Since the NFL switched to a 17-game regular season back in 2021, finding the exact halfway point on the schedule has been a bit of a challenge. Rather than going by actual games played, the adjustment now allows us to use the weeks as a gauge, and since Week 9 was just completed it's only natural to use this as the midpoint in the 18-game slate.
With that in mind, we decided to offer up some thoughts and what has transpired around the league through the first half of the NFL season.
MVP – Josh Allen, Bills – This was a tough call between Allen and Baltimore's Lamar Jackson. Both have been outstanding, but Allen is doing it with a largely new group of weapons and proving his success wasn't tied to Stefon Diggs.
Offensive Player of Midyear – Derrick Henry, Ravens – Let me state once again how wrong I was to not see how much of an impact Henry would have on the Ravens offense. His size requires opponents to deal with both the physicality and speed (Jackson) of the Ravens running game. Saquan Barkley deserves some attention here as well.
Defensive Player of Midyear – Aidan Hutchinson, Lions – Unfortunately Hutchinson's season is over after a broken leg suffered in Dallas, but at the time he was dominating with 7.5 sacks while leading a ferocious Detroit front.
Offensive Rookie of Midyear – Jayden Daniels, Commanders – Tough to pick anyone else here given the season Daniels is enjoying in DC.
Defensive Rookie of Midyear – Jared Verse, Rams – Such a disruptive force up front for a young and improving Rams defense.
Coach of Midyear – Dan Quinn, Commanders – Not much was expected of Washington with a new coach and rookie quarterback, but Quinn has the Commanders at 7-2 atop the NFC East.
Biggest surprise (team) – Washington – The Commanders looked ragged in the opener in Tampa but since then have shown tremendous growth on defense to support Daniels.
Biggest surprise (player) – Sam Darnold, Vikings – Darnold always had talent but failed to establish consistency in his previous stops. In his eight games in Minnesota, he tossed three or more touchdown passes three times, equaling his total in 38 games with the Jets.
Biggest disappointment (team) – N.Y. Jets – New York has some competition for this dubious distinction with San Francisco, Cincinnati, Dallas and Miami all in the mix, but few have failed as spectacularly as the Jets.
Biggest disappointment (player) – Aaron Rodgers, Jets – See above. He's been healthy (enough) but hasn't come anywhere near meeting his expectations.
Other observations
A lot has been made of Detroit's predominantly indoor schedule, but the Lions are by no means a "dome team" in the traditional sense. Dan Campbell's team is as physical as any in the league and is well-suited to deal with the elements with a two-pronged rushing attack and an active defense, as was the case Sunday at rainy Lambeau Field.The Lions also smartly added pass rusher Za'Darius Smith to replace Hutchinson, and while Detroit's secondary is still a concern, weather conditions are not. …
Officiating remains a problem if for no other reason than the inconsistencies shown from game to game, sometimes within the same week. The preponderance of flags for illegal shifts and formations varies greatly depending on the crews working the games, and that shouldn't be the case. If a tackle isn't aligned properly, it should be a penalty regardless of who is making the call. It shouldn't be up to the judgement of an official.
And when it comes to the actual calls that do require some nuance, the results have been maddeningly inconsistent. On Sunday afternoon there were a couple of questionable hits on defenseless receivers that drew flags. Detroit's Brian Branch hit Green Bay's Bo Melton up high and was not only flagged but ejected from a huge NFC North battle. Meanwhile, only a couple of hours later Seattle's Devon Witherspoon buried Rams receiver DeMarcus Robinson with a helmet-to helmet shot to prevent a huge completion. The flag was dropped, which would have put the Rams in field goal range in the final 30 seconds of a tie game. But the officials gathered and likely got word from above to pick up the flag and the game eventually went to overtime, where the Rams won.
Is it possible that the officials didn't want to make the call that in essence would have given L.A. a chance to win? If so, it's a problem for the league that one dangerous hit was deemed worthy of an ejection, and another didn't even warrant a flag – the biggest difference being the time and score of the game. …
We're only half a season in but the early indications are quite positive when it comes to the play of the rookie quarterbacks. All four who have started for their teams have enjoyed some success, led by Daniels. The fact that Caleb Williams, Maye and Bo Nix have also been productive is great for the league as teams try to restock at the game's most important position. …
Has anyone played better and received less attention than Arizona's Kyler Murray? The former No. 1 overall pick became a punch line a couple of years ago when the Cardinals tried to include a clause in his contract requiring him to study more film as stories detailing his penchant for playing video games surfaced.
The Cardinals seemed to be at the end of the line with Murray, who has battled injuries throughout his career. But now Murray is completing better than 67 percent of his passes with 11 touchdowns and just three picks to go along with 350 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns. Winners of three straight, the Cardinals are 5-4 and now lead the NFC West.
Week 9 leftovers
Philly's Saquan Barkley has enjoyed a remarkable first season with the Eagles but some of his late-game plays/decisions have hurt the team. While most of the attention toward Barkley off Sunday's win over Jacksonville featured his ridiculously athletic backward hurdle over a defender, his choice to slide before picking up a key first down on the final drive almost cost his team the game.
Philly needed to move the chains one more time to close out the 28-23 win, and Barkley found plenty of daylight on a second-and-13 carry from the Jags 48. He exploded through the hole and appeared to be headed for the first down but chose to slide after picking up 9 yards instead. Barkley chose to force the Jags to take a timeout rather than risk going out of bounds, but the first down should have been his priority. He was then stuffed on third-and-4, leaving 2:16 still on the clock.
That's when Eagles coach Nick Sirianni continued his day of questionable decisions by asking Jake Elliott to kick a 57-yard field goal, which clanked off the upright. That gave Jacksonville more than two minutes to move 53 for a potential game-winning touchdown. Trevor Lawrence moved it to the Eagles 13 before he and D'Ernest Johnson had communication issues, causing his pass to be picked off in the end zone. Sirianni previously left the game closer than it needed to be by going for two three times and failing after each one.
Earlier in the season, Barkley dropped a short swing pass that would have resulted in a clinching first down, and the miscue allowed Atlanta to move down the field for the game-winning touchdown in a loss to the Falcons.
Power 5
1. Kansas City (8-0) – The Chiefs remain on top until someone beats them.
2. Detroit (7-1) – Hard to argue with the fact that the Lions are playing the best at the moment.
3. Buffalo (7-2) – Josh Allen continues to prove his value week after week.
4. Baltimore (6-3) – The Ravens can be maddeningly inconsistent but are as talented as anyone.
5. Washington (7-2) – Commanders make their debut in the poll behind their rookie phenom.
DISCLAIMER: The views and thoughts expressed in this article are those of the writer and don't necessarily reflect those of the organization. Read Full Disclaimer
