NFL: Panthers Rise & Patriots Fall
The fourth full weekend of the NFL season is behind us, and a couple of our writers, Caleb Henderson and Charles Post, have ranked their top-10 teams in the league yet again. We saw a couple of upsets in Week 4, as the New England Patriots fell to the Carolina Panthers, the Los Angeles Rams took down the Dallas Cowboys, and the Atlanta Falcons lost to the Buffalo Bills.
1. Kansas City Chiefs (4-0) (+0): The Chiefs continued their unbeaten start to the season with a Monday Night Football victory over the Washington Redskins, 29-20, after trailing twice during the game. Kareem Hunt kept up his incredible pace, rushing for 101 yards, and Kansas City will try to move to 5-0 against the Houston Texans this week.
Team MVP: Kareem Hunt (RB) - 502 Yards & 4 TDs.
2. Detroit Lions (3-1) (+2): The Lions have inarguably been one of the top teams in the league, and their defense looked the part on Sunday, taking down division rival the Minnesota Vikings, 14-7, on the road. It wasn’t the best showing for Matthew Stafford and the offense, but they’ll come around. Week 5 will show us if the offense can take advantage of a poor defense, when they host the Carolina Panthers, who are also coming off of a big win.
Team MVP: Matthew Stafford (QB) - 887 Yards & 7 TDs.
3. Denver Broncos (3-1) (+2): The Broncos’ defense has kept them in games and C.J. Anderson has done just enough to push them over the top for a trio of victories. Last week, they defeated the Oakland Raiders, and are nearly keeping pace with the Chiefs in the AFC West. Denver should move to 4-1, with the winless New York Giants coming to town this weekend.
Team MVP: C.J. Anderson (RB) - 330 Yards & 1 TD.
4. Carolina Panthers (3-1) (+7): The Panthers shocked the world against the New England Patriots, 33-30, coming off of a pair of lackluster performances the two weeks prior. All is well, for now, though in Carolina as Cam Newton returned to his 2015 form. They have another big test this week against the Detroit Lions with a top-5 matchup on the horizon.
Team MVP: Cam Newton (QB) - 882 Yards & 5 TDs.
5. Green Bay Packers (3-1) (+7): The Packers looked like their offense was back to normal on Thursday Night Football, defeating the Chicago Bears, 35-14. Even though the Cowboys are coming off of a loss to the Rams, Green Bay must be focused going into Jerry’s World. The ‘Boys will be playing with desperation, as they'll attempt to take down Aaron Rodgers and Co. for the second straight regular season, while getting revenge for last season's playoff loss.
Team MVP: Aaron Rodgers (QB) - 1,146 Yards & 10 TDs.
6. Atlanta Falcons (3-1) (-4): The Falcons slipped against the Buffalo Bills, 23-17, and are no longer undefeated, but it’s clear that they still have one of them best teams in the league. Matt Ryan’s crew should get back on track with the 1-2 Miami Dolphins coming in, especially with how poor Jay Cutler and the 'Fins looked, getting shut out 20-0 against the New Orleans Saints, in London.
Team MVP: Matt Ryan (QB) - 1,109 Yards & 5 TDs.
7. Los Angeles Rams (3-1) (+6): The Rams have been one of the best offenses in the NFL, scoring 35.5 points per game, including a 35-30 win at the Dallas Cowboys last week, behind second year signal caller, Jared Goff. This coming week will go far in proving who’s the best in the NFC West, the Seattle Seahawks or the Rams? The winner will lead the division at 3-2, with the first tiebreaker in their pocket.
Team MVP: Jared Goff (QB) - 1,072 Yards & 7 TDs.
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1) (+2): The Steelers finally (!) looked like the team we’d all been expecting, and it was in a 26-9 thrashing of their biggest rival, the Baltimore Ravens. Le’Veon Bell got loose for the first time this year, rushing for 144 yards on over 30 carries. The Jacksonville Jaguars won’t just lay down, but at 2-2, it should be a win for Pittsburgh.
Team MVP: Ben Roethlisberger (QB) - 957 Yards & 6 TDs.
9. Philadelphia Eagles (3-1) (-3): The Eagles were picked to finish third in the NFC East by all accounts, but after Week 4, they’re the head of the class with only one loss to the Chiefs. Carson Wentz has shown no signs of a sophomore slump and a quarter of the way into the year, the Eagles are flying high. They host the Arizona Cardinals in Week 5, with an opportunity to get to a 4-1 spot.
Team MVP: Carson Wentz (QB) - 1,058 Yards & 6 TDs.
10. New England Patriots (2-2) (-7): The Patriots have already lost as many games this season as all of last year, at 2-2, and it’s mostly because of the defense, who are allowing 32.0 points per game. Tom Brady can’t do it all, but he might have to try until the defense gets it figured out. Week 5 is a big game for the Pats who would slip out of the top-10 with a loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday Night Football.
Team MVP: Tom Brady (QB) - 1,399 Yards & 10 TDs.
Week 1 Top-10 - Dallas Cowboys.
Week 2 Top-10 - Kansas City Chiefs.
Week 3 Top-10 - Kansas City Chiefs.
Player of the Week:
W1 - Kareem Hunt (Kansas City Chiefs) - 148 Yards, 1 TD, 42-27 win vs. Patriots.
W2 - Tom Brady (New England Patriots) - 447 Yards, 3 TDs, 36-20 win vs. Saints.
W3 - Jared Goff (Los Angeles Rams) - 292 Yards, 3 TDs, 41-39 win vs. 49ers.
W4 - Deshaun Watson (Houston Texans) - 283 Yards, 4 TDs, 57-14 win vs. Titans.
Photo Credit: ESPN & Panthers Wire.
