As a reminder to all, knee-jerk reactions are strictly how I felt following a game/s. These are not meant to be taken as predictions, hot takes, or any variations of the sort.
Now, let's go over our knee-jerk reactions following Week 9, starting with the biggest one - Flacco and the Bengals.
Flacco's career day
Flacco not only had his first 400-yard game of his 18-year NFL career, but his 470 yards were the most ever thrown by a QB who is at least 40 years old. Never mind his four touchdown passes and what could've been a game-winning drive during Sunday's loss to the Chicago Bears.
But what's the real knee-jerk reaction is whether or not Joe Burrow is a product of the system in Cincinnati.
Flacco, prior to being traded to the Bengals, was at the bottom of the league in almost every single statistic as the starting QB for the Cleveland Browns.
Now, since being traded, he's been putting up MVP numbers - and this week's came when he was throwing on a bum shoulder. Not to say he's in the MVP conversation, he's not. But if the league were to hold the award ceremony for just these past three weeks, Flacco would undoubtedly be considered.
So what does that necessarily say about Burrow?
Let's be honest, if Burrow threw for 470 yards and four touchdowns, disregarding the two interceptions, NFL media would be singing his praises right now, and how it's another season of having Burrow carrying the Bengals as far as anyone can.
Flacco's 3.89% sack percentage is lower than Burrow's 12.20% this season - same offensive line and weapons. The lowest it's ever been for Burrow was 6.17% in 2023.
So why not for Flacco?
Since joining the Bengals, Flacco has put up 1,035 passing yards, nine touchdowns, and two interceptions in three games with the Bengals.
Cinci's 113 points over the past three weeks under Flacco are the most in the NFL of any team's last three games - no other team has more than 100. The Colts are closest with 96.
Sure, you can take away seven points after Charlie Brown returned a kick for a touchdown on Sunday.
But the Bengals' offence would still be the league-leader in points of any team's past three games regardless.
Not saying Burrow isn't a great quarterback in his own right. But for a 40-year-old Flacco, to look like he was getting ready to be kicked into the retirement home in Cleveland, has now all of a sudden become one of the most electric quarterbacks in the NFL.
Does this warrant more of a discussion about how good Burrow really is?
Well, if Flacco continues to put the Bengals in position for sure-fire wins, despite their 32nd-ranked defence blowing such wins, for the rest of the season, then the entire NFL landscape needs to have a tough conversation about Burrow.
"But what about Jake Browning?"
Well, I think it says a lot about Browning if he wasn't able to have even average success in an offence that Flacco has known for less than a month.
This is anybody's league
After nine weeks, there is absolutely not a single clear-cut favourite team to win the Super Bowl right now. None of this season makes sense.
The Green Bay Packers have now been upset by the Cleveland Browns and the Carolina Panthers - the latter at home.
Detroit just lost to a Minnesota Vikings team that just got back QB J.J. McCarthy from injury - also at home.
The NFL's No. 1 offence in the Colts was just held to 20 points and gave up six turnovers to a Steelers team that had given up 68 points in the two weeks beforehand, forcing zero turnovers in those games as well.
New England is 7-2 and currently the No. 2 seed in the AFC. But their opponent's combined record in those games is 27-49.
Sure, they beat the Buffalo Bills. But is anything else on their schedule so far really that impressive? Drake Maye is undoubtedly playing on an MVP level. But they play just two teams with a winning record in their remaining eight games.
Denver's record looks great, but they're barely squeezing by teams - only two wins by more than 10 points, one of those was against a Browning-led Bengals offence.
The Los Angeles Chargers just lost star tackle Joe Alt for the season as Justin Herbert, who is the third-most sacked QB, will now fear for his life for the remainder of the season.
Kansas City was kicked back down to earth against the Bills and now sit at 5-4. And now the Cowboys just lost their first home game of the season to an Arizona Cardinals team led by backup QB Jacoby Brissett.
It goes on and on.
All this proves is that the 2025 NFL season is undoubtedly going to become a true week-to-week league all the way to the very end. There is clearly not a single, outright dominant team among any division of either conference.
