The Good, the Bad and the Denver Broncos: The Best and Worst Teams of Week 7

Gotta love the parity in the NFL.

Week 7 had some big upsets, big points and big disappointments. The Chiefs keep winning and the Raiders are joining the division race. The Saints are falling apart, and the Broncos fell apart.

So here are some of the best and worst performances of Week 7.


The Good

All hail the Chiefs. Kansas City did what good teams do. They beat an inferior opponent like they were supposed to. They didn't just beat the Jaguars, they crushed them 42-20. Matt Cassel didn't hit 200 yards, but he didn't need to. Thomas Jones and Jamaal Charles combined for 196 yards rushing and two TDs. Who would have thought the Chief and Raiders would be battling for the AFC West?

The Raiders posted 59 points on the Broncos. Now that's good. Darren McFadden ran all over Denver's defense (165 yards and three scores on the ground). He also added a receiving touchdown from Jason Campbell who added a second TD through the air to tight end Zach Miller.

The Falcons continue to show why they are the best team in the NFC. It wasn't the prettiest of wins as Carson Palmer shredded Atlanta's defense for 400 yards. But Matt Ryan had a 299-yard, three-TD day and Michael Turner ran for 129 with a TD and the Falcons won the game.

The Browns took care of business against the defending Super Bowl champs. Colt McCoy didn't do anything to win the game, but he certainly didn't do anything to lose it either. Peyton Hillis had another TD and the defense picked Drew Brees off four times.

The Bad

The Chargers just can't figure out a way to win games. They are soft. Not that the Patriots are an easy team to beat, but San Diego just can't get it together when it counts. What makes even more vexing is they have one of the top offensive units in the NFL. Even holding Tom Brady to 159 yards wasn't enough for this team to get it done.

The Bengals couldn't pull off a victory in a game where Carson Palmer actually put on a great performance. Palmer posted 412 yards and three TDs. Cincinnati is pretty much done with Pittsburgh and Baltimore in their division.


The Ugly

The Broncos got lit up, and I mean LIT UP, by the Raiders on Sunday. Darren McFadden looked like he was playing a pee-wee team scoring four TDs. Kyle Orton didn't sniff 300 yards, and the Broncos had 75 yards rushing. The lack of running game is really starting to kill Denver.

The Saints are not playing like the team they were last year when they won the Super Bowl. Granted, they are missing their two best running backs in Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas. Drew Brees is struggling right now and threw three picks in the first half and finishing with four. Cleveland started a rookie QB and not exactly the best secondary in the league and New Orleans had could not capitalize.