The Patriots season went from bad to worse with an embarrassing final sequence in a loss to the Colts summing up New England’s season. So what will they do at QB moving forward?
The 49ers ended the biggest win streak in the NFL and are back to being Super Bowl contenders again with their new-look defensive line wreaking havoc.
Meanwhile, rookie sensation C.J Stroud’s star continues to brighten, with the Texans QB on track for a record-breaking season after leading his team to another upset win.
49ERS STOP NFL’S HOTTEST TEAM, SHUT UP CRITICS IN THE PROCESS
Week 11
San Francisco made a statement on Monday morning (AEDT), dismantling the Jacksonville Jaguars 34-3 to halt a three-game slide.
Not only did they get their season back on track, but the 49ers also ended the red-hot Jaguars win streak of five in emphatic fashion.
The new-look 49ers defensive line with former Washington Commander Chase Young making his debut for San Francisco, pressured Jags QB Trevor Lawrence all game, ending up with five sacks.
It would have been a satisfying win for the 49ers, who had their Super Bowl credentials questioned over the past few weeks. QB Brock Purdy was the player that copped the most heat, but he had a ball on a string all day.
Purdy finished the game with the stat line of 19/26, 296 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers.
The 49ers move to 6-3 on the season, and back atop the NFC West.
STROUD ON TRACK FOR GREATEST ROOKIE QB SEASON EVER
The meteoric rise of C.J Stroud has continued, with the rookie QB orchestrating another game-winning drive for an upset road win against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Stroud threw for over 300 yards and a touchdown while adding another with his legs in the 30-27 win, in which he outplayed Bengals star Joe Burrow. The shock result also ended Cincinnati’s four-game winning streak.
Houston were travelling well in the fourth quarter, leading 27-17, before the Bengals scored 10 quick points to tie the game up with 1:33 left.
That proved to be too much time for Stroud and his young, exciting receiving group, who marched down the park to set up a 38-yard field goal for Matt Ammendola as time expired.
Dallas Cowboys castoffs Noah Brown (172 receiving yards) and Dalton Schultz (71) were again prolific and crucial to the success of their young QB, while RB Devin Singletary enjoyed a career-best game, rushing for a mammoth 150 yards.
Stroud is on track to break Andrew Luck’s rookie record for passing yards in a season (4,374) and could get close to eclipsing Justin Herbert’s tally of 31 touchdown passes – the most ever from a first year signal caller set in the 2020-2021 season.
The Texans have been one of the surprise packets of the season, sitting at 5-4 after the win over the Bengals, with new head coach Demeco Ryans having a huge impact in his debut campaign.
PATRIOTS’ BRUTAL SEQUENCE SUMS UP SEASON FROM HELL AS QB QUESTIONS LINGER
The Patriots moved closer to a potential number one slot in next year’s draft after recording their eighth loss for the season in Germany of all places, going down to the Colts 10-6.
The less said about this game the better, but it’s important to note the way it ended as it is the perfect indicator of how the Patriots 2-8 season has gone so far.
Starting QB Mac Jones was sensationally benched for the final drive and replaced by backup Bailey Zappe, who was tasked with attempting to pull off a game-winning touchdown drive.
Before being hooked, Jones was 15/20 for 175 yards and an awful red zone interception.
Unfortunately for Zappe, he didn’t fare much better than Jones, throwing a terrible interception of his own which gave Indy the ball with 30 seconds left on the clock.
Zappe threw a fake spike before hurling the pigskin into triple coverage which was picked off by Colts safety Rodney Thomas.
Coach Bill Belichick, who is facing an uncertain future at New England, looked defeated when the camera panned to him on the sideline after the interception.
When asked about his QB situation going forward, Belichick unsurprisingly didn’t give much away.
“We’ll deal with next week next week,” Belichick told reporters.
Both Jones and Zappe have failed to inspire under centre this season, and with the Patriots next to no chance of progressing to the playoffs, perhaps rookie QB Malik Cunningham is given a go.
One thing is for sure though. The Patriots will likely head to the draft for their next signal caller in what is a QB-rich class in 2024.
CLEVELAND’S IMPROBABLE WIN
The Browns weren’t given much of a chance of lowering the colours of the red-hot Ravens in Baltimore, starting the game $3.30 outsiders according to the bookies and with the Ravens leading by 14 points in the final quarter, it had appeared the market had got it spot on.
However, Browns QB Deshaun Watson delivered a performance that showed why Cleveland offered him an expensive contract, rallying his troops to an absurd 33-31 win.
Watson was a threat in the air and on the ground, improved RB Jerome Ford dashed for over 100 yards and the Browns defence scored a late pick-six, all of which helped bridge the gap to within one point.
After getting the ball back with 4:52 on the clock, Watson led the Browns on a 58-yard drive which led to Dustin Hopkins nailing a 40-yarder to win it.
To comeback from 14 down in the fourth is a fair feat against any team, but to do it against the team labelled by many as the best in the conference is extremely impressive and puts the Browns on the radar if they weren’t already.
Cleveland’s win stamps the AFC North as the most intriguing and competitive division in the NFL.
The Ravens at 7-3 lead the division but are closely followed by the Browns and Steelers at 6-3 with the pre-season favoured Bengals in fourth with a 5-4 mark.
