Buffalo's Bay Day Gives New England Route to Top Spot - Highlights of Week 10 NFL Action

Week 10 again delivered, with a major surprise for the Buffalo Bills demonstrating the 'any Sunday can bring surprises' mantra that draws so many people into the National Football League

This outcome may have opened opportunities for the New England Patriots to creep back into a leading position they used to occupy, with a schedule that provides them an edge over their 8-2 competitors

Meanwhile in the National Football Conference the Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams had ideal outcomes to set up a monster clash next week, while our top performer is chasing records as well as the Most Valuable Player award

Analysis - Just a Bad Day for the Bills?

Could it simply have been an emotional comedown from beating the Chiefs the previous week or something more? This remains the question for the Buffalo team to answer

The Bills had won seven in a consecutive games against the Dolphins but were outperformed from the start as the Dolphins emerged as 30-13 victors in an eye-opening result - and display

MVP quarterback Josh Allen only got the squad's opening first down in the third period and first points in the final quarter - admittedly Miami had 10 days to prepare but it was nonetheless a massive egg produced by one of the NFL's top offences

Dolphins quarterback Tua passed for two scores but rusher De'Von Achane was the devastating difference, with 225 combined yards and two scores

Bottling up the league's best running game was also key, with Cook and teammates recording just eighty-six yards, their lowest of the year and just over fifty percent their 161.5-yard season average

Then there were the three critical ball losses, and the two from Allen in particular. An pass caught by defense in the scoring area meaning a nine-minute drive produced nothing, and his final quarter fumble that Miami turned into a touchdown just later

It was classic 'previous Bills teams' as they shot themselves in the foot, falling into a deficit on defensive side and Josh Allen trying to do too much to rescue his squad out of it - rather than the composed, disciplined, well-balanced Buffalo team we've witnessed this season

Miami have demonstrated a bit of everything this season so the jury's out on if this is the start of a trend, but for Buffalo they'll need an immediate bounce-back in a tough game against Tampa Bay next week as the Patriots are sneaking into a nice lead at the summit of the American Football Conference East

In Focus - Patriots Identify Route to Unexpected First Place

Speaking of the New England, they're one of three eight and two teams in the league, all AFC sides, but are they the best?

One could find flaws in the Patriots, Denver and Indianapolis actually for dominating the weaker opponents, with just five of their total 24 wins coming against opponents with a winning record - and one example was the Indianapolis defeating the Denver

Denver beat the reigning champion Eagles in Philadelphia and are kings of the fourth-quarter while Indy can ride Taylor, but the Patriots including Sunday's win in Tampa to their primtime success in Orchard Park appears to be a statement

Their two defeats occurred in new head coach Mike Vrabel's first three contests, with seven straight wins, similar to the Broncos, since then - but taking down Mayfield after the Bucs had a bye to prepare was significant

Drake Maye's MVP claims continue to be discussed, and he definitely earns credit for courage after absorbing some hard tackles in Tampa Bay but persevering to steer his side to victory

The defense is solid and first-year rusher TreVeyon Henderson exploded on game day with 147 rushing yards and two exhilerating touchdowns of 55 and 69 yards - becoming just the fifth different runner to break 22mph this year on his initial touchdown

Although you can argue who 'the top team' is technically, the Pats should be favourites to finish with the top record due to their remaining opponents - which includes just one game against a successful opponent, although a huge one against the Bills

Traveling to Baltimore is challenging too, but the Broncos have it more difficult in the AFC West division with the Chiefs to play twice, the Los Angeles Chargers (who could also compete for first place but face the same problem) and also the Packers on the schedule

The Colts also face the Kansas City, and have the Seattle, 49ers and two matchups with the 5-4 Jacksonville to face. There is a long way to go but the opportunity is available for a shock number one position in the American Football Conference

Coming Up - Rams & Seahawks Set for Next Week Showdown

Two teams with solid claims to be better than all of the three different 8-2 teams are National Football Conference West rivals the Seattle and Rams, who both scored 40 burgers to go to 7-2 before the upcoming major game between the pair in Los Angeles

They've both secured four victories in a row, have quarterbacks in Stafford and Darnold performing at an high standard (although Darnold had turnover issues on game day) with top receivers, and defensive units allowing under 20 points a contest

Each could easily be undefeated as well - especially the Rams as their pair of losses came in overtime against the 49ers and then that painful defeat in Philly when they had a game-winning field goal with the last kick blocked and returned by the Eagles for a touchdown

The Seahawks were also defeated to San Francisco, with a last-minute score in the opening week, before falling to the final play of the contest against the Buccaneers - so they're truly two of the top teams in the league

The next matchup on Sunday could be the most exciting of the season to date

Player of the Week - Taylor

Jonathan Taylor could be on for a historic year after his incredible display in Germany - running for 244 yards, scoring three touchdowns and contributing another 42 {receiving yards