NFL Week 7 grades: Falcons earn solid 'A' mark, while Panthers flop with a resounding 'F'

Welcome to the Week 7 grades!

We have somehow hit the final Sunday of October, and when you look at the NFL standings, there are definitely a few surprises. For one, the Cleveland Browns are in first place in their division. I repeat, the Cleveland Browns are in first place. This is not a drill. One reason the Browns' magical run is happening is because of Deshaun Watson. 

During Cleveland's 27-24 win over Tennessee, Watson engineered another fourth-quarter game-winning drive on Sunday, and he now has five on the season. That makes him just the third QB since 1970 to have a game-winning drive in each of his team's first five wins of a season. 

Not to be outdone, the New York Giants are also in first place of the NFC East, AND they just won a game with J.J. McCarthy as their starting quarterback. If I had told you in August that the first-place Giants were going to win a Week 7 game with J.J. McCarthy under center, I would have been laughed at on the internet. No one's laughing now. 

The Giants have now won a game with three different starting quarterbacks this year (McCarthy, Jameis Winston and Jaxson Dart). That makes them the first team since the 2016 Patriots to win at least three games with three different starters before November. 

On the other side of the standings, the Baltimore Ravens are in last place after suffering one of the most shocking losses in NFL history. The Ravens led the Bengals 13-0 at halftime but ultimately lost 35-13. 

That's the third-largest loss in NFL history by a team that led by at least 13 points at halftime. 

Since 2020, the Ravens have lost 17 games in which they led by double digits at some point, the most in the NFL in that span. All three of their losses this year have come in games where they held a double-digit lead. 

This was the second straight week where they shut out their opponent in the first half, only to go scoreless and lose in the second half. 

To make matters worse for the Ravens, the two teams we mentioned earlier -- the Giants and Browns -- are coached by two people the Ravens got rid of at the end of last season (John Harbaugh and Todd Monken). 

With that in mind, let's get to the grades, starting with Baltimore's ugly loss. 

Bengals (4-2) 35-13 over Ravens (4-3)

Seahawks (3-4) 20-3 over Chiefs (5-1)

Lions (4-2) 20-17 over Packers (4-3)

Rams (3-4) 35-21 over Raiders (3-4)

Broncos (5-2) 30-16 over Cardinals (2-5)

Falcons (3-4) 29-20 over 49ers (6-1)

Vikings (6-0) 16-10 over Colts (2-5)

Giants (4-2-1) 27-21 over Texans (2-5)

Buccaneers (2-5) 43-13 Panthers (3-3)

Browns (5-2) 27-24 over Titans (1-6)

Dolphins (1-5) 28-25 over Jets (2-5)

Steelers (5-2) 16-10 over Saints (2-5) in Paris

Bears (5-2) 30-24 over Patriots (4-3)

NFL Week 7 grades: Falcons earn solid 'A' mark, Panthers grab an 'F' John Breech 19 min read

Week 7 winners, losers: New York teams sit at opposite ends Carter Bahns 10 min read

Week 7 overreactions: Worst Panthers loss of the season? Zachary Pereles 10 min read

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