A+	Vikings
We finally know what the Vikings look like with a competent QB, and it should terrify the rest of the NFL. In his first game with the Vikings, Kirk Cousins wasn't perfect, but he proved that he's a huge upgrade over what Minnesota had at the QB position through the first nine weeks. For one, he threw the ball to Justin Jefferson. The Vikings star had a season-high nine catches for 74 yards on 12 targets from Cousins. The Vikings defense has proven all season that it's one of the best in the NFL, and that unit made a statement here by sacking Jordan Love eight times. With the defense now getting some support on the offensive side of the ball, the Vikings suddenly feel like a very real Super Bowl contender.
F	Packers
If you can't run the ball and you can't protect your quarterback, it's hard to win. The Packers found that out the hard way in this NFC North showdown. With zero run game, it was going to take an epic performance from Jordan Love for Green Bay to win, but he never really got a chance to pull that off because he was under pressure or on his back after being sacked eight times. The Packers have several offensive weaknesses and they were all exploited by the Vikings' defense. In a loaded NFC North, it's hard to see the Packers competing for the division title after this loss.

B-	Texans
The Texans jumped out to a 17-point lead and then absolutely fell apart. C.J. Stroud was nearly perfect in the first half (15 of 19), but his accuracy went out the window as he completed just 26.3% of his passes over the final two quarters. The Texans only totaled 45 yards in the second half, and that opened the door for Cleveland to get back in the game. The Texans' defense got burned by the big play, with Cleveland getting seven plays of 15 yards or more. This was a chance for Houston to get over the hump and back in the playoff race, but instead, the Texans suffered a meltdown that they might not be able to bounce back from.
B+	Browns
Every time you think the Browns are going to run out of fourth-quarter magic, they dig down deep and find some more. Deshaun Watson has been the king of comebacks, and he got revenge on his team by engineering a 49-yard scoring drive in the final two minutes for the game-winning TD. Not many quarterbacks have been more clutch than Watson this year and he was impressive here while leading the Browns in both passing (312 yards) and rushing (49 yards) in the game. Of course, the comeback wouldn't have been possible without a defense that absolutely shut down the Texans in the second half, holding them to under 50 yards of total offense. The Browns are now 4-0 at home for the first time since 1963, and with this win, this team feels like a legitimate playoff contender.

B-	Panthers
With first place in the NFC South on the line, this was a defensive masterpiece by the Panthers. At least for the first three quarters. Devin Lloyd came up with an interception on the fifth play of the game, and the defense continued to make statement after statement with a fumble recovery and a key fourth-down stop. The defense kept things close and that set the stage for Chuba Hubbard to take over the game in the fourth quarter. The Panthers running back totaled 73 yards in the quarter, including 67 on a drive that culminated with a go-ahead touchdown in the final two minutes. Hubbard had 172 total yards and two touchdowns in the game. This was a solid win by a Panthers squad that feels like the most well-rounded team in the NFC South.
B-	Saints
The Saints finally got Travis Etienne back in the lineup, but that didn't give them any sort of spark on offense. The run game was a total disaster in a game where Tyler Shough had more rushing yards (25) than every Saints running back combined (24). The offense was bad for three quarters before Shough finally sparked the unit to life in the fourth quarter. In the end, this team just made too many mistakes. Not only were there two turnovers, but Kool-Aid McKinstry got called for a 30-yard pass interference penalty that set up Carolina's game-winning field goal. The Saints had a chance to take over the NFC South lead here, but they let it slip through their hands.

A-	Bills
Not only did the Bills prove they can win when Josh Allen has an off day, but they can win big. The Bills offense can still function when Allen isn't at his best, and that's mostly because James Cook exists. The running back steamrolled his way through the Jets offense for 157 yards and a TD. DJ Moore also had one of his biggest games since joining the Bills with 90 receiving yards and a TD. But the big credit here goes to a Bills defense that beat up on the hapless Jets. TJ Parker had two of Buffalo's four sacks and the Bills shut the Jets down in the red zone. With the Patriots losing in Germany, it feels like the Bills now have full control of the AFC East.
D	Jets
If you want to know what the problem is with this team, it's definitely the defense. With the Bills scoring 32 points on Sunday, the Jets have now surrendered an average of 31.8 points per game over the past five weeks. One problem is that they struggle to tackle, and another problem is that they keep getting burned on big plays. The Jets gave up three plays that went for more than 45 yards. The Jets offense simply isn't good enough to keep up in a shootout, so if the defense doesn't turn things around soon, it's hard to see this team winning very many more games. The Jets will also have an interesting decision to make at quarterback. Cade Klubnik made his debut on Sunday and played decently, and with New York essentially out of the playoff race, it might be time to turn the offense over to the rookie.

A	Chiefs
With Kenneth Walker out, the Chiefs did things the old-fashioned way: They let Patrick Mahomes take over the game. In what was easily his best performance of the year, Mahomes caught fire, throwing for 348 yards and three touchdowns. It was a vintage Mahomes performance that should have the Chiefs feeling good about the second half of the season. Mahomes got some help from Josh Downs, who appears to be a perfect fit for Kansas City's offense. The Chiefs' newest receiver caught four passes for 53 yards and a touchdown. Although Walker was out, the Chiefs' rushing attack didn't miss a beat thanks to Emmett Johnson. The rookie running back rushed for a career-high 93 yards while also adding two touchdowns and 70 receiving yards through the air. The Chiefs are back.
D	Falcons
There was a five-week span earlier in this season where it looked like the Falcons might have one of the best offenses in the NFL, but they've absolutely fallen off a cliff since then. After only scoring 17 points last week, they were even worse this week: The offense went three-and-out on its first FOUR possessions of the game and things only got uglier from there. When you have Bijan Robinson and Drake London, you should be able to move the ball, but the Falcons haven't been able to do that due mostly to the struggles of Michael Penix, who has thrown just one TD pass in his past three games after throwing zero against the Chiefs. This offense looks broken and the defense doesn't look much better.

A-	Jaguars
The Jaguars offense is suddenly starting to look unstoppable. This marked the fourth straight game where they scored at least 30 points, and one reason everything is working for them is that Trevor Lawrence has so many weapons. The Jags' QB, who threw for 352 yards and three touchdowns, completed at least one pass to NINE different receivers. Parker Washington, who finished with seven catches for 152 yards, is slowly evolving into a true No. 1 receiver. The Jags defense struggled some, but that was to be expected due to Liam Coen's decision to keep Jordan Davis and Jessie Bates III on the bench. Those two trade reinforcements will be playing their first game with the Jags next week, and at that point, the defense will need to be better.
C-	Titans
The Titans have shown some feistiness this season, but there's a reason this team only has one win: the defense in Tennessee is just no match for any team with any talent whatsoever. Last week, they got burned by the Bengals for 43 points, and things weren't much better this week. The pass rush struggled to get after Trevor Lawrence, and that opened the door for him to carve up Tennessee's secondary for over 350 yards. The offensive performance was encouraging, with Cam Ward looking better in his past two games than he has during any other two-game span in his career.

C	Dolphins
In the first start of his career, Kyle McCord played reasonably well. The 2025 sixth-round pick had some highs (he threw for 209 yards and rushed for a TD) combined with some lows (he lost a fumble that was returned for a TD on the first play of the second half), but he put Miami in position to possibly win. McCord and the Dolphins were let down by kicker Zane Gonzalez, who missed two field goals. Malik Washington, who has been one of the bright spots for Miami this year, finished with 50 receiving yards while also throwing a 34-yard TD. The Dolphins played well enough to win, but they came up empty, so they can add this to their list of moral victories for 2026.
C+	Colts
It might be time for the Colts to bench Daniel Jones. The QB almost cost the Indy the game with two interceptions, including a pick-six in the second half that let Miami right back in the game. The Colts won this game despite Jones: Jonathan Taylor kept the offense on track, while the defense came up with several big plays, including a defensive TD by Adetomiwa Adebawore in the third quarter. At this point, giving Anthony Richardson a shot at the QB job might make more sense for this team.

F	Patriots
Drake Maye left the game with an injury after New England's opening possession of the game and the Patriots never had a chance after that. The Patriots had 70 yards of offense on that opening drive, but only 81 for the rest of the game with Tommy DeVito in. This could have been a closer game if the Patriots' defense had slowed down Detroit, but a combination of poor tackling and leaving receivers wide open led to a big day for the Lions. If we learned one thing from this game, it's that the Patriots are no match for the NFC North. They're now 0-3 against that division and Mike Vrabel's defense has looked lost, surrendering an average of 36.7 points per game.
A	Lions
It doesn't matter what country you put Jahmyr Gibbs in, he's just always dominant. The Lions offense ran through Gibbs in Germany, and he didn't disappoint: He totaled 252 yards, with 153 of that coming on the ground. It was an explosive day for the offense with Jameson Williams (99) and Amon Ra St. Brown (98) both almost hitting 100 yards in receiving. This game served as a homecoming of sorts for St. Brown, and the Lions made sure to get him involved on a day when he also had two touchdowns. After a hiccup against the Dolphins in Week 9, the Lions high-powered offense was firing on all cylinders against a solid opponent. If the Lions keep playing at this level, they'll be more than capable of winning the NFC North.

B	Commanders
With their season essentially on the line, the Commanders came through an impressive team win. They weren't perfect, but they were perfect when they had to be, especially late in the game. Jayden Daniels threw two interceptions in the fourth quarter, but then bounced back to engineer a 71-yard scoring drive in the final two minutes that ended with a 32-yard TD pass to Stefon Diggs. The only reason that drive was even possible is that the Washington defense came up clutch, forcing the Giants to go three-and-out after each of Daniels' interceptions. Rasul Douglas then clinched the win by picking off J.J. McCarthy with 34 seconds left. The Commanders have a talented team and if they can avoid the unforced errors, there's no reason they can't get right back in the NFC East race.
B-	Giants
When you have two evenly matched teams going at it, the team that makes more mistakes is usually going to lose and that's what happened here with the Giants practically giving the game away. It started in the first quarter with Dominic Zvada missing a chip-shot field goal, and it only got worse in the second half with two back-breaking turnovers. Malik Nabers lost a fumble inside Washington's 20-yard line in the third quarter, and J.J. McCarthy threw an embarrassing interception on the Giants' final offensive play of the game when his team needed just four or five yards to get in range for a potential game-tying field goal. As bad as the interception was, McCarthy actually played well, and he looks like he has what it takes to potentially lead the Giants to an NFC East title, but he can't be making decisions like that going forward.

NFL Week 10 grades: Packers fail in showdown with Vikings, Patrick Mahomes catches fire

We're handing out grades for every team that played in Week 10

Vikings (7-2) 30-10 Packers (6-4)

Browns (6-4) 27-24 over Texans (3-6)

Panthers (4-5) 20-17 over Saints (3-6)

Bills (8-1) 31-12 over Jets (2-8)

Chiefs (7-2) 35-13 over Falcons (3-7)

Jaguars 40-23 over Titans

Colts (3-7) 24-22 over Dolphins (1-8)

Lions (7-2) 35-10 over Patriots (5-5)

NFL Week 10 grades: Packers collapse and the Vikings just got scary