By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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The Kansas City Chiefs forced Denver Broncos quarterback Trevor Siemian into plenty of mistakes and took advantage of them in a sleepy Monday night affair in Kansas City. Here’s what we learned from the Chiefs‘ 29-19 win over the Broncos:

1. It’s truly a shame that Denver doesn’t have a more complete team, because this defense is rather remarkable to watch. The Broncos made Kansas City’s offense look about as bad as it has all season, keeping Alex Smithbelow a completion percentage of 50 (minimum 20 attempts) for the first time in a regular season game since Week 11 of 2013. Smith completed 14 of 31 attempts for 202 yards and one touchdown, and the Chiefs‘ offense was much quieter than every other contest this season, almost alarmingly so. Kareem Hunt rushed for just 46 yards on 22 attempts, his first game of his career in which he was held under 100 yards from scrimmage.

(Smith fell below 50 percent once last season — Week 8 vs. Indianapolis, exactly one year from Monday night — but it was in a game in which he twice left due to injury.)

This should heap all of the credit on Denver’s defense, which blew a coverage early (Darian Stewartguess wrong on a route run by Travis Kelce) for a touchdown, but rebounded to record an interception (made by Stewart) and a Shaquille Barrett strip sack that caused a fumble recovered by Domata Peko. This felt like a game that should have been 42-6 in the third, but was 20-6 because of the defense. If we were giving grades, they’d get an A-minus. When the offense put the defense in bad positions or gave the players little sideline time to rest, the unit just kept coming back out fighting, keeping the game within striking distance until the latter part of the fourth. That’s all you can ask for from your defense. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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We have our whopper trade of 2017.

The New England Patriots have traded quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to the San Francisco 49ers for a 2018 second-round pick, the 49ers announced on Tuesday.

ESPN first reported the development.

In a corresponding move, the 49ers informed quarterback (and former Patriots backup) Brian Hoyer of his release, Rapoport reported. Hoyer was originally included in the Garoppolo deal, but was taken out of the deal because of compensatory pick reasons, Rapoport added. The Patriots will now need to add a quarterback to their roster to backup Tom Brady after trading away Jacoby Brissett, and now Garoppolo — Hoyer could be a potential option. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Duane Brown is on the move to a team that has needed him for most of the season.

The Houston Texans traded the veteran tackle and a 2018 fifth-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks for a second-round pick in 2019 and a third-round pick in 2018, a source informed of the deal told NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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The Dallas Cowboys (4-3) outlasted the Washington Redskins (3-4) in a rain-soaked NFC East battle that came down to field goals and who had more towels readily available. Here’s what we learned from the Cowboys‘ 33-19 win:

1. Was it raining down the entire East Coast of the United States on Sunday? It was pouring in Philadelphia during the Eagles‘ win over the 49ers, in New York during the Falcons‘ win over the Jets, and again in Landover. It made for a trio of soggy, mistake-filled games. Fumbles seemed only a moment away on almost every play, and for Washington, the wet conditions caused two of their own. Dallas turned those mistakes into six points, though it should have been more if an Ezekiel Elliotttouchdown wasn’t called back on a bogus holding call on Tyron Smith, who had his hands inside the frame of his opponent and drove him into the ground, but was flagged for it. Cousins tossed what looked like an interception twice on a late drive, but again thanks to the conditions, they ended up being incompletions. That wasn’t the case when the Redskins got the ball with less than a minute remaining and 88 yards to tie the game. That drive ended in a Byron Jones pick-six. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Martellus Bennett‘s career could be nearing an unexpected conclusion at the end of this season.

Bennett appears to be seriously considering retirement, according to two photos posted to his Instagram story on Saturday evening.

Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Jacksonville’s defense is finally putting on the field what it’s shown on paper in the last few years, and a big part of that is the performance of linebacker Telvin Smith.

The Jaguars have noticed, and are securing his services for the foreseeable future with some handsome compensation. Jacksonville has signed Smith to a four-year extension, the team announced Wednesday. The extension is worth $44 million, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, per a source. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Chicago is making a much-needed move to address its receiving corps.

The Bears have acquired wide receiver Dontrelle Inman from the Los Angeles Chargers for a seventh-round pick, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, per a Chargers source. Chargers coach Anthony Lynn later confirmed the trade. Continue reading →