Dallas Cowboys

Cowboys roll, AFC West is best and Eagles crash

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Oct 13, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) talks to Denver Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib (21) during the third quarter at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

We are now six weeks through the NFL’s regular season. The landscape is becoming clearer, including many playoff pictures starting to shape up.

Below are several observations from Week 6, a very competitive and exciting slate of games:

The AFC West is the NFL’s best and most competitive division. Unlike the NFC West or AFC North (which went 0-4 this week!), there is not a bottom feeder. But also unlike those divisions, there probably is not an elite team either. We should never put too much stock in a Thursday night performance by a road team and Denver was without its head coach for medical reasons when they visited San Diego. Still, this is two straight weeks that the Super Bowl champions have been clearly outplayed.

The Chargers are a far better team than their record indicates and have the best quarterback in the division, but is behind the 8-ball in the standings. This, even though they could be playing the best football in the division. Meanwhile, Denver is clearly the worst in the West at the most important position on the field. Contrary to what it did last year, it is extremely difficult to win in this league with a quarterback that is unwilling to pull the trigger or is incapable of making big throws.

The Raiders and Chiefs met in Oakland in a driving rainstorm. Andy Reid’s record when coming off a bye is impeccable and that impressive trend continued. The weather helped, but this was a very Chiefs-like style of game, not turning the ball over and a lot of running with Jamaal Charles back in the fold. But it was Spencer Ware that carried the load, racking up 131 yards on the ground compared to just 33 from Charles. That was the difference in this game, as Kansas City out-rushed the Raiders by a whopping 118 yards.

Despite Marcus Peters’ amazing career interception numbers (and he picked off yet another on Sunday), he exclusively lines up on the left side of the defense and was in and out of the lineup in this game due to injury. Amari Cooper abused this secondary, usually on the opposite side of Peters. But that was not enough. This was a gigantic win for the Chiefs to stay above .500. Meanwhile, Oakland needs to be better than this to compete in this division, but remains tied for first place.

Oct 16, 2016; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (13) runs for a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens during the fourth quarter at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Things are also really heating up in the NFC East. After an atrocious few weeks, the Giants got a much-needed win to stay competitive in this division. Odell Beckham was injured but returned to have a fantastic game while playing hurt. Beckham had the play of the game with under two minutes remaining on the decisive fourth down, taking a slant to the house.

Tavon Young had a particularly rough day in coverage. Beckham was the difference in this game and took the game over in the second half (211 yards in second half!), but the Giants warts (running game, pass rush) don’t seem to be going away. As great as Beckham is, asking him to put the team on his back every week is just too stiff of a chore. The Giants mustered only 38 rushing yards (2.2 ypc) in Week 6 and only two sacks against a Ravens’ offensive line that was missing three starters, including Marshal Yanda, although they did pressure Joe Flacco a fair amount.

Despite throwing two interceptions, Eli Manning’s play improved dramatically from his last three outings. Obviously, that is promising.

Within the division, Washington dealt the Eagles their second consecutive defeat. For Washington, the most encouraging takeaway from this game is a vastly improved offensive line. The Redskins just may have a running game, as Matt Jones ran for 135 yards on 16 carries. In total, Washington run for 230 yards on what was thought to be an excellent Eagles’ defense that was on the field far too long in Week 6. The running game has been a huge missing piece for this organization and it is a must for them to contend. Kirk Cousins by no means is able to be the lone focal point of the offense.

Still, Cousins played quite well against Philadelphia, leading several demoralizing drives even without the ultra-important Jordan Reed in the lineup. Led by Trent Williams, the Redskins’ offensive line also didn’t allow a sack against an excellent pass-rushing Philadelphia front four.

Oct 16, 2016; Landover, MD, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz (11) is sacked by Washington Redskins linebacker Ryan Kerrigan (91) in the first quarter at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

As for the Eagles, they are clearly coming back to Earth. Without Lane Johnson in this game (or the next nine games for that matter), Philadelphia’s pass protection is a real area of concern. Washington got after Carson Wentz without having to blitz. The rookie quarterback should expect much more of the same going forward, as Wentz, who got little help from his running game, has excelled against the blitz this season.

Just think how ugly this game would have been for the highly-penalized Eagles if they didn’t score twice on defense and special teams. Philadelphia has a brutal schedule the rest of the way and their window in this division is closing quickly, while Washington could make some noise going forward.

Lastly, the Cowboys had a very difficult matchup traveling to Green Bay. It was a much-publicized “Unstoppable Force vs. Immovable Object” battle between Dallas’ rushing attack and the Packers’ run defense in a game that featured the NFL’s top two offensive lines.

The Cowboys didn’t have Dez Bryant in this game and the Packers were without their top two cornerbacks. The vastly underrated Dallas secondary did a very good job in man coverage against an uneven Packers’ passing game.

Aaron Rodgers no longer deserves a pass and isn’t playing close to the otherworldly level that he once was. And before long, it was pretty clear that Dallas’ running game won the featured matchup and continued to exploit this as the game went on.

Rodgers also had crucial turnovers that they just couldn’t overcome against a superior opponent. Dallas is in the drivers seat in the NFC East and sent a message to the rest of the league with this performance.