NFL Week 11 grades: Cowboys earn A for destroying Raiders on Monday night; Josh Allen leads Bills to A-
Here are the grades for every team who played in Week 11
By
John Breech
•
20 min read
Welcome to the Week 11 grades!
The Dallas Cowboys have had one of the worst defenses in the NFL this season, but the reinforcements have finally arrived, and it showed on Monday night. With Quinnen Williams on the field for the first time since being traded to Dallas, the Cowboys defense dominated in a 33-16 win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
Not only did Williams play, but so did Logan Wilson, who was shipped from Cincinnati to Dallas just before the Nov. 4 trade deadline. The Cowboys had a bye last week, so both guys had to wait nearly two weeks before making their Dallas debut.
The Cowboys also had two defensive players make their 2025 season debut in DeMarvion Overshown and Shavon Revel Jr. Overshown hadn't played since last December when he tore both his ACL and MCL. As for Revel, the 2025 third-round pick had been making his way back from a torn ACL that he suffered during his final year in college.
As if that's not enough, the Cowboys also saw the return of safeties Malik Hooker and Donovan Wilson. Hooker had been sidelined by a toe injury since Week 4 while Wilson had been out since Week 7 due to an elbow injury.
With the Cowboys defense finally healthy, the unit came out and dominated.
With that in mind, let's get to the grades, starting with the Cowboys big win.
Dallas 33-16 over Las Vegas
| A |  |
| The Cowboys looked totally rejuvenated coming out of their Week 10 bye. They dominated the Raiders in all three phases of the game. Dak Prescott had the offense looking unstoppable: The Cowboys quarterback threw for 268 yards and four touchdown, with most of that going to George Pickens (144 yards and a touchdown) and CeeDee Lamb (66 yards and a touchdown). The Cowboys revamped defense made a strong statement by holding the Raiders to just 27 yards on the ground, which was quite the performance for a team that ranked in the bottom five of the NFL at stopping the run heading into Week 11. In his first game with the Cowboys, Quinnen Williams had more sacks (1.5) than he did in eight games with the Jets this year (1.0). The defense easily had its best game of the season, but it did come against the Raiders. With the Eagles and Chiefs on deck in the next two weeks, we'll soon find out if the defense has actually turned the corner. If it has, the Cowboys (4-5-1) could be a dark horse playoff contender. | |
| D- |  |
| The Raiders are a mess. The offense has no identity and the defense can't stop anyone. There are holes all over the roster, and the Cowboys seemed to exploit every single one of them. Geno Smith threw for 238 yards, but he rarely had time to throw because the Cowboys defense kept plowing through his offensive line. Ashton Jeanty was a non-factor on the ground with an abysmal seven yards on six carries. And the defense surrendered at least 30 points for the third time in four games. This is another lost season for the Raiders (2-8). | |
Philadelphia 16-9 over Detroit
| C- |  |
| Sometimes when you gamble, you go home broke and that's what happened to the Lions on Sunday night. Dan Campbell is one of the most aggressive coaches in the NFL and that aggressiveness backfired with the Lions getting stopped cold on five fourth-down attempts, including a fake punt. The Lions offense struggled because the Eagles were able to rattle Jared Goff. He got hit multiple times on an erratic night where he completed just 37.8% of his passes, which is the lowest completion rate of his career. Detroit's biggest plays came on short dump-offs from Goff to Jahmyr Gibbs. If the Lions (6-4) continue to play like this against defenses that can put pressure on Goff, their season is going to end with another short playoff trip and that's if they even make the playoffs. Right now, they're on the outside looking in. | |
| B+ |  |
| Howie Roseman might have made the trade of the year by bringing in Jaelan Phillips. The Eagles new linebacker was a force last week and he was even better against the Lions. With Phillips in the lineup, the Eagles bullied the the Detroit offensive line for four straight quarters. Although Jared Goff was only sacked twice, that definitely doesn't tell the full story: He was hit multiple times and under pressure nearly every time he dropped back to pass. The Eagles offense is still trying to figure things out, but with the defense playing like this, they now have time to do it. A.J. Brown, who was complaining about his role in the offense last week, probably won't complain as much this week after catching seven passes for 49 yards. The Eagles always seem to win ugly, but they now have victories over some of the best teams in the NFC (Lions, Rams, Packers, Buccaneers) and there's nothing ugly about that. With the defense getting better every week, the Eagles (8-2) are a legitimate threat to repeat. | |
Buffalo 44-32 over Tampa Bay
| C+ |  |
| The Buccaneers actually played pretty well, but they just ran into a buzz saw. Sean Tucker, who has never rushed for more than 56 yards in a game, helped keep the offense on track by rushing for 106 yards and two touchdowns. Baker Mayfield made some jaw-dropping plays, but he had some trouble against the Bills defense in the second half, throwing for just 78 yards. And then there was the Bucs defense, which had no idea how to stop Josh Allen. At 6-4, the Bucs are still on top of the NFC South, but the race has suddenly got a lot tighter with the Panthers just a half game behind. | |
| A- |  |
| Josh Allen might have just forced himself back into the MVP conversation. The Bills QB put on his Superman cape and willed Buffalo to a win with a SIX TOUCHDOWN performance that saw him run for three scores and pass for three scores. This marked just the second time in the Super Bowl era that a QB has scored three rushing touchdowns and three passing touchdowns in a game. (Allen has the only other performance, and that came in 2024 against the Rams.) When Allen is playing like this, the Bills (7-3) are pretty much impossible to beat. | |
Denver 22-19 over Kansas City
| C |  |
| Whenever the Chiefs need a win, they always seem to find a way to get it, but they finally ran out of magic. For one, the defense had problems against Denver, especially during a second half where the Broncos scored on four of their five possessions. Usually, Patrick Mahomes makes up for any defensive shortcomings, but the Broncos were ready for everything he threw at them. The Chiefs offense had two chances to put this game away in the fourth quarter, but went three-and-out on its final two possessions while totaling just 2 yards. The ugliest part for the Chiefs is that they're now 0-5 on the year in one-score games. These are games the Chiefs would find a way to win the past, but this year, they keep coming up short. The Chiefs (5-5) can still make the playoffs, but it feels like their nine-year reign atop the AFC West is over. | |
| B+ |  |
| In Denver's biggest game of the year, Bo Nix showed up and he showed out. The Broncos QB, who has been plagued by inconsistency this season, outdueled Patrick Mahomes in the win. Nix took over during a second half where he threw for 215 of his 295 yards, including 62 that came on Denver's final drive that set up Wil Lutz's game-winning field goal. Nix proved he can perform with the spotlight on him, which should help the Broncos going forward. Also, Denver's defense continues to look like the best one in the NFL: The unit sacked Patrick Mahomes three times and rarely let him create any of the patented magic that he's known for. The Broncos (9-2) didn't officially win the AFC West on Sunday, but it feels like this was a knockout punch for the Chiefs. If the Broncos just go 3-3 over their final six games, the Chiefs would have to go 7-0 to catch them. | |
L.A. Rams 21-19 over Seattle
| C |  |
| If there's one team that Sam Darnold would probably prefer to never see again, it's the Rams. After going 0-2 against them last year, Darnold lost another one and it's all because the Rams had him seeing ghosts. The Seahawks QB threw four interceptions, but Seattle still managed to keep this close thanks to a defense that gave an 'A+' performance. The unit shut down Matthew Stafford while holding Davante Adams to just one reception. The Rams got 14 points off of Darnold's four turnovers and that was the difference in the game. This loss is going to sting, but even in defeat, the Seahawks (7-3) proved that they're definitely one of the best teams in the NFC. | |
| B- |  |
| The Rams defense is going haunt Sam Darnold's dreams. After sacking him 12 times in two games last year, the Rams had another huge performance with four interceptions against the Seahawks QB. Kam Kinchens might have been the defensive MVP for L.A.: He had two of the four interceptions and his two picks set the Rams up for easy touchdowns (The first interception led to a 3-yard scoring drive while the second interception led to a 25-yard TD drive). Basically, Kinchens made life easy for a Rams offense that struggled. The Rams also shut the Seahawks down in the red zone, allowing just one touchdown on four trips. Those two things are why L.A. won this game. The Rams (8-2) didn't dominate, but they're now atop the division and that's all that matters here. | |
San Francisco 41-22 over Arizona
| A |  |
| In Brock Purdy's first start since September, the 49ers rolled to their largest win of the season thanks to a dominant performance from their defense and special teams that helped ease Purdy back into things. Purdy was eased into the game by Skyy Moore, who opened things up by returning a kickoff 98 yards to set up a 1-yard TD drive. The defense forced three turnovers, including a third-quarter interception by Deommodore Lenoir that set up another short TD drive for Purdy. Of course, Purdy also did plenty of his own: He directed three TD drives of 45 yards while throwing three TD passes. The 49ers (7-4) are getting close to full strength and they're looking more dangerous every week. | |
| C- |  |
| The Cardinals piled up 488 yards of offense, but it all went to waste because they couldn't get out of their own way. The Cardinals got called for a franchise-record 17 penalties that cost them 130 yards. They turned the ball over three times with two of those turnovers coming inside of San Francisco's 30-yard line. The special teams surrendered two kick returns longer than 40 yards, including a 98-yarder to start the game. The Cardinals (3-7) seemed to shoot themselves in the foot every week and this week was no different. The loss overshadowed a record-setting performance from Jacoby Brissett, who completed 47 passes, which is the highest single-game total in NFL history. | |
Baltimore 23-16 over Cleveland
| C |  |
| With Lamar Jackson taking a beating in this game (he got sacked five times), the Ravens decided to turn to their rushing attack and that worked wonders against the Browns. The Ravens totaled 184 yards on the ground with 126 of that coming in the second half. Derrick Henry did the brunt of the work with 103 yards, but it was a fake tush push that won the game for Baltimore. On a fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter, Mark Andrews took the snap and took it outside for a 35-yard TD run. It was a creative play call from a team that needed a creative play. Defensively, Kyle Hamilton was all over the field with a sack and three tackles for a loss. Divisional games are unpredictable, so it's hard to ding the Ravens (5-5) too much for this performance, but with the Steelers, Packers and Patriots still remaining on the schedule, they're going to have to play better if they want to continue to win. | |
| C |  |
| Shedeur Sanders had a chance to help the Browns pull off the biggest upset of the week, but he ended up being in way over his head during his NFL debut. After Dillon Gabriel was knocked out of the game with a concussion, Sanders played the entire second half and he led to the team to 64 yards and zero points over the final two quarters of play. The Browns defense put the team in a position to steal the game, but once again, got no help from the offense. The loss overshadowed another All-World performance from Myles Garrett, who came away with four of Cleveland's five sacks in the loss. | |
Pittsburgh 34-12 over Cincinnati
| F |  |
| For once, the Bengals can't blame their defense for the loss. The Steelers put up 34 points, but they got two touchdowns from their defense. One came on a Joe Flacco pick six and another one came after a Noah Fant fumble. With the Steelers taking away Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins (they both had just three receptions), Flacco just didn't seem sure about where he should send the ball. Although the defense was good by Bengals standards, it still wasn't great. There were too many missed tackles to count and they let the Steelers convert several long third downs. At 3-7, the season has officially reached the point where not even Joe Burrow will be able to save it, even if he returns. | |
| A- |  |
| After getting torched by Joe Flacco in Week 7, the Steelers defense redeemed itself with a dominating performance on Sunday. With the offense struggling at times, the defense carried the Steelers. Kyle Dugger had a 73-yard pick six and James Pierre iced the game with a 34-yard fumble return TD in the fourth quarter. The Steelers' offensive performance won't wow anyone, but Kenneth Gainwell (seven catches for 81 yards, two touchdowns) and Darnell Washington (four catches for 67 yards, ran over multiple Bengals players) both came up with multiple big plays. The Ravens are definitely lurking in the AFC North, but don't count out the Steelers just yet. The defense seems to be getting better every week and that's exactly what this team needs if Pittsburgh is going to win the division. | |
Jacksonville 35-6 over L.A. Chargers
| F |  |
| This was a total meltdown game for the Chargers. Their offense was bad and their defense got embarrassed. The Chargers couldn't run the ball and Justin Herbert looked rattled while playing behind a banged-up offensive line that struggled to stop the Jags' pass rush. West Coast teams will sometimes come out flat when they have to play at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT, so the Chargers better hope that's what happened here or this team could be in trouble. | |
| A+ |  |
| The Jags had been in a funk over the past few weeks with three losses in their past four games, but they ended that by making a statement against the Chargers. The Jags defense absolutely shut down Justin Herbert, who threw for just 81 yards. It was a dominant defensive performance by a team that had surrendered an average of 33.3 points per game over the past three weeks. The offense was just as good: The Jags' two-headed rushing tandem of Bhayshul Tuten and Travis Etienne both topped 70 yards on the ground. Jakobi Meyers had his breakthrough game in Jacksonville with five catches for 65 yards. The Jaguars made quite the statement and that statement is that everyone needs to start taking them seriously as a playoff contender. If the Jags do make the playoffs, they'll probably be hoping to see an AFC West team: They're 3-0 against the division, but just 3-4 against everyone else. | |
Chicago 19-17 over Minnesota
| C+ |  |
| This win basically epitomized the Bears' season: No one was perfect, but everyone made a big play when they had to. If you need proof, just look at Chicago's special teams: In a span of four minutes in the fourth quarter, the Bears gave up a long punt return that set up a Vikings TD, and then Cairo Santos followed that up by missing a 45-yard field goal. Those two mistakes looked like they were going to cost Chicago the game, but then Devin Duvernay redeemed the special teams with a 56-yard kickoff return to set up Santos' 48-yard game-winning field goal as time expired. The bottom line here is that this team never panics and keeps winning games it would have never won under previous coaching staffs. | |
| C- |  |
| When the receivers are getting visibly frustrated with the starting quarterback, that's a problem, and that's exactly what happened in this game for Minnesota. Justin Jefferson clearly wasn't happy with J.J. McCarthy, and you can't blame him. The Vikings QB completed just 50% of his passes (16 of 32), although he did catch fire in the fourth quarter by going 6 of 8 for 76 yards while throwing a go-ahead TD with just 50 seconds left. The problem is that the Vikings special teams blew the game by allowing a long return on the ensuing kickoff. If the Vikings had gotten better quarterback play, they probably win this game, but they didn't, and now they're 4-6. | |
Green Bay 27-20 over N.Y. Giants
| B- |  |
| The Packers won this game, but there were definitely a few things that this team should be concerned about. For one, its defense had trouble slowing down a Giants offense that was down to a third-string QB (Jameis Winston) and a backup running back (Tyrone Tracy). The kicking situation is also still an issue. Lucas Havrisik, who filled in for Brandon McManus, missed two extra points and almost cost Green Bay the game. One thing that wasn't a concern for Green Bay was its red zone offense. The Packers scored four touchdowns on four trips inside New York's 20-yard line and that was the difference in the game. This felt like a must-win game for a Packers (6-3-1) team that was on a two-game skid. | |
| B- |  |
| When Jameis Winston is your starting QB, it's almost always going to be a wild ride and the Giants got quite the ride here. Winston proved that he's definitely the best third-string QB in the league with a performance that saw him throw for more than 200 yards against the Packers, but the good of Winston also comes with bad and the Giants got the bad with a fourth-quarter interception. Defensively, the Giants did everything, except for stop the Packers on third down. Green Bay converted 7 of 11 attempts, including an improbable third-and-10 in the fourth quarter. Those are plays you have to make if you want to beat good teams. The Giants (2-9) are playing teams tough, but they keep finding ways to lose. | |
Carolina 30-27 (OT) over Atlanta
| B+ |  |
| Every time it looks like Bryce Young might NOT be the QB of the future in Carolina, he goes out and wins everyone back by playing a game like this. Young was absolutely brilliant: Not only did he throw for a franchise-record 448 yards, but 318 of that came in the second half and overtime. Tet McMillan had a career day with 130 yards and two touchdowns on eight catches. The most impressive part is that all of this came against a Falcons defense that had been one of the best in the NFL at stopping the pass. If Young can just play close to this level going forward, the Panthers (6-5) will have a serious shot of winning the NFC South. | |
| C |  |
| With the Falcons up 21-10 in the second half, that lead should have been safe with the way Atlanta's defense has been playing this year, but the unit suffered a total collapse in the second half. The Panthers piled up 345 yards in the second half (and overtime) and every time the Falcons needed a big stop, they couldn't get it. The offense didn't help things by disappearing in the second half. Drake London (119 yards receiving) and Bijan Robinson (143 total yards) came up big in the first three quarters, but they combined for just 13 total yards in the fourth quarter and overtime. | |
Houston 16-13 over Tennessee
| C |  |
| The Texans won't be bragging to anyone about this win. They got shut out in the first half before finally coming alive in the third quarter with two scoring drives of more than 60 yards. Those were their only two drives the entire game of more than 60 yards. Davis Mills struggled against the Titans defense, but he came up big in the fourth quarter leading Houston on a drive that led to Matthew Wright's game-winning field goal. With C.J. Stroud out, it's all about survival for the Texans (5-5) and that's exactly what they did here. For the first time this season, this team is now at .500. | |
| C |  |
| The Titans have the worst record in the NFL, but they definitely haven't given up on the season. Tennessee's defense continues to play hard and the Texans found that out firsthand during a first half where Houston was shut out. The Titans defense played well enough to win, but the problem is that the offense can't seem to get consistently move the ball. Cam Ward continues to show flashes, but this team just doesn't have the talent on the offensive side of the ball right now to beat good teams. | |
Miami 16-13 (OT) over Washington (in Madrid)
| B- |  |
| For the first time in five weeks, the Commanders defense showed up to play and the unit almost carried Washington to a win. The Commanders absolutely shut down the Dolphins in the red zone, holding them to just one TD on five trips inside the 20-yard line. Washington had two crucial goal line stands, including one in the final minute that forced overtime. With Jayden Daniels out, Marcus Mariota actually played well for most of the game until throwing a back-breaking interception in overtime that set the Dolphins up for a game-winning field goal. The Commanders had a chance to win in regulation, but Matt Gay missed from 56 yards out, which was his second miss of the day. At this point, it might be too late to make a kicking change, but the position has certainly been a problem for Washington this year. This was the Commanders' best performance in over a month, but it still wasn't good enough to win the game. At 3-8, it now feels like Washington's season is all but over. | |
| B |  |
| It took almost half the season, but the Dolphins seem to have found their secret to success: Give the ball to De'Von Achane. The Dolphins running back ran for 120 yards with 40 of that coming in the fourth quarter to help set up Miami's game-tying touchdown. The defense got gashed up at times by a Commanders rushing attack that totaled 179 yards, but the unit also made two of the biggest plays of the game: Not only was their a goal line stand in the fourth quarter that kept the Commanders from taking a 20-13 lead, but there was also an interception from Jack Jones in overtime that helped send Miami to the win. At 4-7, the Dolphins' season is hanging on by a thread, but it's still hanging there as they head into their Week 12 bye. | |
New England 27-14 over N.Y. Jets (Thursday)
| B |  |
| Drake Maye took his MVP campaign into prime time on Thursday and he showed a national audience what makes him so good: He's accurate (He completed 73.5% of his passes), he doesn't make mistakes (He didn't turn the ball over) and he always seems to come up in the clutch (He completed 6 of 10 passes for 60 yards on third down). The Patriots defense let the Jets hang around with New York getting two TD drives of 65 yards or more in the first three quarters, but the defense put the clamps down in the fourth quarter to clinch the win. The Patriots are now 9-2 and they're a very real threat to earn the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC. | |
| C |  |
| At this point, it's pretty clear what the Jets are: A bad team that occasionally plays spurts of good football, and that's exactly what happened on Thursday night. The offense looked impressive on the Jets' opening TD drive that took more than eight minutes off the clock, but then it completely disappeared after that. The defense did a solid job of shutting down the Patriots, rushing attack, but they had no answers for Drake Maye. This team hasn't had very many answers for anything this year, which is a big reason why it is 2-7. | |
