Bills' Bay Day Gives Patriots Path to Top Spot - Highlights of NFL Week 10
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The tenth week once more provided excitement, with a huge upset for the Buffalo Bills proving the 'any given Sunday' saying that attracts so many people into the National Football League
This outcome may have opened opportunities for the New England Patriots to creep back into a top spot they used to occupy, with a remaining games that gives them an advantage over their eight and two competitors
Over in the National Football Conference the Seattle Seahawks and Rams had ideal outcomes to arrange a major confrontation next week, while our player of the week is chasing records as well as the MVP award
Analysis - Simply an Off Day for Buffalo?
Was it just an emotional comedown from beating the Chiefs last week or something more? That's the question for the Bills to address
The Buffalo squad had won seven in a row against the Dolphins but were outperformed from the start as the Miami team emerged as 30-13 victors in an surprising outcome - and performance
MVP Josh Allen only achieved the squad's opening first down in the third period and initial scoring in the final quarter - yes the Dolphins had ten days to get ready but it was still a massive egg laid by one of the NFL's top offences
Dolphins quarterback Tua passed for two touchdowns but rusher Achane was the devastating difference, with 225 combined yards and two scores
Bottling up the league's best running game was crucial too, with Cook and teammates registering just 86 yards, their fewest of the season and just over fifty percent their 161.5-yard average
Then there were the three critical turnovers, and the pair from Josh Allen specifically. An pass caught by defense in the end zone meaning a nine minute drive yielded no points, and his final quarter fumble that the Dolphins turned into a touchdown just later
It was classic 'previous Bills teams' as they hurt themselves in the foot, getting into a hole on defense and Josh Allen trying to do too much to rescue his squad from the situation - rather than the calm, disciplined, balanced Bills we've seen this year
The Dolphins have served up a varied performances this year so the verdict is uncertain on whether this is the start of something, but for the Bills they'll require an immediate bounce-back in a tough game against Tampa Bay in week 11 as the Patriots are sneaking into a nice lead at the top of the AFC East
In Focus - New England See Path to Unexpected First Place
Regarding the New England, they're one of three different eight and two teams in the league, all American Football Conference teams, but are they the top team?
You can pick holes in the Patriots, Denver and Indianapolis actually for dominating the lesser sides, with just five of their total 24 victories achieved against opponents with a positive record - and one of those was the Indianapolis defeating the Denver
Denver beat the champion Eagles in Philly and are masters of the final quarter while Indianapolis can ride Taylor, but the New England including Sunday's victory in Tampa Bay to their prime time win in Buffalo appears to be a declaration
Their pair of losses came in recently appointed coach Vrabel's initial three contests, with seven straight wins, just like Denver, since then - but taking down Mayfield after the Buccaneers had a week off to get ready was huge
Drake Maye's Most Valuable Player credentials won't go away, and he certainly deserves point for courage after taking some hard tackles in Tampa but persevering to guide his team to success
The defense is reliable and first-year running back Henderson burst onto the scene on game day with 147 rushing yards and two exciting scores of 55 and 69 yards - establishing himself as just the fifth ball carrier to exceed 22 miles per hour this year on his first score
Although you can argue who 'the top team' is technically, the Pats should be favorites to end with the best record thanks to their schedule - which includes just a single matchup against a successful opponent, although a huge one against Buffalo
Visiting the Ravens is also tough, but the Broncos have it even tougher in the AFC West with the Chiefs to face two times, the Los Angeles Chargers (who might also challenge for top seed but encounter the same problem) and also the Green Bay on the schedule
The Colts also play the Kansas City, and have the Seahawks, San Francisco and two games with the 5-4 Jacksonville to face. There is a long way to go but the door is open for a shock top seed in the American Football Conference
Next Week - Rams & Seahawks Set for Next Week Showdown
Two teams with strong arguments to be better than all of the three 8-2 sides are NFC West rivals the Seahawks and Rams, who each scored forty points to go to seven and two before the upcoming major game between the pair in Los Angeles
They've both won four in a consecutive games, have signal callers in Stafford and Darnold playing at an elite level (although Sam Darnold had turnover issues on Sunday) with top receivers, and defensive units allowing under 20 points a contest
Both could realistically be undefeated as well - especially the Rams as their two defeats occurred in overtime against the San Francisco and then that painful defeat in Philly when they had a game-winning field goal with the final play deflected and run back by the Eagles for a touchdown
Seattle were also defeated to San Francisco, with a last-minute score in the opening week, before falling to the final play of the contest against the Tampa Bay - so they're genuinely two of the top teams in the league
The next matchup on Sunday could be the best of the season so far
Player of the Week - Jonathan Taylor
Jonathan Taylor might be on for a record season after his remarkable performance in Berlin - rushing for 244 yards, registering three touchdowns and contributing another 42 {receiving yards