The #NFL on Twitter: Week 9

Week nine of the #NFL saw two of the best quarterbacks in the league write another chapter in their historic rivalry. It also included Big Ben throwing for another six touchdowns, a starting QB go down with a significant injury and another QB fumble when the game was on the line. And all of this week’s @NFL action on and off the field played out on Twitter.

The snow in Foxborough cleared up just in time for Tom Brady and the @Patriots to renew the annual rivalry with Peyton Manning and the @Broncos. New England now sits atop the AFC at 7-2 after they won 43-21, thanks to Brady’s four TD passes, including one each to Rob Gronkowski (@RobGronkowski) and Julian Edelman (@Edelman11), two playmakers who both had big games.

@SNFonNBC brought fans one of the biggest rivalries in the #NFL, and Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger (@_BigBen7) threw six touchdowns for the second consecutive week in the @Steelers 43-23 AFC North win over the @Ravens. Antonio Brown (@AntonioBrown84) added 144 receiving yards and a TD, while veteran linebacker James Harrison (@jharrison9292) turned back the clock with two sacks in the win.

The @dallascowboys played without starting QB Tony Romo and couldn’t hold off the surging @AZCardinals. Arizona moved to an NFC-best 7-1 with the 28-17 win, and were the first defense to hold Dallas running back DeMarco Murray (@DemarcoMurray) to under 100 yards rushing. Carson Palmer threw for three TDs, while Andre Ellington (@AEllington38) rumbled for 95 yards in the win.

In Houston, the @Eagles overcame losing starting QB Nick Foles (@NFoles_9) to injury and beat the @HoustonTexans 31-21 behind a monster receiving day from Jeremy Maclin (@jmac_18) and solid play from backup QB Mark Sanchez (@Mark_Sanchez). Thanks to the Dallas loss, Philly now sits atop the NFC East.

The win came with injuries, as the @Eagles lose Foles for at least a month, and will also be without defensive leader DeMeco Ryans (@DRyans59) for the rest of the season.

The @STLouisRams won an NFC West showdown 13-10 on the road at the @49ers thanks to a late goal line stand when Niners QB Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick7) fumbled.

In perhaps the biggest surprise of the day, the @miamidolphins destroyed the @Chargers 37-0. QB Ryan Tannehill (@ryantannehill1) threw for three TDs in the win.

Starting a new QB (@MikeVick) didn’t help the @NYJets, as they fell to the surging @KCChiefs 24-10.

A high scoring affair played out in Minnesota, but the return of Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) was not enough for the @Redskins to overcome three TDs by @Vikings running back Matt Asiata and a strong defensive showing led by Everson Griffen (@EversonGriffen).

Before the game @RGIII Tweeted, making it clear he was ready to play.

His team was very fortunate to all be in good health, as they were in a minor bus accident before the game.

Another NFC East team lost on @ESPNMondayNight, when the @Giants were no match for Andrew Luck and the @Colts.

Most-mentioned #NFL players and teams

Here are the top five most-mentioned #NFL players (player name and/or player Twitter handle) on Twitter during week nine of play (Thursday, Oct. 30 through Monday, Nov. 3):

1. Tom Brady
2. Peyton Manning
3. Mark Sanchez (@Mark_Sanchez)
4. Tony Romo
5. Ben Roethlisberger (@_BigBen7)

Here are the top five most-mentioned team accounts on Twitter during week nine of play (Thursday, Oct. 30 through Monday, Nov. 3):

1. New England Patriots (@Patriots)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers)
3. Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys)
4. Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars)
5. Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles)

Click on the image below to explore this data visualization that features week nine’s most-mentioned players and teams (and related Tweets). We will update this data viz each week of the season on Tuesdays.

Most-Tweeted games and moments

Here are the top five most-Tweeted games during and around live telecasts based on number of Tweets, as measured by Nielsen Social (@NielsenSocial).

1. @Broncos vs. @Patriots (CBS)
2. @Ravens vs. @Steelers (NBC)
3. @AZCardinals vs @dallascowboys (FOX)
4. @Eagles vs. @HoustonTexans (FOX)
5. @Colts vs. @Giants (ESPN)

And here are the moments that sparked the top Tweets per minute (TPM) peaks during live televised games, as measured by Nielsen Social (@NielsenSocial).

1. @Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman (@Edelman11) returns a punt 84 yards for a TD to put New England up 20-7 over the @Broncos with 8:11 remaining in the second quarter.
2. @Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger connects with Antonio Brown (@AntonioBrown84) for a 54-yard TD to put Pittsburgh up 29-10 over the @Ravens early in the fourth quarter.
3. @STLouisRams linebacker James Laurinaitis (@JLaurinaitis55) recovers a Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick7) fumble on the goal line with two seconds to play and St. Louis escapes with a 13-10 win over San Francisco.
4. @dallascowboys defensive back Tyler Patmon (@Lion_Hearted_33) intercepts @AZCardinals QB Carson Palmer and returns it 58 yards for a TD to put Arizona up 7-0 with 10:55 remaining in the first quarter.
5. @Eagles QB Mark Sanchez (@Mark_Sanchez) throws an 11-yard TD pass to Jordan Matthews (@jmattjmattjmatt) to put Philadelphia up 14-7 over the @HoustonTexans with 10:41 left in the second quarter.

See more here from @NielsenSocial on the reach of Twitter activity around this past week’s #NFL games.

Tweets of the week

Miss a touchdown from week nine? @NFLRedZone has you covered:

And we put together this collection of Tweets from week nine. Enjoy!

Remember to follow the NFL action on Twitter and come back every Tuesday as we recap how the #NFL played out each week. And in case you missed it, check out this blog post on our #NFL fan follower map.