First month’s finish changed our thinking
1. Since Sam Darnold led the Jets to a Week 1 upset in Detroit, quarterbacks taken in Round 1 of the 2018 draft are a collective 1-7 after Arizona’s Josh Rosen and Cleveland’s Baker Mayfield (four turnovers) suffered heartbreaking losses on the final play Sunday in their starting debuts. Mayfield’s defeat makes Browns quarterbacks 2-27-1 in their initial starts for the franchise since its 1999 rebirth.
2. With a 49-yard score, Darren Fells became the first player to catch a TD from Mayfield.
3. With a 22-yard score, Chad Williams became the first player to catch a TD from Rosen.
4. With a 55-yard score, Cordarrelle Patterson became the 70th player to catch a TD from Tom Brady, who tied Vinny Testaverde’s record for spreading the wealth to the most different teammates.
5. Reports of the Patriots’ demise? Premature. Brady, who gets WR Julian Edelman back from suspension Thursday night, is 15-1 at home against the Dolphins (the loss being the 2005 regular-season finale, in which Brady was pulled early).
6. Reports that Miami’s 3-0 ledger heralded a new day in the AFC East? Premature. After getting embarrassed
38-7 at New England, the Dolphins provided fresh fodder to naysayers who pointed to a weak schedule as the primary reason for their hot start.
7. Bravo to Jon Gruden, who got his first win as Raiders coach since Jan. 12,
2002 (the week before Oakland’s infamous “Tuck Rule” loss at New England). He got help after what appeared to be a game-clinching first down by Cleveland with 98 seconds to go was overturned by replay officials, who changed the spot. Oakland tied the score a minute later before prevailing in overtime.
8. Given the physical punishment they endure, hard to fault any player for using whatever leverage is available to get a better deal. But Le’Veon Bell and Earl Thomas probably could have found higher roads while conducting their business lately. Neither has necessarily bolstered his free agent worth in 2019 given their recent actions, including Thomas’ middle finder to his own sideline after he broke his leg Sunday.
9. Alvin Kamara’s third TD run of the day, a 49-yard gallop up the gut, took him all the way into the MetLife Stadium tunnel as he sealed the Saints’ 33-18 win against the Giants. It brought back memories of Flipper Anderson’s tunnel antics in the Meadowlands during the
1989 playoffs, when the Rams ousted the G-Men in OT. YouTube it.
10. Speaking of overtime, three games featured bonus football Sunday. If it seems like you’ve seen lots of free football this season, it’s only the fourth
(1979, 1983, 2002) when at least one game has gone into OT in each of the first four weeks.
11. Let’s not credit Mitch/Mitchell Trubisky for turning the corner just yet. But Sunday might have been his first of many career days — he established personal bests by throwing for 354 yards and six TDs (he’d never thrown for three in his first 15 starts) and tied his career high of 53 rushing yards — with new coach Matt Nagy. My wonderful colleague Nancy Armour and I will continue to spar over this (maybe indefinitely), but Trubisky might just finally be taking to the system Nagy brought from Kansas City, where Patrick Mahomes is now flourishing after getting an extra year to learn it.
12. Ezekiel Elliott’s 240 yards from scrimmage were a career best. He had
29 touches after entering the game averaging 19.7 this season. The Cowboys won. Funny how that works.
13. K Brett Maher nailed both of his extra-point attempts and all four field goal tries, including a 38-yarder at the gun, in Dallas’ 26-24 squeaker over the Lions. Give the Cowboys deserved credit after what seemed a questionable decision to part with proven Dan Bailey before the season.
14. Speaking of kickers, how long before the Chargers call camp leg Roberto Aguayo or another unemployed specialist? After missing one PAT and two FGs on Sunday, Caleb Sturgis has misfired on five of 18 kicks this year. The Bolts survived the undermanned 49ers 29-27 but seem quite prone to having their season undermined by special teams.
15. Speaking of kickers — one final time — kudos to Adam Vinatieri, who hit his 566th field goal (and later 567th) to become the NFL’s all-time leader after breaking his tie with Hall of Famer Morten Andersen. A treat to enjoy the best to ever do it ... though Gruden might disagree.
16. Who does Frank Reich think he is? Doug Pederson? Reich, the former Eagles offensive coordinator and Colts’ new head man, was subject to plenty of foresight and first guessing when he foolishly went for it on 4th
and-4 from his own 43 in overtime against the Texans. Indy failed to convert, and Houston notched its first win of 2018 three plays later with a field goal. (FWIW, Indianapolis players fully backed Reich for his, uh, gutsy call.)
17. Perhaps Reich got overly excited after watching Andrew Luck set career highs with 40 completions, 62 attempts and 464 yards (plus 4 TDs). Luck also proved his surgically reconstructed wing could handle 50-yard throws.
18. The Texans’ win was the first time QB Deshaun Watson had been part of a successful NFL comeback.
19. Sunday was the first time Houston’s J.J. Watt and Jadeveon Clowney both had multiple sacks in the same game. They got Luck twice apiece.
20. Runaway defensive rookie of the year candidate? Indianapolis LB Darius Leonard entered the weekend as the league’s leading tackler before adding 13 more (plus his fourth sack).
21. Runaway offensive rookie of the year candidate? Atlanta WR Calvin Ridley is the first in NFL history with six TD grabs in his team’s first four games.
22. In other Falcons receiver news, Julio Jones’ 173 receiving yards made him the first player ever with 41 100yard efforts in his first 99 NFL games. His 96.5 receiving yards per game is the most ever. Unfortunately for Jones, he was ultimately shown up by
2011 draft mate A.J. Green — Green was drafted fourth overall, two spots ahead of Jones — whose 13-yard TD catch with 7 seconds left allowed the Bengals to stun the Falcons in a 37-36 thriller.
23. Whether or not it was fair to September stud Ryan Fitzpatrick, who struggled badly Sunday, the Buccaneers were essentially obligated to turn their ship back over to Jameis Winston — the only quarterback Tampa Bay has under contract in 2019 ... and one who might or might not be the face of the franchise. #Decision2018.
24. It appears the Titans will have a much easier choice with Marcus Mariota, the second overall pick of the
2015 draft (after Winston). Despite an elbow injury that’s hindered his passing in recent weeks, Mariota put up
344 yards Sunday while engineering an overtime upset of Philadelphia.
25. Here’s hoping the “Greatest Show on Surf ” thing sticks in L.A., but can we slow the comparisons to the “Greatest Show on Turf ”? Yes, the 2018 Rams are outpacing the 1999-2001 St. Louis Rams in terms of points (35) and yards (468.5) produced per week. But we’d take Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk, Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce over Jared Goff, Todd Gurley, Brandin Cooks and Cooper Kupp ... for now.
26. The latest indictment of preseason? Goff, Gurley, Kupp, Cooks, WR Robert Woods, LT Andrew Whitworth and DL Aaron Donald were among the Rams who didn’t play a snap in August.