Going into the third weekend of the season, there were eight teams at 3-0 and eight at 0-3.
Now there are three AFC 3-0 teams (Chiefs, Bills and the surprising Raiders) and two in the NFC (Vikings and 49ers) and four 0-3 teams in the AFC (Dolphins, Titans, Texans and Chargers) and one in the NFC (Bucs).
The odds are stacked against the 0-3 teams making the playoffs. Only five 0-3 teams have made the playoffs since 1990, although the Texans were the last two teams to do it.
In the AFC, the 3-0 Bills and 2-1 Jaguars have the best shot at winning their divisions. The Bills lead the AFC East and the other three teams (Jets, Patriots and Dolphins) have a combined record of 2-7.
The Jaguars lead the AFC South and the other three teams (Colts, Titans and Texans) have a combined record of 1-8.
In the NFC the races are wide open with 13 teams at 2-1or 1-2.
–Quarterback injuries continue to be a problem. Baker Mayfield of the Bucs became the sixth to go down in the first three games. He suffered a dislocated thumb while throwing a late pick as the Bucs lost to the Vikings, 23-16.
–Coaching blunders continue to be another problem.
Last week, Aaron Glenn of the Jets failed to call time out when Green Bay faced a fourth-and-five with a minute left in regulation and lost in overtime.
Colts coach Shane Steichen, trailing the Chiefs by three in overtime with three minutes left, decided to kick a field goal instead of going for it on fourth-and-eight. That gave Patrick Mahomes three minutes to get a field goal and, of course, he did. He has yet to lose an overtime game.
Last Sunday in Brazil, Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer made several mistakes in the last 15 seconds and lost to the Ravens. First, he called timeout with 14 seconds left on third down. An incomplete pass left 10 seconds on the clock before the Cowboys kicked a field goal to tie the game with seven seconds left. Overtime seemed inevitable. But the Cowboys kicked the ball into the end zone, so the Ravens took over on their 35 with seven seconds still left. Lamar Jackson threw a 25-yard pass to Zay Flowers and the Ravens called time out with a second left. Tyler Loop then kicked a 56-yard field goal to win the the game. Yes, the same Loop who missed a field goal in Pittsburgh to cost the Ravens a playoff berth and probably cost John Harbaugh his job.
–Jameis Winston, playing for injured Jaxson Dart, put only 12 points on the board for the Giants but it was enough to beat the Titans, 12-7, because Cam Ward threw a pick from the seven-yard line. The new Titans coaching staff is having problems unlocking Ward’s potential.
–The feel good story of the year and maybe the decade was Case Keenum (at 38 years and 223 days old) playing for the first time since 2023 and leading the Bears to a stunning 27-7 win over the Eagles. He threw for 250 yards and two touchdowns and became the oldest Bear player in the 107-year history of the team to score a rushing touchdown.
Keenum was supposed to the third stringer this year mentoring Caleb Williams. But when Williams was injured and with Tyson Bagent recovering from the concussion, he got the start and showed no signs of being rusty.
“As a kid you dream about it,” Keenum said of the way he never gave up while bouncing around the league including three stints with the Texans. “That is why I am still here and still doing this, why I am still getting up. And I’ve been knocked down my whole career.”
Along the way Keenum made $60 million so he could have retired, but he still kept hoping for another chance. And he made the most of it on the Monday night national stage.
