Sunday Coffee: NFL News & Notes Week 4
All Access Football Insider Bo Marchionte Goes Around The League
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How can we complain about a lack of offense when the Dolphins scored 70-points against the Denver Broncos? It would take a combined effort of eight NFL teams that played this Sunday to equal the 70-points scored by Miami. The Tennessee Titans (3-points), Washington Commanders (3-points), Atlanta Falcons (6-points), Chicago Bears (10-points), New York Jets (10-points), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11-points), New York Giants (12-points) and New England Patriots (15-points) to tie the Dolphins at 70-70.
The NFL is filled with lousy quarterbacks and it makes the viewing experience bad. Does anyone like crummy actors or actresses in movies? No, you do not and when an NFL team employs underdeveloped quarterbacks, it leaves everyone involved suffering.
Then we have the Dolphins who score points like a turnstile when the doors open to DisneyLand. A constant barrage of points rained down on Denver. Bravo Coach McDaniels on providing us with an A-list cast and crew to enjoy on Sunday’s.
To the rest of the league, step it up. We deserve better.
AFC EAST
Miami Dolphins (3-0)
The ‘Fins Mike McDaniels has a quirky look but make no mistake, this second-year head coach, along with GM Chris Grier, has created one of the best offenses we’ve ever seen in the history of the league. McDaniels could have tried to tie the league high of 73-points scored in the 1940 NFL title game (Chicago beat Washington 73-0) but he elected to run the ball out rather than place more embarrassment on the Broncos.
Buffalo Bills (2-1)
Week 1, the Bills Josh Allen had a horrific game against the New York Jets as Buffalo lost 22-16. Allen has rebounded beautifully since then, going 51-of-69 for 492 passing yards along with four touchdown passes and one interception. He also added his first touchdown run of the season in Week 3 against the strong Commanders defensive front. Allen was sacked five times in Week 1. Better play by the offensive line has given up just two sacks on Allen in the last two weeks. Outscoring their opponents 75-13 in their last two games, signals the Bills are quietly one of the hottest teams in the league that no one is talking about.
New England Patriots (1-2)
Bill Belichick won his 299th win against the New York Jets, which his Patriots have beaten 15 straight times. New England defeated their AFC East rivals 15-10, improving their record to 1-2 on the season. The 15 straight victories tie a team record for the most consecutive victories versus a single opponent. If the Patriots beat the New York in the final week of the season, it will give the team 16 straight wins, surpassing the Patriots beating Buffalo 15 straight times (2003-10).
New York Jets (1-2)
Put the needle on the record, a broken record. The New York Jets need to acquire a quarterback via trade, or off the street. Let a lucky fan in section 121 of MetLife Stadium get their shot under center. With Zach Wilson, or the lucky fan from section 121, the Jets have zero ability to get NFL quality play under center with either one in the game. Robert Saleh is losing the locker room with Wilson under center. Publicly the team must proclaim they believe in Wilson but behind closed doors, everyone knows the ship is sinking and the Jets front office is not deploying a SOS call to save them.
AFC North
Pittsburgh Steelers (2-1)
Pickett threw two touchdown passes for the first time in his career. He finished the game with a career-high 108.5 passer rating, which is 17.6% better than his previous best of 90.9 last season. He didn’t throw an interception for the first time this year but let’s not forget Raiders Marcus Peters dropped a pick six via Pickett early in the game. Its progress; Pickett puts in the work and has the tools to grow. He’ll make his 17th NFL start against the Houston Texans this Sunday, which is equivalent to a full season schedule. With a 9-7 overall record, Pickett has done more than enough to get some leniency.
Baltimore Ravens (2-1)
Raise your hand if you mentioned the Ravens could wrap up their division with a win over the Colts. All those who raised their hand, now let’s take the other hand and wipe the egg off our faces. Baltimore failed to put away a feisty Colts team Sunday, losing in overtime 22-19. With just one penalty for five yards, the culprit of their loss cannot be blamed on yellow flags but possibly turnovers. Overall, the Ravens put the ball on the ground four times and lost two of those footballs to the welcoming arms of the Indianapolis defense. For a team that utilizes the running game for success offensively, this is a trend that cannot continue.
Cleveland Browns (2-1)
The best game ever by Deshaun Watson masked the ugly running game the Browns had against the Titans in Cleveland’s 27-3 win over the Titans. The Browns rushed the football 31 times for 78 yards and one touchdown. The week before, they ran it 35 times for 198 yards and one touchdown. Watson’s performance was reminiscent of the player that Cleveland envisioned trading for last season when they acquired him at a hefty price from the Houston Texans. What we know after three weeks about the Browns, is DC Jim Schwartz has made the defense legit. The things we do not know, is the success Watson had against Tennessee going to continue and is the running game going to become a non-factor with the absence of four-time Pro Bowler Nick Chubb?
Cincinnati Bengals (1-2)
Joe Burrow wasn’t 100 percent against the Rams in their 19-16 win but he gave 110 percent of himself to help the Bengals get their first win of the season. Cincinnati has gone 0-2 each of the last two years before winning their first game in Week 3. So, while it’s not the ideal start for any team, Zac Taylor is comfortable coaching his team from the hole and slowly gaining momentum as the season progresses. A trip to the Super Bowl and AFC Championship are the final two games played by the Bengals. They can defend their slow starts better than any team in the league.
AFC South
Indianapolis Colts (2-1)
Last week, in this column: ‘The enigma of the National Football League. Who are the Colts? Beating the Ravens in Baltimore in Week 3 could go a long way in saying a sleeper team in the AFC for a wildcard berth or a loss and if the loss is embarrassing, put the team in the barrel of bottom feeders in the NFL.’ Indianapolis felt their first wave of ‘Minshew Mania,’ as backup Gardner Minshew helped lead the team to one of the biggest upsets of the weekend. The win provides the Colts with a lot of confidence and establishes them as a team that’s simply capable of winning. Zack Moss has thrived since entering the backfield mix in Week 2 and the defense is playing sound, dependable football. Hmmm, that seems to be the recipe for success in the National Football League.
Houston Texans (1-2)
We wrote this last weekend: ‘C.J. Stroud looks like the best of the rookie quarterbacks thus far.’ The talented rookie earned his first win as the starter of the Texans, as Houston defeated the AFC South division favorite Jaguars 37-17. It marks the second highest scoring total for Houston since they scored 41-points against the Chargers in 2021. Stroud has four touchdown passes and zero interceptions after three games and is in the infant stages of his NFL career—he is providing glimpses of being the front-runner for NFL Rookie of the Year.
Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2)
This was ignorance typed last week by yours truly: ‘The most foolish thing you can do is eye up the schedule and predict wins and losses. Call me a fool, because looking at the Jaguars next six games, it’s possible they are 7-1 or 6-2 heading into their Week 9 bye week.’ Jacksonville reciprocated by losing 37-10 to the Texans. That said, one of the more interesting stats by the Jaguars this week was having three players tied for the team lead in receiving yards. Evan Engram, Christian Kirk and Calvin Ridley all have 173 receiving yards each. Engram leads the team with 18 receptions, followed by Kirk (16) and then Ridley (13). Quarterback Trevor Lawrence is keeping defenses honest with his ball distribution.
Tennessee Titans (1-2)
Will another loss or two force the trade of Ryan Tannehill to the New York Jets? With one year remaining on his deal in Tennessee, the Titans could hand the reins off to last year’s third round pick Malik Willis or this year’s second round selection of Will Levis to take over under center. Tannehill enters the final season of a 4-year, $118 million contract he signed with Tennessee in 2020. The contractual implications of who owes what and where the money is transferred from is something the two sides would need to work out. As a person sitting in a Starbucks with a hot apple crisp latte, we don’t know the compensation of players it would take but it just makes sense for both sides.
AFC West
Kansas City Chiefs (2-1)
Who doesn’t wish they were Travis Kelce? Let’s just get that out of the way, as he embarks on being the next in line of Taylor Swift’s No. 1 songs over time. Kelce is not alone amongst his NFL alumni that have dated some exotic beauties. Alix Earle and Braxton Berrios. Camille Kostek and Rob Gronkowski. Gisele Bündchen and Tom Brady. Jessica Simpson and Tony Romo. Shailene Woodley and Aaron Rodgers. Kim Kardashian and Reggie Bush. Hailee Steinfeld and Josh Allen. The celebrity duo are off to a hotter start than the defending champion Chiefs!
Las Vegas Raiders (1-2)
Josh Jacobs began his career with the Raiders during their last season in Oakland. In 2020, he and the franchise arrived to play in Las Vegas. Last year, Jacobs led the NFL in rushing (1,653 yards), while averaging just under 100-yards per game (97.2), which also led the league. Jacobs was upset during the off-season when the organization placed the franchise tag on him. On August 26th, he returned to the team after signing a new deal. Jacobs' new contract includes a base salary of $11.8 million and he can earn another $200,000 in incentives. His early production after three games has plummeted compared to his league leading season from a year ago, averaging 2.4 yards per carry and just 36 yards rushing per game. Prior to his breakout 2022 campaign, he averaged 1,029 yards rushing per season and averaged 4.2 yards per carry. He’ll get better but the odds of him ever approaching those lofty heights again are slim.
Los Angeles Chargers (1-2)
Bradon Staley told reporters after the Chargers first win of the season, “I make no apologies for that,” after Los Angeles failed to convert a fourth-and-one. Los Angeles held a delicate four-point lead on their 24-yard line with just 1:51 left in the game. Instead of punting the ball away, Staley decided to go for it on fourth down. Unfortunately, the plan backfired and they turned the ball over on downs. The Chargers won the game 28-24 and the win might have possibly given Los Angeles ownership on how clueless Staley is at managing a game despite the victory. Hired for his defensive expertise, the Chargers defense ranks 28th in the league in points allowed. They are the only team to allow over 1,000 yards passing (1,011) and that includes the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers who played Thursday night.
Denver Broncos (0-3)
Russell Wilson’s career has been under heavy scrutiny of late but there’s at least one firm believer here that he’s not the washed-up quarterback many proclaim him to be since being traded to Denver last year. In the Broncos first three games, Wilson has thrown seven touchdown passes along with one interception for a passer rating of 99.7. In his previous 11 seasons in the NFL, his average in those categories after three games are 5.8 touchdown passes and 1.09 interceptions and a passer rating of 103.6. His seven touchdown throws to open the season are his second highest total after three games, which he has done three other times, with a high of 14 in 2020. The Broncos are 0-3, but the numbers indicate that Wilson is actually off to one of his better statistical starts to the year.
NFC East
Philadelphia Eagles (3-0)
Eagles’ fans are restless despite the 3-0 start by Philadelphia. Jalen Hurts hasn’t dazzled us after three weeks but lets hit pause on pressing the panic button. The Eagles scored 86-points last year in the first three weeks of the season and this year, they have scored 84. It’s two points! The ground game with the addition of D’Andre Swift has helped the Eagles to the second most productive rushing team (557) behind only the Miami Dolphins (565). Philadelphia had 451 yards rushing at this point last year, more than 100-yards of ground gained via the run is part of the reason why Hurts’ numbers are eye-dazzling to Philly fans.
Dallas Cowboys (2-1)
The Dallas Cowboys have eight pass completions of over 20 yards, which puts them about right smack down in the middle of the league. Eleven teams in the NFL have more completions of 40-plus yards than the Cowboys. While it’s not a dire area of concern, it’s something to monitor going forward. The issue to be addressed is something that must be corrected if Dallas wants to continue to be mentioned as a Super Bowl contender in 2023. They rank near the bottom in red zone efficiency. Ready for this?!? The Cowboys are tied with the New York Jets with 40% efficiency inside the scarlet area to score points. Last year Dallas led the league in this category with a whopping 71.4% efficiency to put the football in the end zone. Last week, the Cowboys were inside the Arizona’s 20-yard line three times and came away with just three-points in their demoralizing 28-16 loss.
Washington Commanders (2-1)
Want to hear something comical? A buddy asked if rolling with Sam Howell as his starting fantasy quarterback over the Bills’ Josh Allen for the entirety of 2023 season was a good move. Ah, that would be a negative ghost rider. Abort! Abort! Howell is 3-1 overall as the starter in Washington but the fifth- round pick by the Commanders has been sacked a league leading 19 times this year. Last week, Buffalo sacked him nine times in the 37-3 loss, where Howell also threw four interceptions. Assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy is only three weeks into his new role but he should choreograph an offense better suited to limit Howell’s inadequate abilities to play quarterback in the NFL.
New York Giants (1-2)
Watching the Giants' anemic offense struggle once again this season, one couldn’t help but ask; why aren’t they trying to implement rookie Jalin Hyatt into the offensive scheme? In Week 2, he caught his only two targets of the game for 89-yards, which included the team’s longest play from scrimmage, a 59-yard pass from Daniel Jones. His other reception covered 30-yards, which would seem to indicate that he’s a ‘big-play” type of wideout. In Week 3, Brian Daboll and company elected to not target the rookie receiver and running back Gary Brightwell had the team’s longest catch for 18-yards. There was not a single pass completed for 20 yards, as New York scored 12-points against the 49ers. San Francisco has zero worries of deep threat with the speed deficient receiving core implement in the loss.
NFC North
Detroit Lions (3-1)
The Lions are 2-0 on the road this season with wins at Arrowhead and Lambeau Field. That’s an impressive resume, as Detroit moved to 3-1 Thursday after destroying Green Bay in their beloved home. With five sacks and 11 hits on Packers Jordan Love the defense was primed for prime time. With young defensive stars like Aidan Hutchinson, Brian Branch and Jack Campbell along with a ho-hum quarterback Jared Goff, this team may remind some of the Buccaneers, when another boring old quarterback named Brad Johnson helped lead the team to a Lombardi Trophy.
Green Bay Packers (2-2)
Jordan Love was so impressive in the second half of the game versus the Saints in Week 2. He led the Pack back to victory with a fantastic performance in the game’s final two quarters. That magic never came to fruition against the Lions on Thursday. Love struggled and it wasn’t entirely his fault, as the game unraveled quickly in favor of Detroit who scored 27 points in the first half compared to the Packers’ three. Expect Green Bay to have these types of ups and downs as the season progresses.
Minnesota Vikings (0-3)
The Vikings are one of three teams in the NFL without a rushing touchdown. The Steelers and Raiders are the two others absent from finding paydirt running the football. Last season, Minnesota finished tied for seventh inn the NFL with 18 rushing touchdowns. Former Minnesota running back Dalvin Cook scored the team’s first touchdown in Week 3 last year, so maybe it takes a while before the ground sniffs the end zone. For the bizarre, the Vikings lost 28-24 to the Chargers last week and last year they beat the Lions 28-24 in Week 3. The same exact score in back-to-back years in Week 3.
Chicago Bears (0-3)
There was at least one item correctly pointed out last week: ‘Is everyone finally catching up with the fact that Justin Fields isn’t a starting quarterback in the National Football League?’ He is now 5-23 as a starting quarterback and the new catchphrase of “designed runs” being used to minimize the league’s growing list of crummy quarterbacks, must stop. Please! Enough is enough. After three games, Fields’ numbers are ugly: 51-of-88 (58%), 526 passing yards, 13 sacks, four interceptions, three fumbles, a 67.7 passer rating and a 21.5 QBR. In hindsight, the Bears should have kept the No. 1 overall pick to select another Ohio State quarterback in C.J. Stroud, who is off to a terrific start with the Houston Texans.
NFC South
Atlanta Falcons (2-1)
The Falcons were all in on acquiring Deshaun Watson when he requested a trade out of Houston. The Browns came in late with bags full of cash to persuade Watson to abruptly change his mind and head to Cleveland. The Vikings are 0-3 and four-time Pro Bowler Kirk Cousins could be the perfect acquisition for Atlanta to turn their fortunes around at quarterback under the Arthur Smith regime. The Marcus Mariota experiment was a failure and Desmond Ridder’s limited time under center in his second year hasn’t shown much to get excited about. Atlanta has potential but without a big upgrade at quarterback, will continue to wallow in the mire.
New Orleans Saints (2-1)
The Saints were off to a 3-0 start in Green Bay but the offense came to a screeching halt after quarterback Derek Carr left the game with a shoulder injury. New Orleans gave up 18 points in the fourth quarter and then kicker Blake Grupe missed the game-winning field goal. The Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers are now the only three teams in the NFL that remain unbeaten. Hard to imagine without such a wild ending in Green Bay that the Saints would be among the league's best after three weeks.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1)
Mike Evans turned 30 in August. With impending free agency approaching next year, the Buccaneers are in a perfect spot to trade him. Evans leads the team in every statistical category and his 28 receptions equal Chris Godwin (19) and Cade Otten (11) combined totals. Evans makes up 46 percent of the Buccaneers entire passing offense in yards. With 297 receiving yards, he currently doubles the 141 from Godwin. Any team eyeing the opportunity to upgrade their receiving unit will surely have Evans at the top of the list.
Carolina Panthers (0-3)
Head coach Frank Reich must show only his highlight reel against Houston back in 1993, when he threw four touchdown passes in the third quarter to lead Buffalo past the Houston Oilers 41-38 in the overtime thriller. Fired from Indianapolis after Week 9 last year, Reich is 3-8-1 over his last 12 games as head coach with the Panthers and Colts. His all-time coaching record of 40-36-1 is modest at best and how he was able to dislodge Panthers interim head coach Steve Wilks (6-6) for the title of head coach of the franchise in 2023 is something that should make everyone just shake their head. Carolina unloaded their roster in 2022, trading away both Christian McCaffrey (to 49ers) and Baker Mayfield (to Rams).
NFC West
San Francisco 49ers (3-0)
The 49ers have scored 30-plus points in every game this season. Christian McCaffrey obviously is a big reason for San Francisco's success and his production since being traded to the 49ers dwarfs the last remaining years of production in Carolina. With the Panthers, McCaffrey had eight games of 100 rushing yards or more since 2019. He has already posted six such games (including playoffs) with the 49ers, since being traded to the West Coast after Week 6 a year ago.
Seattle Seahawks (2-1)
In Week 1, the Rams came to Seattle and simply beat the Seahawks up, winning 30-13. The Seahawks rebounded and have won their last two games, scoring 37 points in each of their victories. Everything that was envisioned with Geno Smith, Kenneth Walker and D.K. Metcalf is coming together perfectly. Seattle can score a bunch of points but their defense is now unable to hinder opponents from finding the end zone. The Seahawks have the 29th ranked defense in points allowed. Take the over when Seattle is involved.
Los Angeles Rams (1-2)
Matthew Stafford was brought to Los Angeles to help the Rams win a Super Bowl and the mission was accomplished in his debut season, after spending the first twelve years with the Detroit Lions. The shiny diamonds of the keepsake Super Bowl ring mask some flaws in the 35-year-old quarterback. In that Super Bowl winning season, he led the league with 17 interceptions. Last year, he managed to play in nine games and had eight picks before going on IR. After three games this season, he has thrown four miscues to opponents and his current quarterback rating (74.5) is over twenty percent lower than his career average of 90.6. With no running game for the Rams, Stafford will take on even more of the burden to move the chains in Los Angeles.
Arizona Cardinals (1-2)
Last week’s Cardinals post: ‘The Cardinals gave up 31 points to the Giants in the second half last week, losing 31-28. A demoralizing loss for a team that has enough obstacles in their path to blow a 20-0 half-time lead. Rookie head coach Jonathan Gannon faces the task of getting his team up for the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3. If Gannon’s Cardinals can pull off a miracle win or play the Cowboys tough will be a good testament to the rookie coach's ability to motivate his below average roster.’ We know from the upset win over Dallas in Week 3 that Gannon did provide the motivation to upset the Cowboys and prevented them from being one of the few winless teams in the NFL. An early indication, Arizona’s players are buying into the message of the rookie head coach.