NFL week 8: Brady’s bunch firmly back on track, Watt’s warm welcome

Jay Asser 12:13 29/10/2014
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  • NFL Roundup: what we learned so far.

    Now midway through the NFL season, let’s examine the takeaways from this past week’s action:

    Return of the Pats

    I think we can all agree the New England Patriots are back to being the typical, dominant force we’ve become so accustomed to.

    New England didn’t just beat the Chicago Bears this past week, they demolished them, with the score early in the third quarter reading 45-7.

    Reports of Tom Brady’s demise following the loss to Kansas City in Week 4 were greatly exaggerated, but even the most loyal Patriots fans didn’t expect this kind of turnaround from the future Hall of Famer.

    Brady has thrown for 1,268 yards with a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 14-0 in four straight wins.

    It’s as if he flicked a switch and had enough of the criticism. Talk about reaching a low point and climbing out – quickly.

    All of a sudden, the upcoming Patriots-Broncos match-up looks as enticing as it did coming into the season.

    Watt sends message
    JJ Watt is a lot of things on the football field. Friendly to opposing rookies is not one of them.

    The defensive end monster welcomed Tennessee Titans quarterback Zach Mettenberger in the rookie’s first NFL start with two sacks and a cold celebration when he took a mock selfie along with Mettenberger on the ground.

    Watt said afterwards it was in response to Mettenberger posting selfies leading up to the game and that “this is the NFL, not high school.”

    Watt takes himself seriously when it comes to football so it’s not really a surprise. Mettenberger didn’t do anything wrong or directed towards Watt or Houston, but a little trash talk doesn’t hurt.

    I, for one, enjoy watching the best players in the game show bravado, as long as they can back it up.
    Shouldn’t more things be like professional wrestling? Fine, maybe not, but you get the point.

    Calling it both ways
    We saw a few offensive pass interferences called this week in key situations. It’s about time.

    The league has been getting harsher and harsher on defensive backs over the years by calling contact more closely, so it’s good to see the refs unafraid to penalise receivers when warranted.

    High-scoring games and thrilling shootouts are great, but it’s important to at least be fair with the rules, even if they are slanted towards the offence.

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