Final NFL Week 5 Observations ... And Former Miami Dolphins Updates

It was a very interesting week in the NFL, beyond the mere fact that we had a rare Tuesday night game.

We saw the Kansas City Chiefs actually lose a division game after Las Vegas quarterback Derek Carr had said there couldn't be a rivalry between the two teams until the Raiders actually won a game in the series.

We saw a former Dolphins coach lose his job and another move closer to the brink. We saw the greatest quarterback of all time seemingly have a bad brain fart at the wrong time and we saw another quarterback complete one of the greatest comebacks of all time.

So here we go:

-- We'll start with the Tuesday night game, which showed us the Tennessee Titans at their dangerous best with a deadly efficient Ryan Tannehill, Derrick Henry bulldozing in the running game, the defense come up with big takeaways and the special teams providing some big plays as well. It was the formula that sent the Titans to the AFC Championship Game last season and the formula that makes them a dangerous team again this season. We'd still rank the Titans behind the Chiefs, Ravens and Steelers in the AFC, but let's just say they'll be a tough out because they're sound and Mike Vrabel has proven he can coach.

-- On the flip side, the loss was a painful reality check for the Buffalo Bills, though it might speak more than their rash of injuries than their potential. Buffalo had to face a very good Tennessee team without one-half of its running back tandem (Zack Moss), one-half of its dangerous wide receiver duo (John Brown), and two of its best defensive players (Tre'Davious White and Matt Milano). Josh Allen's inaccuracy issues resurfaced against Tennessee, but it would be a mistake to overreact to the one loss. The Bills have a chance to re-establish themselves as an AFC contender next Monday when they play host to Kansas City.

-- The Chiefs also need to rebound after their home loss against the Raiders. If nothing else, that loss established the fact that the Chiefs — contrary to some foolish sentiment — are not a lock to return to the Super Bowl. Kansas City obviously is very, very good, but its defense has some holes. For the Raiders, this was a huge win and continued an incredible start for quarterback Derek Carr, who's got 11 touchdowns and one pick so far this season.

-- The former Dolphins coach who lost his job, of course, was Atlanta head coach Dan Quinn. An assistant under Nick Saban in 2005-06, Quinn probably saved his job last year after Atlanta went 6-2 in the second half of the 2019 season following a 1-7 start, but there was no overcoming an 0-5 start this season. Blowing double-digit leads against Dallas and Chicago in Week 2 and 3 put Quinn in must-win mode and the Falcons simply couldn't get it done.

-- Quinn's final loss was against the Carolina Panthers, who shockingly are 3-2 under first-year coach Matt Ruhle. Most surprising of all, they're 3-0 since star running back Christian McCaffrey was sidelined with an ankle injury.

-- The former Dolphins coach in trouble, of course, is Adam Gase, whose Jets continue to be a mess in every possible way. It's not just that the Jets are 0-5, but three of their losses have been by 18, 29 and 20 points; the offense is last in just about every statistical category; and now they've released Le'Veon Bell after failing to make a trade. And it's not going to get any easier for the Jets: Of their remaining 11 games, only three are against teams who currently don't have a winning record. Two of those are against the Dolphins and the other is a game at Los Angeles against the Chargers in Week 11.

-- Looking at some former Dolphins from last year: LB Raekwon McMillan played strictly on special teams in the Raiders' victory at Kansas City; Charles Harris got 42 defensive snaps for Atlanta against Carolina and had a tackle and two assists; and Taco Charlton played only 11 snaps against the Raiders.

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