On special teams, kicker Younghoe Koo was an impressive 6-for-6 on field goal attempts in his Falcons debut. He would earn NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance in Week 10.
The Falcons played their most complete game of the season during Sunday’s 26-9 win over the Saints.
Offensively, the team controlled the line of scrimmage, winning the time of possession battle and keeping Drew Brees off the field. Defensively, Atlanta recorded six sacks and held New Orleans to 3-of-12 on third downs.
On special teams, kicker Younghoe Koo was an impressive 6-for-6 on field goal attempts in his Falcons debut. He would earn NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance in Week 10.
YEAH, YOUNGHOE! 👉@YoungHoeKoo has been named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week!
Koo was brought in after not kicking in an NFL regular season game since 2017 with the Chargers. He replaced veteran kicker Matt Bryant after Week 8 in what was viewed as a controversial move at the time.
At just 25-years-old, the Falcons are hoping Koo can keep up this level of play and earn a long-term role with the team over the final seven games of the year.
On Sunday night, the Dallas Cowboys squared off against the Minnesota Vikings losing 28-24. The two teams are built identically in theory with good but not great, conservative coaching, stout defensive play, elite running backs, and limited …
On Sunday night, the Dallas Cowboys squared off against the Minnesota Vikings losing 28-24. The two teams are built identically in theory with good but not great, conservative coaching, stout defensive play, elite running backs, and limited quarterbacks who thrive utilizing the play-action to spread to the football to their speedy wideouts.
The major difference is Dak Prescott possesses innate leadership skills, which typically galvanizes the Cowboys, while Kurt Cousins seems two errant throws from losing all confidence. During Sunday’s game, this difference made no difference at all.
Predictably, the bout was a competitive despite Dallas’ early 14-point deficit. Prescott did what Prescott does. He remained calm, championed his club after Dallas’ slow start, and engineered two drives to tie the game, 14-14, late in the first half. Prescott threw for 397 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
Unpredictably, Cousins, who typically struggles against playoff caliber teams on primetime, gave the football world 84 million reasons why the Vikings should be feared moving forward. His stats weren’t huge; Cousins threw for 220 yards and two touchdowns. He played within himself and the Vikings’ identity and most importantly, did not turnover the ball.
For the Vikings, Cousins doesn’t appear to be the team’s weak link. This could change as the season proceeds, but for now, Cousins deserves a lot credit for working through his early season woes. Minnesota is good-to-great at every unit. There aren’t many NFL rosters more talented than this Viking’s roster.
The Cowboys, who are tied for first place in the NFC East with the Philadelphia Eagles, are now 5-4. There are numerous questions surrounding the Cowboys and none more important than this one: Can the Cowboys defeat formidable football teams?
The second half schedule is grueling and its increasingly difficult to determine how good or bad the Cowboys actually are.
This season they’ve defeated the tanking Miami Dolphins, the dysfunctional Washington Redskins, the used-to-be-football Giants twice, and the Jekyll and Hyde Philadelphia Eagles.
Besides the New York Jets debacle, Dallas’ losses are all against playoff bound teams. What a tough loss for Dallas.
Here is the stock report for Week 9.
Stock Up: Amari Cooper
(Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Cooper doesn’t get enough credit for how great he is. Every week, he produces for the Cowboys by creating the needed separation from cornerbacks for catches. Maybe it’s his quiet personality and the fact his playing style is antic-free and rarely flashy.
It’s almost Kawhi Leonard-esque in how he operates on the football field.
The Pro Bowl receiver lines up, beats the cornerback with precise route running, catches the football, then repeats the process the next down. It feels machine-like.
During Sunday’s night game, Cooper snagged three spectacular, nearly impossible catches as if it was routine. He finished with 11 catches for 147 yards and one touchdown. His biggest contribution remains masking one of Prescott’s weakness: Prescott’s inability to throw wide receivers open.
Cooper doesn’t need to be thrown open because he’s the NFL’s 7-Eleven. As the schedule becomes tougher, Dallas should rely heavy on Cooper. Teams like the Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears, and New England Patriots all play a lot of man coverage. The Cowboys must exploit any mismatches.
Stock Up: Randall Cobb
(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
The wide receiver corp was once-upon-a-time a weakness for Dallas. This group is revamped and now a strength for the team. The wide receivers for Dallas could do no wrong, partially because Prescott bought extra time with his movement in the pocket, and mostly because the corp did an excellent job getting open. Cooper’s huge game overshadowed Cobb’s play.
Cobb is the perfect fit. He’s tough, gritty, plays in the slot or on the outside, and catches the ball are all levels. Underneath, screen plays, deep-balls, and intermediate levels; you name it and Cobb can do it, plus his yards after catch is always impressive. Cobb, a former Green Bay Packer, finished with six catches for 106 yards and one touchdown.
Stock Down: Dallas’ Coaching Staff
Dallas’ slow start are a bad habit. Last week after a bye the Cowboys started flat. Against the New York Jets and Green Bay Packers, similarly, it was a slow start. Typically, the first 15 to 20 plays are scripted based on the film’s advantages and disadvantages a coaching staff feels they can capitalize. Its head scratching to see the Cowboys struggle so early in games. Is it the player’s failure to execute? Or the coaches’ failure in preparing the players to execute?
Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore’s play-calling was excellent, for most of the game. It’s hard to determine if it’s his play-calling contributing to Dallas’ slow start. He’s normally committed to establishing Ezekiel Elliott, and play acting so Prescott can spread the ball around.
The Vikings’ game plan centered around limiting Elliott and begging Prescott to beat them with his arm. Though Prescott can carry the load, the team is much better when Elliott has it going as well.
Throughout the game, Moore and the coaching staff should have found more creative ways to establish the presence of Elliott. Before the game, if someone told the Cowboys Elliott would rush for 20 carries for 47 yards, they all would probably agree it wouldn’t fare well for the Cowboys and that’s exactly what occurred.
Lastly, the last three meaningful plays for the Cowboys were mind-boggling. Elliott struggled throughout the game, and now the play calls are all for Elliott. The timing felt wrong and counterintuitive to the game’s flow. Why not see if Prescott can win the game with his arm or legs? Why not get the ball to Cooper or Cobb in space?
2nd-and-2, a Prescott-Elliott option. Elliott gains zero yards. 3rd-and-2 an Elliott hand-off. Lost of three yards. 4th-and-5, a pass target to Elliot for the first down. The pass is deflected by Eric Kendricks. Game over.
The Seattle Seahawks were the only team in the NFC West to post a win in Week 10, as the 49ers, Rams and Cardinals all suffered losses.
Week 10 was a brilliant week for the Seattle Seahawks, as they were the only team in the NFC West to win a game. What’s more, their victory came against their biggest rival in a thrilling overtime classic.
The Cardinals suffered a gut-wrenching defeat to the Buccaneers, while the Rams fell to the streaking Steelers on the road.
The Seahawks are now in a great position heading into their bye week and have a chance to win the division outright. Let us dive a little deeper into the specifics of how Seattle’s rivals fared last week.
Against the 49er, Seahawks defensive end Jadeveon Clowney logged five hits on the QB, a sack and a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown.
Seattle Seahawks defensive end Jadeveon Clowney finally had the breakout game everyone had been waiting for. Against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 10, Clowney finished the day with five tackles, five hits on the quarterback, a sack and a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown – his second defensive score of the year.
“Golly, what a fantastic football game he played,” coach Pete Carroll said Tuesday afternoon. “He just was unblockable. He just continued to weave his way into the backfield and make plays, the run and the pass. Any plays that he wouldn’t get credit for that he affected were many and all across the board. Pass defense was good last night. Made a lot of plays, had hands on a lot of balls.”
The Seahawks had been short on sacks this season – only recording 15 heading into the Week 10 matchup. With Clowney’s assistance, Seattle was able to log five more against the 49ers as well as 10 total hits on quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
Clowney and his teammates have the week off to enjoy the bye before resuming practice next Monday ahead of the Eagles matchup Week 12.
The Seattle Seahawks won a thriller on Monday night that went down to the last seconds of OT, handing the 49ers their first loss.
The Seattle Seahawks got their biggest win of the season Monday night, handing the San Francisco 49ers their first defeat on a field goal as the clock expired in overtime. With the 27-24 victory, the Seahawks moved to 8-2 on the year and shaved the 49ers’ lead in the NFC West to a half-game. There was plenty to discuss after the matchup — good, bad and ugly abounded all night.
THE GOOD
Jadeveon Clowney: Clowney posted his best game as a Seahawk, welcoming 49ers tackles Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey back from injuries by absolutely dominating them at the line of scrimmage and constantly getting into quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo’s face.
In all, Clowney posted a defensive stat line of five tackles, five QB hits, one sack and one forced fumble; he also scored Seattle’s first points by recovering another Garoppolo fumble and running it 10 yards into the end zone late in the second quarter. The Seahawks have had pass-rush issues recently, but if Clowney can regularly post this kind of performance, the unit should become much less of a liability.
The rest of the defense: New acquisition Quandre Diggs showed up in a big way at the safety position. His interception of Garoppolo in the third quarter led to the second Seahawks touchdown of the night. Linebacker Bobby Wagner was his usual self, totaling 11 tackles and one defended pass. Defensive tackle Al Woods added two tackles for loss (including one sack) and cornerback Shaquill Griffin continued his standout season with two defended passes and six total tackles.
On the night, the Seahawks sacked Garoppolo five times, in addition to completely shutting down the 49ers’ run game and forcing Garoppolo to throw a number of near-picks. It was a massive turnaround for the much-maligned defensive squad, which they hope to carry into their matchup against the Eagles in two weeks’ time.
It wasn’t what anybody expected, however, the Falcons’ offensive line outplayed the Saints’ defensive front on Sunday. From Rookie Kaleb McGary to veteran Jake Matthews, Atlanta was dominant up front.
It wasn’t what anybody expected, however, the Falcons’ offensive line outplayed the Saints’ defensive front on Sunday. From Rookie Kaleb McGary to veteran Jake Matthews, Atlanta was dominant up front.
The team won the time of possession battle over New Orleans thanks to a combination of offensive execution and creative play-calling. In Touchdown Wire’s Top 5 offensive lines of Week 10, the Falcons’ line was ranked fourth.
Here’s some of what Rick Suter had to say about the team’s surprise performance:
Although there were some issues with hands to the face penalties, the Falcons’ O-line was a big part of the success. Facing a defense ranked ninth overall, and in the top half of the league in QB hits, they did an excellent job protecting Ryan, allowing one sack and five hits. On the ground attack, they provided a decent lane-opening at the front and a substantial push to the second level—which helped the Falcons look like a playoff contender and not the meager one-win team that the Saints were matching up against.
Atlanta will look to keep the momentum going when it plays another divisional road game against the 5-4 Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
The team nearly doubled its sack total and contained Drew Brees for most of the day. Second-year linebacker Foye Oluokun had himself a day as well, leading Atlanta with eight tackles on Sunday.
The Falcons played their best defensive game of the season by a mile on Sunday, holding the Saints to just nine points in New Orleans.
Atlanta nearly doubled its 2019 sack total and contained quarterback Drew Brees for most of the game. Second-year linebacker Foye Oluokun had himself a day as well, leading the team with eight tackles in Week 10.
While his role hasn’t been as big as it was last season when the team lost Deion Jones for most of the year, Oluokun has shown in limited time that he can be a productive part of this Falcons defense.
According to Pro Football Focus, Oluokun was the team’s highest-graded defender — earning a PFF grade of 85.5:
LB Foyesade Oluokun saw 29 snaps on Sunday against the #Saints, his most all season.
Oluokun was also the highest graded #Falcons defender, recording an overall grade of 85.5.
In just 29 snaps, Oluokun was able to make his presence felt, even though that accounted for only 43 percent of Atlanta’s defensive plays. It was the most the former Yale standout has played all season.
Oluokun’s role should grow going forward with the team currently 2-7 and unlikely to make the playoffs.
Reigning NFL Rookie of the Year Saquon Barkley is continuing to deal with an ankle injury, but he insists he has no plans to sit and rest the lower limb.
The Giants season is far from a winning one as the team sits at 2-8. Reigning NFL Rookie of the Year Saquon Barkley is continuing to deal with an ankle injury, but he insists he has no plans to sit and rest the lower limb or to nurse a new shoulder injury that required an x-ray following Week 10’s game.
Barkley missed weeks four, five and six then returned to action. Sunday, though, the star was all but eliminated from Giants 34-27 loss to the Jets (2-7) — he gained merely one yard on 13 attempts.
Tuesday, Barkley made it clear that the idea of him shutting things down for his health is far from one he likes.
“The mindset of sitting me out and resting me for the rest of the season is beyond me,” Barkley said, via Jordan Raanan of ESPN. “I do not agree with it. It won’t happen. I’m going to keep going until I can’t go no more. That’s the player I am and I’m going to do it for my teammates.”
Barkley averages a poor 2.6 yards per attempt since returning from his ankle sprain and the upper body issue makes him weaker than his norm from top to bottom, but expect the competitor to keep playing.
Tyler Lockett remains in California to have his lower leg evaluated, but with a bye week upcoming, the Seattle Seahawks expect him to play.
The Seattle Seahawks are going into their bye week at the perfect time.
Although teams feel that way nearly every week, this week has extra significance with Tyler Lockett, the team’s leading receiver and a potential Pro Bowler, suffering a lower leg contusion late in Seattle’s overtime victory in San Francisco on Monday night.
The Seahawks left him behind in California to get looked at, and coach Pete Carroll confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that Lockett is still down in the bay, and will be there at least another day while he gets checked out.
“He’s gonna stay another day, he’ll be there again tonight just for precautionary reasons,” Carroll said on Tuesday. “He’s better than he was yesterday. Our people think he’s going to be fine to play. He’ll need the rest of this week to make sure everything goes away, but he should be fine to play next week.”
Lockett’s status would certainly be a lot murkier if Seattle played this Sunday, but with their next game not until November 24, it gives Lockett plenty of time to rest and recover and hopefully not have to miss any games.
Lockett suffered the injury late in Monday’s contest, although Carroll couldn’t pinpoint exactly win.
While he has severe swelling on his leg, as long as there is no other damage, fans can expect Lockett to be back in time for the Seahawks to take on the Eagles in a few weeks.
Reigning NFL Rookie of the Year Saquon Barkley is continuing to deal with an ankle injury, but he insists he has no plans to sit and rest the lower limb.
Reigning NFL Rookie of the Year Saquon Barkley is continuing to deal with an ankle injury, but he insists he has no plans to sit and rest the lower limb.
