2023 NFL Week 10 winners and losers

2023 NFL Week 10 winners and losers: Texans' future is mighty bright, and Minnesota loves Joshua Dobbs

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Another week of NFL action is just about in the books, and boy did Week 10 provide plenty of drama. The 49ers embarrassed the Jaguars. Joshua Dobbs did it again in Minnesota. And the Browns stunned the Ravens with a last-second field goal.

Which players, coaches and teams deserve the utmost praise (or criticism) after the weekend? Here are our winners and losers:

Winner: The Texans' future

A year ago this team was 3-13-1, with Lovie Smith controlling the sidelines. Now, quarterback C.J. Stroud and head coach DeMeco Ryans are the stars of the show; they both ooze composure typically associated with 10-year vets, and that was clear as day in crunch time against Joe Burrow and the Bengals, in which Houston held on to improve to 5-4. This club is bound to stay in the wild card race, but it's also shaping up to be one of the most popular leap-forward candidates beyond 2023.

Loser: The entire Patriots franchise

If Houston is trending upward for both the short and long term, New England is doing the opposite. No one expected the Patriots to find new life in Germany on Sunday morning, but somehow their hapless defeat to the Colts was even more visibly deflating than anticipated for owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick, who may or may not be visualizing a forthcoming breakup. The weekly cycle at QB -- Mac Jones here, Bailey Zappe there, no results everywhere -- has become their sad tradition.

Winner: Joshua Dobbs

The Vikings afforded the Saints multiple opportunities to come back and steal a Week 10 win, even after Jameis Winston replaced an injured Derek Carr. But they also built a 24-point halftime lead thanks in large part to Dobbs' continued emergence. The journeyman QB has now guided back-to-back wins while using both his arm and legs (and missing key weapons like Justin Jefferson). Don't be surprised to see his jersey popping up across U.S. Bank Stadium as the year goes on.

Loser: The Ravens' reputation

All week, experts touted Baltimore as maybe the best team in the NFL at midseason, what with their dominant point differential atop the AFC. And then the Ravens went and blew another late lead to the rival Browns, whose early pick-six had them on track for a blowout defeat. Lamar Jackson wasn't faultless, throwing a pick-six of his own, but the bigger concern is this team's steady inability to close important contests; the Ravens have lost nine games when leading by 7+ points in the last three years alone.

Winner: Brock Purdy

During the 49ers' bye week, many openly wondered if Purdy's magical run as Kyle Shanahan's ultra-efficient gunslinger had already come to an end. The second-year QB certainly contributed to the club's three-game slide with several shoddy crunch-time throws. But he got all the way back on track against the Jaguars, hitting 73% of his passes with three scores and zero picks. Perhaps more importantly, he also fared exceedingly well against the blitz, halting the notion he can't handle pressure.

Loser: The Giants' composure

It's tough to keep it all together when you trail 28-0 at halftime, or 42-7 after three. Especially when those kinds of results aren't out of the norm. So cut the Giants some slack. Everyone's just looking to get better, and no one knows how to do it. But Sunday wasn't a pretty sight against the rival Cowboys, who cruised to another blowout of their "rivals." Brian Daboll once again found himself at the center of an "animated discussion," and his players could hardly stay on the same page on the sidelines, too.

Winner: Dan Campbell

The Lions got shown up against the Ravens a few weeks back, spoiling their brief effort to be considered the NFC's most balanced contender. They've rebuilt that goodwill, with Sunday's shootout win over the Chargers confirming they still belong in the class of the conference. On a day Justin Herbert threw four scores to keep L.A. moving, Campbell's aggressive fourth-down strategy and late-game management enabled Jared Goff and Co. to come out on top. The Detroit Lions are 7-2!