Week 10 Review – Murray Returns, Stroud Sizzlies & 49ers Snap Streak

Week 10 of the NFL season produced five game-winning field goals and some significant storylines to monitor moving forward. Chiefly, Kyler Murray’s future and upcoming battle with rookie sensation, C.J. Stroud.

Murray’s Magical Return Sets Up QB Banger

The Arizona Cardinals picked up their second win of the NFL season as Kyler Murray made his return from an ACL tear.

Winning will have been met with mixed emotions. Overall, this team is very bad and losses help raise their chance of landing a higher pick in the NFL Draft. However, the way in which they did win could have future implications given Murray’s reported availability on the trade block.

If you thought he might be a little bit underdone and need some time to find confidence in his legs, think again…

For Kyler Murray to do this wizardry in his first game after his ACL tear is incredible. He was apart of their two most important plays of the game to secure the victory! #BirdGang pic.twitter.com/HbBDYAMUBS

— Full-Time Dame 💰 (@DP_NFL) November 13, 2023

The Cardinals either have their quarterback of the future in the building already or a trade chip that could still return quite the haul.

Now, Murray is preparing to take on C.J. Stroud and the Houston Texans as $2.65 and +4.5 underdogs.

This game has mouthwatering potential at the quarterback position. Murray, albeit only just returning, is one of the most electric quarterbacks in the league. Meanwhile, Stroud is playing out one of the best rookie seasons in NFL history. He has become a weekly instalment here and as much as we might try to avoid mentioning him for a week, Stroud simply won’t allow it.

He broke records in Week 9. In Week 10, he’s in a position to break another: He is currently on track to be the first rookie since 1939 to lead the league in passing yards per game.

Noah Brown has been a massive beneficiary of Stroud’s play. Without a game with more than 100 receiving yards throughout his 69-game career before Week 9, he has cleared 150 yards in back-to-back games.

Stroud is the real deal. He has the Offensive Rookie of the Year wrapped up already and needs to be mentioned as the Most Valuable Player in the league. The Texans are now 5-4 with a relatively friendly schedule to finish the season. If he can get them up to 10-11 wins while maintaining his numbers and position at the top of the passing yards list, he could become the first player since Jim Brown to win both awards.

We will probably see you again next week, C.J.

I’m Sorry, Josh Dobbs

“Simply put, we’re fading new Minnesota Vikings quarterback, Josh Dobbs.” – Red Zone Returns

Simply put, he played out a blinder in the first half of the Minnesota Vikings 27-19 win over the New Orleans Saints.

Looking like a combination of Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen, Dobbs torched the Saints defence to finish with 312 offensive yards and two touchdowns. In doing so, he became the first player in NFL history to pile up 400 passing yards, 100 rushing yards and no interceptions in his first two games with a team.

As you’ll have surely heard by now, he didn’t know the names of a large chunk of the team before running out onto the field for his first game. He didn’t take a single practice rep…

josh dobbs is what happens when extraordinary dawg levels are combined with an enormous brain

— Denny Carter (@CDCarter13) November 12, 2023

And just like that, the Vikings have won five games on the bounce. Their 0-3 start to the season is well and truly behind them. Looking forward, could Dobbs be their guy? He’s doing all of this with limited preparation and still has Justin Jefferson (you know, the best wide receiver on planet Earth) to return to the mix.

Kirk Cousins is a big loss for this team. There is every chance they would be in a similar position had he remained healthy. That position is, right now, a playoff spot after it looked so unlikely early on.

Streaks End

Try as they might late in the piece, the San Francisco 49ers couldn’t get Christian McCaffrey into the end zone. This one ended his streak of 17 consecutive games with a touchdown.

More importantly, however, the 49ers ended their three-game losing streak by thrashing the Jacksonville Jaguars 34-3. Just like that, they looked like the best team in football again.

Brock Purdy again played well. He dominated early enough to sit for most of the 4th quarter having already amassed 296 yards and three touchdowns. His bomb to George Kittle is the highlight of the game and another tick next to Purdy’s for-some-reason-disputed arm strength.

Big-Time Throw Rate, PFF, thru Week 10:

1. Dak Prescott, 6.6%
2. Matt Stafford, 6.5%
t2. Tua Tagovailoa, 6.5%
4. Jalen Hurts, 6.3%
5. Brock Purdy, 5.9% (!)

Explosive. Passing. Game.

— Akash Anavarathan (@akashanav) November 13, 2023

This was a statement game for the 49ers on both sides of the ball. But with what the defence dished up throughout the losing streak, their improvement is most encouraging. Chase Young impressed in his San Francisco debut, too. His presence bought out the best game of Nick Bosa’s season as well.

There is a reason the 49ers’ price to win Super Bowl LVIII didn’t sway too much despite losing three on the bounce. At their best, they absolutely justify their place on the third line of betting at $6.

Is This A Turning Point For Deshaun Watson?

The Cleveland Browns have the defence to compete. They’ve already given Watson the bag to ensure the offence gets there in the end, too.

Having struggled throughout the early stages of his Browns career, Week 10 might end up being circled as when it all started to come together. More specifically, the second half of their 33-31 win over the Baltimore Ravens.

It looked like more of the same early. Another night of tweets highlighting the huge package Cleveland gave up to acquire Watson and the massive contract they’d guaranteed him already beckoned. He hit on only six of his 20 throws in the first half for 79 yards and a pick-six.

By the 4th quarter, he was connecting on all seven of his passing attempts for 88 yards and a touchdown while pulling off a late play that went a long way to securing the result.

This run might’ve won us the game. 🔥 @deshaunwatson #DawgPound pic.twitter.com/2R7NzMx26f

— Zach D (@ZachNoah52) November 12, 2023

The Browns defence has been one of the best in the NFL all season. It has been good enough on its own to make up for a lot of Watson and the offence’s shortcomings. Now, the two sides of the ball appear to be moving closer together.

We’re going to learn a lot more about this team in Week 11 when they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers as $1.50 and +4.5 favourites provided Watson pulls up well from a late-game injury scare.

Other NFL Week 10 Notes

– The Steelers are 6-3 but have now been outgained in every single game they’ve played this season.
– Dak Prescott threw for 404 yards completing 74.2% of his passes as the Cowboys smashed the Giants. It’s the seventh time in his career with at least 400 passing yards and over a 70% completion rate, the second-most in NFL history.

Cowboys outgained the Giants by 468 yards today, the largest total yardage difference in an @NFL game in 44 years.@NFLResearch

— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) November 13, 2023

– The “Should the New York Jets bench Zach Wilson” conversation is back for another year…
– Now 4-6 with the Cowboys (twice), Dolphins and 49ers still to come, the Washington Commanders are all but out of the playoff picture.
– Desmond Ridder led the Atlanta Falcons to a go-ahead touchdown after Taylor Heinicke went down with an injury.