2021 NFL: Week 3

It’s hard not to feel good for Sam Darnold.

Let’s rewind back to a couple years ago, when Sam was caught on camera saying he was “seeing ghosts” against the Patriots on Monday Night Football. He was raked over the coals by fans and many people in the media and that comment haunted him. In fact, that might have been a factor in why Darnold was cast aside by the Jets after last season as New York decided to take Zach Wilson with the No. 2 pick in the draft.

There was no mention that Darnold was playing with a dumpster fire of an organization. A franchise that has made routine incompetence its calling card. A front office that couldn’t put talented players around him. No talk about that, of course. The issue was the bum they had under center, right?

Well, fine. The Jets traded him to the Panthers this past offseason, for a sixth-round pick in 2021 and second and fourth round picks in 2022. Darnold was Carolina’s problem now.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

Oh, but wait.

Darnold is on a team with a solid defense, in fact the top-ranked unit in the league. He has a seemingly competent head coach in Matt Rhule. He has a star running back to work with in Christian McCaffrey, or at least he did until McCaffrey left the game with an injury on Thursday. And lookie here: The Panthers are 3-0 and Darnold is coming off a performance where he threw for over 300 yards and ran for two touchdowns.

Granted, he hasn’t faced the toughest competition. The Panthers beat the Jets (which must have felt very sweet for Sam), a Saints team that didn’t have a bunch of coaches because of COVID and a Texans team on Thursday night that was starting a rookie quarterback. Things will undoubtedly get tougher going forward and Darnold will be tested.

But it’s amazing to see what a player can do when he’s not surrounded by fools.

NFL’S TOP 10

1. Buccaneers — We’re two weeks into the season and Tom Brady has thrown 9 touchdown passes. I’m starting to believe Tampa’s receiving corps is better than what Brady had in New England during that dominant 2007 season. Peyton Manning’s single-season TD record is definitely in jeopardy.

2. Rams — Kudos to L.A. for hanging tough and making plays when it counted (cliche alert) on the road against a Colts team that was definitely bringing the intensity. Losing another running back in Darrell Henderson to injury is troubling, but there’s not much to complain about outside of that.

3. 49ers — Speaking of teams with running back issues, San Francisco’s backfield is dropping like flies. People are waiting on Trey Lance to take over at quarterback, but as long as the Niners are winning games with Jimmy Garoppolo and the defense is holding strong, why rock the boat?

4. Chiefs — Blowing a fourth-quarter lead is unlike this team. Maybe it’s because they got so used to playing from behind? Anyway, there’s no need to push the panic button yet, even though their running game and defense has been disappointing over the first two weeks. It’s a long haul. They’ll figure it out.

5. Cardinals — Is this team actually this good? I have my doubts after Sunday’s game, despite the victory. Arizona was a mess, even though Kyler Murray threw for 400 yards, and were fortunate that Minnesota’s potential game-winning field goal missed. But maybe tight end Maxx Williams put it best: “I’d rather be lucky than good sometimes.” Amen to that.

6. Ravens — I’m going to give them credit. They have injuries all over the roster, Lamar Jackson made more mistakes and still managed to outscore Kansas City 12-0 in the fourth quarter and forced a fumble late to clinch the victory. They’re trying to keep the ship together with duct tape, but here’s hoping they can make it through this rough stretch.

7. Bills — I knew that Week 1 loss was a red herring. They went to Miami on Sunday and took the Dolphins apart in blowout fashion. Buffalo’s defense looks improved from last season and should have another good performance against Washington this week.

8. Broncos — They’ve lucked out by getting to face the Giants and Jaguars over the first two weeks. But good teams handle their business against inferior competition and that’s just what Denver did.

9. Titans — I’ll admit, I was concerned when they got  blown out in Week 1. I’ll admit, I was sweating when they went into halftime against the Seahawks down by 15 points. But they finally came alive in the second half, Derrick Henry ran roughshod and Tennessee got a big win on the road. My AFC title game pick isn’t dead!

10. Raiders — Hey, look who’s 2-0! Not sure how they did that, especially since they faced two strong AFC North teams, but here we are. Let’s see how long they can last among the big boys.

WHAT’S THE CHATTER?

I called it: Everybody frrreaked out after Aaron Rodgers’ bad Week 1. And, of course, it seemed pretty easy to predict that he would rebound in a big way on Sunday. And look what happened: He threw for 290 yards and three touchdowns as Green Bay looked healthy again with a home win. Rodgers even had Peyton Manning drooling on one of his scoring throws. Once again, let’s relax.

Speaking of the Mannings: If you haven’t checked out Peyton and Eli Manning’s Monday Night Football broadcasts yet, you’re doing it wrong. It’s still rough around the edges, but if you don’t have a rooting interest in the game, it’s a fun watch. The two brothers have good chemistry and it’s cool when they bring in players just coming off a game for interviews.

Just the pitts: This always happens. The Steelers signed star linebacker T.J. Watt to a much-deserved contract extension and just days later he goes down with a groin injury. Those injuries tend to linger and can really only be fixed with rest. And Pittsburgh’s defense is noticeably different when he’s not on the field.

Speaking of injuries: Carson Wentz managed to injure both his ankles against the Rams. That almost takes skill, right? I’m a big Wentz apologist, but he needs to know when to not put his body at risk. He’s too valuable for a franchise that probably will need to go with Brett Hundley under center this week.

No fun allowed: I’m not sure where the NFL gets these impulses from. Everyone rolled their eyes when the league made taunting penalties a point of emphasis going into the season. And while things were quiet in Week 1, flags flew everywhere last week and most of them were weak sauce calls, at best. Football is an emotional sport, and I’m against the forced adjudication of exuberance. Leave the players alone.

Kid gets his chance: Poor Andy Dalton. The man had a target on his back as soon as the Bears drafted Justin Fields. And then he wound up hurting his knee in Week 2 and Fields will start on Sunday against the Browns. However, it’s hard to to feel excited about seeing what the rookie quarterback can do, even though he has a tough matchup against the Browns.

APPOINTMENT VIEWING FOR WEEK 2

Washington at Buffalo: It’s officially the Taylor Heinecke era in our nation’s capital. How long that lasts is anyone’s guess, but for now, I’m all in. Meanwhile, the Bills have a good chance of silencing some lingering doubters with a second straight win.

Bears at Browns: Cleveland still doesn’t have Odell Beckham Jr. back, and now they’ve lost Jarvis Landry for a few weeks with a knee injury. What’s with teams losing entire position groups this season? But still, I like their chances in this one.

Chargers at Chiefs: Still not sure how L.A. lost that game to Dallas, but the good news is they have a chance to erase the bad taste against the Kansas City team that has taken some punches over the first two weeks.

Saints at Patriots: Bill Belichick made a rookie quarterback look lost last week. Now he gets a chance to work his magic against a somewhat iffy quarterback in Jameis Winston. I’m very interested to see how this one turns out.

Bengals at Steelers: T.J. Watt was limited in practice on Thursday, so we’ll have to wait and see if he’ll take the field for this game. If he doesn’t, Cincy has a decent chance to steal a game it wouldn’t normally be able to.

Dolphins at Raiders: Vegas will catch a break as they get to face a Tua-less Miami at home. Although maybe that’s a good thing for the Dolphins?

Buccaneers at Rams: The unquestioned game of the week. The Rams made the Bucs look silly last season with Jared Goff at quarterback. Now that they have Stafford, will they be able to pull another one out? Hmm, there’s no guarantees when it comes to facing Tom Brady.

Seahawks at Vikings: Both teams are aching for a good performance after tough Week 2 losses. Minny might be a little more eager since a possible 0-3 record would be tough to overcome.

Packers at 49ers: Oh, man. That’s popcorn time.

Eagles at Cowboys: Not sure what to make of both teams. But hey, again, it’s Monday night. What else are you going to watch?