Five teams – the Chiefs, Bills, Vikings, Steelers and Seahawks – are 3-0 after the first three weeks of the season. Only three teams, Titans, Bengals and Jaguars, are off to 0-3 starts. That means 24 teams are 2-1 and 1-2. Counting the five 3-0 teams, 29 teams are still very much alive in the playoff race. Since onlyone 0-3 team since 2000 has made the playoffs, the odds are against them.
–The Green Bay Packers are an example of how the league is featuring more running this year as The ackers have run for 612 yards and are only the fifth team since 1990 to rush for over 600 yards in the first three games. On top of that, Malik Willis stepped in when Jordan Love was injured and became the fifth quarterback to have a 120 rating or above in his first two games with a new team. With the Packers and Lions at 2-1 and the Vikings at 3-0, the NFC North could have three teams in the playoffs.
–Carolina benching Bryce Young for Andy Dalton was a one game success as Dalton led the Panthers to the win over the Raiders.. But the Panthers declined trade offers for Young so they may not be ready to give up on him. The bigger question is how owner David Tepper is going to run the organization going forward. He has tended to be too impulsive in making decisions.
–Damar Hamlin did not get the comeback of the year award last year after he came back from virtually dying on the field in 2022. But he now is starting at safety and intercepted the first pass of his career when the Bills routed the Jaguars. Granted, Trevor Lawrence overthrew the pass but it was still a feel good moment for the season.
–The New York Giants let Saquan Barkley leave in free agency and the Eagles snapped him up. Barkley has made a difference to the Eagles as he rushed for 147 yards and two touchdowns in a victory over the Saints. In his first three games with the Eagles, he has an NFL best 351 yards rushing. And he has scored five touchdowns with a pair of two point conversions for 34 points. And he has caught 10 passes, one for a touchdown. Barkley may play a big role to help the Eagles win their division.
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