Week 5 NFL Surprise: Broncos Upset Eagles and Bills Succumb to Patriots
The final pair of undefeated squads in the NFL watched their flawless starts broken during week five as the Philadelphia Eagles along with Buffalo Bills suffered surprising losses on their own turf.
The Denver Broncos transformed from dark horses to headline-makers thanks to an spectacular comeback victory against the reigning Super Bowl champions Philadelphia, before hopping on a flight for this Sunday's overseas contest.
New England's squad then visited Buffalo and halted Buffalo's perfect record with a statement win of their own in their first national television game in twelve months.
The Baltimore Ravens suffered a third straight defeat - their defensive unit's struggles could be fatal for their play-off aspirations - while the Dallas Cowboys, Indianapolis Colts, and Detroit Lions celebrated decisive victories on another action-packed Sunday.
Broncos Defeat Champions
It wasn't just defeating the Super Bowl champions, but the manner of their 14-point comeback that made Denver's 21-17 victory in Philadelphia such a signature achievement.
The Eagles had secured 10 contests consecutively, 12 straight on home turf and 20 of their last 21 total before Broncos quarterback Bo Nix engineered two scoring drives in the final five minutes and a late field goal.
Philadelphia are currently 4-1 but there is a big worry about the offence, which ranks as one of the worst in the league. Receiver DaVonta Smith stated they are not "on the same page" with quarterback Jalen Hurts.
Denver's defence, which sacked Hurts six times, had a lot to do with the outcome, and, combined with a genuine franchise quarterback in Nix and elite coach in Sean Payton, they have all the ingredients to mount a serious challenge.
Denver face the New York Jets at Tottenham Stadium on Sunday.
Patriots on National TV Upset Bills
Should the Broncos' victory was almost half expected, nobody saw the Patriots traveling to Buffalo and defeating Josh Allen's Bills, but they accomplished it with huge character.
Their initial national television appearance for the rookie quarterback delivered a star-making showing as he directed a game-winning field goal drive in the final moments to secure victory 23-20.
The young QB was resilient and made the right throws at the right times, several to ex-Buffalo wideout Stefon Diggs, who had an outstanding performance for Mike Vrabel's team.
Vrabel was anticipated to turn things around in New England, but a win like this came earlier than many predicted.
New England's defensive squad bottled up the Buffalo Bills attack during their surprising away win.
Ravens Play-off Dreams Dashed?
The season is becoming a nightmare for Baltimore, who were without a host of key defenders as they were hammered 44-10 by Houston's team.
It equaled their largest home defeat, and dropping to 1-4 for the season means among the pre-season Super Bowl favourites have only a slim opportunity of reaching the postseason.
The Ravens are currently 4-11 when missing superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson, who was injured, but it is an exceptionally poor defense that is the real problem - for a team that have been synonymous with stout defense historically.
Houston coasted to the win as Baltimore became the first team in the Super Bowl era to concede a minimum of 37 points in four of their first five games. Their campaign is effectively over.
Detroit, Tampa and Indianapolis Go 4-1
Detroit's running back duo Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery scored six points in one contest for the 14th time - a shared NFL mark - as Detroit put away the Cincinnati Bengals 37-24.
Victory made it four victories consecutively for the league's top scorers the Lions, but not one against teams with positive records.
A more unexpected 4-1 side are Indianapolis. With Jonathan Taylor running in three touchdowns in their 40-6 rout of the Las Vegas Raiders and signal-caller Daniel Jones looking like a transformed player, they will be a tough match for any side.
Tampa Bay joined the 4-1 club with a thrilling 38-35 win in Seattle in which both teams exchanged nine scores in 10 impressive possessions before Seattle cracked first with a late interception.
Chase McLaughlin booted the game-winner with the final play of the game for the second time this season. Each of the Bucs' wins have been secured in the last minute.
New Orleans and Tennessee Get Help for First Wins
The way the New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans began this campaign, they required assistance to get their initial victories, and they got plenty thanks to several comical errors from New York and Arizona Cardinals.
Following a strong opening from New York rookie Jaxson Dart, the Giants made five giveaways - one was decisively taken back for six points - while additionally permitting Rashid Shaheed to score on an 87-yard catch and run as New Orleans won 26-14.
The Cardinals were more disastrous as they squandered a 21-3 lead mainly thanks to two massive blunders.
First, Emari Demercado unexplainably dropped the football just before crossing the line for a long touchdown.
Worse was to come when the Cardinals intercepted Cam Ward near their own goal line, then lost the football across the goal line for Tyler Lockett to recover as the Titans ended a 10-game losing streak with a 22-21 win.
The receiver registered one of the most farcical scores we'll see this season.
That left the Jets as the sole victory-less team remaining in the NFL after their punishing 37-22 loss by the Cowboys.
Jayden Daniels became the initial athlete in NFL history to surpass 4,000 passing yards and 1,000 yards rushing in his first 20 professional contests as he returned from being hurt to steer Washington to an impressive 27-10 win at the Los Angeles Chargers.
The running back was the star man for Carolina with 206 rushing yards in their thrilling 27-24 victory over the Miami Dolphins.
NFL Week Five Results and Key Moments
Minnesota Vikings 21-17 Cleveland Browns
Houston Texans 44-10 Baltimore Ravens
Miami Dolphins 24-27 Carolina Panthers
Las Vegas Raiders 6-40 Indianapolis Colts
New York Giants 14-26 New Orleans Saints
Dallas Cowboys 37-22 New York Jets
Denver Broncos 21-17 Philadelphia Eagles
Tennessee Titans 22-21 Arizona Cardinals
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 38-35 Seattle Seahawks
Detroit Lions 37-24 Cincinnati Bengals
Washington Commanders 27-10 Los Angeles Chargers
New England Patriots 23-20 Buffalo Bills
San Francisco 49ers 26-23 Los Angeles Rams (OT)
