Now the real season has begun. Why do you ask? Because now we factor the bye weeks into everyone’s strategy for the rest of the season. Four teams had the first bye this past week: the Falcons, Bears, Packers, and Steelers. All four of them have a lot of questions for the rest of the season that they need answers to during their week off. But in the meantime, let’s recap what the rest of the league did in their absence.
49ERS 26 – RAMS 23 (OT)
Well, the good news for LA sports fans is that this did not end in a pointless draw. However, the Los Angeles Rams blew a golden opportunity in an upset loss against the San Francisco 49ers. Disheartening because Matthew Stafford gave a brilliant performance. Stafford threw for 389 yards and three touchdowns (although he did lose a fumble). Looking at the 49ers, I would honestly say they had good fortunes on their side. They won the game without recording an interception, for a record 12th game in a row (not a good record mind you), and with a very banged up roster. It’s hard to see which 49ers team shows up: the team that lucked out against the Rams this week, or the team that couldn’t put a win together like they did last week against the Jaguars. We will see next week against the Buccaneers. As for the Rams, this was a game they should have won. They were healthy, and they should be a better team. But there is a fatal flaw: their kicking. Ram kicker Joshua Karty has had four blocked kicks in the last three weeks. That is DEFINITELY not good. The Rams must be better, and they have the chance to prove it next week against a vulnerable Ravens team (who may or may not be with their MVP caliber quarterback Lamar Jackson).
COMMANDERS 27 – CHARGERS 10
Things did not get better for the city of Los Angeles this weekend. After the Rams’ dud on Thursday, the Los Angeles Chargers were railroaded by a Washington Commanders team rejuvenated by the return of reigning Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels. For the most part, Daniels thrived in his return passing for 231 yards and a touchdown. For the most part having Daniels back was a big boon, however they are still without two of their star wide receivers, so the Commanders are going to have to be cautious here. The Commanders next face off against the Chicago Bears in a Monday night showdown. As for the Chargers, time to hit the panic button. This offensive line is a shambles, and not seeing how coach Jim Harbaugh is going to be able to fix this. The Chargers need reinforcements on their offensive line otherwise this team is going nowhere fast. The Chargers have a chance to right the ship next week against a weak Dolphins team.
VIKINGS 21 – BROWNS 17
It has become an annual tradition in the NFL to have games played in London. This year’s first London game took place between the Browns and the Vikings team that just lost last week in Dublin. Fortunately, the Vikings were able to pull off a last second win and salvage their road trip. I know I keep saying this, but Justin Jefferson is probably the best wide receiver in the NFL. Jefferson had 7 catches for over 123 yards. A fun fact you should know, Jefferson averages more yards per game in his career than most receivers, even greater than the great Calvin Johnson himself (aka Megatron). So, the Vikings managed to split their international road trip with one win and one loss. Does this mean that Minnesota is going to be signing up to do this again next year? Probably not (and I don’t blame them). The Vikings have a bye next week (well deserved) and will be hosting the Eagles when they get back. As for the Browns, rookie Dillon Gabriel was thrown into his first NFL start. There is a learning curve and of course that’s not going to solve all the Browns’ problems after just one game. With Joe Flacco being traded, Cleveland is Gabriel’s team now. Brown fans will get to see more of what he can do next week against the Steelers.
TEXANS 44 – RAVENS 10
Here it comes, first time of this week: HOLY MOLE HOLES! No, this is not a misprint, the Houston Texans beat the daylights out of the Baltimore Ravens. Quarterback CJ Stroud is finally starting to look like his old self, completing 23 of 27 passes for 244 yards and four touchdowns. Well better late than never but it looks like the Texans have finally turned a corner. Their defense looks amazing, and their offense is finally firing on all cylinders. The Texans have a bye next week, but Houston be back in time for their road trip against the Seattle Seahawks. As for the Ravens, it’s THEIR time to hit the panic button repeatedly. Yes, they are missing Lamar Jackson, and yes, they are missing quite a few defenders, but that is no excuse for this poor performance. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we may not see the Ravens in the playoffs this year. The Baltimore faithful will have to see what happens next week as they face off against a Rams team who’s equally desperate for a big win.
RAIDERS 6 – COLTS 40
Oh my gosh, this is just sad. The Las Vegas Raiders got buried against the Indianapolis Colts. It didn’t help that Colts running back Jonathan Taylor rushed for 66 yards and three touchdowns. I’m going to be completely honest I did not expect this out of the Colts this year. No one could have seen Daniel Jones making such a big turnaround just by changing teams, although we did see Sam Darnold make a similar change last year with the Vikings. But I suppose the big question is if Daniel Jones is really this successful. And what are the Colts going to do with Anthony Richardson? The Colts’ next game is next week against the Cardinals. As for the Raiders, oh my dear, Vegas hit the panic button. Yes, I didn’t expect Jones to be this good, but I will say this; my prediction about Geno Smith being this bad was right. Sure, the coaching staff has reason to be blamed, but Gino Smith’s 9 interceptions are just too many for Raiders fans to bear. And it’s do or die next week when the Raiders face the Titans.
GIANTS 14 – SAINTS 26
The New York Giants pulled off a big upset last week knocking off the Chargers and ending their unbeaten season while also getting their first win of the season. So naturally, the very next week these same Giants lost to another team that was winless going into this game: the New Orleans Saints. The MVP of this game was Rashid Shahid, who caught 4 catches for 114 yards and a touchdown. Now I’m not saying this is what’s gonna turn things around for the Saints but it’s a start. But the Saints have a tough game next week against a surprisingly stingy Patriots squad. As for the Giants, it’s one step forward and five steps back. It looks like the Giants will have to deal with rookie Jackson Darts growing pains going forward. And there’s no time to rest because the Eagles are coming into town for Thursday Night Football.
COWBOYS 37 – JETS 22
Well, it certainly was not easy, but the Dallas Cowboys got a big win this week against the New York Jets. Let me also say this: HOLY MOLE HOLES! Where have you been, Dak Prescott? He managed to throw for 237 yards and four touchdowns. Does this mean that the Cowboys have finally turned the corner and are finally going to start performing well? Let me just say “hold up there, hoss!” Just remember this victory was against a hapless Jets team. If the Cowboys can win next week against the Panthers, then we’ll say they have something. As for the Jets, still haven’t got that first win huh? Clearly coach Glenn’s message of this is not the “Same Old Jets” is not getting through. Their tackling is terrible, their ball security is abysmal, and the Jets just made history; becoming the first team since 1933 (when turnovers became an official stat) to record zero takeaways in the first five games of a season. Things are just not getting any better, if anything they are getting worse (and to it: they’re the last winless team in the league). The Jets’ next game is across the pond in London against the Denver Broncos.
DOLPHINS 24 – PANTHERS 27
I am still under the belief that if you get two bad teams and get them to play each other you have a great game. This was definitely a good game as the Carolina Panthers took down the Miami Dolphins in a dogfight. Unfortunately for Tua Tagovailoa, his 256 passing yards and three touchdowns were not enough to save the day. I will say this for the moment Bryce Young managed to save his job. But we will have to see if this continues next week against the Dallas Cowboys. As for the Dolphins, we knew they were going to have a tough time without Tyreek Hill, but this is ridiculous. Trying to replace Hill’s production by committee sounds good to your players, but on paper there is no way that they are going to be able to do this every single week for the rest of the season. Next week, the Dolphins face off against the Chargers, and both teams are desperate for a win.
BRONCOS 21 – EAGLES 17
HOLY MOLE HOLES! Somehow, the Denver Broncos managed to upset the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. It is curious to see how this managed to turn out considering Jalen Hurts performed better than Bo Nix. Hurts threw for 280 passing yards and two touchdowns while Nix only threw for 242 yards and a touchdown. But in the end the Broncos managed to crawl their way back into their division race. More work is needed, as the Chargers still hold the tiebreaker over them, but it is a good start. Next week the Broncos go across the pond and face off against the New York Jets in London. As for the defending champions, this was definitely a surprising loss. Don’t get me wrong, this is just a small setback, but it is cause for concern that no team in the league seems to be afraid of challenging these Eagles. They have a chance to write the ship on Thursday Night Football against their rivals, the New York Giants.
BUCCANEERS 38 – SEAHAWKS 35
This turned out to be the best game of the weekend as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers managed to win a close game against the Seattle Seahawks. A big shout out to Baker Mayfield who threw for 379 passing yards and two touchdowns. The Buccaneers defense should perform better when the team get both of their cornerbacks from injury but for now this victory means a lot. The Buccaneers will look to continue their momentum next week against the San Francisco 49ers. As for the Seahawks, so close and yet so far. But it could have been worse. Sam Darnold has been doing pretty good for them so far, and they don’t have to deal with Gino Smith…who has been a complete disaster for the Raiders. The Seahawks will have to try harder next week, but they will be having to face a very tough Jaguars team.
LIONS 37 – BENGALS 24
I don’t think it’s wrong to assume that the entire city of Cincinnati is praying for a quicker return for Joe Burrow after this game. That’s because the Cincinnati Bengals got railroaded this week at the hands of the Detroit Lions. Quarterback Jared Goff looked at his stoppable throwing for 258 passing yards and three touchdowns. It was a good game for the lions and their defense certainly looked good. We shall be watching and waiting to see if their defense is for real next week against the Chiefs. As for the Bengals, it looks like the Jake Browning experiment is just about over. The Bengals just traded for veteran quarterback Joe Flacco. It’s not a guarantee that Browning will be benched next week but it certainly doesn’t look good. We will see what the Bengals do before their game next week against the Green Bay Packers.
TITANS 22 – CARDINALS 21
HOLY MOLE HOLES! The Tennessee Titans got their first victory of the season over the Arizona Cardinals in an absolute stunner. This wasn’t exactly the best game for anyone on either side. But I will congratulate Cam Ward for his first career NFL victory. Sure, he threw an interception, but he also threw for 265 passing yards. It’s a good sign for the Titans that they were able to come back after being down 21-6 in the early fourth quarter, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that their season’s automatically going to turn around. One win proves nothing, but two wins will show that they are finally putting things together. Their next game is against the Raiders and it’s a must win for both teams. As for the Cardinals this was definitely one of the worst losses that they’ve had in a while. One mistake after another cost them the game, and now their coach is getting fined for an altercation with his running back, who dropped the football before crossing the goal line in what would have been a 72-yard touchdown run. Things are going off the rails fast and it couldn’t have come at a worse time as their next game is against a mighty Colts team.
PATRIOTS 23 – BILLS 20
HOLY MOLE HOLES! This is pure insanity. In an absolute upset, the New England Patriots managed to knock off the heavy Super Bowl favorite Buffalo Bills in a big primetime matchup. It was a big game for Stefon Diggs who reeled in 10 catches for 146 yards. This is usually the part where I analyze both teams. I’m gonna be totally honest with you folks, I have no idea what to make of this. This is one of those games where you don’t believe it happened until you actually see the replay of it happening. Nevertheless, we can honestly say that the Patriots are a much better team than we all gave credit for, and now we’ll see if this is the team that finally brings the Patriots back to their former glory. Not only that, but the Bills are also not as invincible as we all thought they were, and their defensive woes finally caught up to them. The Patriots have a very winnable game next week against the Saints. Meanwhile the Bills have a chance to right the ship against the Atlanta Falcons.
CHIEFS 28 – JAGUARS 31
Okay, last time I’ll say this: HOLY MOLE HOLES! (Boy, saying that phrase a bunch of times…I’m tired…I’m thirsty…and that was my Stevie Nicks reference for the week! Good luck finding which of her songs that comes from!) In the last bit of shock for the week, the once mighty Kansas City Chiefs were defeated on Monday Night Football by…the Jacksonville Jaguars?! I’m not sure how this happened, especially considering Patrick Mahomes outdueled Trevor Lawrence in nearly every aspect of this game. Mahomes threw for 318 yards and rushed for 60 yards, accounting for two of the Chiefs’ touchdowns while also throwing an interception. Lawrence only passed for 221 yards and rushed for 54 yards and threw an interception as well, but he accounted for three of the Jaguars’ touchdowns. In a week where nearly all of these supposed Super Bowl favorites all lost, we have to stand back and wonder “OK if these teams all lost then who is the legit Super Bowl contender?” After watching this game, I can point to the Jaguars and say: them. We will see what they can do next week as a legitimate playoff contender against a stingy Seahawks team. As for the Chiefs, it’s one step forward and seven steps back. Is there a reason to be concerned for the chiefs considering that all three of their losses have come by 1 score or less this season? Let’s hit the Grogu button from The Mandalorian repeatedly…the one that says “YES.” For years, the Chiefs’ MO has been escaping with a victory in close games. If they can’t even win in a close game anymore…we got a problem. Things only get worse for the Chiefs…their next opponent is an actual Super Bowl favorite; the Lions.
