NFL Payoff: Week 7 Frauds or Future?

Dude…

Week 7 of the NFL football season has come and gone. Teams have started to separate themselves into tiers. At the top, sits the Super Bowl Contenders. Then comes the Super Bowl Pretenders. Then, there’s teams that are Mid. Finally, there’s the bottom tier of bad teams. Fine lines have been drawn in the sand between these tiers. Can’t figure out where your teams stands because your wife made you watch The Bachelor instead of Monday Night Football? Don’t worry, the Dudes have you covered with our latest takeaway!

Jags vs. Saints K Stelt

Jags Takeaways: I do not trust you: To give you a takeaway that doesn’t mention the lack of targets for Calvin Ridley would be shameful. But this is bigger than that whole debacle. Other than Fantasy owners being mad, the jags have a problem with what they’re trying to do. They don't have an identity. Maybe I’m wrong but this team just feels like a throw together of decent players who have a good coach. They win big games but their goal is to go deep into the playoffs. The way both sides of the ball are playing, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be the case for the jags.

Saints takeaways: Drive Carr, Crash Carr: It's a shame how this team is performing at this level, is it the coaches fault? Maybe, or it’s the team. Regardless, the team is falling hard and Carr is the one behind the wheel. It doesn’t help that both coaches and players aren’t clicking but from what looked like a solid team in the NFC south, they have become almost a laughing stock in the entire NFL.

Raiders vs. Bears K Stelt

Raiders takes: Vegas says bet against: It actually surprises me how Jimmy G’s presence determines how this team does in a game. Their Back ups are garbage and the head coach is just not capable of coaching a team. The team has no defense and no offense minus Adams and Crosby. But other than that they don't have a lot of stuff going for them.

Browns vs. Colts K Stelt

Browns takeaways: The refs had money on you: It doesn’t help how you guys decided to almost screw it up until the refs called an insane call at the end of the game. But the defense you have is really good, it just gives up a little too many points. Offensively Watson is a bum and PJ walker may be your only hope. You got lucky this week, don’t screw it up at the end of the season.

Colts takeaways: I’m still impressed with you: Putting up that amount of points up on a good defense is impressive and you still have Minshew at the stern so it may be tricky trying to find your way into the playoff race with the Jags doing whatever they’re doing. You have the offense but it looks like the end of the season may be more important than you thought.

Bills vs. Patriots K Stelt

Bills takeaways: You disappoint me: Josh Allen you are an interesting dude. I really believe you are called elite since you lost that AFC championship game and your team around you is really freaking good. But truthfully I think you're a fraud and you are getting carried by a good coach and a good defense. And now we know what happens when your defense fails in a game, you lose to the feeble Patriots. It's a shame how bad some of the losses you’ve had are. 3 losses isn’t going to do you well in the east, luckily the other teams are not elite as well so you still have some type of hope you never get any other time.

Pats takeaways: You son of a guns: I don’t really want to give you credit but it looks like Brady ball works after all. Mac is a decent QB and I think he’s better than most people think he is. Your team is still trash but you guys found a way to win against a ‘good’ team. A good drive and a good win, don’t give away the momentum now.

Commanders vs. Giants (PC)

Commanders Takeaway: It may be time to bench Howell- The Commanders find themselves below .500. They started off hot, but have lost 3 of the last 4. They also lost to two of the worst teams in the league in the Bears and Giants. Sam Howell hasn’t been the same since week 2. Against bad defenses, Howell plays well. However, when he plays a defense that actually knows what they're doing, he’s terrible and inconsistent. If Ron Rivera wants to keep his job, it may be time to bench the rookie.

Giants Takeaway: How about the defense??- This was a bad game to watch. Both teams are terrible and probably aren’t making the playoffs. However, the Giants defense stepped up in a massive way against the Commanders. The team totaled 6 sacks on Sam Howell and came up with a key interception. This has been the only time the defense has looked ok the entire season. If the Giants want to continue to have success, they need this defense to play like this more often.

Falcons vs. Buccaneers-How6rd

Falcons - Bijan’s illness causes trouble, but the defense continues to shine: It was a shock to many including myself (not just because I have him in fantasy) when Bijan Robinson didn’t get a single carry until the fourth quarter. Later on as many were confused we found out that the star rookie running back had a bad illness he was dealing with before the game and questioned a lot if he could go on until later in the game. With this the offense struggled yet again and outside of a Desmond Ridder touchdown run the Falcons only had field goals to show for scoring, but the defense made that all they needed to get. This isn’t the first time Atlanta’s defense had to bail out the offense as it’s mainly why they’re leading the conference now in the first place. Even though Ridder had three fumbles in this past game, his defense once again shows that if they’re doing more than their raw QB is messing up than that’s for now the only way they can win competitive games such as this one.

Buccaneers - Their own worst enemy is themselves: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were expected to do very little going into this season after the loss of Tom Brady seemed to bring the question of “what now” in terms of their future. Meanwhile, they have had multiple huge offensive games under a surprising QB having a talented season in Baker Mayfield, but in the past two weeks they’ve offensively looked how everyone expected them to look before the season began. Their run game for two weeks straight has been non-existent and Baker Mayfield has struggled mightily because of it as he was missing multiple open receivers in this one and threw his one pick at a time that could’ve won his team the game. If you were to only look at the numbers the defense has had not giving up a lot you would think the Bucs would be where the Browns are at, but with how much the offense has cost them this season struggling to put up points themselves it’s not as pretty as their record shows even. Now losing the division lead Tampa Bay is on the same boat as their Thursday night opponent in the Bills who beat themselves as well. The question is will the offense find their early season rhythm they once had under the primetime lights?

Lions vs. Ravens (PC) Ravens Takeaway: Lamar for MVP- If you go back to our prediction, you see that I picked Lamar as my potential MVP winner. He looked like an MVP on Sunday as the BLEW OUT the Lions. It wasn’t even close. They made the Lions, which they’re having their best season in forever, look like the 2009 Lions. Lamar put up 28 points in the first half and never looked back. He’s so hard to game plan for. If he sees any type of seam, he’s getting at least 6-7 yards. You have to put a spy on him. When you do that, you leave your defensive backs on an island. Mark Andrews is going to win a 1-1 matchup 95% of the time. If you drop that spy into coverage, Lamar will run all over you. The Ravens were my pick to make it out of the AFC. After this performance, I love my pick

Lions Takeaway: Hey 2009 Lions- Alright, I’m joking about the Lions. However, they looked bad in this game. Correction, they didn’t just look bad, THEY LOOKED LIKE DOGSHIT!! I mean, once the Ravens found themselves up 21, it looked like they quit. Goff looked off and St. Brown was draped in coverage all game. If the Lions want a chance to win the Super Bowl, they can’t give up. I think they did in this game.

Steelers vs. Rams (PC)

Steelers Takeaway: Biggest Joke of a 4-2 team ever- Ok this defense has to be one of the best in the league. It’s not a question anymore. This team is 4-2 AND THEY HAVE A SHITTY OFFENSE!! An offense that can’t score. A QB who can’t throw, and a running back that is suppose to be a power back but never runs through people. The Rams offense is good too. If Kenny Pickett and Matt Canada can actually figure out how to make the offense good, then this team may be a team you don’t want to face in the playoffs. Especially with this defense.

Rams Takeaway: The best bad team- The Rams started off hot. Their offense looked awesome as Puka Nucua looked dominant. Now Cooper Kupp is back, it looks like they’re struggling to find a rhythm. The defense is just ok, even with Aaron Donald in the mix. Losing to the Steelers shows us that the Rams aren’t legit. They have struggled and have continued to struggle over and over. This team is just a big ball of I don’t know. Will they be good? Will they be bad? I guess only time will tell.

Broncos Takeaway: Holy crap the Broncos defense showed up for once- This team is a joke. We’ve already known this. However, if you have Russell Wilson, two decent receivers in Jerry Juedy and Courtland Sutton, and a decent offensive line; they should be winning games. However, this defense sucks. It’s just been catastrophic. However, on Sunday it seemed like they finally showed up to a game. They had 4 sacks and an interception to push the Broncos to a victory. They almost gave the game away, but couldn’t pull a Brandon Staley. The Broncos are nowhere near playoff contention. I would call the Russell Wilson experiment a complete failure and it is time to move on. Good win though.

Cardinals vs. Seahawks-How6rd

Cardinals - Arizona’s offensive magic seems to have vanished: After the first month of the season it had seemed that quarterback Joshua Dobbs had found his position in the NFL and became at the very least a talented backup once Kyler Murray returned. Instead, it looks like this offense needs Murray more than ever this season as they have had three straight weeks with mediocre QB play. The first half of the game compared to the second half was a night and day difference between the offense’s performance which has been the story of their entire season being outscored by 74 points total after halftime in 2023. Their defense wasn’t spectacular but the turnovers they had made them still had a chance until late 4th quarter. We knew this team would look rough and after a competitive start to the season it has now become clear that there is a lot this team needs which is the intention everyone had at the start of the year.

Seahawks-No DK no problem: For the first time in his career the talented receiver in DK Metcalf sat out for a game after playing in the first 71 games since he joined Seattle. With this Geno Smith had to turn to some young heroes in rookie receivers Jake Bobo and Jaxon Smith-Njigba and both guys didn’t disappoint being his top two receivers in this game. Between the both of them they had eight catches for 124 yards and two touchdowns (including a very talented catch from Bobo) as they made more than the difference together in Sunday’s win. Outside of the two youngsters the defense once again showed up for Seattle holding their third straight opponent under 250 total yards and also another game of allowing less than 20 points on them. There were some missed opportunities in the end of the game being forced to take a field goal after reaching the one yard line and a costly pick from Geno, but all that did was prevent the team from blowing Arizona out as the rest of the game went almost solely in their favor.

Packers vs. Broncos (PC)

Packers Takeaway: The ups and downs of a rookie QB- The Packers looked like a good team for the first 2 weeks. Jordan Love looked dynamite. However, as the season continues, he’s shown his rookie colors. Yes, I know he’s not a rookie. However, it’s his first time at the wheel of the offense. Love just makes silly mistakes. It also doesn’t help his number one wide receiver out for the majority of the season so far. The Packers almost came back, however, couldn’t get it done thanks to a Jordan Love pick. We will see how the rest of the season goes. I believe the cheese heads are in for a lot more headaches this season.

Broncos Takeaway: Almost a melt down but not quite- The Broncos have struggled a lot on the defensive end this season. This defense may be one of the worst in the league which is saying a lot. The Broncos took an early lead thanks to Russell Wilson. The defense stepped up and helped the Broncos take an early lead. The Broncos almost pulled a Brandon Staley and almost lost the game in the 4th quarter. I was watching the game and I already saw the boys from mile high giving up another lead. However, they were in luck as the defense shut down the struggling Packers offense to seal the game. If I’m a Broncos fan, I would be happy about a win. However, knowing how awful the Broncos have been in the past 8 years, I wouldn’t get my hopes up for a turn around anytime soon.

Chiefs vs. Chargers (PC)

Chiefs Takeaway: They finally looked like a complete team- For the majority of the season, it hasn’t been the offense that has carried the Chiefs to victories. It’s been the defense. However, on Sunday the offense looked back. Patty Mahomes had 424 yards passing and 4 touchdowns. On National Tight End Day, Travis Kelce had 11 receptions for 179 yards and a touchdown. The defense continued to look good as they held the Chargers to ZERO points in the second half. I know people are tired of the dynasty, but get use to it because as long as #15 is in a Chiefs uniform, they’re going to be good for a long time.

Chargers Takeaway: Another close loss- This just seems like the Chargers fate at this point. They just can’t win close games. In the first half, the offense was competing with the Chiefs offense putting up 17 of their own points. After that, they didn’t do anything. They simply couldn’t move the ball. Justin Herbert is starting to look like the next Phillip Rivers of this franchise. They’re definitely cursed.

Dolphins vs. Eagles-How6rd

Dolphins - Victims of questionable officiating and slacking offense: Before anything can be said about what physically went wrong with the Dolphins in this loss they had some very questionable officiating to say the least. The Eagles won this game without a single penalty called on them all game, and if you’re telling yourself “it’s not the first time sometimes refs just don’t blow the whistle often” well… the Dolphins had 11 on the night which was more than the average team receives. Dolphins also had bad calls on themselves including a very questionable roughing the passer call on Christian Wilkins in the third quarter of the game. Nonetheless the officiating in the NFL has been at a huge low this season and unfortunately “the game is the game.” Miami doesn’t get off the hook with this either as they had their own offensive struggles with multiple key players hurt for them right now it has been tough for this offense to get by as it once was at the start of the season. Right now the Dolphins look like they have a sure path still to make the playoffs, but the team’s performance this season hasn’t looked anything realistically scary only beating on teams who are looking forward to the draft and having disappointing performances offensively against the top teams such as the Bills and Eagles. With a matchup against the Chiefs in Germany in two weeks they need to come out strong as they once were and show that they can at least compete with the best going into the rest of the season.

Eagles - Brown/Hurts duo is the heart of this team: The Eagles knew what they found in their heist of a trade for AJ Brown last year and now seem to have reached a bigger height with the star receiver in 2023. It seems no matter how much the offense struggles around the duo of Jalen Hurts and AJ Brown they always stay in games or more so on top of others because of the two players alone. Going back to the point I made earlier we know that the defense wasn’t perfect and even got saved a couple of times on calls that the refs didn’t seem to catch on the field, but they still showed how strong they are and Darius Slay had the sole turnover for the team with a huge pick in the fourth quarter leading to a touchdown essentially putting the game out of reach. There’s still some issues Philadelphia needs to handle going forward, especially with Hurts’ questionable decision making down the stretch, but aside from controversy this was a team that the Eagles needed to boost their morale with the toughest part of their schedule soon to come.

49ers vs. Vikings (PC)

49ers Takeaway: Brock Purdy comes back down to reality- At the beginning of the year, the 49ers looked invincible. After these past two weeks, you can see where they’re vulnerable at. Yes, it’s the quarterback position and Brock Purdy. Mr. Irrelevant has exceeded every expectation of being the last pick in the draft. However, people were starting to call him an elite quarterback. On Monday, he showed us that he’s not quite at that level yet. In the 4th, Purdy threw a ball right to the defender. It didn’t even look like a wide receiver was in the vicinity. This late turnover sealed the game for the Viqueens. Now, Purdy still could become an elite quarterback. However, the gladiator persona the 49ers have put together has an Achilles heel.

Vikings Takeaway: ICE KIRK- Can this team just get a defense please? I know Kirk hasn’t looked the best all year, but he BALLED OUT on Monday. With 378 yards passing and 2 touchdowns, Ice Kirk looks like he’s back. The reason the Vikings have lost so many games is because their defense is TERRIBLE! However, they came up with a HUGE interception late in the game to seal the victory. If the defense can play decently, then the Vikings could make a late run towards the playoffs.