• The New England Patriots hosted the Chicago Bears for their game on Monday night. While Mac Jones made his return, starting at quarterback, he was eventually benched in place of backup Bailey Zappe, who’s been playing at quarterback while Jones was injured. On Zappe’s first play, he threw a pass to receiver Jakobi Meyers for a touchdown. Along with that, Zappe scored another touchdown and contributed all fourteen points that the Patriots scored in their blowout loss to the Bears.
• On Friday, the San Francisco 49ers acquired star running back Christian McCaffrey from the Carolina Panthers, where he’s spent his entire career and suffered from a plethora of injuries. This acquisition is another addition to the 49ers powerful team which is filled with many talented players, especially at the offensive skill positions (wide receiver, running back, etc.)
• After getting thumb surgery after week one, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott will return to the field for the first time since his team’s blowout loss to Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in week one. In his first game back, he led his team to a win at home over the Detroit Lions.
• October 23rd was National Tight Ends day, a day to celebrate the swiss-army knife position of tight end. A tight end not only has to be able to run and receive passes like a wide receiver, but also has to be built like a lineman and be able to block like one, too. This position is a difficult one, which deserves its celebratory day. 
• Hot Potato; The Tampa Bay Buccaneers traveled to Charlotte to play against the Carolina Panthers. On the first few drives of the game, there were multiple accurate passes, which were all dropped, including a wide open pass from Bucs’ quarterback Tom Brady to receiver Mike Evans, which would’ve been an easy touchdown had it been caught. This game was a very slow one, with most of the first half happening without either team scoring. Overall, it was a rough game for the Buccaneers, and they lost to the Panthers.
• During the New York Giants’ game in Jacksonville, Giants’ tight end Daniel Bellinger was poked hard in the eye by one of the Jaguars’ defenders, and had to be carted off of the field because his eye was bleeding. 
• Packers’ upset against the Commanders: The Green Bay Packers traveled to Landover, Maryland to play against the Washington Commanders. The game was close, with the Packers always trailing slightly. With only two minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Packers were two points down, meaning that a field goal would give them the win. However, having no timeouts, they were unable to stop the clock, meaning that they lost by two points in a huge upset. Also at this game, Commanders fans were seen with signs that read “sell the team,” and stadium security forced them to take them down. 
• Two turnovers in one minute: On America’s Game of the Week, which was a rematch of Super Bowl 54, the San Francisco 49ers hosted the Kansas City Chiefs. The first half of this game never had one team up by more than 3 points, and when the Chiefs were about to receive possession of the ball, their returner fumbled the ball, and it was recovered by the 49ers twenty yards from their scoring endzone. However, 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garrappolo, a former New England Patriot, threw an interception on the goal-line. With a minute-and-a-half, and no timeouts to work with, the Chiefs had to move fast if they wanted to get any score out of this turnover. As time expired, they attempted a field goal, but it missed the goalposts. The Chiefs began to grow a large lead as the second half went on, and what was supposed to be a very close game ended in a very one-sided fashion. 

Final Scores: 

Note that the following teams were on bye week: the Minnesota Vikings, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Los Angeles Rams, and the Buffalo Bills

• The New England Patriots versus the Chicago Bears (played in New England) – Bears win 33-14
• The Tampa Bay Buccaneers versus the Carolina Panthers (played in Carolina) – Panthers win 21-3
• The New Orleans Saints versus the Arizona Cardinals (played in Arizona) – Cardinals win 42-34
• The Cleveland Browns versus the Baltimore Ravens (played in Baltimore) – Ravens win 23-20
• The Atlanta Falcons versus the Cincinnati Bengals (played in Cincinnati) – Bengals win 35-17
• The Detroit Lions versus the Dallas Cowboys (played in Dallas) – Cowboys win 24-6
• The New York Giants versus the Jacksonville Jaguars (played in Jacksonville) – Giants win 23-17
• The Indianapolis Colts versus the Tennessee Titans (played in Tennessee) – Titans win 19-10
• The Green Bay Packers versus the Washington Commanders (played in Washington, D.C.) – Commanders win 23-21
• The New York Jets versus the Denver Broncos (played in Denver) – Jets win 16-9
• The Houston Texans versus the Las Vegas Raiders (played in Las Vegas) – Raiders win 38-20
• The Seattle Seahawks versus the Los Angeles Chargers (played in Los Angeles) – Seahawks win 37-23
• The Kansas City Chiefs versus the San Francisco 49ers (played in San Francisco) – Chiefs win 44-23
• The Pittsburgh Steelers versus the Miami Dolphins (played in Miami) – Dolphins win 16-10

By Kristina Klausinski ’24, Co-Sports Editor

24kklausinski@montroseschool.org