Best And Worst of NFL Week Ten

We've now hit week ten in the NFL season, and things are starting to take shape, either good or bad, around the league. The AFC North is the only division with every team over .500 and they have flipped the script, with the Cleveland Browns leading the way. Let that sink in for a second, the Cleveland Browns lead the AFC North. Calvin Johnson's return to the Lions lineup was a huge boost to their football team, as they manage to stay ahead of the Packers in the North. While those things are nice, its not so great in Arizona. Sure the Cardinals still have the best record in football at 8-1, but they will now have to go about it without their starting QB. That and the Chicago Bears game, as a team has go nowhere fast, as they start falling off in the division. There are still a few long shots to make the playoffs like the Bills, Dolphins and now Cardinals (to hold the West anyway), so its setting up some good matchups heading down the stretch during the rest of the regular season.

But that's all coming down the road. Here's some of the best and worst from the week that was in the NFL.

Best:
Aaron Rogers, Quarterback Green Bay Packers
Rogers went off at home on Sunday against the Bears. He finished the day going 18 of 27 for 315 yards. Pretty good numbers for most quarterbacks, but a little low for this guy. What puts Rogers at this spot this week? Yeah he threw for SIX touchdown passes against the Bears in the 55-14 Packers win. He could have easily set the league's single-game record for TD passes (which would be eight) if the Packers had decided to truly embarrass the Bears. Instead, coach Mike McCarthy showed mercy to Chicago and pulled Rodgers and his six TD strikes, which all came before halftime, midway through the third quarter. That was a dominate performances.

Worst:
Chicago Bears
Its been a rough go of it for the boys from the Windy City this season. Good things were expected out of Chicago, and the Bears simply haven't been able to deliver. They fall to 3-6 on the season after getting blown out by the Pack in Green Bay. You know things are getting rough for the Bears when they manage to fall into a 42-0 halftime deficit against the Pack, the worst half in nearly a century of Bears football. Things haven't been working right for the Bears as of late, when you have a two-game stretch of giving up 50-plus points in two straight games, while failing to score many of their own. This leads to everything about a team getting called into question.

Best:
Marshawn Lynch, Running Back Seattle Seahawks
Best Mode has returned to Seattle. It's no secret that the Seahawks could be getting rid of their running back at the end of the season, even though he is under contract through 2015. Lynch has expressed displeasure with the contract and management in Seattle, which is why he could be on his way out the door. If that's the case, then Lynch is going to be hitting the market with one big bang. Lynch continues to show he remains an attractive commodity after churning out 140 rushing yards and a career-high four TDs in Sunday's win over the Giants. Those were the best numbers of any back in the league, rushing wise, last week. Sure he may not be happy, but that don't mean he isn't a threat still.

Worst:
New York Giants Run Defense
There is a big reason why the Giants have the worst run defense in the entire league. They can't stop an opposing run game to save their lives this season. Even though, on paper, the defense was improved, it hasn't been able to make their run defense any better. New York allowed the Seahawks to roll up 350 rushing yards, and 7.8 per attempt. Seattle's Marshawn Lynch and Russell Wilson both hit the 100-yard plateau. Yeah that's pretty bad. We know that Lynch is good, but the Giants defense made him look a lot better.

Best:
Jaiquawn Jarrett, Cornerback New York Jets
This has been something that has been long overdue and a sore spot for Jets fans. This week, the Jets actually had a great game on the defensive side of the football and he one of the big reasons for it. Jarrett had a sack, two more quarterback hits, and 10 total tackles, and he came away with one of Antonio Brown’s two fumbles. In the best game of the season for the Jets defense, Jarrett was the best player on the Jets defense, and even if he never has another day like yesterday, a bit of redemption had to feel good for him personally.

Worst:
Pittsburgh Steelers Passing Game
Big Ben had gone off the two weeks prior to this, hooking up with his receivers for 12 touchdown tosses over those two games. This week, however, the pass game wasn't there. Ben managed only one against the Jets as Pittsburgh's three-game winning streak came to an unexpected end. Big Ben's aerial show has been impressive, but the Steelers (36 rushing yards Sunday) might be wise to re-establish offensive balance now that they've averaged just 71 yards on the ground in their last four outings. Sure the Jets defense had a lot to do with that, and the fact that Antonio Brown fumbled the football twice during the game. Still Pittsburgh showed they were human on offense, and now know what they need to correct.

Best:
Matthew Stafford, Quarterback Detroit Lions
Having Calvin Johnson back in the lineup to throw to did help him out quite a bit on Sunday. Even with Megatron back, Stafford did a nice job spreading the ball around rather than maintaining radar lock on Megatron. Johnson and Golden Tate each exceeded 100 receiving yards and were both targeted at least 13 times by Stafford, whose best throw, was reserved for RB Theo Riddick in the corner of the end zone with 29 seconds to go. Stafford seemed to find his confidence again, which wasn't really lacking in the first place. Now he seems to be the Stafford of old, helping lead the Lions to the top spot in the NFC North.

Worst:
Jimmy Graham, Tight End New Orleans Saints
A little surprising hearing his name here again, but after what happened on Sunday, he deserves to be here. Near the end of the game Sunday, Graham made a little too much contact with 49ers CB Perrish Cox. Had he not done that boneheaded move, the 47-yard Hail Mary Graham snatched for the would-be game-winning TD against San Francisco would have been the play of the year. Instead, New Orleans now sits at 4-5 ... still good enough for first place in the woeful NFC South. Graham has a tone of talent but needs to control emotion a little better.

Best:
Dez Bryant, Wide Receiver Dallas Cowboys
Dez had made headlines, somewhat, last week, when heditched his agent and signed with Roc Nation, Jay Z’s sports agency. Bryant had to wait a few days for his Give Me All the Money game after signing with his new agent. Yeah Dez showed up again last Sunday, racking up his 158 yards and six catches in the first half. In the FIRST HALF ALONE. Dez then spent the final 30 minutes of the Cowboys’ blowout win smirking, riding the stationary bike, or doing both. He seemed content to have the new agent and have Romo throwing to him again. Bryant seemed like his old self, but can he keep it going over the next few weeks.

Worst:
Carson Palmer, Quarterback Arizona Cardinals
This isn't a case of bad performance, its just a pure case of bad luck. He was having a good start to his weekend, considering he secured his future in the desert after signing a three-year, $50 million contract extension Friday. Then Sunday, things went south on Palmer, as he suffered a season-ending left knee injury. This could/would ruin his bid to enjoy his first NFL playoff win and curtail his role with the best team he's played for in 12 pro seasons. Arizona still has Drew Stanton under center, with Palmer out. Stanton still a good QB and might be able to help the Cardinals hold place, but Arizona might not be quite as lethal without Palmer.