We’re headed into week 4 of NFL football action and it’s time to evaluate some of the biggest surprises to the start of the season. Who started hotter than expected and who is lacking thus far?
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs are off to their worst start to the season with Patrick Mahomes at quarterback. They’re 1-2 but could easily be 0-3 if the Browns had been able to close them out in week 1. All of their games have been decided by a touchdown or less, and it’s not like they’re losing to bad teams.
They lost to the Ravens in week 2 by giving up 12 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, and they lost to the Chargers in week 3, 30-24. Mahomes didn’t play his best football throwing 2 interceptions in the week 3 loss.
This is by no means signaling the end to an era of Chief’s domination. It’s just a little strange to see Kansas City losing tight games that they have been winning for the past 4 years. They face off against an inexperienced Eagles team on Sunday, and look for them to get back on track.
Pittsburgh Steelers
After starting the season with an impressive win over the highly-touted Buffalo Bills, Pittsburgh has sputtered. They have looked progressively bad in each of their last two games against Las Vegas and Cincinnati, respectively.
In these two recent losses, the offensive line has been terrible, Ben Roethlisberger has looked like the old, injured quarterback that he is, and the defense hasn’t been able to stop the passing game. These are glaring questions that will have to be answered if the Steelers hope to turn their season around.
LA Rams
With the arrival of Matthew Stafford, the Rams had high hopes. I think it’s safe to say after their manhandling of the world champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, that those hopes are even higher. Stafford struggled early, but quickly turned things around to have one of the best games of his career, considering who it came against. It seems like the sky is the limit for Matthew Stafford and the Rams.
Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis hasn’t seen the same levels of success since adding Carson Wentz to the fold. At 0-3, their season has been downright disappointing. They’ve had a chance in every game so far, but simply haven’t been able to get the job done. If the Colts want to win games, they’re going to need more production out of the running game, and a better version of Carson Wentz.
Denver Broncos
The Broncos are undefeated and that’s largely due to the stellar play of newcomer quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater. Before the season started, critics said that all Denver needed to be a contender was a quarterback, but it seems like they already have one. Bridgewater has yet to throw an interception on the season and has been darn near perfect.
Carolina Panthers
The Panther’s success story is a repeat version of that of the Broncos. The arrival of Sam Darnold seems to be just what the doctor ordered. It certainly helped that Christian McCaffrey was back and healthy for the first three games of the season, but his status going forward is uncertain. As long as Darnold and the Panther defense keep playing the way they have been, they should be ok moving forward with or without McCaffrey.
