Week Five Winners and Losers
We are now officially past the first quarter of the 2024 NFL season.
There are no more teams without a win and only two teams remain undefeated. There were some brilliant games in what was arguably the best gameweek of NFL action so far this season.
But who came out of the weekend the best or the worst? Here are three winners and three losers from Week Five of the 2024 NFL season.
It was quite the day for Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons as they opened up Week Five with a cracker on Thursday Night Football, defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 36-30 in overtime.
Cousins, who has had his critics over his lengthy NFL career, has often been slated for a lack of wins in Primetime games. However, this is already his second win in a Primetime slot in just five games.
Not only did he guide the Falcons to a win, but also did so making history in the process. He became just the 22nd player in history to throw for 500+ passing yards in a game (509), and threw for four touchdowns in the process.
His 45-yard touchdown to KhaDarel Hodge in overtime secured the win, as the Falcons moved top of the NFC South. Atlanta was loud.
The NFL London series returned for another year, as fans were treated to an exciting game in London which saw the Minnesota Vikings earned a 23-17 win over the New York Jets.
The Jets defense caused problems for the Vikings offense early on, as we saw with Sam Darnold going down and missing a play. They earned the momentum early on, when they pounced on a fumble for a turnover. However, Rodgers then threw for a 63-yard pick six to former Miami Dolphin Andrew Van Ginkel.
The struggles continued as Rodgers threw another interception on their following drive on offense. Speaking to Rodgers after the game, he said he was “below the standard” and spoke about how this was the first time in his career he had thrown for two interceptions in the first quarter.
Whilst the Vikings move to 5-0, the Jets are now 2-3. They missed the chance to go level on wins at the top of the AFC East with the Buffalo Bills, as they lost 23-20 to the Houston Texans later that day. With the Dolphins earning a 15-10 win over the New England Patriots, they are just hanging on to second place in the AFC East
What a game this was in Cincinnati as the Baltimore Ravens earned a 41-38 overtime win over the Cincinnati Bengals.
It could have easily been a different story for Baltimore as Evan McPherson missed a field goal in overtime which would have won Cincinnati the game. Derrick Henry then had a 51-yard rushing attempt on the following play that allowed Ravens kicker Justin Tucker to seal the game with a walk off field goal. After all, the Bengals will feel hard done by after a good performance on offence.
Quarterback Joe Burrow threw for 392 passing yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Ja’Marr Chase had 193 receiving yards and two touchdowns. However, their defense let them down massively as they allowed Lamar Jackson to put on an absolute clinic.
He ended the day with 348 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions. He may have had two fumbles, one which turned the ball over in overtime and gave the Bengals that aforementioned opportunity in overtime to win the game. However, there was one play that stood out over any other. With the Ravens down big in the fourth quarter, Jackson threw for the play of the season so far.
He initially fumbled the snap, but managed to pick it up, scramble outside the pocket before stiff arming a defender. He then threw across his body and found tight end Isiah Likely in the end zone to start the comeback.
It is plays like this which show why he has won back-to-back MVP awards,
The run continues for the Indianapolis Colts, now officially ten years since they won a game on the road to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
After going 2-2 in Week Four against the Pittsburgh Steelers, there was hope that this Colts team could gather some momentum. With the Houston Texans also 2-2 and facing the Buffalo Bills, they would have felt that they would have had a chance to lead the AFC South. Against a previously 0-4 Jaguars, they would have fancied their chances.
Instead, they were narrowly defeated in Florida. Joe Flacco, who is standing in once again for the injured Anthony Richardson, threw for 359 passing yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Alec Pierce had a standout game, with 134 receiving yards and one touchdown. However, their defense also allowed Trevor Lawrence to throw for 371 yards and two touchdowns. Whilst they got one interception, they did not record a single sack all game.
Tank Bigsby also ran on the Colts defense for 101 yards and two touchdowns as well as Jaguars wide receivers Christian Kirk (88) and Brian Thomas Jr (122) being allowed to combined for 210 receiving yards, the latter also recording a touchdown.
This is a damaging loss for the Colts as fans must wonder whether they will ever get a win again in Jacksonville.
The Washington Commanders are 4-1 for the first time since 2008. This was after a 34-13 win over the Cleveland Browns.
Quarterback Jayden Daniels may not have had his best game, with one touchdown and one pick, this was still a resounding win for the organisation who have had some tough times in recent years.
Brian Robinson had just 18 rushing yards from seven carries, but still managed to come away with two touchdowns. The defense also played their part, sacking Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson seven times. With the Dallas Cowboys inconsistencies, they have a chance to challenge the Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East crown, something the franchise has only done three times since the turn of the century.
Speaking of the Browns, this loss moves them to 1-4 and right now, the third overall pick in the 2025 Draft.
It was another torrid affair for Watson, with those aforementioned seven sacks. With a 54% completion percentage, he recorded just 125 yards and one touchdown in another poor performance.
To make things worse, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski wanted to go for it on fourth down during the game, instead Watson decided to walk off the field. You could see the frustration on Stefanski’s face as the decision to trade three first rounders and offer $200 million guaranteed looking worse and worse.
Is it only a matter of time before the Browns cut their losses and release him?