NFL Week 9: Five things we liked and didn't like, including Lamar Jackson improvement, awful late-half defense

Week 9 went out with an absolute thriller between the Chiefs and the Buccaneers to close out the action, and we now sit at (roughly) the midway point of the season. As we turned the calendar to November, we saw some encouraging chemistry between quarterbacks and wide receivers, some unlikely standouts continuing their strong play and a feel-good moment for a player and team that needed one.

On the other hand, wheels are coming off elsewhere, with injuries, firings and other issues showing things can get late early. Here's what we liked and didn't like in Week 9. 

Five things we liked

1. The Chiefs deploy DeAndre Hopkins perfectly

The Chiefs brought in DeAndre Hopkins as a guy who could simply win one-on-one. He doesn't have to be explosive -- just reliable. That vision came to life in Week 9; he caught eight of his nine targets for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Only one of his eight grabs came on a pass more than a dozen yards downfield.

Of course, the one long throw he did catch was a beauty.

The Chiefs got a wide receiver who can do both.

2. Lamar Jackson deep between the numbers

On Sunday, Lamar Jackson registered his fourth career game with a perfect passer rating, passing Ben Roethlisberger for most such games in NFL history. 

Jackson continues to evolve as a passer in several aspects. He's become worlds better when facing the blitz. He's become more accurate overall. Even as a two-time MVP, he is growing leaps and bounds, and his second year in Todd Monken's system has really helped.

Against the Broncos' terrific defense, Jackson took advantage of Denver's only notable weakness -- the linebackers -- and attacked the middle of the field: 7 for 7 for 151 yards and a touchdown. And these were big boy throws: Jackson's 10.4 yards downfield per throw on passes between the numbers represented his highest mark this season. The first and fourth clips below, where he threads needles over linebackers and under safeties, are simply awesome.

This season, Jackson has a 142.7 passer rating on throws between the numbers at least 10 yards downfield, tops in the NFL. He's completing 73% of said throws, third in the NFL. It's really impressive from the perspective of his already-amazing career.

What a player.

3. The Kirk Cousins + Darnell Mooney chemistry

When the Falcons added Darnell Mooney this offseason, we figured he was the deep threat to add to Drake London's more possession-based game.

Instead, Mooney has become a mid-range maven, running precise routes and showing impressive chemistry with Kirk Cousins. Over 73% of Mooney's receptions are going for a first down or touchdown, sixth among over 60 players with at least 30 receptions this season and a career high by nearly 9%. It's not just those numbers, but how they're coming. Look at where Mooney is relative to his defender when Cousins throws on the following plays, all completions.

Mooney isn't even out of his break when these throws are made. The one immediately above resulted in a touchdown. And when it comes to Week 9 in particular, we also like to see the Falcons scheming Mooney wide open against a miscommunication-filled defense.

Credit Mooney for becoming such a well-rounded receiver and the Falcons for recognizing his skills. He has been a huge addition for Cousins, who has always been willing to stand in and deliver strikes from the pocket.

4. Can the Chargers' defense get some credit?

The Chargers are quietly 5-3, having already matched last year's win total. There's a lot to like here, from Justin Herbert's excellence to J.K. Dobbins' comeback to Jim Harbaugh's complete overhaul of another organization. But let's give some credit to this Chargers defense, which routinely got shredded under Brandon Staley.

It's a much more organized group that's playing to its strengths. The Chargers rank dead last in press coverage rate and third to last in man-to-man coverage. Instead, they keep things in front of them: Only the Bills, Giants and Raiders face a lower average depth of target. On Sunday against a mistake-prone Jameis Winston, the Chargers baited and baited and baited, leading to three interceptions, including ...

Let's shout out some guys.

• Khalil Mack (4.5), Morgan Fox (3.5), Tuli Tuipulotu (3.5) and Bud Dupree (3.0) all have at least three sacks. Only the 49ers, Rams and Broncos have more players with at least three sacks. 
• Ja'Sir Taylor and Kristian Fulton are both top-10 cornerbacks, according to Pro Football Focus' grades, and Tarheeb Still is 19th.
• Elijah Molden has four takeaways, including that deflected interception above. The last Charger to do that through eight games was Desmond King in 2018.

5. Bryce Young smiling

We talk about a lot of stats in this column. We try to break down minutiae. But sometimes we have to remember these are people, too. And Bryce Young smiling after getting his third career win -- and his first in nearly a year -- is definitely something we liked from Week 9.

Young made some great throws. He made some not-so-great throws. His stats were fine. Who knows if he's still in Carolina by this point after the trade deadline or this time next year? He can enjoy this one, and he should.

Five things we didn't like

1. Whatever the Cowboys were doing here

We'll be quick here. The Cowboys' first drive of the second half ended like this:

The very next drive ...

This game also included the Cowboys having just 10 players on defense on a Falcons' third-down conversion and, of course, Dak Prescott saying "we f---ing suck."

Yeah, we don't like whatever is going on there.

2. Brutal end-of-half situational defense

This was all over the place in Week 9. We'll start with the Bears.

The situation: Cardinals have third-and-5 at their 47, two timeouts
The play: Emari Demercado runs untouched for a touchdown

Just gross stuff from the Bears, who were completely unprepared for the possibility of a run one week after botching a Hail Mary against the Commanders.

Onto the Jaguars.

The situation: Eagles have third-and-17 at the Jaguars' 19, 28 seconds, three timeouts
The play: Saquon Barkley runs untouched for a touchdown

Onto the Giants.

The situation: Commanders have third-and-18 at the Giants' 42, one timeout
The plays: Dyami Brown breaks multiple tackles to gain a first down on a play Washington seemed to simply want to get in field goal range; Terry McLaurin catches a touchdown on the next play (six seconds, no timeouts)

These are all plays that show failures on effort, understanding of situations and execution.

3. Jordan Love's disastrous interceptions

I've said this before, and I'll say it again: Not all interceptions are created equal. Chucking up a long pass on fourth-and-a million and having it picked off is an arm punt. Throwing interceptions near either end zone is big trouble. And Jordan Love keeps putting the Packers in big trouble.

And he has a penchant for this.

What makes Love great is what makes him infuriating. He never, ever gives up on a play, and he's willing to make just about any throw to avoid a sack. In fact, he is excellent at avoiding sacks -- he takes one just 9% of his pressured dropbacks, the lowest rate in the league. But sometimes taking a sack, while far from ideal, is OK. Love and Will Levis are the only players with multiple pick sixes thrown this season. That's bad company.

4. The Saints hate tackling

Listen, there's a lot wrong with the Saints, who fired Dennis Allen on Monday. Things may change under interim Darren Rizzi. But no coach can go out there and physically make tackles. And the Saints don't seem interested in doing it, either. Here's just one example.

During its seven-game losing streak, New Orleans has the third-most missed tackles in the NFL, only "behind" the Browns and Raiders. And there are plenty of tackles that aren't missed because they aren't even attempted.

5. The Ravens' coverage busts

For as good as the Ravens offense is, the pass defense is equally as concerning -- very. Baltimore surrendered just 10 points Sunday, but it could have been more. Here's one notable miss.

This is nothing new. The Ravens have allowed 43 passes of 20+ yards, most in the NFL. There are coverage busts all over the place. Baltimore plays a high rate of man coverage, but there's been a ton of mistakes both in man and zone. Bo Nix may not have been able to take advantage, but Winston did the week before, and others will in the future.