Top teams to watch ahead of the 2025 NFL trade deadline
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- Jahmyr Gibbs had a career night, eclipsing 200 yards from scrimmage with a career-long 78-yard touchdown run.
- The Seattle Seahawks’ 10 p.m. ET kickoff time coincided with the Mariners playing in Game 7 of the ALCS.
- Baker Mayfield’s MVP campaign took a hit with the Buccaneers’ performance in Detroit.
If you can’t get enough “Monday Night Football” action, then Week 7 was for you – ESPN serving up yet another doubleheader, this one with two games in standalone windows as opposed to a pair with staggered starts.
This was the final time this season, and maybe ever, that the league plays two on the first day of the work week if ESPN’s acquisition of NFL Network and other league media properties is eventually finalized.
Either way, the Detroit Lions rebounded from their Week 6 loss at Kansas City to hand the Tampa Bay Buccaneers their second defeat of the season, largely cruising to a 24-9 victory at Ford Field. The Seattle Seahawks hosted the Houston Texans in the second game, which kicked off at 10 p.m. ET.
Two games, two sets of winners and losers … one final time:
WINNERS
‘Monday Night Football’
Sure, NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” effectively became the league’s weekly showcase years ago. But “MNF” still retains its own cachet, Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on the primary call for what’s supposed to be the capstone of the league’s weekly cadence. Tinkering with the format over the years – whether it’s kickoff times, pure doubleheaders or overlapping games has never seemed to hold much appeal, particularly to viewers conditioned to ingest one game after a laborious day with another on the way soon enough when the alarm clock blares on Tuesday morning. Even in the mighty NFL, less is sometimes more.
Jahmyr Gibbs
Detroit’s two-time Pro Bowl back had a career night, eclipsing 200 yards from scrimmage (218 overall) for the first time in his career, thanks in large part to a career-long 78-yard TD run that staked the Lions to a 14-0 second-quarter lead that never seemed under much threat.
Tez Johnson
The Buccaneers receiver didn’t provide another viral moment like he did in Week 6, when he interpreted MVP chants aimed at QB Baker Mayfield instead being rained on himself after a TD catch. But the seventh-rounder out of Oregon had another productive night – and when Mike Evans was hurt and Chris Godwin was out – matching fellow rookie Emeka Egbuka with four catches and 58 yards.
Seattle sports
Did the Seahawks ever really think a 10 p.m. ET kickoff on a Monday would coincide with the Mariners playing in Game 7 of the ALCS with their long-awaited first World Series berth hanging in the balance?
LOSERS
David Montgomery
Gibbs’ big night seemed to come at his wingman’s expense, Montgomery getting five fewer touches in much less consequential spots while producing just 39 yards.
Baker Mayfield’s MVP campaign
His season-long magic act just didn’t materialize on this night, when Tampa Bay’s continuously depleted offense finally seemed to catch up with the Bucs, who managed just one touchdown to go along with their lowest point and yardage total (251) of 2025. But that’s good news for fellow QBs Matthew Stafford, Patrick Mahomes and other aspirants to the end-of-year hardware.
Brian Branch
The Lions’ Pro Bowl, do-it-all defensive back sat out Monday, suspended for throwing hands after the loss to the Chiefs. While the timing was unideal for a battered Detroit secondary, Branch’s buddies rose to the occasion and picked him up.
Mike Evans
Playing for the first time in a month after suffering a hamstring injury in Week 3, the Bucs’ six-time Pro Bowl receiver didn’t make it to halftime, suffering a concussion and shoulder injury after hitting the turf as he tried to track down a deep pass from Mayfield. And while Evans’ health is the primary concern, on a secondary level, his streak of 11 consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons – it began in 2014, his rookie year – is in serious jeopardy of ending.
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