NFL Week 7 Report Cards: 25 Winners and Losers From Sunday's Action
This week's action on the field provided some jaw-dropping surprises, as big plays and big mistakes caused havoc in Week 7 of the NFL.
There were a lot of winners on Sunday, but that came at the expense of a lot of losers, and this piece will focus on both sides of the coin as we look at who made a difference, good and bad.
If the sight of a Cleveland Browns guy raising his hand in a "We're No. 1" sign makes you shake your head in wonder, get ready for more surprises as we head through the games.
*NOTE: This piece will be updated as the late games finish.
Loser: Jay Cutler
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Jay Cutler threw four interceptions and was sacked four times on Sunday versus the Washington Redskins. He also lost a fumble in the mess that became his day.
Cutler's season rapidly is going downhill, and there's little chance his body can keep taking the kind of pounding it has been absorbing before he misses some games again.
Winner: The Redskins Defense
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DeAngelo Hall intercepted Jay Cutler four times, the defense as a unit sacked Cutler four times, and I even think they beat up his little brother and stole his lunch money in the fourth quarter.
The Redskins defense was on fire on Sunday, going 6-for-6 on third-down stoppages in the first half.
Loser: Drew Brees
3 of 25
Drew Brees threw four interceptions, three in the first half. While Bress threw for 357 yards, the Saints were able to march down the field and score in what essentially was garbage time.
The Saints offense didn't look good, and Brees played even worse. It's back to the drawing board for the Saints as they try and figure out what went wrong this season.
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Winner: Cleveland Browns Defense
4 of 25
The Cleveland Browns defense made Drew Brees look like anything but a Super Bowl-winning quarterback as they constantly changed looks and kept the offense from making adjustments throughout the afternoon.
The Saints couldn't adjust and despite the Browns' notoriously weak secondary, the passing game wasn't much of an issue.
Loser: Atlanta's Defense
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The Falcons defense gave up 22 points in the third quarter.
Wouldn't you like to be a fly on the wall at the defensive unit meetings this week? Not sure if those meetings are going to be ugly, or REALLY ugly.
Winner: Roddy White
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Roddy White had 11 catches for 201 receiving yards on the day versus the Cincinnati Bengals. Two of those catches were for touchdowns.
The Bengals secondary had no answer for White, and the Falcons took advantage of injuries to Bengals corner Johnathan Joseph and Adam Jones. Jones suffered a stinger in the second half.
Loser: Ikaika Alama-Francis
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Ikaika Alama-Francis said he had possession of a controversial fumble at the end of the Steelers game, but the referees ruled there wasn't enough video evidence to award the ball to Miami.
As a result, the Steelers were able to boot the game-winning field goal.
Winner: Ben Roethlisberger
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Despite fumbling the ball on the goal line, the referees ruled in Pittsburgh's favor, and the Steelers got out of Miami with a one-point win.
Roethlisberger threw for 302 yards and two touchdowns, but all anyone will talk about is the charmed life the Steelers led on the field.
Loser: Kevin Kolb
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Kevin Kolb threw for 231 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He got little help from the running game and spent a lot of time on the run.
He now gets to watch Michael Vick start again, as Andy Reid announced Vick will get the starting job back after the bye week.
Of course, if the quarterback is going to spend a lot of time running, it makes sense to put Vick in.
Winner: Tennessee Titans Offense
10 of 25
Kerry Collins only went out and threw for 276 yards and three touchdowns on Sunday. All three of those touchdown passes went to Kenny Britt, who allegedly was involved in a bar room brawl early Friday.
Did you have Britt activated on your fantasy team?
Loser: The St. Louis Rams Defense
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On a day where one play was going to make the difference, the St. Louis Rams defense allowed the Buccaneers to control the ball for more than 17 minutes in the second half of the game.
The Bucs won the time-of-posession battle, and they won the game.
Winner: Josh Freeman
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Josh Freeman led the Bucs on a fourth quarter comeback to win the game.
Culminating in a one-yard run by Cadillac Williams, Freeman proved yet again that he can perform when the game is on the line. If the Bucs can pull the rest of the pieces together, the Buccaneers wil become a force to be reckoned with in the NFL.
Loser: Alex Smith
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Alex Smith threw for only 129 yards and one touchdown before spraining his shoulder. This on top of the comment from head coach Mike Singletary that his hold on the starting job is "week-to-week."
There's never a "good" time to get an injury, but this certainly ranks as a bad time.
Winner: John Fox
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John Fox's decision to start Matt Moore at quarterback in favor of rookie Jimmy Clausen paid off, and now the Panthers have their first victory of the year.
Moore threw for more than 300 yards and two touchdowns with only one pick on the day, as the Panthers beat the equally-scrambling San Francisco 49ers.
This will cool Fox's hot seat, but only until the next loss.
Winner: Todd Bouman
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Todd Bouman came out and played well a few days after being signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Bouman threw for 222 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, but that's really the tip of the iceberg as Bouman looked poised and confident despite being out of football for the entire 2009 season.
Winner: Thomas Jones
16 of 25
Of all the good performances on the Chiefs on Sunday, you have to tip your hat to Thomas Jones running for 125 yards on 20 carries, including a 70-yard dash down the field.
Loser: The Broncos
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It's hard to single out any one performance on the Broncos' end. This was a complete team loss. The offense couldn't put points on the board and the defense couldn't stop the Raiders from scoring.
Head coach Josh McDaniels has a lot of work to do this weekend.
Winner: Darren McFadden
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Darren McFadden: Four touchdowns, three of them on the ground; 165 rushing yards, and 31 receiving yards.
What did your player do today?
Loser: Norv Turner
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Norv Turner has one of the best offensive units in the league this year, and a precious little to show for it. In a game that certainly looked winnable, the team came up one football short as the kick from Kris Brown to tie the game and send it into overtime donked off the uprights.
Mental mistakes that a coach is supposed to prevent sunk the Chargers this week.
Winner: Ray Lewis
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Ray Lewis got the ball out of Shawn Nelson's hands in overtime that turned into a game-winning field goal.
This was a bright spot on the day because...
Loser: The Rest Of The Ravens Defense
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The Ravens gave up 505 yards to the Buffalo Bills offense on Sunday.
The Bills are 0-6.
To say the Ravens defense didn't have a good day would be an understatment.
Winner: Derek Anderson
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An injury to Max Hall allowed Derek Anderson to go back in the game. This also could be construed as a "win" for Hall, since Anderson then really didn't do much with the time he had, going 8-for-17 for 96 yards.
At least he didn't throw an interception.
Winner: Jordan Shipley
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Jordan Shipley was just a small factor in the Bengals' loss to the Atlanta Falcons. He had 131 yards on six receptions, one of which was a touchdown.
Winner: Aaron Rodgers
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No matter what happens tonight, Aaron Rodgers has handled his situation in Green Bay with a lot of character and a lot of class. He's persevered through the tough times and didn't make a big deal out of his concussion.
The fans in Green Bay love him right now, and he'll be under the lights on Sunday Night Football tonight.
Loser: Brett Favre
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Likewise, no matter what happens tonight, Brett Favre has the sexting issue still hanging over his head, his acrimonious exit from Green Bay, and the never-ending drama that surrounds his retirement.
Age, and his own ego, are finally catching up with Favre.
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