On Football analyzes the most important topics in the NFL week by week. You can find more On Football analyses here.
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Any given Sunday was more than a cliché in Week 3.
Six winless teams celebrated their first wins of the season. Nine away teams and eight underdogs emerged as winners.
It’s only September, but the season has been unpredictable, just the way the NFL likes it. A league built on parity has seen a lot of competitive parity in the first three weeks.
Five teams remain undefeated: Chiefs, Bills, Steelers, Vikings and Seahawks. The Bengals, Jaguars and Titans are winless.
There are many surprises in this group of eight teams.
Minnesota was the clear favorite for the last spot in the NFC North. Seattle has a first-year coach in Mike Macdonald. Pittsburgh is missing Russell Wilson, but Justin Fields has helped out well. Buffalo should really take a step back after losing several talented players.
Cincinnati was supposed to be a Super Bowl contender, but no team has ever reached that point after starting 0-3. Jacksonville was expected to compete for the AFC South.
But there are no guarantees in the NFL and that became pretty clear in the first three weeks.
Jayden Daniels led the Washington Commanders to the biggest upset of the week, a 38-33 win at Cincinnati on Monday night.
The Commanders (2-1) were the underdogs, trailing by 7 1/2 points. Perhaps the bookies overestimated the Bengals. Daniels was outstanding, throwing two touchdown passes, running for another and setting an NFL rookie record by completing 91.3% of his passes (21 of 23).
Daniels, the No. 2 overall pick, was the best rookie quarterback of the six players selected in the first round.
Four other teams that trailed by at least 5.5 points also won this week. The New York Giants beat Cleveland 21-15. The Denver Broncos, led by rookie QB Bo Nix, defeated the previously unbeaten Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26-7.
The injury-plagued Los Angeles Rams earned a 27-24 victory over San Francisco. The Carolina Panthers, a 5 1/2-point underdog, beat the Raiders 36-22 thanks to a standout performance from Andy Dalton in his first start as a backup to Bryce Young.
Darnold’s resurgence
Six years after the Jets thought Sam Darnold was their franchise QB, he’s playing like one for the Minnesota Vikings. Darnold has impressed in his first season under coach Kevin O’Connell, with 657 yards passing, eight touchdowns, two interceptions and a 117.3 passer rating in three games.
Darnold showed signs of improvement in Carolina late in the 2022 season and served as Brock Purdy’s backup in San Francisco last year. He signed a one-year, $10 million deal to serve as a placeholder in Minnesota, but rookie JJ McCarthy suffered a season-ending knee injury and Darnold flourished. If he continues to play at this level, Darnold will make a lot of money as a free agent.
Trevor’s regression
Trevor Lawrence has regressed after signing a $275 million contract with the Jaguars. It’s not entirely his fault. He’s not getting enough support from his offensive line, receivers and coaches.
Still, a $55 million quarterback is paid to make plays and sometimes has to make them himself. With Jacksonville trailing 20-3 against Buffalo in the second quarter on Monday night, Lawrence had an opportunity to haul in a long pass. He had an open receiver, a clean pocket and time to throw, but he sailed a pass that landed in Damar Hamlin’s arms and was easily intercepted.
That’s Lawrence’s fault, not the coaching, blocking, game plan or running routes. It happens. Quarterbacks throw poorly, but the Jaguars could have used more from him in that moment.
Dallas doomed to failure
The Cowboys (1-2) can’t stop the run and they can’t run the football. That spells doom for most teams in the NFL. After an impressive start for Mike Zimmer’s defense in Cleveland, the Cowboys were thrashed at home by New Orleans and Baltimore. They have allowed 464 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns in the first 12 drives in the two games.
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