Ranking the 10 most impressive and impactful performances from around the NFL in Week 5 led by Drake Maye’s continues resurgence in New England.
Week 5 in the NFL showed that a top quarterback is truly back to form, teased that a top rookie has already arrived just a handful of games into his pro career and saw a pair of previously winless teams breakthrough.
All that was left was to rank the top performances from those games and others as the TeamFB7 “Game Balls” committee sized up all the stat-stuffers and game-swingers from last week.
NFL Week 5 Game Balls
These were the top 10 most impressive and impactful performances from around the NFL.
1. New England Patriots QB Drake Maye
Drake Maye teased it a week earlier and solidified it in Week 5 that he’s fully overcome … whatever needed overcoming from his stunning struggles over the first few games.
To that point, Maye’s play the last two weeks makes it even harder to understand how he could have played so poorly before — just 195 passing yards a game with 1 touchdown and 6 interceptions through the first three games.
Anyways, that’s in the rearview now.
Maye completed 26 of 34 passes for a season-high 374 yards, 4 TDs and 0 INTs plus a rushing TD in the Patriots’ 45-17 destruction of the Raiders.
This after he threw for 269 yards, 3 TDs and an INT while rushing for 54 yards in a 29-26 win over the Bills the week prior.
That’s more like it.
2. New York Jets EDGE David Bailey
The Jets took David Bailey with the No. 2 overall pick in the draft this year with the expectation that he could be a game-wrecking force off the edge and a key cog in turning around their franchise.
Well, for a franchise that hasn’t made many great decisions the last decade (and beyond), it sure seems that it nailed this one.
Bailey had 3 sacks, 4 QB hits and 7 tackles in the Jet’s 17-12 win over the Browns on Sunday, raising his season total to 5 sacks in five games.
He was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week while landing his first TeamFB7 “Game Ball” — and it likely won’t be the last time for either.
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers RB Bucky Irving
Bucky Irving hadn’t rushed for more than 89 yards in a game since his rookie season two years ago, and he couldn’t have picked a better time to change that.
With Tampa Bay off to an 0-4 start and playing with an undrafted rookie QB in Jalon Daniels on the road at Dallas last Thursday, Irving put the Buccaneers on his back with a career-high 165 rushing yards and a TD on a season-high 21 carries while also scoring a receiving TD as well.
Irving powered the Bucs to a 24-16 win and provided a flicker of hope in their disappointing season so far.
4. Detroit Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs
Jahmyr Gibbs is to the Game Balls list what Alec Baldwin or Steve Martin are to hosting SNL.
Gibbs had the best game of his consistently superlative season in Week 5, rushing for 151 yards and 2 TDs on 25 carries while catching 5 balls for 56 yards in Detroit’s 45-21 in at Arizona.
With that, Gibbs is up to 504 rushing yards (fourth in the league) and 7 rushing TDs (tied for second) along with 243 yards and 2 TDs receiving.
5. Green Bay Packers QB Jordan Love and WR Christian Watson
Jordan Love and Christian Watson can share this Game Ball after sharing the spotlight in the Packers’ best performance of the season.
Love was exceptional in Green Bay’s 31-7 win over the Bears, completing 25 of 31 passes for 367 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INTs while Watson remained his favorite target with 6 catches for 143 yards and both of those aerial TDs.
The Packers are just 3-2, but there is fresh optimism for the first time since the preseason after they finally looked in sync in a complete performance on both sides of the ball.
Watson, meanwhile, has been one of the best WRs in the NFL so far with 26 catches for 474 yards and 6 TDs.
When those two are clicking, Green Bay suddenly looks like a playoff team again.
6. Minnesota Vikings CB Byron Murphy Jr.
The Vikings are one of three remaining unbeaten teams along with the 49ers and Chiefs, and incredibly they’ve gotten to 5-0 despite ranking 27th in the NFL in total offense (283.0 yards per game).
The Minnesota defense has simply been lights out every week, and that continued last Sunday in 23-13 win over the Saints while holding one of the NFL’s leading passers, Tyler Shough, to just 96 yards on 25 attempts with 2 INTs.
Cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. keyed that stifling pass coverage and nabbed both picks on his way to earning NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors and, more importantly, his first TeamFB7 Game Ball.
That was Murphy’s third pick of the season and 19th career INT in eight years in the league. He also had a tackle for loss in the win. We highlighted his matchup with the Saints ahead of Week 5.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers RB Jaylen Warren
Jaylen Warren figured to be in for a reduced workload in 2026 when the Steelers signed RB Rico Dowdle to join him in the backfield, but Dowdle has been out injured since Week 2 and Warren is doing everything to make sure that Dowdle returns to a smaller role than expected when he’s healthy.
The fifth-year back is having a belated breakout this season and continued it with 15 carries for 101 yards and a TD and 6 catches for 87 yards and a score in the Steelers’ 34-22 win over the Colts in Week 5.
It marked the third straight game Warren had at least 125 combined rushing/receiving yards. Overall, he’s up to 410 rushing yards on 5.9 yards per carry (well above his 4.9 career average) and 230 receiving yards with 2 total TDs.
Warren had his best season last year with 958 rushing yards, 333 receiving yards and 8 total TDs and could be on the way to blowing past those numbers.
8. Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen
Game Ball recognition is not just about raw stats — overall impact weighs most important in the end.
So Bills QB Josh Allen makes the list after playing the starring role in his team’s biggest win of the season Monday night in that 37-34 overtime shootout with the Rams.
It wasn’t an exceptional passing performance from the former league MVP, who started slow on the way to completing 12 of 19 passes for 210 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. But most of those yards came late in the game as the Bills scored touchdowns on their final three possessions of regulation, and Allen also left his mark with 121 rushing yards and a TD on 10 attempts.
Over those final three possessions of regulation (not counting getting the ball back with a few seconds left in the fourth quarter) and two overtime drives (the first ending in a James Cook fumble), Allen had 159 of his passing yards and 100 rushing yards, including gains of 19 and 13 on back-to-back plays to set up the game-winning field goal.
And how about this for a stat …
9. Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford and WR Puka Nacua
Certainly, the Rams didn’t lose that game because of their offensive stars, so Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua earn their place on the list even in defeat.
Stafford completed 40 of 54 passes for 383 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs while Nacua had a career-high 17 receptions for 138 yards and a score.
It’s wild to think that the Rams — the overwhelming Super Bowl favorites — are now 2-3, but when they’re on offensively it takes an MVP-worthy performance to top them like Allen delivered Monday night.
10. Jacksonville Jaguars WR Parker Washington
After being held to just 1 catch for 7 yards the previous week, Parker Washington delivered a resounding response Sunday in London with 6 catches for 124 yards and 2 TDs in Jacksonville’s 19-17 win over Philadelphia.
Washington’s TDs came on catches of 51 and 27 yards and the fourth-year pro is backing up his 2025 breakout with 22 catches for 352 yards and 4 TDs through five games for the 4-1 Jaguars.
Honorable Mentions
New York Giants QB Jameis Winston: Everyone knows how the Giants-Commanders game ended last week, but lost in that wild finish was a throwback performance from Jameis Winston as he completed 33 of 54 passes for 326 yard, 3 TDs and 0 INT and rushed for 27 yards in that 27-27 tie.
Green Bay Packers DB Xavier McKinney: Xavier McKinney had 2 interceptions in the Packers’ stifling defensive performance vs. the Bears in that 31-7 win.
Houston Texans EDGE Will Anderson Jr: The Texans got their first win by absolutely manhandling the winless Titans, 26-3. Will Anderson left his imprint all over that win with 3 sacks, bringing his season total to 7.5
Cincinnati Bengals S Jordan Battle: The Bengals didn’t make it look quite as easy against the winless Dolphins, hanging on for a 31-24 victory in Miami. Jordan Battle did his part with 7 tackles and 2 INTs.
Indianapolis Colts K Spencer Shrader: It was in a losing effort, but Spencer Shrader connected on all 5 of his field goal attempts in the Colts’ 34-22 loss to the Steelers. That included kicks of 57 and 56 yards as he stayed perfect for the season at 16/16 on field goals.
