Watching last night's Cowboys-Eagles game reminded of the power of difference-makers. Anybody else have a huge, I mean huge, lead going into last night, but facing Elliott? Or Ertz? Or Elliott AND Ertz? Difference-makers. The players who win games and leagues.
Those are early picks, but think about the mid- to late-rounders (James Conner? Nick Chubb?) who are going to wind up on a lot of 2018 champions. Players selected in a lot of drafts about the same place people were taking useless Cowboys wide receivers. With Chubb specifically, there's a guy you drafted, couldn't use at all the first six weeks of the season, and then in one week went from clear backup to No. 1 running back. Those are the picks you remember -- the ones to circle at the bottom of draft lists to take next August. Sometimes they do nothing (Chase Edmonds). But sometimes...
Lions at Bears: Coincidence that the Lions have played their two worst games in back-to-back weeks after trading away Golden Tate? Losing some key players on defense was also a factor in both Allen Robinson and Anthony Miller having huge games for Chicago. Kerryon Johnson and Kenny Golladay were the noteworthy performers for Detroit. Marvin Jones left with a knee injury, never good to hear. Tarik Cohen again better than Jordan Howard, which happens more often than not.
Saints at Bengals: Saw a few people thinking the Bengals would win this one; that the Saints would let down after their big win over the Rams. Uh nope. Everything is clicking for the Saints, who apparently don't even need a No. 2 wideout to pile up huge points. (I'm not sure what TreQuan Smith isn't doing out there to be included in the game plans, but obviously he can't be started anymore.) Guess Cincinnati kind of missed A.J. Green, he could have maybe helped the Bengals finish within 25 points of New Orleans. So turns out this was the week to use Mark Ingram, even though the passing game had a huge game and Alvin Kamara scored a couple of touchdowns. You can't spell BAD without Bengals Defense.
Falcons at Browns: Quite relieved I got cold feet on making Atlanta my Survivor Pick and changed it. Gotta be careful picking a bad defense on the road against a capable offense. And a huge game for Nick Chubb, making those of us who doubted his NFL pedigree look bad (but those of us who also drafted him late and kept him patiently on our bench for six weeks look good). Imagine if the Browns had fired some coaches a little earlier on. Or started Chubb a little sooner. Or... Atlanta slipping out of contention in the NFC. Can't afford to lose games like this one.
Jaguars at Colts: HEY, at least that positive Blake Bortles factoid worked out. Bortles had a nice game, but the Jaguars defense apparently really missed A.J. Bouye. And the Colts like to throw to tight ends anyway, taking those cornerbacks out of play at times. Disappointing game for Marlon Mack. Sorry about that one. Looked good, kind of didn't see Eric Ebron with a rushing score in addition to his 2 receiving TDs. Colts win. Jaguars in last place in the AFC South. Up is down.
Cardinals at Kansas City: There have been two out of control huge point spreads that I can recall so far this season, the Vikings at home against the Bills, and this one. Kansas City wins but doesn't cover, and those who started David Johnson were happily rewarded. Big game for Tyreek Hill, he seems to pop up with one of those every three to four games (so just when some are maybe thinking, hmm, maybe I should bench Hill this week...). Kansas City rolls on, Cardinals at least fare respectably in defeat. Nice schedule for David Johnson the rest of the way.
Bills at Jets: The unknown quarterback who nobody has any recent film on can be dangerous. When I heard the Bills were going to start Matt Barkley, who had a moment or two with the Bears a while back, I said, hmm, not as appealing as Nathan Peterman or Derek Anderson. But I still started the Jets in a couple of leagues, to the tune of negative-3 points; ouch. Tough game for Jets fans to watch. There was talk early in the season that Todd Bowles' job isn't safe and you wonder (especially with the bye coming up) if that doesn't come to pass in the next few hours. Disastrous game for the Jets, one to build on for the Bills (although it will be Josh Allen again after the bye).
Washington at Bucs: And this is exactly why you can't trust losing, badly managed teams. Bucs somehow managed to put up 500 yards of offense without getting in the end zone. At one point late Ryan Fitzpatrick marched them down the field (did that regularly, actually) only to get leveled and lose a fumble near the goal line. And his usual tendency to force passes for interceptions. I don't think he's going to get benched (Hey, he threw for over 400 yards today) but hard to trust that the days of 3-4 TDs will return. Washington wins without putting up big offensive numbers, as per usual. Saw a stat that they haven't led in any of their losses or trailed in any of their wins. Interesting team that quietly leads the NFC East.
Patriots at Titans: Lost in all the discussion over whether Rob Gronkowski or Sony Michel would play was the awareness that the Titans are capable of playing really good football at times. Today was one of those days, and New England in general hasn't looked as good on the road. Big games for Corey Davis and Derrick Henry, surprisingly, and a decent workload for Dion Lewis (and a second straight week with a touchdown for Jonnu Smith, whoa). For New England, the Gronk absence translated into a big game for Julian Edelman, decent one for Josh Gordon, but poor for Brady (something to be said for a former defensive teammate in Mike Vrabel facing him), James White and the rest of the offense. Patriots get their bye at a good time. The AFC South is wide open.
Chargers at Raiders: I watched a good chunk of this game and can confirm that the Raiders are playing hard. They're just bad. Early on they executed a fake punt and went for it on fourth and goal. Unsuccessful! But they're trying. Workmanlike game for the 7-2 Chargers, with their two losses to Kansas City and the Rams. Big game for Melvin Gordon, as expected, and another 2 TDs for Philip Rivers. Chargers are good. Raiders haven't scored a touchdown in three of four; yikes.
Dolphins at Packers: This game was actually close for a disturbing amount of the way; at one point it looks like Miami was going to win 15-14 on the strength of five field goals. But they didn't; Green Bay made some big plays on offense and defense to pull away. Really nice game for Aaron Jones; if I'd spent as much time drafting him as I spent drafting Jamaal Williams back in August, well, I'd have a better Packers running back on most of my teams. Jimmy Graham disappointed and got hurt, Davante Adams had a big game. I guess Green Bay is probably going to be in a wild dogfight for the final NFC wildcard. Their game with Seattle on Thursday is quietly huge.
Seahawks at Rams: Really entertaining game, with the Seahawks looking like one of the better 4-5 teams you'll see (two narrow, last-drive losses to the Rams in there). They can blame themselves a little for this one, attempting an onside kick early in the fourth quarter after pulling within 2 points, setting the Rams up for an easy field goal (and a few more minutes off the clock). Final drive was pretty exciting. Mike Davis paid off as a l0w-cost running back option, nice of Seattle not to have Chris Carson active but standing on the sidelines. Another good game for Todd Gurley, also Brandin Cooks and decent from Robert Woods (who makes some great blocks that don't show up in the fantasy box score). But apparently a season-ending knee injury for Cooper Kupp; rough.
Cowboys at Eagles: This one knocked me out of my Survivor Pool. I feel bad about it because, money, but the only three teams I had left to use that I considered were Philadelphia, Atlanta and the Rams. Two lost and the third had to survive a final-minute Russell Wilson drive. Kudos to the Cowboys, who saved their season by playing a big, tough game. Huge games for Ezekiel Elliott and Zach Ertz, as noted, and good ones from Carson Wentz and Amari Cooper. Remarkable the Eagles aren't winning more of these close games, but there's something to be said for having a really good running back, which they do not.
Monday, Monday: Giants-49ers, not exactly a matchup of champions (well, '80s champions!), but some intrigue. I've got Sterling Shepard everywhere and Evan Engram in a few places, needing some points in a couple of close ones. Saquon Barkley and Odell Beckham are two of the league's best player on the Monday night stage, so presumably they'll come to play. And Matt Breida and George Kittle, those guys are good facing a suspect defense. And the whole old QB versus young QB angle. Not to mention the larger issue of the California wildfires. As for the game, Giants have tended to play better on the road. Let's go Giants 27, 49ers 23.