The NFL has almost wrapped up Week 8 action – tonight’s Monday Night Football game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New York Giants will bring it home – and yesterday’s slate of games offered a little bit of everything. It’s becoming clear that several high-profile players don’t have the job security they may have thought they had and that some other players might need to consider anger management classes. As the season progresses, this week and next will give sports gamblers a pretty good idea of what to expect as the second half of the season comes into focus.
The Pittsburgh Steelers may have been put off as their game against the Baltimore Ravens got underway yesterday, but they didn’t let it get them down. On the very first possession of the game, Ravens linebacker Robert Spillane stole the ball for a pick-six that put Pittsburgh at a disadvantage. But, Ben Roethlisberger didn’t let it get him down and the quarterback bounced back to take control. Two second-half touchdown passes helped the Steelers overcome the interception and they went on to win, 28-24. With that victory, Pittsburgh can still claim to be the only undefeated team in the NFL this season, and the Ravens fall to 5-2.
The Green Bay Packers and the Minnesota Vikings gave fans a thrill yesterday. The first half saw both offenses working the field and scoring two touchdowns each, but the second half proved to be something different. The Packers suddenly found themselves scrambling against a defense that was sowing chaos at almost every turn, and the Vikings offense was in complete control. By the time it was over, the now 5-2 Vikings had handed the Packers just their second defeat of the season on their way to a 28-22 victory.
The Tennessee Titans were 5-1 going into their game against the 1-5-1 Cincinnati Bengals yesterday, and this game should have been an easy one for Tennessee to wrap up. The Bengals and quarterback Joe Burrow had other plans, though. The Titans were lackluster throughout the game and, after having gone 14-for-14 in red zone scoring this year, they suddenly found an unexpectedly tough defense that denied them from crossing the goal line. The Titans have now dropped two consecutive games as the Bengals improved to 2-5-1 with their 31-20 win.