It’s hard to shake off past failures in the NFL. Look at Steve Spagnuolo. He has won four Super Bowls as a defensive coordinator, including in each of the past two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs. But he hasn’t come close to getting a second chance as a head coach in the NFL.
That’s O.K. with the Chiefs, because Spagnuolo continues to make the defense better, evident by a 6–0 start and how Kansas City flustered Brock Purdy in Sunday’s 28–18 win against the San Francisco 49ers.
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff has also had a hard time getting the football public to stop focusing on his past failures. Even now, some are having a hard time accepting that Goff has turned into an MVP-caliber quarterback.
On the other hand, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin has made plenty of correct decisions in his decorated career, but not many gave him the benefit of the doubt when he started Russell Wilson over Justin Fields in Sunday’s win against the New York Jets.
It’s hard to please everybody, something Tomlin, Goff and Spagnuolo care very little about. They are three of five Week 7 winners. Let’s get to this week’s list—you can already guess where the Jets will land.
Winners
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin
Tomlin couldn’t care less about public perception when it comes to his football decisions—and that’s one of his best traits as a coach. That’s why he’s well compensated, as Tomlin told former NFL wide receiver Brandon Marshall when asked about his bold decision to start Wilson over Fields in Sunday’s 37–15 win against the Jets.
Also, this is a good time to bring up one of my many favorite Tomlin moments. He onced yelled at a fan for distracting him from his work. This man does not care who he offends when he’s locked in on making the best decisions for the Pittsburgh Steelers (5–2).
Tomlin rightfully took his victory lap after Wilson unlocked the Steelers’ downfield passing attack during the thrashing of the Jets following a week filled with criticism for benching Fields after a 4–2 start. Even people around the Steelers were uneasy about Tomlin’s bold decision. It also didn’t look good after Steelers fans booed Wilson and his offense for a poor first quarter.
Everything changed after Wilson made the Jets’ defense pay for playing man defense against wide receiver George Pickens. The two connected on a handful of deep shots to ignite the Steelers’ offense during Sunday Night Football. The NBC broadcast constantly kept saying Tomlin wanted to see what he had in Wilson before the schedule gets tougher. (Pittsburgh might have the toughest schedule in the NFL for the second half of the season.)
If Wilson can do more of the same for Monday night’s game against the New York Giants, that will give Tomlin plenty to think about during the team’s bye week, which is perhaps when he’ll decide who to fully commit to as the starting quarterback for the rest of the season. Fields offers more as a mobile quarterback, but the offense had slow drives and didn’t take enough shots downfield during his six starts.
Tomlin might be tired of sluggish, low-scoring offenses, which has plagued the team for a few years now. He deserves plenty of credit for trying something new that could benefit the team in the future, even when those around him failed to understand the line of thinking.
Saquon Barkley
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley had the right approach by embracing the boos from Giants fans during his return to New York/New Jersey. They have the right to be mad for Barkley joining a divisional rival, but the boos are also a sign of respect for the caliber of player he is, even in his seventh NFL season.
Giants GM Joe Schoen failed to recognize that, which led to Barkley having a handful of long runs against his former team when the Eagles cruised to a 28–3 victory at MetLife Stadium to improve to 4–2. There were also boos for the Giants’ offense that only generated 119 total yards vs. the Eagles’ defense.
It was a sweet revenge game for Barkley, but he should thank Schoen for letting him walk in free agency to a better situation. Barkley gashed a stout Giants’ defense and his 179 rushing yards provided balance for Jalen Hurts to avoid the many standout players on New York’s front.
Many are overlooking the Eagles as contenders in the NFC East because so many are upset with their brash head coach, Nick Sirianni, who occasionally makes head-scratching decisions. But when the offense is at full strength, the Eagles are tough to beat with Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and now Barkley—thanks to the Giants.
Jared Goff
Goff has been promoted when it comes to public opinion about his skills as a quarterback.
Many laughed when Lions coach Dan Campbell kept saying Goff wasn’t a salary dump in the Matthew Stafford trade in 2021. When he clearly wasn’t, the Goff doubters said he was merely a bridge quarterback. Then merely a game-manager on a stacked team. Then an overpaid quarterback who could win a few playoff games, but could also regress to the tail end of his Los Angeles Rams days at any moment.
Now that some are calling Goff an MVP candidate for the 2024 season, there are still critics who are laughing. Not every Goff doubter will be fully turned into a believer—the downside of the former No. 1 pick having a few rough seasons. But all Goff has done since arriving in Detroit is get better every year, and at the moment, he might be the best quarterback in the NFL. Goff is leading the league in passer rating (111.5) and average yards per attempt (9.3), and has 10 touchdowns passes with only four interceptions. Most importantly, Goff guided the Lions (5–1) to a come-from-behind victory over the Minnesota Vikings to take control of the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
So go ahead and continue doubting Goff. This team doesn’t care about quarterback rankings. They’re all about the Super Bowl, a mindset that changed when Goff arrived in 2021.
Seahawks’ playoff hopes
The Seattle Seahawks appeared headed for an eight- or nine-win season in Mike Macdonald’s first year at the helm after they lost to the 49ers and dropped their third consecutive game in Week 6.
Now they might be more than an average team after a dominant 34–14 road victory against the Atlanta Falcons. With a few players back from injury, the Seahawks’ defense improved to cool off Kirk Cousins’s passing attack. The Falcons might have gotten shut out if Bijan Robinson didn’t have a productive outing with 103 rushing yards.
Macdonald’s defense still has work to do against the run, but the coverage improved and the pass rush constantly pressured Cousins, who threw two interceptions.
Ten days prior to the win in Atlanta, the Seahawks (4–3) were fading fast and didn’t appear to be a threat to the 49ers in the NFC West. Now, they’re back in first place because the 49ers fell to the Chiefs. Also, San Francisco has issues, headlined by a season-ending injury to Brandon Aiyuk. As for the Seahawks, they received positive news about DK Metcalf’s knee injury.
Maybe the Seahawks don’t have to beat the 49ers head-to-head to end their reign as divisional champions, but it sure would help if they even the series when the two foes meet again on Nov. 17.
Marcus Mariota
Washington Commanders backup Marcus Mariota has helped the team in various ways, including being a mentor for stud rookie Jayden Daniels.
On Sunday, Mariota helped with his play on the field after he filled in for the injured Daniels, who exited in the first quarter against the Carolina Panthers with a rib injury.
The Commanders’ offense didn’t miss a beat, with Mariota completing 18-of-23 passes for 205 yards, two touchdowns and no turnovers. Mariota didn’t pan out as the Tennessee Titans’ No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft, but he’s been a reliable backup quarterback and probably one of the most well-liked players in the league. Look at how happy Derrick Henry was to greet his former Titans teammate when the Baltimore Ravens and Commanders (5–2) played each other in Week 6.
Many have raved about how helpful Mariota has been to Daniels throughout his rookie season. Daniels avoided a serious injury, according to Quinn, giving the team a sense of relief. It also helps the Commanders know they have a reliable quarterback to fill in should another emergency situation occur down the line.
Losers
Davante Adams
Jets wide receiver Davante Adams said he wanted out of the Las Vegas Raiders because he was tired of the “helpless feeling” of not being able to impact games. He might have felt the same feelings in his Jets’ debut after being held to three catches for 30 yards in the blowout loss vs. the Steelers.
Adams went from playing for one 2–5 team to another 2–5 team on the opposite side of the country. Ironically, the Jets and Raiders have similar issues—stagnant offenses and defenses that can’t stop the run. Also, both teams have subpar quarterback play. Yes, the Jets have Aaron Rodgers and much more star power than the Raiders, but the production is nearly the same.
Rodgers, who has a passer rating of 82.2, is having one of the worst seasons of his career and his performances might not improve because the offensive line is one of the worst in the league. Adams certainly was aware of all these issues with the Jets before he requested a trade. He still got what he wanted by reuniting with Rodgers, but that helpless feeling might not go away.
The Jets do have some hope because the schedule get easier, with upcoming games against the New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals; the Houston Texans are sandwiched between the two bad teams. New York essentially needs to finish 7–3 to have a chance at making the postseason.
Texans’ coaching staff
Bobby Slowik’s conservative play calls have become a problem for the Texans, an issue that cost them in the 24–22 loss against the Green Bay Packers.
Last year, the Texans’ offensive play-caller didn’t have much of a running game, and now that the team has Joe Mixon, Slowik might be leaning too much on the workhorse running back. The Texans didn’t have much balance last year, but they excelled at pushing the ball down the field with quarterback C.J. Stroud. The vertical game has been absent this season, with or without Nico Collins on the field as the star wide receiver has missed the past two games with a hamstring injury.
Stroud, who threw for a career-low 86 passing yards in Green Bay, has struggled against teams with standout defenses, including the Chicago Bears and Vikings earlier this season. The Texans are in a good spot at 5–2 and will probably win the AFC South again, but they won’t get far in the postseason if the passing attack doesn’t play as well as last season.
Maybe even head coach DeMeco Ryans is starting to lose confidence in his offense. The team played not to lose when they marched down the field and killed the clock while trailing by two points against the Packers. Instead of going for the touchdown, Ryans allowed his offense to sit on the ball and settle for the go-ahead field goal. Ryans might have been O.K. with this approach because the defense played well against Jordan Love for most of the game. The conservative approach, however, cost them because they left too much time on the clock and Love produced a game-winning drive.
It’s unacceptable that a team with Stroud settled for a field goal and didn’t allow him to go toe-to-toe with Love in a battle of rising star quarterbacks. The Texans need serious changes offensively and in late-game situations.
Teams that refuse to hire Spagnuolo as HC
The Chiefs are in the midst of a dynasty largely because of coach Andy Reid, quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Spagnuolo.
The league could have broken up this trio a long time ago, but none of the numerous teams with head-coaching vacancies the past three years have given Spagnuolo serious consideration, despite him being the architect of one of the best defenses of this generation.
With Spagnuolo-led defenses getting better every year, the Chiefs have reinvented themselves in the post-Tyreek Hill era and withstood injuries to major offensive players. That’s why the Chiefs (6–0) are the last undefeated team in 2024 and favorites to win three consecutive Super Bowls. Mahomes is making it work with what he has offensively, but the Chiefs probably wouldn’t be perfect if they were allowing more than 24 points per game. Through six games, they’re only allowing 17.2 points per game.
Football fans are tired of seeing the Chiefs win every year and constantly blame the refs for their breaks in late-game situations. Perhaps point the blame at the NFL teams that can’t get over Spagnuolo’s failed head-coaching stint with the St. Louis Rams from 13 years ago. Until then, the Chiefs will continue to have a dominant defense with Spagnuolo getting the most from players like Chris Roland-Wallace and Jaden Hicks—two rookies who had interceptions in Sunday’s win against the 49ers.
Patriots’ toughness credibility
New England Patriots coach Jerod Mayo took criticism for going where many coaches wouldn’t dare go, especially in their first season as a head coach. No football player wants to be called soft, but that’s what Mayo called the Patriots after their latest blowout loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday in London.
It also didn’t help Mayo that former Patriots coach Bill Belichick didn’t agree with the soft assessment about many of his former players. It was a bold move by Mayo, but Belichick isn’t in that locker room anymore.
Mayo knows better than anyone else how poorly his team has played during their six-game losing streak. If it weren’t for the Panthers, the Patriots might be the worst team in the league, largely because they can’t stop the run and produce touchdowns.
Mayo is a well-respected former player who coached the inside linebackers for the prior five seasons on Belichick’s coaching staff. He’s not at risk of losing the locker room, and many of his players didn’t seem to have an issue with his comments. Saying the team is soft might’ve reflected poorly on Mayo as a head coach, but maybe this will help the Patriots play better at the line of scrimmage and gain some positive momentum for the future.
Teams with two wins or fewer
Teams with two wins or fewer heading into Week 8 should start to prioritize the 2025 NFL draft.
History tells us most of these teams won’t make the postseason, and the few that do likely won’t end up in the Super Bowl. So these teams need to look in the mirror and make the difficult decision to be sellers at the Nov. 5 trade deadline and do whatever they can to improve for next season.
The Patriots, Panthers, Raiders and Cleveland Browns have probably already accepted reality. The Jets stubbornly won’t after trading for Adams, and in their defense, it might require just nine wins to grab a wild-card spot in the AFC.
That probably won’t be the case in the stacked NFC unless the NFC West continues to play poorly. It’s time for the Giants and New Orleans Saints to think about next year, and the same goes for AFC South teams like the Jaguars and Titans.
But here’s a bold prediction: Only one team that currently has two wins or less will make the playoffs. Cross your fingers, Jets fans.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL Week 7 Winners and Losers: Mike Tomlin Silences Critics of Steelers’ QB Move.
