NFL Report Card Week 11: Buffalo at the top of the class

Each week we assign letter grades to each team’s performance, we try to be as fair as possible and use the context of their seasons to weight each grade. Week 11 was perhaps the most important yet in the NFL, with potentially huge ramifications for playoff seedings. Let’s take a look at how each team performed!

The Eagles had yet to convince some fans and analysts of their status as a contender after beating up on bad teams in recent weeks. Week 11 saw them welcome the red-hot Washington Commanders into Philly and, for the most part, dominate them. Vic Fangio’s defense performed at an elite level against an offense no other team had been able to stop.

We’re not sure the Commanders played especially badly against the Eagles, but the two teams had an obvious disparity in talent levels. Washington couldn’t handle the Eagles’ relentless commitment to the running game in the fourth quarter, and Jayden Daniels wasn’t moving as freely as we’ve come to expect. It’s not all doom and gloom in the Capital.

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The Dolphins have had a poor season, with Tua's injury probably ruining their playoff hopes before they really started. That said, week 11 was closer to the Dolphins we expected to see before the season, at least offensively. Tua played well, and Tyreek made some plays, too.

It’s tough to be too harsh on the Raiders, given their lack of elite talent outside of a couple of players. They just don’t have the ability to match up to most NFL rosters at this point. Brock Bowers is a great player and one of the best NFL tight ends already, but we continue to question whether it was worth the draft pick given the holes on this team.

Have a day, Taysom Hill. The former college quarterback rushed for 138 yards and 3 TDs on just seven carries, while adding 50 yards receiving too. The Saints look a better team with Dennis Allen gone, which can often happen when you hit rock bottom as a team.

As John Breech writes for CBS Sports, “This was a day where everything that could go wrong, did go wrong for the Browns.” Until late in the game, the Browns played the Saints close before falling away and conceding 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. This is a team in desperate need of an overhaul.

Aaron Rodgers looks like a poor facsimile of himself this season, and the vaunted Jets defense is not the elite unit we were expecting. Sumer Sports' composite rankings has them as the 18th-best unit in the league which is not good enough given the investment in that unit. We had no idea what the Jets were going to look like this season, but we wouldn’t have guessed this.

Anthony Richardson played probably his best game as a pro in week 11, going 20/30 for 272 yards and a TD, adding another two scores with his legs. It was a performance that should fill Colts fans with optimism for the future as it is clear he has made a marked improvement since we last saw him play.

The Titans are another team that doesn’t have the talent level to match up with playoff contenders week in and week out. They played the Vikings close on Sunday, even though they never had a chance to win the game. Will Levis continues to improve as a passer, but his pocket presence is non-existent at this point in his career.

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The Vikings got the job done against Tennessee in what could have been a difficult game if Sam Darnold continued his recent trend of terrible interceptions. We aren’t sure the Vikings are a Super Bowl contender, but there aren’t many teams who will want to face Brian Flores’ defense in January.

Caleb Williams played a great game, compiling over 300 total yards, perhaps Shane Waldrom truly was holding this team back. Matt Eberflus and his coaching staff should be apologizing to his team this week as he settled for a long field goal to try and win the game rather than make it easier for his kicking unit. As such, the kick was blocked and the Bears lost.

When the Chiefs needed a field goal block to beat the Broncos last week, we praised them for their hustle and attention to detail, so it feels only fair to do the same this week. The Packers aren’t looking like the elite team we expected so far this season, even if they are very clearly good. The NFC North is going to be fun to watch down the stretch.

Teams will be getting worried about going into Detroit at this point, as the Lions not only beat you, they suck the life out of you and keep going back for more. John Breech put it perfectly for CBS Sports, “This win shows why the Lions are a great team: This could have easily been a trap game for Detroit, but instead, the Lions beat up on a bad team.”

The Pats should spend the rest of the season doing everything they can to develop Drake Maye, whose talent is obvious to anyone paying attention. His interception to end the game was a ball he would want back, but up until that point he had been the main reason why the Pats had a chance to win.

Matt Stafford did Matt Stafford things against a New England defense devoid of ideas. With his two stud receivers back on the field, the Rams’ QB looked far more comfortable, leading to an offensive explosion. Kupp and Nacua combined for 13 out of 18 completions, which just shows how important they are to this team.

The Steelers slowed down the Ravens’ offense like no other team has so far this season, and they did just enough offensively to get the win. They won’t win too many games late in the season, scoring 18 points, but it was enough on Sunday against their rivals for the AFC North.

The Ravens relied on their defense to keep them in the game on Sunday, which is not a good idea given Sumer Sports has them 27th in their rankings. If Baltimore wants to win a Super Bowl, they need their offense to be unstoppable, which is has been nearly all season but very much wasn’t on Sunday.

The Niners’ defense came to play against the Seahawks on Sunday, even if the didn’t quite live up to its side of the bargain. Christian McCaffrey was held to just 4.2 YPC on the ground, and Brock Purdy and the passing game couldn’t generate much explosiveness. The season isn’t over for San Fran, they need to start winning soon, though.

Per CBS Sports, the Seahawks had been giving up nearly 30 points per game over their last six, only to turn things around in a huge divisional matchup. The Seahawks now have a real chance to win the NFC West, where a loss would have left them a long way back.

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We were fans of Bo Nix in the pre-draft process, and he’s starting to show why as he gets more NFL reps under his belt. His stat line against the Falcons was remarkable, going 28 of 33 for 307 yards and four touchdowns, without having to rely on his legs. If Nix can keep playing anywhere near this level, and the defense continues to dominate, the Broncos look like a tough matchup for anyone.

This is a ‘burn the game tapes’ type of game with pretty much nothing working all game. The Falcons were never serious contenders in the NFC, even though they are still clearly the best team in the South, but games like this show you their roster isn’t at an elite level, or anywhere close.

The Bills always raise their game against the Chiefs (in the regular season) and Sunday was no exception. Josh Allen once again put the team on his back when they needed it most, with his late rushing TD firmly cementing him in MVP conversations. The Bills’ defense flies around the field, too, which is awesome to watch.

We aren’t sure if this a sign the Chiefs aren’t quite as good as their 9-1 record suggests, or perhaps they just didn’t play well enough against another good team. Patrick Mahomes continues to be plagued by ugly interceptions, which has to be a cause for concern at this point.

As John Breech for CBS Sports puts it, “If it wasn't clear before, it should be now: Jim Harbaugh has completely changed the culture for this team.” The Chargers got up early and looked to be letting the game slip away before they were able to secure the win late. The Chargers are 7-3 and look to be playing better and better each week.

It has to be tough to be Joe Burrow, who once again played a game worthy of a victory only to see his defense conceded score after score after score. The 2024 season is probably over for the Bengals who are now four games back in their division (and three off second). Could we see a coaching overhaul next year?

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