Key takeaways and analysis from Week 10 in the NFL

Sunday Rundown recaps the most important developments from the day's action and examines their significance moving forward.

All they do is win

The Chiefs are inevitable.

We've known this to be true for years, but it somehow doesn't get any easier to believe. They're just built different.

The Broncos did everything right. Vance Joseph's defense was once again swarming. Denver put Patrick Mahomes under pressure on 40.8% of dropbacks, the highest rate he's faced since Week 8 of last season, according to Next Gen Stats. The result: Kansas City was limited to a season-low 16 points.

The Broncos' offense did its part, too. Bo Nix wasn't spectacular, but he avoided catastrophic mistakes and made a few big passes. Trailing by two, getting the offense in position for a 35-yard field-goal try as time expired should've been enough for the win. But this is the Chiefs we're talking about.

The coaching prowess and seemingly infectious knack for making big plays also extends to Dave Toub's special teams unit. An incredible surge off the left side saw the Chiefs break through for the game-winning block, keeping their undefeated run alive in thrilling fashion.

Squeaking by Denver marks Kansas City's seventh one-score victory this season. Leaning so heavily on tightly contested wins has typically been both unsustainable and a surefire sign of impending regression. But that's for all of the normal teams.

Is anyone really betting against the Chiefs finishing the perfect season? This team doesn't know anything other than winning. The Patriots vibes are real.

Tomlin, too

Speaking of teams that always find a way, how about those Steelers?

Sunday's game in Washington marked Pittsburgh's first real test with Russell Wilson at the helm. Sure, beating two bad New York clubs at home was fun, but it's not quite the same measuring stick as playing one of the league's hottest teams on the road.

To the surprise of no one who's ever watched a Mike Tomlin-coached team, the Steelers were up to the task.

Wilson's limitations showed up at various times throughout the day. The Commanders' consistent pressure highlighted his lack of pocket presence and improv skills at this point in his career. And we're long past a point where we should be expecting him to ever make use of the middle of the field.

But here's the thing: It doesn't much matter in Pittsburgh. It might be different in other situations, as was the case for the last two years in Denver. But as a team that understands its identity - running the ball and playing good defense - all the Steelers need from Russ is the one thing he still does best. And does he ever still throw a beautiful deep ball.

This is exactly why Mike Williams was the perfect addition at the trade deadline. He's not a complement to George Pickens in the traditional sense - they're both dominant ball-winners who can stretch the field on the boundary. But Williams torching the Commanders for the go-ahead 32-yard TD late in the fourth quarter offered a glimpse of the good things to come.

Tomlin has been proven right by turning to Wilson as his starter. More importantly, though, he knows exactly how to win with him: lean all the way into the things Russ does best. There's a reason Tomlin has never had a losing season in the NFL.

Now 7-2, Pittsburgh's floor seems to be an AFC wild-card spot. Next week's game against the Ravens will tell us a lot about the team's ceiling.

Time for change

There's nothing left to see in Chicago, folks.

Some teams don't like to fire coaches during the season - it's admittedly a pretty rough look. And if you want to be optimistic, the Bears are only one game below .500.

But that won't pass the smell test for anyone who's had the misfortune of watching this team. More importantly, delaying the inevitable won't do your young quarterback any favors.

The changes should, of course, start at offensive coordinator immediately. Shane Waldron has been a disaster hire, and things are only getting worse. Chicago has been the worst offense in football in the three games since a schedule-assisted win streak, and it's not even close.

Caleb Williams hasn't thrown a touchdown since Oct. 13 in London. While the hope with any superstar prospect is that he shows the ability to elevate his surroundings, it's tough to feel like he has much of a chance in this rapidly deteriorating situation. The offensive line is a mess, and the scheme has shown no ability to mask those deficiencies.

Matt Eberflus will probably avoid getting shown the door until the end of the season, but what does that accomplish? Waldron was Eberflus' second offensive coordinator hire, and he's somehow been even worse than Luke Getsy. Eberflus will get credit for his defense, but that unit has given up 526 rushing yards over the last three games.

The issues clearly start at the top. A 19-3 home loss to a team like the Patriots offers a great opportunity to make a change and try to avoid a truly damaging experience for this roster's most important player.

Sitting back and watching a young team get worse every week isn't an option.

Quick slants

Team of destiny

Detroit was the team that could do no wrong for the last six games. Jared Goff threw 22 incompletions over that stretch, while the Lions put up 26 touchdowns. That's not the team we saw Sunday night against the Texans. With the run game bottled up and the offense almost exclusively in his hands, Goff's decision-making crumbled. His five interceptions were the most since Jameis Winston in 2019. Yet the Lions managed to stay in it and win anyway. That makes Goff just the third QB this century (Matt Ryan - 2012, Tony Romo - 2007) to win a game while throwing five picks. If that isn't enough for a fellow contender to put away this squad, it's tough to imagine many teams being able to hang with them in far less wacky games. The Lions are the team to beat in the NFC, and they're probably the Chiefs' biggest obstacle to a three-peat.

It's so over

The Jets were already cooked heading into this week, so it's not like we're breaking new ground here. But the result in Arizona leaves no doubt whatsoever. Faced with an opportunity to build off a big win over Houston and at least keep hope alive for a miraculous second half, New York put forth its most pathetic effort yet. The offense managed all of two field goals, while the defense was routinely picked apart en route to a 31-6 loss. The Jets are a bad football team with a 41-year-old quarterback who'll account for $49 million in dead money in 2025 with a release or retirement, according to Over The Cap. They'll get a few wins with a favorable schedule down the stretch, but at what cost? Any victory from here does little more than push them out of position to draft a new quarterback. That'd be an oddly fitting cherry on top of a wildly disappointing Aaron Rodgers era in New York.

Cardinals deserve respect

Diving into the sad state of the Jets is a necessity, but that's not to say their issues were the only story in Sunday's game. The Cardinals have quietly emerged as one of the most enjoyable teams in football. Kyler Murray looks more and more like his old self with every passing week, and his connection with Marvin Harrison Jr. is slowly becoming what we'd all hoped heading into the season. The defense, meanwhile, hasn't allowed a touchdown in three straight home games. That marks the first time the Cardinals have accomplished that feat since 1926. This is a frisky team that nobody will want to meet in January. Give them another year to build the roster, and we could be looking at a nice window for contention.

Baker did everything he could

The Bucs ultimately came up short in their bid to shock the 49ers in Christian McCaffrey's return. But while a pedestrian stat line from Baker Mayfield won't turn heads, it should be noted that the box score doesn't do justice to his crunch-time efforts. The Bucs quarterback willed the offense down the field on a late game-tying field-goal drive, with the highlight being a truly heroic effort to hold off Nick Bosa on fourth down and deliver a strike to move the chains.

An injury-ravaged offense is bound to look better with Mike Evans' expected return after next week's bye, at which point Mayfield will start getting some love for his impressive level of play. But a 4-6 record means the Bucs may have to be perfect from here on out to give themselves a chance at the playoffs.

We're done here

It's tough to watch Daniel Jones play football. That's nothing new for the majority of us. Don't be surprised if the Giants finally decide they've seen enough, too. Another frustrating day from Jones in Germany was ultimately the difference in an embarrassing loss to the Panthers. The Giants, now 2-8, have nothing to lose by seeing if Drew Lock can provide a spark under center. There's also no reason for them to risk an injury that could lock Jones in for another $23 million in guarantees, according to Over The Cap. The decision seems obvious, but we could probably say that about a lot of things the Giants have done wrong over the years.

McCarthy's injury looms large

Any MVP talk surrounding Sam Darnold was always a little excessive, but the early-season hype was well-warranted. The veteran quarterback had been playing better than anyone could've expected and was a key factor in Minnesota's 5-0 start. While the Vikings may still be headed for a playoff berth, the quarterback play has taken a turn for the worse. Darnold nearly gave away Sunday's game against the Jaguars, coughing up three interceptions to the NFL's worst defense by EPA/pass. His decision-making is becoming a real problem, but the preseason injury to rookie first-rounder J.J. McCarthy means the Vikings have no choice but to ride this out. Their ceiling will depend on how hot (or not) Darnold is in January. That's a dangerous game to play.

tHe BeSt ChAnCe To WiN

I hate to bring this up again (no I don't), but it needs to be said. The Colts explained the strange move to bench Anthony Richardson by going to an old Coach Speak staple: Joe Flacco gives them the best chance to win. Two weeks later, how's that working out for them? Flacco turned the ball over four times in Sunday's loss to the Bills, Indy's second straight defeat. For those keeping score at home, Richardson has never turned the ball over that many times in a game. The sophomore quarterback undoubtedly has a lot to clean up. Taking a seat after only 10 starts and watching from the sideline as a 39-year-old quarterback serves up turnovers probably won't help him do that. Play the kid.

The fired-coach boost?

It's real. It has to be. What other explanation could there possibly be for this version of the Saints beating a legitimately good Falcons team? (Ignore the fact that Younghoe Koo missed three field goals in the three-point loss.) We should all choose to believe that dumping your head coach, assuming said head coach wasn't well-liked in the locker room, inevitably results in an emotions-driven one-game uptick in performance. There are at least five teams in the league right now who could justify testing the theory for us. Take your pick.

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