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Week 8 NFL Storylines 0

Posted on October 31, 2012 by Andy Larmand

Matt Ryan’s three 1st half touchdowns helped the Falcons improve to 7-0 with a Week 8 victory over the Eagles.

It was a week for offenses to shine in Week 8 as five NFL teams picked up wins by 20 or more points and a total of five teams put up 30 or more points.

The 49ers, Broncos, Patriots, Dolphins and Bucs all won by 20 or more and those teams with the exception of the 49ers all put up 30 or more points. The Falcons also put up 30 against the Eagles en route to their seventh win of the year while staying undefeated.

Atlanta became the sixth NFL team to start a season 7-0 and score at least 23 points in each of those games. They also improved to 15-0 when Matt Ryan throws three or more touchdown passes in a game. Philly had been 13-0 following bye weeks under head coach, Andy Reid.

The Saints couldn’t win their third straight and fell to 2-5, but Drew Brees threw a touchdown pass in his 50th straight game to extend his own record. New Orleans fell to Denver 34-14 on Sunday night. Peyton Manning and the Broncos improved to 4-3 and it was the first time that they have won back-to-back games this year.

Patriots quarterback, Tom Brady, didn’t let the time change or long flight to London affect him as he also threw a touchdown pass again and this marks 40 straight games for him – still 10 behind Brees for the all-time record. More notable for the Patriots, they gained 473 yards of total offense against the Rams, marking the 17th straight game that they have recorded more than 350. This broke the all-time record set by those Rams in 1999-00.

The Patriots’ offensive explosion left plenty of storylines and it was hard to just pick a few. The 45-7 win for New England was the largest of the weekend and in two games in London since 2009, the Pats have outscored their opponents 80-14 (beat Tampa 35-7 in 2009).

Four different Pats scored touchdowns and both Rob Gronkowski and Brandon Lloyd caught two apiece. It was the 50th time that Brady has had a game with three or more touchdown passes, which is good for fourth all-time. Wes Welker recorded at least one reception in his 102nd straight game. Believe it or not, the Rams scored the first seven points of the game before New England rifled off 45 unanswered.

The last two times Bill Belichick and Jeff Fisher have met, Belichick has outscored him 104-7. Also, Rams receiver, Chris Givens, caught a 50-yard touchdown pass from Sam Bradford and now has a 50+ yard reception in five straight games. Bradford was also sacked at least once in his 24th straight game.

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      Archie Griffin

      The Sports Then and Now Vintage Athlete of the Month is the only football player ever to capture college football’s top individual award twice.

      As a star running back for the Ohio State Buckeyes, Archie Griffin claimed the Heisman Trophy during his junior season in 1974 and then was able to repeat the honor the following season.

      Griffin joined the Buckeyes for the 1972 season, which happened to be the first in which freshmen were eligible to play varsity football, and made an immediate impact. After fumbling in his only carry of his first game, Griffin more than made up for it in his second game by rushing for 237 yards against North Carolina. By the end of the season, Griffin had rushed for 867 yards.

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