Monday’s Quick Hitters (Week 9)
November 3, 2025
Ravens vs. Dolphins
Ravens got Lamar Jackson back and he immediately revived their season by throwing for 4 touchdowns and blowing out the Miami Dolphins on TNF. The team improved to 3-5 and would’ve gained more ground had the Steelers lost, but they’ll be chasing Pittsburgh a little bit longer. Jackson spread the ball around to his receiving group and looked healthy once again. Baltimore’s defense had Tua seeing ghosts all night, throwing incompletions and forcing bad reads. As a result, Miami fired their longtime GM Chris Grier and has begun taking calls ahead of the trade deadline for some of their valuable players. The main take away in this is that the Ravens look legit once again and may have a shot at taking a run should they remain healthy.
Steelers vs. Colts
Speaking of Pittsburgh, they seemed primed to take the loss when they matched up against the number 1 seeded Indianapolis Colts. The Steelers defense has been bleeding points and ranked last in many important categories, despite being the most costly defense in the NFL. Right when you thought you were figuring things out in week 9, the Steelers flipped the script and completely dominated the Colts. MVP candidate Daniel Jones threw three interceptions and looked downright silly as if he were back in New York. Star running back Jonathan Taylor who seems to score three touchdowns a week didn’t score at all and was held to under 50 yards. If this Steeler defense can get right and match what the offense has been producing, the Ravens will have a tough time closing that gap in the AFC North.
Vikings vs. Lions
It was a Michigan reunion when JJ McCarthy of the Vikings took on Aidan Hutchinson of the Lions in their first matchup as professionals. The Vikings and Lions have been in a few tight battles the last few years, but Minnesota got the best of Detroit in this one. Despite low passing yardage, JJ found a way to throw two touchdowns through the air and got another one on the ground. McCarthy has spent much of his first two years in the league on the injured list, but if he’s truly healthy, we might get to start seeing more of what made the Vikings staff believe in him so strongly that made them confident in letting Daniel Jones and Sam Darnold go. The Viking defense shut down the running game of the Lions (Gibbs 2.8 YPC, Montgomery 3.6 YPC) and got them off of what makes them comfortable. Minnesota is now 4-4 and right back in the race for the NFC North.
Bills vs. Chiefs
Bills take care of the Chiefs! Buffalo had their fans a little worried when they dropped two in a row to New England and Atlanta, but they’ve been taking care of business since then with their latest victory coming over AFC rival Kansas City. We saw the offense continue what they had started against Carolina the week before in the week 8 blowout and kept it going in week 9. Josh Allen found his tight end Dalton Kincaid early and often and James Cook ATE on the ground with another 100 yard performance. Most importantly, the defense was all over Patrick Mahomes with pressures and holding him to a sub 50% completion percentage. It was a 28-21 victory, but it felt much larger than that. It was the all around team performance that you’d want to see against a quality opponent like Kansas City.
Bengals vs. Bears
You’re telling me the Bengals scored, recovered an onside kick, scored again and STILL lost? Yep! Joe Flacco threw for nearly 500 yards while tossing 4 scores and still fell to 3-6. It’s unfortunate too, because he is playing outside of his mind and truly deserves better than what the Bengals are giving him in return right now. The vibes haven’t been great the last few weeks in Cincy with a couple players requesting trades and now things seem worse with players like Chase Brown and Ja’Marr Chase essentially taking shots at their own defense in post game pressers. Yikes, but can you blame them? If you score 42 points, odds are pretty good that you’ll come away with the win. That just isn’t the case with this team. They’re a roster built with many flaws and no quarterback can fix it. As it is, they had no business being in this one and were dominated by the Bears. Flacco somehow pulled some magic and still couldn’t get a stop from his defense. If you’re interested in more, check out our game recap. I don’t have enough space to vent here!
Keith, Author
Keith runs youth flag football leagues by day, and by night he hosts the podcast and writes articles with the confidence of a man who’s been rushing quarterbacks since dial-up. A longtime flag football DE and lifelong Falcons fan, he’s no stranger to heartbreak and enjoys watching the bears get slaughtered each week. Equal parts coach, critic, and chaos, Keith calls it like he sees it… even if it hurts.
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