You’d be hard-pressed to find a more difficult watch than Sunday’s Packers-Lions game, due to the officiating. The Chiefs could say the same thing about their offense on Sunday night.

On the flip side, how about those Cowboys? Their offense got back on track — with a wrinkle. In New York, Cam Skattebo reasserted himself as the Giants’ RB1. 

Here’s my breakdown of the best and worst from Week 7, focusing on storylines, defenses and offenses across the league: 

Best Story This Week: Cam Skattebo’s Bounce-Back

A week after not getting a carry, a result of his fumbling issues through five games, Skattebo rebounded in a major way in the Giants’ 27-21 overtime victory over the Houston Texans. 

The second-year tailback carried the ball 17 times for a career-high 124 rushing yards (his first-ever 100-yard game) and a touchdown. He scored on a 16-yard run in the fourth quarter and his 42-yard scamper in extra time set up Devin Singletary’s 30-yard, game-winning touchdown. 

Skattebo’s performance highlighted a stellar day on the ground overall for the Giants, who had a season-high 188 rushing yards. All three of New York’s running backs (Skattebo, Singletary, Tyrone Tracy Jr.) had rushing touchdowns. 

In the wake of Skattebo’s costly OT fumble against the Washington Commanders in Week 5 and Najee Harris’ release on Oct. 20, there was plenty of uncertainty regarding the Giants’ running backs. But the group responded in a big way for coach John Harbaugh. Skattebo, Tracy and Singletary all putting their arms around each other to celebrate post-game was fitting. 

Giants running backs Tyrone Tracy Jr. (No. 29), Cam Skattebo (No. 44) and Devin Singletary celebrate together after the team’s overtime victory against the Texans at Reliant Stadium on Sunday. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)

Thanks in large part to the run game, the Giants are in a great place as they enter their bye week. And they may have something cooking with J.J. McCarthy as their starting quarterback. At 4-2-1, they have a 1.5-game lead atop the NFC East. 

Worst Story This Week: Officiating In Packers-Lions Game

I’m not one to gripe against officiating, but it was so bad in the Packers-Lions game that it must be addressed. 

The Packers were penalized eight times for 81 yards, with seven of them coming in the second half. The calls included two questionable roughing the passer penalties, a strange intentional grounding call against quarterback Jordan Love (despite the fact that a receiver, tight end Tucker Kraft, was in the area) and a wild unnecessary roughness foul against defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt. 

On that play, Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown appeared to go down after a short catch but got up and kept running. Wyatt then tackled St. Brown but was hit with a flag, despite the fact that no whistle was heard. In the postgame pool report, referee Alex Moore did not definitively say whether a whistle was blown either. 

I wouldn’t say the Packers’ loss was on the refs. Green Bay blew its share of opportunities throughout the game. Kicker Trey Smack missed a 26-yard field goal in the first quarter and his 35-yard attempt late in the fourth quarter was partially blocked. There were drops. The run game continued to be a disaster even with lead back Josh Jacobs back in the lineup, producing just 60 net yards. 

But in a league in which many games are decided by a few plays, the officiating must be held accountable — just like the performance by players and coaches. 

Best Defense This Week: Seattle Seahawks

Mike Macdonald’s “Dark Side” defense completely overwhelmed the Chiefs on Sunday night, ruining Kenneth Walker III’s return to Seattle. 

The Seahawks held Kansas City to its fewest points (3), total yards (213), first downs (11) and red zone drives (0) in any game started by Patrick Mahomes, according to FOX Sports Research. Walker, who’s been the early favorite for Offensive Player of the Year, was held to a season-low 36 rushing yards — a shade over half of his previous season-worst (70). 

The Seahawks’ defense was on a mission to slow down Kenneth Walker III (No. 9), who signed with the Chiefs after being named Super Bowl MVP with Seattle last season. (Photo by Caleb Bowlin/Getty Images)

We didn’t learn much from the Seahawks defensively. We already knew that they were elite on that side of the ball. What was encouraging was their run game, which produced 153 yards — the second-most Seattle has had on the ground this season. And tailback Zach Charbonnet, who had a team-high 12 rushing touchdowns last season, is nearing his return after tearing his ACL in last season’s playoffs. Activated off the physically unable to perform list on Oct. 22, the former second-round pick was a full participant in practice this past week. 

Seattle has had at least 113 rushing yards in three of their past four games. Charbonnet is on his way back. The ground attack is finally starting to emerge, and that takes a ton of pressure off quarterback Sam Darnold and the pass game. Now 4-3, the defending-champion Seahawks are reasserting themselves as a top NFC contender. 

Worst Defense This Week: Baltimore Ravens

Jesse Minter’s defense collapsed in the second half of Baltimore’s loss to the Bengals, allowing 35 points in the last two quarters. Cincinnati scored five straight touchdowns to start the second half, as Joe Burrow played lights out over the final 30 minutes — 16-of-18 for 249 yards and four touchdowns with a perfect 158.3 passer rating. His four second-half passing TDs tied his career high in a half, per FOX Sports Research. 

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow threw for four touchdowns, all in the second half, against the Ravens on Sunday. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

Late-game woes have been a recurring issue for the Ravens this season. Over the past four weeks, they’ve been outscored by 47 points in the second half and overtime. It’s why I’m not buying that they’re a serious AFC contender, even when star quarterback Lamar Jackson returns from his ankle injury. 

The two-time MVP’s presence should alleviate the scoring challenges that Baltimore has had the past couple of weeks (23 points combined since Week 6) and keep the offense on the field longer, limiting possessions for the opponent. But the Ravens appear to have a mindset problem. I don’t think the boost that will come with Jackson’s return eliminates that.

Best Offense This Week: Dallas Cowboys

After back-to-back weeks of sluggish offensive play, the Cowboys erupted for a season-high 38 points in their convincing victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football. It marked the most points scored by an NFL offense in Week 7. (The Tampa Bay Buccaneers put up a league-best 43 points in their win over the Carolina Panthers, but nine of those points came from a fumble-return touchdown and a defensive two-point conversion.)

The Cowboys’ prolific passing attack regained its rhythm — quarterback Dak Prescott threw for 212 yards and connected with star wide receivers CeeDee Lamb (five catches, 74 yards, two TDs) and George Pickens (four catches, 57 yards, TD) for three touchdowns — but the big story was how the offense imposed its will in the trenches. Dallas had a season-high 204 rushing yards, including a career-high 155 rushing yards and a touchdown on 25 carries (6.2 yards per carry) by lead back Javonte Williams.  

This is what Prescott was referring to in the offseason when he hyped the moniker, “The Greatest Offense There Is.” This is the version of the Cowboys that frightens opponents. They have no weakness offensively when the run game is going. It becomes a true pick-your-poison unit. 

Combine that with an improving defense, and the Cowboys can beat anyone. But Monday was just one game. They need to do it consistently. And the defense needs to show it can be trusted for the long haul. 

Worst Offense This Week: Kansas City Chiefs

Above, I broke down how Sunday’s game was the worst offensive showing that the Chiefs have had in the Mahomes era.

Kansas City doesn’t need to overreact to one road game against one of the league’s best defenses, but the performance did show how the Chiefs are a bit too reliant on Walker, who’s the engine of their offense. 

They need more help at receiver to open up the box for the reigning Super Bowl MVP. Kansas City’s issues Sunday night were exacerbated by the absence of wideout Rashee Rice, who was out with hamstring and knee injuries. And with Rice sidelined, top receiver Xavier Worthy had just three catches for 11 yards. 

The Chiefs should be aggressive for a wide receiver at the deadline. The Jaguars’ Brian Thomas Jr. is the kind of athletic speedster that Kansas City could utilize to stretch the field, making up for the loss of Tyquan Thornton earlier in the season. 

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The Milwaukee Brewers took a commanding 3-0 lead in the World Series on Monday with a dominant win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field, but their passionate fans made it feel like a home game, even after the game was finished.

Kevin Burkhardt told viewers the stadium felt like an extension of Milwaukee.

“There’s always visiting fans in a ballpark, and any time, especially when a visiting team wins, you hear the fans,” the MLB on FOX host said postgame. “I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.”

Derek Jeter said he was surprised when he found out how big the Brewers’ crowd was. 

“It’s very, very surprising, because we watch back in the green room, so we really can’t tell what’s going on in the game,” Jeter said. “But this is amazing how many Milwaukee Brewers fans there are.”

Alex Rodriguez summed it up in four words: “It’s a Milwaukee Brewer takeover.”

(Photo by Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

The Brewers beat the Rays 10-1 in Game 3, scoring eight runs in the fifth inning on seven straight two-out hits, both World Series records. Jackson Chourio had four hits and stopped by to visit the desk postgame, where he received a “My Dawg!” Shirt from three-time World Series champion David Ortiz after his performance.

Chourio, speaking through a translator, said the fans are just as deserving as his teammates.

“I think all of these fans deserve a championship as well,” Chourio said. “So I hope that we’re able to accomplish this for them.”

When Jeter asked how he plans to sleep before a chance to clinch, Chourio said he and his teammates have been getting ready for this moment.

“It’s special for sure, but we’ve been preparing for this day,” Chourio said. “Knowing that it’s coming, so we have one more to lock in for tomorrow to complete the mission.”

Milwaukee is now one win from the first World Series title in franchise history, with Game 4 set for 8 p.m. ET Tuesday at Tropicana Field.

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Tropicana Field (ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.) – All the fire was zapped from the Rays clubhouse.

On Saturday night, after a one-run loss to the Brewers to fall behind 2-0 in the World Series, Rays third baseman Junior Caminero was fiery in his determination to get his team back on solid ground. On Monday night, after the Rays were humiliated by the Brewers at home in a 10-1 landslide, Caminero seemed resigned. 

By the time his teammates silently shuffled around the clubhouse in miserable defeat, Caminero, the face of this Rays team, seemed to have already accepted the most probable outcome of this series. The passion to avenge Milwaukee was gone. The hope that the Rays could still do the impossible was not in the room. Caminero, speaking in a low and barely audible voice to a scrum of reporters, no longer believed. 

“Game 2 is in the past, and now Game 3 is also in the past,” Camerino said. “It is what it is. It’s all in the past.”

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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Years from now, when someone wants to remember this inexorable, incessant, indomitable Milwaukee machine that is one win away from immortality, point them to the fifth inning of Game 3 of the World Series. 

The Brewers do not simply win games. They overwhelm opponents to the point of exhaustion, then rip away their will. They work counts persistently, knock starters out swiftly, put the ball in play repeatedly and punish mistakes forcefully. Sometimes, as they did Monday night in a two-out rally for the record books that gave them a 3-0 lead in the Fall Classic, they do it all at once. 

Now, after a 10-1 demolition of the Rays at Tropicana Field, they are one win away from celebrating their franchise’s first World Series title, with four chances to finish it off. 

“I don’t think it’ll ever sink in that we’re this close,” pitcher Jacob Misiorowski told me.

(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Milwaukee demands perfection from its foes, and even then that is typically not enough, considering the Brewers’ ability to erase deficits in the blink of an eye and stifle opponents with their shutdown bullpen. They have trailed in all but three of their 11 playoff games and have won 10 of them anyway. 

Play anything less than flawless baseball, or give them extra outs to work with — or any opening at all — and the game might be over before those high-leverage weapons need to be deployed. Tampa Bay learned that the hard way Monday night, when the Brewers scored more runs with two outs in the fifth inning than Tampa Bay has scored the entire series. 

Misiorowski, the likely National League Cy Young Award winner, watched from the top step of the dugout as the inning unfolded, hit after hit after hit after hit, often with one foot on top of the railing to celebrate each occasion. 

The Brewers led 2-0 with runners on first and second when catcher William Contreras grounded a ball to Rays third baseman Junior Caminero, in what appeared to be the end of a scoreless frame. Caminero attempted to go to second base rather than fire across to first. Christian Yelich slid into second and was initially ruled out, before the call was overturned on review. 

“The whole game changed when Yeli was safe at second,” said manager Pat Murphy. “That’s just a hustle play. When your leader makes that play, that says it all. The game changed because he did a little thing that anybody can do.”

Six batters later, the Brewers led 10-0. They became the first team to score at least 10 runs in a World Series game without hitting a home run since the 2014 San Francisco Giants. 

It was Brewers ball at its best. 

“Just amazed our guys are doing this in the World Series, the biggest stage,” Misiorowski told me. “Obviously, we watched it all year. That’s kind of just what we do. One guy gets hot, all of a sudden, the whole team’s hot.”

(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

The Brewers had the most hits and RBI with runners in scoring position in the majors this season. Still, what transpired Monday night was historic. 

The eight runs scored were the most ever by a team with two outs in a single inning of a World Series game. Their seven consecutive two-out hits were the most in postseason history. 

“Here we go again,” Brewers hitting coach Daniel Vogelbach thought as the inning continued. “I’ve seen it happen. This team, they can have one strike left and believe they’re still in it. We’ve done it with two outs so much this year. They cherish every out, and they know it can happen fast when you stack together good at-bats. They’ve done it all year.”

After the Contreras single loaded the bases, Rays manager Kevin Cash turned to lefty Cam Booser. Opponents were 2-for-26 with runners in scoring position against the lefty during the regular season and 0-for-9 with men on base in the postseason against him. 

It didn’t matter.

(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

The Rays had another opportunity to extinguish the threat, but a 106-mph scorching one-hopper off the bat of Brice Turang ricocheted off shortstop Taylor Walls’ glove to bring in two runs. 

From there, the floodgates opened. 

“Especially in the postseason, you’re never really satisfied, no matter how many runs you’re scoring,” outfielder Garrett Mitchell told me. “You still gotta go out there and compete. You can’t give them a chance. It’s the World Series. It’s the best team in the American League. They could just as well do that as well. You can’t take your foot off the gas.” 

So, they didn’t.

(Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Mitchell followed with a single. Then Cooper Pratt and Sal Frelick doubled, David Hamilton singled and Jackson Chourio recorded his fourth hit of the night. 

Chourio had two hits in the fifth inning alone. The Rays, to that point, had one hit as a team.

The Brewers have demonstrated their ability all October to eke out tight games. To finally get some breathing room felt nice. It also had another effect that will bleed into a potential World Series-clinching Game 4: They saved all of their high-leverage arms. 

“It’s just nice when an offense can do that and you give your bullpen a break,” Vogelbach said. “Our bullpen has been throwing a lot. They’ve been outstanding. In a game like that, being able to give those guys a little bit of a break is always a plus.”

By the time Caminero threw a ball away in the sixth inning, there was no more air inside the building to deflate. The only noise inside Tropicana Field was the cheering of the Brewers’ faithful, most of whom had packed into Milwaukee Mitchell International and Chicago O’Hare the day before bound for Tampa, ready to witness history. 

The Brewers players could feel their presence all night, from batting practice through the last pitch, noting that it felt more like a home game. 

“Not quite sure if it was 60/40, 50/50,” Mitchell said, “all I know is the Brewers’ fans were loud.”

Their cheers crescendoed in the ninth, when the man who epitomizes the Brewers’ doggedness, perhaps better than anyone, emerged from the bullpen. 

Brandon Woodruff, the veteran pitcher whose season was supposed to be over, had made the World Series roster against all odds, his shoulder deemed just good enough to go. 

The Brewers’ longest-tenured player had endured all the personal and team highs and lows of the last decade of Milwaukee baseball to make it to this point and felt he had finally gotten to a place where he could contribute. There was talk of him potentially serving as an opener for Game 4, but when he saw his trainer running out to see how he was feeling in the eighth inning Monday night, he knew he was about to get the ball.  

In his first appearance since July 4, and his first postseason outing in five years, all he thought about was throwing the ball over the plate. He finished off the game that would move his Brewers one win away from their first World Series title, but he didn’t take much time to reflect on the journey. 

“We gotta win one more game,” Woodruff said. “Then we’ll do some real reflecting.”

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At Villanova University, all roads — or at least many of them — seem to lead to Rome, thanks to famed alumnus Pope Leo XIV and the school’s growing ties to the Vatican. Even its vaunted basketball program is getting in on the act.

“We certainly have a bigger footprint there now than we used to,” said the Rev. Peter Donohue, Villanova’s president. “People do know who we are, just because it’s the pope’s school.”

The pope graduated from Villanova with a degree in mathematics in 1977. He belongs to the Augustinians, the religious order that founded the university near Philadelphia in 1842. Now his alma mater is finding new and inventive connections to his papacy.

On Sunday, Nov. 1, the men’s and women’s basketball teams from Villanova will open the season in Rome with a Catholic university matchup, playing Notre Dame 6 miles (9.6 kilometers) from the Vatican in what organizers are calling the Eternal City Tip-Off: the men’s game will air on FOX and FOX One at 9:30 a.m. ET, while the women’s game takes place at 12 p.m. ET. The doubleheader comes only weeks after Villanova hosted a sustainability conference in Rome and awarded a cardinal with the inaugural Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal.

“It’s crazy,” Donohue said. “We’re taking over Rome.”

Villanova saw applications jump more than 10% during the first admissions cycle after the pope’s 2025 election.

“We claimed it was ‘the Pope Leo effect,’” Donohue said.

Pope Leo’s Alma Mater Is A Basketball Powerhouse

Villanova is the only American university that can claim a pope as a graduate — a distinction that has elevated its profile alongside a run of athletic success.

The school won the NCAA men’s basketball championship in 1985, 2016 and 2018. Three alums dubbed the ‘Nova Knicks were instrumental in the New York Knicks winning the NBA title this year.

Over Halloween weekend, the power of Catholic school basketball will be in full effect as 6,000 Villanova fans and 1,000 Notre Dame fans travel to watch their teams compete.

“The voice of the people of God will be very strong on the Villanova side,” Leo said in September.

The festivities were planned long before Leo’s recent cancer diagnosis and surgery. The sports-loving pope is scheduled — health permitting — to hold a private audience inside the Vatican on Saturday for the teams and their traveling fans. Philadelphia Archbishop Nelson Perez will also celebrate a private Mass for them in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Ed Hastings, who played on Villanova’s 1971 basketball team that lost the national championship to UCLA and now teaches at Villanova, will appear on a sold-out panel in Rome. He will be discussing sports and spirituality, bringing together “the passions of my life,” he said.

St. Augustine, who inspired the Augustinian religious order, wrote about self-knowledge. “And I learned a lot about myself through sports,” Hastings said.

On Campus, Connections To Pope Leo A Source Of Pride

The Rev. Bernie Scianna, Villanova’s vice president for mission and ministry, is a friend of the pope, having met him almost three decades ago through their Augustinian order.

Scianna has seen an uptick in interest in Catholicism at the school, which has around 10,000 students and a large Catholic population. Last year, 24 people joined the Catholic Church on campus, most of them students, though fewer than 10 typically do each year. There are 56 people in the current class of potential new members.

“It’s really a great feeling for us to be in this moment,” he said.

Villanova has long sent students to Italy and the Vatican for internships and study abroad programs, but those opportunities are growing.

Senior Mike Whaley just returned from a fall break trip there with his humanities class. He had visited the Vatican on a previous student trip, where he was an altar server at a private Mass for Villanova students celebrated by then-Cardinal Robert Prevost.

“So, my fun fact at parties is that I served Mass for the now Pope Leo XIV,” Whaley said.

Megan Zuzarth, another senior, also was in Rome recently with her business school class.

The pope’s connection to Villanova makes him even more relatable once you realize “he probably sat right here or he walked these halls,” Zuzarth said. “He’s one of us.”

Church bells rang at Villanova for hours after Leo’s election.

Cathleen Kershner, now a junior, was wrapping up her final exams. “I get a text from my grandma and she was like, ‘Your pope! He’s your pope!’”

Before He Was Pope, They Knew Him As Bob

Donohue was at a Chicago restaurant when he heard the Vatican conclave had chosen a new pope.

“It’s Bob!” he screamed. A manager brought out Champagne to celebrate the new pope, who was born and raised in Chicago.

Donohue, a fellow Augustinian, was two years ahead of Pope Leo at Villanova. Before assuming the presidency, he chaired the school’s theater department.

As a child, while “other people were playing basketball and football, I was taking tap dancing classes,” he said.

His background in musical theater has been surprisingly useful as he navigates fundraising and donor relations. “I tell everybody it’s the biggest acting job I’ve ever had,” he said, “and the longest run I’ve ever had.”

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Villanova has not been immune to the financial pressures many universities face, but it’s faring better than most. The school has undertaken renovations and expansion projects and recently opened a new campus at a nearby shuttered Catholic college.

The Pope Leo effect certainly has not hurt.

“We’re very proud of him, and very proud that he’s an Augustinian, and very proud that he is leading the church,” Donohue said. “Whatever we can do to help him, we’re trying to do that.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The Milwaukee Brewers lead the Tampa Bay Rays 3-0 and can win their first World Series title in Game 4 on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET from Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. 

Milwaukee beat Tampa Bay 10-1 in Game 3 on Monday behind an eight-run fifth inning. Tampa Bay is expected to start Griffin Jax, and the Brewers have not named a starter. Below are the details on how to watch.

How to Watch Brewers vs. Rays (Game 4)

• When: Tuesday, October 27, 2026 at 8 p.m. ET
• Where: Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL
• TV: FOX
• Stream: Watch 3 days free on FOX One

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FORD FIELD (Detroit) — Sitting at his locker, Penei Sewell offered a simple response when asked about what Brian Branch’s return means for the Lions — not just to the defense, but to the team as a whole. 

The All-Pro offensive tackle pointed to early in the fourth quarter on Sunday, when the Packers faced a third-and-21 deep in their own territory. The Lions were up 17-14 and Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love fired a deep shot to his go-to target, Christian Watson. Branch, the 2024 Pro Bowl safety in his first game back from a torn Achilles last December, came flying across the middle of the field for a leaping interception. 

It was a massive play late in a tightly-contested affair, the Lions’ first division game of the season, and Detroit’s sideline erupted. The roar from the Ford Field crowd was deafening. 

“I mean, you guys heard that crowd,” Sewell said of Branch. “You saw the team when he got that pick. I feel like that is self-explanatory.” 

Let’s take Sewell’s words a big step further: The return of Brian Branch makes these Lions a legitimate Super Bowl contender. 

Let’s also be clear: The Lions are still missing former All-Pro safety Kerby Joseph, who they expect to get back at some point this season from a knee injury. In the meantime, Branch can stabilize the secondary, which makes Detroit’s defense competent. And all these Lions need is competence on that side of the ball, given that they have arguably the NFL’s top offense.  

The interception by Branch, who spent the first six games of the season on the physically unable to perform list, highlighted the effort from a Lions defense that made timely stops against the Packers’ potent passing attack in Detroit’s 20-17 win. 

“We all played a hell of a game, and I’m just proud to be a part of the secondary,” Branch said. “We done been through a lot, and now it’s time to hit the ground running.”

Detroit still has the NFL’s worst pass defense, and the Lions’ inability to generate turnovers — they’re tied for 26th with just six takeaways — has exacerbated their issues in the back end. But Branch’s presence immediately changes the calculus. He’s a big-time playmaker. In his first 44 NFL games, he has eight interceptions, 39 passes defensed, 20 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles. 

Branch tore his right Achilles in Week 14 last season against the Cowboys. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

On a pitch count Sunday, Branch offered a glimpse of what he can give the Lions moving forward. In addition to the pick, he registered four tackles.

“I thought he was running with a turbo. He was really running super fast into his gap, and it confused me, but that’s just who he is,” Lions linebacker Derrick Barnes said. “Obviously, got to get used to knowing that B.B. is going to run to his gap. He’s a phenomenal person to have back for this team, this defense. 

“When the ball is in the air, going down deep, and I look up and I see No. 32, I’m almost 99.9 percent sure that it’s going to be his ball,” Barnes continued. “I’ve witnessed it multiple times. … He’s a ball hawk.”

The 4-2 Lions, who host the undefeated Minnesota Vikings on Sunday (1 p.m. ET on FOX), have an enhanced confidence defensively with Branch on the field. 

“He just understands football so well,” veteran cornerback D.J. Reed said. “He’s just overall a great player. I don’t think he has any weaknesses.” 

Pro Bowl defensive end Aidan Hutchinson calls Branch the “tone-setter” of Detroit’s defense. 

“That’s his X-factor right there,” Hutchinson explained. “He can change a game by making a hit, forcing a fumble, doing a big splash play like [the interception].”

And Branch’s return comes as Detroit is starting to figure it out as a collective defense. Sure, it wasn’t all pretty against the Packers on Sunday. The Lions allowed pass plays of 22, 27 and 28 yards on fourth-down attempts. They gave up a wide-open touchdown on a third-and-9. 

But Detroit forced a turnover on downs with Green Bay at the 7-yard line. Branch’s fourth-quarter interception bailed out the Lions’ offense, which had turned the ball over on downs inside the 10-yard line. The pick was preceded by an impressive pass breakup by backup cornerback Khalil Dorsey. 

Detroit also held Green Bay to a field goal on its penultimate possession, and defensive end DJ Wonnum got a hand on the 35-yard FG attempt on the Packers’ last drive. 

The Lions have now held opponents under 25 points in three of their past four games. And slowing down a dangerous Packers offense is a massive step in the right direction. 

“I thought our defense really, really stepped up, and they were the big story of this game,” coach Dan Campbell said after Sunday’s game. “I can see there is a confidence, there is a trust that’s building with some of these guys. 

“The front’s been doing a really good job. The backers have been playing pretty dang good, too, and the back end in spurts. But these last two games, we really stepped up. … We’re challenging on some of these throws down the field. We’re making it hard and there’s nothing free, man. We’re trying to defend every blade of grass, and that’s what good defenses do.”

An improving defense that now has Branch back, one that’s supported by an elite offense? 

Watch out, NFL. 

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I left last week’s Caleb Williams-Drake Maye showdown wishing that the two quarterbacks could face off against each other more often. They’d make incredible rivals — not because of any animosity between the draft classmates. But because of how good they are, how their games overlap and how their stories overlap.

They are both top 10 QBs. They are both in secure organizations where they can succeed for a long period of time. And whether we see them in direct competition, they will always compete over legacy. That’s what seems to come next for them.

So let’s dive into their performances. Let’s deeply analyze Malik Willis from his first win with the Dolphins, J.J. McCarthy in his first start (and win) with the Giants, Aaron Rodgers in his mutinous performance and Bryce Young in his biggest stinker of the season.

These aren’t your typical QB rankings. I’m focused on contextualizing the fluctuations of starters’ performances throughout the season. I don’t write about every quarterback every week, but I dive deeply into the most compelling performers.

No one — not even Josh Allen — is safe at the top. No one — not even Tanner McKee — is stuck at the bottom. There is room for quick ascent — and rapid decline. One question holds the most importance: What have you done for your team lately?

Previous: Offseason | Preseason | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7

Previous ranking: 30 ↓

Previous ranking: 31 ↑

Hey, the Dolphins won a game! Very cool.

This is actually important in many ways for Malik Willis, who is probably not Miami’s QB of the future — but who could actively interfere with the plan to replace him. The Dolphins look like the obvious favorite to finish with the No. 1 overall pick, where they’d have the choice to take a QB. But this year’s crop of college QBs have been bad enough to diminish the hype around the incoming draft class. As of now, it appears some of the top prospects could (and in some cases should) return to school for another year.

So if there aren’t a handful of options and the Dolphins slip out of contention for No. 1 overall, maybe Miami would actually give Willis another year. Maybe the Dolphins would draft Jeremiah Smith and let Willis send the ball to Smith 100 times a game.

I’m a fan of giving Willis more time to develop, particularly with an offensive line and a group of playmakers who can actually help him out — which might be the case next year in Miami. But Willis will need to do a whole lot more to justify it. He looked solid and quick-thinking in the first half, but things got out of sync in the second half, when he was missing open receivers (by throwing off target or not throwing at all). There were flashes. But so far, the flashes are just that. The body of work has yet to declare QB1.

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There’s an unsettling ease to J.J. McCarthy’s playing style in New York.

Where did this come from?

He is whipping the ball around — particularly downfield — with a level of confidence and competence that we really haven’t seen from him. He has a strong arm, even if he’s not the best thrower at shaping passes away from defenders. And he’s making the most of his talents — and the Giants’ offense. Again, where did this come from?

I’m not here to tell you he’s a different player — or that he’s born again as the prospect the Vikings once drafted No. 10 overall. No, he’s still kinda the same guy, with plenty of warts. He’s sometimes throwing the ball too hard and his accuracy can be spotty. There were examples of that this past Sunday and the previous one.

But he’s having fun with talented and rangy pass-catchers in Malik Nabers, Malachi Fields and Isaiah Likely. And I’m having fun watching him.

Here’s another thing that has been nice to see: He’s keeping the ball out of harm’s way. Given how aggressive he’s been, it’s likely that he’ll start to run into trouble. That’s just the nature of McCarthy’s playing style when he strays into a high-volume game plan. For now, he’s taking care of the football. His only turnover came on his first throw in a Giants uniform last week. I’ll give him a pass on that one.

Can he keep this up? I don’t know. And that’s why I won’t waste time thinking ahead about a training camp QB competition in 2027 between Jaxson Dart and McCarthy. We are a long way away from that. For now, McCarthy is playing well. That’s all that matters for the playoff-hopeful Giants.

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I couldn’t help but crack up when ESPN’s Molly McGrath reported on air that Aaron Rodgers was going to take over playcalling for the offense against the Saints this week. He was frustrated with the results from coach Mike McCarthy. So Rodgers mutinied, which would’ve been a bigger deal if he didn’t have a long history of insubordination.

And what happened with Rodgers’ brilliant mind at the helm?

The Steelers immediately opened the game by going three-and-out.

I imagine he’s tired of being a checkdown merchant, which he continued to be against the Saints. The funny thing is, Rodgers is seeing the fewest occurrences of split safety looks — the en vogue “shell” look where teams put two high safeties to contain the big play. 

He should be able to push the ball downfield. But he’s not. 

No one is afraid of Rodgers’ arm anymore.

That said, I do want to point out just how awesome he was in delivering an absolute beauty of a deep ball to DK Metcalf this week against — what else — a single-high-safety look.

This won’t change how defenses play him, because this type of play has been too few and too far between for Rodgers. There’s usually one throw per game where you watch Rodgers and think: he’s still got it. But the other 25-30 throws show his age.

So the Steelers will keep generating most of their yards after the catch. They’ll design screens and quick passes that’ll help them move the chains. And that’s because the defenses know — even if Rodgers doesn’t — that he’s physically declined to the point where his physical tools cannot charge up an offense.

It’s time for him to get out of McCarthy’s way. It’s time for Rodgers to surrender with the playcalling. And it’s time for the QB to accept his role as a game manager, which he’s actually good at. Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle need to be twin engines for the Steelers’ offense.

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Every quarterback is bad when his blocking is bad. The question is, how bad?

The knock on Jared Goff has long been that he can’t handle pressure, which is totally true (even though he’s actually getting better this year!). Patrick Mahomes was brutal against the Seahawks, in large part because of Seattle’s pressure.

Well, Young was genuinely awful against the Buccaneers, who generated pressure on 51.5% of his dropbacks in Week 7, per Next Gen Stats. Tampa Bay edge Yaya Diaby, in particular, completely owned Carolina offensive tackle Rasheed Walker.

This is the type of game that troubles me about Young’s long-term prospects. Instead of simply being a mini-Goff, Young needs to learn to be a Brock Purdy impersonator. It’s not enough for Young to be a statuesque passer, because of games like this, where the defense creates a handful of advantages. Young needs to find ways to create plays, whether it’s navigating the pocket to avoid pressure — or rolling out of the pocket to generate explosives out of structure.

Too many times this past Sunday, the Buccaneers got quick pressure and Young ducked for cover (and an eight-yard sack). It’s a good sign that Young is so confident and poised as a pocket passer. But that only gets you so far in today’s NFL. He has to learn to do more.

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So it turned out that A.J. Brown did not suddenly upgrade this offense. And until Brown starts to show up as the proper WR1 (if that even happens), Drake Maye will have to play like an MVP candidate for the Patriots’ offense to stay afloat.

Thankfully for New England, Maye has settled back into what he does best: blend big plays with efficiency — and one or two dashes of what-the-hell-was-that?

During the beginning of the season, Maye was making way too many awful decisions — so many that the Patriots couldn’t overcome them. But by reigning himself in, he has flipped from being the reason they’re losing to the reason they’re winning.

That statement, of course, is complicated this week, because they didn’t beat the Bears. And Maye threw an interception that certainly tanked their chances. The red-zone turnover delivered a -12.6% hit to the Patriots’ win probability, per Next Gen Stats, which is sizable for a first-half play.

Ultimately, Maye’s mistake was too big to overcome when he was playing against Caleb Williams, who was just incredible. It’s a discouraging loss for New England — but not necessarily a discouraging performance from Maye, who finished the game 24 of 31 for 321 passing yards, three total touchdowns (two passing, one rushing) and an interception.

He was impressive when throwing to his tight ends, Hunter Henry and Eli Raridon (aside from the pick). Maye was even impressive when throwing to Brown, even with the Pro Bowler not hauling in one particular deep ball that was the type of play the Pats acquired him to make.

Maye is back to his 2026 level. The question is whether he can ascend further as the season goes on. That’s where Brown could really help — whenever he gets around to playing like an elite receiver again.

This is exactly what I was worried about when I predicted the Chiefs to miss the playoffs at the start of the season. They’re obviously not going to miss the playoffs. But they are going to need more firepower if they want to be real Super Bowl contenders. I’m just saying, Brian Thomas Jr. is available. The Chiefs need to call the Jaguars about BTJ.

He had one hell of a second half, and that was all he really needed to whoop the Ravens. The Bengals might be third in the AFC North, but with such an easy schedule, I still think they have a real shot at finishing first in the AFC. This team lives and dies at the hands of Joe Burrow, and he looked sharp to close out this game.

So it turns out that if you take away six of Brock Purdy’s wide receivers (Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, Christian Kirk, De’Zhaun Stribling, Demarcus Robinson, Ricky Pearsall), the 49ers QB does actually struggle. It was a rough outing, particularly with this boneheaded interception to Falcons safety Jessie Bates. 

What’s next for Caleb Williams?

I’ve already turned the page from his sterling performance in the Chicago Bears’ win over the New England Patriots last Thursday. Don’t get me wrong. I was outrageously impressed (and wrote about that Monday). But the Bears are already focused on Week 8 — and what’s on the horizon, immediately and distantly.

Williams will have the Seahawks, who completely stifled the NFL’s best tackler-breaker, Kenneth Walker III — and, in turn, rendered Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense useless. 

This is what makes quarterbacking so difficult. And this is what makes developing with linear progress so difficult. Because while Williams has seemingly done nothing but improve since Ben Johnson arrived, the gains will soon be harder to come by. That’s just the nature of being this good. It’s a game of diminishing returns. How much more can you improve?

This week, you can bet Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald will have a custom-fitted game plan to make life miserable for Williams. And against such a formidable defensive mind, Williams will have to keep doing what he’s been doing — searching for answers with his arm and his brain. But the degree of difficulty will be high. Just look at how hard it was this past Sunday for the best QB of this generation.

Williams is playing better than Mahomes right now. And I think Williams can keep it up. He has ascended for good. No one is regression-proof, but he looks pretty close.

Williams will have to keep working to calibrate how to use his tremendous tools — perhaps starting by taking a peek at the sack he took against the Patriots, which nearly cost the Bears the game. That was, by far, the worst mistake he made in Week 7.

Inject this upcoming Ravens-Bills game into my veins. I cannot wait for another showdown between Josh Allen and (hopefully, if he’s healthy) Lamar Jackson.

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The Milwaukee Brewers squeaked past the Tampa Bay Rays in Games 1 and 2 of the 2026 World Series. But, in Game 3, the Brewers got past the Rays with a sledgehammer.

After earning a 10-1 win in Tampa Bay, the Brewers now have a 3-0 series lead and are on the verge of their first World Series triumph following a historic Game 3 rout and a dramatic, eight-run fifth inning.

Here are the numbers to know from Game 3 of the 2026 World Series with nuggets provided by FOX Sports Research:

0: The number of outs Rays reliever Cam Booser recorded in relief of starter Freddy Peralta in the top of the fifth inning; Booser, who entered the night having surrendered zero runs over six innings pitched this postseason, gave up four consecutive hits and was pulled.

1A: Brewers manager Pat Murphy challenged an inning-ending force-out in the fifth. He won the challenge, and Milwaukee went on to drive in eight runs on six consecutive hits. The Brewers are the first team to log seven consecutive hits in a postseason game.

1B: The aforementioned inning also tied the 1921 New York Giants (Game 3) and 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks (Game 6) for the most runs scored in a World Series game without hitting a home run.

2A: The number of baserunners (one hit and one walk) Brewers starting pitcher Robert Gasser surrendered over six scoreless innings.

2B: Ironically, the Brewers only scored in two innings, plating two runs in the third and eight in the fifth.

3A: The number of hits the Rays were held to; designated hitter Yandy Díaz had two of those hits. 

3B: Milwaukee had three players tally three-plus hits: Jackson Chourio (four), William Contreras (three) and Brice Turang (three).

4A: Chourio’s four hits came throughout the first five innings, making him the fourth player to do so in a World Series game. Moreover, Chourio became the youngest player (22 years and 229 days old) to have four hits in a World Series game since Joe Garagiola had four hits against the Boston Red Sox in Game 4 of the 1946 World Series.

Jackson Chourio had himself a Game 3 to remember. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

4B: The number of baserunners (three hits and one walk) the Brewers’ pitching staff held the Rays to.

5: Peralta surrendered a combined two runs across his first three starts and four appearances altogether this postseason (16 ⅔ innings). Then, the Rays’ right-hander entered the fifth inning of Game 3 with two earned runs to his name in the outing and went on to be credited for five earned runs.

6: Gasser became just the second pitcher to face the minimum number of batters through six-plus innings in a World Series game; Don Larsen’s perfect game in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series for the New York Yankees is the only other performance.

8A: On the eight-inning front, the Brewers became the first team in MLB history to score eight runs with two outs in a World Series game. The Los Angeles Dodgers are the only other team to score as many runs with two outs in a playoff game, bringing home 10 runs with two outs in the first inning of Game 3 of the 2020 National League Championship Series against the Atlanta Braves.

8B: Eight of Milwaukee’s nine starting position players recorded a hit.

8C: Eight different players drove in a run for the Brewers.

16: The number of hits Milwaukee had.

26: Milwaukee’s pitching staff recorded 26 outs before giving up a run.

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I’m rather astonished by the reality faced by Oregon, USC and Texas A&M. They’re not represented anywhere at all in my latest projected 24-team College Football Playoff field. In a 12-team format, only USC still stands a chance of receiving an invitation to the tournament. But that’s like saying a ripe banana dropped into a blender stands. As long the Trojans can keep the remaining teams on their schedule from hitting purée, they’re golden. We’ll see.

Meanwhile, every other team seeded here feels less like we’ve shaken the traditional College Football Tree of Life free of dead branches and dry leaves and more like we’ve discovered this brush ain’t easily cleared. 

Only three teams left are still undefeated, and every other team has demonstrated what I wrote about in August, and again in my most recent top 25: It has never been more difficult to win a college football game.

Lincoln Riley’s USC team wouldn’t be in the playoff if it started today, but it could still be in the hunt under a 24-team format. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Part of the reason for this is the SEC finally joined the rest of the Power Four and now plays a nine-game conference schedule. Another reason is, this season, teams only get one bye week, and that means injuries influence outcomes more often. Finally, fans — particularly the ones with millions of dollars to light on fire for the sake of name, image and likeness — have become increasingly impatient for ultimate success.

Indiana, TCU, Cincinnati, Boise State, Tulane and James Madison have accelerated the importance of making the CFP because they made it, and Your School hasn’t yet. The aforementioned teams — no, not Your School — played for the national title or won the whole damn thing after absolutely crushing their head coaching search and building a roster through the transfer portal in what turned out to be magic years. 

This has made the 24-team CFP even more sexy for programs like Florida (eek), Wisconsin (yeesh), Iowa (oof) and USC (whoops) to raise a banner that says, “We Got In,” and for coaches to mark themselves safe from firing. But there are basically two moods for you and me, as we watch our teams and their teams play ball while looking at this projected 24-team field.

Under this format, my selection criteria is really quite simple:

• The four Power Four conference champions and the highest-ranked Group of Six team are automatic qualifiers
• The rest of the field is filled with 19 at-large bids for the remaining highest-ranked teams, in this case, in my weekly top-25 rankings.

If you see your team seeded below, you’re probably feeling one of two ways: 

Mood No. 1: Of course we’re making the playoff, RJ — in which case I hope you are sitting unbothered, sipping on sumtin sumtin with the blacked out windows rolled up in your blacked-out Rolls-Royce Phantom. 

Mood No. 2: Hope is a dangerous thing, RJ. It’s dangerous, I know. I hope you see no more than four games from bringing home the national championship. And if you do know that I, an Oklahoma fan, envy you.

All right, let’s talk through this.

HYPOTHETICAL 24-TEAM FIELD IN 2026

AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS: POWER FOUR CHAMPS, HIGHEST-RANKED GROUP OF SIX TEAM

1. Miami, ACC champion
2. Ohio State, Big Ten champion
3. Georgia, SEC champion
8. Utah, Big 12 champion
24. Boise State, highest-ranked Group of Six team

The top-4 seeds here look like they could make up the top-4 seeds in any past or future iteration of the CFP. All of these teams look good and none of them have losses that look especially bad, even Georgia with its loss to Auburn and Notre Dame with its loss to BYU.

In fact, Notre Dame had a worse loss two years ago to Northern Illinois — at home! — and not only did that Fighting Irish team still make the CFP in its 12-team format, but it also reached the national title game. 

Among these programs, though, Miami looks like a team that has yet to see its confidence truly shaken. Even in its double-overtime victory against Florida State in Week 7, there was more of a sense of embarrassment about how the game played out rather than the prospect of the Hurricanes losing it.

How teams make us feel is generally how most folks begin to think about who could or in the past should win the national championship. When there isn’t much difference between how good we actually think a team is versus how good that team actually thinks it is, that team plays to expectations. Miami is the only team most folks think might be the best, and they sure as hell think they’re the best.

HYPOTHETICAL CFP AT-LARGE BIDS: FIRST-ROUND BYES

4. Notre Dame
5. Indiana
6. UCLA
7. Kentucky

HYPOTHETICAL CFP AT-LARGE BIDS: FIRST-ROUND HOME GAMES

9. Alabama
10. Florida
11. Texas
12. Tennessee
13. Texas Tech
14. BYU
15. Ole Miss
16. Houston

I simply would not want to play any of these teams at home. Not a single one. Every program, even Houston, can absolutely fill a stadium with home fans who can make the game into an absolute nightmare for opposing teams. The idea of playing at the Swamp or in Provo or at Texas at night just doesn’t fill me with a whole lot of confidence. Yes, Texas, which was the first team out of this playoff last week and played itself right back in this week.

Ask Notre Dame how much fun it was to play BYU at home at night. Ask Ohio State about playing at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium under the lights. 

All of these programs can put together an event, an atmosphere, and provide the ingredients necessary to create one of the loudest and most hostile environments the sport has to offer. That also means each one of these teams is capable of making a run toward the national title game, just like Ohio State and Notre Dame did in 2024.

HYPOTHETICAL CFP AT-LARGE BIDS: FIRST-ROUND AWAY GAMES

17. Missouri
18. Oklahoma State
19. LSU
20. Northwestern
21. SMU
22. Wake Forest
23. Arizona
24. Boise State (automatic qualifier)

I put together a list of quarterbacks. I’m constantly working at this list. I’m constantly working on a lot of lists. It’s kind of what I do here — rank ‘em. 

The exercise, while easy to perform, I like to think is difficult to master. I like my lists to not just be good but be useful and approach an accuracy that feels true to me. Putting names next to numbers is easy. Being clear about the differences in those rankings, and why, is more challenging. With that in mind, there are two quarterbacks among teams seeded Nos. 17 to 24 that I would pick over the others behind them because they’ve demonstrated an ability to maximize their talent and the surrounding talent.

Drew Mestemaker is playing like a first-round NFL Draft pick. He’s thrown for at least 300 yards in 11 out of his last 19 games, including an ongoing streak of six consecutive 300-yard passing games against Big 12 competition.

Folks forgot that Sam Leavitt was the engine that powered Arizona State to a Big 12 championship and a College Football Playoff berth with Cam Skattebo riding shotgun. At his best, that’s who Leavitt is: a player who elevates the game of his teammates, and over the last two games he’s done that. Against his last two opponents, he’s thrown for an average of 338 passing yards with seven passing touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Between Leavitt and Mestemaker, I see the level of quarterback play necessary to perhaps lead a team to the two road victories and two neutral site wins it will take for teams seeded this lowly to win the national title.

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