Around the AFC
Bolts Up: Folks, they’re not done. Remember a few weeks ago, when the Chargers suddenly seemed poised to drop out of AFC West contention after a couple losses to the Giants and Commanders? Remember how they lost both of their starting tackles for significant time and both their No. 1 and No. 2 running backs for significant time? Somehow, head coach Jim Harbaugh has righted the ship enough that Los Angeles now sits at 5-3 after a 37-10 blowout of the Vikings on Thursday night. Justin Herbert is slinging the pill and Los Angeles’ ground attack has stabilized with second-year back Kimani Vidal, who has two 100-plus-yard games in his last three. Tackle Joe Alt’s back now, too. It’s still a three-horse race in the AFC West.
Jags slumping, but Travis Hunter soaring: After a rough start to his rookie year — often not on the same page with QB Trevor Lawrence — Colorado Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter broke out last Sunday. How about eight catches for 101 yards, and the first touchdown of his NFL career? How about a pass breakup on defense, too? Unfortunately, this all amounted to a 35-7 drubbing for the Jaguars at the hands of the stampeding Rams.
Jets grounded: There may very well be an 0-17 team this season. The Jets are hopeless, with head coach Aaron Glenn pushing back on reporters weekly and owner Woody Johnson tossing his $40 million quarterback, Justin Fields, under the bus after another rough outing. Now the team’s two best players — cornerback Sauce Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson — are out for this week’s tilt against the Bengals after not practicing all week. The irony of all of this? The Jets’ slopfest with the Broncos in London two weeks ago might’ve been their best chance to win a game this year.
Maye he rise: The Patriots appear to have gone from one generational quarterback to another in the span of about five years. Drake Maye, the third overall pick in 2024, is playing unreal football right now after connecting on 21 of 23 passes to beat the Titans 31-13 last week. He’s completing 75% of his passes, has 14 total touchdowns against two picks, and most impressively has a literal perfect 158.3 quarterback rating on throws of at least 20-plus yards downfield this season. If the season ended right now, Maye may well be the MVP.
Around the NFC
Back and better (in some ways) than ever: Christian McCaffrey’s averaging just 3.5 yards a carry after a lost 2024 season, and whispers about his run-game burst still flitter around Twitter with each passing week. But in the passing game? Oh, man. After seven more catches in a 20-10 win over the Falcons last Sunday, McCaffrey now sits at third in the NFL with 53 grabs and 516 yards through seven games. That’s on pace for about 129 catches across a 17-game season, which would shatter the single-season record for an RB of 116 set by…Christian McCaffrey in 2019. The Castle Rock kid is all right.
Trouble in the capital: The Commanders have lost three of their last four, just got ran for 44 points by the Cowboys, and are on a crash course for a rude reset after a dream run to the NFC title game in 2024. Sophomore quarterback Jayden Daniels hasn’t operated with the magic of his rookie year when healthy, and will miss his third game of the season on Monday night — against a Chiefs team that’s won four of its last five, no less. Washington’s passing game is iffy, and its defense is struggling.
Watch out for Seattle: Both the AFC and NFC Wests are an absolute bloodbath. The Seahawks are establishing themselves as one of the most well-rounded squads in the NFL, sitting at 5-2 after handling Houston 27-19 last Monday. QB Sam Darnold is dealing, wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba is leading the NFL in receiving yards (819) and the Seahawks’ defense is conjuring up memories of the Legion of Boom days. Not a team anyone in the conference wants to face right now.
Market watch: As the trade deadline nears, keep a firm eye on the Saints’ Chris Olave, who continues producing (behind a quietly-improving Spencer Rattler) even as New Orleans continues to slide into the dumps. After a 98-yard, two-touchdown performance in the Saints’ 26-14 loss to the Bears last Sunday, Olave now has 44 grabs for 440 yards through seven games and could be a difference-maker for a slew of teams at the deadline. His name comes up as often as any other receiver in the league in trade rumors.
Game of the Week
Green Bay at Pittsburgh
Duh. This is Aaron Rodgers’ first time playing his old Packers squad since he was traded to the Jets in 2023, and the best version of Rodgers the NFL has seen since that moment, too. The mobility is nowhere near what it once was, but Rodgers still has 14 touchdowns and a 105.0 quarterback rating through six games. The narratives are ripe in this one, with the 41-year-old Rodgers going toe-to-toe with the 26-year-old Jordan Love, who was drafted as his eventual replacement in Green Bay. Plus, this is a matchup of two four-win teams.
Packers 31, Steelers 27
Lock of the Week
Tennessee at Indianapolis
Woof. The Broncos’ Week 1 and Week 2 opponents match up here with inverse records: the Titans at 1-6, the Colts at 6-1. Tennessee has managed to score more than 20 points just once this year, and the Colts haven’t scored fewer than 20 in any game this year. Daniel Jones and his army of playmakers just hung 38 points on the Chargers last week, and Indianapolis’ defense is good enough to easily handle Titans rookie QB Cam Ward and a struggling offense.
Colts 34, Titans 17
Upset of the Week
Buffalo at Carolina
Carolina’s offense is touch-and-go behind third-year QB Bryce Young. But running back Rico Dowdle is cooking — 551 yards through seven games — and the Panthers’ defense has been truly dominant at times, shutting out the Falcons in Week 3 and shutting down the Jets (admittedly, not hard to do) last Sunday. The Bills are reeling, with two straight losses, and now face a plucky team in a hostile environment. This smells of surprise.
Panthers 21, Bills 17
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