Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Ryan and Tom Brady feature in the latest Pick Six
Wednesday 28 October 2015 17:38, UK
Neil Reynolds analyses six NFL talking points from Sunday, including Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Ryan and Tom Brady.
One of these Sundays the NFL is going to fail to serve up tasty headlines, dramatic results and outstanding individual performances. I'm just not sure that Sunday is coming any time soon.
It was another wild and dramatic weekend of NFL action, so here are the major talking points that we'll be discussing over our coffee-filled Monday!
Costly win for the Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers moved to 2-1 on the season with a hard-fought 12-6 win against the St Louis Rams. But at what cost? Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is gone for 4-6 weeks with a knee injury that could have been a lot worse.
The Steelers did not like what they saw from young reserve Landry Jones in the preseason so they moved for veteran cover in Michael Vick. But what will he bring to the table as a starter? Vick admitted he was not ready when called into action for the Jets last season. So Steelers fans will have to hope he is more professional about his craft this year. I have my doubts.
There is going to be a massive drop-off from Roethlisberger to Vick, but the Steelers have enough talent around him to survive in the form of running back LeVeon Bell, wide receiver Antonio Brown and tight end Heath Miller. The loss of Big Ben could affect their chances of winning the AFC North given the fast start made by the very healthy Cincinnati Bengals, but they should be able to stay alive in the playoff race.
If they cannot generate points, these Steelers cannot always rely on their defence to bail them out. Watch this space.
Falcons impress again
The Atlanta Falcons are 3-0 on the season and Dan Quinn remains undefeated as an NFL head coach. I'll get onto some of the individual performances in a moment but what has been notable about these Falcons this year is their mental toughness.
They had to grind out a tough one against Philadelphia in Week 1, come from 10 points down to beat the Giants in Week 2 and overcome a 28-14 deficit to top the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night. There is some mental steel to this team now with Quinn at the helm.
Matt Ryan is still a top-tier quarterback when properly protected, Devonta Freeman is pounding away at defences in impressive fashion and Julio Jones is basically unstoppable at the moment. There is a lot to like with the Falcons after three weeks, but most impressive to me has been their attitude.
Problems in Miami
It's hard not to be worried about the Miami Dolphins following their lacklustre showing in Sunday's home opener against the Buffalo Bills. The Dolphins stunk and worse than that, looked like they didn't care that they stunk as they fell to a 41-14 defeat in front of their own fans.
The Dolphins cannot establish the run, they have trouble protecting their quarterback and they have very little in the passing game outside of the ever-reliable Jarvis Landry. On defence, the high-priced pass rush is non-existent and they cannot cover in the secondary.
Performances such as this one will only serve to add even more pressure to head coach Joe Philbin and his hot seat that is warming by the day. The Dolphins are talented enough to turn their slow start around, but it has to begin with them looking like they actually give a monkeys!
Brady rolls on
The New England Patriots are intent on sticking it to the rest of the league - that much is crystal clear now after their 51-17 mauling of the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. We should be careful of crowning teams after three weeks, but here are your red-hot Super Bowl favourites.
The Patriots scored on their first nine possessions on Sunday before taking knees to end the game on their only march that didn't end with points. Tom Brady is in the form of his life following an off-season in which he believes his name was dragged through the mud for no good reason in the 'Deflategate' scandal.
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I don't believe we should all be feeling sorry for Brady, but I cannot help but admire the way he goes about his business on Sundays. He threw the 400th touchdown pass of his illustrious career over the weekend and remains at the very top of the game.
Brady and Belichick are almost machine-like in their hunger for success. They don't look like a pair who have already cemented their legacy with four Super Bowl wins together. They're going for No 5 with a frenzy that has them singled out as the class of the league through the first three weeks of the new campaign.
Raider Revival
The Raider Nation is rejoicing this morning after the Silver and Black improved to 2-1 on the season with a 27-20 win over the Cleveland Browns.
I'm not about to proclaim that the Oakland Raiders are back, but they have responded well to new head coach Jack Del Rio and they have bounced back from a terrible opening day loss to Cincinnati.
What is most encouraging about these Raiders is that they can build around some exciting young talent for many years to come. Quarterback Derek Carr, running back Latavius Murray and wide receiver Amari Cooper all had big days in Cleveland and Khalil Mack recorded two sacks on defence.
For the first time in many years, the future looks a shade or two brighter in Oakland. They're not all the way back, but they're moving in the right direction.
One man offense?
We talked quite a bit on Sunday about whether the Carolina Panthers were a one-man attack relying too heavily on star quarterback Cam Newton. We saw in Sunday's 27-22 win over New Orleans that these Panthers - who are short on offensive playmakers - are actually a two-man offense!
Cam was sensational as a dual threat. He looked decisive and in command as a passer as he threw for 315 yards and two touchdowns. But how he really befuddles defences is when he becomes a threat to run or pass on any given play. He added 33 rushing yards and a touchdown on Sunday.
But he didn't need to do it all by himself. Newton was ably assisted by Pro Bowl tight end Greg Olsen, who caught eight passes for 134 yards and two scores. Olsen is at the top of his game right now and that's good news for the undefeated Panthers.
Watch the Baltimore Ravens at the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1.25am this Friday, live on Sky Sports 1.
