Unfortunately, the NFL is now dealing with its first COVID-19 outbreak of the year, with the Tennessee Titans being a primary point of concern with multiple positive tests. In addition, Patriots quarterback (QB) Cam Newton and cornerback (CB) Stephon Gilmore also contracted the virus.
Due to the outbreak, the Week 4 Titans game against the Pittsburgh Steelers was postponed to October and Newton was ruled out in a crucial match against the Kansas City Chiefs (Gilmore tested positive after the game, putting both teams at risk).
However, there are still some games to cover, so I’ll do just that.
New England Patriots 10, Kansas City Chiefs 26
The Patriots really struggled without Newton and it showed. This is pretty unfortunate for the Pats since honestly, if they had Newton, they probably would’ve won in my opinon.
The QB play from veteran Brain Hoyer and newbie Jarrett Stidham left much to be desired. While Mahomes played well, it was a down game for him as well.
For New England, Hoyer went 15 for 24, recording 130 yards and no touchdown passes against one interception. Stidham, who came in after Hoyer was benched, went 5 for 13 for 60 YDS and one touchdown against two interceptions.
This ineptitude from the QB position forced the Pats to resort to running the ball more often than not. Running back (RB) Damien Harris had 100 yards across 17 carries, accounting for a good chunk of the 185 rushing yards New England put up.
The Pats are still without any real weapons in the receiving corps, with wide receiver (WR) Damiere Byrd leading the way with 80 yards across five receptions.
Defensively, CB Jonathan Jones led the way with five total tackles. Defensive end (DE) Chase Winovich had one sack on the night.
For the Chiefs, QB Patrick Mahomes went 19 for 29, racking up 236 yards and two touchdowns. RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire had 16 carries for 64 yards.
Tight end (TE) Travis Kelce led the receiving corps with 70 yards on three receptions, good enough for 23.3 yards per catch.
It was an uncharacteristically low-yardage game from KC’s receivers, as WR Tyreek Hill notched a mere 64 yards while WRs Sammy Watkins and Mecole Hardman only combined for 70 yards.
On the other hand, KC’s defense had a field day with the lack of firepower coming from New England. CB Rashad Fenton and safeties Tyrann Mathieu and Juan Thornhill all had an interception on the night, with Mathieu picking off an ugly one off the hands of WR Julian Edelman for a pick-six.
DEs Frank Clark and Taco Charlton both combined for two sacks on the night.
Losing Newton is a tough to the Pats, since I imagine he’ll be out of action for at least two weeks. Hoyer was way below par and I don’t want to judge Stidham prematurely, since he had to go up against the reigning Super Bowl champions. New England’s run game shined but they really need Newton back as soon as possible.
Not much to say about the Chiefs; they’re really, really good still.
Cleveland Browns 49, Dallas Cowboys 38
Boy, what a game this was. For as much as I don’t like the Cowboys, I do honestly feel bad for QB Dak Prescott.
Prescott is lighting up the league right and would potentially be in the MVP discussion with QBs Russell Wilson, Aaron Rodgers and Josh Allen if his team wasn’t 1-3. The team’s poor performance can’t be blamed on him.
For the Browns, QB Baker Mayfield completed 19 of 30 passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns. RB D’Ernest Johnson had 13 carries for 95 yards.
Cleveland’s run game was absolutely dominant against the Cowboys, even without star RB Nick Chubb throughout most of the game, who did not return after an injury. The Browns mixed it up against Dallas, giving WR Odell Beckham Jr. two carries, in which the receiver racked up 73 yards, resulting in an impressive 36.5 yards per carry. Also, OBJ recorded a rushing touchdown.
RB Kareem Hunt, who got saddled with a heavier workload following Chubb’s injury, recorded two rushing touchdowns.
Not only did OBJ do well on the ground, he also led the receiving corps with five receptions for 81 yards and two touchdowns (making me the idiot for benching him in fantasy).
Defensively, CB Terrance Mitchell led the squad with an impressive 12 tackles. CB Denzel Ward got an interception while the Browns recorded three sacks on the night from DE Myles Garrett (2) and CB M.J. Stewart (1).
For Dallas, Prescott ate on the field. The QB completed a whopping 41 of 58 passes for an even crazier 502 yards and four touchdowns against one interception. What makes this stat line even crazier is that despite those numbers, Prescott’s team still lost.
RB Ezekiel Elliot had 12 carries for 54 yards on the ground. WR Amari Cooper caught 12 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown. WR CeeDee Lamb (2) and TE Dalton Schultz (1) combined for three touchdowns.
On defense, safety Donovan Wilson led the way with 10 total tackles and a sack. CB Trevon Diggs also recorded a sack.
When your QB puts up over 500 yards, four touchdowns and doesn’t cough the ball up a bunch, you know your defense isn’t doing their share of the work. Dallas’ secondary currently ranks near the bottom with Atlanta, Seattle and Carolina. Seriously, if the Cowboys had a competent secondary, their current situation would be much, much better in a terrible NFC East.
The Browns’ decision to stick by their run game and pass off of play action more often is paying off and is something I believe is necessary as to establishing their identity. This Browns squad looks legit so far, save for a Week 1 beating by Baltimore.
Arizona Cardinals 21, Carolina Panthers 31
I’ll admit that both the Panthers and Cardinals are better than what I originally gave them credit for. When Carolina gets RB Christian McCaffrey back, they might have a legit chance at catching up with New Orleans in the divison.
For the Cardinals, QB Kyler Murray completed 24 of 31 pass attempts for 133 yards and three touchdowns. Murray was also the team’s leading rusher, putting up 78 yards on six carries and an average of 13 yards per carry.
WR DeAndre Hopkins led the receiving corps with seven grabs for 41 yards. RB Chase Edmonds, TE Jordan Thomas and WR Christian Kirk all had one touchdown apiece.
On defense, middle linebacker (MLB) Jordan Hicks led the way with 12 total tackles. CB Patrick Peterson notched an interception.
Panthers QB Teddy Bridgewater completed 26 of 37 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns against one interception in addition to a rushing touchdown.
RB Mike Davis had 16 carries for 84 yards while WR Robby Anderson had eight grabs for 99 yards. Other touchdowns came from RB Reggie Bonnafon and TE Ian Thomas.
Defensively, outside linebacker (OLB) Jeremy Chinn led the squad with eight total tackles. DE Yetur Gross-Matos had one sack on Murray.
Arizona’s RB Kenyan Drake was snuffed out by Carolina, only recording 35 yards on 13 carries. It was also a down game for Hopkins, and no receiver on the Cardinals had more average yards per reception than TE Dan Arnola (9.8) – just barely short of a first down per completion on average.
Not a whole lot to say about Carolina. The team, despite really missing McCaffrey let Bridgewater do a surprising amount of work. Bridgewater is a safe pick and is good at briefly carrying a team while injured talent recovers (see last with the Saints).
Around the League
AFC North
#1: Pittsburgh Steelers (3-0)*
#2: Baltimore Ravens (3-1)
#3: Cleveland Browns (3-1)
#4: Cincinnati Bengals (1-2-1)
AFC South
#1: Tennessee Titans (3-0)*
#2: Indianapolis Colts (3-1)
#3: Jacksonville Jaguars (1-3)
#4: Houston Texans (0-4)
AFC East
#1: Buffalo Bills (4-0)
#2: New England Patriots (2-2)
#3: Miami Dolphins (1-3)
#4: New York Jets (0-4)
AFC West
#1: Kansas City Chiefs (4-0)
#2: Las Vegas Raiders (3-1)
#3: Denver Broncos (1-3)
#4: Los Angeles Chargers (1-3)
NFC North
#1: Green Bay Packers (4-0)
#2: Chicago Bears (3-1)
#3: Minnesota Vikings (1-3)
#4: Detroit Lions (1-3)
NFC South
#1: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1)
#2: New Orleans Saints (2-2)
#3: Carolina Panthers (2-2)
#4: Atlanta Falcons (0-4)
NFC East
#1: Philadelphia Eagles (1-2-1)
#2: Washington Football Team (1-3)
#3: Dallas Cowboys (1-3)
#4: New York Giants (0-4)
NFC West
#1: Seattle Seahawks (4-0)
#2: Los Angeles Rams (3-1)
#3: Arizona Cardinals (2-2)
#4: San Francisco 49ers (2-2)
