NFL Week Five Surprise: Broncos Upset Eagles and Bills Succumb to Patriots
The last two undefeated squads in the NFL saw their perfect records shattered during week five as the Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills suffered shocking home defeats.
The Denver Broncos transformed from dark horses to headline-makers thanks to an spectacular comeback victory against the current Super Bowl title holders Philadelphia, before hopping on a plane for this Sunday's overseas matchup.
New England's squad then traveled to Buffalo and ended the Bills' undefeated start with a statement win of their own in their first primetime appearance in twelve months.
The Baltimore Ravens suffered a third consecutive loss - their defensive woes could be fatal for their postseason aspirations - while Dallas, Indianapolis, and Detroit celebrated blowout wins on another eventful Sunday.
Denver Downs Title Holders
Not only was it defeating the reigning title holders, but the manner of their comeback from 14 points down that made the Broncos' win by 21-17 in Philadelphia such a signature achievement.
Philadelphia had secured 10 games in a row, 12 in a row on home turf and 20 out of 21 total before Broncos quarterback Bo Nix engineered two scoring drives in the final five minutes and a last-minute field goal.
The Eagles are currently 4-1 but there is a big worry about their offensive unit, which sits among one of the worst in the NFL. Receiver DaVonta Smith stated they are not "in sync" with quarterback Jalen Hurts.
The Broncos' defensive unit, which sacked Hurts on six occasions, had much to contribute with it, and, together with a genuine franchise quarterback in Nix and top head coach in Sean Payton, they possess all the components to mount a serious challenge.
Denver meet New York's Jets at Tottenham Stadium on Sunday.
Primetime Patriots Upset Bills
Should the Broncos' victory was somewhat anticipated, nobody saw the Patriots traveling to Buffalo and defeating Josh Allen's Bills, but they did so with tremendous resilience.
Their initial national television appearance for the rookie quarterback delivered a breakout performance as he directed a decisive field goal drive in the dying seconds to secure victory 23-20.
The young QB was resilient and executed the right throws at the right times, many to former Bills receiver Stefon Diggs, who delivered a big game for their coach's side.
Vrabel was expected to turn things around in New England, but a win like this came sooner than many predicted.
New England's defensive squad bottled up Buffalo's offensive efforts during their surprising road victory.
Ravens Play-off Hopes Over?
This campaign is becoming a disaster for the Ravens, who were without a host of key defenders as they were dominated 44-10 by Houston's team.
It equaled their biggest loss at home, and falling to 1-4 for this year means one of the pre-season Super Bowl contenders have only a slim chance of reaching the postseason.
Baltimore are now 4-11 when missing superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson, who was hurt, but it is a historically bad defense that is the real problem - for a team that have been known for defensive toughness historically.
The Texans strolled to the win as Baltimore became the first team in the Super Bowl era to allow a minimum of 37 points in four of their first five games. Their season is already over.
Detroit, Tampa and Indianapolis Go 4-1
The Lions' backfield tandem Gibbs and Montgomery registered six points in the same game for the 14th time - a shared NFL record - as the Lions put away Cincinnati 37-24.
The win made it four wins in a row for the highest-scoring team the Lions, but not one against teams with a winning record.
A more surprising 4-1 team are the Indianapolis Colts. With their star running back running in three touchdowns in their 40-6 rout of the Las Vegas Raiders and quarterback Daniel Jones appearing as a transformed player, they will be a tough match for any team.
Tampa Bay joined the 4-1 club with a mesmeric 38-35 win in Seattle in which both teams traded nine touchdowns in 10 impressive possessions before Seattle faltered initially with a late turnover.
The kicker kicked the winner with the final play of the contest for the second time this season. Each of the Bucs' victories have been secured in the final moments.
Saints and Titans Get Help for Initial Victories
Given how the New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans began this campaign, they required assistance to get their first wins, and they received ample due to several comical errors from the New York Giants and Arizona.
After a strong opening from first-year player Jaxson Dart, the Giants made five giveaways - one was decisively taken back for six points - while additionally permitting Rashid Shaheed to find the end zone on an 87-yard catch and run as the Saints prevailed 26-14.
The Cardinals were even worse as they blew a substantial advantage primarily thanks to two massive blunders.
First, Emari Demercado unexplainably dropped the football moments before crossing the line for a long touchdown.
Worse was to come when the Cardinals intercepted Cam Ward near their own goal line, then lost the football into the end zone for Tyler Lockett to recover as the Titans ended a 10-game losing streak with a narrow win.
The receiver scored among the most bizarre scores witnessed this year.
This left the Jets as the only winless team remaining in the league after their bruising 37-22 loss by the Cowboys.
Jayden Daniels became the first player in NFL history to eclipse 4K through the air and 1,000 yards rushing in his initial twenty career games as he came back from being hurt to steer the Washington Commanders to an impressive 27-10 victory at the Los Angeles Chargers.
The running back was the star man for Carolina with 206 rushing yards in their thrilling 27-24 victory over Miami.
NFL Week Five Results and Key Moments
Minnesota Vikings 21-17 Cleveland Browns
Houston Texans 44-10 Baltimore Ravens
Miami Dolphins 24-27 Carolina Panthers
Las Vegas Raiders 6-40 Indianapolis Colts
New York Giants 14-26 New Orleans Saints
Dallas Cowboys 37-22 New York Jets
Denver Broncos 21-17 Philadelphia Eagles
Tennessee Titans 22-21 Arizona Cardinals
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 38-35 Seattle Seahawks
Detroit Lions 37-24 Cincinnati Bengals
Washington Commanders 27-10 Los Angeles Chargers
New England Patriots 23-20 Buffalo Bills
San Francisco 49ers 26-23 Los Angeles Rams (OT)
