Here at the Power Rankings, we feel very confident about the order of the first two teams. Things get a little tricky after that.
Through four weeks, the Patriots and Chiefs feel like the class of the NFL. But who else should we believe in? The Saints move into the top three on the strength of a pair of great performances without Drew Brees. The Cowboys should be fine despite their Superdome speedbump. But after that? This job is hard.
Let's do our best to sort this mess out.
NOTE: The previous rankings referenced in the lineup below are from the
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罢丑别听' defense聽聽Sunday, forcing four turnovers in a tough road matchup against an equally game聽聽defense. When the revitalized聽**聽out of the air for the game-clinching interception, it finished a day of covering for New England's slumping offense. Here's a great stat聽: The Pats have had 22 possessions since taking a 20-0 lead over the聽**聽-- only four of those drives have gone longer than five plays. Brady looked utterly lost in Buffalo, finishing with 3.8 yards per attempt -- in the dreaded Gabbert Zone for 国产探花quarterbacks. When Bill Belichick settled for a 23-yard field goal with the Pats up 13-10 and sitting at the聽' 4-yard line late in the third quarter, was it a show of faith in his defense or a signal of doubt in his Brady-led attack? Probably both.
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So much for a dome environment聽听蹿辞谤听. The reigning MVP threw for 315 yards, but finished without a touchdown pass聽聽at Ford Field -- ending a 14-game streak in which he'd thrown at least two TD strikes per game, one short of the 国产探花record. Still, Mahomes made magic when it mattered most for the undefeated聽. Down 30-27 and facing a fourth-and-8 with less than two minutes to play,聽聽to move the chains.聽聽would cap a 13-play, 79-yard drive with聽聽Meanwhile, the decision by聽听肠辞谤苍别谤听聽to scoop up a loose football at his own goal line and run it back 100 yards the other way聽聽will serve as a teaching tool for offensive and defensive coaches going forward. (聽The lesson? Play through the damn whistle!) A 14-point swing in a game ultimately decided by four points.
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It's not just that the聽聽are now 2-0 with聽**聽It's who they've beaten -- the聽**聽and the聽**聽-- and the manner in which they've done it. These have been team-wide efforts illuminating just how deep and well-coached this group is. You'd have to think these are two of the most rewarding regular-season wins of Sean Payton's illustrious run in New Orleans. On Sunday, the聽' defense forced three turnovers and held a talented聽聽attack to just 257 yards in a 12-10 win. It was the rarest of outcomes for New Orleans, which won for the first time in the Payton era without scoring a touchdown. It would help if Brees' fill-in at QB,聽, gave the team a little more -- he's been more down than up so far -- but the聽聽are showing they don't need a star under center to stack wins. How many teams can claim that?
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Time to tap the brakes on the Kellen Moore聽聽induction. 罢丑别听' first-year offensive coordinator received plenty of praise during the team's 3-0 start, but his attack came down to Earth in Sunday's聽聽The Big Three told the story of the evening's struggles: quarterback聽聽failed to throw a touchdown pass, running back聽聽averaged 1.9 yards per carry and lost a fumble and receiver聽聽was blanketed by New Orleans coverage ace聽. To make matters worse, the聽听濒辞蝉迟听**聽on the first play of their fruitless final possession. Tough night, but Dallas remains in good shape and should still be regarded as an NFC favorite ... even if the聽聽planted a seed of doubt at the Superdome.
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What an incredible display by the聽' defense, which absolutely suffocated a talented聽聽offense in聽聽at Soldier Field. Chicago was in complete control of the line of scrimmage and lived in the Minnesota backfield, making life hell for an overwhelmed聽, who was sacked six times. Most impressive? 罢丑别听聽dominated their division rival on a day when they were missing five starters and lost their quarterback on the first drive of the game. Mitch Trubisky suffered a left shoulder injury and聽聽for this Sunday's game against the聽聽in London. Backup聽聽was an ideal hold-the-fort guy against the Vikings; the question is whether the veteran would be able to remain at that level over an extended stretch. 罢丑别听聽are talented enough that they don't need superstar play at quarterback to win. Trubisky or Daniel just needs to make enough plays ... then get out of the way.
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罢丑别听聽produced a tremendous team effort on Thursday night at Lambeau Field. Facing an undefeated聽聽team, on the road, on a short week, with several key players still sidelined, coach Doug Pederson received huge efforts from both sides of the ball in聽. The defense stepped up with two goal-line stands in the fourth quarter, and the running game gave the offense much-needed balance on the way to 176 yards.聽聽threw for just 160 yards, but he finished with three touchdowns and avoided the big mistake. Green Bay quarterback聽聽couldn't say the same thing after his forced end-zone pass in the final minute led to聽听产测听. Now 2-2, the聽聽get nine days to recover and prep before the winless聽*come to town.*聽Order has been restored.
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罢丑别听聽were assigned the unwelcome and entirely too early Week 4 bye, but at least they get to revel in the glory of a 3-0 start for another week. Two major areas of progress for the Niners, who are already just one win away from matching their total from last year: 1) They are making impact plays on defense that weren't happening a year ago. San Francisco has forced seven turnovers in three games, matching their total for the entire 2018 season. 2) The running game has been excellent.聽聽(226 yards, 5.5 YPC) and聽聽(202 yards, 5.9 YPC) lead a rushing attack that entered Week 4 ranked fourth in the NFL. Quarterback聽, meanwhile, has shown incremental progress as he works his way back from ACL surgery, and the Niners have done well not to put too much on his shoulders in the early going.
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You can imagine Sean McVay waking up Monday morning聽聽and thinking to himself,聽How the hell did that happen?聽罢丑别听聽were heavy favorites in their own building facing a thought-to-be-middling Bucs team ... and somehow, L.A. ended up on the wrong end of a聽聽There were many culprits.聽聽had four turnovers (despite 500 yards passing). 罢丑别听' pass rush disappeared after two early sacks. The secondary allowed聽聽to pile up 12 catches for 172 yards. The running game remained an afterthought. Said聽聽after five rushes for 16 yards:聽聽Lastly, the offensive line continues to play below expectations. 罢丑别听' hopes for a late rally were extinguished when聽聽blew past veteran right tackle聽**听飞颈迟丑听聽returning the ball for a touchdown. A grim performance all the way around.
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The big takeaway from Thursday was that聽聽because they failed in the red zone. The irony of this failure was that it occurred in the most productive game of the season for聽聽and the offense. Green Bay ran eight plays over two possessions inside the聽' 10-yard line in the fourth quarter and came away with zero points in the 34-27 loss. Four of those plays began on Philly's 1-yard line. Coach Matt LaFleur stood by his decision to hand the ball off just once in those eight plays, but the lack of trust in the running game was apparent and costly. Also costly:聽听蝉耻蹿蹿别谤别诲听聽that kept him out of the final possession and could cost the star wideout more time. Are聽听补苍诲听聽ready to assume bigger roles if Adams is compromised? The offense's functionality might ride on it.
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听蹿辞谤听聽was motivated by the need to import a defensive playmaker. On Sunday against the聽, Clowney snagged a floating聽聽pass with his left hand and looked more like聽聽than a linebacker as聽聽for a pick-six -- the first interception of his 国产探花career. Clowney's big play set the tone for an easy, drama-free聽聽in the desert. It's exactly the type of game the聽聽hoped for, with the divisional rival聽聽up next聽on "Thursday Night Football."聽Clowney's re-emergence after a couple of quiet weeks was nice; also nice was running back聽聽finishing with 145 combined yards on 26 touches and, perhaps most importantly, no fumbles. Carson had put the ball on the ground three times entering Sunday.
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听产测听Josh Allen, and not because he exited in the second half with a head injury. Allen had shown undeniable growth as a quarterback during the聽' 3-0 start, but the 2018 first-round pick wasn't quite up for the moment against a powerhouse聽聽defense. In the聽聽Allen threw three interceptions, missed open receivers and generally looked a lot like the Bad聽Josh Allen听迟丑补迟听聽fans hoped had been left behind last year. It's a shame, too, because Buffalo's defense showed (again) that it is one of the very best units in football. Ask聽, who looked completely out of sorts in leading the Pats offense to 224 yards of total offense.聽听蝉补蹿别迟测听听辞苍听**聽did that to 12 (Brady), we wouldn't have been in that game anymore. There's no way."
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聽is back after聽聽but there's no way聽聽can lose significant snaps as a result. Right? Ekeler was a standout once again on Sunday, accounting for 122 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns in聽聽over the聽. That's the type of production Gordon has been known for during his time with the Bolts, but there's something to be said for riding the hot hand. It's obviously a very good problem for the聽聽to have ... and it makes you wonder if Los Angeles will be aggressive in trying to move Gordon ahead of the Oct. 29 trade deadline. Quote Of The Week comes from聽, who won for the first time in his career in Miami: "I hadn't played worth a hoot here the last two times -- in 2013 and 2014. It was rough days for us, so it was good to win."
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罢丑别听聽were forced to settle for聽聽on Sunday when it could have been so much more. Matt Patricia's team had a three-point lead with less than two minutes to play when聽**聽on fourth-and-8 to keep the聽聽alive. Kansas City would finish off the drive with a touchdown, marking the last of five lead changes in the second half. Final possession aside, the聽' defense did a great job all afternoon of putting pressure on Mahomes, who was held without a touchdown pass for only the fourth time in his career (including playoffs).聽Kerryon Johnson聽ran for 125 yards and聽聽threw for nearly 300 yards with three touchdowns, with two of聽**聽... and it still wasn't enough. A tough loss to swallow, but Detroit showed it can hang with anybody on a good day.
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狈辞飞听those聽were the聽聽we've all been expecting this season. Cleveland piled up 530 yards and 40 points聽聽and now suddenly finds itself聽聽at the season's quarter point.聽Baker Mayfield聽got back on track after a week of outside criticism, but the real star on Sunday was running back聽Nick Chubb, who went off for 165 rushing yards and three touchdowns, including聽聽in the fourth quarter. We got both sides of Chubb's game in this one: He wasn't touched on his 88-yard score, showing eye-popping burst.聽聽a 14-yard run, he ran through three would-be tacklers. 罢丑别听' defense also deserves credit. Coordinator Steve Wilks' unit kept Baltimore QB聽聽in check, even without the services of injured starting cornerbacks聽Denzel Ward听补苍诲听. This is a dangerous team.
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聽was undoubtedly a tough watch in the film room for Bill O'Brien and the聽. From聽's missed home-run balls to聽听补苍诲听, to Hopkins' doomed red-zone pass that went for聽, to O'Brien's strange decision to challenge an obvious聽聽in the fourth quarter (costing Houston a valuable timeout in the process), the聽聽let a winnable game slip away. The offensive line also struggled, allowing Watson to absorb six sacks and 10 quarterback hits. This came after the oft-maligned unit performed extremely well in聽聽last week. The loss sends the AFC South into a dogfight, with four teams tied at 2-2. 罢丑别听聽are the most talented team of the bunch, but consistency has been a problem in the season's first quarter.
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罢丑别听聽have reached a crisis point with their defense. Who thought that day would ever come? Baltimore's beleaguered D surrendered 500-plus yards of offense to an opponent for the second straight week, and it cost the聽聽sole possession of first place in the AFC North as a result. A front seven that was raided in free agency remains a particular concern. In Sunday's聽**听辩耻补谤迟别谤产补肠办听Baker Mayfield聽was hit just once in 31 dropbacks, and聽Nick Chubb聽rushed for 165 yards and three touchdowns. The defensive struggles ramp up the pressure on聽, who in the last two weeks has not looked like the world-beater we saw against the聽听补苍诲听**聽Jackson struggled with accuracy in聽聽to the聽. This week, Jackson was unable to push the ball down the field against a Cleveland defense playing without two starting cornerbacks. All in all, a lost week.
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It's a good thing聽聽is built like a He-Man figure -- the聽聽are using their star running back like he's an indestructible children's toy. McCaffrey finished with 37 touches for 179 total yards and a touchdown in Carolina's聽聽over the聽聽on Sunday. As my colleague Gregg Rosenthal聽, McCaffrey is on pace for 444 touches this season. That would rank聽聽among running backs, and it would be the most since DeMarco Murray had 449 touches for the聽聽in 2014. (It should be noted Murray was never the same player after that season.) With second-year pro聽聽set to remain the starting quarterback in place of the injured聽聽for next week聽聽offensive coordinator Norv Turner is unlikely to tap the brakes on McCaffrey's usage. But that doesn't mean he shouldn't.
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Do you believe in Minshew Magic? For the second consecutive week, the聽' backup quarterback got off to a slow start, and for the second consecutive week,聽聽II closed strong in聽聽Minshew is so incredibly calm in the pocket, an enviable trait on display聽**聽Minshew didn't beat the聽聽alone, however.聽, who's been excellent since joining the Jags in 2017, went 4 for 4, including聽听补苍诲听, much-maligned for most of his Jags career, piled up a career-best 225 rushing yards, with much of that damage being done in the second half. When聽聽was injured in Week 1, it looked like the Jags would be done with relevant football by Halloween. Instead, Jacksonville looks like a very real contender in the tight AFC South.聽, Jalen!
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Very close to a bury-the-ball game in Chicago on Sunday. 罢丑别听聽went to Soldier Field expecting to go toe-to-toe with the defending division champion and instead got beat down for four quarters in聽**聽didn't have time to think behind a line that played turnstile to a swarming Chicago front seven, and聽聽was treated to three hours of running into a wall of聽聽罢丑别听聽had 59 total yards of offense in the first half. After the game,聽聽if Minnesota might have strayed too far from the pass-happy offensive philosophy of a year ago (you could also read his comments as indirect criticism of his quarterback). Either way, the聽聽got their butts whooped, and they have a lot of work to do to get to the聽' level.
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Sunday is a reminder of why you don't assume anything in the NFL. On paper, the visiting聽聽looked like a lay-up for a solid (if banged-up)聽聽team, but聽聽The Indy defense, playing without All-Pro linebacker聽Darius Leonard聽(concussion) and safety聽聽(knee) allowed 188 yards on the ground and permitted the slumping Oakland offense to score three touchdowns in its first four possessions. Things weren't a lot better on the other side of the ball.聽聽had three ugly drops, while聽听迟丑谤别飞听聽and struggled to move the offense until the聽聽were playing catch-up in the fourth quarter. Brissett clearly missed wide receiver/safety blanket聽, whose calf injury kept him in street clothes. 罢丑别听聽will need Hilton healthy and productive to keep pace with the聽聽in Arrowhead聽this Sunday night.
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聽wants you to believe in him. He needs you, dear football fan, to give him another chance. And in the past two weeks, the former first overall pick is playing like the franchise quarterback the聽聽always hoped he would be. Winston threw for 385 yards and four touchdowns on Sunday, leading a pile-driving Bucs offense to聽聽over the previously undefeated聽. A 50-burger? For Tampa Bay? In Los Angeles? Yes, it was one of the wildest outcomes of the young season. It also showed commendable resolve by the Bucs, who the previous Sunday suffered聽聽in which they blew an 18-point lead against the聽. This time, the Bucs fought off a charging opponent --聽the charging defending conference champions聽-- and made you think they could hold their own in the NFC playoff race as a result. This is why Bruce Arians came back.
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罢丑别听聽are in that #TitansCycle.聽听迟丑别苍听听迟丑别苍听听迟丑别苍听聽It's quite the party trick, honestly. On Sunday in Atlanta, Mike Vrabel's team looked like world-beaters.聽聽threw three touchdown passes and, for the fourth straight game, avoided a turnover. Mariota (zero sacks) got great protection up front, as did running back聽, who reached 100 yards on the day. Tennessee even got a big performance from rookie wideout聽, who was targeted three times and finished with three catches for 94 yards and two scores. They should probably throw to that kid more. Add in a rock-solid showing by the defense and special teams, and you have yourself the type of game that coaches dream about. Now, the big question: Was this the real聽? I don't want to spoil it for you, so tune in next week.
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罢丑别听聽are back in the hope business. Rookie QB聽聽improved to 2-0 as a starter, running back聽聽notched two scores (聽*) in place of聽*Saquon Barkley聽and New York's previously putrid defense even had its way against聽聽and the moribund聽**聽at MetLife Stadium. The past two weeks have been a breath of fresh air for the聽, who seemed to feel weighed down by the聽聽saga and the internal pressure of how to properly move on from a franchise legend. Eli, as one would expect, has been a good soldier since his demotion, and Jones has brought energy to the Big Blue attack. Up next is聽a home date against the Vikings,聽a playoff hopeful dealing with its own internal drama right now. Could Big Blue wake up next Monday in a first-place tie in the NFC East? Not impossible!
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罢丑别听' offense emerged from a prolonged slumber, surprising more than the聽听颈苍听聽at Lucas Oil Stadium. Oakland had managed just two scoring drives in its previous 18 possessions, but聽聽led the offense on three touchdown drives in the聽' first four possessions on Sunday, building a lead the team never relinquished. The offense made progress, but the real hero of the day was safety聽, a CFL castoff who clinched the win with聽聽with 2:09 to play. All wins are beautiful things, but this victory was especially important for the聽, now 2-2 and in the midst of a 47-day run of game action away from Oakland. 罢丑别听聽will finish that road trip, and the rest of the schedule, without linebacker聽, who was聽聽for his helmet-to-helmet hit on tight end聽.
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On paper, Sunday looked like a classic "get right" game for the聽, who welcomed the struggling聽聽into their building. Instead, Atlanta was outclassed in all phases of the game聽聽罢丑别听, now 1-3, must make immediate improvements to alter the course of a season that is slipping away. If they don't, it's fair to wonder if coach Dan Quinn is in serious danger of an in-season dismissal. Atlanta struggled through a frustrating 7-9 season a year ago that led Quinn to聽聽with each of his coordinators. Quinn's defense has taken an obvious step back since he took over play-calling however, and Dirk Koetter has fared no better than Steve Sarkisian, the oft-maligned offensive coordinator he replaced. If the聽聽continue down their current path, Quinn won't get the opportunity to shuffle the deck again.
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罢丑别听聽might not be a title contender with聽聽sidelined, but that doesn't mean they'll be a punching bag in the AFC. Pittsburgh made that clear in聽a dominant showing against the Bengals聽on Monday night.聽Mason Rudolph聽didn't light up defenses like聽, but he made good decisions on a 24-for-28 day.聽聽(125 total yards, TD) snapped out of an early-season funk and the聽' defense beat up on聽, who was sacked eight times and averaged just 4.6 yards per attempt in an A.J. Green-less world. Write off Pittsburgh if you wish, but Mike Tomlin's team is just one game out of first place in the AFC North with 12 games to play. 罢丑别听聽are alive and well.
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Maybe Marvin Lewis wasn't the problem after all. 罢丑别听听飞别谤别听spanked by the previously winless Steelers聽on Monday night, falling to 0-4 in the process. It's one thing to get lit up by a future Hall of Famer in聽, but soul-searching is in order for Cincinnati after the聽' defense allowed聽Mason Rudolph聽to complete 24 of 28 passes with two touchdowns in an easy win. Angry聽聽fans will find an easy scapegoat in聽, but this team has issues that go far beyond the quarterback. The NFL's Glowing Ginger Man can still light up the NFL, but he can't do it alone.
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Vic Fangio's debut season as head coach has descended into聽聽nightmare status. For the second time this season,聽聽on a last-second field goal, falling to 0-4 in the process. The news somehow got worse on Monday morning. The team announced linebacker聽聽-- the No. 5 overall pick in the 2018 draft --聽聽after suffering a partially torn ACL against the聽. Despite a slow start in September, Chubb is a major difference-maker who was expected to take a huge leap in his second season. Instead, it's another setback for a Denver defense that didn't have a sack before Sunday and聽聽against the聽, including 14 in the second half. All those whiffs helped Jags running back聽聽(225 yards) to a career day. "They were pushing us around,"聽. Dark days in Denver.
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So far, no good for the聽' hypothetically explosive offense.聽聽and Co. never got it going on Sunday聽聽managing just one touchdown drive in 10 possessions in a 27-10 loss. The final score would look a little more respectable if聽聽hadn't missed two first-half field-goal tries, but Kliff Kingsbury has a lot of work to do. 罢丑别听聽are averaging just 18.5 points per game during their 0-3-1 start -- it's simply not enough output in support of a talent-poor Arizona defense in the midst of a total rebuild. At least Arizona still has running back聽, who accumulated 139 yards of offense (including 99 yards receiving) and generally is moving with the fluidity of his best days when the聽聽can get him the ball in space. The man needs help.
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The only thing that matters for the聽聽right now is getting聽聽back on the field. At 0-3, the idea of a playoff run has been reduced to a pipe dream, so 2019 becomes a season more about player and scheme development rather than success from a win-loss perspective. Darnold has made聽聽in recovery since his stunning mono diagnosis took him out of the equation going into Week 2, and the quarterback could be on the field聽when the Jets play the Eagles聽on Sunday.聽聽the early symptoms of the illness had weakened him in his聽聽against the聽, so in a way, we're still waiting to see what Adam Gase's offense is supposed to look like. The coach has received heavy criticism for the聽' offensive struggles, but real judgment should only begin once Darnold is healthy and back behind center. 罢丑别听聽hope that day is near.
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奥颈迟丑听聽unable to move the聽聽on offense, one could imagine coach Jay Gruden felt he had no choice but聽聽into the lineup during聽聽to the聽. Gruden was looking for a spark -- in that game,聽in this season聽-- but unfortunately, Haskins (three interceptions) was not up to the challenge at the Meadowlands. Should we expect better results for the undercooked first-round pick聽against the Patriots' gnarly defense?聽Not bloody likely. On Monday,聽听蹿辞谤听聽or Keenum to make the start under center against New England, a decision that's probably best for all parties involved. 罢丑别听聽will be trying to win that game, but they'll probably settle for not getting embarrassed. Yep, the bar has been lowered in D.C.
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Here at the bottom of the Power Rankings, we'll continue to focus on incremental gains for football's worst team. 罢丑别听聽held a lead for the first time this season聽聽on Sunday. It only lasted聽聽... but it was a lead nonetheless! Otherwise, things remain as grim as can be. 罢丑别听聽have been outscored 163-26 during their 0-4 start. Most damning, they have been outscored 81-0 in the second half. That is not a typo. It'd be easy to look at that last figure and put it on rookie head coach Brian Flores and his seeming inability to, I dunno,聽formulate a successful scheme recalibration聽at halftime, but who are we kidding here? Flores is in the worst situation imaginable, coaching a locker room filled with players who know they probably aren't part of the franchise's long-term plans. The money is guaranteed, coach ... do your best.
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