GOOD, BAD AND UGLY
NFL Week Eight Observations: Big deals spice up trade deadline
Oct 31, 2017, 7:14 am
Alex Smith is having a great year, but the Chiefs are winning with defense. Peter Aiken/Getty Images
Week Eight in the NFL was just as crazy and exciting as we’ve all come to expect from the game we love. Not as crazy and exciting as game five of the baseball title series, but it served to appease our appetites.
The Good
-The Kansas City Chiefs are talented on defense as well. I’ve praised Andy Reid on his use of offensive weapons, but getting five turnovers from the Denver Broncos to win 29-19 was impressive. On a night when the offense wasn’t working, this was a clutch performance by the defense.
-The Minnesota Vikings are 6-2 despite being down to what amounts to their third string quarterback and not having prized rookie running back Dalvin Cook. The defense remains stout, run game is consistent, and Case Keenum is manning the quarterback position nicely. The Vikings are the definition of next man up.
-Last week I said the Buffalo Bills need to get LeSean McCoy more scoring opportunities if they want to maintain their winning ways. McCoy ran for 151 yards and a touchdown Sunday in another Bills win pulling them to 5-2 on the season. Yes Virginia, the Bills are for real.
-The New Orleans Saints have managed to win five in a row beating the Chicago Bears 20-12. Despite two fourth quarter fumbles by Mark Ingram, the defense managed to hold on and secure the victory when rookie corner Marshon Lattimore sealed the victory with an athletic interception. Who would’ve thought the Saints defense would be the catalyst behind a 5-2, NFC South leading start.
The Bad
-Washington Redskins tight end Jordan Reed can’t stay healthy. He’s perpetually hurt despite his immense talent. Now it’s a hamstring injury that limited him to one catch for five yards in Sunday’s 33-19 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Same injury will most likely keep him out against the Seattle Seahawks this coming Sunday. Kirk Cousins looks worse for wear whenever Reed isn’t his safety valve.
-The 2-5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ woes can be tied to franchise quarterback Jameis Winston’s inconsistencies. They brought in more weapons (1st round draft pick tight end OJ Howard and free agent wide receiver Desean Jackson), but he’s still as up and down as an instable stock. On consecutive throws in Sunday’s loss to the Carolina Panthers, he threaded a needle between Luke Kuechly and Captain Munnerlyn, then overthrew a wide open Adam Humphries.
-Despite beating the New York Jets 25-20 in what looked like a monsoon Sunday, the 4-3 Atlanta Falcons’ offense doesn’t look the same this year without Kyle Shanahan calling plays. Last year, they threatened to hang 40 every week. Now, they’ve only scored 30+ in two of their seven games.
The Ugly
-Bears’ tight end Zach Miller severely dislocated his knee against the Saints Sunday. He underwent emergency vascular surgery to repair a torn artery which saved his leg. To make matters worse, his would be touchdown catch on the play he injured himself was called back.
-San Diego Chargers’ Travis Benjamin muffed a punt, recovered it, ran backwards into the endzone, and was tackled there for a safety. This play is a microcosm of the Chargers’ season and recent history.
-Mother Nature caused the Falcons/Jets and Cowboys/Redskins games to be played in torrential downpour rain conditions. At one point, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan held his throwing hand under his jersey to keep it dry until he snapped the ball. Here’s another vote for retractable roof stadiums.
Bonus Coverage: NFL trade deadline deals are pretty rare. However, despite Tuesday’s 3 p.m. Eastern time deadline, two pretty big deals were finalized on Monday. The Houston Texans sent embattled left tackle Duane Brown to the Seattle Seahawks for draft picks and cornerback Jeremy Lane, while the New England Patriots dealt quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to the San Francisco 49ers for a draft pick. Both deals appear to help both teams get what they need. Only time will tell who got the better of each deal.
It’s May 1, and the Astros are turning heads—but not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starter—he’s never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, he’s slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
What’s more troubling than the overall dip is when it’s happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outs—.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In “late and close” situations, when the pressure’s highest, he’s practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer when you look at José Altuve—long the engine of this franchise—who, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squad—but someone else may yet step into that role.
And yet—the Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houston’s offense, in general, hasn’t lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). They’re 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where there’s been light, it hasn’t come from the usual spots. Jeremy Peña, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the team’s highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. Peña’s balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then there’s the pitching—Houston’s anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, it’s the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. Peña’s emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. They’re not dominating, but they’re grinding—and in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesn’t, the turnaround we’re witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, that’s the story that needed to be written.
We have so much more to discuss. Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
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