Minnesota Vikings 20 – 23 Denver Broncos
Manning intercepted twice but Bridgewater sacked seven times as Broncos go 4-0
Denver went 4-0 on Sunday against Minnesota and it's looking ominous for the rest of the AFC West. The Broncos came in to this one having managed just 57 yards rushing all season but the managed to put that state firmly behind them with this showing. Peyton Manning threw one pass to Running Back Ronnie Hillman who collected it neatly and set off like a jet for a 72 yard touchdown. Amazingly this was the longest running touchdown by any Broncos player for 15 years. Again it was Denver's new found ability for defending that answered the call and can now claim the accolade of being the top ranked defense in the league.
Manning may have been picked off twice, both of which were returned for scores but poor Viking QB Teddy Bridgewater was sacked an incredible seven times and with Minnesota's Adrian Peterson being restricted to just 81 yards in 16 carries Denver's defense was definitely earning their stripes.
Manning drove the Broncos forward 55 yards in nine plays and with Brandon McManus' 39 yard field goal with just one minute fifty left on the clock the Broncos defense went to work again. All four of Denver's wins so far this season have come about in the closing minutes of the games but to be honest on this form its going to take something really special to derail Denver's title push and unfortunately I'm not sure the Raiders who are up next have got what it takes for them to go 5-0.
Next up Oakland Raiders on Sunday 11th
Oakland Raiders 20 – 22 Chicago Bears
Raiders can't make it three in a row as Bears rally late
Raiders quarterback Derek Carr described this game afterwards as "one of those old fashion NFL fights – down to the wire"
Carr threw 20 of 33 for 196 yards on the day but it didn't stop the Raiders losing after winning the last two on the spin.
Bears quarterback Jay Cutler threw 28 0f 43 for 281 yards and one interception. One of his touchdown passes was to Robbie Gould in the closing seconds that sealed the match and got new Head Coach John Fox his first win. This was a tight affair and was well matched but right up to late into the third quarter it looked like the Raiders were going to pull off a third straight win only to have their hearts broken in the closing seconds.
For me the Raiders played well and were desperately unlucky not to pull it off. Unfortunately for them they have the Broncos next and it will take a miracle or a debacle for them not to go two straight losses.
Next up for Oakland is the Broncos on Sunday 11th.
Cleveland Browns 27 – 30 San Diego Chargers
Lambo's second chance hands the Chargers a hard fought win
As seems to be the current trend in the division at the moment, this was another tight affair that culminated in a late offside call and a retake of a 39 yard field goal by rookie Josh Lambo.
Lambo kicked his first attempt wide of the mark giving the Browns a glimmer of hope that they had managed to force this game into overtime only to watch in despair as Lambo was given a second attempt. Unfortunately for the Browns his second attempt was ruled good and handed the Chargers the win.
Chargers quarterback Rivers completed 23 of 28 passes and spent the game working behind a makeshift line because of all the injuries the Chargers have suffered in recent weeks. Rivers described the game as "a scrappy game, it wasn't our best performance but it was enough"
Browns went with quarterback Josh McCown for this one and he completed 32 of 41 for 356 yards which, normally would have been enough to get the result but the Chargers defense pulled off some big plays and managed to sack McCown four times. San Diego struggled in the early part of the game and Rivers could be seen throwing his helmet down in frustration after one of his plays stalled due to him being sacked.
Josh McCown said later "We've come home with a loss and it doesn't reflect the effort that we put into the game" The chargers are now 2 for 2 in the division and along with the Raiders are Denver's nearest challengers.
Next up the Steelers on Tuesday 13th.
Kansas City Chiefs 21 – 36 Cincinnati Bengals
Chiefs lose again and sit at the foot of the division as the Bengals still unbeaten
Last week I said that I thought the Chiefs had enough about them to win this one but in all honesty Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton was sublime again. The Chiefs have been beaten by Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers and now Andy Dalton in the last three weeks. Rodgers and Dalton have combined 41 of 59 for 654 yards so that tells you where the fault lies.
Last year the Chiefs were every bit as divisional rivals the Broncos but this year, without knowing the exact reason the Chiefs are not the same team. Bengals tackle Domata Peko told reporters that the Bengals had a game plan from the off. "We knew Alex Smith, like most other quarterbacks panics a bit when he gets panic in his face" and that proved to be the case here as Peko managed a brace of sacks.
Smith threw 31 of 45 for 386 yards but the pressure started straight away and never let up the whole game. The Chiefs came into this game with 14 sacks already which is currently an NFL record and promptly added five more here. The game changer here was tight end Travis Kelce's fumble after he appeared to catch it . The ball was returned to the Kansas 5 yard line where Bengals running back Jeremy Hill promptly ran in for a touchdown (one of three in the match) which game the Bengals a 29 – 15 lead which the Chiefs just couldn't claw back.
The Chiefs currently sit bottom of the division and unless they pull their fingers out quickly are going to find themselves marooned and a season that is over before it starts. They have an opportunity against the Bears next week, whether they take it is up to them.
Next up the Chicago Bears on Sunday 11th.
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