NFL Week 8 grades: Broncos get an ‘A-‘ for saving their season in London, Bengals get an ‘F’ for MNF catastrophe

Possibly the Broncos ought to contemplate shifting all of their video games to London. 

Via the primary seven weeks of the season, the Broncos offense has principally seemed helpless, however that modified on Sunday in England. In a sport towards the Jaguars, Denver lit up the scoreboard with three touchdowns in a 21-17 win. Scoring three touchdowns would not often qualify as lighting up the scoreboard, but it surely does whenever you’re a Broncos crew who went into this week’s sport because the lowest-scoring offense within the NFL. 

So why was Denver lastly capable of finding some success on offense? The largest cause is that Russell Wilson lastly began taking part in just like the Russell Wilson the Broncos thought they have been getting after they made a blockbuster commerce for the QB again in March. 

Wilson’s skill to throw the ball precisely downfield is one cause why he is been so profitable in his profession and he confirmed off that skill towards the Jaguars. One in every of Wilson’s finest throws of the day got here within the third quarter when he hit Greg Dulcich with a 38-yard go that traveled 30 yards within the air. 

That throw got here on a 92-yard scoring drive the place Wilson went 5 of 5 for 88 yards. Wilson appeared to have an excellent reference to Dulcich, who caught three of the passes on the drive for 78 yards. That landing put the Broncos forward 14-10, but it surely was a lead they’d lose late within the fourth quarter after a one-yard run by Travis Etienne with simply 3:54 left to play. 

At that time, the Broncos went again out on the sphere and it felt like their season was on the road, however Wilson did not appear too bothered by the stress. On the primary play of the drive, Wilson arguably saved Denver’s season with 47-yard go to K.J. Hamler. 

Six performs later, Latavius Murray would rating the game-winning landing from one-yard out. 

Another excuse why the Broncos offense was so good is as a result of it was unstoppable within the crimson zone. Going into Week 8, Denver had the WORST crimson zone offense within the NFL, scoring a landing on simply 23.5% of their crimson zone journeys (To place that in perspective, each different crew within the NFL was changing at the least 35% of their crimson zone journeys into touchdowns heading into Week 8).

On this sport, the Broncos went an ideal 3-for-3 within the crimson zone and a giant cause is as a result of Nathaniel Hackett truly confirmed some creativity. Denver’s first landing of the sport got here on a six-yard catch by Jerry Jeudy that appeared to catch the Jaguars off-guard. 

The Broncos offense was under no circumstances good on the day. As a matter of truth, it seemed prefer it was going to be one other nightmare sport for the unit early on. On the Broncos’ first 4 possessions, they punted thrice with out getting a single first down and Wilson additionally threw an interception. Earlier within the season, that in all probability would have been sufficient to start out a full collapse, however this time round, the offense was capable of rebound. 

On these first 4 possessions, Wilson was simply 2 of 6 for 19 yards and an interception, however after that, he went 16 of 24 for 233 yards and a landing. 

The Broncos have a playoff-caliber protection and if the offense continues to enhance, this crew may finally sneak into the wild-card race. 

Alright, let’s get to the grades for each sport from Week 8. For those who’re searching for a deeper dive on the Ravens‘ win over the Buccaneers that was performed on Thursday, be sure to click here.

Cleveland 32-13 over Cincinnati (Monday)

Bengals-Browns grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Denver 21-17 over Jacksonville (London)

Broncos-Jaguars grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Atlanta 37-34 over Carolina (OT)

Panthers-Falcons grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Miami 31-27 over Detroit

Dolphins-Lions grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Minnesota 34-26 over Arizona

Cardinals-Vikings grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

New Orleans 24-0 over Las Vegas

Raiders-Saints grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Philadelphia 35-13 over Pittsburgh

Steelers-Eagles grades by Jeff Kerr (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

New England 22-17 over N.Y. Jets

Patriots-Jets grades by Jordan Dajani (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Dallas 49-29 over Chicago

Bears-Cowboys grades by Garrett Podell (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Tennessee 17-10 over Houston

Titans-Texans grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Washington 17-16 over Indianapolis

Commanders-Colts grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

San Francisco 31-14 over L.A. Rams

49ers-Rams grades by Bryan DeArdo (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Seattle 27-13 over N.Y. Giants

Giants-Seahawks grades by Cody Benjamin (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)

Buffalo 27-17 over Inexperienced Bay

Packers-Payments grades by John Breech (Love the grades? Hate the grades? Let him know on Twitter.)