The NFC North went undefeated in Week 3, while the AFC North all lost.
The most Philly soundbite goes to this guy who helped catch children thrown from a window during a fire. pic.twitter.com/3rH69gU2fL
— Steve Lindsay CBSPhilly (@SteveLindsayCBS) September 23, 2019
It was a banner week for the four NFC North teams. But one of those wins in the division was unlike the other. While the Packers (vs. Broncos), Vikings (vs. Raiders) and Bears (at Washington) took care of mostly expected business, the Lions went on the road to Philadelphia and did just enough to stay undefeated.
Now, the Lions were beneficiaries of more Philadelphia mistakes than merely the kickoff return score. Eagles receivers let QB Carson Wentz down early, often, and late. WR Nelson Agholor was singled out by a hometown hero, that’s how exasperating this is getting.
Thank you for being a hero in the community, would like to invite you and your family to the next home game
— Nelson Agholor (@nelsonagholor) September 24, 2019
Twitter help me out and get me in touch with him https://t.co/uqML3eJ0QT
On the other end of the spectrum, the AFC North teams all took an L in Week 3. That is good news for the Baltimore Ravens, who remain atop of the division and have the only winning record of the quartet. The Ravens can take a two-game lead in the division by knocking off the Cleveland Browns in Week 3, who hosted a national TV game only to run a draw on 4th-and-9, fail to run the ball on four plays at the Rams 4-yard line and all three timeouts available, and end the game with an end zone INT. We’ll get to the winless Bengals and Steelers later.
TEAMS OF THE WEEK:
NE, BAL, HOU, KC
DAL, GB, NO, LA
TOP PERFORMERS:
JAX pass rush (DE Calais Campbell)
BUF pass defense (CB Tre’Davious White)
DAL pass offense (WR Amari Cooper)
GB pass offense (WR Marquez Valdez-Scantling)
IND offensive line (QB Jacoby Brissett)
KC pass offense (WR Mecole Hardman)
MIN run offense (RB Dalvin Cook)
NE pass offense (WR Josh Gordon)
DET special teams (CB Jamal Agnew)
CAR pass offense (TE Greg Olsen)
NYG special teams (K Aldrick Rosas)
HOU pass offense (TE Jordan Akins)
NO special teams (SS Vonn Bell)
SF run defense (DT DeForest Buckner)
LA pass defense (SS John Johnson)
CHI offensive line (QB Mitchell Trubisky)
Looking ahead to Week 4
Open Dates – New York Jets, San Francisco:
The Jets are 0-1 with Sam Darnold, 0-1 with QB Trevor Siemian, and 0-1 with QB Luke Falk. The receivers are arguably the worst in the NFL. On the flipside, the 49ers are getting it done against the run, allowing only 3.4 yards per rush and no TDs as a key part to their 3-0 start.
Eagles at Green Bay: The Eagles are staring at 1-3 in the face, a record that they haven’t been since 2015 1. The widespread issues related to slow starts, dropped passes, and special teams breakdowns have been documented. Philadelphia’s cornerbacks will be on the spot against Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers, who has a 4-0 record as a starter against the Eagles that includes a 53-20 beatdown in 2014, his only home start against Philadelphia.
Patriots at Buffalo: This reminds me of the 2011 season, when the Bills beat the Patriots on their way to a 3-0 start, only to pay QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and collapse to a 6-10 finish. Of course, that was then, when neither the Bills or Patriots were strong defensively. In 2019, the Bills have a top-five defense while bullying three bad teams (Jets, Giants, Bengals). The Patriots have the best defense in the league… while bullying three bad teams (Steelers, Dolphins, Jets). This game will likely be determined by the matchup between New England WR Josh Gordon and Buffalo CB Tre’Davious White.
Vikings at Chicago: The Vikings were personally eliminated by the Chicago Bears last season; a sweep that included a Week 17 Bears win in Minnesota that meant nothing to Chicago 2 and everything to the Vikings. In the previous matchup in Chicago, QB Kirk Cousins’ corny speech about how America was there to see the Vikings and not the Bears didn’t go over well with the Chicago defense before they beat him with Cousins’ mistakes. Minnesota RB Dalvin Cook only carried the ball 20 times against Chicago last season, totaling a paltry 51 yards. That must improve for Minnesota to have a chance at controlling the game and giving their pass rush a chance to challenge Chicago QB Mitchell Trubisky.
Cowboys at New Orleans: Speaking of Football Night in America! The Saints need to do us all a solid and handle the Cowboys better than they did in 2018, when the Saints failed to gain 200 yards in North Texas. The Cowboys have taken care of business against three cupcakes (Giants, [REDACTED], Dolphins), and now we’ll see how New Orleans defends Dallas WR Amari Cooper.
Bengals at Pittsburgh: The Steelers haven’t been winless through four games since 2013. The Bengals haven’t been winless through four games since 2008. Something’s gotta give! And we all know it’ll be the Bengals giving. Cincinnati has lost their last four primetime road games at Pittsburgh, failing to win there under the lights since a Thursday in 1995. Both of these teams look like struggle on offense, so that’s where this game will be decided. Cincinnati WR John Ross has 296 yards on 26 targets this season after only 210 yards on 60 targets in his first two seasons, but he is boom or bust. Pittsburgh RB James Conner is off to a dreadful start this season, but he dominated the Bengals last season with 5.3 yards per rush.