Another exciting NFL week is nearly complete and there were definitely heavy doses of good, bad and just plain ugly that went down in Week 4.
From quarterback disarray, to heroic comebacks and kickers under pressure scoring game-winning field goals, here are some of this week’s notable winners and losers.
Winner: Justin Tucker saves the day for the Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens earned their first win for the season in a close overtime victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, 23-20, on Thursday Night Football.
It was a 52-yard field goal made by kicker Justin Tucker in the Ravens’ second possession in overtime that sealed the win for Baltimore. Overall, Tucker was responsible for 11 of the Ravens 23 points scored in the game.
At one point in the third quarter of the game, the Ravens trailed the Steelers by 13 points. Thanks to Tucker, who made three total field goals late in the game, the Ravens squeaked ahead while the Steelers struggled to gain momentum, losing their lead along the way.
One could certainly wonder if the game would have taken a different course if the Steelers had Ben Roethlisberger playing instead of Michael Vick behind center. In the end, it doesn’t matter to the Ravens because a win is a win and the team desperately needed it get one on the books.
Loser: Joe Philbin and the miserable Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are now 1-3 after a messy loss to the New York Jets in London, 27-14. This could very well mean that head coach Joe Philbin’s job is on the line after another miserable turnout.
The Jets were able to gain 425 yards on offense and the Dolphins couldn’t do anything to stop running back Chris Ivory from piling up a career-high 166 yards at Wembley Stadium. Dolphins tackle Ndamukong Suh only made three tackles and the first one didn’t come until the third quarter.
Between Ryan Fitzpatrick, Brandon Marshall and Ivory, the Dolphins defense was nearly neutralized. The Dolphins failed to make big plays offensively, went 0-for-12 on third downs and 0-for-4 on fourth downs.
At the end of the game, quarterback Ryan Tannehill completed only 19 passes for 198 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, and he was sacked three times. The Dolphins’ ground game was a disaster, only managing 59 yards.
Philbin could receive an unpleasant phone call Monday morning while a grumpy Suh sulks off another loss.
Winner: Jay Cutler guts out an injury and Chicago Bears clinch their first win
It took four games for the Chicago Bears to finally post their first win, which came in front of the home crowd at the expense of the Oakland Raiders, 22-20.
Quarterback Jay Cutler made his return after missing Week 3 with a groin injury and threw two touchdowns, which made up for his typical untimely interception late in the fourth quarter. In the last two minutes of the game, Cutler and the Bears offense was able to sustain a drive long enough to set up Robbie Gould for a 49-yard field goal with only seven seconds left on the clock.
The field goal attempt was a success, and now the Bears rest at 1-3 in the NFC North. While a win is a beautiful thing, the Bears still lag far behind the 4-0 Green Bay Packers in their division. If anything, the victory is at least an ego-booster for the team and a relief for head coach John Fox, who may have been worrying about where his next job might be in 2016.
Loser: Peyton Manning’s fantasy football owners
Those who drafted the Denver Broncos veteran in fantasy football were disappointed in Week 4. Instead of a high-scoring juggernaut, they saw the older, more worn out version of the quarterback in today’s narrow win over the Minnesota Vikings, 23-20.
Manning surely disappointed millions of fantasy football owners by churning out a lackluster performance that consisted of only 213 passing yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Depending on the scoring system your league uses, Manning was hard-pressed to enter the double-digit range.
These days, the Manning quarterback to own is Peyton’s brother Eli. Eli ranked several notches higher in fantasy points this week than his older brother. Manning’s Week 4 output was his second-worst of the season. Unfortunately, his boat has since sailed and those who are stuck with him as their top quarterback option might have done better inserting a second kicker in his place this week.
With that said, the Broncos do not care about your fantasy football team, and they climbed to 4-0, despite Manning’s regressing physical skills.
Winner: New York Giants look like the clear leader in the NFC East
After losing their first two games, the New York Giants are finally looking like they have found their mojo, posting back-to-back wins in Weeks 3 and 4.
In Sunday’s win over the Buffalo Bills, 24-10, the Giants shredded what was supposed to be a stout Bills defense. Running back Rashad Jennings was amazing on an awesome 51-yard touchdown catch, which was followed by a successful two-point conversion.
Quarterback Eli Manning was effective, completing 20-of-35 passes for 212 yards and three touchdowns, hitting up Dwayne Harris and Rueben Randle for the additional two scores.
After posting another win with an extremely well-balanced offense, Manning and Co. appear poised to dominate the NFC East. They have the most sound and consistent overall team when compared to the Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys.
It’s still early in the season, and the inconsistent play we have already witnessed from the three above-mentioned teams could have us watching the Giants assuming the lead in their division before the halfway mark of the 2015 season.
Loser: What in the world is wrong with Colin Kaepernick?
How bad do things need to get for the San Francisco 49ers before they take the big hook out and yank quarterback Colin Kaepernick off the field?
Kaepernick was utterly dreadful while the San Francisco 49ers lost to the Green Bay Packers, 17-3. The embattled quarterback failed to throw a touchdown pass for third time in four games. Last week, he was a disaster, and in Week 4, things went from bad to worse.
Kaepernick scrambled around and missed his receivers left and right. When he did have time to think before making a pass, he would overthrow by miles, throw the ball well out of bounds or ignore his open receivers altogether.
Because of this, former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson said Kaepernick is playing “sandlot football” and said he’d “look for another quarterback” if he were in charge of the situation.
At the end of the miserable outing, Kaepernick completed only 13-of-25 passing attempts for a meager 160 yards, zero touchdowns and one interception. He also took six sacks resulting in a loss of 41 yards and the 57 rushing yards accumulated came mostly because he was constantly trying to stay out of trouble.
The entire 49ers offense only recorded 77 rushing yards with Carlos Hyde struggling to gain any type of momentum on his eight carries. At this point, it’s clear this team’s offense is the worst in the NFL.
Kaepernick was highly ineffective, horribly inaccurate and an all-around disappointing NFL player to watch in Week 4. It’s no wonder Clay Matthews mocked Kap by kissing his right biceps after bringing him to the ground.
Really, how much more depressing can things get for the 49ers offense led by Kaepernick?
Winner: Devanta Freeman racking up touchdowns at an historic rate
We witnessed Atlanta Falcons second-year running back Devonta Freeman haul in three rushing touchdowns last week and probably thought his scoring streak was some type of fluke.
Either the fluke is continuing, or Freeman is shaping up to be one of the best running backs currently in the NFL. Freeman posted another trio of rushing scores against a haggard Houston Texans defense in Sunday’s home game blowout win, 48-21. He rushed for a total of 68 yards at a pace of 4.86 yards per carry, which is also not too shabby of a haul.
Fortunately for Freeman over the last two weeks, the the Falcons have been in the position to run the ball more and when he gets the ball, he makes the magic happen. To date, Freeman has scored seven rushing touchdowns since assuming the lead running back duties in Atlanta.
This is the most any running back has scored in the first quarter of a season since 2005. The only other running back close within reach of Freeman in scoring is Cincinnati Bengals running back Jeremy Hill, who has five rushing scores.
Let’s just say if you play fantasy football and you drafted Freeman late or grabbed him off the waiver wire, you probably have teammates desperately offering up trade packages for the young stud.
Loser: The Houston Texans quarterbacks situation rears its ugly head
The Houston Texans were completely outplayed by the Atlanta Falcons and lost by a landslide, 48-21
Quarterback Ryan Mallett was extremely ineffective, completing less than half his attempted passes for 150 yards and an interception before getting yanked in the third quarter when the team was down 42-0. Brian Hoyer helped finally put the first score on the board, shortly afterwards, hitting C.J. Fiedorowicz for a five-yard touchdown. But at that point, it really didn’t matter.
The debut of Arian Foster was a fizzle after his recovery from groin surgery. He fumbled once and carried the ball eight times, eking out only 10 rushing yards to add to the team’s meager total of 54 yards on the ground. Running back Chris Polk rushed in a one-yard touchdown and Hoyer managed a final touchdown to Cecil Shorts. By that time, however, all the Texans efforts barely mattered while the team scrambled to play catch up and not completely lay an egg.
The Texans so far only have one win, and that came against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3. To date, the team has scored only 77 total points and their defense is letting opposing teams get away with highway robbery, as displayed by the 48 points put up by the Falcons.
Mallett and head coach Bill O’Brien are at least are not clueless about their current losing status, summing it up perfectly
“We have to do better. Every phase of the game, we have to do better,” Mallett said, per the team’s Twitter account. “We have to do everything better.”
“I have to do a better job coaching,” said O’Brien. “I’ve got to figure it out.”
It looks like we may be seeing Hoyer back under center when the Texans host the Indianapolis Colts in Thursday Night Football next week, but it’s likely Mallett will get his chance once again if Hoyer can’t get the job done.