For the second straight week, a pair of blowouts registered Game Scripts of at least +17.0 points. This time, two 2013 NFC playoff teams were on the losing side of things, as the Packers (+22.8) crushed the Panthers in the afternoon before the Broncos obliterated the 49ers (+18.0) at night. Aaron Rodgers was his absurdly hyper efficient self, completing 19 of 22 passes for 255 yards and 3 touchdowns. Peyton Manning, in addition to setting the career passing touchdowns record, threw for a first down on 14 of his 28 dropbacks. That’s pretty darn good. ^[1]The best rate this year was Matt Ryan against Tampa Bay, when he picked up a first down on 60% of his dropbacks.

There were only two teams to win in week 7 with a negative Game Script.  The most shocking comeback of the day came in Detroit, where the Lions overcame a 13-point deficit with five minutes remaining to win, 24-23. In Buffalo, the Bills drove 80 yards in just over three minutes and defeated the Vikings when Kyle Orton hit Sammy Watkins for a touchdown with just one second left in the game.

In the “misleading final scores” category, the Browns/Jaguars game takes first prize. The Jaguars posted a Game Script of just +1.5 in the team’s 24-6 win; the Browns actually led for most of the first half and had the ball in Jacksonville territory in the middle of the fourth quarter tailing by just four points. Alas, two late touchdowns, and it turned into a Jaguars blowout. On the other side of the coin, the Rams won by just two points, but were in control for most of the game in the upset victory over Seattle. St. Louis had a 21-3 first half lead, before Russell Wilson second-half magic nearly altered the result. For the day, Wilson became the first player to ever pass for 300 yards and rush for 100 yards in the same game.

The table below lists the Game Scripts data from each game in week 7.

• As we’ve documented several times in these parts, Jets games seem to have their own flair to them. On the season, the Jets have recorded 263 pass plays, while New York’s opponents have passed 264 times. The Jets have also rushed 30 more times than their opponents. This, of course, is quite notable given the fact that New York has been outscored by 9.1 points per game, the 4th worst mark in the NFL. In short, the Jets are very run-heavy, while Jets opponents tend to avoid running the ball. This was very evident against New England on Thursday night in a true back-and-forth affair. The Patriots had a Game Script of +2.9, but threw on 71.7% of all plays! New York, meanwhile, ran more than they passed; the Jets ended the game with 10 straight pass plays in hurry-up mode; prior to that, New York had 27 run plays against 43 runs. ^[2]Of course, seven of those were Geno Smith carries, with several on called passing plays. Chris Ivory was effective (21 for 107), but the Jets are very happy to lean on the run until the game gets out of hand. Jets opponents do not share the same view.

• To a lesser degree, the same effect was exhibited in Houston. The Texans called a more run-heavy game plan than the Steelers despite posting a negative Game Script. In fact, Houston has been the most run-heavy team in the NFL this year by raw averages (i.e., not adjusting for Game Script). That’s probably smart when you have Ryan Fitzpatrick and Arian Foster as your two options.

• Games with neutral Game Scripts are always fun to examine. The Kansas City/San Diego was one such affair, but it didn’t go the way you might think. The Andy Reid team was run heavy while San Diego was unusually pass-focused. The Chargers have been very run heavy under Mike McCoy, but perhaps the cumulative effects of the Donald Brown and Danny Woodhead injuries are beginning to have an impact. Branden Oliver had 15 carries, but perhaps the bigger story is that the Chargers ran just 49 plays from scrimmage (as Bill Barnwell pointed out, that’s because of third down struggles and the Chiefs ball-control offense). As a result, a 33-dropback day for Philip Rivers comes off as unusually pass-heavy for the Bolts. Kansas City, meanwhile, wound up with 39 rushes and just 31 pass plays, although classifying some of Alex Smith’s six runs would moved that split closer to 50/50. Jamaal Charles picked up 22 carries, but the Chiefs also gave Knile Davis 10 carries. That’s only the 6th time a Reid team has given two running backs 10 carries in a game since 2007, and this was by far the closest of those games.

• It’s worth noting that Kyle Orton dropped back for 49 pass attempts against Minnesota in a game Buffalo actually won in the final seconds. Of course, Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller were both lost to injuries after a total of four carries, leading to the option of Orton pass attempts or Anthony Dixon runs (13 carries for 51 yards). The Bills actually had the highest pass ratio of the week among winning teams and the fifth highest ratio overall. Week 8 should be interesting — with Jackson and Spiller still out, and the Jets on tap, Orton could wind up with another very heavy passing day. That’s good news for Sammy Watkins fantasy owners, I suppose. As for the Vikings, the team continues to be very conservative under Teddy Bridgewater. Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata rushed 25 times for 127 yards, while Bridgewater gained just 118 net yards on 31 dropbacks. That’s bad news, but a Bucs defense on tap is the cure for just about everything.

• The Cowboys continue their run-heavy ways, as DeMarco Murray rushed 28 times for 128 yards. But there’s another reason Dallas could afford to be so run-happy against New York: Tony Romo was freakin’ insane, completing 17 of 23 passes for 279 yards and three touchdowns.