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Week 8 was probably the most disappointing week of this NFL season, with 12 of the 13 games being decided by double digits. Still, it did leave us with some intriguing questions to take into Week 9 and beyond. Here’s what we’ve got:

The Colts are the best team record-wise, but are they the best team? We’ve asked this question multiple times, being left surprised week after week that Indianapolis is still the best team in the league record-wise at 7-1. After an easy beat-down of the Tennessee Titans in Week 8, the question remains whether the Colts are truly the best team, or if they’ve benefitted from a relatively lax schedule.

Well, there’s not much reason to believe, right now, that Indy is fool’s gold. They have wins over the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers, and their only loss was a close one against a very good L.A. Rams team. Running back Jonathan Taylor is playing so well that he’s currently a strong candidate for MVP — he’s on pace to score 30 touchdowns, which would come close to LaDainian Tomlinson’s record of 31. The Colts’ truest test will come when they face the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 12, but for now, we have no reason to believe they’re slowing down.

Answer: Yes, until proven otherwise.

Are the Eagles “back?” Philadelphia has been waiting for RB Saquon to have an explosive game, and Week 8 was finally the time. Barkley earned 174 yards and two touchdowns in the team’s 38-20 win over the New York Giants, helping Philly put together its best offensive performance of the season. It had looked like those losses in Weeks 5-6 were just a short skid that the team would get over, and Week 8 proved that to be correct.

Philly does have some tough defenses ahead on its schedule, including the Green Bay Packers in two weeks on Monday Night Football. But as it stands now, the Eagles are back on track and will need to continue to play their best ball in the second half of the season like they have in the past.

Answer: Yes.

The Chiefs are Super Bowl favorites as the AFC’s current seven seed — is that honor deserved yet? After that frustrating loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 5, the Chiefs have outscored their opponents 89-24 in their last three games, all of which were wins. Wideout Rashee Rice has notched 147 yards and three TDs on 18 total touches in the team’s last two games after returning from suspension, including a 90+ yard game Monday night in a blowout win over the Washington Commanders.

The Chiefs are rolling, yet at 5-3 they are the current No. 7 seed in the AFC, and are third in their division. But, somehow, they are the current Super Bowl favorites. How’s that possible? Well, trends and past success can shape how teams and players are “favored.” But maybe we shouldn’t crown K.C. just yet after crushing an injured Detroit Lions team, a meager Las Vegas Raiders team and a Washington squad missing its QB. If they beat the Buffalo Bills next week, however, then we’ll know that favorite title is truly deserved.

Answer: Yes, but only if they beat the Bills in Week 9.

Is it too late for the Commanders? Washington is sitting at 3-4 in a tough NFC and is hoping to get quarterback Jayden Daniels back from injury. Our Commanders news writer Josh Taylor broke down how the team could be running out of time to get back on track:

“The Commanders have the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions next, and they’re currently 13th in the NFC, with four NFC losses, which is the second most in the conference. Two more NFC losses will put the Commanders in a position where they have to sweep the rest of the season to have a chance, and that’s just not realistic with this team.

“The NFC is stacked this season, and they might have to win the NFC East to have a chance. The last four games of the season are NFC East matchups, so they will need to have a drastic change and win all of those games. Sadly, that doesn’t seem like a realistic possibility with the team playing the way they are, following two straight 21+ point losses, including the Dallas Cowboys. Injuries shouldn’t be an excuse, but they’ve certainly been a major factor in their season as well.”

Answer: Probably.

Can the Ravens save their season? It looks as if they did in Week 8, getting a much-need win over the Chicago Bears despite QB Lamar Jackson missing another game. Now, at 2-5 with Jackson set to return in Week 9, Baltimore has a shot to save its season by going on a run. Is it possible? It certainly looks like it — the Ravens’ next five games are all against teams below .500. Baltimore could find themselves 7-5 at the end of that stretch. Heck, even being 6-6 would still keep them in the playoff picture. It also helps that they still have two games against division rival Pittsburgh Steelers, who may be on a downslide coming off two-straight losses.

Answer: Yes, there is still time.

Top QB prospects for the 2026 NFL Draft

We may only be about halfway through the season, but there are at least six teams (if not more) that are likely already looking ahead toward the 2026 NFL Draft. With QBs as the highlight of most drafts, our guy Kyle Crabbs has identified and ranked the top QB prospects heading into the 2026 draft — and the list is much different than it was in August. Here’s his top five:

1. Dante Moore, Oregon Ducks (6030, 206 lbs unofficial): “I like a number of the passers in this year’s class, but the list of potential “franchise” guys is pretty short. Moore, despite his lack of experience, is currently my favorite. With his youth and inexperience, it’s very easy to picture a world in which Moore returns to Oregon for the 2026 season. But if the Ducks make a deep playoff run and he’s able to stack more high-quality reps deep into the postseason, he could (should?) be tempted to make a run at being “the man” in the 2026 NFL Draft.”

2. Ty Simpson, Alabama Crimson Tide (6020, 208 lbs unofficial): “It’s hard to deny that while Moore is my favorite, Simpson has the best current resume for the 2025 college season. He’s a high operator at the line of scrimmage, he’s shown a flair for big plays, and he’s played incredibly efficient football against a murder’s row of SEC opponents thus far this season. It’s been very impressive to watch Simpson, a redshirt junior, tear things up.

“But it’s also worth noting that he’s somehow got 100 less career attempts (311 total) than Moore does. Simpson is a redshirt junior who is even less physically assuming than Moore is while offering what I believe to be a lesser arm, too. He makes up for some of that discrepancy with what he does between the ears despite his lack of experience.”

3. Fernando Mendoza, Indiana Hoosiers (6050, 225 lbs unofficial): “Mendoza’s football character and leadership are well polished already, it doesn’t take long listening to him talk to get the sense that he’s a very traditional “aw, shucks” leader who coaches are probably going to eat up in a good way. He should finish this season north of 1,000 career pass attempts, which sets the stage for him to have a healthy body of work — he just won’t necessarily tug at the heart strings of evaluators who are looking for a little extra juice outside of structure. But at 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds, Mendoza has prototypical size to win from the pocket.”

4. LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina Gamecocks (6030, 240 lbs unofficial): “Stop me if you’ve heard this before — a physically gifted passer who simply doesn’t have enough reps for a high-confidence level in his projection. Sellers, a redshirt sophomore who won’t turn 21 until this summer, has all the goods. He’s an explosive runner, he’s a powerful presence in the pocket, he’s got a hammer for an arm. Traits-based scouts will love the raw tools on display.

“But Sellers is an incredibly difficult study right now because of the limits of the South Carolina offense around him. He’s spending much of his time trying to sort through offensive issues and he struggled to move the ball against both LSU and Oklahoma in October — before seeing an upset bid against Alabama in which he used his legs more fall short.”

5. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU Tigers (6010, 205 lbs unofficial): “Hark! A senior! Nussmeier takes the crown as my current top-ranked senior quarterback, the redshirt senior passer was an intriguing option at this time last year before a rough finish to the season derailed a potential entry to the league after taking over for Jayden Daniels in 2024. Nussmeier is a fifth-year senior with over 1,000 career attempts already — but that experience only comes with two seasons as a full-time starter and he’ll now be 24-years-old on draft day.

“He’s not particularly good outside of structure but he operates the line of scrimmage pre-snap like a coach on the field because, well, his dad is an NFL offensive coordinator. You wish he was bigger, faster, and had a stronger arm. But he’s capable of running an NFL offense for sure and he illustrates very good touch and accuracy over the middle of the field while offering great toughness to stick in and hit throws while taking hits in the pocket.”

For more college football news and analysis, be sure to follow our college football newsletter, run by Joe DeLeone.

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Kyle Crabbs

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