Tom Brady made more NFL history in Sunday's thrilling 16-13 Tampa Bay Buccaneers' win over the Los Angeles Rams but he says it was all about the win and not personal records.

Brady became the first player in NFL history to throw more than 100,000 career yards on a 15-yard fourth-quarter completion to Leonard Fournette.

That was before Brady took over to win the game for the Bucs who were down 13-9 with 44 seconds remaining, going five-of-six for 60 yards on the game-winning drive, the record 55th of his career.

Not only did Brady achieve those new feats, but he notched his 43rd career fourth-quarter comeback, tying Peyton Manning for the most by an NFL starting quarterback.

Brady declared "that was awesome, that was f****** awesome" to open his post-game press conference, referring to the come-from-behind win, not the records.

"It's all about the win," Brady added. "It's all about the win, man. I never cared about the [records]. All about the win."

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles was full of praise for 45-year-old Brady who completed 36 of 58 passes for 280 yards and one TD.

"We always have a chance with [Brady]," Bowles said. "We're grateful to have him. He got over 100,000 yards - that's a long-playing career for anybody. He's still playing at a high level. We love the guy to death.

"You run out of things to say about him. I'm sure I can't say anything different than the 50 million people that [have] already commented things on him. He's a great player.

"He's one of the best, if not the best to ever play the game, and he continues to do that."

The win improved the Bucs' record to 4-5 to regain top spot in the NFC South after the Atlanta Falcons lost 20-17 to the Los Angeles Chargers.

Tom Brady made more NFL history in Sunday's thrilling 16-13 Tampa Bay Buccaneers' win over the Los Angeles Rams but he says it was all about the win and not personal records.

Brady became the first player in NFL history to throw more than 100,000 career yards on a 15-yard fourth-quarter completion to Leonard Fournette.

That was before Brady took over to win the game for the Bucs who were down 13-9 with 44 seconds remaining, going five-of-six for 60 yards on the game-winning drive, the record 55th of his career.

Not only did Brady achieve those new feats, but he notched his 43rd career fourth-quarter comeback, tying Peyton Manning for the most by an NFL starting quarterback.

Brady declared "that was awesome, that was f****** awesome" to open his post-game press conference, referring to the come-from-behind win, not the records.

"It's all about the win," Brady added. "It's all about the win, man. I never cared about the [records]. All about the win."

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles was full of praise for 45-year-old Brady who completed 36 of 58 passes for 280 yards and one TD.

"We always have a chance with [Brady]," Bowles said. "We're grateful to have him. He got over 100,000 yards - that's a long-playing career for anybody. He's still playing at a high level. We love the guy to death.

"You run out of things to say about him. I'm sure I can't say anything different than the 50 million people that [have] already commented things on him. He's a great player.

"He's one of the best, if not the best to ever play the game, and he continues to do that."

The win improved the Bucs' record to 4-5 to regain top spot in the NFC South after the Atlanta Falcons lost 20-17 to the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Kansas City Chiefs came from behind to defeat the Tennessee Titans 20-17 in overtime on Sunday thanks to more Patrick Mahomes' heroics.

Despite Mahomes proving to be the difference late, he was bottled up early by a sharp Titans defense, holding the Chiefs to just nine points in the first three quarters.

On the back of their strong defense, the Titans built a 14-9 lead at half-time as superstar running back Derrick Henry bulled his way into the endzone for two touchdowns.

Mahomes completed a first-half touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman, but a third-quarter field goal from the Titans had them trailing 17-9 heading into the fourth period.

With the game on the line, needing a touchdown and a two-point conversion to tie, Mahomes manufactured a 13-play, 93-yard drive, culminating in a 14-yard rushing touchdown from the Chiefs quarterback to convert on third-and-nine. He then also ran in the two-point conversion.

Mahomes completed passes to four different players in his one overtime drive, highlighted by a 27-yard jump-ball to Noah Gray to convert a third-and-inches and move into the redzone, before also converting a fourth-and-one to JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Ultimately they settled for a field goal, forcing Titans rookie quarterback Malik Willis to at least mount his own field-goal drive to keep the game alive, but the Chiefs defense rose to the occasion for the game-winning stop.

Mahomes ended up completing 43 of his 68 pass attempts for 446 yards, one touchdown and one interception, while also leading the Chiefs in rushing with six carries for 63 yards and a score to tie the game at 17-17.

That was in stark contrast to what the Titans asked Willis to do, as he finished five-of-16 for 80 yards. Henry was the star for Tennessee, rushing 17 times for 115 yards and two touchdowns, giving him nine touchdowns from eight games this season.

Chicago Bears emerging star Justin Fields set an NFL single-game record for rushing yards by a quarterback with a 178-yard performance in Sunday’s contest against the Miami Dolphins.

Fields eclipsed the previous high mark of 173 yards set by Atlanta’s Michael Vick in 2002. Former San Francisco 49er Colin Kaepernick still has the most rushing yards by a quarterback in any NFL game when he ran for 181 in a playoff victory over Green Bay in January 2013.

The 2021 first-round pick also set a franchise record for the longest run by a quarterback when he eluded a rush and scrambled for a 61-yard touchdown in the third quarter of Chicago’s 35-32 loss.

Fields' continued development as a passer was also on display, as he threw for a career-high three touchdowns and finished with a quarterback rating over 100 for a second straight game.

"I think I’m just growing and getting better each and every week," he said afterward. "My main goal is just to continue to do that, continue to trend up. Each and every day I practice, just keep getting better and better. That’s really all you can do."

After recording a 71.8 passer rating with a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 9-to-13 through his first 14 NFL starts, the 23-year-old has posted a 99.7 rating with eight touchdown passes and just two interceptions over his last five outings.

"Obviously, start of the season [he’s] feeling his way, and now the last three games he’s really taken off," Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said. "We are excited about that as a group and we are excited about that for the Chicago Bears and the franchise."

Sunday’s effort gave Fields 602 rushing yards in 2022, making him the fifth quarterback since 1960 with 600 or more rushing yards through nine games in a season. The former Ohio State star joined a list that includes Vick, former Bear Bobby Douglass and two active players, Lamar Jackson and Kyler Murray.

"He’s as fast as any skill position runner," Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel remarked. "He is really, really fast and he can cut and break tackles.

"There are a lot of running quarterbacks. This one in particular I think is very elite and adept at that."

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill made history in his side's 35-32 road win against the Chicago Bears on Sunday, and gave plenty of credit to his quarterback.

Hill caught seven passes for 143 yards and a touchdown, and in doing so, broke Hall-of-Famer Calvin Johnson's record for the most receiving yards through a team's first nine games in a season.

It was the fifth time this campaign Hill has eclipsed 140 receiving yards in a game, and he now has 1104 yards for the season, surpassing Johnson's record of 1083 in his first nine games for the Detroit Lions in 2013.

Hill, who is a four-time All-Pro, is only 375 yards away from his career-high total of 1479 from his 16 games in the 2018 season.

Speaking to NFL Network before leaving the field, Hill was grateful for the position he is in.

"For me, man, just to touch the paint – I haven't scored since Week 2, I believe," he said. "To be able to get into the endzone, I just want to thank God for blessing me with this amazing opportunity.

"Blessing me with this chance to play with this special group of young guys – Tua [Tagovailoa] and Jaylen [Waddle] – and just the whole offense.

"Also, you add coach McDaniel and Wes Welker – they're legends – I'm extremely blessed and I'm looking forward to playing more football this season.

"I don't even know what to say [about breaking the record]... I tell people all the time, keep faith in whatever goals you've got, just believe in yourself and always put God first.

"You never know when it's your time, and I feel like this is my time."

When asked his thoughts on Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, Hill doubled-down on his preseason comments calling him the most accurate quarterback in the game.

"He's the best in the league," he said. "He's the most accurate quarterback in the league. Know that."

The Miami Dolphins are now 6-3 in the stacked AFC East, trailing the 6-2 Buffalo Bills and the 6-3 New York Jets, while the fourth-placed New England Patriots (5-4) are also above .500.

Tom Brady showed once again why he is considered the greatest player in the history of the NFL after another miraculous game-winning drive to lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 16-13 win over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.

It was not a good offensive game from either team, with the only touchdown from the first 59 minutes of action coming from a 69-yard pass by Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford to reigning Offensive Player of the Year Cooper Kupp in the second quarter.

But after a fourth-quarter field goal trimmed the margin to 13-9 with eight minutes on the clock, all eyes turned to Brady as he looked to break the all-time record for game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime.

His first attempt saw Brady lead the Bucs 53 yards, before failing to convert a fourth-down at the seven-yard line. Luckily for Tampa Bay, they would get another chance after a quick stop forced the Rams to punt the ball with 50 seconds remaining.

In just 35 seconds, Brady completed four passes and drew a pass-interference penalty to take the ball to the one-yard line with 15 seconds to play.

Brady then swung a quick pass out to tight end Cade Otton, slipping past a potential tackler for the score with nine seconds on the clock.

It was Brady's 55th game-winning drive, breaking his tie with Peyton Manning to take sole possession of the all-time lead.

With the win, the Buccaneers move to 4-5, and now lead the NFC South as they own the tiebreaker against the 4-5 Atlanta Falcons.

Walker carries the Seahawks

Rookie running back Kenneth Walker III was the star of the show in the Seattle Seahawks' 31-21 road win against the Arizona Cardinals.

Walker carried the ball 26 times for 109 yards and two touchdowns, making it five consecutive games where he has found the endzone after also tallying 167 yards and two touchdowns in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Both of the Seahawks' starting receivers also scored, with quarterback Geno Smith completing a four-yard touchdown pass to D.K. Metcalf and a nine-yarder to Tyler Lockett.

Seattle are now 6-3, while Arizona fall to 3-6.

Tom Brady became the first player in NFL history to reach 100,000 passing yards during the first/second/third/fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback was always likely to hit the landmark in the 2022 season, and the 45-year-old did exactly that against the Rams, achieving a feat that may never be matched.

Brady entered the Week 9 clash with 86,787 passing yards in the regular season, adding 13,049 yards in the postseason.

He stands more than 14,000 yards ahead of the second-placed quarterback all-time in that regard, Drew Brees.

Only once in the past 12 seasons has Brady failed to rack up more than 4,000 passing yards for the campaign, finishing with 3,554 in the 2016 season for the New England Patriots after missing the first four games due to his Deflategate suspension. Brady ended that season by leading the Patriots back from a 28-3 deficit to defeat the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI.

Despite the Bucs struggling mightily on offense in 2022, Brady is on pace to hit the 4,000 mark again this season, having entered Week 9 with 2,267 to his name.

Last season, Brady became the first player to throw 700 career touchdown passes, and when he does retire for good after swiftly reversing his decision to hang up the cleats this past offseason, he will undoubtedly do so as the greatest of all time.

Aaron Rodgers lost a fifth straight game for just the second time in his NFL career as the Green Bay Packers were upset again by NFC North rivals the Detroit Lions.

The Packers are enduring a torrid season and fell to 3-6 with this latest 15-9 defeat on Sunday.

Green Bay had not previously lost five in a row since 2008 – Rodgers' first year as a starter – but there is no sign of their misery ending any time soon.

Rodgers, previously so dominant in division matchups, threw three interceptions in a game for only the fifth time in his career and for the first time against NFC North opponents.

Two of those came with the game still scoreless, giving the lowly Lions a foothold they fought hard to protect.

Detroit had traded T.J. Hockenson within the division to the Minnesota Vikings at the deadline, but that void was filled by a pair of career-first touchdown catches from tight ends.

Shane Zylstra – elevated from the practice squad on Saturday alongside wide receiver brother Brandon – got the Lions on the board with his first catch of the year, while rookie James Mitchell's score at the start of the fourth quarter ultimately proved decisive.

Bills loss leaves AFC East in the balance

The fourth of Rodgers' five successive defeats had come against the Buffalo Bills last week, but Josh Allen was also on the end of a shock loss on Sunday as the New York Jets blew the AFC wide open. Despite two rushing TDs, Allen was every bit as hapless as Rodgers through the air as he threw two interceptions in the Jets' tense 20-17 win.

With the Bills 6-2 and the Jets 6-3, the AFC East is among the year's closest fought divisions, with the Miami Dolphins just about improving to 6-3 by fending off the Chicago Bears 35-32. Justin Fields kept the Bears in touch, throwing three TD passes and rushing for 178 yards – a Super Bowl era record among quarterbacks. His stunning 61-yard TD run was the longest of his career.

Mixon makes hay with Bengals' first five-TD game

There was no late drama in the game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Carolina Panthers, which was dominated by running back Joe Mixon. He rushed for four TDs and had five total scores – also catching a Joe Burrow pass. It was just the ninth five-plus-TD game of the Super Bowl era – and the first by a Bengal – and set up a 42-21 victory.

Kevin Durant is interested in becoming part of the Washington Commanders' new ownership group after Dan and Tanya Snyder announced they were considering a sale of the franchise.

On Wednesday, the Commanders released a statement confirming the owners had hired BofA Securities to explore a potential sale.

The decision comes amid an NFL investigation into an allegation of sexual misconduct from Dan Snyder, who is also being probed by attorney generals in Washington, D.C. and Virginia over alleged financial improprieties.

Reports have credited Amazon chief executive Jeff Bezos, as well as musician and producer Jay-Z, with an interest in making a joint bid for the team, and Durant wants to be involved.

Two-time NBA champion Durant, who grew up in the D.C. area, told ESPN: "In a perfect world, I would be a part of it.

"I would love to do it. I would love to give a little bit of my money to be a part of the Commanders, but we'll see. Hopefully it's somebody nice. I heard Bezos and Jay-Z, but you never know.

"I don't have a lot of money, though. I don't have that much money to say, 'Look, man, let me get a piece of the team.'

"I'm sure it would have to work out some way, somehow. I would love to, obviously, but to be honest, I doubt that it'll happen. It's a five or six-billion-dollar team."

Dan Snyder brought the Washington franchise in 1999, and while Durant is surprised to see him exploring an exit, the Brooklyn Nets star is excited about the team's future. 

"How long has he had it now, 20-something years? He's probably the only owner I've known, since I've been alive, for the Redskins or Commanders," Durant added. 

"It's definitely shocking to see him put them up because it's his baby. NFL teams are precious, they're important.

"That's going to be a team that everybody [wants]. Everybody wants to be a part of the league. It's one of the most lucrative teams in sports, so I'm sure there's going to be a lot of bidders.

"Our market is incredible. There's a lot of support in D.C., a lot of money in D.C. to be made. I feel like we drafted well the last couple of years, we got some foundation pieces that can help you win football games moving forward. 

"I know we've had some losing seasons, but it's starting to come around for us. I'm excited as a fan. 

"I'm excited about the sale. I'm excited to see who they bring in and who they sell the team to, and to see how we move forward with it." 

The New Orleans Saints have plenty of experience playing without Michael Thomas, and they’ll need to draw on that again with the wide receiver scheduled for toe surgery that is expected to wipe out another season. 

Thomas, who hasn’t played since September 25, was placed on injured reserve Thursday because his dislocated toe did not respond well to rehab, Saints coach Dennis Allen said. 

"I’m not going to get into any time frames right now. I don’t know," Allen said. "He’s going to go on IR. I don’t anticipate that he’ll be able to return this year."

After missing just one game in his first four NFL seasons, Thomas was limited to seven games in 2020 and did not play at all in 2021 due to an ankle injury and complications related to surgery in summer 2021. He will have missed most of the past three seasons since his five-year, $96million extension went into effect in 2020.  

"I think Mike worked his tail off and did everything he possibly could to try to rehab it," Allen said. "This is just something that happens from time to time. It didn’t respond the way we wanted it to, so we felt like surgery was the best option to go ahead and repair it and try to get him healthy." 

Thomas had at least 92 receptions in each of his first four seasons and was an All-Pro in 2019, when he set an NFL record with 149 catches and finished that season with 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns. 

His 470 receptions from 2016 to 2019 led the league, with DeAndre Hopkins in second with 393. 

Running back Alvin Kamara strongly defended Thomas. 

"I just saw a couple comments in the media about him," he said. "Basically like, ‘You can't’ trust him, he’s not being honest about his injury, why is he waiting until now to be ruled out?'

"I’m like, man, nobody knows what we go through in here. The masses get to see Sunday. It’s a lot of s--- we’ve got to go through.

"A player like that, that’s fighting to get back, not only for his team, but for the fans and for his city… for people to be talking s---, it’s like, ah, it hurts my soul to see that." 

The Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers meet in Week 9 in a matchup between two preseason NFC favourites who have spectacularly failed to live up to expectations.

Los Angeles and Tampa Bay produced a thrilling NFC Divisional Round playoff game last season, the Rams prevailing in overtime following a furious Bucs comeback en route to winning Super Bowl LVI.

Such excitement has been thin on the ground for both teams in 2022. They are a combined 6-9, with both of their offenses enduring significant struggles. 

Last week, the Rams (3-4) were thrashed 31-14 by their NFC West rivals the San Francisco 49ers, who completed a fourth successive regular-season sweep of Los Angeles.

That defeat marked the fourth time this season the Rams have scored 14 or fewer points and lost by double-digits. From 2017 through 2021 (head coach Sean McVay’s tenure prior to this season), they had six such games. Five of those 10 games have been against San Francisco.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford threw for 187 yards on 33 attempts against San Francisco. It was the 11th time in his career that he has thrown the ball at least 30 times and finished with fewer than 200 passing yards. His teams are 2-9 in those games.

Stafford averaged 4.71 air yards per attempt in the loss to the 49ers, the Rams' offense relying largely on the screen pass and rendered impotent in the second half after San Francisco succeeded in taking that away.

Los Angeles' lack of counterpunches when the Rams cannot get the ball to Cooper Kupp should offer the Tampa Bay defense, which is allowing the fourth-fewest yards per pass play (5.7) in the NFL, confidence it can contain Stafford and Co. as the 49ers did.

The Rams' distinct lack of a running game -- Los Angeles' run success rate of 24.3 per cent is by far the worst in the league -- will only further Tampa Bay's confidence in that regard, and the Buccaneers appeared closer to solving their problems on offense in Week 8.

Though the Buccaneers (3-5) lost for the third consecutive game, suffering a 27-22 defeat to the Baltimore Ravens, Tom Brady threw for 325 yards and zero interceptions. In his career, he is 54-7 when throwing 300 yards and no interceptions but is 1-2 in such games this season.

Still, Tampa Bay's three-game losing streak is their longest such run since the Buccaneers lost four in a row between Week 5 and Week 9 in 2019. In addition, they have scored 28 points just once this season, in a 41-31 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bucs were 12-0 when reaching that mark last season.

Both offenses appear likely to face plenty of third-and-long situations, and it may be the offense that does a better job of overcoming them that comes out on top.

The Buccaneers are five of 50 (10 per cent) on third down with six or more yards to go. That percentage ranks last in the NFL. The Rams' 17.5 per cent mark (7-for-40) is 28th in the NFL. Last season, the Rams were third at 35.0 per cent while the Bucs were 12th at 25.6 per cent.

It's a tale of two offenses experiencing a substantial downturn, but neither team is dead in the water, with the Buccaneers one game out of the NFC South lead and the Rams a game back in the loss column in the NFC West, which is led by the 5-3 Seattle Seahawks.

But time is running out for these teams to right their respective ships, and the loser of this game will be at significant risk of sinking out of contention even in an open NFC.

Jonathan Taylor has been ruled out for the Indianapolis Colts' Week 9 clash with the New England Patriots, head coach Frank Reich announced on Friday.

The running back is out with an ankle injury and is one of four absentees against the Patriots, along with cornerback Tony Brown (hamstring), quarterback Matt Ryan (shoulder) and linebacker Grant Stuard (pectoral).

Deon Jackson filled in for Taylor in his previous absences in Weeks 5 and 6, rushing 25 times for 104 yards and a touchdown, as well as catching 14 passes for 108 yards in those two games.

He faces fresh competition in the backfield, however, following the arrival of Zack Moss – who was acquired in a trade with the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday that saw Nyheim Hines depart, with the Colts also earning a conditional sixth-round pick for the 2023 NFL Draft.

Moss had limited opportunities on the ground in Buffalo, recording 17 carries for 91 yards, and has not played since Week 5.

The Colts are on a two-game losing streak and sit 3-4 on the season, second in the AFC South behind the 5-2 Tennessee Titans.

The 2022 trade deadline day proved a historic one for the NFL.

Teams struck 10 deals on Tuesday prior to the 16:00 EST deadline, with a total of 12 players traded, the most ever on deadline day.

None were of the level of the San Francisco 49ers' blockbuster trade for Christian McCaffrey on October 20.

However, there were still several deals that will have significant short and long-term impacts for some of the franchises involved.

So what can we glean from the hive of activity at the deadline? Stats Perform dug into the advanced data around the trades to answer that question.
 

Dolphins crank up pressure on opponents, and Tua

The Miami Dolphins made the headline move of trade deadline day, sending a package that included the 2023 first-round pick they acquired from the 49ers to the Denver Broncos for edge rusher Bradley Chubb.

It is a move aimed at improving the Dolphin defense's ability to better complement an offense that fired on all cylinders in their Week 8 win over the Detroit Lions.

Miami recovered from 14 points down to beat the lowly Lions 31-27, Tua Tagovailoa producing five passing plays of at least 20 yards in a single game for the third time this season.

Yet the Dolphins might not have needed such heroics from their quarterback had the defense been better equipped to keep the Lions at bay in the first two quarters.

The Dolphins are allowing successful plays on 47.7 per cent of passing downs, well above the league average of 41.1, and have tallied just 14 sacks for negative yardage this season, tied for 20th in the NFL.

Chubb's arrival brings the Dolphins a high-ceiling pass rusher who already has 5.5 sacks, eight quarterback hits, four tackles for loss and two forced fumbles in 2022.

His 32 pressures are more than every other Dolphins defender save for Jaelan Phillips, who has racked up 41, the fourth-most in the NFL, in a strong second season.

The hope will be that pairing Phillips and Chubb will greatly improve the defense's capacity to create negative plays and remove some of the onus from a high-powered offense.

That offense has a new name in the backfield for the second half of the season. The Dolphins traded running back Chase Edmonds to the Broncos, before sending a fifth-round pick to the 49ers for Jeff Wilson Jr, who reunites with former team-mate Raheem Mostert in Miami.

Wilson's departure was always a possibility after the 49ers struck their blockbuster trade for McCaffrey, but he should prove an excellent complement to Mostert.

He can excel at both zone and gap-scheme runs and has proven effective at picking up yards with less than ideal blocking. Among backs with at least 50 carries, Wilson is 11th with 3.37 yards per rush on runs where there is a disruption by a defender.

With a strengthened pass rush and an apparent upgrade in the backfield, Tagovailoa's support system looks to be improved following the trade deadline, but that will only heighten the scrutiny on him if he cannot turn a 5-3 start into a playoff berth.
 

Lions have long way to go

If their 1-6 record didn't already make it obvious, Detroit's decision to trade tight end T.J. Hockenson to NFC North rivals the Minnesota Vikings hammered home the point that the Lions still have a lot of rebuilding to do.

Detroit received a 2023 second-round pick and a 2024 third-rounder in exchange for Hockenson, a 2023 fourth-round pick and a conditional 2024 fourth-rounder.

It is a move that sees them part with a tight end that was a Pro Bowler as recently as 2020 and who has been an efficient receiver in 2022.

Hockenson is averaging 15.2 yards per reception, the most among tight ends, with Detroit's willingness to part with him reflective of how much they value acquiring draft capital for a team that appears further away from competing than many thought heading into the season.

While the struggles on the field may put them in position to land their quarterback of the future, the Lions are clearly in need of more resources to improve a defense that has allowed a play success rate of 46.1 per cent, the second worst in the NFL, and continues to struggle to create pressure or cover in the secondary.

The beneficiaries of the Lions' need to amass picks are the 6-1 Vikings, who can work in Hockenson as a replacement for Irv Smith Jr. after he was lost for eight to 10 weeks with an ankle injury.

It was not clear in which direction the Vikings were headed after a sea change in the front office and at head coach after missing the playoffs last season, but the Lions were thought to be on an upward trajectory following an impressive offseason.

That assessment has proven misguided, with these two teams' divergent paths enabling the Vikings to enjoy the advantages of having another offensive weapon as the Lions are left wondering how long it will take for them to be in a position to be buyers at the deadline.
 

Chicago has faith in Fields

The Chicago Bears were also a seller, sending linebacker Roquan Smith to the Baltimore Ravens on Monday having also dealt pass rusher Robert Quinn to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Unlike the Lions, however, the Bears were in the business of adding to their roster, striking a deal that serves as an illustration of their belief in second-year quarterback Justin Fields.

After receiving a second and a fifth-round pick for Smith, the Bears parted with a second to acquire wide receiver Chase Claypool from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Claypool's worth was clearly not depreciated by a downturn in his production in terms of scoring from his rookie year. He scored 11 touchdowns (nine receiving, two rushing) in 2020 but has just three from scrimmage since.

Yet Claypool has excelled at winning his matchups with covering defenders this season, with his open percentage against man coverage of 42.42 prior well above the average for wide receivers of 36.32.

That points to the problem in recent years being the Steelers' offense, which has struggled to target him downfield amid its deficiencies at the quarterback position. Claypool's average depth of target of 9.8 yards this season is below the league average of 10.4.

But a partnership with Fields, who has been starved of receiving talent in Chicago, could be one that gets Claypool back on his previous trajectory.

Last week against the Dallas Cowboys, Fields was accurate on 90.9 per cent of his throws while averaging 9.5 air yards per attempt. His season-long average of 9.64 is fourth among quarterbacks with at least 100 passes this season.

If Fields sustains that downfield accuracy, it could see Claypool re-emerge as the deep ball-winner he was in his rookie season.

Though they have traded other assets for picks, the Bears feel Fields has shown enough to be worthy of their faith he can blossom into Chicago's franchise quarterback and are backing him to revitalise Claypool while inspiring further strides for an offense that has made definitive progress in recent games.

After a busy NFL trade deadline, the focus is back on the field this weekend.

Josh Allen faces Zach Wilson as the New York Jets confront a major test of their defense against the soaraway Buffalo Bills, while the Los Angeles Rams will look to keep up their remarkable record against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Could Derrick Henry have another monumental game in him after last week's big effort, and after he dispelled worries about a foot problem?

Stats Perform has taken a look at the numbers ahead of Sunday's games, beginning with the travails of the Brady bunch.

Los Angeles Rams (3-4) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)

The Buccaneers are on the slide, and the Rams are just about the nightmare opponents this weekend, judging by recent games between the teams.

Including Los Angeles' win in last season's Divisional Round, the Rams are 9-1 in their last 10 games against the Bucs, and that includes a 5-0 streak in Tampa.

This game is big for both, and for the Bucs it offers a chance to halt a losing sequence of three. They were beaten 27-22 by the Baltimore last week and are on their longest single-season losing run since a dismal four-game run in the 2019 season.

It remains to be seen whether Tom Brady can get them out of this mess. Brady threw for 325 yards and zero interceptions in last week's loss to Baltimore. Across his stellar career, he is 54-7 when throwing 300 yards and no interceptions, but this season he is 1-2 in such games.

Brady might fancy the job against a Rams team who have scored 14 or fewer points and lost by double-digits four times already this season, including last time out in a 31-14 home loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Rival quarterback Matthew Stafford threw for 187 yards last week on 33 attempts. His team are 2-9 in games where Stafford has thrown the ball at least 30 times and finished with fewer than 200 passing yards.

Buffalo Bills (6-1) at New York Jets (5-3)

The Buffalo Bills are 6-1 for the first time since 1993, the season they last made it through to the Super Bowl. This weekend they go after a fifth win in a row after getting the better of the Green Bay Packers last time out.

What's more, they have strung together a four-game winning streak in road games against the Jets, second only in franchise history to a seven-game streak from 1987 to 1993.

The Bills have outscored this season's opponents by 105 points (203-98) so far, the widest differential in the NFL.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen has urged the Jets to show patience with his struggling counterpart Zach Wilson, who has completed just 54.9 per cent of passes this season, the second-worst rate in the NFL heading into Week 9. Wilson has thrown for 1,048 yards across five games, with three touchdowns and five interceptions, compared to Allen's 2,198 yards for 19 TDs and six interceptions from seven games.

Stefon Diggs has at least 100 yards and a receiving touchdown in three straight games, the longest streak of the Bills wide receiver's career and tied for the longest streak in team history with Elbert Dubenion (1964). The last NFL player with a longer streak was Adam Thielen in 2018 (five). How Diggs fares against Jets rookie cornerback Sauce Gardner will be a factor.

The Jets have already topped last season's four wins, but they are 8-30 against divisional opponents since 2016, the worst record in the NFL.

Tennessee Titans (5-2) at Kansas City Chiefs (5-2)

What does Titans running back Henry have in store for an encore? Henry last week recorded his sixth career 200-yard rushing game, with 219 yards and two touchdowns against the Texans, tying Adrian Peterson and O.J. Simpson for the most all-time. All other active players have combined for just four such games.

The Chiefs will be wary of that threat, and will look to their own WR, JuJu Smith-Schuster, to make his own impact. After failing to reach 90 yards or find the endzone in his first five games this season, Smith-Schuster now has back-to-back games with at least 100 yards and a touchdown. He had not had such a game since Week 8, 2019 and now has eight such games in his career.

The Titans have won four straight regular season matchups with the Chiefs but lost in the 2020 AFC Championship Game in Kansas City.

Their respective 5-2 records this season disguise the fact each of those wins has been relatively close. The Titans and Vikings have only won by single digits this season. Only five teams in NFL history have seen such a streak reach six games – the 2020 Chiefs, 1997 Vikings, 1994 Giants, 1988 Saints and 1986 Giants. Of those, only the Chiefs' streak reached seven.

Elsewhere...

The Miami Dolphins (5-3) will be looking for a fourth consecutive road win against the Chicago Bears (3-5), which would make the Dolphins the first AFC team since the conference came into being in 1970 to have such a streak in Chicago. Miami's Tyreek Hill has gone 52 consecutive receptions without a receiving touchdown. That accounts for the longest streak of his career, nearly doubling his previous career-long streak (27, twice).

Memories of a record-setting 2014 game between the Carolina Panthers and the Bengals will be stoked when the teams meet in Cincinnati on Sunday. The last time these teams met at the home of the Bengals it finished in a 37-37 tie, and entering Week 9 in 2022 that remains the highest-scoring tie in an NFL game since the NFL and AFL merged in 1970.

The New England Patriots are 4-4 for the fifth time in the Bill Belichick era (since 2000) as they approach a home game against the Indianapolis Colts (3-4-1). The other four times the Patriots started 4-4 under Belichick, they made the playoffs three times (2001, 2005, 2021) and missed the playoffs once (2002). Between the regular season and playoffs, Belichick owns an 18-9 career record against the Colts, with only Don Shula (36 wins as coach of the Dolphins from 1970 to 1995) having achieved more such wins.

Jalen Hurts warned the Philadelphia Eagles "haven't accomplished anything yet" after moving to a franchise-best 8-0 start to the NFL season.

The quarterback threw two touchdowns in his hometown of Houston for the visitors against the Texans to seal a 29-17 win at NRG Stadium.

Hurts has helped guide the team to their best season start in the franchise's 90-year history, silencing doubters who wondered if he would be their long-term starter.

But he said there is still work to be done, pointing to his own days playing college football with Alabama as proof that a superb start can come to nothing in the end.

"I know it's special for the city of Philadelphia," Hurts stated "[But], I mean, I've been 8-0 before and lost the national championship. [We've got to] just take it day by day.

"We haven't accomplished anything yet. It's a day-by-day thing of us controlling things we can, playing to our standard and trying to grow every day. I think that's truly what it's about."

Hurts dashed hopes for his hometown team with his impressive performance, but acknowledged it was a "special moment" to play in the city, while adding the Eagles still have room to grow.

"There's a lot to be grateful about," he added. "There's a lot to reflect on and look at the things that we did well. There's also a lot of things that we can improve on.

"Personally, playing in the city of Houston, being the first time playing back home, that's a special moment for me personally. I think the job is still not done."