Bengals extend the NFL’s best third-down rate to 52.9%, and Bears hold Seattle to 1 of 11 to widen their defensive lead after Week 8

Cincinnati’s third-down offense got better again in Week 8. The Bengals went 7 of 10 on third down and 5 of 6 in the red zone in their 43–36 overtime win over Tennessee, and they now convert 52.9% of their third downs (46 of 87), up from 50.6% a week ago. San Francisco, which was on a bye, is second at 50.0%.

Chicago’s third-down defense got better too. The Bears held Seattle to 1 of 11 in a 34–17 win on Monday night and allow just 23.8% of conversions (19 of 80), ahead of Minnesota at 29.7% and Seattle at 30.6%. A week ago the Bears led the Vikings by 2.1 points. They now lead by 5.9.

The rest of Week 8 was harder on offenses. Teams converted 36.8% of third downs, the lowest rate of any week since Week 4 and down from 43.7% in Week 7. Atlanta went 0 of 12 at Tampa Bay in a 16–0 loss. The tables below cover all 121 games played through Week 8, so teams have played seven or eight games.

Third-down offense

Rank	Team	G	Converted	Rate	Rank after W7	Last game	Week 9 (Cairo time)
1	Cincinnati	7	46 of 87	52.9%	1	W8 vs. TEN: 7 of 10	vs. Atlanta (Madrid), Sun 16:30
2	San Francisco	7	38 of 76	50.0%	2	W7 at ATL: 4 of 10	vs. Las Vegas, Sun 23:25
3	Jacksonville	7	41 of 85	48.2%	4	W8 vs. IND: 6 of 12	at Baltimore, Fri 03:15
4	Dallas	8	48 of 101	47.5%	3	W8 vs. ARI: 6 of 16	at Indianapolis, Sun 20:00
5	Chicago	8	51 of 115	44.3%	7	W8 at SEA: 7 of 15	vs. Tampa Bay, Mon 03:20
6	Buffalo	7	34 of 77	44.2%	5	W8 vs. BAL: 4 of 14	at Minnesota, Tue 03:15
7	New Orleans	7	43 of 99	43.4%	8	W7 vs. PIT: 6 of 12	vs. Cleveland, Sun 20:00
8	LA Rams	8	41 of 96	42.7%	6	W8 vs. LAC: 3 of 11	at Washington, Sun 20:00
9	Miami	7	38 of 89	42.7%	10	W8 vs. NE: 7 of 14	vs. Detroit, Sun 20:00
10	Las Vegas	8	43 of 103	41.7%	T-17	W8 at NYJ: 7 of 11	at San Francisco, Sun 23:25
11	NY Giants	7	40 of 97	41.2%	11	W7 at HOU: 5 of 13	at Philadelphia, Sun 20:00
T-12	Kansas City	7	34 of 85	40.0%	15	W8 at DEN: 6 of 14	vs. NY Jets, Sun 20:00
T-12	New England	8	40 of 100	40.0%	14	W8 at MIA: 6 of 14	vs. Green Bay, Sun 23:25
14	Baltimore	8	38 of 97	39.2%	9	W8 at BUF: 3 of 13	vs. Jacksonville, Fri 03:15
15	Detroit	7	32 of 82	39.0%	T-17	W8 vs. MIN: 5 of 13	at Miami, Sun 20:00
16	Arizona	8	48 of 124	38.7%	24	W8 at DAL: 8 of 18	at Seattle, Sun 23:25
17	Carolina	7	37 of 96	38.5%	12	W8 at GB: 5 of 18	vs. Denver, Sun 20:00
18	Indianapolis	8	42 of 109	38.5%	13	W8 at JAX: 3 of 11	vs. Dallas, Sun 20:00
19	Tampa Bay	8	43 of 112	38.4%	16	W8 vs. ATL: 4 of 13	at Chicago, Mon 03:20
20	Green Bay	8	41 of 107	38.3%	28	W8 vs. CAR: 9 of 16	at New England, Sun 23:25
21	Pittsburgh	8	39 of 103	37.9%	21	W8 vs. CLE: 4 of 11	Bye
22	NY Jets	8	38 of 101	37.6%	23	W8 vs. LV: 4 of 11	at Kansas City, Sun 20:00
23	Philadelphia	8	41 of 110	37.3%	22	W8 at WSH: 5 of 15	vs. NY Giants, Sun 20:00
24	Houston	7	33 of 89	37.1%	25	W7 vs. NYG: 3 of 12	at LA Chargers, Sun 23:05
25	Tennessee	8	34 of 94	36.2%	27	W8 at CIN: 5 of 12	Bye
26	Minnesota	7	36 of 100	36.0%	26	W8 at DET: 3 of 10	vs. Buffalo, Tue 03:15
27	Seattle	8	36 of 101	35.6%	19	W8 vs. CHI: 1 of 11	vs. Arizona, Sun 23:25
28	LA Chargers	7	34 of 97	35.1%	29	W8 at LAR: 6 of 15	vs. Houston, Sun 23:05
29	Atlanta	8	32 of 96	33.3%	20	W8 at TB: 0 of 12	vs. Cincinnati (Madrid), Sun 16:30
30	Cleveland	8	33 of 102	32.4%	30	W8 at PIT: 4 of 13	at New Orleans, Sun 20:00
31	Washington	7	30 of 94	31.9%	32	W8 vs. PHI: 5 of 13	vs. LA Rams, Sun 20:00
32	Denver	8	30 of 101	29.7%	31	W8 vs. KC: 2 of 11	at Carolina, Sun 20:00

Atlanta made the biggest drop. The Falcons’ 0-of-12 game is the second this season in which a team went without a conversion on 10 or more attempts, after Philadelphia went 0 for 12 against the Rams in Week 4. Atlanta fell from 20th to 29th, with its rate going from 38.1% to 33.3%. Jacksonville is third at 48.2% after going 6 of 12 against Indianapolis, and Dallas is fourth at 47.5% after going 6 of 16 in a 33–30 loss to Arizona.

Denver is last at 29.7% (30 of 101) and is still 6–2. The Broncos went 2 of 11 against Kansas City and won 28–24. Washington is 31st at 31.9%, with Cleveland 30th at 32.4%.

Third-down defense

Rank	Team	G	Converted	Rate	Rank after W7	Last game	Week 9 (Cairo time)
1	Chicago	8	19 of 80	23.8%	1	W8 at SEA: 1 of 11	vs. Tampa Bay, Mon 03:20
2	Minnesota	7	27 of 91	29.7%	3	W8 at DET: 5 of 13	vs. Buffalo, Tue 03:15
3	Seattle	8	33 of 108	30.6%	2	W8 vs. CHI: 7 of 15	vs. Arizona, Sun 23:25
4	LA Chargers	7	26 of 85	30.6%	6	W8 at LAR: 3 of 11	vs. Houston, Sun 23:05
5	Tampa Bay	8	32 of 100	32.0%	9	W8 vs. ATL: 0 of 12	at Chicago, Mon 03:20
6	LA Rams	8	33 of 102	32.4%	5	W8 vs. LAC: 6 of 15	at Washington, Sun 20:00
7	Indianapolis	8	30 of 92	32.6%	4	W8 at JAX: 6 of 12	vs. Dallas, Sun 20:00
8	Pittsburgh	8	36 of 105	34.3%	7	W8 vs. CLE: 4 of 13	Bye
9	Jacksonville	7	28 of 80	35.0%	8	W8 vs. IND: 3 of 11	at Baltimore, Fri 03:15
10	San Francisco	7	36 of 95	37.9%	11	W7 at ATL: 4 of 12	vs. Las Vegas, Sun 23:25
11	New England	8	37 of 96	38.5%	10	W8 at MIA: 7 of 14	vs. Green Bay, Sun 23:25
12	Cleveland	8	43 of 111	38.7%	13	W8 at PIT: 4 of 11	at New Orleans, Sun 20:00
13	Kansas City	7	38 of 97	39.2%	20	W8 at DEN: 2 of 11	vs. NY Jets, Sun 20:00
14	NY Giants	7	33 of 84	39.3%	14	W7 at HOU: 3 of 12	at Philadelphia, Sun 20:00
15	Arizona	8	37 of 94	39.4%	15	W8 at DAL: 6 of 16	at Seattle, Sun 23:25
16	Baltimore	8	42 of 106	39.6%	18	W8 at BUF: 4 of 14	vs. Jacksonville, Fri 03:15
17	Houston	7	36 of 89	40.4%	16	W7 vs. NYG: 5 of 13	at LA Chargers, Sun 23:05
18	NY Jets	8	41 of 100	41.0%	12	W8 vs. LV: 7 of 11	at Kansas City, Sun 20:00
19	Atlanta	8	46 of 112	41.1%	23	W8 at TB: 4 of 13	vs. Cincinnati (Madrid), Sun 16:30
20	Philadelphia	8	48 of 116	41.4%	19	W8 at WSH: 5 of 13	vs. NY Giants, Sun 20:00
21	Green Bay	8	46 of 111	41.4%	24	W8 vs. CAR: 5 of 18	at New England, Sun 23:25
22	Las Vegas	8	40 of 96	41.7%	22	W8 at NYJ: 4 of 11	at San Francisco, Sun 23:25
23	Buffalo	7	39 of 93	41.9%	27	W8 vs. BAL: 3 of 13	at Minnesota, Tue 03:15
24	Denver	8	51 of 121	42.1%	21	W8 vs. KC: 6 of 14	at Carolina, Sun 20:00
25	Washington	7	41 of 96	42.7%	T-25	W8 vs. PHI: 5 of 15	vs. LA Rams, Sun 20:00
26	Tennessee	8	44 of 101	43.6%	17	W8 at CIN: 7 of 10	Bye
27	Detroit	7	44 of 96	45.8%	28	W8 vs. MIN: 3 of 10	at Miami, Sun 20:00
28	Carolina	7	45 of 97	46.4%	T-25	W8 at GB: 9 of 16	vs. Denver, Sun 20:00
29	Cincinnati	7	43 of 91	47.3%	30	W8 vs. TEN: 5 of 12	vs. Atlanta (Madrid), Sun 16:30
30	New Orleans	7	43 of 90	47.8%	29	W7 vs. PIT: 10 of 16	vs. Cleveland, Sun 20:00
31	Miami	7	43 of 85	50.6%	31	W8 vs. NE: 6 of 14	vs. Detroit, Sun 20:00
32	Dallas	8	54 of 105	51.4%	32	W8 vs. ARI: 8 of 18	at Indianapolis, Sun 20:00

Seattle’s 1 of 11 at home is one of four games this season with one conversion or none on 11 or more attempts, along with Atlanta’s 0 of 12 this week, Philadelphia’s 0 of 12 in Week 4 and Denver’s 1 of 12 at the Chargers in Week 5. It cost the Seahawks a place, and they fell from second to third.

Tampa Bay held Atlanta to none for 12 and moved from ninth to fifth at 32.0%. Dallas is last at 51.4% (54 of 105) after Arizona converted 8 of 18, and Miami is 31st at 50.6%. Cincinnati is 29th at 47.3%.

Red-zone offense (touchdowns per trip inside the 20)

Rank	Team	G	Converted	Rate	Rank after W7	Last game	Week 9 (Cairo time)
1	San Francisco	7	19 of 22	86.4%	1	W7 at ATL: 2 of 2	vs. Las Vegas, Sun 23:25
2	New Orleans	7	17 of 22	77.3%	2	W7 vs. PIT: 1 of 3	vs. Cleveland, Sun 20:00
3	Dallas	8	23 of 32	71.9%	3	W8 vs. ARI: 3 of 5	at Indianapolis, Sun 20:00
4	Philadelphia	8	15 of 21	71.4%	4	W8 at WSH: 1 of 2	vs. NY Giants, Sun 20:00
5	Buffalo	7	21 of 30	70.0%	6	W8 vs. BAL: 3 of 4	at Minnesota, Tue 03:15
6	LA Rams	8	22 of 32	68.8%	7	W8 vs. LAC: 2 of 3	at Washington, Sun 20:00
7	Jacksonville	7	13 of 19	68.4%	T-8	W8 vs. IND: 1 of 1	at Baltimore, Fri 03:15
8	Cincinnati	7	19 of 28	67.9%	12	W8 vs. TEN: 5 of 6	vs. Atlanta (Madrid), Sun 16:30
T-9	Detroit	7	20 of 30	66.7%	5	W8 vs. MIN: 1 of 3	at Miami, Sun 20:00
T-9	NY Giants	7	14 of 21	66.7%	T-8	W7 at HOU: 3 of 3	at Philadelphia, Sun 20:00
11	Denver	8	15 of 23	65.2%	T-14	W8 vs. KC: 3 of 3	at Carolina, Sun 20:00
12	Carolina	7	16 of 25	64.0%	11	W8 at GB: 1 of 2	vs. Denver, Sun 20:00
13	Atlanta	8	14 of 22	63.6%	T-8	W8 at TB: 0 of 1	vs. Cincinnati (Madrid), Sun 16:30
14	Houston	7	15 of 25	60.0%	T-14	W7 vs. NYG: 2 of 2	at LA Chargers, Sun 23:05
15	Baltimore	8	16 of 27	59.3%	13	W8 at BUF: 1 of 3	vs. Jacksonville, Fri 03:15
16	Indianapolis	8	13 of 22	59.1%	T-14	W8 at JAX: 1 of 2	vs. Dallas, Sun 20:00
17	Chicago	8	20 of 34	58.8%	20	W8 at SEA: 4 of 4	vs. Tampa Bay, Mon 03:20
18	Kansas City	7	15 of 26	57.7%	17	W8 at DEN: 2 of 3	vs. NY Jets, Sun 20:00
19	Minnesota	7	9 of 16	56.2%	T-22	W8 at DET: 2 of 2	vs. Buffalo, Tue 03:15
20	Miami	7	10 of 18	55.6%	18	W8 vs. NE: 1 of 2	vs. Detroit, Sun 20:00
21	New England	8	12 of 22	54.5%	19	W8 at MIA: 1 of 2	vs. Green Bay, Sun 23:25
22	Las Vegas	8	17 of 32	53.1%	29	W8 at NYJ: 4 of 4	at San Francisco, Sun 23:25
23	Washington	7	10 of 19	52.6%	T-22	W8 vs. PHI: 2 of 3	vs. LA Rams, Sun 20:00
24	Tennessee	8	12 of 23	52.2%	T-27	W8 at CIN: 3 of 4	Bye
25	Green Bay	8	15 of 29	51.7%	30	W8 vs. CAR: 3 of 3	at New England, Sun 23:25
T-26	Pittsburgh	8	12 of 24	50.0%	T-27	W8 vs. CLE: 3 of 5	Bye
T-26	Tampa Bay	8	13 of 26	50.0%	21	W8 vs. ATL: 1 of 3	at Chicago, Mon 03:20
28	LA Chargers	7	8 of 17	47.1%	T-22	W8 at LAR: 0 of 1	vs. Houston, Sun 23:05
29	Seattle	8	13 of 28	46.4%	T-22	W8 vs. CHI: 1 of 4	vs. Arizona, Sun 23:25
30	Arizona	8	15 of 33	45.5%	32	W8 at DAL: 3 of 5	at Seattle, Sun 23:25
31	Cleveland	8	9 of 21	42.9%	T-22	W8 at PIT: 0 of 3	at New Orleans, Sun 20:00
32	NY Jets	8	11 of 26	42.3%	31	W8 vs. LV: 2 of 6	at Kansas City, Sun 20:00

San Francisco still leads at 86.4% (19 touchdowns on 22 trips) and has not played since Week 7. New Orleans is second at 77.3%, Dallas third at 71.9% and Philadelphia fourth at 71.4%. Cleveland dropped from 22nd to 31st after going 0 for 3 inside the Pittsburgh 20, and the New York Jets are last at 42.3% after scoring touchdowns on 2 of 6 trips against Las Vegas.

Las Vegas went the other way. The Raiders scored on all four of their red-zone trips at the Jets and moved from 29th to 22nd, at 53.1%. Arizona was last after Week 7 and is now 30th at 45.5%.

Red-zone defense

Rank	Team	G	Converted	Rate	Rank after W7	Last game	Week 9 (Cairo time)
1	Minnesota	7	4 of 16	25.0%	1	W8 at DET: 1 of 3	vs. Buffalo, Tue 03:15
2	Pittsburgh	8	6 of 16	37.5%	8	W8 vs. CLE: 0 of 3	Bye
3	Kansas City	7	7 of 18	38.9%	2	W8 at DEN: 3 of 3	vs. NY Jets, Sun 20:00
4	Jacksonville	7	9 of 22	40.9%	4	W8 vs. IND: 1 of 2	at Baltimore, Fri 03:15
5	Cincinnati	7	10 of 24	41.7%	3	W8 vs. TEN: 3 of 4	vs. Atlanta (Madrid), Sun 16:30
6	LA Rams	8	12 of 28	42.9%	5	W8 vs. LAC: 0 of 1	at Washington, Sun 20:00
7	San Francisco	7	11 of 23	47.8%	9	W7 at ATL: 2 of 5	vs. Las Vegas, Sun 23:25
T-8	Cleveland	8	12 of 25	48.0%	6	W8 at PIT: 3 of 5	at New Orleans, Sun 20:00
T-8	Denver	8	12 of 25	48.0%	7	W8 vs. KC: 2 of 3	at Carolina, Sun 20:00
T-10	LA Chargers	7	14 of 28	50.0%	10	W8 at LAR: 2 of 3	vs. Houston, Sun 23:05
T-10	Tampa Bay	8	10 of 20	50.0%	11	W8 vs. ATL: 0 of 1	at Chicago, Mon 03:20
12	New England	8	13 of 24	54.2%	12	W8 at MIA: 1 of 2	vs. Green Bay, Sun 23:25
13	Philadelphia	8	18 of 32	56.2%	13	W8 at WSH: 2 of 3	vs. NY Giants, Sun 20:00
14	New Orleans	7	17 of 30	56.7%	15	W7 vs. PIT: 1 of 4	vs. Cleveland, Sun 20:00
15	Chicago	8	12 of 21	57.1%	18	W8 at SEA: 1 of 4	vs. Tampa Bay, Mon 03:20
16	Indianapolis	8	13 of 21	61.9%	T-16	W8 at JAX: 1 of 1	vs. Dallas, Sun 20:00
17	NY Jets	8	18 of 29	62.1%	14	W8 vs. LV: 4 of 4	at Kansas City, Sun 20:00
18	Atlanta	8	19 of 30	63.3%	T-20	W8 at TB: 1 of 3	vs. Cincinnati (Madrid), Sun 16:30
19	Miami	7	18 of 28	64.3%	19	W8 vs. NE: 1 of 2	vs. Detroit, Sun 20:00
20	Tennessee	8	20 of 31	64.5%	T-16	W8 at CIN: 5 of 6	Bye
21	Buffalo	7	19 of 29	65.5%	24	W8 vs. BAL: 1 of 3	at Minnesota, Tue 03:15
22	Green Bay	8	18 of 27	66.7%	22	W8 vs. CAR: 1 of 2	at New England, Sun 23:25
T-23	Arizona	8	19 of 28	67.9%	25	W8 at DAL: 3 of 5	at Seattle, Sun 23:25
T-23	Baltimore	8	19 of 28	67.9%	T-20	W8 at BUF: 3 of 4	vs. Jacksonville, Fri 03:15
25	Houston	7	13 of 19	68.4%	23	W7 vs. NYG: 3 of 3	at LA Chargers, Sun 23:05
26	Dallas	8	22 of 32	68.8%	26	W8 vs. ARI: 3 of 5	at Indianapolis, Sun 20:00
27	Las Vegas	8	24 of 34	70.6%	T-30	W8 at NYJ: 2 of 6	at San Francisco, Sun 23:25
28	Detroit	7	20 of 27	74.1%	27	W8 vs. MIN: 2 of 2	at Miami, Sun 20:00
29	NY Giants	7	14 of 18	77.8%	29	W7 at HOU: 2 of 2	at Philadelphia, Sun 20:00
30	Washington	7	19 of 24	79.2%	32	W8 vs. PHI: 1 of 2	vs. LA Rams, Sun 20:00
31	Carolina	7	16 of 20	80.0%	28	W8 at GB: 3 of 3	vs. Denver, Sun 20:00
32	Seattle	8	15 of 18	83.3%	T-30	W8 vs. CHI: 4 of 4	vs. Arizona, Sun 23:25

Minnesota still has the best red-zone defense at 25.0%, with four touchdowns allowed on 16 trips, after holding Detroit to 1 of 3. Pittsburgh jumped from eighth to second at 37.5% because Cleveland went 0 for 3 in the red zone. Kansas City fell from second to third, at 38.9%, after Denver scored on all three of its trips.

Seattle is now last at 83.3% (15 touchdowns on 18 trips). Chicago scored on all four of its red-zone trips, and the Seahawks dropped from 30th to 32nd. Carolina is 31st at 80.0% and Washington 30th at 79.2%. Cincinnati fell from third to fifth at 41.7% after Tennessee scored on 3 of 4 trips.

What to watch in Week 9

Cincinnati and Atlanta meet in Madrid on Sunday at 16:30 Cairo time, the league’s best third-down offense against the 19th-ranked third-down defense. Denver, the lowest-ranked third-down offense, visits Carolina at 20:00, and Carolina’s defense is 28th at 46.4%. Seattle, last in red-zone defense, hosts Arizona at 23:25, and the Cardinals’ red-zone offense is 30th.

Chicago hosts Tampa Bay on Monday night, 03:20 Cairo time, with the league’s best third-down defense against the 19th-ranked third-down offense. Minnesota, the top red-zone defense, hosts Buffalo on Tuesday at 03:15 against the fifth-ranked red-zone offense at 70.0%. Pittsburgh and Tennessee are on a bye, and San Francisco hosts Las Vegas at 23:25 on Sunday.

League third-down and red-zone rates by week

Week	Games	Third downs	Rate	Red-zone TDs per trip	Rate
1	16	154 of 388	39.7%	70 of 105	66.7%
2	16	169 of 417	40.5%	53 of 97	54.6%
3	16	170 of 408	41.7%	66 of 114	57.9%
4	16	141 of 402	35.1%	64 of 104	61.5%
5	15	161 of 404	39.9%	60 of 92	65.2%
6	14	152 of 391	38.9%	53 of 99	53.5%
7	14	152 of 348	43.7%	53 of 95	55.8%
8	14	135 of 367	36.8%	54 of 89	60.7%
Season	121	1234 of 3125	39.5%	473 of 795	59.5%

Teams converted 36.8% of their third downs in Week 8, but they scored touchdowns on 60.7% of red-zone trips, up from 55.8% in Week 7. The season rates are 39.5% on third down and 59.5% in the red zone.

These numbers come from the official game statistics. Third-down totals match the league’s team statistics for all 32 teams. Red-zone rates match a second independent count for all 32 teams, apart from a rounding difference for Las Vegas.