Week 8 was a wild one in the NFL, with Hail Mary passes and tight end performances dominating the headlines.
We're now approaching the halfway mark of the 2024 regular season and things are ramping up accordingly.
Here are a few of the things from the weekend's games that may (or may not) have slid under the radar.
We need more 'National Days' devoted to specific positions
getty
It seems like the NFL fully embraced "National Tight Ends Day" this season, and the TEs around the league obliged in kind.
Originating in 2018 as a show of appreciation from then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo towards George Kittle, the day has blown up into a larger celebration that takes place on the fourth Sunday of October.
That was Week 8 of the 2024 season, and tight ends around the league were on fire this past Sunday as they combined for 16 touchdown receptions off a league-record 177 catches.
It was apropos that the NFL's best-known TE, Chiefs star Travis Kelce, caught his first TD pass of the season on Sunday while Kittle, the originator of the "holiday," scored the final TE touchdown reception on Sunday Night Football.
Could a "National Running Backs Day" be far behind?
Is Russell Wilson back? Maybe
Wilson bet on himself when signing a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the veteran minimum over the offseason, and that bet appears to be paying off.
After being sidelined for the first five weeks of the season, Wilson served as Justin Fields' backup in Week 6 before making his first start a week later against the New York Jets. He was instrumental in Pittsburgh's 37-15 victory on that day, passing for 264 yards — a Steelers record for a QB making his team debut.
Week 8 showed that Wilson's debut was no fluke as he was 20-28 with 278 passing yards and a touchdown in the Steelers' 26-18 victory over the other hapless New York team, the Giants. Wilson's diversity on offense has been a godsend for a Pittsburgh team that may have been a bit too predictable with Fields.
The game's not over until the clock strikes zero
(Getty Images)
The play that everyone's talking about from Week 8 happened in Washington as the visiting Chicago Bears looked like they were finally going to win an away game this season.
Instead, Jayden Daniels connected on a 52-yard Hail Mary pass to Noah Brown in the end zone with no time left on the clock. A big assist has to be given to Bears corner back Tyrique Stevenson, who was seen with his back turned to the play while talking trash to Commanders fans behind the end zone before rushing over towards the group gathered on the opposite side of the field and tipping the thrown ball directly to an awaiting Brown for the game-winning score.
The lesson learned by Stevenson? "The game ain't over until zeros hit the clock. Can't take anything for granted."
Passing yards are overrated
Grant Halverson/Getty Images
Well, not really, but they weren't needed all that much by Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions this weekend as they demolished the visiting Tennessee Titans, 52-14.
Goff threw three TD passes on just 85 passing yards; meanwhile Titans' QB Mason Rudolph racked up 266 yards and had little to show for it other than a single TD and two interceptions.
It's an anomaly for sure, but Detroit has shown that there are many ways to get onto the scoreboard that don't require the QB to throw long bombs on every possession.
Is the Aaron Rodgers experiment in New York a failure?
It's trending that way.
While last season's struggles were hardly Rodgers' fault, his Achilles injury adds context to the Jets' failures during the current campaign. The 40-year-old future Hall-of-Famer often looks like an older quarterback trying to return from a devastating injury, and even when he doesn't it hasn't been enough to pull the Jets from their doldrums.
Rodgers was OK in New York's Week 8 loss to the New England Patriots, recording two touchdown passes on 233 yards, but it's become obvious that "OK" isn't enough to save this Jets team. Rodgers was brought in to rejuvenate the beleaguered franchise, but at 2-6 and losing to the rebuilding Patriots, Week 8 showed that things are still the same for the hapless Jets even with the four-time NFL MVP on the field.
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