Bills' Disappointing Performance Gives Patriots Path to Top Spot - Best of Week 10 NFL Action

Quarterbacks in action
Josh Allen and Drake Maye will meet in week 15 for what could be an American Football Conference East championship showdown
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The tenth week once more provided excitement, with a major surprise for the Bills demonstrating the 'any Sunday can bring surprises' saying that attracts so many fans into the National Football League

That result could have created opportunities for the Patriots to creep back into a leading position they used to occupy, with a remaining games that gives them an edge over their eight and two competitors

Meanwhile in the NFC the Seahawks and Rams had perfect results to set up a major confrontation next week, while our top performer is pursuing milestones as well as the Most Valuable Player award

The Breakdown - Simply an Off Day for Buffalo?

Josh Allen in action
Did Josh Allen attempt too much or could it simply have been a poor performance for Buffalo?

Was it just an emotional comedown from defeating Kansas City the previous week or a deeper issue? This remains the question for the Buffalo team to answer

The Buffalo squad had won seven in a consecutive games against Miami but were outperformed from the start as the Dolphins emerged as 30-13 victors in an eye-opening result - and display

MVP quarterback Josh Allen only got the squad's opening first down in the third quarter and initial scoring in the final quarter - yes the Dolphins had ten days to prepare but it was still a massive egg produced by one of the NFL's top offences

Tua Tagovailoa passed for two scores but rusher De'Von Achane was the game-changing factor, with 225 combined yards and two scores

Containing the league's best running game was also key, with James Cook and company registering just 86 yards, their lowest of the season and slightly more than half their 161.5-yard season average

Then there were the three critical ball losses, and the two from Josh Allen in particular. An pass caught by defense in the scoring area resulting in a nine minute drive produced nothing, and his fourth-quarter fumble that the Dolphins turned into a touchdown just later

It was typical 'previous Bills teams' as they hurt themselves in the foot, falling into a hole on defense and Allen trying to overcompensate to rescue his squad out of it - rather than the composed, controlled, well-balanced Bills we've seen this year

The Dolphins have served up a varied performances this season so the jury's out on if this is the start of a trend, but for Buffalo they'll need an immediate bounce-back in a tough game against the Buccaneers in week 11 as the New England are quietly moving into a comfortable advantage at the top of the American Football Conference East

Spotlight - Patriots Identify Route to Surprise Top Seed

TreVeyon Henderson running
Henderson clocked the fifth fastest speed in the league this year

Regarding the New England, they're one of three different eight and two teams in the NFL, all American Football Conference teams, but could they be the best?

One could find flaws in the Patriots, Denver and Indianapolis really for dominating the weaker opponents, with just five of their combined twenty-four victories coming against opponents with a positive record - and one of those was the Colts defeating the Denver

The Broncos defeated the champion Eagles in Philly and are masters of the final quarter while Indianapolis can rely on Taylor, but the New England adding Sunday's win in Tampa Bay to their primtime success in Buffalo appears to be a declaration

Their two defeats occurred in recently appointed coach Vrabel's first three games, with seven consecutive wins, just like Denver, since then - but defeating Baker Mayfield after the Bucs had a bye to prepare was significant

Drake Maye's MVP claims won't go away, and he definitely earns credit for courage after taking some hard tackles in Tampa Bay but persevering to guide his team to victory

The defensive unit is solid and first-year running back TreVeyon Henderson exploded on Sunday with 147 yards and two exciting scores of fifty-five and sixty-nine yards - becoming just the fifth runner to break 22 miles per hour this season on his initial touchdown

Although you can argue who 'the top team' is technically, the Patriots should be favourites to end with the top record due to their remaining opponents - which features just one game against a successful opponent, although a significant contest against Buffalo

Traveling to Baltimore is challenging too, but Denver have it even tougher in the AFC West with the Kansas City to face two times, the Los Angeles Chargers (who could also challenge for top seed but encounter the identical challenge) and additionally the Green Bay on the schedule

The Colts also face the Chiefs, and have the Seattle, 49ers and two matchups with the five and four Jaguars to contend with. There's a considerable distance to travel but the opportunity is open for a surprise top seed in the American Football Conference

Coming Up - Rams & Seahawks Prepare for Next Week Showdown

Two teams with strong arguments to be superior to all of the three 8-2 teams are National Football Conference West rivals the Seahawks and Rams, who both scored forty points to go to seven and two ahead of next week's major game between the pair in Los Angeles

They've both won four in a row, have quarterbacks in Stafford and Sam Darnold playing at an elite level (although Darnold had ball security problems on game day) with top receivers, and defenses allowing fewer than twenty points a contest

Both could easily be undefeated as well - particularly the Rams as their pair of losses came in overtime against the 49ers and then that agonising loss in Philly when they had a potentially winning field goal with the last kick blocked and run back by the Eagles for a score

Seattle also lost to San Francisco, with a late touchdown in week one, before falling to the final play of the contest against the Buccaneers - so they are genuinely two of the best sides in the league

The next matchup on Sunday could be the best of the season to date

Player of the Week - Taylor

Jonathan Taylor running
Jonathan Taylor is pursuing multiple rushing and scoring milestones

Jonathan Taylor might be on for a record season after his remarkable performance in Germany - rushing for 244 rushing yards, scoring three touchdowns and adding an additional forty-two {receiving yards

Scott Larsen
Scott Larsen

A seasoned gaming analyst with over a decade of experience in online casino trends and player psychology.