The NFL’s Red Rifle returns! What year is it again?

From a heroic Andy Dalton return to more Dallas Cowboys misery, Sky Sports NFL presenter Neil Reynolds has his final say on Week Three of the 2024 season on the road to Super Bowl LIX.

It was another very unpredictable week in the NFL and it’s really getting harder and harder to pick these games every week.

It makes it hugely entertaining but also very hard to gauge who is leading this race to Super Bowl 59. It’s very early, but this is going to be a wacky season for sure…

The Red Rifle returns!

We are in 2024 and Andy Dalton of the Carolina Panthers is playing like the second coming of Joe Montana. He was excellent against the Las Vegas Raiders in leading Carolina to their first victory of the season. He threw for 319 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions as he replaced the benched first overall pick from last year, Bryce Young.

And now, the question for the powers that be in Charlotte: What if Bryce Young was the problem all along? This is going to be fascinating to monitor in the coming months. Dalton is 36 and in his 14th season, so he is not the future of the franchise, but is there a future for Bryce Young? Because Dalton took the same talent that was miserable the first two weeks of the season, and turned them into big winners in Week Three.

Bryce may have to move on to resurrect his career.

Darnold strikes again

Week Three saw Sam Darnold write another chapter in the story that is becoming one of the NFL’s most fascinating of this young season. He threw four touchdown passes as the Minnesota Vikings moved to 3-0 with a big win over the Houston Texans, in what was supposed to be one of the hardest-fought games of the week.

As has been the case all season long so far, Darnold didn’t do it on his own. Running back Aaron Jones had 148 scrimmage yards and a touchdown, Justin Jefferson and Jalen Nailor both scored for the third week in a row and Minnesota’s defense, which came into the week leading the NFL in sacks, had five more quarterback takedowns, five sacks and two interceptions of CJ Stroud, who had gone seven games without an interception. The Vikings must just be for real.

Dolphins in a world of hurt at quarterback

This week was definitely a reminder of the value of the quarterback position. We saw it with what Sam Darnold continues to do for the Vikings, we saw what Andy Dalton can do for the Carolina Panthers, and we saw what bad performances can do to upend a team’s chances as Will Levis made mistake after mistake once again for the Tennessee Titans, and we saw the Miami Dolphins look punchless without Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback.

With Tua out, the Dolphins turned to Skylar Thompson and Tim Boyle, and they could be morphing into the 2023 New York Jets at this rate. They are in a world of hurt at the quarterback position, and them going from being the best offense in the NFL last year statistically to looking one of the worst is very much down to the absence of a key player at the game’s most vital position.

Eagles produce impressive response

Heading into their Week Three clash with the New Orleans Saints, the Philadelphia Eagles were not getting much attention. It was all about the Saints, who had scored 91 points in the first two weeks. The Eagles had let things slip late against the Atlanta Falcons with a poor defensive effort to fall to 1-1, meaning they had lost seven of their last nine games dating back to last season.

The Eagles produced the kind of response that Nick Sirianni and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio will have demanded. They were outstanding on defense from start to finish and Saquon Barkley provided those home run punches they needed on the ground. This was a massive 15-12 win on the road that suggests if Jalen Hurts can avoid making some of the costly mistakes which reared their ugly head again in this game, this team can go deep into the playoffs.

Concerns grow for the Cowboys

The Baltimore Ravens were really impressive for three quarters, then they took their foot off the gas and almost allowed the Cowboys back into this game. They ran the ball 45 times for 274 yards and three touchdowns, it was a heavy combination of Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson and this game steadied the ship in Baltimore, while raising a lot of questions about the Cowboys.

Dallas are being pulled all over the place on defense, they have no running game, Dak Prescott – with his new $60m-a-year contract – is too inconsistent at quarterback and head coach Mike McCarthy could be running out of time in Dallas. This game raised many questions for the Cowboys, but did see the Ravens adopt that physical approach we expect from them.

Player of the Week – Derrick Henry, RB, Baltimore Ravens

The two-time rushing champion carried the ball 25 times for 151 yards and two touchdowns, and I think he forced Dallas defenders to make several business decisions. They didn’t want to tackle Derrick Henry head-on; who would? He is an absolute force of nature, and they wanted nothing to do with Derrick Henry and I don’t think they will be the last team to feel that way this season. He was the focal point of Baltimore’s attack, he still looks like a complete back and there is plenty of tread left on these tyres.

Play of the Week – Saquon Barkley’s 65-yard TD run

It was just the kind of play the Eagles needed to energise them to victory in a very tough environment. Jalen Hurts wasn’t getting too much done through the air and was blowing hot and cold. This touchdown, he broke through the line and sprinted away from safeties in the secondary, showing exactly why the Eagles went and got a home-run hitter like Saquon Barkley.

Coach of the Week – Sean McVay, Los Angeles Rams

It was a decimated offensive line that he had, he was without Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, and against the San Francisco 49ers – who had injuries of their own – the Rams trailed 14-0, 21-7 and 24-14 before rallying. Matthew Stafford never gives up, Sean McVay puts his offense in a position to succeed – Kyren Williams being a beneficiary of that – and they kick the game-winning field goal from Joshua Karty with two seconds left. What an effort from the Rams, pretty much to save their season.

On my radar…

One thing on my radar is the number of injuries we have seen early in the season. I know we see them every year and talk about them every year, but we are in Week Three, should we be seeing Skylar Thompson, Malik Willis, Taylor Heinicke and Tim Boyle playing at quarterback?

Houston played a massive game against the Minnesota Vikings without Joe Mixon at running back; the 49ers were without Deebo Samuel, Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle; the Rams were without Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp. These are superstars of the NFL, these are selling points of the NFL.

The attrition on these players is real. I don’t know whether it is because they have a lot easier a training camp and preseason, I’m not a doctor. All I know is 18 games are coming and we will see more of this unless rosters are increased and we find a way to protect the stars. The stars sell this game.

Watch the Dallas Cowboys take on the New York Giants to kick off Week Four on Thursday night, live on Sky Sports NFL from 1.15am Friday morning; Also stream with NOW.

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Source : Sky Sports