Eagles, Patriots Record Impressive Home Wins
The Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots are currently many NFL experts' prediction for Super Bowl 52 in Minneapolis come February, and both teams showed why on Sunday. First, Carson Wentz threw for 227 yards and three touchdowns in the Eagles' 31-3 rout of the Chicago Bears. The Eagles now hold the NFL's best record at 10-1, as they have won nine in a row, including three straight by exactly 28 points each, and four in a row by at least 23 points. Wentz exited the game late, as Nick Foles took over with the game out of reach for Chicago, who dropped to 3-8 on the year. Zach Ertz was Wentz's favorite target of the day, as he caught 10 passes for 103 yards and a touchdown. The Eagles moved their magic number to clinch the NFC East Division to one, and that can be done if the Washington Redskins beat the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night. Meanwhile, the Patriots got a similar quarterback effort from Tom Brady on their home field. The soon to be Hall of Famer threw for 227 yards and four touchdowns in the Pats' 35-17 win over the Miami Dolphins. The win is the Pats' sixth in a row, as they also handed Miami their fifth straight loss, which is their longest skid since 2011. Brady now ranks third all time with 28 career games with four or more touchdown passes, and he now has 26 of them this season, which is the most by a quarterback 40 years or older. Rex Burkhead also found the end zone twice, while Dion Lewis had 112 yards on 15 carries in the Pats' ninth win of the year. Two of Brady's touchdown passes went to Rob Gronkowkski, which gives the tight end 16 career multi-touchdown games, which sets a franchise record. The way these two teams performed on Sunday, there is not much of a case against this Super Bowl matchup.
Rams Top Saints to Snap Win Streak
The Los Angeles Rams' win streak came to an end last week, but that didn't slow them down in their showdown with the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. Instead, they returned the favor to the Saints by snapping their eight-game win streak with a 26-20 victory in Los Angeles. Jared Goff threw for 354 yards and two touchdowns, as the Rams never trailed in a game that they jumped out to a 10-0 lead. Goff found Sammy Watkins and Josh Reynolds in the end zone, as they proved the depth of their offense even without Robert Woods. Despite still being without their top receiver, the Rams finished with 415 total yards and recorded 10 more first downs than New Orleans. Alvin Kamara was pretty much all of the Saints' offense, as he ran for 87 yards and a score, while also catching six passes for 100 yards and a touchdown. That was Brees's only touchdown pass of the game, as he did not turn the ball over while throwing for 246 yards in the Saints' third loss of the year. The Rams improved to 4-2 on their home field, while also moving to 8-3 overall, as they head to Arizona next week to take on the Cardinals. The Saints will take their 8-3 record back home to host the Carolina Panthers, whom they are tied with atop the NFC South.
Duke, Michigan State Earn PK80 Victories
The PK80 tournament came to an end on Sunday night with a couple of top-10 showdowns in Portland, including top-ranked Duke defeating No. 7 Florida, 87-84. The Blue Devils trailed by as many as 17 with 10 minutes left, but got 30 points and 15 rebounds from freshman Marvin Bagley III in the wild comeback win. The Gators trailed by one late, but turned the ball over, which led to two Duke free throws. A wild three-point attempt as time expired was no good for Florida, who suffered their first loss of the year. Jalen Hudson had 24 points and 10 rebounds, while KeVaughn Allen added 17 on the night. Bagley was named the bracket's MVP and now has six double-doubles of the eight games this season, all of which have ended with Duke victories. Meanwhile, the fourth-ranked Michigan State Spartans shut down No. 9 North Carolina earlier in the night for a 63-45 blowout win. It was an unusual night for the defending champs, who shot just 25 percent from the floor, including 1-for-18 from three-point range, which were both the lowest in school history. The Tar Heels' shooting struggles prevented them from capitalizing on the Spartans' 24 turnovers. Joshua Langford led Michigan State with 23 points, including five three-pointers, in the Spartans' victory bracket win. The Spartans' defense led the way in their three games in Portland, as they allowed just 57, 51, and 45 points in their three wins. The Big Ten/ACC Showdown will feature three of these teams this week, including the Tar Heels hosting Michigan, the Spartans battling Notre Dame, and the Blue Devils visiting Indiana. Meanwhile, the Florida Gators will host in-state rival Florida State a week from Monday.
The Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots are currently many NFL experts' prediction for Super Bowl 52 in Minneapolis come February, and both teams showed why on Sunday. First, Carson Wentz threw for 227 yards and three touchdowns in the Eagles' 31-3 rout of the Chicago Bears. The Eagles now hold the NFL's best record at 10-1, as they have won nine in a row, including three straight by exactly 28 points each, and four in a row by at least 23 points. Wentz exited the game late, as Nick Foles took over with the game out of reach for Chicago, who dropped to 3-8 on the year. Zach Ertz was Wentz's favorite target of the day, as he caught 10 passes for 103 yards and a touchdown. The Eagles moved their magic number to clinch the NFC East Division to one, and that can be done if the Washington Redskins beat the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night. Meanwhile, the Patriots got a similar quarterback effort from Tom Brady on their home field. The soon to be Hall of Famer threw for 227 yards and four touchdowns in the Pats' 35-17 win over the Miami Dolphins. The win is the Pats' sixth in a row, as they also handed Miami their fifth straight loss, which is their longest skid since 2011. Brady now ranks third all time with 28 career games with four or more touchdown passes, and he now has 26 of them this season, which is the most by a quarterback 40 years or older. Rex Burkhead also found the end zone twice, while Dion Lewis had 112 yards on 15 carries in the Pats' ninth win of the year. Two of Brady's touchdown passes went to Rob Gronkowkski, which gives the tight end 16 career multi-touchdown games, which sets a franchise record. The way these two teams performed on Sunday, there is not much of a case against this Super Bowl matchup.
Rams Top Saints to Snap Win Streak
The Los Angeles Rams' win streak came to an end last week, but that didn't slow them down in their showdown with the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. Instead, they returned the favor to the Saints by snapping their eight-game win streak with a 26-20 victory in Los Angeles. Jared Goff threw for 354 yards and two touchdowns, as the Rams never trailed in a game that they jumped out to a 10-0 lead. Goff found Sammy Watkins and Josh Reynolds in the end zone, as they proved the depth of their offense even without Robert Woods. Despite still being without their top receiver, the Rams finished with 415 total yards and recorded 10 more first downs than New Orleans. Alvin Kamara was pretty much all of the Saints' offense, as he ran for 87 yards and a score, while also catching six passes for 100 yards and a touchdown. That was Brees's only touchdown pass of the game, as he did not turn the ball over while throwing for 246 yards in the Saints' third loss of the year. The Rams improved to 4-2 on their home field, while also moving to 8-3 overall, as they head to Arizona next week to take on the Cardinals. The Saints will take their 8-3 record back home to host the Carolina Panthers, whom they are tied with atop the NFC South.
Duke, Michigan State Earn PK80 Victories
The PK80 tournament came to an end on Sunday night with a couple of top-10 showdowns in Portland, including top-ranked Duke defeating No. 7 Florida, 87-84. The Blue Devils trailed by as many as 17 with 10 minutes left, but got 30 points and 15 rebounds from freshman Marvin Bagley III in the wild comeback win. The Gators trailed by one late, but turned the ball over, which led to two Duke free throws. A wild three-point attempt as time expired was no good for Florida, who suffered their first loss of the year. Jalen Hudson had 24 points and 10 rebounds, while KeVaughn Allen added 17 on the night. Bagley was named the bracket's MVP and now has six double-doubles of the eight games this season, all of which have ended with Duke victories. Meanwhile, the fourth-ranked Michigan State Spartans shut down No. 9 North Carolina earlier in the night for a 63-45 blowout win. It was an unusual night for the defending champs, who shot just 25 percent from the floor, including 1-for-18 from three-point range, which were both the lowest in school history. The Tar Heels' shooting struggles prevented them from capitalizing on the Spartans' 24 turnovers. Joshua Langford led Michigan State with 23 points, including five three-pointers, in the Spartans' victory bracket win. The Spartans' defense led the way in their three games in Portland, as they allowed just 57, 51, and 45 points in their three wins. The Big Ten/ACC Showdown will feature three of these teams this week, including the Tar Heels hosting Michigan, the Spartans battling Notre Dame, and the Blue Devils visiting Indiana. Meanwhile, the Florida Gators will host in-state rival Florida State a week from Monday.
