NEWSLETTER
Someone must file a missing person’s report for the entire Tampa Bay backfield. Six carries, three net yards. That’s it. Tom Brady was airing it out for the Bucs on Sunday Night Football, but it wasn’t enough to beat the Chiefs last night.
Sunday Night Football Barn Burner
We’ve had a few primetime games come in on the under-side of things of late, so Sunday night’s blowout in Tampa Bay was a bit of a surprise. Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs came into Tampa Bay and bulldozed their way to their third win of the season on Sunday
It was all Chiefs, right from the jump, with Kansas City recovering a fumble on the opening drive and then scoring on a Patrick Mahomes touchdown pass to Travis Kelce a few plays later, which was not an enjoyable experience for me, because I chose another Sloppy Joe over money:
Mahomes put on a clinic, completing 23-of-37 passes for 249 yards and three touchdowns. Here’s the play where I really felt the pain as a Bears fan who has watched decades of ineptitude under center in Chicago:
He’s just a magician and watching through the lens of a Bears fan is painful. Six-plus hours of Rodgers, Mahomes, and Brady after watching Justin Fields and Daniel Jones combine for 215 passing yards was not a fun experience.
The Chiefs went on to beat the Bucs 41-31 in a game that crushed the over-under and propelled Kansas City to a 3-1 start. Tampa Bay fell to 2-2 on the season with the loss.
Tom Brady completed 39-of-52 passes for 385 yards and three touchdowns in the losing effort. The Buccaneers’ rushing game was missing in action, with Rachaad White picking up six yards and a touchdown on three carries and Leonard Fournette finishing with negative three yards on three carries.
Justin Jefferson, Vikings Top the Saints Across the Pond
You likely caught the Vikings and Saints across the pond if you braved the early wake-up on Sunday. For Bears fans, it reminded them of what’s coming their way next week. Justin Jefferson will give Jaylon Johnson his first real test of the season next week. The Vikings’ other-worldly receiver caught 10 passes for 147 yards (14.7 YPC).
The Vikings moved to 3-1 on the season with a narrow 28-25 victory over the Saints, courtesy of a double-doink (finally it’s not us!) from Will Lutz with just seconds remaining. Here’s a look at the missed 31-yard attempt from Lutz that would have sent the game to ovetime:
Lutz’s kick was just short, quite literally a yard short, which is ironic because just minutes before, Lutz hit a 60-yarder to tie the game at 25-a-piece.
Bills Erase 17-Point Deficit to Beat Ravens
Lamar Jackson’s bet on himself is playing off like Aaron Judge’s recent bet. The Baltimore quarterback is balling this season (yep, I used that word there), and he’s going to force the Ravens to back up the Brinks truck.
Jackson completed 20-of-29 passes for 144 yards, a touchdown through the air, and 73 yards on the ground in likely his worst season performance. Jackson has thrown for 893 yards and completed 76 percent of his passes while throwing for 11 touchdowns and just four interceptions through four games. Jackson has also run for 316 yards, two touchdown, and 15 first downs.
There was plenty of luck involved in the back end of this play, but it doesn’t happen without Jackson’s Houdini-like escape on the front end:
Unfortunately for Lamar, the Ravens defense has failed him this season. Josh Allen and the Bills were able to erase a 17-point deficit to top Baltimore. Allen completed 19-of-36 passes for 213 yards and a touchdown while picking up 70 yards and a score on the ground.
Baltimore’s defense is in the bottom-third of the NFL in scoring, allowing 25 points per game. For context, only the Detroit Lions have allowed more than 115 points this season, and the Ravens are part of a cluster of teams that have allowed between 100-115 points.
