NFL Week Five Shocker: Broncos Upset Eagles and Patriots Stun Bills
The last two unbeaten teams in the NFL saw their perfect records shattered during week five as both the Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills suffered shocking home defeats.
Denver's football team evolved from underdogs to headline-makers thanks to an impressive rallying win against the current Super Bowl title holders the Eagles, prior to boarding a flight for this Sunday's overseas matchup.
New England's squad then traveled to Buffalo and ended the Bills' perfect record with an impressive victory of their own in their first national television game in twelve months.
The Baltimore Ravens experienced a third consecutive loss - their defensive woes could be terminal for their postseason aspirations - while Dallas, Indianapolis, and Detroit Lions enjoyed decisive victories on yet another action-packed Sunday.
Denver Downs Title Holders
Not only was it defeating the Super Bowl champions, but the way of their comeback from 14 points down that made Denver's 21-17 victory in Philadelphia such a signature success.
The Eagles had won 10 games consecutively, 12 in a row at home and 20 out of 21 overall before Broncos quarterback Bo Nix engineered two touchdowns in five fourth-quarter minutes and a late field goal.
Philadelphia are currently 4-1 but there is a big worry about their offensive unit, which ranks as the poorest performing in the NFL. Wideout DaVonta Smith says they are not "in sync" with quarterback Jalen Hurts.
Denver's defence, which tackled Hurts six times, had much to contribute with it, and, together with an established starting QB in Nix and top head coach in Sean Payton, they possess all the components to launch a serious challenge.
Denver face the New York Jets at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.
Patriots on National TV Upset Bills
Should the Broncos' victory was somewhat anticipated, nobody saw New England marching into Buffalo and beating Josh Allen's Bills, but they accomplished it with tremendous resilience.
Their initial national television appearance for Drake Maye delivered a star-making showing as he directed a decisive field goal drive in the final moments to win 23-20.
Maye was resilient and executed accurate passes 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 improve the situation in New England, but a win like this arrived sooner than many predicted.
The Patriots defence bottled up the Buffalo Bills attack during their surprising road victory.
Ravens Play-off Hopes Over?
This campaign is becoming a disaster for the Ravens, who were missing multiple defensive stars as they were hammered 44-10 by the Houston Texans.
It matched their largest home defeat, and dropping to 1-4 for the season means among the pre-season Super Bowl contenders have only a slim chance of reaching the postseason.
The Ravens are currently 4-11 when missing superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson, who was injured, but it is a historically bad defensive unit that is the primary concern - for a franchise that have been synonymous with stout defense historically.
Houston coasted to the win as Baltimore became the first team in modern NFL history to allow at least 37 points in four out of five contests. Their season is effectively in tatters.
Detroit, Tampa and Indianapolis Reach 4-1
Detroit's backfield tandem Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery registered a touchdown in one contest for the fourteenth occasion - a shared NFL mark - as Detroit put away Cincinnati 37-24.
Victory made it four wins consecutively for the league's top scorers the Lions, but not one against opponents with a winning record.
A more surprising 4-1 side are Indianapolis. With Jonathan Taylor scoring three touchdowns in their 40-6 hammering of Las Vegas and signal-caller Daniel Jones appearing as a new man, they will be a difficult opponent for any side.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers joined the 4-1 club with a thrilling 38-35 win in Seattle in which the sides traded nine touchdowns in 10 sparkling drives before the Seahawks cracked first with a late turnover.
The kicker booted the game-winner with the last kick of the contest for his second occasion this year. All four of Tampa Bay's victories have been clinched in the last minute.
New Orleans and Tennessee Receive Assistance for First Wins
Given how New Orleans and Tennessee Titans began the season, they needed help to get their first wins, and they got plenty due to several comical errors from New York and Arizona Cardinals.
After a strong opening from first-year player Jaxson Dart, the Giants committed five turnovers - one was decisively taken back for six points - while additionally permitting Rashid Shaheed to score on an 87-yard catch and run as New Orleans won 26-14.
Arizona were even worse as they blew a substantial advantage mainly thanks to two huge mistakes.
First, Emari Demercado inexplicably dropped the football moments before crossing the line for a 72-yard score.
More disastrous followed when Arizona intercepted Cam Ward near their own goal line, then lost the football across the goal line for Tyler Lockett to recover as the Titans ended a ten-contest slide with a narrow victory.
The receiver scored among the most bizarre touchdowns we'll see this season.
That left New York's Jets as the only winless team remaining in the league after their bruising 37-22 loss by Dallas.
Jayden Daniels became the initial athlete 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 win at the Los Angeles Chargers.
The running back was the star man for Carolina with over 200 yards on the ground in their exciting 27-24 win over the Miami Dolphins.
NFL Week Five Scores and Highlights
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)
