That really Suggs

Injury at core of Ravens defensive collapse

W ith all the games, backstories, injuries and developments in a given week in the NFL, it’s tough to know what to look for on Sunday. Here are five things to watch this week:

CRUMBLING DEFENSE TO WATCH

Terrell Suggs’ seasonending torn Achilles tendon looks like the early favorite for Most Devastating Injury of the Year.

Already in a major hole at 1-4 and with the Bengals off to a 5-0 start, the Ravens would be all but out of contention before the bye week with a loss Sunday at San Francisco.

Blame it on a defense that has been a shell of itself since Suggs’ injury in a season-opening loss to the Broncos. Baltimore is 25th in the NFL in points allowed and 24th in total yards after ranking a respective sixth and eighth in those categories last season.

The low point came last week at home against the Browns when they gave up 24 points in the second half and overtime of an eventual 33-30 loss. But it looks like there could be many more low points without Suggs.

RECOVERY TO WATCH

The NFL’s concussion problem could end up robbing the sport of one of its most promising young players in the Panthers’ Luke Kuechly.

There is legitimate concern around the league for Kuechly’s playing future — and health — after the Pro Bowl inside linebacker missed three games and needed more than a month to get clearance to return from a Week 1 concussion.

And even with that clearance, Kuechly returned to practice but was considered by team officials throughout the week to be no better than 50/50 to play in the Panthers’ visit Sunday to the Seahawks.

Fortunately for 4- 0 Caroli na, the Pan- thers haven’t suffered too much in Kuechly’s absence, considering they ranked fourth in the league in points allowed and 10th in total defense.

But considering the position Kuechly plays is one of the most contact-laden in the sport, more concussions — sadly — have to be considered l i kely. The Panthers might not be missing Kuechly terribly at the moment, but the entire NFL would be missing out if he can’t make a full recovery.

PERCENTAGE TO WATCH

If you want to take the glass-half-full approach,

DeAndre Hopkins has yet to live up to his full potential. The Texans’ star wideout continues to justify his first-round billing, leading the NFL after Week 5 with 578 receiving yards and ranking second to Julio

Jones with 42 catches. But as Joseph Randle of the Cowboys might say, Hopkins sure is leaving a lot of meat on the bone. Though Hopkins obviously isn’t working with the most accurate quarterbacks around in

Brian Hoyer and Ryan Mallett, that doesn’t fully excuse Hopkins’ underwhelming 56.8 catch-to-target percentage. By comparison, Jones had caught 69.4 percent of his passes through Week 5, while the Steelers’ Antonio

Brown (third in the NFL with 523 receiving yards) was at 74 percent.

This isn’t a new development with Hopkins. His catch percentage is right around his career average of 58.2 percent.

ROOKIE BACKS

TO WATCH

The top four running backs in this year’s draft

aren’t exactly dispelling the belief around the league that high picks are unnecessary to get value at that position anymore. Though the Rams’

Todd Gurley ( t he first back taken and the No. 10 choice overall) has had some explosive and impressive moments, he and the other three runners drafted in the first two rounds — the Chargers’ Melvin Gordon, T.J.

Yeldon of the Jaguars and Detroit’s Ameer Abdul

lah —have combined for just one touchdown.

Meanwhile, fifth-rounder Karlos Wil

liams of the Bills and a pair of third-rounders — the Redskins’ Matt Jones and David Johnson of the Cardinals — each have rushed for three TDs and showed both a lot of promise and a lot of value in the process.

Even more disconcerting for the few advocates of drafting running backs early is the inability of Gordon, Yeldon and Abdullah to get out of the blocks. All three

d’s ging fewer than 3.8 yards per carry.

PENALTY COLLECTORS TO WATCH

The Vikings still have their heads above water at 2-2 and are sixth in the NFL in scoring defense, which is amazing in light of the astonishing rate of penalties being called on two of their key defenders.

Minnesota enters Sunday’s home matchup with the Chiefs with team sack leader Everson Griffen and t op cornerback

Xavier Rhodes tied for second in the league in individual penalty flags — seven — through the first five weeks.

What’s more remarkable is the Vikings overall are one of the league’s most disciplined teams. Minnesota is tied with Carolina for the fewest accepted penalties in the NFL (27).

At least Griffen and Rhodes can be thankful for

Brandon Browner. The Saints cornerback leads the NFL with nine individual penalties, including one that was declined. Injury Report Page 62