Bills' Disappointing Performance Opens New England Path to AFC East Lead - Best of NFL Week 10

Quarterbacks in action
Josh Allen and Drake Maye are scheduled to face in week 15 for potentially an American Football Conference East championship showdown
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Week 10 again delivered, with a major surprise for the Bills proving the 'any Sunday can bring surprises' saying that draws so many people into the NFL

That result could have created things up for the New England Patriots to creep back into a leading position they formerly held, with a remaining games that gives them an advantage over their eight and two competitors

Meanwhile in the National Football Conference the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams had perfect results to set up a major confrontation next week, while our top performer is pursuing milestones as well as the Most Valuable Player award

The Breakdown - Simply an Off Day for Buffalo?

Josh Allen in action
Did Josh Allen try too much or was it just a bad day for the Bills?

Could it simply have been an emotional letdown from beating the Chiefs last week or a deeper issue? That's the question for the Bills to address

The Buffalo squad had secured seven victories in a consecutive games against the Dolphins but were outperformed from the beginning as the Miami team emerged as 30-13 winners in an surprising result - and display

MVP quarterback Josh Allen only achieved the team's initial first down in the third period and first points in the final quarter - yes Miami had 10 days to get ready but it was nonetheless a significant failure produced by one of the league's top offences

Dolphins quarterback Tua threw two touchdowns but running back De'Von Achane was the game-changing factor, with 225 total yards and two touchdowns

Bottling up the NFL's top running game was crucial too, with James Cook and teammates recording just eighty-six yards, their fewest of the season and slightly more than half their 161.5 yard average

Additionally there were the three critical turnovers, and the pair from Allen in particular. An interception in the end zone meaning a nine minute drive yielded no points, and his fourth-quarter fumble that the Dolphins converted to a touchdown just later

It was typical 'previous Bills teams' as they hurt themselves in the foot, getting into a deficit on defense and Josh Allen attempting to do too much to rescue his squad from the situation - rather than the calm, disciplined, balanced Bills we've seen this season

The Dolphins have served up a varied performances this year so the jury's out on if this is the start of a trend, but for Buffalo they'll require an immediate bounce-back in a tough game against Tampa Bay next week as the New England are sneaking into a nice lead at the summit of the AFC East

In Focus - Patriots See Path to Surprise Top Seed

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

Speaking of the New England, they're among three 8-2 squads in the NFL, all American Football Conference teams, but could they be the best?

One could pick holes in the Patriots, the Broncos and Indianapolis actually for dominating the weaker opponents, with just five of their combined 24 victories achieved against opponents with a positive record - and one example was the Colts defeating the Broncos

Denver beat the reigning champion Eagles in Philadelphia and are masters of the fourth-quarter while Indy can rely on Taylor, but the New England adding Sunday's win in Tampa to their primtime win in Buffalo appears to be a statement

Their two defeats occurred in new head coach Mike Vrabel's initial three contests, with seven consecutive victories, similar to Denver, from that point - but taking down Baker Mayfield after the Bucs had a bye to get ready was huge

Drake Maye's Most Valuable Player credentials continue to be discussed, and he certainly deserves credit for courage after taking some hard tackles in Tampa Bay but persevering to guide his side to success

The defensive unit is solid and rookie running back Henderson exploded on Sunday with 147 rushing yards and two exhilerating scores of fifty-five and sixty-nine yards - becoming just the fifth different runner to break 22mph this year on his first score

Although you can debate who 'the best' is technically, the Patriots should be favorites to finish with the best record thanks to their schedule - which includes just one game against a successful opponent, although a huge one against Buffalo

Traveling to Baltimore is challenging too, but Denver have it even tougher in the AFC West with the Kansas City to face two times, the Los Angeles Chargers (who could also challenge for top seed but encounter the same problem) and also the Green Bay on the fixture list

The Colts also face the Chiefs, and have the Seahawks, 49ers and two games with the five and four Jacksonville to face. There's a considerable distance to go but the opportunity is open for a shock number one position in the AFC

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

Two teams with solid claims to be better than all of the three eight and two sides are NFC West opponents the Seattle and Los Angeles, who each put up forty points to reach seven and two before the upcoming major meeting between the two in LA

They've both won four in a consecutive games, have quarterbacks in Matthew Stafford and Darnold performing at an elite level (although Darnold had turnover issues on Sunday) with top receivers, and defensive units giving up fewer than twenty points a game

Each could realistically be without a loss as too - particularly the Los Angeles as their two defeats occurred in overtime against the San Francisco and then that agonising loss in Philadelphia when they had a game-winning kick with the last kick blocked and run back by the Philadelphia for a touchdown

Seattle were also defeated to San Francisco, with a last-minute score in week one, before losing to the final play of the game against the Tampa Bay - so they are genuinely two of the top teams in the NFL

The upcoming game on Sunday could be the most exciting of the year to date

Top Performer - Jonathan Taylor

Jonathan Taylor running
Jonathan Taylor is pursuing several rushing and touchdown records

Taylor could be on for a record season after his remarkable performance in Berlin - running for 244 rushing yards, registering three touchdowns and contributing another forty-two {receiving yards

Joseph Smith
Joseph Smith

A former financial analyst turned life coach, Elena shares practical advice on blending financial wisdom with personal growth for holistic success.

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