Sunday in the NFL | Once is not customary

After a poor performance the previous week, Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers rallied against the Eagles.

Flacco reunites with his old rivals

Joe Flacco continues to make his mark in the NFL. The quarterback helped the Indianapolis Colts defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-24 on Sunday. He took over for Anthony Richardson, who injured his hip in the first quarter. The latter attempted a comeback which did not help his cause. Flacco, who spent 11 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, was on familiar ground against his former division rivals led by Mike Tomlin. As soon as he entered, he concluded the offensive sequence, started by Richardson, with a short, rewarding four-yard pass to Josh Downs. Flacco finished the game with 16 completions on 26 attempts for 168 yards and two touchdowns. Regarding Richardson’s state of health, he remained on the sidelines during the match. His case will be re-evaluated. Justin Fields, for his part, offered a sparkling performance despite the Steelers’ first defeat of the season. The former Chicago Bears produced 312 yards and a touchdown through the air. He also scored two majors and totaled 55 yards rushing.

The Kings of the North

The Minnesota Vikings remain undefeated in four games. This time, they got the better of their divisional foes, the Green Bay Packers, 31-29. Sam Darnold and his offense outscored their opponents 28-7 in the first half. Darnold threw three touchdown passes in the first 30 minutes of play: two to Jordan Addison and the other to Justin Jefferson. The Packers offered good opposition in the second half. Returning to the game after missing the last two games, Jordan Love completed three of his four touchdown passes during the second half of the game. His total production of 389 yards through the air is also commendable. Kevin O’Connell’s squad held on until the very end and continues to confound the skeptics by taking first place in the National Conference North Division.

Another victory and another injury

The Kansas City Chiefs overcame a 10-point deficit to win 17-10 against the Los Angeles Chargers. Patrick Mahomes had 245 yards and a touchdown pass while Travis Kelce found his touch with seven catches for 89 yards. That’s 20 yards more than his total from the previous three weeks. Mahomes has thrown at least one interception in each of his games so far. Unfortunately for the Chiefs, the one he suffered against the Chargers led to Rashee Rice being injured during an accidental collision between Mahomes and his best receiver on Kristian Fulton’s interception return. Rice’s knee took the brunt of the impact when Fulton avoided the quarterback’s tackle. According to head coach Andy Reid, things aren’t looking good for Rice. His absence would be added to that of running back Isaiah Pacheco, who will miss several weeks of play due to a fractured fibula. The Chiefs have a perfect record after four games.

Firsts

The Cincinnati Bengals won 34-24 against the Carolina Panthers, recording their first victory of the season. Joe Burrow accumulated 232 yards through the air, two touchdown passes and an interception. Ja’Marr Chase scored a long 63-yard touchdown, with the help of his quarterback, and Chase Brown scored two by running. With a 1-3 record, the Bengals are a long way off. The Ohio team has a meeting with the Baltimore Ravens next Sunday. Speaking of the Ravens, John Harbaugh’s men inflicted the first loss of the season on the Buffalo Bills, by a score of 35-10. Train Derrick Henry set the tone at the start of the game with an 87-yard run into the end zone. He reigned supreme on the pitch at M&T Bank Stadium with an explosive performance of 199 rushing yards and a major. Lamar Jackson had his share of the cake with 156 passing yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 54 yards and a touchdown.