NFL Week 9 overreactions: Broncos exposed?

But their failures in Sunday’s loss to Indianapolis shouldn’t be a reason to believe what the Broncos defense did over their first seven games was a fluke. The talent is certainly there, but what’s missing now is discipline.

That lack of discipline reached a critical point late Sunday, with two personal fouls by cornerback Aqib Talib, including an inexcusable eye-gouge on tight end Dwayne Allen. But aggressive penalties have been as issue for weeks for Denver's defense. They were something that coaches would grumble about and players would say they needed to fix, but those changes are harder to make while a team is winning.

This loss should be humbling, and a lesson for a talented but sometimes reckless defense that must now realize that it’s not good enough to play stupid.

Cam Newton will win MVP

After leading the Carolina Panthers to their eighth win on Sunday, with a four-touchdown day against the Green Bay Packers (three passing, one rushing), Newton certainly deserves at least consideration for the league’s premier individual award.

But the problem for Newton in chasing traditional MVP favorites, such as New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, is that the award is largely stat-driven. And even though he’s capable of big statistical days like he had Sunday, Newton currently ranks No. 22 in passing yards, and is 11th in touchdown passes with 14.

So Newton’s candidacy will hinge on what the V in MVP really means. If it’s truly about value to a team, it’s hard to argue that any one quarterback has been more important, especially considering the dearth of talent around him. His wins so far have been impressive – leading a comeback on the road against the Seattle Seahawks, and then holding off Aaron Rodgers and the Packers at home – but will that be enough to convince old school voters to give him a legitimate shot?

The Buffalo Bills will win a wild-card spot

The bye week sure did seem to do the Bills good, and they looked far more competent on Sunday in their seemingly easy win against the Miami Dolphins. And at 4-4, the Bills seem to be in as good a spot as anyone to claim one of the two wild card spots in the muddled AFC.

But the Bills have work to do in the standings to get there, starting with a crucial game on Thursday against the New York Jets in Rex Ryan’s return to MetLife Stadium.

That game will surely be an emotional one for Ryan, but it’s just one game in a brutal stretch that will truly test the Bills’ playoff credentials, with five of six games on the road, including Week 11 at the Patriots.

The Dallas Cowboys should rush Tony Romo back

The Cowboys have yet to win a game since Tony Romo was placed on the short-term injured reserve list, and after a sixth consecutive loss on Sunday night, this time in overtime to the Philadelphia Eagles, the Cowboys appear to be all but done in the NFC East, because no 2-6 team has ever made the playoffs.

So even though Romo has begun some light throwing in practice, is it really worth getting him back into the starting lineup as soon as possible?

There is little question the Cowboys are a better team with Romo than with either backup quarterback, Matt Cassel or Brandon Weeden. But just how much better? The running game and defense clearly have deficiencies, and those are crucial areas that the Cowboys need to focus on before they can even think about Romo leading some sort of historic playoff push after Thanksgiving.

Want to fix your team? Fire a coach

The Colts and Titans might be proof that change can be good – with both teams winning on Sunday in their first games after making a major coaching move.

For the Colts, that was firing offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton and replacing him with former Cleveland Browns head coach Rob Chudzinski. The result was the best game Andrew Luck has played all season in a win against the Broncos.

For the Titans, it was firing head coach and play caller Ken Whisenhunt last week, five days before Sunday’s game in New Orleans that they won in overtime. Quarterback Marcus Mariota was not sacked and did not commit a turnover in that game, which is the recipe for success for any quarterback, let alone a rookie who so needed a boost.

But time will tell if these coaching moves will have a lasting effect, or if the changes we saw Sunday were just a temporary fix. That’s certainly a lesson to take from the Dolphins, who won the first two games after firing head coach Joe Philbin but have struggled in the two weeks since.