NFL Week 7 aftershocks: Is Packers’ Jordan Love a flop?

Another slate of NFL games delivered another round of nail-biting finishes and improbable upsets. Here’s a look at four aftershocks from Week 7:

QB Josh Allen needs help

Despite earning the reputation as a one-man show due to his freakish athleticism, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen needs help from his teammates.

The Bills (4-3) suffered a gut-wrenching 29-25 loss to the New England Patriots, marking their second in-division defeat and third overall of the season. While many will criticize Allen for Buffalo’s underwhelming start through seven weeks, there’s enough blame to go around. 

Allen and the offense got off to a slow start Sunday, continuing a recent trend that’s placed the Bills in early holes. Buffalo has been outscored 24-0 in the first quarter dating to an Oct. 8 game against Jacksonville and is averaging just 5.7 points over the first three quarters of their past three games.

With the team often playing from behind, the Bills have frequently abandoned the run and asked Allen to take over games. Against the Patriots, Buffalo attempted 41 passes compared to 24 rushes — seven of which were by the quarterback. On the 17 carries by running backs, only 64 yards were gained.

For the Bills to win down the stretch, Allen must get more assistance.

Jordan Love is not the next great Packers quarterback

Following the offseason departure of Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay (2-4) hoped Love would follow in the four-time MVP’s footsteps as the next great Packers QB. The early results aren’t promising.

Love began the season strongly, throwing six touchdowns compared to zero interceptions in his first two starts. The 24-year-old has not fared as well in recent games, tossing four touchdowns and seven interceptions in his past four games.

Sunday’s matchup versus the Broncos appeared to be the perfect opportunity for Love to have a rebound game, with Denver surrendering the most points (33.3) and yards (440.3) per game entering play. Instead, Love completed 21-of-31 pass attempts for 180 yards and threw a late interception to seal the 19-17 loss. It’s the fourth straight game he has been intercepted, the longest streak by a Packers starting quarterback since Matt Flynn in 2013. 

The Commanders, Sam Howell are bad under pressure

Commanders quarterback Sam Howell could use some ice after the beating he took against the New York Giants. The 23-year-old was sacked six times, increasing his league-leading total to 40 sacks. 

New York took full advantage of Washington’s poor offensive line, blitzing on 29 of 49 (59.2%) dropbacks. Howell deserves blame, too. He often held on to the football too long — a tendency that’s led to him being sacked on 34.8% of his pressures this season.

Howell is on track to be sacked 97 times over 17 games, shattering the season record of 76, set by Houston’s David Carr in 2002.

Lamar Jackson is MVP front-runner 

Jackson made a strong case for winning a second MVP Award with a dismantling of the first-place Lions, 38-6. The Ravens quarterback completed 21-of-27 pass attempts for 357 yards and threw three touchdowns. He also ran nine times for 36 yards and a touchdown.

Over his first seven games, Jackson — the 2019 NFL MVP — has completed 71% of his passes, second to only Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa (71.2%). The 26-year-old is on pace to throw for more than 3,800 yards and rush for an additional 800 this season — an achievement only one other player in NFL history has accomplished (Arizona’s Kyler Murray in 2020).