NFL

Jets invent new way to lose by ending 750-game winning streak by NFL teams, plus more wild stats from Week 8

by
SaC Bot
October 28, 2024

The New York Jets season has officially hit rock bottom. Not only did the Jets lose to the Patriots on Sunday, but they lost in a way that no NFL team had ever lost before.

As a matter of fact, the Jets’ 25-22 setback to the Patriots was so bad that it ended a 750-game winning streak by NFL teams. During the game, the Jets:

Scored more than 20 points
They didn’t turn the ball over
They held their opponent to under 250 yards (The Patriots finished with 247)

Over the course of NFL history, teams that had done those three things were 750-0 going into Week 8, but that streak ended with the Jets’ loss.

No wonder why interim coach Jeff Ulbrich called the loss a “Moment of darkness.” When you end a 750-game winning streak that spanned 84 years, that definitely qualifies as a moment of darkness.

The Jets inventing a new way to lose was one of the wildest stats of Week 8. So that else happened?

Let’s check out 15 more of the wildest stats from Week 8 (via CBS Sports research, unless noted):

Jayden Daniels said a prayer. The Commanders rookie completed a 52-yard Hail Mary to beat the Bears, which was the longest game-winning Hail Mary in regulation since Aaron Rodgers threw a 61-yarder to beat the Lions back in 2014. Daniels also became the second rookie since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 to throw a Hail Mary of at least 50 yards to win a game, joining Tim Couch, who did it for the Browns in 1999.
Bizarre halftime score. The Chargers led the Saints 9-5 at halftime, which we’re only noting, because that’s only the second time in NFL history that’s ever happened. The only other time came in 1975 when the Rams led the Packers 9-5 in a game that L.A. would end up winning 22-5.
Lions on a scoring spree. The Lions scored 52 points on Sunday, which is the team’s highest total in any game since 1997, when they scored 55 against the Bears. The Lions are now averaging 38.4 point per game over their past five games, which is their highest average over a five-game span in any season since 1952.
Lions do the improbable. The wild thing about Detroit’s scoring output is that the Lions put up 52 points even thought they only totaled 61 passing yards. That makes them the first team since the 1955 Bears to put up more than 50 points in a game where they totaled fewer than 100 passing yards. The Lions also had the largest margin of victory in NFL history for a team that was outgained by at least 150 yards.
Kalif Raymond joins exclusive club. Not only did Raymond have a 90-yard punt return for a TD against the Titans, but he also caught a TD pass. Raymond finished with 190 return yards, which makes him just the fourth player in NFL history to hit at least 150 return yards with a return TD and a receiving TD in the same game. He joins Jermaine Lewis (Dec. 7, 1997), Steve Smith Sr. (Dec. 8, 2002) and Travis Benjamin (Sept. 20, 2015),
Browns offense finally breaks through. Going into Week 8, the Browns had not scored 20 points in a game this season and they hadn’t had a 200-yard passer. Jameis Winston ended both of those streaks by throwing for 334 yards in a game where Cleveland scored 29 points. Winston had more passing yards in the second half (224), then Watson had in any game this season.
Big week for big underdogs. There were two teams that won on Sunday (Browns and Patriots) despite being an underdog of at least seven points. With those two wins, underdogs of a touchdown or more are now 9-8 on the season, which is BY FAR the best record through eight weeks. Before this year, the best record by big underdogs came in 1990 when they went 8-16 through eight weeks.
Heartbreak for Florida teams. The NFL’s three Florida teams went a combined 0-3 on Sunday and they lost their games by a total of nine points. It marks the first time ever that they’ve all lost on the same day with those losses coming by a combined margin of fewer than 10 points.
Kirk Cousins owns the Buccaneers. The Falcons QB had another big game against Tampa Bay. With four TD passes against the Bucs combined with the four he threw against them in Week 5, Cousins will finish the month of October with eight TD passes against Tampa Bay. That ties the NFL record for most TD passes in one month against one team. The last time it happened came in 1980 when Rams QB Vince Ferragamo threw eight touchdowns against the 49ers.
Panthers might want to bench Bryce Young for road games. With Carolina’s loss to the Broncos on Sunday, Bryce Young is now 0-10 on the road in his career. That’s the second-worst road record for any QB since 1950. The only QB with a worst road record was Cincinnati’s David Klinger, who went 0-13.
Cardiac Colts. If the Colts are playing, it’s pretty much guaranteed that the game is going to be close. Every Colts game this season has been decided by six points or less, making them the first team in NFL history to have each of their first eight games decided by six points or less. The Colts lost 23-20 to the Texans on Sunday.
Anthony Richardson has historically bad first half. The Colts QB went 2 of 15 in the first half against the Texans, which gave him the lowest completion percentage (13.3%) by any QB in a first half since 1991.
Eagles rough starts continue. With zero points in the first quarter against the Bengals, the Eagles still haven’t scored a single first quarter point this season. That makes them the first team since the 1991 Packers to score zero first quarter points through their first seven games.
Jalen Hurts makes history. The Eagles didn’t score in the first quarter, but Jalen Hurts still managed to make some history. Hurts had three rushing touchdowns while finished with a passer rating of 132.5, which makes him the first player in NFL history with multiple rushing touchdowns and a passer rating of at least 100 in consecutive games. Hurts had a rating of 119.3 while rushing for two touchdowns in Philly’s Week 7 win over the Giants.
Bo Nix has breakout game. The Broncos rookie threw for 284 yards and three touchdowns while also tacking on a rushing TD. WIth those stats, Nix became just the fourth rookie QB since 2000 to have at least three TD passes with one rushing TD and a passer rating of 120-or-higher. Nix joins Cam Newton (Dec. 24, 2011), Deshaun Watson (Oct. 1, 2017) and Justin Herbert(Jan. 3, 2021).