As I watch games from Thursday through Monday Night Football, I take notes on the things that catch my eye. From injuries to unexpected box score production, both good and bad, to scheme quirks and situations that could affect a player's production in weeks to come. By Wednesday evening, I turn these notes and the subsequent news and investigation into the Eyes of the Guru column.
On Monday mornings, I will be sharing those raw notes. There will not be a lot of analysis or in-depth description. Those things take time and will come later in the week. The goal is to give our customers an early heads up on things that could impact your important decisions for the week, so if something in the notes is particularly important to your team, you can look into it on your own and/or wait until the EOTG comes out that week to get my take.
These are the notes from week eight.
Arizona Cardinals
- Jalen Thompson 4-2 PD
Atlanta Falcons
- Grady Jarrett knee injury in the first quarter.
- Richie Grant showing up more over last couple of games. 6-3 PD
Baltimore Ravens
- Patrick Queen 9-2 having the best season of his career
- Justin Madubuike with another strong outing 3-0-1
- Kyle Hamilton shows up again 9-1
Buffalo Bills
- Is Jordan Poyer coming around? 2-5 2PD. Seeing time as a linebacker.
- Tyrel Dodson 4-1; snaps?
Carolina Panthers
- Frankie Luvu with his best outing of the season 7-5-1 2PD. Is Deion Jones playing?
Chicago Bears
- Tremaine Edmunds down after taking a helmet to the knee. Jack Sanborn 7-1.
- Tyrique Stevenson 10-2
Cincinnati Bengals
- Trey Hendrickson helped off with an ankle injury. Joseph Ossai was the immediate replacement. Hendrickson returned to finish the game.
Cleveland Browns
- Anthony Walker Jr. 2-2 is getting the snaps, but he's not putting up the production.
Dallas Cowboys
- Rashaan Evans to the 53-man roster but he did not play much
- Markquese Bell 5-1, Damone Clark 4-2 Dallas dominated the game so there was limited tackle opportunity
Denver Broncos
- Highly unexpected game script.
- Baron Browning 4-0-2 FF,
- Corner Ja'Quan McMillian 5-1 int.
Detroit Lions
- Monday Night Football
Green Bay Packers
- De'Vondre Campbell 10-4 in return. Quay Walker 7-3 PD snaps.
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Houston Texans
- LB shuffle Blake Cashman to WLB 4-1-1 2TFL, Denzel Perryman MLB 6-3-.5, Henry To'oto'o in a limited role at SLB
- Jonathan Greenard 3-3-2.5
Indianapolis Colts
- Shaquille Leonard continues to improve statistically. 6-5 is his best production to date, snaps?
Jacksonville Jaguars
- The stat sheet shows 1-1-1 for Travon Walker, but he was a much bigger factor on the field.
- Andrew Wingard 5-1-int 2PD, got the start for Andre Cisco
- Devin Lloyd 7-2 PD, Foyesade Oluokun 9-2 FF
Kansas City Chiefs
- Willie Gay Jr back/tailbone, Drue Tranquill hand/arm left but returned 7-4-1 FF. Leo Chenal 6-4-1.
- Charles Omenihu 3-2-.5, George Karlaftis 4-3-2.5 FF
Las Vegas Raiders
- Monday Night Football
Los Angeles Chargers
- Joey Bosa 2-2-1 had the Chargers' only sack.
Los Angeles Rams
- Quentin Lake 4-0 2PD, Russ Yeast 4-1, Jordan Fuller 5-1 int. What gives here?
- Michael Hoecht has sacks in back-to-back games 1-1-1.
- Ernest Jones 5-3 despite great matchup.
Miami Dolphins
- Jalen Ramsey returned and started. 0-1 int. full role?
- Brandon Jones got the start for Jevon Holland. Jones went down late in the game and missed the last few snaps.
- Jaelan Phillips with consecutive big games.
Minnesota Vikings
- Need help at DT? See if Harrison Phillips is available.
New England Patriots
- Ja'Whaun Bentley was having a game before leaving with a hamstring late in the second quarter. Mack Wilson Sr. 5-2, Jahlani Tavai 3-4 PD
- There are consistency issues with Kyle Dugger, but when he's on, he's on 7-2-1 int.
- Christian Barmore coming on 3-2-1, 9-4-2 2PD over last three games
New Orleans Saints
- Marcus Maye is gimpy again. He was active, but Jordan Howden 4-4 PD got the playing time.
- Carl Granderson is quietly closing in on star status. He's currently on pace to go…
- I'm at a loss about what's wrong with Pete Werner.
New York Giants
- Nothing of note.
New York Jets
- The Giants ran an incredible 53 times. They attempted 14 passes and gave up 4 sacks.
- Jermaine Johnson 3-3-2
- Tony Adams 7-3 best numbers of the season
- D.J. Reed was just 2-0 but he played, snaps?
Philadelphia Eagles
- Safety roles, Reed Blankenship 7-2 int, Sydney Brown 7-1, and Kevin Byard 4-3. all putting up numbers. Are they going to a big nickel?
- Zach Cunningham's role? 3-2 2PD
- Nakobe Dean finally shows up 11-1
- Washington finally figured out how to keep their QB upright. Philadelphia had one sack, Haason Reddick 4 straight with at least one. 3-0-1 FF
- Jalen Carter back injury
- Darius Slay may have injured his groin near the end of the game.
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Minkah Fitzpatrick down, grabbing his hamstring Damontae Kazee 5-0 int, Keanu Neal 7-1
- Cole Holcomb emerging as the three-down leader 7-4 FR
- Levi Wallace inactive, Joey Porter Jr Jr. 4-1
Seattle Seahawks
- Boye Mafe big 3-5-1 FR, Darrell Taylor 2-1-1
- Julian Love with low tackle numbers 2-1 but a pick to salvage the day. Jamal Adams 5-3 PD, safety snaps.
San Francisco 49ers
- Nick Bosa with another stinker 1-1-0.5, but the guy led the league in QB hits going into week eight.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Ryan Neal 10-3, but it wasn't a Winfield night 1-2 PD
- Anthony Nelson 3-0-1 anything to see here?
- Jamel Dean is on fire 8-0 2PD on Thursday, 9-1 FR last week and was 7-1 vs the Bears earlier
- What's wrong with Devin White? I think scheme is a factor. His most productive years came when he was in the middle of a 4-3. Now he's in a 3-4 where I don't think he is a good fit. If you remember, he requested a trade not so long ago. He doesn't seem as hungry to me either. Maybe that's a reflection of him being unhappy, but he looks more like Alex Anzalone these days than Ray Lewis. The edge just doesn't seem to be there. Unfortunately, I see no reason to think anything will change in the near future, unless he is traded.
Tennessee Titans
- Amani Hooker 7-0 PD, K'Von Wallace/Terrell Edmunds replacing Kevin Byard? Safety snaps
- Harold Landry III 5-0-2 putting something together. Five tackles and a sack in consecutive games
- Jeffery Simmons blew up 6-0-2 FF
Washington Commanders
- LB snap counts Jamin Davis 3-1, David Mayo 6-3
- Jonathan Allen virtually shut out. Anything to see?
- Montez Sweat 3-2-1, has become matchup-proof/
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