Beyond the fights, sloppy play and shortage of ambiguity on Sunday, there was one thing that adamantly stood alone: Beware of the NFC.

There are six teams with at least six wins in the NFC after Week 9, compared to the AFC’s three six-win teams (New England, Pittsburgh, Kansas City), which happen to be the conference’s only true contenders.

Consider these early afternoon scores from three NFC contenders:

With the addition of Jay Ajayi to contribute with other offseason toys for Carson Wentz (Alshon Jeffrey, Torrey Smith, LeGarrette Blount), the Eagles now have a running back committee that includes two talented power backs and two effective quicker runners in Wendell Smallwood and undrafted rookie Chris Clement, who scored three touchdowns against the vaunted (used to be) Broncos defense. 51-23 Eagles thanks to four touchdown passes from Wentz. The Eagles could have beaten the Broncos by 50 points if they wanted to.

In New York, Jared Goff (four touchdown passes) and Todd Gurley (two rushing touchdowns) scored 51 points of their own in a drubbing of the Giants. Add in the two former Bills receivers, Sammy Watkins (two touchdown catches) and Robert Woods (one touchdown catch), and you have a formidable offense under Goff, like the one Philadelphia has done for Wentz.

The two top draft picks from last year may be forever matched up against one another. Especially with how little time it’s taken them to find success.

In New Orleans, the Saints (6-2) won their sixth straight game and efficiently ended the Buccaneers (2-6) season. The Seahawks (5-3) suffered a gut-punching home loss to Washington (4-4), which leaves the Seahawks one game behind the Rams in the NFC West.

These two NFC teams are in a different category than the two previously mentioned NFC teams. Both are led by experienced passers. Both Drew Brees and Russell Wilson have each won a Super Bowl. The Saints have improved on defense, something they’ve struggled with for almost the entirety of Brees’ career.

Seattle’s achilles heel remains their offensive line, even with the addition of Duane Brown last week. Of course, it wasn’t that way in Seattle’s back-to-back Super Bowl appearances in 2013 and 2014, which now feels like eons ago.

Russell Okung, Max Unger and others are gone, leaving Wilson scrambling for his life. But Wilson makes due with an offense that lacks star power. He does have a defense, the league’s best crew over the last five seasons to be exact.

The Seahawks and Saints are unlike the upstart Eagles and Rams. They have more issues, but also more experience.

Then there are the wild cards. Both the Panthers (6-3) and Cowboys (5-3) would literally be the NFC wild cards had the season ended today. A fitting description.

Both teams are talented. Dallas has had off-the-field drama with the on-and-off suspension for Ezekiel Elliot, who has had a great season. The defense has also improved from it’s early season struggles, as evident in their 28-17 win over the Chiefs.

Besides the miraculous Tyreek Hill score, the Cowboys allowed just 10 points against one of the most explosive offenses in the league. Karen Hunt was held to just 61 total yards, which is an impressive feat for a defense that let up 42 points to Trevor Siemian in Week 2.

Like the Cowboys defense, the Panthers offense is a talented bunch that needs consistency from Cam Newton, who’s play has been as shaky as his press conferences.

Where Dallas has Elliot and Dak Prescott to win games for them, Carolina has Luke Kuechly to lead the way on defense. But it’s Newton, without Greg Olsen and now Kelvin Benjamin (who was shipped to Buffalo last week) that has yet to fully mesh with rookies Christian McCaffrey and Curtis Samuel. The Panthers offense has had their moments in big road wins over the Patriots and Lions, but have been near-dreadful besides that. It’s a  miracle that they’re in the position they’re in.

But the Panthers have a favorable schedule down the stretch, and may see Olsen return from injury. The Cowboys begin in Atlanta next week, they’ll play Seattle later on and are still yet to face Philadelphia who they’ll of course see twice.

If Elliot can stay on the field, the Cowboys are a team no one will want to play come January. Ditto to the Panthers if Newton and the offense gets hot.

But the NFC is crowded.

Russell Wilson–who threw a go-ahead touchdown to Doug Baldwin with under two minutes remaining versus Washington–now sees his Seahawks out of the playoff race if the season ended today.

With the Eagles likely in and the Vikings likely winning the NFC North be default with Aaron Rodgers out, it seems that five teams will be fighting deep into the season for the four remaining spots. The Cowboys, Saints, Panthers, Rams and Seahawks will fight that battle.

That’s without even mentioning Washington (4-4), who’s shown flashes of brilliance, or the defending champion Falcons (4-4), who still have time for a run. Depending on how Brett Hundley adapts to being the starter, the Packers (4-3) may not be done either as a wild card hopeful.

So in decoding the NFC, there is now the favorite (Eagles), the upstart (Rams), the quarterback-heals-all teams (Saints, Seahawks) and the potential coming-in-hot clubs (Panthers, Cowboys) as just a handful of what has become quite a scene in pro football’s premier conference.

NFL MVP Race

1. Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles. With a league-leading 23 touchdown passes, the second-year quarterback made both Denver and Washington’s defense look silly in recent weeks. He stands alone at the top for now.

2. Tom Brady, New England Patriots. The 40-year-old quarterback remains at or near the top of every noteworthy passing statistic. But perhaps the greatest sign of his greatness was the Patriots show of faith in him by trading Jimmy Garoppolo out west to San Francisco.

3. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks. Wilson continues to run for his life thanks to a power offensive line and no running game. If it weren’t for an unusual late faltering by the Seahawks defense, Wilson would have had yet another fourth quarter comeback versus Washington.

4. Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs. Even with Kareem Hunt, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce, it’s Smith that makes this offense go. They’re 1-3 in their past four games, but a good second half run to the AFC’s No. 1 seed could sway voters toward Smith.

5. Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys. After yet another big-game performance, Elliot passes Hunt, who has been quiet in losses to the Steelers and Cowboys in the national spotlight.

Honorable Mention: Kareem Hunt, Todd Gurley, Drew Brees, Antonio Brown, Calais Campbell

Two quarterbacks with similar attributes put on the most stunning show of the 2017 NFL season thus far on Sunday.

Russell Wilson and rookie phenom Deshaun Watson. 856 passing yards, eight passing touchdowns, 97 rushing yards, 28 fourth quarter points, 79 total. Mind-boggling numbers.

There were some major mistakes, such as Watson’s pick-six to a revengeful Earl Thomas, just one drive after Watson found Will Fuller for a 59-yard touchdown pass over Thomas’ head. Wilson threw what almost was a game-ending interception to Texans cornerback Marcus Williams in the red zone with under three minutes to play and down four points.

But this game will be remembered for it’s quarterbacking brilliance and clutch play, capped off with Wilson’s three-play, 80-yard drive culminating in a game-winning TD pass to Jimmy Graham with 21 seconds to play.

Wilson was extraordinary under pressure, with a 113.5 passer rating with Texans in his face, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s been under fire all season thanks to the worst offensive line in football. The Seahawks recently traded for Texans tackle Duane Brown on Monday, just to salvage the situation.

Murmurs of Watson in the MVP race had already surfaced, and he’s still there, but hardly a favorite. Wilson vaulted himself ahead of Watson, and nearly into the Carson Wentz-Tom Brady-Alex Smith category, which could be categorized simply as the favorites.

For Seattle, time will tell if Brown alone can amend the Seahawks offensive line enough to win in the postseason. But the NFC is isn’t exactly abundant in the contender category. Only the Eagles (7-1) are in better position in the conference. The Vikings are inevitably-doomed because of their quarterback situation. The Cowboys (a team with Dak Prescott, a quarterback with a similar skillset to Watson and Wilson) (4-3) received news that Ezekiel Elliot’s six-game suspension is back on, again. The Rams (5-2) are a fun story, and are a future threat, but they’re no match for the Seahawks. They’re a wild card team at best. The NFC South has the Saints, who have won five straight but their defense simply can’t be called on to stop lethal offenses, while the Panthers are offensively-inept, and just traded Kelvin Benjamin, their No. 1 wide receiver, to the Bills. The Falcons (4-3) are dormant but have yet to prove their worth in 2017 as we approach the season’s midway point.

But in Seattle, the Seahawks have the NFC’s best quarterback in Wilson after an injury to Aaron Rodgers. After Brady, Wilson is the next best clutch quarterback in football, as well as proven winner. Since he entered the league in 2012, Wilson is second to only Brady in regular season wins (61), postseason wins (8) and Super Bowl appearances (2).

A team that was once led by the Legion of Boom, is now anchored by Wilson, who makes up the league’s worst offensive line and incompetent running game by throwing to a former-superstar-turned-pedestrian Jimmy Graham and a mighty-mouse group of undersized receivers in Doug Baldwin, Tyler Lockett and Paul Richardson.

The connection between Wilson and Baldwin, his favorite receiver, mirrors that of Brady and Deion Branch in the earlier years of the Patriots dynasty. With no disrespect to Baldwin, one of the league’s most underrated players, imagine what Wilson could do with an Antonio Brown or Julio Jones? An adequate offensive line? Brady got his shot with Randy Moss and Wes Welker and set records. Wilson is already having an incredible statistical career without any major weapons. The possibilities would be endless.

On Sunday, Wilson made due with what he had to out-duel a quarterback who shares several similarities with Wilson. Watson is an electrifying, clutch playmaker who has shown leadership and poise at not only the college level, but in the NFL with immediate success. Like Wilson with the Seahawks in 2012, Watson has ignited these Texans. Houston’s 3-4 record could easily be 6-1 had Watson played week one (Tom Savage started) and had the Texans defense held late versus Brady and Wilson on the road.

Watson is tied with Wentz for the league-lead in touchdown passes (19) and has become the new face of a franchise that has lost J.J. Watt, its soon to be former best player, for the second straight season due to injury. Like Wilson, there’s no denying the importance of Watson to his team.

Now both quarterbacks have officially entered the MVP race. Surely only Wilson has a realistic shot to make Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis this February. But both passers will continue and sustain their hault toward the top of any quarterback rankings, with each player seemingly having at least a decade (or more) of successful seasons in the near future.

At some point, the next group of elite passers will take the place of Brady, Rodgers, Drew Brees and the recently-retired Peyton Manning. Cam Newton and Matt Ryan, the NFL’s last two MVP award winners, can’t put together consecutive successful seasons. Andrew Luck can’t stay healthy on the mismanaged Colts, meanwhile while other once-anointed quarterbacks such as Robert Griffin III and Colin Kaepernick are out of the league entirely.

In a few seasons, the title of the NFL’s best quarterback will be up for grabs. Expect these two to be at the forefront of that battle. For now, they’re just two MVP candidates who played a helluva game on Sunday. It was the duel of the year thus far.

 

Even through the foggy air that rendered NBC Sunday Night Football’s usual camera angle irrelevant, Tom Brady and the Patriots continued the Falcons’ misery. The 23-7 win was the most efficient of the season by all counts.

As the Patriots stroll (after this week’s home game versus the Chargers) into their bye week, it appears that the team boasting the best quarterback and head coach in NFL History will once again stick its nose into the annual January-February edition football we call the playoffs.

Much of that is because of Brady, who even at 40-years old remains the best quarterback on the planet, on top of his game.

Brady and Aaron Rodgers will top any level-headed critic’s top quarterbacks list, but what about the rest?

Before we begin the list, here are the honorable mentions that did not make the cut: Mitchell Trubisky, Eli Manning, Joe Flacco, Ryan Tannehill, Andy Dalton, Jimmy Garoppolo, Trevor Siemian. 

Here are my top 20 quarterbacks:

20. Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams: Goff has shown major improvements in year two with the Rams, leading most to believe that the Goff-Todd Gurley-Aaron Donald trio can vault the Rams (5-2) to the postseason. That remains to be seen.

19. Marcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans: Mariota has shown flashes of absolute brilliance, but injuries and inconsistency have been somewhat of a detriment so far. The Titans are tied for first in the AFC South with a 4-3 record, so Mariota may fly up these rankings soon, but he needs to be proactive starting with improvement this season while the Titans have a shot at the division title.

18. Jameis Winston, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Many predicted the Buccaneers to win the NFC South, if not, make the postseason in 2017. Winston and the Bucs haven’t lived up to the hype so far, as the gradual move toward his lofty potential has stalled a bit. Still, I’d take Winston over Mariota.

17. Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo Bills: After turning heads at Virgina Tech, Taylor deserved better than to be an afterthought of the 2011 NFL draft, falling to Baltimore in the 6th round.

Taylor is more than just a playmaker at quarterback, he’s a leader as well as the main reason the Bills are 4-2 in the midst of a re-building year with not much to work with.

16. Phillip Rivers, Los Angeles Chargers: Rivers has moved a few slots back then where I used to have him (top ten) as the Chargers have consistently missed the playoffs on late-game blunders that sometimes feature an errant Rivers pass.

But the N.C. State product has helped cover up a lot of holes in various Chargers teams over the years and has had a brilliant regular season career. He’s still a good quarterback that deserves better.

15. Kirk Cousins, Washington: There’s no wonder teams (like San Francisco) have been fawning over the idea of bringing in Cousins in 2018 if he cannot reach a deal with Washington. Cousins is as talented as he is confident, and may be suffering from a lack of direction in Washington’s team-building process. If it weren’t for him, this team wouldn’t sniff the postseason. But there are better quarterbacks, 14 to be exact.

14. Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans: Watson has burst onto the scene as one of the game’s most exciting players. Only Carson Wentz seems to hold more potential for a greater career for the current 25-and-under quarterbacks in the league.

I stand by my assertion that the Browns, Bears and others made a mistake passing on Watson. This can be seen here in my column written for a class taught by J.A. Adande last spring.

Waston will undoubtedly soar up this list.

13. Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts: I stand by my prediction that Luck will have a better career than Cam Newton, but with an injury that looks to hold him out of the 2017 season coupled with Newton’s brilliant 2015 campaign, I can’t put him above Newton just yet.

Luck’s career can be summed up in one of my tweets last year.

After the Lions missed an extra point to keep their lead at 34-28 versus the Colts, I predicted Luck would lead the Colts to victory, 35-34. Luck indeed did lead the Colts on that go-ahead drive, only for Stafford to lead Detroit back down the field for the win afterwards.

Luck did what he could, scoring 35 points as the defense let up more. That’s been all-too common in Indianapolis during the Luck-era.

The Colts were handicapped by their league-worst general manager Ryan Grigson, who was just fired this past offseason. It remains to be seen whether Luck will stay in Indianapolis and play in 2018, but wherever he plays, a team is getting one of the game’s best quarterbacks. He should be higher, but this is where he goes for now.

12. Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers: Considering his extraordinary 2015 season, it’s disappointing to see what appears to be his mental psyche holding Newton back from being where he should be, which is a top-five quarterback.

The 2017 season has featured a little bit of everything for Newton. A four-touchdown performance in a road win over the Patriots. A 34-16 home loss to the rival Saints, which featured three Newton interceptions. Those games were just one week apart. Newton is one of the most talented players in the history of the league, but maturity seems to be an issue.

11. Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs: It seems Smith is finally starting to shake off his game-manager label at age 33. In 2017, Smith leads the NFL in passer rating (120.5), touchdown-to-interception ratio (15:0), yards per attempt (8.68) and completion percentage (72.4). Although the Chiefs have lost two straight games, Smith is still in the thick of the MVP race and is beginning to prove himself as one of the league’s best quarterbacks.

Since 2015, Smith’s 29 wins are second only to Brady (32). But Smith’s postseason record in Kansas City is just 1-3, with his only win coming on the road against Brian Hoyer and the 2015 Houston Texans. He may vault up this list soon, but with immense talent on both offense and defense around him, Smith has more to prove.

10. Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions: The NFL’s highest paid player has shown a knack for regular season game-winning drives and covering up for a lack of overall talent on the middling Lions.

But Stafford is 7-49 in his career against teams finishing above .500, and has yet to win a playoff game. He’s a very good quarterback, but much of what defines a quarterback’s career is his play in the postseason.

9. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys: Few quarterbacks are as poised as the young Prescott, as the 24-year-old’s 16-7 record and 102.8 passer rating symbolize his immediate success. Prescott has similar escapability to Russell Wilson and running power to Cam Newton. Add in his passing accuracy (66.2 percent) and there’s a reason why the Cowboys have suddenly transformed into one of the league’s most dangerous teams. Of course, Ezekiel Elliot and the offensive line are of big help. The Prescott-Carson Wentz debate will surely wage on for years to come in the NFC East.

8. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers: Had this list been done in the offseason, Roethlisberger surely would have made the top five. But the 35-year-old passer has clearly taken a step back as he braces for retirement.

Roethlisberger’s postseason resume includes a 13-7 record and two Super Bowl wins (three appearances). But since 2011 he’s 3-4 in the playoffs and has yet to reach another Super Bowl. With an improving defense coupled with Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell as surrounding talent, Roethlisberger can still win games and lead the Steelers back to the Super Bowl.

7. Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders: Carr had gradually improved in each of his first three seasons before running into a second injury in the past 10 months earlier this season. He returned to put on a extraordinary performance last Thursday night against the Chiefs.

Carr has proven himself as one of the league’s best late-in-the-game quarterbacks, and continues to lead an offense that makes up for a poor defense, with no disrespect to Khalil Mack, who is one of the league’s best defensive players.

6. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons: Despite the rough start to the 2017 season, the reigning NFL MVP gets the benefit of the doubt. Like most of the the other passers below him on this list, consistency is a major problem. But Ryan is situationally one of the best clutch quarterbacks in the NFL. Situationally, meaning his knack for leading game-winning drives in the regular season. However, Ryan hasn’t quite shown that he can be a consistent big-game quarterback. The rest of Ryan’s career will be defined in the postseason. But he has to get back there first.

5. Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles: In Wentz’s first season, he proved his worth as a capable young passer with one of the league’s worst wide receiving cores. Some criticized him for dinking and dunking to his multiple running backs in 2016, but who else was he supposed to throw to? In the offseason the Eagles added wide receivers Alshon Jeffrey and Torrey Smith to compliment tight end Zach Ertz, which has not only opened up their airways for former first-round pick Nelson Aholor, but Wentz himself. The second-year quarterback is fourth in the NFL with 7.98 YPA (yards pet attempt) and has the Eagles sitting on a league-best 6-1 record.

4. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints: Despite the astronomical passing numbers, it appeared the 38-year-old Brees had been taking steps back, which is normal for a quarterback of his age. But Brees is still arguably the games most accurate passer, and his consistency has trickled into 2017. Brees has a 100.0 passer rating as the Saints are riding a four-game win streak that has them in first place in the NFC South. It’s consistency that sets him apart from the passers below him on this list.

3. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks: There is no better quarterback in the league in terms of using a combination of awareness and escapability to make plays, not even Aaron Rodgers or the quickly-improving Wentz. This dual-attribute has been put to the test in recent years more than Wilson would like, as the offensive line is a wasteland that is hurting the Seahawks’ chances of being a true Super Bowl LII contender.

But since 2012, Wilson is second only to Brady in regular season (60) and postseason (8) wins, which is indicative of his leadership and clutch play as much as it is the Seahawks’ defense.

2. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers: It’s never good for the NFL when one of it stars is lost (possibly) for the season. Judging by his often-aired commercials and consistent jaw-dropping plays, it’s worth arguing if Rodgers is the face of the league. Still, in terms of all-time rankings, another Super Bowl win or two is a must for Rodgers to catch this next quarterback.

1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots: Argue if you must, but Brady remains at the top of his game in 2017.

 

 

Cousin Dylan joins the podcast to discuss the foggy Super Bowl LI rematch, AFC & NFC predictions (4:52), PIT-DET (15:56), DEN-KC (17:35) and Cumberland Soccer (19:56).

Cousin Dylan joins the podcast to talk about this “wonk” year, Tier 1, 2, and 3 teams (4:12), NFL MVP (11:46), ATL-NE (16:04), WAS-PHI (26:04) and Cumberland Soccer (29:10).

 

 

Last Sunday in Dallas, after Dak Prescott had quarterbacked the Cowboys to a 31-28 lead over the Packers with 1:13 to go, Aaron Rodgers answered with a 75-yard touchdown drive to beat the Cowboys in Dallas for the second time in nine months.

This week Rodgers broke his right collarbone after being slammed to the ground by Vikings linebacker Anthony Barr. Just like that, his season may be over.

Crazy, isn’t it? That’s just football, some will say. Rodgers joins the likes of J.J. Watt, Odell Beckham Jr., David Johnson and Julian Edelman as players that will miss the rest of the season due to injuries, to name a few. It’s the harsh reality of America’s most popular sport. At any moment, one injury can derail a franchise’s entire season, all while changing the course of the league for the rest of the year.

Heck, even Tom Brady (torn ACL in 2008) and Peyton Manning (neck surgery in 2011) missed entire seasons due to injury.

Rodgers himself injured his left collarbone in 2013. The Packers were 5-2 and were on a four-game winning streak prior to the injury. The Packers went just 2-5-1 without Rodgers before he returned in Week 17. The injury nearly cost them a playoff spot and virtually cost them the season anyhow.

Now, the Rodgers injury further adds to the wonk year that is the 2017 NFL season.

The Giants were 0-5 after a bye and came to Denver and thrashed the Broncos.

The Steelers upset the Chiefs in Kansas City just one week after Roethlisberger’s pick-barrage that spurred a 30-9 home loss to the Jaguars.

Not only are their no more unbeaten teams after Week 6, there are only two one-loss teams.

The Eagles lone loss just happens to be to the Chiefs, who still appear to be the best team in football.

The AFC is a mess, but the NFC is even more of a mystery due to Rodgers injury.

Will the Packers do enough to make the postseason with Brett Hundley, whether Rodgers returns or not?

Will the Eagles keep this up? Will either the Panthers or Falcons step up? Are the Rams and Vikings legitimate contenders? Will the Seahawks or Saints make a run?

Behold, the wonk year. After Rodgers’ injury, it’s clear this season’s outlook isn’t getting any clearer.

Steelers down Chiefs in Kansas City

Similar to the Rodgers situation, the Steelers were in the midst of a different situation last Monday morning after being clobbered by the Jaguars the day before.

Roethlisberger had five interceptions that day, but none yesterday, as he effectively fed two of the NFL’s best weapons in Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell, who combined 346 yards and two touchdowns.

The performance by Bell and Brown felt personal, as many (me included) have called the Chiefs trio of Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill and Kareem Hunt the NFL’s best trio of weapons after their fast start to the season.

Now the Steelers (4-2) sit in an advantageous position as the season’s midway point nears. Unlike the Patriots (4-2) who are also one game back of the Chiefs (5-1) but lost to Kansas City, Pittsburgh now owns the tiebreaker with yesterday’s foe.

Tom Brady has had his way with the Steelers in the past, but has struggled versus these Chiefs. The Steelers not only beat the Chiefs yesterday, but also beat them 18-16 in Kansas City in last year’s AFC Divisional Playoff Game, before getting clobbered by Brady and company in New England the following week.

It’ll be interesting to see how the AFC plays out as the season unfolds.

Elderly trio leads Cardinals to victory

Larry Fitzgerald (34) has been in Arizona for his entire career. Carson Palmer (37) has been quarterbacking the Cardinals for the past five seasons. Adrian Peterson (32) has been the Cardinals running back for just one week.

All three, with a combined average of 34.5 years led their team to a 38-33 win over the Buccaneers in a grueling sport.

Peterson was the star of the show by far, running for 134 yards and two scores on 26 carries.

This performance is not expected to repeat itself each week, but Peterson’s hard running was refreshing for Palmer, who has been in need of that remedy since David Johnson was lost with a wrist injury in Week 1.

Off-the-field issues aside, Peterson has shown his mettle throughout his career — including battling back from a Torn ACL to win the 2012 NFL MVP award the following year — but that intangible was challenged when Peterson exhibited clear frustration with the Saints coaching staff in regard to his playing time.

In Arizona, Peterson looked like a new man, and had fun doing it. Just one game behind the Rams in the NFC West, the Cardinals may be a team to keep an eye on for the rest of 2017.

NFL MVP race (first too-early edition)

 

Six weeks into the NFL season is five weeks too late to discuss the MVP award this day in age. Heck, Kareem Hunt’s Week 1 performance versus the Patriots had many wondering if he’d win the award. Many last week had Aaron Rodgers at the top of their list, and that was well warranted before his injury.

This may not be a weekly column tentpole just yet, but here’s the inaugural too-early edition for the league’s most coveted award.

1. Carson Wentz
2. Alex Smith
3. Tom Brady
4. Kareem Hunt
5. Antonio Brown/Le’Veon Bell

Honorable mention: Deshaun Watson, Leonard Fournette, Todd Gurley

Cousin Dylan joins as always to discuss new information in Ezekiel Elliot’s situation, CAR-PHI (2:47), Cam Newton and Carolina’s NFC South title chances (4:50), Ben Roethlisberger and the future of NFL QB’s (10:00), GB-MIN (16:07), DET-NO (19:15), and surprise teams such as BUF, NYJ, JAC and LAR (22:17). Then Dylan talks Cumberland Soccer (30:17).

 

Brent and Cousin Dylan discuss the horrid Patriots defense, the NFC’s best contests (5:23) and Kansas City-Houston (11:35). Then Dylan gives an update on Cumberland soccer (14:50).

After falling behind to an opponent at Gillette Stadium, Tom Brady and the Patriots began their patented fourth quarter rally as they often do at home. We’ve seen this before. We saw it last week, when Brady downed the Texans on a last-minute drive.

This time the Patriots trailed 30-16 with under 9:00 remaining before Brady led the Patriots on two scoring drives. It seemed like the usual Brady comeback. Hurry-up offense, precision passing, and a game-tying touchdown pass to Danny Amendola on 4th-and-goal.

All Brady needed next was a shot at a game-winning drive. He never got it. After Cam Newton was sacked on a 3rd-and-10 by Deatrich Wise, Jr– the Patriots lone bright spot among a sea of below-average pass rushers — a yellow flag hit the field, as a sinking feeling rushed through the packed crowd of Patriots fans in Gillette Stadium. It was an illegal contact penalty on Stephon Gilmore, the Patriots $65 million free agent acquisition. First down for the Panthers.

Newton ended up driving the Panthers downfield with help from another flag on Patrick Chung, and a clutch catch by a gimpy Devin Funchess. Graham Gano nailed the 48-yard game-winning field goal, and the Panthers (3-1) escaped with a win over the Patriots (2-2) in Foxboro, 33-30.

Where do the Patriots go from here? Brady is having one of his best seasons (1,399 yards, 10 TDs, 0 INT, 116.6 passer rating) as the offense looks to be among the league’s best, yet the Patriots are another Brady miracle away from being 1-3, with three losses at home, thanks to one of the worst defenses in league history through four games. This is uncharted territory for the Patriots in the Bill Belichick-era.

Yes, the Patriots have stumbled through the first month of a season before, only to win or   at least make the Super Bowl. But this defense is historically bad by all measures.

Jason La Confora of CBS Sports wrote a piece yesterday suggesting the Patriots should trade backup QB Jimmy Garoppolo in hopes of getting defensive front seven players in return. I don’t think it’ll happen because it’s not as easy as it sounds for the Patriots, but I tend to agree. Whether the Patriots want Chargers pass rusher Melvin Ingram, or one of the many prospects the 49ers are harvesting during a rebuilding year, something needs to be done. This defense will probably improve as is, since it’s difficult for them to get any worse. But it seems impossible to think this defense can improve enough for the Patriots to seriously contend for another championship. That’s evident by the Patriots first four games with Brady playing as is.

Another trade piece to monitor is Malcolm Butler. Butler has not played well since last year’s AFC Championship Game, and will all but likely be in another uniform next season. The Patriots may attempt to help their front seven in return for trading Butler soon.

The Patriots will still win the AFC East with what they have, despite the panic that has rightfully ensued. The Jets (2-2) and Dolphins (1-2) aren’t very good at football in 2017, and the Bills (3-1) won’t keep this up. It’s amazing Buffalo is playing as well as they have thus far.

But the Patriots need to at least tinker with what they have by making moderate moves at the very least, or they’re in big trouble. If a move is made, expect it to happen after Thursday Night’s game in Tampa Bay, where the Patriots will have 10 days before they travel to New York to face the Jets.

Deshaun Watson: The man

Last May, after the Texans moved up 13 spots to select Deshaun Watson with the 12th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, I praised the move in a column I wrote for a class taught by J.A. Adande.

I could just lazily let this column speak for itself, but I also have video proof, via our Medill NFL Draft show, which was filmed the morning after Watson was drafted by the Texans. Fast forward to 4:04 on the video below and give it a listen.

Look, no one wants to hear me boast about my Watson premonition last May. But when thinking about this past draft, how can the Browns pass on Watson with three first-round picks.

Granted, Watson has started just three games, and the Browns hardly have the pieces that the Texans do (solid defense, offensive playmakers in DeAndre Hopkins, Lamar Miller, Will Fuller IV) but by just watching Watson thus far, you can tell he is a winner.

It may be too early to pile on teams that drafted quarterbacks ahead of Watson, but sometimes scouts, general managers, and fans get caught up in a player’s “potential” rather then focusing on a talented player who has demonstrated leadership in big-game situations in college.

Watson led Clemson to two National Championship Games, slaying mighty Alabama in the second on a game-winning touchdown pass on the last play of the game. Yes, quarterbacks should still be evaluated on their size, mechanics, arm strength and the mysterious attribute called potential. But what about mental toughness, poise, clutch play versus a near-NFL quality defense in Alabama?

Houston made the right move in trading up for Watson, and through three games, it’s shown.

Larry Fitzgerald: An under-appreciated career?

At the end of an otherwise horrid game between the 49ers and Cardinals in Arizona, Larry Fitzgerald once again added to his legend with yet another extraordinary overtime  touchdown in University of Phoenix Stadium.

Since this game lacked significance, I suspect most of today’s talk around the league will be regarding Panthers-Patriots, Raiders-Broncos and others, I think Fitzgerald should be mentioned.

On Twitter last week, one of my Northwestern colleagues stated Fitzgerald might be a top 5 wide receiver of all-time. He just might be.

If you combine his career stats with his virtually immaculate postseason play (which includes his 2008 postseason that led the Cardinals to Super Bowl XLIII), I don’t see why he wouldn’t belong in the Top 5. Sure, their are many others with resumes near Fitzgerald just from the last few decades. Guys such as Marvin Harrison, Calvin Johnson, Reggie Wayne, Terrell Owens and Andre Johnson. But with Antonio Brown, Julio Jones and Odell Beckham Jr. still many great years away from joining the conversation, it may be at least fair to say that Fitzgerald is up there with the very best of the last 20 years, in which high-volume passing became more prevalent.

I’d have him at No. 2 during that span, barely behind Randy Moss.

Brent and Dylan discuss this week’s upcoming games, including Carolina-New England, Pittsburgh-Baltimore and Oakland-Denver, among others. Then Dylan gives an update on Cumberland University Soccer (20:48).