🔗 Share this article

Week 10 once more provided excitement, with a major surprise for the Buffalo Bills proving the 'any Sunday can bring surprises' mantra that attracts so many fans into the NFL

That result may have opened things up for the Patriots to creep back into a leading position they used to occupy, with a schedule that gives them an advantage over their eight and two rivals

Over in the National Football Conference the Seahawks and Rams had ideal outcomes to set up a major confrontation in week 11, while our player of the week is chasing records as well as the MVP award

Analysis - Just a Bad Day for the Bills?

Was it just an emotional comedown from defeating Kansas City the previous week or something more? That's the question for the Buffalo team to answer

The Buffalo squad had secured seven victories in a consecutive games against Miami but were outperformed from the start as the Miami team ran out 30-13 victors in an eye-opening result - and performance

MVP Josh Allen only achieved the squad's opening first down in the third period and initial scoring in the final quarter - yes Miami had 10 days to get ready but it was nonetheless a massive egg produced by one of the NFL's best offenses

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

Bottling up the league's best running game was also key, with Cook and teammates registering just 86 yards, their fewest of the year and just over half their 161.5 yard average

Additionally there were the three crucial ball losses, and the two from Josh Allen in particular. An pass caught by defense in the end zone meaning a nine minute possession yielded no points, and his final quarter dropped ball that Miami turned into seven points just two plays

It was classic 'previous Bills teams' as they shot themselves in the foot, getting into a hole on defensive side and Allen trying to do too much to dig his team out of it - not the composed, controlled, well-balanced Buffalo team we've seen this year

The Dolphins have demonstrated a bit of everything this year so the verdict is uncertain on if this is the start of a trend, but for the Bills they'll need an immediate bounce-back in a tough game against Tampa Bay next week as the Patriots are sneaking into a nice lead at the top of the AFC East

Spotlight - Patriots See Path to Unexpected First Place

Speaking of the New England, they're among three different eight and two squads in the league, all AFC teams, but could they be the top team?

One could find flaws in the Patriots, the Broncos and the Colts really for feasting on the weaker opponents, with only five of their combined 24 wins coming against opponents with a positive record - and one of those was the Indianapolis beating the Denver

The Broncos beat the reigning champion Eagles in Philly and are kings of the fourth-quarter while Indianapolis can ride Jonathan Taylor, but the New England adding Sunday's victory in Tampa Bay to their primtime win in Buffalo appears to be a statement

Their two defeats occurred in new head coach Mike Vrabel's first three contests, with seven straight victories, similar to Denver, from that point - but taking down Mayfield after the Buccaneers had a week off to prepare was huge

Drake Maye's MVP claims won't go away, and he definitely earns credit for bravery after taking some savage hits in Tampa Bay but hanging in there to guide his side to success

The defense is solid and rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson burst onto the scene on Sunday with 147 rushing yards and two exciting touchdowns of 55 and 69 yards - establishing himself as just the fifth different ball carrier to exceed 22 miles per hour this year on his initial touchdown

Although you can debate who 'the best' is technically, the Pats should be favourites to end with the top record thanks to their schedule - which includes just a single matchup against a winning team, although a huge one against the Bills

Traveling to the Ravens is challenging too, but Denver have it more difficult in the AFC West division with the Kansas City to play twice, the Los Angeles Chargers (who could also compete for first place but face the identical challenge) and also the Green Bay on the fixture list

The Indianapolis also face the Chiefs, and have the Seattle, San Francisco and two matchups with the five and four Jacksonville to contend with. There's a considerable distance to travel but the door is available for a surprise top seed in the AFC

Coming Up - Rams & Seahawks Set for Next Week Clash

Two teams with solid claims to be better than all of the three eight and two teams are National Football Conference West opponents the Seahawks and Los Angeles, who both scored 40 burgers to reach seven and two ahead of the upcoming major game between the two in LA

They've both won four in a consecutive games, have quarterbacks in Stafford and Darnold performing at an elite level (although Sam Darnold had ball security problems on game day) with excellent pass catchers, and defenses giving up fewer than twenty points a game

Each could easily be without a loss as too - particularly the Los Angeles as their two defeats came in extra time against the 49ers and then that agonising loss in Philadelphia when they had a potentially winning field goal with the final play deflected and run back by the Philadelphia for a touchdown

Seattle were also defeated to San Francisco, with a late touchdown in week one, before falling to the final play of the contest against the Buccaneers - so they're truly among the best sides in the league

The upcoming game on Sunday could be the best of the year to date

Player of the Week - Taylor

Jonathan Taylor could be on for a record season after his incredible display in Germany - running for 244 yards, scoring three scores and contributing another 42 {receiving yards