Also read: State of forces
Ten weeks in and the NFL still has one undefeated team: the Kansas City Chiefs. It is, on the other hand, a strange perfect record while the champions of the last two Super Bowls will be neglected by the betting houses during their next game on the road.
You have to do it anyway when we’re talking about a team that hasn’t lost since last winter.
That’s how it is in the NFL, recent performances trump everything else. This is actually a theme in our lessons this week.
Bears pick
In the last NFL draft, the Chicago Bears, with the Panthers’ coveted first overall pick in their possession, selected quarterback Caleb Williams after his stint at USC in the NCAA.
On paper, in the spring, Williams was believed to be entering a good situation when Chicago had a good team and not a flawed roster typically associated with a top pick. With good veterans at receiver, Williams needed to turn the organization around and offer hope.
Instead, a few months into the season, there are serious questions about whether Chicago made the right choice.
Jayden Daniels (2nd choice) will undoubtedly be the rookie of the year because of his performances in Washington. Drake Maye (3rd pick) took charge of the Patriots and is still doing well, particularly in the victory against the Bears on Sunday. Even Bo Nix (12th pick) has the Broncos in a good position towards the playoffs in his first season.
Half a season isn’t the only way to evaluate a player, but let’s just say Williams seems lost on the field and his offensive line’s performance doesn’t help at all. If the trend continues after nine sacks against the Pats, Williams will have 72 sacks this season, which would be the second-highest total in history.
The Bears’ 4-5 record doesn’t tell the whole story. The 19-3 loss to the Patriots was actually the third straight for Chicago and also a second straight game where the offense was unable to produce at least 10 points.
We are starting to point in the direction of coach Matt Eberflus who seems to be on an ejection seat despite a strong start to the season. In the meantime, the offensive coordinator has fallen by the wayside.
As we prepare for a big division game against the Packers on Sunday, all the changes are being considered by the Bears. Perhaps even to sit Williams down for a while if only to protect him in a situation that is visibly out of control.
Even though it would undoubtedly be a wise decision to avoid undermining his confidence. A think about it in the Windy City this week.
The luxury of patience for Texans
If we quickly look at the situation, we might think that concern is setting in among the Houston Texans after a third defeat in four games on Sunday.
CJ Stroud’s offense faltered in the second half against the Lions, which allowed Detroit to recover despite Jared Goff’s five interceptions.
Except that Houston has a hidden card in its game: a division in complete disarray.
The Bills have a bigger lead in the AFC East, but the Texans seem to have the more comfortable position when looking at the rest of the AFC South. The Colts, with a 4-6 record, no longer really have a starting quarterback as Anthony Richardson and Joe Flacco share the poor performances. For the Titans and Jaguars, the similar records of 2-7 and 2-8 speak for themselves: things are bad in both cases. Trevor Lawrence will miss several games to add to the Jaguars’ rout and it is no longer clear what remains of the season in Tennessee.
The Texans, therefore, find themselves with a one-way ticket to the playoffs as division champions. We can readjust the attack, wait for the injured to return and above all take some pressure off the shoulders of the young star quarterback.
It’s an incredible luxury at this stage of the season.
Also, despite the defeat against the Lions, the defense still intercepted five balls. This is a positive for team meetings this week.
It’s over for the Cowboys
Let’s not be afraid of words: the Dallas Cowboys season is over. The extent of the damage remains to be determined.
Dak Prescott will not return to play this season. Coach Mike McCarthy will perhaps finish the campaign, but to save himself the trouble of paying another leader by the winter. After four consecutive losses, the division seems out of reach and we even find a way to be angry at the sunshine of AT&T Stadium instead of looking at the team’s problems head on.
Because the sun blinding the receivers is funny on social media, but that doesn’t explain that this is the fifth consecutive game for the Cowboys, at home, where the team is behind at least 20 points. This streak includes last winter’s playoffs.
If home-field advantage isn’t even in the equation anymore, what’s left in the extravagant realm of Jerry Jones?
At least, on a positive note, Micah Parsons got back into shape and he was the most active Cowboy on the field against the Eagles. Except that all of this is too little too late, unfortunately.
Aaron Rodgers’ Sunset
With a Super Bowl ring in his collection, four season MVP awards and millions of dollars in his bank account, Aaron Rodgers can confidently say he’s had quite the NFL career and he will knock on the doors of the Hall of Fame as soon as he hangs up his cleats.
Which shouldn’t take too long.
Despite the transaction to acquire Davante Adams, Rodgers’ target of choice for many years in Green Bay, and the dismissal of the coach, the Jets once again performed poorly on Sunday against the Cardinals and the attack did not cross the ten-point mark.
This is New York’s sixth loss in the last seven games and with the Bills trailing significantly in the division, the season is essentially over. There will be no miracles on 34th Street this year in the Big Apple.
At 40, Aaron Rodgers has not succeeded in his challenge to defy time and come back from a major injury with the same determination as before. He has nothing left to prove in the NFL, his transition to the media is underway with Pat McAfee every week and the Jets must bitterly regret their decision to attach the future of a promising young team to the trailer of a quarter at the end of his career.
It’s a shame, but it happens. We must give up our weapons and disappear with the sunset before irreversible damage occurs.
As the Colts are still in the race for their division, expect a game in their favor against the Jets on Sunday.
In bulk
The Vikings project may not go as hoped, but a win is a win and this celebratory dance won the weekend in the NFL.
It wasn’t easy for the kickers this week. Younghoe Koo of the Falcons missed three field goal attempts as his team lost 20-17 to the Saints. In San Francisco, Christian McCaffrey’s return could have been spoiled by Jake Moody’s three misses. Wil Lutz of the Broncos could have completed the Chiefs’ perfect season, but the stars aligned otherwise.
Casually, Bryce Young won a second game in a row during the NFL’s trip to Berlin. But, to be quite honest… I would wait before breaking out the champagne in Carolina. It wasn’t necessarily a pretty sight.
Speaking of the trip to Germany, it increasingly feels like the end for Daniel Jones as the starting quarterback of the New York Giants. This is his sixth season in the NFL, there are no more excuses. The performance is simply not there.
On this note, I wish you an excellent week of football which begins Thursday on our airwaves.
