Big players make big plays in big games. And in Week 9, the best players in the league stepped up to lead their teams to important victories that kept them moving toward the postseason.
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow showed his trademark playmaking ability, finishing with 251 yards and five touchdowns in a blowout win over the Las Vegas Raiders. The victory helped the Bengals improve to 4-5 and only a half-game out of the last playoff spot in the AFC.
[READ MORE: 2024 NFL Playoff Picture: Falcons, Chargers see fortunes rise; Packers fall back]
Lions quarterback Jared Goff continued his historic run, completing 81.8% of his passes for 145 yards and a touchdown in Detroit’s impressive win against the Green Bay Packers in rainy conditions at Lambeau Field.
The ultra-efficient Goff now has an 82.8 completion percentage over a six-week period, eclipsing Peyton Manning for the best such stretch in league history. Goff has thrown more touchdowns (28) than incompletions (24) during his impressive streak. His execution has put Detroit in the top spot in the NFC with a 7-1 record.
And down in the desert, running back James Conner helped to lead the Arizona Cardinals to a win over the Chicago Bears and the top spot in the NFC West. Conner finished with 107 rushing yards in a 29-9 victory over the Bears.
Let’s take a closer look at who’s hot and who’s not in this week’s NFL Heat Index.
WHO’S HOT
Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Lions
Brown let his sweatshirt do the talking before the game as he stepped off the bus and entered Lambeau Field.
“Green Bay sucks.”
If you wear something like that into enemy territory, you better back it up. Brown did, finishing with seven catches for 56 yards and a touchdown in his team’s big win over the Packers. In the process, Brown tied a franchise record shared by Herman Moore and Leon Hart with his sixth straight game with a receiving touchdown.
Brown also continued an impressive streak of catching 30 straight targets from Goff dating back to Week 3. His performance on Sunday earned him recognition as Tom Brady’s LFG Player of the Game.
Tom Brady’s LFG Player of the Game: Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown | Week 9 DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE
Saquon Barkley, RB, Eagles
In his first season with the Eagles, Barkley has taken over as the engine of Philadelphia’s offense and is one of the frontrunners for Offensive Player of the Year. In a victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Barkley finished with 199 scrimmage yards and two scores.
He also executed one of the most astonishing running moves in NFL history, jumping backward over Jacksonville defender cornerback Jarrian Jones after spinning to evade linebacker Devin Lloyd.
“It was the best play I’ve ever seen,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said.
We agree.
Bryce Young, QB Panthers
It’s not about the numbers Young produced, it’s about the vibes. Benched due to poor performance earlier this year, last year’s No. 1 overall pick helped Carolina finally get back in the win column with a victory over the New Orleans Saints.
Young snapped a personal six-game losing streak, the longest among all quarterbacks. He finished 16-of-26 for 171 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. But more importantly, Young helped the Panthers snap a five-game losing streak.
Tyler Bass, K, Bills
Buffalo’s kicker hit a career-best 61-yard field goal in the final seconds for his team’s seventh victory of the season. Bass made up for a missed extra point and field goal attempt earlier in the game with the winning kick.
In the postseason last year, Bass missed a 44-yard field goal that would have tied the Chiefs, and he had struggled from that distance this year, missing 4-of-7 kicks from 40 to 49 yards.
So, the 61-yarder was a confidence builder for Bass.
Mike Gesicki, TE, Bengals
Cincinnati’s pass-catching tight end finished with five catches for 100 yards and two touchdowns in his team’s runaway win over the Raiders.
Gesicki became the first Cincinnati tight end with 100 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in a game since Tyler Eifert accomplished that feat in 2015, also against the Raiders. The scores provided another opportunity for fans to see Gesicki’s cringy touchdown dance as he attempted to do his version of the “griddy.”
WHO’S COLD
Mike McCarthy, HC, Cowboys
With Dallas losing three straight and two games under .500 for the first time since 2020, it seems time to throw dirt on the Cowboys (3-5) and their postseason hopes. McCarthy has been unable to steer Dallas clear of a season that appeared headed off a cliff since owner Jerry Jones said the organization was “all-in” on chasing a Super Bowl.
Adding injury to insult, franchise quarterback Dak Prescott had to leave Sunday’s game due to a hamstring issue. He was replaced by Cooper Rush.
Dallas gets a much-needed bye week, with the hopes of getting edge Micah Parsons and cornerback Daron Bland back from injury in Week 11. It’s fair to wonder if even the return of those frontline players can change the team’s outlook at this point of the season.
C.J. Stroud, QB, Texans
Last year’s Offensive Rookie of the Year is on a cold streak. Over the past three games, Stroud has completed just 52.3% of his passes for 562 yards and one touchdown for a 76.0 passer rating.
Houston has lost two of its past three, averaging just 19 points a game during that time. Stroud has had to deal with injuries along the offensive line and at receiver. Still, as one of the best signal-callers in the game, he must figure out how to elevate the offense when it’s not at full strength.
Shane Steichen, Head Coach, Colts
Steichen made the switch from developmental QB Anthony Richardson to 39-year-old backup Joe Flacco, but the results were not any better on Sunday. Flacco threw for 179 yards and failed to lead the Colts to an offensive touchdown as they lost to the Minnesota Vikings on the road.
At 4-5, the Colts are just two games out of first place in the AFC South behind the 6-3 Texans. But if Flacco doesn’t perform better, it might be best to play Richardson and continue his development for next season.
Geno Smith, QB, Seahawks
Smith made some beautiful throws down the stretch, engineering a touchdown drive that pushed his team into overtime against the Rams. However, Smith also finished with three head-scratching interceptions and two botched snaps during regulation that led to Seattle’s fourth loss in five games.
Turnovers and sloppy play are why the Seahawks have dropped to the bottom of the NFC West under first-year head coach Mike Macdonald. Turning things around starts with better execution from Smith.
Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.
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