of 26
Grade: A+
The Kansas City Chiefs went out and did exactly what they were supposed to do, they went out and beat the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Matt Cassel didn't get 200 yards in the air, but he did get two touchdowns and the defense came up with a touchdown of their own.
The Chiefs continue to be one of the biggest surprises of the year.
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