Week 9 knee-jerk reactions: Time has run out for this NFC quarterback, head coach

After a thrilling Week 8 slate, Week 9 of the regular season didn’t offer the same excitement, with several instances of terrible quarterbacking and poor coaching decisions playing a role.

Amidst the chaos, the New York Giants and New Orleans Saints suffered crushing losses that could have them both ready to turn the page toward 2025. Meanwhile, a number of worthy MVP candidates continued to strengthen their respective cases as they helped propel their teams to victory. 

Here are some knee-jerk reactions from the ninth week of the NFL season:

It’s time for the Giants to bench QB Daniel Jones 

On the surface, Jones’ stat line during Sunday’s 27-22 home loss to Washington suggests he had a solid start by his modest standards, having thrown his first touchdown at MetLife Stadium in 672 days. Overall, the Duke product finished 20-of-26 passing for 174 yards and two touchdowns while adding a score on the ground. 

Even so, most of Jones’ production came in garbage time, and he even entered halftime just 4-of-6 passing for 0 yards with one touchdown and a fumble lost.

Sitting in last place in the NFC East with a 2-7 record, 2024 is officially a lost season for New York. Given that Jones isn’t expected to be in the team’s future, it feels like the right time for the Giants to finally bench him to avoid triggering his $23M injury guarantee for 2025. 

In place of Jones, the Giants could turn to Drew Lock, though it might make more sense to start Tommy DeVito since he could be a long-term backup for the team. 

Eagles are far from perfect, but they are the biggest threat to Lions in the NFC 

It wasn’t up for debate whether Detroit is the NFC’s top team, but it further solidified itself as such during Sunday’s 24-14 road win over the Green Bay Packers. The Lions are averaging a league-high 32.3 points this season while allowing the sixth-fewest points (18.5) and yards per game (301.79). While few teams are as talented as Detroit, Philadelphia is proving to be its most formidable challenger in the NFC.

The Eagles survived an upset bid from Jacksonville on Sunday, securing a 28-23 home victory in a matchup where HC Nick Sirianni’s aggressive decision-making nearly cost his team. The win marked the fourth straight for Philadelphia, a team averaging the fifth-most points (28.3) and allowing the second-fewest points per game (14.8) during this streak. While Detroit has the coaching advantage, if the star-studded Philadelphia roster continues to play at its current level, it has all the pieces to take down the Lions. 

Loss to Panthers should be the final nail in the coffin for Saints HC Dennis Allen’s tenure  

Remember when the Saints were 2-0 and boasted the highest-scoring offense in the NFL? How quickly things change. After falling to the lowly Carolina Panthers 23-22 on the road, New Orleans saw its lengthy losing streak reach seven games on Sunday and made unfortunate history in the process.

According to ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, the Saints became the first team in 20 years to lose a game despite winning the turnover battle, rushing for at least 150 yards and outgaining their opponent by 150 yards. 

With another loss on his resume, Allen is 18-25 as New Orleans’ head coach and a dreadful 26-53 overall in his NFL coaching career. The Saints should have a new coach in 2025, but with the trade deadline scheduled for Tuesday, they should start preparing for the future and cut ties with Allen.

It’s a three-horse race for the MVP Award, and the two leading candidates play for the same team

We’re almost through nine weeks of the regular season, and the race for MVP honors is heating up. Commanders rookie QB Jayden Daniels is making an intriguing MVP case, but it’s clear Ravens QB Lamar Jackson and RB Derrick Henry and Bills QB Josh Allen are the front-runners for the award.

The NFL’s new top offensive duo of Jackson and Henry were phenomenal in Sunday’s 41-10 blowout home win over Denver. Jackson threw for 280 yards and three touchdowns while posting a perfect 158.3 passer rating, whereas Henry rushed for 106 yards and two scores, which already gives him 1,052 rushing yards on the season. 

Meanwhile, Allen tossed three touchdowns and led the Bills on a game-winning drive to clinch a 30-27 come-from-behind home victory over the Dolphins.

Jackson and Henry could have the upper hand over Allen in the MVP balloting since they were integral to Baltimore’s Week 4 drubbing of Buffalo. Nonetheless, it’s shaping up to be a thrilling MVP race and will likely continue to be tightly contested for several weeks. 

QB Jordan Love’s turnover problems limit Green Bay’s ceiling 

Although Love was clearly affected by his groin injury during Sunday’s 24-14 home loss to Detroit, his turnover issues remain a major concern. In the second quarter, the 2020 first-round pick’s 10th interception of the season was returned for a touchdown, giving the Lions all the momentum heading into halftime and helping them eventually secure a crucial divisional win.

So far this season, Love leads the league in interceptions, which is particularly troubling considering he missed two games with a knee injury and left last week’s win over Jacksonville in the third quarter. There’s no doubt that Love is one of the NFL’s more talented quarterbacks, but if he doesn’t clean things up soon, the Packers might not be the Super Bowl contenders many have considered them to be.

Rebuilding Patriots should do some shopping at the trade deadline 

At 2-7, New England, which traded edge-rusher Josh Uche to the Chiefs last week, will surely continue to be sellers ahead of Tuesday’s deadline. However, following Sunday’s 20-17 road overtime loss to Tennessee, the Patriots should add talent via trade, which NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport suggested they could do. 

This might sound crazy, especially after losing to a Titans team that has also struggled mightily, yet rookie QB Drake Maye’s performance was encouraging enough to consider this move.

Maye didn’t quite light up the box score on Sunday, finishing 29-of-41 passing for 206 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions while rushing for 95 yards. Still, the 2024 No. 3 overall pick proved he’s the real deal, notably throwing a five-yard fourth-quarter touchdown pass to RB Rhamondre Stevenson as time expired to help send the game to overtime. 

If New England can acquire a wideout it could immediately extend like Cincinnati’s Tee Higgins, the team should do so to aid Maye’s development.  

Top wide receivers from the 2023 NFL Draft are showing they aren’t busts

Seattle’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Quentin Johnston of the Chargers, the 20th and 21st picks of the 2023 NFL Draft, disappointed during their respective debut seasons. Smith-Njigba caught 63 passes for 628 yards and four touchdowns last season and dropped 10 passes, the fourth-most in the NFL, while Johnston had 431 yards on 38 receptions. The lackluster output, coupled with the success of their draft classmates, quickly and unfairly earned them the bust label.

Despite this, they’re changing the narrative, as Smith-Njigba and Johnston each enjoyed a career day on Sunday. During a 26-20 overtime home loss to the Rams, Smith-Njigba caught seven passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns. 

Johnston, on the other hand, racked up 118 yards and a touchdown on four catches in a 27-10 road win over the Browns. Even though they haven’t emerged as elite wideouts, Smith-Njigba and Johnston are proving that we shouldn’t write off a player just because they struggled as rookies.