NFL Week 10 recap: QB plays like the “best player in the world” in the win.

CNN
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Week 10 of the NFL season was full of drama, talking points and some big solo performances.

Sunday’s games began in Germany with the Carolina Panthers beating the New York Giants in overtime, while there was also drama at the end as the Kansas City Chiefs remained undefeated and the Dallas Cowboys suffered a tough loss at home.

Here are the main storylines from Sunday’s action.

The Arizona Cardinals had a successful afternoon and that was largely thanks to the historic performance of their quarterback Kyler Murray.

Murray, whose play epitomized the Cardinals’ up-and-down start to the 2024 season, was extremely precise and dynamic with his legs as Arizona handily defeated the New York Jets 31-6 at home.

It was the team’s fourth straight win and kept them atop the NFC West division, but perhaps more impressive was Murray’s overall performance.

He completed 22 of 24 of his pass attempts, threw a touchdown and ran for two more scores. The 27-year-old finished the game with 17 straight passes, breaking the Cardinals’ record of 16 straight passes set by Carson Palmer in two games in 2017.

Murray also became the first player in NFL history to complete 85% of his passes for 250 yards and two rushing touchdowns.

He convincingly outplayed four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers on the opposing sideline, and Arizona head coach Jonathan Gannon was quick to praise his quarterback after the win.

“I think the quarterback was the best player in the world today,” Gannon said. “And so kudos to him.”

It seemed like it was a very different afternoon for Murray when he was violently sacked by an unblocked blitzer midway through the game, causing his helmet to fly off. However, Murray immediately resurfaced and even shared a joke with his opponents shortly after.

“I told you, this is the best I’ve felt,” Murray told reporters afterward. “Obviously the game is taken away from you and you’re in a system like this, the attention to detail, I always say that with (offensive coordinator) Drew (Petzing), the way he communicates it, there’s no gray area.

“We’re on the same page and I’ve just felt good in the system since second grade. The game slowed down. Obviously it’s my sixth year in the league, so I’m just going to keep trying to take it one day at a time and keep playing well.”

Murray has been supported by a defense that has shined in recent weeks. They allowed just two field goals against the Jets, meaning they have allowed fewer than 10 points for the second straight game and have not allowed a touchdown in three games at State Farm Stadium.

To put that in perspective, the Cardinals had allowed double-digit points in 52 straight games prior to Week 9, while the last time the team hadn’t allowed a home touchdown in three straight games was in 1926.

All in all, it was an overwhelmingly positive afternoon for the Cardinals as they continued their excellent recent form.

On the other hand, Rodgers called the 25-point loss “just disappointing” because the Jets had slipped to 3-7 and their playoff ambitions were looking increasingly dim.

Although the San Francisco 49ers pulled out a last-second win on Sunday, all seems to be not well with the team.

Sunday’s 23-20 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers should have been cause for celebration: Jake Moody hit a game-winning field goal as time expired, Christian McCaffrey played for the first time this season and rookie receiver Ricky Pearsall scored his First NFL touchdown touchdown two months after being shot in the chest.

However, the game will be remembered for an incident between the team’s star receiver Deebo Samuel, his long snapper Taybor Pepper and Moody, who missed three field goal attempts at Raymond James Stadium.

And after Moody missed his third attempt late in the fourth quarter with the 49ers leading by three, Samuel appeared to exchange heated words with Pepper and Moody.

Samuel was seen grabbing Pepper by the throat and pushing him away, hitting Moody in the helmet. As Samuel and Pepper returned to their seats on the sidelines, the two continued to argue with each other.

Samuel then explained that he was just “frustrated” at the moment and was “a little out of character.”

“I didn’t say anything crazy to him,” he told reporters. “I was a little frustrated at the time, but he went out there and won the game for us. It didn’t bother him, so let’s put it behind us.”

He also added that Moody “had a little dog in him” for going back out and scoring the game winner.

Moody, for his part, downplayed the incident.

“It’s an emotional game and things like that happen all the time,” the second-year kicker said. “You just get over it and we won, so that’s all that matters.

“There doesn’t have to be an (apology). … I have to do those kicks at the end of the day, that’s all I’m focused on. I don’t worry about anything like that.”

Pepper echoed Moody’s sentiments while praising the 24-year-old’s mental toughness to bounce back from three missed field goals.

“He told him to lock himself up and we know what our job is,” Pepper said. “We have each other. It’s hard being a specialist, sometimes it’s feast or famine. As a young developmental specialist like Jake, I don’t know how much better it is than missing three balls in a row and diving forward to hit it almost 50 yards for the game-winner. I’m super proud of Jake.”

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said he would address the situation on the flight back to California.

“I don’t think there’s a lot of pressure from people pushing with a helmet or something like that,” Shanahan said. “You are only as good as your last kick, you are only as good as your last throw, you are only as good as your last game.”

“It was great practice for (Moody) to put himself in a situation like that and come through it. I think it boosts the boys’ confidence, so they’ve been there before. But I’m proud of how he managed it in the end.”

The win was a significant win for San Francisco, which climbs to around .500 for the first time since Week 1.

The New Orleans Saints have had a turbulent season for ten weeks. And after firing their head coach Dennis Allen last week following a seven-game losing streak, they’re finally back in the win column.

The Saints defeated NFC South division rivals the Atlanta Falcons 20-17 on Sunday at the Superdome in their first game under interim coach Darren Rizzi.

They started fast, scoring 17 points before halftime, including two touchdown passes from quarterback Derek Carr to wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who had signed with the team just a few weeks ago.

And although the offense faltered in the second half, they capitalized on a bad day from Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo, who missed three field goals, while New Orleans’ defense stepped up when it really mattered with the game on the line line stood.

A fourth-quarter interception of Atlanta quarterback Kirk Cousins ​​by Tyrann Mathieu halted a drive with just 1:59 remaining before the Falcons went on downs as time expired.

“What an incredible week,” Rizzi said after the game. “As I just told the players, this is not happening – not even today – without full buy-in from the building. You all reported on all the changes and that’s all well and good, but the buy-in, the execution and the preparation – I just told these guys that nothing can replace good preparation and we had such a good week of training. “

It wasn’t a perfect day for Rizzi, who was unable to take part in the game-ending celebration after a hit from Saints defensive tackle Payton Turner caused his left arm to go “completely numb.”

He also talked about how his day as interim coach of the Saints didn’t start off ideally.

“I’m going down to the Superdome. I go into the head coach’s locker room, which I’ve never used before,” he said. “So here I am, going to the toilet early in the morning. This is how my day began. I clogged the toilet. I’m thinking, ‘This is going to be a shitty day’ – pun intended.”

On the other hand, it was a disappointing result for the Falcons, who fall to 6-4, although they remain atop the NFC South Division with a two-game lead following the Buccaneers’ loss to the 49ers.

Away vs home (winner in bold)

New York Giants (2-8) 17-20 OT Carolina Panthers (3-7)

New England Patriots (3-7) 19-3 Chicago Bears (4-5)

Buffalo Bills (8-2) 30-20 Indianapolis Colts (4-6)

Minnesota Vikings (7-2) 12-7 Jacksonville Jaguars (2-8)

Denver Broncos (5-5) 14-16 Kansas City Chiefs (9-0)

Atlanta Falcons (6-4) 17-20 New Orleans Saints (3-7)

San Francisco 49ers (5-4) 23-20 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-6)

Pittsburgh Steelers (7-2) 28-27 Washington Commanders (7-3)

Tennessee Titans (2-7) 17-27 Los Angeles Chargers (6-3)

New York Jets (3-7) 6-31 Arizona Cardinals (6-4)

Philadelphia Eagles (7-2) 34-6 Dallas Cowboys (3-6)

Detroit Lions (8-1) 26-23 Houston Texans (6-4)