We are now a quarter of the way through football season. Despite a COVID-19 breakout within the Tennessee Titans organization, the rest of the league seems to be running smoothly. Here are eight more observations on a crazy NFL season.
- The Bears are not a good football team
The Bears are lucky to be 3-1, because they could easily be 0-4. Their loss to the Colts exposed the team’s weaknesses. The defense has taken a step back and is not as ferocious of a unit as it was in the last few years. We all thought Nick Foles replacing Mitchell Trubisky as the starter would provide a spark for the offense. However, Foles has been mediocre off the bench and has only allowed head coach Matt Nagy to relapse into the bad play calling habits that plagued him throughout the last two years. Moreover, the league seems to have figured him out. Nagy needs to give up play- calling and move into more of a leadership role where he thrives as a coach.
- The Packers are the clear-cut favorite to win the NFC North
The Packers are lucky to be in a division where their three foes are constantly stumbling over themselves. Despite that, they are the best team in the NFC North and it isn’t even close. Aaron Rodgers is playing like an MVP again, and head coach Matt LaFleur is doing a great job in-game planning around the team’s injuries at wide receiver. All the Packers need for a deep playoff run is for Rodgers to stay healthy. If the Packers can’t miss a beat with a decimated wide receiver corps, the sky is the limit for them.
- Bill O’Brien’s firing was long overdue
When news broke that Bill O’Brien was fired as Texans head coach and general manager, Deshaun Watson must have let out a huge sigh of relief. We don’t have enough words to describe how bad O’Brien was at his job, but it’s pretty telling how little he got back for Jadeveon Clowney and DeAndre Hopkins, overpaying for Laremy Tunsil and spending $255 million on a team that hasn’t won a game yet. Plus, he’s lucky Watson hasn’t suffered another injury because he failed to build a good offensive line around him. It’s better the Texans made the move now before they waste more of Watson’s prime.
- The NFC East is a joke
The records speak for themselves. So far, the total record in the NFC East is 3-12-1 to start the season. It’s gotten so bad that the Eagles are leading the division with a 1-2-1 record. The NFC East usually tends to be the most unpredictable division in football, but this year it’s the worst division in football. The sad thing is that one of these teams is going to host a playoff game opposing a far superior team.
- The Browns might actually be good
Always take the Browns and the word “good” with a grain of salt, but that might actually be on-brand for 2020. The Browns are 3-1 for the first time since 2001. Head coach Kevin Stefanski seems to get the most out of his players. Odell Beckham Jr. is finally being used like the game-changer that he is, Baker Mayfield’s play has improved from last year and the offense has scored more than 30 points in three consecutive weeks. There’s plenty of reasonable skepticism with the Browns because of who they’ve been, but this year could be different.
- Pump the brakes on Kyler Murray and the Cardinals
Contrary to what I said two weeks ago, everything seems to have come to a halt with the Cardinals. Kyler Murray was making highlight-reel plays for the first two weeks, but the last two weeks have shown that it’s too soon to declare them good. I’m unsure if it’s just a hiccup or if they have regressed to the mean. In the last two weeks, the Cardinals have lost to the Detroit Lions and the Carolina Panthers – teams that are not good at all. Murray and the Cardinals have shown that there is still plenty of work to be done for the team to be a contender. Maybe next year it will all come together.
- Justin Herbert looks like the real deal
The quarterbacks that come out of the University of Oregon tend to be mediocre at best. But through three starts, Justin Herbert is looking like he has a promising future. It came as a surprise to many when Herbert started for Tyrod Taylor in week two due to Taylor’s chest injury, but he has provided a spark for the Chargers’ offense. He is able to make throws into tight coverage that many rookies can’t, and kept them in the game against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers – not an easy challenge. It’s time for the Chargers to start Herbert for the rest of the season.
- It can’t get any worse for football in New York
Heading into the 2020 season, expectations for the Jets and Giants were very low. However, both have somehow managed to completely fall well below those set expectations. The Giants are a young team with a young head coach, but there is not a lot of talent on that roster to build around other than the injured Saquon Barkley. The Jets, on the other hand, look like the clear favorites to win the Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes. The team has very little talent, Adam Gase is being out-coached every week, Sam Darnold has yet to show his potential and the team is an undisciplined mess. Football in New York is at an all-time low. At least they have the Yankees.
