Don’t be fooled by Dolphins, plus game balls and gaffes from NFL Week 8

Ever hear of the phrase dead cat bounce? Well, Miami’s 34-10 throttling of the Atlanta Falcons could be characterized as a dead dolphin bounce. 

Sure, the Dolphins looked stellar as they took it to the Falcons on the road, but don’t be tricked into thinking this is an organization that has turned the tide. Fight the urge to look at Tua Tagovailoa’s pristine stat line, where the veteran quarterback completed 20 of his 24 throws for 205 yards and four touchdowns in the win, and use that as your beacon of hope that something has clicked for Miami. 

The destination that will find Miami out of the playoff picture by season’s end, which will then trigger systematic changes, including at head coach and potentially quarterback, remains on track. 

The victory, however impressive even if the Falcons were without starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and No. 1 wideout Drake London, has brought the Dolphins to just 2-6 on the season, still well out of range of being in the playoff conversation. They are four games behind both the New England Patriots (6-2) and Buffalo Bills (5-2) in the loss column in the division, and the road ahead isn’t as rosy as their remaining strength of schedule may suggest. Currently, Miami possesses the eighth-easiest remaining strength of schedule in the NFL with its opponents’ combined win percentage sitting at a measly .463. 

However, there’s nuance to that figure which makes it much tougher than it meets the eye, which is highlighted in their upcoming trio of games. In Week 9, they’ll face the Baltimore Ravens, who, yes, are 2-5 on the year, but also could very well get Lamar Jackson back for the contest. The early 7.5-point spread in favor of Baltimore on the road suggests that Jackson will be under center, so that’s not a true under-.500 ball club they’ll face. 

The same instance occurs two weeks later in Week 11 when they head to Madrid, Spain. There, they’ll face another team currently below .500 in the Washington Commanders (3-4). They too have been without their starting quarterback, Jayden Daniels, but he has been on the mend and should, in theory, be back well before that contest, making it a much more difficult task for Miami. 

Sandwiched in between those games is a date with Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills at Hard Rock Stadium. In his career, Allen is 13-2 in his 15 starts against the Dolphins. 

The Dolphins are facing down the barrel of what could be a sobering three-week stretch where they’ll be underdogs up through the Week 12 bye. If the oddsmakers are right, we’re looking at a 2-9 Dolphins team as they enter the week-long break after the international contest. 

And don’t get us started with three road games in New York (Jets), Pittsburgh, and New England, all after Dec. 1, and the Dolphins’ record in cold-weather games under Tagovailoa. More losses (and changes) are coming. 

Sunday’s upset win is more of a reprieve than it is signaling any sort of corner being turned. 

Game balls

• Week 8 stats: 19 carries, 216 yards rushing, 2 TDs

Fitting with Halloween coming up on Friday, Cook was a man possessed in Buffalo’s 40-9 win over the Carolina Panthers. Both of his rushing touchdowns were from 20-plus yards out, including a 64-yard run that began the blowout. Those 216 yards were a career high for Cook, and the most of any player in a game this season. Oh, and did we mention Cook did this without recording a single rushing attempt in the fourth quarter?!?

• Week 8 stats: 5 sacks, 6 total tackles

While it came in a 32-13 demolition at the hands of the Patriots, Myles Garrett was the lone bright spot for the Browns in Week 8. The star pass rusher was a menace despite New England routinely deploying double teams at him throughout the afternoon. Despite that game plan to try and shut him down, Garrett tallied five sacks, becoming the first player since Khalil Mack (2023) to do so in a game. It also beats his own franchise record for most sacks in a game in Browns history. Those takedowns helped Garrett pass legend Reggie White for the most sacks before turning age 30 in NFL history. 

Unfortunately for Garrett, he also became the first player to record five sacks in a game and lose by four or more points in league history, which is likely why we saw his frustrations boil over on the sideline. 

• Week 8 stats: 18 carries, 133 yards rushing, 2 TDs; 2 catches, 14 yards receiving; 4 yards passing, 1 TD

Look at the New York Jets getting into the win column for the first time in 2025! A big piece of the winning effort was Hall, who continues to be their most consistent and explosive player. Both of Hall’s rushing touchdowns came in the fourth quarter as New York mounted its comeback, and he didn’t stop there. Hall also threw what proved to be the go-ahead touchdown to tight end Mason Taylor on the team’s final possession of the afternoon. Hall became the first running back with a passing touchdown and two rushing touchdowns since Ronnie Brown in 2008. 

• Week 8 stats: 14 carries, 150 yards rushing, 1 TD; 4 catches, 24 yards receiving, 1 TD

Don’t look now, but Saquon Barkley may have gotten his swagger back. After a subdued start to the season, Barkley exploded in Week 8, notching his first 100-yard rushing game of the year. That included a 65-yard rushing touchdown on his first touch of the game. In doing so, he tied himself with Adrian Peterson for the most career rushing touchdowns of 65-plus yards (9). 

• Week 8 stats: 6 catches, 89 yards, 2 TDs

After beginning the season 1-2, the Broncos have ripped off five straight victories, including a 44-24 win over Dallas that heavily featured Franklin. He was Bo Nix’s most-targeted weapon in the passing game and turned those eight looks into six catches, two of which went for touchdowns. 

• Week 8 stats: 30 of 39 passing, 318 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT; 7 carries, 30 yards rushing. 

It’s strange how good C.J. Stroud looks when he’s not under duress, isn’t it? The Texans quarterback was sacked zero times in Sunday’s win over the 49ers, and looked much closer to the MVP candidate we’ve come to know over the previous two years. This was Stroud’s first 300-yard passing game this season. Quietly, Houston has won three of its last four games. 

Notable Week 8 gaffes

Bengals collapse, give Jets first win of 2025

For a moment, Cincinnati looked like it would get to .500 on the season after it took a 31-16 lead into the fourth quarter against the winless New York Jets. Instead, chaos ensued, which resulted in the Bengals being outscored 23-7 over the final frame to fall, 39-38. As we noted above, Breece Hall was the catalyst in the comeback, accounting for all three of the Jets’ fourth-quarter touchdowns. This was the second-largest comeback win by the Jets in franchise history, and the largest blown lead (15 points) by the Bengals since 2020. 

This also now puts the Bengals at 1-3 over the last two seasons in games where they’ve scored 38 points. 

Dillon Gabriel called for intentional grounding in the end zone

Gabriel didn’t endear himself to those clamoring for another change at quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. Against New England, the rookie quarterback lacked consistency when dropping back to pass and had two interceptions in the loss. With the game already in hand for the Patriots, Gabriel also made the ill-advised decision to throw the football away with no one remotely close in the area while still inside the pocket. That drew an intentional grounding penalty and, because he was in the end zone, it resulted in a safety. 

Two-minute drill

Here are some of my quick-hitting takeaways/notes from Week 8:

• Drake Maye’s MVP bid is only getting stronger.
• Don’t let TreVeyon Henderson’s late fumble cloud the flashes of a second-half breakout. 
• When/if the Browns find a stable option at quarterback, Harold Fannin Jr. is going to become a top 10 tight end in the league. 
• Kirk Cousins (21/31 for 173 yards) didn’t do much to improve his trade value. 
• Cam Skattebo’s season-ending injury was brutal. Not only do we lose an electrifying player, but also one of the best characters from the first half of the 2025 season. 
• There’s something comical about Jalen Hurts throwing four passing touchdowns (most of the season) with A.J. Brown sidelined. 
• Weird fact: All of Hurts’ four-plus passing touchdown games have come in Week 8 (2022, 2023 and 2025). 
• Sunday’s blowout loss to Buffalo snaps a perfect 3-0 record for the Panthers at home. 
• Cannot overstate how important Baltimore’s win over Chicago was today. Moving to 2-5 instead of 1-6 with the looming return of Lamar Jackson gives the Ravens a glimmer of hope. 
• Caleb Williams has now gone back-to-back games with zero passing touchdowns and one interception. 
• Call me crazy, but only giving Christian McCaffrey two touches in the first half doesn’t seem like a winning strategy if you’re the 49ers. 
• The Cowboys are going nowhere if they continue to let teams gash them for 30-plus points. Sunday’s loss to Denver was the third time allowing 30-plus points in the first eight games of the year. It’s also the fifth game allowing 40-plus points dating to last season. 
• Michael Pittman Jr. is criminally underrated, and his eight catches for 95 yards and a touchdown don’t do justice to how good his game was on Sunday. 
• Spencer Rattler is now 1-13 in his career as a starter, and may have just lost his job to Tyler Shough, who took over for him in the third quarter. 
• Given all the injuries to key pieces of the roster, Todd Bowles should be getting some COY love for having the Bucs at 6-2 and atop the NFC South.