2015-16 Week 3 Review

There were some surprising results during yesterday's games. Perhaps no outcome came as a bigger surprise (to me, anyway) as the Dolphins getting absolutely blown out at home against the Bills. That Miami could lose such a game was not a surprise. That they were embarrassed, especially to the degree to which they were embarrassed, was just a very bad sign, given the struggles that the Dolphins have experienced thus far this season.

Another surprising result came in Baltimore, where the Bengals beat the Ravens on the road to stay perfect at 3-0. More surprising than that is that the Baltimore Ravens, a team that won the Super Bowl three seasons ago, had an impressive showing in last year's playoffs, and which was widely considered one of the favorites in the AFC, are now 0-3. They are really struggling, and need to stop the bleeding in a hurry, or this season will be lost before it ever really began for them.

There was another meeting between one perfect team and another winless team, with the winless team also hosting this game. The Detroit Lions gave the Broncos a run for their money, but Denver pulled it out again, to get off to a hot 3-0 start. Detroit, in the meantime, looks like they will likely have to endure another long season, after some promise shown last year.

The Raiders defeated the Browns in Cleveland. Usually, western teams do not fare too well back East, but Oakland is looking good so far, having won two games in a row. This was a big loss for the Browns, who could have kept up with the Steelers at nipping on the heels of the division leading Bengals.

Yes, Pittsburgh won on the road in St. Louis, but the main story for them is the loss of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, and how that might affect the team over the next 4-6 weeks. That is the time that he is expected to be out for because of this injury. As for the Rams, another painful loss, and a 1-2 record, has them trailing the Cardinals by what appears to be a growing distance.

Yes, Arizona is red hot, one of the seven remaining unbeaten teams as I write this (although Green Bay will put their unbeaten record on the line against Kansas City later tonight). The Cardinals walloped the 49ers, 47-7. It was the second game in a row that Arizona scored more than 40 points, which is the first time that they have achieved that feat in many decades as a franchise. The victory by the Cardinals dropped the 49ers to 1-2, nodding them up with the Rams and the Seahawks.

Seattle is no longer winless, having earned their first victory in a convincing shutout over the Bears. nothing at all surprising there. Chicago was no match, and now have fallen to 0-3, and looking dangerously close to a team that will not be a factor at all this season.

Indianapolis was another team that surprised many with their 0-2 start, although they finally got their first win of the season yesterday, barely nosing by Tennessee. Still, already, the Colts are nodded with the Titans, Jaguars, and Texans within the division, as every team here has an identical 1-2 record at the moment.

The Jaguars got absolutely blasted by the Patriots, who scored 51 points, and are looking virtually unstoppable. New England upped their record to 3-0, and now stand alone atop the AFC East.

The New York Jets suffered their first defeat of the season, losing at home to the Eagles, although they did at least fight for it late, ultimately falling short in their bid to mount a big comeback. In the meantime, Philly gets back in the race in the NFC East, where every team but Dallas has a 1-2 mark.

The Cowboys probably should still be unbeaten, as they owned a two touchdown lead three different times in yesterday's game. But the Falcons are showing some resiliency, as well as a strong ability to mount late comebacks. They became the first team in NFL history to start off 3-0 after trailing in the 4th quarter in all three games.

The Carolina Panthers predictably downed the Saints, a team that is already enduring a long and hard season. New Orleans trails both the Falcons and Panthers by three games already, just three games into the season, and they have a host of other problems. Looks like the party in New Orleans is over.

Houston got past Tampa Bay, using their trademark tough defense in so doing, and the Chargers were beaten by Minnesota.

That leaves seven unbeaten teams remaining (I do not remember so many this far into the season), and only four teams remain winless (the Bears, Lions, Saints, and Ravens).

Interesting beginning to the season so far, and let's stay tuned to see if the Chiefs can handle the Packers at Lambeau Field tonight. Smart money is on Green Bay, though.