Who had Bears, Bucs in lead?
Their collision highlights NFL’s Week 4 Sunday schedule
There is no way anyone outside Tampa or Chicago would have predicted the Bucs and Bears would both be in first place when they square off in Week 4.
Sure, it’s still plenty early in the schedule. Yet there’s no denying both teams are ahead of schedule.
Although the Buccaneers (2-1) come off a 30-27 home loss to Pittsburgh last Monday night, their offense behind backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has been dynamic.
Fitzpatrick started the three games for which starter Jameis Winston was suspended and made a strong argument for keeping the job. Fitz leads the NFL with 1,230 yards
passing and is second with 11 TD passes. He’s the only player in league history to throw for 400-plus yards in three consecutive games.
Winston certainly has been impressed and promises not to make waves.
“It’s about the team’s success. I’m not a selfish player, it’s about our team,” Winston said.
Chicago (2-1) is doing big things on defense. The trade with Oakland for Khalil Mack has made a huge impact in the Windy City, making up for a mediocre offense.
Mack is tied for the league lead with four sacks, with at least one in each game, and leads the NFL with three forced fumbles.
Week 4 began with Jared Goff throwing for 465 yards and five touchdowns and getting a perfect quarterback rating in a 38-31 victory over Minnesota. The Rams are 4-0 while the Vikings are 1-2-1 and haven’t won since opening day.
On byes are Carolina and Washington. Denver and Kansas City play Monday. As for today:
BALTIMORE (2-1) AT PITTSBURGH (1-1-1): Classic NFL matchup.
The Steelers have won nine straight games on Sunday nights, twice over the Ravens. But Baltimore has a rekindled offense, with Joe Flacco off to a sizzling start, helped by a trio of new receivers. Newcomer Michael Crabtree leads the Ravens with 15 catches and needs six to reach 600 for his career.
Pittsburgh likely gets back top blocker David DeCastro for Ben Roethlisberger, who is 21-3 in regularseason prime-time games at home, throwing for 55 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. If this comes down to kicking, Baltimore has a huge edge. The Ravens’ Justin Tucker has hit eight straight field goals from 50-plus yards and owns the best FG percentage (90.0) in NFL history. Pittsburgh’s Chris Boswell has hit just one of four field goals.
MIAMI (3-0) AT NEW ENGLAND (1-2): Classic NFL matchup, Part II.
Yes, the Patriots have so dominated the AFC East that we forget there are other teams in the division. This is the one team Tom Brady has fallen to the most, 10 times. Of course, he has beaten the Dolphins 21 times.
Miami already has seven interceptions; it had nine all of last season.
Meanwhile, the Patriots have struggled to find any consistency. They rank 25th on offense — other than Rob Gronkowski, Brady has little comfort with any receivers — and 28th on defense.
PHILADELPHIA (2-1) AT TENNESSEE (2-1): This could come down to the running game, particularly if Titans QB Marcus Mariota still is struggling with a right elbow injury that has affected his grip. The Eagles rank first in run defense after finishing first last season and also lead the NFL in time of possession (36:03).
CLEVELAND (1-1-1) AT OAKLAND (0-3): There are good vibes by Lake Erie and bad ones in the Bay Area.
The Browns got their first win in 18 games by beating the Jets, and top overall draft choice Baker Mayfield led the way to take over as starting quarterback. Their defense has been relatively stout.
Oakland’s decision to trade its best player, Mack, and then the 0-3 start has worn thin any luster on Jon Gruden’s return. The Raiders are last in the NFL with three sacks and tied for last with one takeaway. They are the second team in 20 years to start 0-3 when leading all three at halftime.
DETROIT (1-2) AT DALLAS (1-2): The Lions had that surprisingly dominant win against New England. They have the top-rated passing offense, but they also are a sieve against the run on defense. With Dallas struggling so much throwing the ball, look for RB Ezekiel Elliott to be very busy in this one. Elliott is tied with the 49ers’ Matt Breida for the NFL rushing lead with 274 yards.
SAN FRANCISCO (1-2) AT L.A. CHARGERS (1-2): Injuries probably have ruined the 49ers’ season. After giving Jimmy Garoppolo his big payday, they will be without him for the remainder of this year after he tore his ACL against KC. C.J. Beathard, who was in over his head last year in going 1-5, steps in.
The Chargers have won the past four meetings and have a dangerous offense behind QB Philip Rivers and a ramped-up running game.
CINCINNATI (2-1) AT ATLANTA (1-2): Injuries are beginning to ruin the Falcons’ season, too. They lost free safety Ricardo Allen with a torn Achilles tendon and he joins starters Keanu Neal (knee), a strong safety, and linebacker Deion Jones on the sidelines.
The Bengals come in without starting RB Joe Mixon (knee) but are stunningly successful in the red zone. They have points on their last 29 times inside the 20-yard line (21 TDs, 8 FGs), the longest active streak in the NFL.
BUFFALO (1-2) AT GREEN BAY (1-11): On a high after their stunning win at Minnesota as 16½-point underdogs, the Bills and their rookie quarterback Josh Allen weren’t intimidated by Minnesota’s staunch and physical defense. Green Bay’s doesn’t come close to resembling that group. Aaron Rodgers figures to throw a bunch this week, with Davante Adams now his top target.
N.Y. JETS (1-2) AT JACKSONVILLE (2-1): The Jets have won four straight in this series, but those games were mostly against weak Jaguars teams. After the Jags struggled so much vs. Tennessee, they could take it out on rookie Sam Darnold with a sack-happy defense. And Darnold displayed happy feet against the Browns.
NEW ORLEANS (2-1) AT N.Y GIANTS (1-2): If Eli Manning gets protection, the Giants are competitive. That happened in last week’s win at Houston, and the Saints have been disappointing defending the pass.
The excitement level ramps up in the running game as Giants rookie Saquon Barkley and the Saints’ Alvin Kamara, last year’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, face off.
SEATTLE (1-2) AT ARIZONA (0-3): Two teams with messed-up offenses. The Cardinals rank dead last in all offensive categories and have scored a total of 20 points. Now, rookie Josh Rosen will start, and while Seattle’s defense no longer has legion-like boom, it can be tricky and ranks eighth against the pass.
HOUSTON (0-3) AT INDIANAPOLIS (1-2): Houston probably is the most disappointing team in the NFL, having gotten back J.J. Watt, Whitney Mercilus and Deshaun Watson for injury, yet not winning at all.
Indy has a 25-7 edge in the series. Adam Vinatieri needs one field goal to break Morten Andersen’s NFL record (565). Vinatieri also needs three fieldgoal attempts to pass Gary Anderson (672) for second all-time, and one game played to pass George Blanda (340) for No. 4.