Every week in the NFL season brings a host of new questions … and answers some old ones, too. Let’s run down what we learned in Week 7 … and what we’ll be wondering about in Week 8 and beyond.
ASKED: When do we stop waiting for “the real” Aaron Rodgers to return?
At this point, it’s time to consider that the New York Jets iteration of Aaron Rodgers is less “Jared Goff on the Lions” and more “Matt Ryan on the Colts.” Through seven games, he’s thrown almost as many interceptions (7) as touchdowns (10), and hasn’t topped 300 passing yards yet. There’s chaos in every direction in New York, from the front office to the field, and if Rodgers isn’t at the center of it all, he’s certainly not calming any anxiety. The Jets draw the New England Patriots next week, which ought to give a decent barometer for the state of Gang Green. But it’s becoming increasingly clear that we’re not in an aberration period, we’re getting the real Rodgers.
ANSWERED: Whether Russ can still cook
Admit it, you thought Russell Wilson was done. After his unspectacular, veering into disastrous, stint in Denver, it sure looked like the mid-2010s version of Russ would only exist on NFL Films documentaries going forward. And when the Steelers sidelined him with an injured calf for the start of the 2024 season, well, it sure seemed like his days as a marquee starter were done. But lo and behold, Mike Tomlin gambled that Wilson still had game, and Sunday night, Wilson repaid that faith with . Pittsburgh now seems to have a good kind of problem: two competent NFL-level starters at quarterback. How this will shake out in the snakepit of the AFC remains to be seen, but the Steelers have a fighting chance … which is more than could be said for other teams we’ll discuss today.
ASKED: Is Anthony Richardson the future in Indianapolis?
The Indianapolis Colts won on Sunday, but if there was ever a “won despite” rather than “won because” victory, this was it. Anthony Richardson was 10 of 24 for 129 yards on the day, the kinds of numbers that can only beat a team that’s down to its fourth quarterback of the year, the way Miami was. This can’t go on. Richardson, out the last two games with an oblique injury, has the future of the franchise in his uncertain hands, and fans — who booed him and the Colts on Sunday — don’t exactly seem pleased about it. There’s a long way to go in this season and a long way to go in Richardson’s career, but the plane is still taxiing, and it’s long past time for liftoff.
ANSWERED: The Seahawks are a legitimate threat
Maybe it’s the fact that they play most of their games in the late afternoon slot on Sundays, or maybe it’s that they don’t have waves of dynamic, headline-grabbing playmakers on their roster, but the Seattle Seahawks often tend to get ignored when thinking of the NFC’s best teams. No more, though. After easily handling the NFC South-leading Falcons on the road, and with the rest of the division in disarray, the Seahawks are now the class of the NFC West. Geno Smith doesn’t scare anybody, but he’s guiding a winning team. The Seahawks defense ought to scare the hell out of everybody, though; Kirk Cousins will be seeing neon green in his sleep for a few nights. Seattle will test its mettle next week against Buffalo, and then makes a run through the entire division the next three games after that. By then we’ll have a good idea of how seriously to take this team, but so far, the answer is: very.
ASKED: Is Deshaun Watson done as the Cleveland Browns starting QB?
When Deshaun Watson exited Sunday’s game on a cart,, cheers resonated in the Cleveland stands. It was an ugly scene, one of many such ugly scenes in Watson’s erratic Cleveland tenure, but if it’s the last time we see Watson start for the Browns, it wouldn’t be surprising. The cost of cutting Watson loose would be immense; Watson is still owed $46 million for each of the next two seasons, and no other team is going to pick up that tab. But the cost of continuing to start him could be just as punishing; he hasn’t proven he’s worth what he’s being paid, even without all the allegations swirling around him, and a return from an Achilles tear is no sure thing. If this is the end of the Deshaun Watson Era, it’ll be no more than an ugly cautionary tale for every other franchise.
ANSWERED: Whether John Mara is sleeping these days
Memorable moment from this year’s “Hard Knocks,” when Giants co-owner John Mara discussed the possibility of Saquon Barkley jumping to the Eagles:
“I’ll have a tough time sleeping if Saquon goes to Philadelphia, I’ll tell you that,” Mara said.
Well, Barkley rushed for 176 yards on 17 carries Sunday in Philadelphia’s demolition of the Giants. Like the Jets, the Giants are flailing for answers … and watching your formerly best player tearing it up for a division rival hurts so bad it doesn’t even hurt anymore.