🔗 Share this article

The tenth week again delivered, with a huge upset for the Bills proving the 'any Sunday can bring surprises' saying that attracts so many fans into the National Football League

That result may have opened things up for the Patriots to move back into a leading position they formerly held, with a schedule that provides them an edge over their 8-2 rivals

Meanwhile in the NFC the Seahawks and Rams had perfect results to set up a major confrontation in week 11, while our top performer is chasing records as well as the MVP award

The Breakdown - Simply an Off Day for Buffalo?

Was it just an emotional comedown from beating the Chiefs the previous week or a deeper issue? This remains the question for the Buffalo team to answer

The Buffalo squad had won seven 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 outcome - and display

MVP Josh Allen only got the team's opening first down in the third period and initial scoring in the fourth - admittedly Miami had ten days to prepare but it was nonetheless a significant failure produced by one of the NFL's top offences

Dolphins quarterback Tua passed for two touchdowns but running back Achane was the game-changing factor, with 225 combined yards and two scores

Bottling up the league's best rushing attack was also key, with James Cook and company registering just 86 yards, their lowest of the season and slightly more than half their 161.5-yard average

Additionally there were the three critical ball losses, and the two from Josh Allen in particular. An pass caught by defense in the end zone resulting in a nine minute drive yielded no points, and his fourth-quarter dropped ball that the Dolphins converted to a touchdown just later

It was typical 'old Buffalo' as they hurt themselves in the foot, falling into a hole on defensive side and Josh Allen attempting to overcompensate to dig his team out of it - rather than the calm, disciplined, well-balanced Buffalo team we've seen this year

The Dolphins have served up a bit of everything this season so the verdict is uncertain on if this is the start of something, but for the Bills they'll need an instant response in a difficult matchup against Tampa Bay next week as the Patriots are quietly moving into a comfortable advantage at the summit of the AFC East

In Focus - Patriots Identify Route to Unexpected First Place

Regarding the New England, they're among three different eight and two teams in the NFL, all American Football Conference sides, but are they the best?

You can pick holes in the Patriots, the Broncos and the Colts really for dominating the lesser sides, with just five of their total twenty-four wins achieved against teams with a winning record - and one of those was the Colts defeating the Broncos

The Broncos beat the champion Eagles in Philly and are masters of the fourth-quarter while Indianapolis can ride Taylor, but the Patriots adding Sunday's victory in Tampa Bay to their primtime win in Orchard Park seems like a declaration

Their two defeats came in recently appointed coach Mike Vrabel's initial three games, with seven consecutive victories, just like the Broncos, since then - but defeating Mayfield after the Buccaneers had a bye to get ready was significant

Drake Maye's MVP claims continue to be discussed, and he definitely earns credit for courage after taking some hard tackles in Tampa but hanging in there to steer his side to victory

The defensive unit is reliable and first-year rusher Henderson exploded on game day with 147 rushing yards and two exciting scores of fifty-five and sixty-nine yards - becoming just the fifth ball carrier to exceed 22 miles per hour this season on his first score

Although you can argue who 'the best' is statistically, the Patriots should be favourites to end with the best record thanks to their schedule - which includes just one game against a successful opponent, although a significant contest against the Bills

Traveling to the Ravens is also tough, but Denver have it even tougher in the AFC West division with the Chiefs to face two times, the Chargers (who could also compete for first place but face the same problem) and additionally the Green Bay on the schedule

The Colts also play the Kansas City, and have the Seahawks, San Francisco and two matchups with the five and four Jacksonville to face. There's a long way to travel but the door is open for a surprise top seed in the American Football Conference

Coming Up - Rams & Seahawks Set for Next Week Showdown

Two teams with strong arguments to be better than all of the three 8-2 sides are NFC West rivals the Seattle and Rams, who each put up forty points to go to 7-2 before the upcoming major game between the pair in LA

Both have secured four victories in a row, have signal callers in Matthew Stafford and Sam Darnold playing at an high standard (although Darnold had ball security problems on game day) with top receivers, and defensive units giving up fewer than twenty points a contest

Each could easily be undefeated as too - particularly the Rams as their pair of losses came in overtime against the San Francisco and then that painful defeat in Philadelphia when they had a potentially winning kick with the last kick blocked and run back by the Philadelphia for a score

The Seahawks were also defeated to San Francisco, with a late touchdown in the opening week, before falling to the last kick of the contest against the Buccaneers - so they're genuinely two of the top teams in the NFL

The next matchup on Sunday could be the best of the year so far

Top Performer - Jonathan Taylor

Taylor could be on for a historic year after his incredible display in Berlin - running for 244 rushing yards, scoring three touchdowns and adding an additional 42 {receiving yards