Oct. 1 2013 —The New England Patriots’ emerging rookie WR Kenbrell Thompkins (6 catches for 127 yards and 1 TD) was one of the standout players from 2013 NFL Week 4 as New England — surprisingly — beat the Atlanta Falcons by a score of 30-23 in a rare Georgia Dome loss for QB Matt Ryan
(Philadelphia, Pa) — One quarter of the NFL’s “Back to Football” season is already in the books with the recent close of Week 4 around the league. At the first quarter pole of this exciting 2013 season, I can honestly say that the only thing we really do know is that no one REALLY knows what is going to happen next in sports’ most entertaining league.
Everyone thought that the Seattle Seahawks were gonna lose to the host Houston Texas as they trailed by a score of 20-3 at halftime. Well, someone forgot to send the memo to Seahawks’ QB Russell Wilson and his teammates. They never quit as upstart head coach Pete Carroll led his team into Houston with little fear and it showed. The Seahawks, playing with veteran pass rusher Chris Clemmons (1 sack) for the first time this season, decided that they were not going to just fold in the Texas sun to defensive end J.J. Watt and the rest of the Texans. Seattle ended up slugging their way to a hard fought 23-20 overtime victory on a 45-yard field goal by kicker Steven Hauschka.
The Seahawks’ (4-0) improbable win showed that no lead in the NFL is invincible and that games are being fought to the end.
Seattle now has their first 4-0 start in franchise history. The game-changing play of the Seahawk’s win was talkative CB Richard Sherman jumping a Matt Schaub pass intended for Houston TE Owen Daniels… and then racing 58 yards to finish an incredible pick-6 with less than three minutes left. This got his team to the extra period.
”It’s a high-risk, high-reward play,” Sherman said. “You have to jump in. And you might get beat over the top for a 20- or 30-yard gain if he gets the ball down there. But if you make the play, you might get a pick-6 and change the game for your team.”
Sherman was not the only hero for the Seahawks as Wilson also contributed 77 rushing yards after the Texans’ stud MLB Brian Cushing left the game with a concussion.
“Russell’s play was off the charts,” Carroll said after the game. ”I don’t even know what his numbers were; it didn’t matter. You had to watch the game to see the things he did to give us a chance.”
The win also left some questions looming about the mighty Texans (2-2) and most importantly, around the slumping Schaub. The former high-priced acquisition was hit often at critical points late in the game. He had two interceptions, including his NFL-leading 3rd Pick-6 of the season, and failed to move the offense effectively in overtime.
“We were dominating the whole first half,” Watt said furiously later, “and the second half, we just didn’t finish the game. It’s very, very frustrating.”
Unfortunately there won’t be much rest for Houston, as they must now forget about the bad loss and prepare for a tough Week 5 match-up with the rebounding Niners (2-2).
All of the uncertainty and “Any Given Sunday” mentality around the NFL is fueled by:
Injuries: we talk about them every week and this week’s biggest lost-for-the-season player was the Patriots’ nose tackle Vince Wilfork with an Achilles tear vs. Atlanta Falcons;
Urgency: teams, quarterbacks, and head coaches trying to stay afloat in unforgiving waters where everyone from owners to fans wants to win now… See the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the NY Giants, and;
Turnovers: these are game changers and defenses are always looking for them… just ask the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs who lead the NFL with a +9 in takeaway margin.
In looking at the standings, there are only five unbeaten teams left (Denver Broncos, Chiefs, New Orleans Saints, Patriots, and the Seahawks). With so few teams left in the undefeated rank, it really has to make you appreciate how well the 2007 New England Patriots played in going a perfect 16-0 in the regular season. I fully expect that the unbeaten teams dwindle further and, by the season’s halfway point in Week 8, every team will have a blemish on their record. If any team does have a chance to make it to the halfway mark undefeated, it is the Broncos. We all know that any talk of Denver starts and ends with QB Peyton Manning (28-34, 82.4%, 327 yds, and 146 QB rating). The NFL’s only four-time MVP ─ and probably soon to be five — threw four more touchdown passes in the Broncos’ easy 52-20 win over the Philadelphia Eagles to give him an NFL-record 16 for the first four games of the season.
After the unbeaten teams there are: five teams at (3-1) ─ the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, and Tennessee Titans; a glut of 10 teams at .500 (2-2) ─ the San Francisco 49ers, Texans, Arizona Cardinals, San Diego Chargers, Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, Dallas Cowboys, and New York Jets (of this group expect the Niners and Bengals to breakout); two (1-2) teams coming off a bye week in must-win situations ─ the Green Bay Packers and Carolina Panthers; six (1-3) teams, who are all hoping to be this year’s 2007 Chargers (started 1-3, but finished 11-5 winning the AFC West on the way to the AFC Championship game) ─ the Washington Redskins, Eagles, Oakland Raiders, Minnesota Vikings, Falcons, and St. Louis Rams. The last set of teams is the four winless bunch (0-4) which includes the Pittsburgh Steelers, Giants, Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars, all of whom reek of desperation as they head towards getting that number-one pick in the April 2014 draft. Surprisingly, the Steelers and G-Men still have a chance to get back in the race as both of their respective divisions, AFC North and NFC East, are led by a 2-2 squad (the Cowboys and Browns).
My advice to all the teams, no matter where they currently stand in the NFL rankings, is to just keep playing. After all, you never know what will happen in the National Football League. Just ask the former (0-3) Minnesota Vikings ─ now 1-3 — who started very slow only to be lifted up by backup QB Matt Cassel and their pass rush in a big win over the poor Steelers in London, England.
Sure… the Broncos, Chiefs, Saints, Patriots, and Seahawks have to be feeling good that 82% of teams starting 4-0 since 1990 have made the playoffs. But remember in the parity-laden NFL, everything can change very quickly. Last year after four weeks, the eventual playoff-qualifier Falcons and Texans were 4-0, but so were the Cardinals, who finished with a record of 5-11. Also after four weeks, the following eventual playoff-caliber teams ─ Ravens, Niners, Vikings, and Bengals ─ all had a nice 3-1 record, but so did four eventual non-playoff teams ─ the Eagles, Cowboys, Bears, and Chargers.
Cowboys’ QB Tony Romo recently said of the marathon like NFL season:
“It doesn’t matter whether you’re the favorite now or the least favorite, the reality of it is you’ve got to keep playing games. You’re not trying to be the favorite now; you’re trying to be the favorite at the end of the year.”
Lloyd Vance is the Editor for Taking It to the House , who is also an award-winning member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA), and a Contributor to the Sports Journey Broadcast Network. Lloyd can be reached via Twitter at @lloydvance