The Cardinals suffered one of the biggest letdowns of Week 5 with their late, error-filled collapse against the Titans.
The Bills’ loss to the Patriots robbed them of the title of the NFL’s last unbeaten team standing – and it could prove even costlier in the playoff race.
The Broncos notched a major win with a fourth-quarter surge on the road against the Eagles.
As temperatures dip as the calendar flips to October, Week 5 in the NFL saw a number of teams lose their cool.
On Sunday alone, five teams had double-digit leads give way to eventual losses. The day also featured the NFL’s only two remaining undefeated teams – the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles – being dealt their first blemishes, while several struggling franchises – including the Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens – suffered their most deflating defeats yet. Throughout the league, the time for excuses is up as the march toward midseason begins.
Here are the biggest winners and losers from Week 5 in the NFL:
NFL Week 5 winners
New England Patriots
Mike Vrabel’s first impression as the Patriots coach left many feeling a little empty, as the Patriots stumbled to a 1-2 mark with mistake-riddled setbacks against the Las Vegas Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers. Yet a 23-20 breakthrough against the Bills gave reason to believe that the many imported pieces are coming together. An uncharacteristicly sloppy outing from Sean McDermott’s crew provided a massive opportunity for New England, which failed to fully capitalize on the errors in the early going. But the defense did its part to keep Josh Allen (22-of-31 passing for 253 yards) in check while also bottling up James Cook (49 yards on 15 carries), and Drake Maye did superlative work to fuel Stefon Diggs’ revenge game effort. Now standing at 3-2 after their first back-to-back wins since 2022 with their next three games coming against three one-win teams, the Patriots are shaping up to be serious threat for the wild-card mix.
1972 Miami Dolphins
With the Bills going down in ‘Sunday Night Football’ after the Eagles met the same fate, the wait for the league’s last undefeated team to slip up is already over. Not since 2014 have the members of that legendary Dolphins team been able to pop the champagne this early. At least someone in the South Florida world has cause to celebrate.
Denver Broncos
Sean Payton’s plan is starting to come to fruition. While Bo Nix and Denver’s offense had some rough patches that led many to question whether the unit really was in line for a substantial leap in Year 2 of the quarterback’s reign, Sunday’s 21-17 road win over the Philadelphia Eagles showed what’s possible when all of the new elements are properly incorporated into the attack. Though Nix looked stumped by Vic Fangio’s defense for the bulk of the day, J.K. Dobbins’ work to help the ground game get going late helped rev up the entire operation. Nix then found more success attacking downfield, and tight end Evan Engram finally made a difference with his touchdown catch that preceded the go-ahead two-point conversion. Philadelphia has shown itself exceedingly difficult to best in these close contests, so Payton managing to pull this off stands as a major validation of what he’s building in Denver.
Jonathan Taylor
His early season performance has been somewhat overshadowed by backfield mate Daniel Jones’ resurgence. Still, the Indianapolis Colts running back is on a roll, piling up three more rushing scores in a 40-6 romp against the Raiders. That was his second outing of 2025 with three scores on the ground; no other player in the NFL has one such performance. At a time when few backs can truly be called stars, Taylor is putting himself in a league of his own among all ball carriers. And with fewer than 20 carries for the fourth time this season, he’s boosting the offense without having to shoulder a disproportionate load that could weigh him down later in the campaign.
Kellen Moore
The New Orleans Saints didn’t look as hapless as the NFL’s other winless teams through the first four weeks of the season. Now, the standings finally reflect that dynamic. With a 26-14 victory over the New York Giants, Moore notched his first win as a head coach and broke a losing skid that reached back to Week 14 of last season. The Saints neutralized the Giants’ imposing pass rush by largely emphasizing a quick passing game, though Spencer Rattler did manage to connect with Rashid Shaheed on a deep heave that went for an 87-yard touchdown. New Orleans hasn’t had much to build on at the beginning of the ongoing reset, but this at least gives the team some proof of concept moving forward.
Rico Dowdle
The spotlight has largely eluded the fifth-year running back, who even flew under the radar in 2024 while posting a 1,079-yard season as the Dallas Cowboys’ starter. But with lead back Chuba Hubbard ruled out with a calf injury Sunday, Dowdle delivered a career day with 206 rushing yards and a touchdown in the Carolina Panthers’ 27-24 win over the Miami Dolphins. His ground output was the highest for any player so far this season and fell just short of DeAngelo Williams’ franchise record of 210 yards, a mark Dowdle said he would have topped if not for calf cramps that sidelined him late. His performance seemed to help stabilize the offense after two early turnovers from Bryce Young, with the defense also buckling down late. After an offseason in which he signed a one-year, $2.75 million deal in a tepid free agency market, the South Carolina native already seems to have paid off for his home team in a major way. And any fantasy owners who had the foresight and conviction to start Dowdle should enjoy their well-earned victories this week.
Eric Collins
In his first NFL broadcast for Fox, the play-by-play announcer for the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets quickly proved himself up to the task of elevating a Dolphins-Panthers game that otherwise might have been reduced to Red Zone background noise for many. Collins quickly built an overwhelmingly positive buzz on social media for his emphatic calls, which captured the unexpected entertainment value of the early window matchup. Given his background, it probably should come as little surprise that he’s adept at bringing some genuine fun to a market that has been short on it in recent years.
An elite uniform matchup – and Week 5’s best game
After a September slate replete with meetings between leading contenders, the NFL opened October with a set of games that seemed like a serious step down from previous weeks. The Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers faced off in what appeared to be the possible highlight of the afternoon. Sartorially speaking, the two teams were on another level with their respective throwbacks. But the game also ended up being the most appealing on-field product of the weekend, with the Buccaneers coming out just barely ahead in the 38-35 shootout. Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold engineered a historic duel, as no previous game has ever featured two quarterbacks throwing for more than 325 yards while completing more than 80% of their passes. It was a needed break from a run of games that otherwise featured a good deal of sloppiness.
Jordan Addison
Maybe people are taking Justin Jefferson’s greatness for granted, as the two-time All-Pro wideout repeatedly propped up the Minnesota Vikings’ wounded offense on Sunday. But it was Addison who stepped up late in a 21-17 win in London, catching the game-winning 12-yard score and snaring two more grabs on the final drive. That’s quite the way to salvage a game in which the third-year receiver was held out for the first quarter due to a missed walkthrough earlier in the week. After serving a three-game suspension stemming from a 2024 DUI citation, Addison has already made a sizable mark on a wobbly offense. But Jefferson saying postgame that he ‘had words’ with Addison clearly indicates that more is expected of the former first-rounder.
NFL Week 5 losers
Arizona Cardinals’ composure
Facing expectations of a third-year breakout under Jonathan Gannon, the Cardinals couldn’t seem to get out of their own way in the first month of the season, going 2-2 despite a favorable setup. But a new low for the coaching staff arrived Sunday, when two critical fourth-quarter errors by Arizona allowed the previously winless Tennessee Titans to mount a stunning rally for a 22-21 victory. The game swung on a massive blunder by running back Emari Demercado, who slowed down after a 71-yard run and then let go of the ball before crossing the goal line, erasing a touchdown that would have nearly iced the contest. A Titans offense that had managed just two field goals in the previous three quarters went 80 yards in six plays for a touchdown on the ensuing drive after the touchback, cutting the deficit to 21-12. Tennessee’s hopes appeared dashed when Cam Ward threw an interception with under five minutes remaining, but Dadrian Taylor-Demerson’s fumble was recovered in the end zone by Titans wide receiver Tyler Lockett for a truly bizarre touchdown. After an Arizona punt, Tennessee then set itself up for the game-winning field goal with an impressive 38-yard connection between Ward and Calvin Ridley. Between poor decision-making and outright blunders, this might have established a new standard for ugly losses in 2025. And with the Colts and Green Bay Packers up next before the bye, the Cardinals could find themselves needing to make up ground in a hurry if they don’t clean up the operation.
Buffalo Bills
If you dress like a different team, you might end up playing like one, too. Decked out in their icy ‘Rivalries’ uniforms, the Bills certainly didn’t resemble their usual selves with three turnovers and 11 penalties. That identity crisis proved substantially costly, with the Patriots mustering enough to prevent Buffalo from turning the AFC East race into a stroll before Halloween hits. But the real toll could eventually be felt in the push for the conference’s No. 1 seed, as Buffalo squandered a chance to maintain some distance at a time when the Kansas City Chiefs appear to be finding their form once again.
Baltimore Ravens
The skeleton crew that the Ravens trotted out Sunday more closely resembles the kind of lineup one might see in an irrelevant Week 17 game than an early October tilt. What, then, could be expected from a group that started five rookies on defense? A nightmare start to the season dragged on with the Houston Texans’ 44-10 rout. The Texans’ previously floundering offense coasted, with C.J. Stroud racking up four touchdowns through the air. Another nearly came via the ground when Stroud, who last week said he felt as though he had lost a step as a runner from his high school days, pulled away from nearly all comers on a season-long 30-yard scramble. A franchise that once set the bar for defensive excellence now finds itself as the only outfit in the Super Bowl era that has given up 37 or more points in four of its first five games. On the other side, Cooper Rush didn’t give hope for any notion of a shootout, throwing three interceptions on the day. John Harbaugh is trying to stay the course, saying after the game that he’s sticking with defensive coordinator Zach Orr. But with a showdown against the Los Angeles Rams looming before the bye, the Ravens are facing a rapidly increasing likelihood of this becoming a lost season.
Eagles’ offensive consistency problems
When Saquon Barkley broke his longest rush (17 yards) of the season early against the Broncos, it seemed that Philadelphia might finally be set for a breakthrough that many hoped had been bubbling for weeks. With a heavy dose of RPOs opening up the run game and putting Philadelphia in more favorable spots on early downs, the long-awaited deep shots – including a 52-yarder to DeVonta Smith and 47-yard score to Saquon Barkley – finally materialized. But the Eagles once again saw everything come to a screeching halt. The next four drives produced a grand total of 3 net yards as Denver pushed ahead. And when forced into an obvious passing situation on the final drive, Philadelphia’s offense was unable to pose a serious threat. The first loss of the season shouldn’t be cause for outright panic, but the consternation regarding what’s preventing this unit from achieving any semblance of sustained success will live on for at least another week.
Aaron Glenn
On Sunday, Glenn took his place as the only Jets coach to start 0-5 in his first year with the team. Yet even more discouraging than the results themselves has been the manner in which Gang Green continues to plunge to new depths. Miscues remain plentiful, as New York’s defense had 13 missed tackles in the first half alone, according to Next Gen Stats. The team also became the first to go winless and without a single takeaway through the first five weeks of the season. Meanwhile, New York’s offense was largely rudderless, scoring just six points until the game was in hand in the fourth quarter. This season always seemed bound to entail a good deal of pain up front, but the sloppiness that has become the hallmark of the new regime’s inaugural group might demand significant action from Glenn, though the coach already brushed off the notion of taking defensive play-calling duties away from coordinator Steve Wilks.
Jaxson Dart’s encore
With a win in the rookie quarterback’s starting debut to be followed by a meet-up with the 0-4 Saints, the Giants seemed to have plenty going for them in helping Dart settle in. That optimism seemed justified early against New Orleans, with a pair of first-half touchdown passes to tight end Theo Johnson and a series of runs showcasing the new elements the No. 25 overall pick brings to the offense. But everything came unspooled shortly thereafter. The Giants turned the ball over on five consecutive drives, including a fourth-quarter fumble that Saints safety Jordan Howden returned 86 yards for a touchdown. Dart took responsibility after the game in a move that highlighted his maturity, but the outcome underscored that the Giants’ faulty build likely can’t yield the nearly flawless conditions required for the offense to succeed in its current form.
Raiders
It would be easy to pin all of the Giants’ problems on Geno Smith, who threw two more interceptions to extend his league-leading total to 9. But there’s no way to process a 40-6 defeat as anything other than an all-around failure. Visions of Smith and Pete Carroll restoring the franchise to respectability in short order are fading fast, with special teams problems and third-down defense woes – Indianapolis converted eight of 10 attempts – continuing to pile up. Said Carroll after the game: ‘I’m just kind of waiting for that moment where we kick it in, we have the answers, we make the right choices, we make the right plays, the right calls.’ It’s shaping up to be quite the wait.
Los Angeles Chargers’ early season success
When it comes to safeguarding Justin Herbert, the Bolts have been in full-on crisis mode for the past two weeks. That trend continued Sunday, when the Washington Commanders put together a 27-10 win thanks in large part to a persistent pass rush. Herbert took four sacks and was hit nine times while finishing with a season-low 166 yards passing. And for the second consecutive week, a Chargers team that opened the year in fine form was off in a variety of ways, from two turnovers to basic procedural problems. It was only two weeks ago that Los Angeles seemed poised to pad its early lead in the AFC West and gain some separation from the Chiefs. But a win by Kansas City on Monday against the Jacksonville Jaguars will create a three-way tie atop the division, leaving the distinct sense that the Chargers squandered their promising start.