📈 Trending 📉 after Sunday of Week 5, including major questions from Buffalo

Scoop City is The Athletic’s daily NFL newsletter. Sign up here to receive it directly in your inbox.

In case you missed it, the league’s fifth Sunday began with Vikings cheerleaders showing the Jets’ Greg Zuerlein what icing the kicker looks like in 2024:

He kicked it! Let’s talk about what happened after:

📈 Trending 📉

Former commissioner Bert Bell had a vision for the NFL that “On any given Sunday, any team can beat any other team.”

This past Sunday, the once unbeatable Bills dropped to 3-2 after back-to-back losses. A few hours later, Super Bowl odds shifted after the now 2-3 49ers were upset by the Cardinals. Meanwhile Patrick Mahomes and his imperfect, 4-0 Chiefs — who take on the 2-2 Saints tonight — are plagued by injuries.

Yes, Bell’s “any given Sunday” sentiment is as true as ever. Just ask anyone who joined a survivor pool this year.

The Athletic’s Week 5 takeaways are here, while we look at the risers/fallers:

Trending up

📈 The 2-3 Jets’ desire for Davante Adams. As Dianna reported last week, the sense around the league is Las Vegas will probably end up with a third-rounder for Adams, who “is open to a few teams but prefers the Jets and Saints.” After losing to Minnesota 23-17, New York desperately needs both wins and another threat across Garrett Wilson (22 targets on Sunday). Adams helps with both. Dianna has more below.

📈 Play of Caleb Williams. The Bears moved to 3-2 after a 36-10 win over the now 1-4 Panthers. Importantly, Williams finished with 304 yards and two touchdowns while taking just one sack. Adam Jahns explains why Sunday’s game showed the upside of the Bears offense, while our QBR chart says this might be the breakout week Bears fans were waiting for:

📈 The 3-2 Packers’ stars. I’m still wondering how Jayden Reed made this catch during Green Bay’s victory 24-19 against a feisty 1-4 Rams team. And after his latest interception, Matt Schneidman noted that safety Xavier McKinney became the first player since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger with a pick in each of his first five games with a new team.

📈 Giants running game. No starting running back, no problem for New York, who was without Devin Singletary but saw Tyrone Tracy Jr. take 18 carries 129 yards in their best rushing performance of the season. Despite also missing Malik Nabers, the 2-3 Giants won after an epic field-goal block in Seattle, 29-20.

📈 Jayden Daniels and the 4-1 Commanders. Their defense still needs work, but does that matter? Since Week 2, Washington is averaging 400-plus yards and 33.8 points per game; tops in the NFL. Daniels’ dual-threat value was apparent yesterday — struggling to complete passes against the Browns defense (56 percent clip), he added 82 yards rushing in a 34-13 win. For a franchise mired in mediocrity, it’s finally time to believe. Get your popcorn ready for next week’s matchup in Baltimore.

📈 The speed of Brian Thomas Jr. The Jaguars rookie receiver hit 22.15 mph on this touchdown, the fastest ball-carrier mark this season and second-fastest in the past four years. Jacksonville (1-4) got a badly-needed win 37-34, despite a heroic effort from Colts QB Joe Flacco (359 yards and three touchdowns).

Trending down

📉 Time to do chores. Yesterday’s NFL Sunday started at 9:30 a.m. ET and ended after 1:00 a.m. ET, when Dak Prescott led the 3-2 Cowboys to a 20-17 win over Pittsburgh (now 3-2) in the final seconds. After another inconsistent performance, it’s uncertain if Justin Fields (15-27, 131 yards and two touchdowns) keeps his job. Full takeaways here.

📉 The mood in 3-2 Buffalo. Losing 23-20 to the Texans, a Super Bowl contender, is understandable. The problem is how Buffalo lost; With the score tied and 32 seconds on the clock the Bills could’ve ran the ball and played for overtime. Instead, starting from their own three-yard line, they threw three straight times. After all failed, Houston had the ball and all three timeouts. Shocking, especially given Josh Allen’s struggles all game (more below). Mike Sando examines the run-play alternative — and why Davante Adams makes sense for Buffalo — in his Pick Six column.

📉 Consistency of concussion protocol. Sunday was the first time in Josh Allen’s career that he completed less than 40 percent of his passes; He finished 9 of 30 for 131 yards and a touchdown. More concerning: Allen taking a hard hit to the head and appearing to lose consciousness briefly. Remember: The NFL’s concussion protocol mandates that loss of consciousness means the player is not allowed to return. Allen missed one snap. After what’s happened with Tua Tagovailoa, that’s unacceptable.

📉 3-2 Seattle’s legitimacy. That 3-0 start feels like a lifetime ago, right? After they couldn’t stop the Lions, the Seahawks’ comeback attempt fell short as they lost to the Giants 29-20. At home! They’re leading the NFC West but could quickly fall to 3-5 after their next three matchups against the 49ers, Falcons and Bills.

📉 The 1-4 Browns. As Mike Jones wrote in The Athletic’s Week 5 takeaways, Cleveland — who are sticking with Deshaun Watson — is “pretty much screwed.” Watson “is a shell of himself, passing for only 125 yards during Sunday’s loss, while the Browns’ offense was 1-for-13 on third downs.” Their next six opponents — Eagles, Bengals, Ravens, Chargers, Saints and Steelers — make 1-10 a possibility. At least they have a first-round pick for the first time since 2021?

📉 1-4 Cincinnati’s defense. At first glance, the Bengals upcoming opponents — Giants, Browns, Eagles and Raiders — provide a glimmer of hope for their playoff chances. But with their defense allowing 32.2 points per game over the past four weeks, including 41 in Sunday’s loss to Baltimore, hope quickly fades.

For more, read Zak Keefer’s Week 5 learnings, which includes a look at the wide-open NFC West after San Fran and Seattle stumbled.

What Dianna’s Hearing: The ‘when’ of a Davante Adams trade

Since last week I’ve had plenty of conversations about where Adams might be traded. But the more pressing question right now: When will he land? As far as the Raiders and the receiver are concerned, they want him to have a new home some time in the next 48 hours.

Vegas is still in search of a second-round pick as compensation. It’s worth noting that the Jets’ London road trip won’t hold up the process — they flew back immediately after Sunday’s loss to the Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

New York and the Saints remain the favorites, with the Steelers still firmly in the hunt. The Chiefs and Bills aren’t necessarily out of it, though perhaps Buffalo might be more willing to budge after Josh Allen’s struggles, which notably came without top receiver Khalil Shakir in the lineup in their loss at Houston. More to come…

Back to you, Jacob.

Numbers & Quotes: All love in Denver?

Numbers and quotes that tell the story of Week 5:

• 1,231 rushing yards to 373. As ESPN’s Jamison Hensley noted, Derrick Henry and the 3-2 Ravens have now outrushed their opponents by at least 100 yards in all five games this season, the longest streak since stats were tracked. In five games, they have 858 more rushing yards than their opponents. 🤯

• 5-0. As Alec Lewis writes, the Vikings were saved by Brian Flores’ defense (again) during a game where Sam Darnold struggled. The QB finished 14 of 31 for 179 yards and an interception. Still, Minnesota made plays when needed and remain undefeated heading into a bye.

Tonight: Chiefs-Saints

The Chiefs are 4-0, but each victory has been by one score. Meanwhile, the 2-2 Saints either blowout their opponents or lose a tight one; their +14.3 point differential leads the league, while their last two losses have come by a combined five points.

We’ll see which trend continues during tonight’s matchup (at 8:15 p.m. ET on ESPN), which you can prepare for by learning how the Chiefs are adjusting to life without receiver Rashee Rice. Hint: It involves Travis Kelce. Our full game preview is here.

📫 Enjoyed this read? Sign up here to receive The Athletic’s free daily NFL newsletter in your inbox, and check out The Athletic’s other newsletters.

(Photo:
Quinn Harris / Getty Images)