Buffalo's Disappointing Performance Gives New England Route to Top Spot - Best of NFL Week 10

Quarterbacks in action
Josh Allen and Drake Maye will meet in week 15 for potentially an AFC East title decider
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Week 10 once more provided excitement, with a huge upset for the Bills proving the 'any Sunday can bring surprises' mantra that attracts so many fans into the NFL

This outcome may have opened opportunities for the Patriots to move back into a top spot they used to occupy, with a remaining games that gives them an advantage over their 8-2 competitors

Meanwhile in the NFC the Seahawks and Rams had ideal outcomes to set up a monster clash in week 11, while our top performer is pursuing milestones as well as the MVP award

The Breakdown - Just a Bad Day for the Bills?

Josh Allen in action
Was Josh Allen attempt too much or could it simply have been a poor performance for Buffalo?

Could it simply have been an emotional comedown from defeating Kansas City the previous week or something more? This remains the question for the Bills to address

The Buffalo squad had secured seven victories in a row against the Dolphins but were outperformed from the beginning as the Dolphins ran out 30-13 winners in an surprising result - and performance

MVP quarterback Josh Allen only got the team's initial first down in the third quarter and initial scoring in the fourth - yes the Dolphins had ten days to prepare but it was still a massive egg produced by one of the league's top offences

Tua Tagovailoa passed for two touchdowns but running back Achane was the game-changing factor, with 225 total yards and two scores

Containing the NFL's top running game was also key, with James Cook and company recording just eighty-six yards, their fewest of the year and slightly more than half their 161.5-yard season average

Additionally there were the three critical ball losses, and the pair from Allen specifically. An interception in the scoring area resulting in a nine-minute drive produced nothing, and his fourth-quarter dropped ball that Miami turned into seven points just later

It was classic 'previous Bills teams' as they shot themselves in the foot, getting into a deficit on defense and Allen trying to do too much to rescue his squad out of it - not the calm, controlled, well-balanced Bills we've seen this year

Miami have served up a bit of everything this year so the jury's out on if this is the beginning of something, but for the Bills they'll require an instant response in a tough game against Tampa Bay next week as the Patriots are sneaking into a nice lead at the summit of the AFC East

In Focus - New England See Path to Surprise Top Seed

TreVeyon Henderson running
TreVeyon Henderson clocked the fifth fastest velocity in the league this season

Speaking of the Patriots, they're one of three 8-2 squads in the NFL, all American Football Conference sides, but are they the best?

One could find flaws in the Patriots, Denver and Indianapolis really for dominating the weaker opponents, with just five of their combined 24 victories achieved against opponents with a winning record - and one of those was the Colts beating the Broncos

The Broncos beat the champion Eagles in Philadelphia and are kings of the fourth-quarter while Indianapolis can ride Jonathan Taylor, but the New England including Sunday's win in Tampa to their prime time success in Orchard Park appears to be a declaration

Their two defeats occurred in recently appointed coach Vrabel's first three contests, with seven straight victories, just like the Broncos, since then - but defeating Mayfield after the Buccaneers had a week off to prepare was significant

Drake Maye's Most Valuable Player credentials won't go away, and he definitely earns credit for courage after taking some hard tackles in Tampa Bay but persevering to steer his team to success

The defensive unit is solid and first-year running back Henderson exploded on Sunday with 147 yards and two exhilerating scores of 55 and 69 yards - becoming just the fifth ball carrier to exceed 22mph this season on his first score

Although you can argue who 'the top team' is statistically, the Patriots should be favorites to finish with the top record due to their remaining opponents - which features just a single matchup against a winning team, albeit a significant contest against the Bills

Traveling to Baltimore is also tough, but Denver have it more difficult in the AFC West division with the Kansas City to face two times, the Chargers (who could also challenge for top seed but encounter the identical challenge) and also the Green Bay on the fixture list

The Colts also face the Chiefs, and have the Seattle, 49ers and two games with the 5-4 Jacksonville to face. There's a long way to go but the door is available for a surprise top seed in the American Football Conference

Next Week - Los Angeles and Seattle Set for Week 11 Clash

Two teams with strong arguments to be superior to all of the three different 8-2 teams are NFC West opponents the Seattle and Los Angeles, who each put up 40 burgers to reach seven and two ahead of the upcoming major meeting between the two in Los Angeles

Both have won four in a row, have quarterbacks in Stafford and Darnold performing at an elite level (although Darnold had ball security problems on Sunday) with top receivers, and defensive units giving up under 20 points a contest

Both could realistically be undefeated as well - especially the Rams as their two defeats came in overtime against the San Francisco and then that painful defeat in Philly when they had a potentially winning field goal with the final play deflected and run back by the Philadelphia for a touchdown

The Seahawks were also defeated to San Francisco, with a late touchdown in week one, before falling to the last kick of the game against the Tampa Bay - so they're truly two of the top teams in the league

The next matchup on Sunday could be the best of the year so far

Top Performer - Jonathan Taylor

Jonathan Taylor running
Taylor is pursuing several rushing and scoring milestones

Taylor could be on for a record season after his incredible display in Berlin - running for 244 yards, registering three scores and contributing an additional forty-two {receiving yards

Brittney Gutierrez
Brittney Gutierrez

A passionate fiber artist and knitting enthusiast with over a decade of experience in creating unique, hand-dyed yarns and teaching crafting techniques.