Seahawks letting Russ cook. Six teams move to 3-0. Here's our Week 3 breakdown
Jim Reineking
Week 3 is (almost) in the books, and six teams (Bears, Bills, Packers, Seahawks, Steelers and Titans) have improved to 3-0.
Two 2-0 teams — the Baltimore Ravens and defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs — square off in a scintillating "Monday Night Football" showdown for the early unofficial title of "AFC Super Bowl favorite."
#LetRussCook is trending in Seattle. Surely by now you've heard that Russell Wilson has never received a vote for MVP during his career. The Seahawks quarterback appears on a mission to finally earn somebody's vote after another thrilling win in Seattle. With his five passing touchdowns on Sunday, Wilson became the first quarterback in NFL history with four or more touchdown passes in the first three games of a season.
On Sunday night, Aaron Rodgers continued his torrid start as well. Rodgers threw for three touchdowns -- pushing his season total to nine (with no interceptions) -- as the Packers topped the Saints.
Quick hits: Catch up on Sunday's best
- DK Metcalf lost an easy touchdown against the Cowboys when he eased up before reaching the end zone. He later redeemed himself in the Seahawks' win.
- The Broncos filled empty seats with cardboard cutouts of "South Park" characters.
- The Eagles decided to punt with 19 seconds remaining in overtime rather than attempt a very long field goal in Sunday's tie with the Bengals.
- For the second consecutive week, the Falcons blew a huge fourth-quarter lead to lose in horrific fashion.
- Cardinals QB Kyler Murray put clown pants on Lions rookie CB Jeff Okudah on a highlight reel-worthy touchdown run.
- Browns WR Odell Beckham Jr. celebrated like a defensive back after breaking up a potential interception.
- The Chargers had a chance to pull off a successful hook-and-ladder play for what would have been a spectacular game-winning moment.
Key Week 3 story lines
- 32 things we learned in Week 3: While history was made in Cleveland, Russell Wilson is the early favorite for league MVP.
- Week 3 winners and losers: As Tom Brady and the Buccaneers are showing signs of improvement, the Mitchell Trubisky era in Chicago might be coming to a inglorious end.
- Seahawks are NFL's ultimate closers: Russell Wilson's play this season has set Seattle apart from the pack, Jarrett Bell writes.
- Daniel Jones' struggles persist: The second-year quarterback's future is unclear after another lopsided loss, Art Stapleton writes.
Week 3 rundown
- Packers 37, Saints 30: Without Davante Adams, it was Allen Lazard who stepped into the go-to receiver role for Aaron Rodgers.
- Buccaneers 28, Broncos 10: Until Sunday, the Broncos were the only NFL team with a winning record against Tom Brady, who is now 9-9 vs. Denver in his career.
- Lions 26, Cardinals 23: The Lions ended an 11-game losing streak that dated back to last season.
- Seahawks 38, Cowboys 31: Russell Wilson really wants those MVP votes, throwing for 5 TDs Sunday as he continues his hot start.
- Colts 36, Jets 7: It's time for concern with Sam Darnold after the latest debacle of a game for the Jets.
- Panthers 21, Chargers 16: Matt Rhule got his first win as an NFL head coach, doing so without all-world running back Christian McCaffrey.
- Titans 31, Vikings 30: Stephen Gostkowski has totally redeemed himself after his Titans tenure got off to a rocky start in Denver in Week 1.
- Steelers 28, Texans 21: The Texans' seemingly perennial place as hosts of the early Saturday wild-card playoff game is slipping away.
- Bills 35, Rams 32: After blowing a 28-3 lead, the Bills managed to avoid an embarrassing loss to improve to 3-0.
- Bears 30, Falcons 26: If 2020 were a football team, it'd be the Falcons.
- Patriots 36, Raiders 20: Hope you started Rex Burkhead if he's on your fantasy team. His career game lifted New England to victory over upstart Las Vegas.
- Bengals 23, Eagles 23: Both teams remained winless after producing the second tie in their last four meetings.
- Browns 34, Washington 20: The Browns are over .500 for the first time since 2014.
- 49ers 36, Giants 9: Despite being decimated by injuries, the 49ers still managed to manhandle the lowly Giants.
- Dolphins 31, Jaguars 13 (Thurs.): FitzMagic is putting Tua Time on hold in South Florida.
Eyes on the (fantasy) prize
Just when fantasy football GMs were convinced Cam Newton’s four rushing touchdowns in the first two weeks of the season had drained all the value from Patriots running backs, Sunday’s game turned everything upside down. Rex Burkhead turned into a week-winner with two rushing touchdowns and another one receiving. At the same time, Sony Michel ran for 117 yards on just nine carries -- and added 23 more yards on a pair of receptions. (To top things off, rookie J.J. Taylor chipped in 43 more rushing yards.) Any or all might deserve a waiver-wire pickup this week, but it’s still as difficult as ever to figure out if any of them will be worth starting.
Two rookie receivers, however, could be about to break out. The Vikings’ Justin Jefferson looked explosive, catching seven passes for 175 yards -- including a 71-yard touchdown. He’ll likely be this week’s most attractive addition. The Bengals’ Tee Higgins was impressive as well, catching a pair of TD passes from fellow rookie Joe Burrow.
Second-year pro Cedrick Wilson of the Cowboys also scored twice, but with the receiving depth in Dallas, it’s hard to see him doing it again. The same can be said for the Titans’ Kalif Raymond, who stepped in for the injured A.J. Brown and caught three passes for 113 yards.
The Seahawks have been so prolific on offense through three games that there may be room for another fantasy-relevant receiver after tight end Greg Olsen caught five of six targets for 61 yards. Also keep an eye on Seattle running back Chris Carson’s knee injury. It could mean more work for Carlos Hyde, Travis Homer … or possibly Rashaad Penny once he’s healthy.
And there could be a quarterback change in Chicago this week after Nick Foles threw three fourth-quarter TD passes in relief of an ineffective Mitchell Trubisky. Foles won't be worth starting right away in one-QB leagues, but he could be worth a speculative pickup for later.
Coming this week
Monday: Week 3 wraps up with a fantastic matchup -- and potential AFC title game preview -- as the Baltimore Ravens host the Kansas City Chiefs (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN).
Tuesday: USA TODAY Sports offers its power rankings for all 32 NFL teams after Week 3.
Thursday: Week 4 kicks off with two winless teams -- the Denver Broncos and New York Jets -- squaring off at MetLife Stadium (8:20 p.m. ET, NFL Network). Before the game, make sure to check out our expert picks for every Week 4 game.
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