Another week in the NFL season has wrapped up and we are learning things about many teams. The Miami Dolphins had a historic day and it seems like they are truly one of the league’s best teams this season. Dallas’ impressive start took a big hit after a disappointing loss. Jacksonville and Baltimore joined the Cowboys with bad losses. Buffalo’s week one loss to the Jets feels like years ago after two great weeks of football. Oh, and Sean Payton must absolutely be hating his decision to return to the NFL right now. With that, let’s just get into week three.
Dolphins Video Game Offense Drops 70 on Denver
Sean Payton won’t be able to blame Nathaniel Hackett for Denver’s 70-20 loss at the hands of the Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins didn’t even need Jaylen Waddle to play for them to drop 726 yards of total offense in being only the third team to reach the 70 point mark in a single game.
This game was like watching a 12 year old Madden savant play on rookie difficulty and run the score up. Tua Tagovailoa threw for 309 yards and four touchdowns, Tyreek Hill caught nine catches for 157 yards and a touchdown, and De’Von Achane broke out for 203 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Raheem Mostert provided three rushing touchdowns on the day for a Dolphins day that won many people some fantasy football matchups. This Dolphins team looks like it will be a contender if they stay healthy based on their ability to work their way down field at a rapid pace alone.
Payton now finds himself in unfamiliar territory, coaching a team who already looks like therir postseason hopes are fading and fading fast. Russell Wilson’s play and the Broncos offense has improved, but the defense, the group that most people expected to be reliable, is the worst in the league when it comes to yards allowed per game. Maybe Denver wasn’t the great job Payton expected it would be.
How Bout Them (Same Old) Cowboys
It’s only one bad week of football, but considering the Dallas Cowboys’ recent history, it could be a concerning week of football. The Cowboys undefeated hype train took a big halt after losing to Arizona, 28-16.
It was classic Cowboys. A team whose defense looked elite in previous weeks and had fans wondering if this version of Dallas could finally take that next step into being a title contender, allowed a lowly Arizona Cardinals team quarterbacked by backup Josh Dobbs to post 400 yards of offense, including 222 rushing yards.
This wasn’t the only issue with Dallas on Sunday. Offensively, Dak Prescott and the Cowboys struggled to put points on the board. Dallas reached the red zone five times, but only scored points once, a percentage that won’t lead to many wins no matter who you play.
It was an eye opening loss for Dallas and one that will maybe bring them and football fans back to an Earth that hasn’t seen the Cowboys in an NFC Championship game in nearly 30 years. Dallas will get a quick chance to erase the memory of Arizona and prove they are better than years past. Their next five opponents are New England, San Francisco, Los Angeles Chargers, Los Angeles Rams, and the Philadelphia Eagles. We will have a really good idea what this team is in the weeks to come.
Love Shows Shades of Packer Greats in Comeback Win
The Green Bay Packers offense had struggled all day in their home opener against the New Orleans Saints. Held scoreless for the first three quarters of the game and down by a score of 17-0, it was looking like Green Bay was heading towards a 1-2 record. Like a flip was switched, Jordan Love and the Packers offense put together scoring drives on all three possessions in the fourth quarter to pull out an 18-17 win.
The Packer scoring drives started with a seven play, 46 yard drive that ended with a field goal. After the defense forced a punt on five plays, Love led an 80 yard drive that ended with him scoring a one yard rushing touchdown on a fourth down. Head coach Matt LaFleur decided to go for a two point conversion in a decision that analytics fans will love. The Packers attempt would be successful with a pass to Samori Toure.
With about seven minutes left in the game and the Saints holding on to a 17-11 lead, the Packers defense forced a three and out. Love would then go on to complete another 80 yard drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Romeo Doubs in what is unquestionably Love’s biggest moment of his early career. The extra point gave the Packers the 18-17 lead.
The Saints had one last opportunity to retain the lead they let slip away. Jameis Winston, who came in for Derek Carr after Carr injured his shoulder early in the third quarter, finally put together something that visualized a football drive, but Blake Grupe would miss the 46 yard field goal and allow Green Bay to run the clock out.
There’s no doubt that the cheeseheads of Green Bay must be excited about their new starting quarterback. Love’s final quarter wiped away plenty of average quarterback play earlier in the game, but his ability pull victory from the hands of defeat is enough to build off of for a franchise that is hoping they have a third straight future Hall of Fame player behind center.
Week Four Game Watchability Rankings
16. Broncos vs Bears: One of two games that will feature two winless teams. Denver and Chicago lost by a combined 81 points in week three. Two garbage teams in one big garbage game. Even if you are a fan of either of these teams, why put yourself through this?
15. Vikings vs Panthers: Minnesota and Carolina don’t finish as the worst game of the week because Denver and Chicago are coming up off unbelievably bad games, but this game may not be much better. Bryce Young should be back from an ankle injury for Carolina so his development brings some meaning to this game. Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson have been very good for the Vikings, but there’s few additional bright spots. Minnesota’s luck from last season has run out. They couldn’t even beat a Chargers team where one could be fooled Brandon Staley was trying to give the game away.
14. Steelers vs Texans: The Pittsburgh defense has looked much more like we expected to see them after being run out of their own stadium in week one. T.J. Watt is one of the league’s most dominant players regardless of position. Few defensive players affect the game like Watt. This will be a big test for Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, who has been the most impressive passer of the the 2023 draft picks. Stroud threw for 280 yards and two touchdowns in a road win over Jacksonville in week three.
13. Falcons vs Jaguars: What the hell was that Jacksonville performance? This is supposed to be the year the Jaguars take command of the AFC South, but they were just blown out at home by the previously winless Texans. They will need to clean it up in their game against Atlanta, which takes place in London, England. Atlanta experienced their first loss of the season at the hands of the Detroit Lions. Both teams will be looking to get back on the right track and in the mix of their very winnable divisions.
12. Raiders vs Chargers: It’s Kansas City and then everybody else in the AFC West, but both Las Vegas and Los Angeles must be happy they aren’t Denver. Jimmy Garoppolo is still doing “Jimmy Garoppolo Things” (mostly throwing bad interceptions), but with a far less talented roster than he had in San Francisco. The Chargers earned a much needed first win in Minnesota despite Brandon Staley’s decision making. A loss for either team will send their season one more step into irrelevancy.
11. Buccaneers vs Saints: Two of the three NFC South teams who experiences their first loss in week three, Tampa Bay and New Orleans will be looking to take a division lead with a win here. On paper, these are probably the two strongest teams in a division that doesn’t seem to have a real player in the title race. New Orleans will hope that Derek Carr’s injured shoulder will heal enough for him to play in a big early season division game.
10. Rams vs Colts: Los Angeles and Indianapolis have played teams tough this season. The Rams defense has not been nearly as poor as expected and their rookie wide receiver Puka Nacua has been a far better replacement for Cooper Kupp than they could’ve possible imagined. The Colts are coming off of an impressive road win over Baltimore with Gardner Minshew filling in for Anthony Richardson. Richardson, who had looked impressive prior to his concussion, will hopefully be back for the AFC South leaders.
9. Cardinals vs 49ers: San Francisco has been the most impressive NFC team and arguably the best team in all of the NFL. On paper, this should be an easy 49ers win. San Francisco has looked every part the Super Bowl contender and Arizona was expected to be a bottom three team in the NFL this season. Surprisingly, this Cardinals team has played teams tough and just beat a Dallas team that looked like a championship contender in their own right. Niners win, but don’t be surprised if Arizona gives them a fight.
8. Chiefs vs Jets: One of the several Jets games that could’ve been really special with Aaron Rodgers leading the offense. Unfortunately it will likely be a quarterback matchup of Patrick Mahomes vs Zach Wilson. New York’s season is slipping and slipping fast. This game is still watchable due to the fact it involves Kansas City and New York’s defense still continues to play very well. If New York had a competent quarterback this would be a top three game this week.
7. Bengals vs Titans: Cincinnati stopped the bleeding with a home win over the Rams on Monday Night Football, but Joe Burrow still doesn’t look like his usual pinpoint accurate self. The calf injury may still be lingering with him. Despite how poor to average they’ve looked, I’d still bet on the Bengals figuring it out. Tennessee will be a good test. The Titans defensive front is solid and Tennessee is just the type of middle of the road opponent the Bengals could benefit playing while they still get their bearings right.
6. Patriots vs Cowboys: For two weeks it seemed like this Dallas team could be different, but after a bad loss in Arizona, who knows? The Cowboys looked incredibly flat and looked far from the team that dominated, especially defensively, in the first two weeks. New England earned their first win of the season against the New York Jets. The Pats defense is also a strong group. Scoring may be at a minimum, but this should be a competitive matchup.
5. Seahawks vs Giants: Two surprise wild card teams from last season who are now looking to make that next leap into contention. It has been rough sledding for New York so far. Seattle had an ugly week one loss to the Rams, but has now bounced back with two consecutive wins. A win in New York would be huge for Seattle and just as devastating for the Giants as they try to hang around in a competitive NFC East.
4. Commanders vs Eagles: Philadelphia looked more like the Eagles that was in the Super Bowl last year as they cleaned Tampa Bay’s clock. As expected, the Eagles are adjusting to double coordinator changes and it’s only a matter of time before they turn that corner. Washington had their own clock cleaned in their 37-3 loss against Buffalo. This could be a pretty fun NFC East game, but there is a slight chance the similar team build of the Eagles to the Bills could be another rough game for the Commanders.
3. Ravens vs Browns: The Cleveland Browns have been one of the early season surprises. The Cleveland defense has only allowed an average of 163 yards per game, about 90 yards less than the next lowest team. The Browns have needed it as Deshaun Watson has had quite a few plays that could have circus music playing in the background. The Ravens had a great opportunity to get to 3-0 and take an early season lead in the AFC North, but dropped a game at home to Gardner Minshew and the Indianapolis Colts. The AFC North will be a battle all year round and this is a good early season matchup.
2. Lions vs Packers: A great Thursday Night Football matchup that will probably be another victim of sloppy Thursday football play. This is seeming like the true matchup for the NFC North as Minnesota and Chicago are both two games back already. Detroit erased their disappointing home opener loss to Seattle by beating up a previously undefeated Atlanta team. Green Bay will be riding high after overcoming a 17-0 deficit to defeat New Orleans in their home opener behind the play of Jordan Love.
1. Dolphins vs Bills: A week full of competitive division matchups is topped by the biggest of them all. Miami vs Buffalo is an early season gem of a game between the two best teams in the AFC East. Miami’s offense looks incredible, most recently dropping 70 points on Denver. Tua Tagovailoa has to be the MVP of the league three weeks in and if he stays healthy, the Dolphins look like they are right there with the best of the AFC. Buffalo tripped out of the gates in week one, but has completely turned it around since. The Bills have won by an average score of 37-6 in their past two games against Las Vegas and Washington. This is an AFC heavyweight matchup with playoff and division title ramifications.
The Brewball NFL Power Rankings
- San Francisco 49ers (3-0)
- Miami Dolphins (3-0)
- Philadelphia Eagles (3-0)
- Kansas City Chiefs (2-1)
- Buffalo Bills (2-1)
- Dallas Cowboys (2-1)
- Baltimore Ravens (2-1)
- Seattle Seahawks (2-1)
- Detroit Lions (2-1)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (2-1)
- Green Bay Packers (2-1)
- Cleveland Browns (2-1)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1)
- Atlanta Falcons (2-1)
- Washington Commanders (2-1)
- Cincinnati Bengals (1-2)
- New Orleans Saints (2-1)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2)
- Los Angeles Chargers (1-2)
- Indianapolis Colts (2-1)
- New England Patriots (1-2)
- New York Giants (1-2)
- Los Angeles Rams (1-2)
- Tennessee Titans (1-2)
- New York Jets (1-2)
- Las Vegas Raiders (1-2)
- Arizona Cardinals (1-2)
- Houston Texans (1-2)
- Minnesota Vikings (0-3)
- Carolina Panthers (0-3)
- Denver Broncos (0-3)
- Chicago Bears (0-3)