NFL Week 10 overreactions, reality checks: Lions biggest threat in NFC to Eagles? Texans win AFC South?
What a crazy Week 10 in the NFL, one of the more entertaining Sundays of the season. The Detroit Lions won a shootout against the Los Angeles Chargers on a last-second field goal and the Cleveland Browns overcame a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter to upset the Baltimore Ravens (Cleveland only led for 40 seconds!).
This is the first week in NFL history in which five games ended with a game-winning field goal on the final play of regulation, adding to the drama that unfolded in the Week 10 slate of Sunday games. There are plenty of playoff implications that are coming into focus as the calendar hits mid-November, adding even more overreactions as the second half of the season begins.
Which are overreactions and which are reality? The Sunday slate of games evidenced some truths around the league.
The Colts are .500 after a win over the Patriots, quite frankly taking care of business against the worst team in the conference. After Sunday’s win, the Colts are currently 10th in the AFC, sitting within striking distance of a playoff berth.
Sure, the Colts are in the playoff hunt, but so are 12 other teams in the AFC. A win over the Patriots was needed to stay in the hunt, but Indianapolis will need more from backup quarterback Gardner Minshew down the stretch.
The bye week will be beneficial for Indianapolis, as the Colts have the Buccaneers (home), Titans (away), Bengals (away), Steelers (home), Falcons (away), Raiders (home), Texans (home) to close out the year. There’s at least four winnable games there on a favorable schedule. Perhaps 9-8 could be enough for Indianapolis to get in, but the Colts will have to finish 10-7 to significantly help their playoff odds
Easy to think this right now with Houston’s massive win over Cincinnati (on the road) and Jacksonville’s blowout loss to San Francisco. The Texans (5-4) sit one game behind the Jaguars (6-3) as a result, setting up a race in mid-November. Should we mention Houston has the head-to-head tiebreaker over Jacksonville as well?
