An OKC-Houston Slugfest, MJ on NBC, and a Seven-Week NFL Awards Draft With Danny Kelly, Danny Heifetz, and Craig Horlbeck

What It Covers

Bill Simmons analyzes OKC's double-overtime victory against Houston's unconventional no-point-guard lineup, discusses Daniel Jones's unexpected success with Indianapolis at six-and-one, and conducts a seven-week NFL awards draft predicting season outcomes including MVP, coach of the year, and rookie honors.

Key Questions Answered

• •Houston's Positionless Strategy: The Rockets field a starting lineup averaging six-foot-ten without a traditional point guard, relying on Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, and Jabari Smith to handle playmaking duties. This approach pushed OKC to double overtime despite lacking conventional floor leadership, suggesting mid-fifties win potential if sustainable across eighty-two games.
• •Daniel Jones Transformation: After six mediocre seasons with the Giants, Jones leads Indianapolis to six-and-one with improved accuracy and pocket awareness. The game appears slower for him now, similar to Sam Darnold's Vikings resurgence, demonstrating how quarterbacks sometimes need five-plus years for mental processing to catch up with NFL speed and complexity.
• •Aaron Rodgers Age-Defying Return: At forty-one years old, Rodgers returns from torn Achilles to throw a seventy-yard Hail Mary and rank fourth in touchdown passes through seven weeks. This represents unprecedented recovery for a quarterback over forty from major injury, resetting age curves similar to Tom Brady's longevity and Derek Henry's running back renaissance.
• •Fantasy Running Back Value Reset: Jonathan Taylor leads all skill players in points per game despite being drafted as running back nine in preseason. He's on pace for twenty rushing touchdowns, a mark not reached since LaDainian Tomlinson's twenty-eight in two-thousand-six, signaling a running back resurgence after three years of pass-heavy offenses dominating fantasy production.
• •Patriots Schedule Advantage: New England sits five-and-two with the league's easiest remaining schedule, facing only three current playoff teams. Drake May's immediate impact as a rookie—breaking Tom Brady's completion percentage record while displaying elite deep ball accuracy and pocket mobility—positions the Patriots as potential twelve-win contenders under Mike Vrabel's coaching.