| NFC EAST |
| DALLASThe NFL hits Jerry Jones with a $250,000 fine for what he says was an “inadvertent gesture” to the fine Jets fans he encountered Sunday. Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com: The NFL fined Cowboys owner Jerry Jones $250,000 for giving fans the middle finger during the team’s Week 5 road win over the Jets. Jones has until Friday to file an appeal, and it’s expected he will, according to multiple reports. Jones called the obscene gesture “inadvertent on my part.” He said “the intention was thumbs up and pointing at our fans because everyone was jumping up and down excited.” It’s unlikely the NFL buys his explanation, considering it was caught on video and is all over social media. Late Titans owner Bud Adams was fined $250,000 for flashing both middle fingers at Bills fans in 2009. Panthers owner David Tepper paid a $300,000 fine for tossing a drink at fans in a January 2024 game. |
| PHILADELPHIAThe Big Three of the Eagles offense huddled amongst themselves for two hours, that’s two hours, to hash things out. Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com: Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley confirmed they held a players-only meeting, along with A.J. Brown, on Monday, but the quarterback and running back downplayed it as “just teammates being teammates.” “Yeah, that’s just us talking about the collective, talking about taking ownership for what we can, talking about how we move forward as a team so we can continue to find ways to win games,” Hurts said, via video from Eliot Shorr-Parks of 94WIP. Jimmy Kempski of The Philly Voice reported that Hurts, Brown and Barkley met among themselves for two hours to discuss offensive frustrations after the 21-17 loss to the Broncos. Brown has only 19 catches for 194 yards and a touchdown, and Barkley got only six carries, which he took for 30 yards, against the Broncos. Barkley has 83 carries for 267 yards and three touchdowns for the season. The talks, per Kempski, were “positive.” “Yeah, we had a conversation, but I’m not going to speak too much on it,” Barkley said. “I feel like that conversation is meant to stay between us. The focus was all about the team, which I think is a good thing.” Greg Bishop of SI.com with more on the Eagles offensive identity: Last February, inside an office at team headquarters, Jalen Hurts made direct eye contact and spoke deliberately as he attempted to explain the Eagles’ offensive evolution from 2023 through the first half of 2024. The Eagles would depart for Super Bowl LIX the next day. They would fly, Eagles, fly to New Orleans as the NFL’s most dominant, deepest, most talent-laden team. But that’s only partly why they triumphed. That evening, Hurts spoke to the fragility of professional football. He didn’t use that word, specifically. But his words, wise and carefully chosen, and at times a little cryptic, apply to the collapse in 2023, last season’s championship turn and five uneven weeks of this season. “You have all this change, but you’re the only constant,” he told me then. “Success is merely highly probable.” Sentences began spilling out, as Hurts tried to dissect, as I heard him, the fragility inherent in taking an offense with as many talented players as the Eagles had amassed and then creating, over the course of any season, an evolved scheme that could hold up in the playoffs. That evolution separated merely good or great seasons from championship parades. When Philadelphia started 2023 at 10–1, Hurts said he could sense the collapse ahead (they finished 11–6 and lost in the wild-card round). He called it “inevitable,” even. Similarly, but in the opposite way, he said that, even in 2024, after a sluggish 2–2 start, he sensed the deep playoff run ahead. “The work that is put in, it takes and requires so much of you, because you have to be honed in to what you communicate and how you communicate it, learning people and how they operated, understanding where they are, how they see the game,” Hurts said in that office. “Whether it be a coach or a player, how do they respond to certain situations? Understanding those things so you can lead in a way [that matches] how you are supposed to operate. And, ultimately, to have ownership in what you’re doing.” There’s a lot of subtext in that paragraph. For now, for the foreseeable future in Philadelphia and especially for this NFL season, the word that matters most is can. What Hurts explained in FebruaryFour weeks into 2024, the Eagles’ offense had averaged 262 yards per game, or 105 fewer than throughout the previous season; Hurts’s yards-per-attempt average was down (7.6 to 6.4); the offensive line, per advanced metrics, had underperformed; and Saquon Barkley had dropped in rushing yardage and efficiency, despite running beyond an objectively better offensive line than the units he played with in New York. Philly ranked 17th, at that point, in EPA per play—and entered their bye week at 2–2. Four weeks into 2025, Philly ranked 30th in total offense (251.5), 31st in passing offense, 29th in both rushing offense and yards per play and 12th in points per game. This season, their bye isn’t until Week 9. But the Eagles’ 4–0 record failed to alleviate any concerns about the offense. Those concerns were, well, fair. Many also lacked critical context. Philly became only the second team in NFL history to start 4–0 while being outgained in each of its victories. The Eagles did set a new league record for the lowest point differential of any team to start 4–0. Barkley, after his transcendent 2024 season, had averaged 3.1 yards per carry through four weeks. Hurts’s yards per attempt had fallen even lower than his drop from the previous season. The point: While those seasons don’t present the same calculus, they’re pretty close. Significantly less offense in early 2024, compared to the same span from the previous year, yielded a worse record but a far better season. Slightly less offense in early 2025, compared to the last year, netted a better record and just as much concern. This is what Hurts was explaining in February. That Pro Bowlers and All-Pros alone do not guarantee consistent, statistical success. Consider the Eagles’ talent, especially at the offensive skill positions, in this calculus—Hurts, Barkley, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Dallas Goedert and more—as the baseline but no more. The evolutions he described for each respective season, then, represent what the Eagles did from that baseline. Two years ago, it didn’t work. Last year, it did—spectacularly. Hurts made a critical distinction that evening last February that seems even more relevant now. He said, “With the talent we have, we have to align just enough,” and had to show up at the Super Bowl and mollywhop the fairly venerated, already dynastic Chiefs. Just enough, in this case, was a new offensive coordinator in Kellen Moore. It was Moore’s decision, during that fateful bye week, to reorient the Eagles’ offense around Barkley, their run game, and Hurts’s ability to run and pass. It was Nick Sirianni aligning so many strong and often quite different personalities. It was Brown accepting fewer targets as the cost of additional victories. It was Hurts doing the same. It was a passing game when they needed to win by throwing the ball, as seen in the NFC championship game and the Super Bowl. And it was acceptance, personal growth and understanding the greater whole. None of that applied to the 2023 season, when an electric offense sputtered, personal conflicts ballooned and discord defined a collapse that prompted the changes before last season. None of that applies to 2025, either, though. And that’s the critical part. Moore is now the head coach in New Orleans. He took his most obvious successor, Doug Nussmeier, with him, naming Nussmeier the Saints’ OC. Brown’s recent cryptic tweet about the offense—“If you’re not welcomed, not listened to, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way”—indicated that winning, fairly, remains central to his acceptance of Philly’s offensive approach. Each season, especially in relation to the others in recent Philly football lore, speaks to that concept—fragility—and helps explain how a team with this much talent can consistently play uneven offensive football, or worse. It also speaks to evolution or lack thereof: in 2023, the failure to evolve harmoniously; in 2024, the ability to seize just enough; in 2025, well, that’s still to be determined. Everything—another playoff run, another Super Bowl, a return even to last season’s late, apparent dominance—rests on how they will address their offensive evolution. To date, quite simply, there hasn’t been enough of one. Will this offensive iteration find its footing?Skeptics, haters or, yes, Eagles fans, who love their team deeply, and yet never seem satisfied with anyone who has created a not-small, not-insignificant amount of success, have had much to say about Philadelphia’s offense this year. They won’t often point out that some of the same things were just as, or more, evident in the 2024 iteration. That iteration found its footing, right around now, and won the whole damn thing. This was the backdrop for a Week 5 matchup against the Broncos. Philadelphia’s offense, under new coordinator Kevin Patullo, formerly the Eagles’ passing-game coordinator, was too predictable. Fair. That predictability resulted in too many minus plays—not a loss of yards, necessarily, but used to measure whether a player’s performance is below average, average or above. Also fair. That left the Eagles in too many third-and-long situations. Fair again. The Eagles themselves had predicted this; not the specifics, but the tenor that change would be necessary and adaptation required to achieve another wildly successful campaign. In May, speaking with beat reporters, Hurts used “iterations” more than once to explain the evolution he hoped to see ahead. This team would do that like previous teams had—by laying a foundation, tweaking, as necessary, and finding its soul (or not finding it at all)—as the season moved into its second quarter and second half. Hurts welcomed new ideas, schematic or otherwise, from Patullo in his public comments. Philly could retain what it wanted to keep from Moore’s system, especially after last season’s bye-week transformation. But what Hurts referred to in February, he couldn’t change. In five seasons playing for Sirianni, Hurts has had four different offensive coordinators: Shane Steichen (2021 to ’22), Brian Johnson (2023), Moore and Patullo. Throw in primary play-callers as head coaches in Doug Pederson (2020) and Sirianni (part of 2021), and that’s six different coaches calling the Eagles’ offense plays. This season, Hurts also got a new quarterbacks coach in Scot Loeffler. That’s a lot of voices. That is constant change. Hurts addressed this in February, too: “When I refer to small increments [of improvement], I do believe that if the constant change [had been] avoided, it would turn from small increments to drastic leaps.” Wanting to evolve, saying they would become, and actually changing eluded the Eagles through this season’s first quarter. By mid-September, there were in-depth Reddit threads on offensive tendencies, with statistical deep dives aplenty on the sputtering, and much blame was lasered onto Patullo and Hurts, specifically. There was Jason Kelce, on local radio (94WIP), speaking the truth, saying, “The offense isn’t functioning well right now.” There was Patullo, addressing local media, and not by knife point but because he had no choice. He pointed to the heft baked into the early-season schedule. But those defenses—Cowboys, Chiefs, Rams and Buccaneers—were statistically better last season. Only the Rams rank in the top for total defense—and they’re 10th. Only the Chiefs rank in the top 10 in points per game—and they’re fifth. The offense gets worse in Week 5Then Philly hosted Denver. Then everything above got worse. At the very least, the Eagles’ offensive performance against the Broncos significantly contributed to the confusion. The first sideline report centered on Brown’s missive, before segueing into information from Barkley, who told the CBS crew that Brown and Smith needed more targets. “But it’s always sunny in Philadelphia!” analyst Tony Romo quipped. Were the Eagles the team that took a 17–3 lead in the first three quarters, which they held at the beginning of the fourth? Hurts involved Brown immediately and often. But, it should be noted, some of his throws that sailed Brown’s way appeared forced. Barkley ripped off a 17-yard gain through a hole so wide nobody needed to grease a light pole to get through. One second-quarter scoring drive went 90 yards, culminating in, yes, a touchdown pass from Hurts to Goedert. Hurts also threw a beautiful, arcing pass to Barkley for another touchdown in the third. But none of that held up. Nor did the Eagles. Are they the team that showed up in the fourth quarter on offense? Two penalties killed one promising drive, as Denver cut into the lead, then took its own. A defensive penalty extended the Broncos’ last scoring drive, which netted both a field goal and a 21–17 lead—and gave Philly the ball back with 1:06 left. The Broncos presented the statistically stoutest defense that the Eagles faced this season, second in points per game and fifth in total defense. But Philly moved the ball on that defense. Brown’s five receptions for 43 yards came, primarily, against the best cornerback in football, Patrick Surtain II. Denver’s talent and scheme, then, cannot explain the fourth-quarter disappearing act. Nothing can exist except fragility. The Eagles of 2025 haven’t evolved enough. One could argue—a scout for a division rival, when asked to explain what he saw, sent back two words via text message, “no creativity”—that they haven’t evolved at all. This team won’t be like other Philly teamsRegardless, the offense will either evolve or fail to. Whether it does will define what happens in this Philadelphia football season. But because it’s this team—so much talent, tethering required for success—it’s hard to predict, in any real way, what the following weeks, months or the rest of the season will truly look like. Barkley said as much to me for Sports Illustrated’s NFL preview cover in late August. This offense wouldn’t look like last year’s offense. He wouldn’t necessarily approach the single-season rushing record. Winning would continue to be the only thing that mattered. Winning, instead, showed just how tenuous this Eagles season is. And yet, five weeks never did make a season, either. This team won’t be like those teams. Not in full. Not even that much in part, beyond the prominent familiar names and staple plays. This team, at least in my view, deserves the benefit of the doubt to examine the same calculus and try to evolve, adapt and improve. Patience isn’t possible. But everything else, at this point, is no more than a guess. These Eagles will find an offensive identity. Or they won’t, and the lack of one will define a subpar, post-championship season. Either way, expect the next month or two to reveal what few expect at this point. That’s Philly’s offensive process. It has been, and will continue to be, for better or worse. And for now, it’s still very much to be determined. |
| NFC WEST |
| ARIZONAIt cost Coach Jonathan Gannon $100,000 to yell at RB EMARI DEMERCADO after his silly fumble Sunday – as well as touch his right arm. Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com: The Arizona Cardinals are fining coach Jonathan Gannon $100,000 for his sideline altercation Sunday with running back Emari Demercado, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Tuesday. Demercado dropped the football before crossing the goal line in the fourth quarter of the loss to the Tennessee Titans on what would have been a 72-yard touchdown run. In a video later posted on social media, Gannon is seen walking over to Demercado on the sideline as he was being consoled by left tackle Paris Johnson and getting in the running back’s face. He continued his rant as he began walking away from Demercado and appeared to make contact with the running back’s right arm. On Monday, Gannon said he apologized to Demercado and the Cardinals players during a team meeting that afternoon. “I just told them, I kind of let the moment of what happened get the better of me there,” Gannon said. Sources told Schefter there won’t be any other discipline for Gannon. Gannon becomes the first NFL head coach to be fined for an altercation with a player since the league fined then-Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians $50,000 for swiping his hand at safety Andrew Adams’ helmet during a January 2022 wild-card game against the Philadelphia Eagles. We’re not saying Gannon handled it exactly the way he should have, but no punching, no choking, no grabbing and shaking… and a subsequent apology the next day. Gannon was in Demercado’s presence for about six seconds. Woody Hayes would not know today’s football. |
| AFC WEST |
| KANSAS CITYQB PATRICK MAHOMES has 299 TD passes. Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com: Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is about to reach the 300 career touchdown pass mark faster than anyone in NFL history. Aaron Rodgers threw his 300th touchdown pass in his 147th career game, counting the postseason. Currently, that’s the fastest anyone has reached the 300 touchdown pass mark. Mahomes has 299 career touchdown passes in 138 career games. So he needs to throw one touchdown in his next eight games to get to 300 faster than Rodgers. It’s safe to say Mahomes will do it with time to spare. Mahomes will likely do it in Kansas City this weekend on Sunday Night Football, when the Chiefs host the Lions. As Mahomes has said, the Chiefs have already lost too many games this season. But a win over the Lions would turn the season around in a big way. And could feature a big accomplishment in Mahomes’ career. |
| AFC NORTH |
| CINCINNATIJohn Breech defends the Bengals turning to QB JOE FLACCO. The Cincinnati Bengals pulled off an absolute stunner on Tuesday by making a trade for Joe Flacco. The trade came less than 24 hours after Bengals coach Zac Taylor had hinted that his team might be making a quarterback change this week following Jake Browning’s three-interception performance during Sunday’s 37-24 loss to the Detroit Lions. On the surface, it might seem like this trade doesn’t make much sense. Flacco is 40 years old, he has zero mobility and he’ll be asked to play behind a Bengals offensive line that opposing defenses have treated like a revolving door through the first five weeks of the season. Flacco has also thrown six interceptions this year, which is the third-most in the NFL behind only Browning (8) and Geno Smith (9). So why would the Bengals make this deal? For one, it didn’t cost them very much. The Browns are sending Flacco and a sixth-round pick to the Bengals in exchange for a fifth-round pick. With that in mind, let’s take a look at three more reasons why this trade makes sense. Flacco can pick up a new offense quickly and he’s familiar with the divisionOne problem with adding a quarterback during the middle of the season is that they have to come in and learn a new offense in just days, which isn’t easy to do, but Flacco has proven that’s capable of pulling that off. The Bengals will be the fifth different team that Flacco has played for over the past six years. In 2021, Flacco was part of a midseason trade that saw him sent from Philadelphia to the New York Jets. Flacco ended up making his first start with the Jets a few weeks after the trade and although New York ended up losing 24-17 to the Dolphins, Flacco had an impressive performance, throwing for 291 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions. In 2023, Flacco spent the first two months of the season on his couch as a free agent before the Browns signed him in November after Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending injury. Flacco barely had two weeks to learn the offense before he was thrust into the starting job. The veteran QB ended up going 4-1 as the Browns’ starter, and not only did he keep their season afloat, but he actually led them to the playoffs. If Flacco can come anywhere close to replicating what he did in 2023, then he could certainly save the Bengals’ season. That’s two situations where Flacco had to quickly learn an offense and he ended up playing pretty well both times. No matter what happens with Flacco, it definitely feels like he’s an upgrade over Jake Browning. Flacco will also give Taylor a chance to add a missing wrinkle to the offense. Taylor’s offense was designed for Joe Burrow, so almost everything is run out of shotgun, but with Flacco running the show, you can bet he’ll be lining up under center, which will bring play-action football back to Cincinnati. Sure, there were other quarterbacks out there — like Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston and Kirk Cousins — but if Flacco had one advantage over any other option, it’s the fact that he knows the AFC North so well. The veteran has spent 13 of his 18 seasons playing in the AFC North, so he certainly knows what he’ll be up against this season. That familiarity could come into play as soon as this week. The Bengals are playing the Packers on Sunday and although they’re not in the AFC North, Flacco has already faced them, and beat them. Flacco will be throwing to one of the best receiving tandems in the NFLPlaying behind the Bengals offensive line could get ugly, but Flacco can negate that problem if he can get the ball out quickly. The Bengals have one of the best receiving duos in the NFL in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and Flacco has shown throughout his career that he can get the ball where it needs to go. The 40-year-old will need to get the ball out quickly and that will be much easier to do if his receivers are getting open, and both Higgins and Chase have shown this year that they can get open. The problem is that Browning wasn’t able to consistently get them the ball. In Cleveland, Flacco did throw six interceptions this year, but his top two wide receivers were Jerry Jeudy and an undrafted free agent (Isaiah Bond). Going from Jeudy and Bond to Chase and Higgins is like going from a mini-van to a Ferrari. If Flacco can quickly learn how to drive the Ferrari, the Bengals could be in good shape. The Bengals are very much alive in the AFCThe final reason why this deal makes sense is because the Bengals had to do SOMETHING to save their season. At 2-3, the Bengals are sitting in second place in the AFC North and just one game out of a wild-card spot in the AFC. With the AFC North in total disarray this year, the Bengals simply couldn’t afford to throw the season away with bad QB play. It just takes one look around the division to realize how winnable it is this year; The Ravens have more problems than the Bengals, the Browns are the Browns and the Steelers haven’t been exactly overpowering their opponents during their 3-1 start. Here’s a look at the current AFC North standings: 1. Steelers (3-1)2. Bengals (2-3)3. Ravens (1-4)4. Browns (1-4) The Bengals actually play the Steelers on Thursday night in Week 7 and if they were to win that game, that would put them right back in the thick of the AFC North race. Guess who has won 11 career games against the Steelers? Joe Flacco. Taylor is very well aware of the state of the division and the AFC overall, which is likely why the Bengals were so willing to bring in a new QB. “I’m not oblivious to what goes on in the AFC and our division,” Taylor said Sunday. “There’s going to be plenty of opportunity there if we can stick through this storm and stick together and find a way to put us in some better positions on offense together and score some points.” With Joe Burrow possibly coming back in mid-December, they just need Flacco to keep the season afloat and he could do that by going just 5-4 in Cincinnati’s next nine games. If Flacco pulled that off, the Bengals would be 7-7 with a possible Burrow return coming around Week 16. There’s always a chance that this trade ends up going down as a disaster, but the Bengals should get some credit for even making it happen. This is a team that HATES making midseason trades — Flacco is just the third player they’ve acquired midseason over the past 52 years — but they knew they had to do something to try and save their season and that’s what they’re doing here. Flacco would be the first quarterback ever to play for Baltimore, Cleveland and Cincinnati. |
| CLEVELANDWith QB JOE FLACCO heading down I-71 to Cincinnati, Kevin Patra of NFL.com on the current Browns QB situation: Head coach Kevin Stefanski is going with an all-rookie QB setup. The Browns’ quarterback room began with Kenny Pickett and Flacco before Cleveland drafted Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Now, both veterans have been shipped out of town. Benching Flacco for Gabriel in Week 5 was the first indicator that the Browns were going to find out what they have in their rookies. Trading Flacco highlights the plan in bold. In his first start, Gabriel tossed two TD passes while completing 57.6% of 33 attempts and didn’t turn the ball over. It was mostly a dink-and-dunk operation, but the rookie didn’t seem too overwhelmed for the moment. His mobility also gives the Browns a more lively operation. The hope in Cleveland is that the third-round pick can build on his initial outing as the season progresses. Upon making the quarterback change, there was some criticism of keeping Sanders as QB3 behind Flacco. Now that the impediment is gone. The fifth-round pick will move into the backup role. If Gabriel stumbles as defenses get more tape, he could get a shot at starting. At 1-4, the Browns are already at the point where they need to evaluate both rookie signal-callers to see where they stand for the future. No longer having Flacco in the room eliminates any temptation that might have otherwise presented itself. Oh, and we should also mention that Deshaun Watson remains in Cleveland rehabbing his latest Achilles injury, though it is unlikely he plays this season. Hmmm, is it really true that Watson is “unlikely” to play this season? He will NOT return to practice this week. As someone on the PUP list, this is the first week he would be eligible to do so. But some in Cleveland think a return to the practice field is only a few weeks away. This at SI.com: Many have speculated exactly when we could see Watson’s return to the field, with one former Browns player giving a bold prediction on Watson’s outlook. “I would bet on that, that he’ll start this season,” former Browns offensive lineman John Greco said. |
| PITTSBURGHThe Steelers are in a first in an AFC North where everyone else is struggling. Kevin Patra of NFL.com: The Pittsburgh Steelers had about as good a fortnight as they could imagine. Mike Tomlin’s club traveled to Dublin and beat the Minnesota Vikings in Week 4. Then, this past Sunday, they sat at home and watched their division lead increase as the rest of the AFC North deteriorated. Not that Tomlin is concerned with any other team. “I don’t care what happened with other people, particularly last weekend,” Tomlin said Tuesday, via The Associated Press. “It’s about us coming off the bye and getting ready for our game this week. I’m not a big-picture guy.” The Cincinnati Bengals (2-3) lost at home to the Detroit Lions, the Baltimore Ravens (1-4) got walloped by the Houston Texans, and the Cleveland Browns (1-4) lost in London to the Vikings. Things are so dire in the rest of the AFC North that the Bengals just traded for 40-year-old benched Browns quarterback Joe Flacco in an effort to save their season. Cleveland is experimenting with an all-rookie QB room. The Ravens, who could be without Lamar Jackson for another week, shipped out former first-rounder Odafe Oweh for safety Alohi Gilman after injuries ravaged every level of their defense. Tomlin might have scoffed at the division crumbling around them, but Steelers players were paying attention during their off week. “I was watching every AFC North game I watched,” linebacker Alex Highsmith said. “It was nice to see those teams lose this week. So we got to take advantage of it.” In addition to watching the rest of the division lose, the Steelers are on the mend. Highsmith (ankle) was back at practice. Corner Joey Porter Jr. (hamstring) could return. Pittsburgh is the leader of a struggling division. Every team in the AFC North has a negative point differential through Week 5, led by the Steelers’ -2. The Bengals have the worst point differential (-71) in the NFL in 2025. The AFC North’s -159 combined point differential is the worst in the division’s history and the worst by any division through five weeks since the 2002 realignment. The .368 combined win percentage is also the worst in division history. The Steelers face back-to-back division foes, hosting the Browns on Sunday and the Bengals in Week 7. Two victories could put significant distance between them and the rest of the division before the halfway mark. “It’s still very early in this process,” Tomlin said. “We’ve got 13 straight games ahead of us. So keep watching.” |
| THIS AND THAT |
| PETE PRISCO’S NFL RANKINGSLet’s see where veteran scribe Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com lines them up 1 to 32 at this point of the season: They all stink. OK, so stink is a little harsh, but we’ve actually hit the point of the season where it’s time to ask the question: Is anybody any good? There are no undefeated teams left after the Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills lost games Sunday, which means the 1972 Miami Dolphins got an early jump on popping that champagne. The NFL loves it this way, too. It loves the parity. Even the good teams have flaws, and the uncertainty from week to week is what draws us all in to watch. Then there are the New York Jets. They are the last of the winless, the worst team in the league. So much for the idea that Aaron Glenn would instill a toughness in the defense, which has been the team’s weak spot all year long. Even the New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans won games Sunday, leaving the Jets to wallow in their own misery. As for the top, the new No. 1 team is the Detroit Lions. After losing at Green Bay to open the season, the Lions have ripped off four straight as Jared Goff has played at an MVP level. They have some defensive flaws still, but which team doesn’t have issues? Oh, and they can score. Now is the time for all these teams to fix those problems. The teams that do will be the ones playing come January. The Eagles have to run the ball better. The Bills have to throw the deep ball more. The Bucs have to get healthy and play better on the back end. Each week, we seem to rush to anoint teams as being the best in their divisions and maybe even conferences. Wasn’t it a short time ago when the Rams and Chargers were the toast of Los Angeles and threats to win it all? Now the Chargers have lost two straight, the Rams lost to the undermanned 49ers on Thursday, and suddenly we have no idea if they are real contenders or not. They might not all stink, but nobody in this league right now is that good — which is just the way the NFL likes it. 1 Lions The offense is cooking right now, kicking aside the notion that Ben Johnson would be missed. They face a big one at Kansas City this week. Up 2 4-1 2 Eagles It’s time to get Saquon Barkley involved in the offense. They can listen to all the moaning from the receivers, but he is the key to their offense. Down 1 4-1 3 Bills They haven’t played as well as expected this season, despite the 4-1 record. The offense lacks the big plays down the field. Down 1 4-1 4 Buccaneers Going to Seattle and winning with the offense rolling up big numbers speaks volumes about this team. Baker Mayfield is playing at an MVP level. — 4-1 5 Steelers They come off their bye in command of the AFC North. The division isn’t good around them, which is why it seems to be theirs for the taking. Up 4 3-1 6 Colts At 4-1, they bounced back from the loss to the Rams to blow out the Raiders. Daniel Jones continues to play good football. Up 5 4-1 7 Packers Coming off their bye, the schedule gets a little soft the next few weeks, starting Sunday with the Bengals at home. The defense has to get back on track after getting abused by the Cowboys the last time out. — 2-1-1 8 Jaguars They are 4-1 and Liam Coen has done an outstanding job. Beating the Chiefs the way they did could really propel this team. Up 4 4-1 9 49ers Winning the way they did on the road against the Rams with so many guys injured is a testament to the coaching of Kyle Shanahan. Mac Jones played well in place of Brock Purdy. Up 4 4-110 Broncos That was a big-time road victory against the Eagles. They rallied from 17-3 down to win it. Bo Nix played well in the second half, which is a good sign going forward. Up 4 3-2 11 RamsThat was a bad stumble losing to the undermanned 49ers at home on Thursday. Now they face a long trip to play a desperate Ravens team. Down 6 3-2 12 Commanders Coming from behind to beat the Chargers is a big-time victory. Jayden Daniels was cooking in the second half in his first game back after injuring his knee. Up 3 3-2 13 Patriots Mike Vrabel has instilled a toughness on the defense and Drake Maye has arrived. They will be a tough battle every week and could push the Bills in the division. Up 5 3-2 14 Seahawks I know they had some injury issues on defense against Tampa Bay, but there were too many open receivers. The good news is Sam Darnold keeps bombing away. Down 8 3-2 15 Chargers This team has lost two straight to go from having a Super Bowl look to a team floundering. The injuries on the offensive line are hurting them in a big way. Down 7 3-2 16 Chiefs At 2-3, they are floundering right now. Losing late to Jacksonville makes beating the Lions this week almost a must-win game. Down 6 2-3 17 VikingsRallying to beat the Browns and get a split of their two overseas games was big for this team. They now head to their bye. J.J. McCarthy should be back at quarterback when they play the Eagles in two weeks. — 3-2 18 Texans The offense we saw against the Ravens gives this team hope. The defense continues to play at a high level. Up 3 2-3-0 19 Cowboys Dak Prescott for MVP. It’s real. He is playing at a really high level as the Cowboys are now 2-2-1 and far from done. Up 4 2-2-1 20 Falcons They come off their bye with a long road trip to play the 49ers. They have to hope the momentum they had in beating the Commanders didn’t get lost during the time off. Up 2 2-2 21 Bears They come off their bye having won two straight with a tough road game against Washington. The offense has to hope it didn’t cool off on the bye week and continues to grow. Down 2 2-2 22 Ravens Who is this team? The big, bad bullies are getting bullied on a weekly basis. Even with all the injuries, don’t they have to at least compete? Down 6 1-4-0 23 Cardinals Getting over that Titans loss will be tough to handle. They had no business losing that game, but mental mistakes cost them in a game they let slip away. Down 3 2-3 24 Panthers Coming back from 17 down to beat the Dolphins is a nice victory for this team. The run game was impressive with Rico Dowdle. Up 5 2-3 25 Bengals OK, so can we all admit that Jake Browning can’t lead this team to the playoffs? Should they make a move? Down 1 2-3 26 Browns The moment wasn’t too big for Dillon Gabriel in his first NFL start in the loss to the Vikings. But they can’t keep the handcuffs on for long if they want to win games and find out if he’s their long-term guy. Down 1 1-4 27 Raiders Geno Smith isn’t playing well, which is a concern for now and the future. He has to pick it up or they will be quarterback hunting in the spring. Down 1 1-4 28 Giants Beating the Chargers one week and then losing to the Saints the next is not a good look. They turned it over way too many times. Down 1 1-4 29 Titans Somehow, they found a way to rally to beat Arizona in a weird game. But that’s big for head coach Brian Callahan, as he was firmly on the hot seat. Up 2 1-4 30 Saints Getting the first victory for coach Kellen Moore was big for this team. Spencer Rattler played well in the victory over the Giants, and the defense took the ball away. Up 2 1-4 31 Dolphins The defense is awful right now. The run defense is especially bad. Blowing a 17-point lead to the Panthers is a bad look for Mike McDaniel. Down 3 1-4 32 Jets This team is a disaster right now. The defense is a mess, and they don’t tackle very well. It’s a bad start for Aaron Glenn. Down 2 0-5 |
| BUNNY BUSINESSIt took a few days, but President Donald Trump has joined the ranks of those dumbfounded by the NFL’s decision to impose Bad Bunny as the SB60 Halftime headliner. Amanda Harding of The Daily Wire: President Trump is not on board with the NFL’s decision to have ICE-bashing artist Bad Bunny as the Halftime Show performer at Super Bowl LX in February. “This guy does not seem like a unifying entertainer and a lot of folks don’t even know who he is,” Newsmax’s Greg Kelly said during a phone interview. Kelly asked Trump if people should “entertain blowing off the NFL.” “I never heard of him. I don’t know who he is, I don’t know why they’re doing it, it’s crazy, and then they blame it on some promoter that they hired to pick up entertainment, I think it’s absolutely ridiculous,” Trump added. The NFL and Apple Music announced on September 28 that the Puerto Rican recording artist will be performing during the most watched television event of the year. Critics were quick to point out that the artist, whose real name is Benito Ocasio, had already refused to perform in the United States due to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers doing their jobs. Ocasio referred to ICE agents as “motherf***ers” and “sons of b****es” in a video he posted to Instagram. The three-time Grammy Award-winner said during a recent interview that he didn’t book any tour stops in the United States because he was worried ICE agents would target concert attendees. In order to help us understand Bad Bunny’s vision of Boriculan culture, without needing a Spanish lesson, we have been exploring translations of his works. Yesterday, in , we found Bunny informing his aunt that yes he enjoys sexual relationships with numerous women, and would not make a good marriage partner. We’re not clear if he is claiming that as his own worldview, or the worldview of Boriculan culture. Today, “DtMF” seems to get more to the heart of true Boriculan/Puerto Rican culture, as espoused by Bad Bunny. Another beautiful sunset I see in San JuanEnjoying everything that the departed are missing out onEnjoying nights like those that don’t come oftenThat don’t come oftenBut wanting to go back to the last timeThat I looked into your eyesAnd to tell you the things I didn’t get to tell you (You look like my crush, haha)And to take the pictures I didn’t get to take(Damn, I swear you look so pretty, let me take a picture of you)Ayy, my chest feels empty, I got hit hardMy heart is poundingTеll me, baby, where arе you?I can meet you there with RoRo, Julito, KrystalRoy, Edgar, Seba, Óscar, Darnell, and Big Jay, playing batáToday, we’ll leave the streets in chaosAnd it’d be amazing if you play the güiro for meI see your name and it makes me sighI don’t know if it’s fireworks or gunshotsMy whitey, my cocaine, my kiloI’m in PR chilling, but [Chorus]I should’ve taken more pictures when I had youI should’ve given you more kisses and hugs whenever I couldAyy, I hope my people never move awayAnd if I get drunk today, I hope they help me outI should’ve taken more pictures when I had youI should’ve given you more kisses and hugs whenever I couldI hope my people never move awayAnd if I get drunk today, I hope they help me out [Verse 2]Hey, today I’ll be with Grandpa all day, playing dominoesIf he asks if I still think about you, I’ll say noThat my time being close to you is over nowIt’s over nowAyy, fire up the machines, I’m going to SanturceHere, they still drink rumCheck out the girls, damn, mami, how sweetToday I want to drink, drink, drinkAnd talk nonsense until I get kicked outI’m so drunk (I’m so drunk), I’m so drunk (I’m so drunk)Man, you drive, because even if I’m walking I’m about to crashI’m so drunk (I’m so drunk), I’m so drunk (I’m so drunk)Let’s enjoy it because you never know how much time we’ve got leftI should’ve taken more— [Interlude]Guys, I love you so much, I really doThank you for being here, trulyIt’s very important to me that you’re hereEach one of you means so much to meSo, let’s take the picture, come hereEveryone, get in, the whole crew, let’s goLet’s do it [Verse 3]Now Bernie has a baby, and Jan has a girlWe’re no longer about the flashy stuff and chainsWe’re here for the things that are truly worth itHey, for reggaeton, salsa, bomba, and plenaCheck out how mine sounds [Outro]I should’ve taken more pictures when I had youI should’ve given you more kisses and hugs whenever I couldI hope my people never move awayAnd that you send me more nudesAnd if I get drunk today, may Beno help me |
| OBJ SUSPENDEDTobias Bass of The Athletic: Former All-Pro wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. revealed on “The Pivot” podcast that he has accepted a six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs. The suspension, which Beckham must serve to proceed with his comeback attempt, stems from a failed test during his time with the Miami Dolphins last season. It will take effect immediately, sidelining him until at least Week 12. Beckham explained that the positive test was connected to a medical issue involving his testosterone levels, insisting he has never knowingly used performance-enhancing substances. “It bothers me because, knowing deep down inside that I never failed, I mean, I never cheated,” he said. The suspension further clouds Beckham’s efforts to continue his NFL career, as the 32-year-old remains a free agent. He has publicly denied rumors of retirement, emphasizing his intent to return to the league in 2025 and reportedly maintaining an active training regimen. During the interview, he said he is interested in joining the Pittsburgh Steelers or Kansas City Chiefs, or returning to the New York Giants or Los Angeles Rams. “I gotta go back with (Rams coach Sean) McVay,” he said. “Take me home. Call the family, tell them there’s a No. 7 jersey that we need to unretire for a year, a couple games. I need that back.” Beckham played eight regular-season games for the Rams in 2021, catching 27 passes for 305 yards. He caught a touchdown pass in the Rams’ win over the Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. As we read this, he can serve the suspension while not being under contract, so he’s only losing imaginary salary from a non-existent employer. |
