Week 8 was a treat, folks. This might have been the most competitive weekend of football that we've seen all season. But behind every treat is a trick, especially on Halloween. So let's recap all of the good, bad and the ugly — erm, I mean, the tricks and treats — from Week 8 of the NFL season.
The good
The running backs.
Derrick Henry had his sixth career game with 200 or more rushing yards and 2+ rushing touchdowns. Four of them have come against the Texans, which leaves us almost certain that Houston has nightmares ahead of every matchup with the Titans. Henry's now the co-favorite to lead the NFL in rushing yards at +310 (alongside Browns RB Nick Chubb).
Christian McCaffrey had a passing touchdown, rushing touchdown and receiving touchdown all in the same game. Per NFL Research, the only other running backs to do that since the 1970 merger were LaDainian Tomlinson (2005) and Walter Payton (1979). You'll note that both of them are sitting pretty in the NFL Hall of Fame. How is McCaffrey +800 on FanDuel Sportsbook to win 22-23 Comeback Player of the Year? Bet $10 for an $80 profit — yes, please, on those odds. All day.
Tony Pollard is forcing an RB controversy for the Cowboys. In his third career start without Zeke, he totaled 147 scrimmage yards and three touchdowns on 15 touches. Zeke himself has accomplished such a stat line just twice in his NFL career — it took him 23+ touches to get it done. Naturally, Jerry Jones responded with the only sentence he knows at this point, "We're going to go as Zeke goes."
#FREETONYPOLLARD
The NFC East.
Say hello to the winning-est division in football. They're one of just two divisions in the NFL right now that doesn't have a single team with a losing record. If the season ended today, in fact, NFC East teams would account for three of the seven NFC playoff teams with the Commanders JUST BARELY out of contention for a wildcard spot behind the 49ers.
Eagles odds to go undefeated in the regular season: +1200
If you're not buying into an Eagles undefeated season... Which team do you think hands them their first loss of the year? Let us know over on Twitter!
The bad & the ugly
This year's rookie quarterback class.
Big yikes. Steelers rookie Kenny Pickett is currently on a 17-game pace for 3,600 total yards, seven passing touchdowns, 27 interceptions and 10 fumbles. Maybe the fumbles aren't his fault, though — after all, he does have super tiny hands. Elsewhere in the NFL, Malik Willis played quarterback while Derrick Henry led the team to victory. He attempted just 10 passes in his first career start, completing six of them for 55 yards, no touchdowns and an interception.
NFL GMs tried to warn us about this quarterback class. If any of them do end up breaking out, we'll certainly call it a surprise.
Favorite to win offensive rookie of the year: Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker +150 | Bet $10 to win $15
The NFC South
What's the opposite of the NFC East? No, it's not the West. It's the NFC South! Welcome to the only team in football without a single winning team! The Falcons took a lead over the Bucs in the standings Sunday after bringing their team to a blazing 4-4 record.
Interestingly, FanDuel Sportsbook still has the Bucs as the odds favorite to win the division at -135 (Bet $13.50 to win $10 profit). Perhaps there's value to be had here with the Falcons... or maybe with the Saints After all, they did just shut out the Las Vegas Raiders with a 24-point win at home.
Falcons odds to win the NCS South: +250 | Bet $10 to win $25 profit
