Week 3 was the craziest week of the NFL season so far. There is still a ton of uncertainty around the season, but here are three things we know are true:
Jordan Love IS Green Bay’s next franchise QB
Going into this season there was a lot of hype around Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets. Last year the Jets seemed to be a QB away from being serious contenders, and they appeared to have finally gotten that QB. However, no one seemed to be interested in the Packers, who entered the season without Aaron Rodgers on the roster for the first time in 18 years. They chose Jordan Love, who has been training behind Rodgers for years, to be the man to take over the offense. Expectations were relatively low for this Packers team going into the season, they had very few notable players on their roster. Now, three games into the season, the Packers look like they haven’t taken a step back at all after losing Rodgers. The offense looked great through the first two games, Jordan Love threw for three touchdowns in both games. Even though the Packers blew a late lead against the Falcons in Week 2, things were going better than expected. However, Week 3 is what should have Packers fans really excited about Love’s future with Green Bay. With 12:50 left on the clock in the fourth quarter, Love was handed the ball down 17-0, knowing he had to score on every possession if he wanted a chance at winning…and that’s exactly what he did. Not only was Love able to march down the field three times, including two 80 yard drives resulting in touchdowns, but he also converted the key two-point conversion that enabled the Packers to win in regulation. You could not have drawn up a more Aaron Rodgers-esque performance. Green Bay prides themselves on coming through in clutch situations and it looks like they have found yet another QB that will be able to lead them to late game wins. There’s a lot to love about Love.
The Dolphins are Great The Broncos are TRASH
20-70
Just take it in for a while, you’re not going to see anything like it for a long time. For this score to be possible in the NFL, one team has to have completely given up, and that’s exactly what happened. The Broncos did not have enough respect for themselves or their fans to go out in the second half and play some tough football despite already being blown out. Instead, they laid face down in the grass and let the Dolphins do as they please. This score is quite a spectacle, but it doesn’t mean much for the course of the season. We’ve known the Dolphins have one of if not the most explosive offense in the NFL, and we knew the Broncos were bad. My biggest question following this game is what does Denver’s future look like as a franchise? They traded a ton of assets away for Russell Wilson, believing he was the last piece needed for the team to contend for a superbowl. Last year they finished as one of the worst teams in the league. With their first round (5th overall) pick belonging to Seattle as part of the Wilson trade, the biggest move the Broncos could make in the offseason was hiring Sean Payton as their head coach. Three games into the season and it appears the issues in Denver run deeper than the coaching. It’s hard to imagine the Broncos even contending for the playoffs in the Russell Wilson era. It seems like Coloradans are going to have to cling to their newfound college football success. Perhaps they can get excited for the reigning champion Denver Nuggets to take the court again. There’s a lot to be excited about in Colorado, just not the Broncos.
Dallas Tricked You…Again
After the first two games I bet you thought this could be the Cowboys’ year. I bet you thought Dak was ready to take his game to the next level. I bet you thought no one was scoring on their lockdown defense, especially not the Josh Dobbs led Arizona Cardinals. Congrats! You’ve been tricked by the Cowboys for the 8th year in a row. Now, I’m not saying Dallas won’t go on to have a decent regular season and secure a wild card spot in the NFC, they probably will. Just remember, this is still not their year.
Additionally, I must give credit where credit is due, Arizona came prepared. Coming off an embarrassing loss against the Giants, the Cardinals could have easily thrown in the towel and looked forward to their high draft pick, but they didn’t. They went out there and exposed the most consistently overrated team in the NFL.
After years of disappointment in Dallas, many people are wondering what the problem is. This team appears to have the best defense in the league, they have an explosive offense, and they’ve been considered contenders for the better half of the last decade. Why can they not figure out how to make deep runs in the playoffs? Many people will blame Dak, many will blame coaches, personally I like to believe it’s all Jerry Jones’ fault. Regardless of what you think the problem is, I think we can all agree that if the Cowboys are “America’s Team”, it might be time to move to a new country.
Week 3 showed us the good, the bad, and the ugly side of the NFL. Jordan Love is good, the Cowboys are bad, the Broncos…well, you get the point. It will be very exciting to see what Week 4 has to offer.
