Sky Sports' Neil Reynolds has the final word on Week Three in the NFL, picking out his five major takeaways, player of the week and more; join Neil and guests for a look back on the best of the weekend's action with the two-hour NFL Review show - every Tuesday from 9pm, Sky Sports NFL
Tuesday 27 September 2022 17:05, UK
It was a case of rinse and repeat in Week Three. There's incredible drama, incredible excitement every week in the NFL and we saw that again on Sunday. Just look at some of the teams that lost, some of the quarterbacks that lost - Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady - and it just goes to show you really can never predict what is going to happen...
I feel like there is something special being built in Miami, and it's more than just Xs and Os.
There is a real belief in head coach Mike McDaniel, and Tua Tagovailoa is coming alive at quarterback - and that is a story in itself because the Dolphins actually wanted Sean Payton as their coach and Tom Brady at QB ahead of the season. At the moment, I'd probably take Tua over Tom.
The way Miami won against the Buffalo Bills was so impressive. Their defense was on the field for 90 plays in extreme heat, and they stuck with it, digging deep.
They came from behind against the Baltimore Ravens to win, and now this. The way they have rallied the last couple of weeks, it proves to me that the Dolphins are a playoff-calibre team.
There were a few upsets in the NFL this week, with the Indianapolis Colts' win over the Kansas City Chiefs the big one.
The fact that Jonathan Taylor and Matt Ryan weren't really factors for much of that game, yet the Colts still won - and without Shaquille Leonard on defense - it just goes to show that you never know in the NFL.
It was a 'backs to the wall' game for Indianapolis, after going winless in their first two, and they played that way, fighting and scrapping their way to a welcome and much-needed victory.
They were also helped by a Chiefs team that made too many mistakes, particularly on offense, where Patrick Mahomes admitted they didn't get enough points - they missed on a field goal and an extra point, plus failed on a fake field goal attempt.
Lamar Jackson's contract situation with the Baltimore Ravens is just a fascinating storyline that is going to run all season.
The Ravens quarterback left $250 million on the table going into the year. He didn't want to sign that contract. And every week since, he has added a little bit more money on the deal that will no doubt come next year. He has been awesome!
He had 218 yards passing and four touchdown passes, to go with 107 rushing yards and a score in the win over the New England Patriots on Sunday.
Lamar is proving every week to the Ravens that he is their franchise going forward, he is their guy, and I think he is going to break the bank when the deal gets done.
Early in every NFL season, we tend to see some fraudulent records. You might see a team get to 2-0, 3-0, but it turns out they're not a good team.
That certainly can't be said about this 3-0 Eagles outfit. They are proving to be a very good, well-rounded team. Interestingly, last year they tended to be a really good running team, but they don't concentrate on that as much as they have done in the past - they only had 72 rushing yards in the win over the Washington Commanders.
Jalen Hurts is the real deal now at quarterback. He had 340 yards and three touchdowns - making him the only QB to have a minimum of 300 passing yards, 50 rushing yards and 100-plus passer rating in each of his first three games of a season.
Hurts is a legitimate, high-level QB and is going to be hugely beneficial for an Eagles team that is going to be a real contender.
It wasn't perhaps the classic we all hoped it would be between Brady and Aaron Rodgers, but Brady and the Bucs really had the chance to tie this game up and send it into overtime.
Fourteen seconds left: it was such an inexcusable mistake to see the play clock run out on their two-point conversion attempt. I don't know whether the play went in from the sideline too slow, or if Brady communicated it too slowly, but everything just took too long.
It is unforgivable in that situation as it moved the play from the two-yard line back to the seven, Brady throws incomplete and the Green Bay Packers win.
I don't know who the blame lies with, but that stuff should really be ironed out by Week Three of the season. That was a really bad way for the game to end for them.
What else is there to say?
He can still run clear of defenders - still the biggest rushing threat on the field for the Ravens - but he is also a much more accomplished passer this year. He has been decisive and he is delivering the ball accurately.
I must give a nod to Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle and Tua for a quarter of their Week Two game against Miami, but otherwise Lamar has been the best player on the field for every minute of Baltimore's games this season.
This isn't a touchdown, although there were a lot of great touchdown catches and big plays in the NFL this week.
But this play from the Dolphins, third-and-22, with the game on the line against the Bills, Tua just threw a 45-yard strike right down the middle of the defense to Waddle to set up a touchdown.
It's similar to what they did with the game on the line against Baltimore; they just started winging it. That comes from the coach, McDaniel breeds so much confidence to his players.
I think he is doing an amazing job with the Jacksonville Jaguars. It's amazing what can be accomplished with some better talent around quarterback Trevor Lawrence and with a grown-up leading them on the sidelines.
The Jags went into Los Angeles and absolutely hammered the Chargers, albeit with their own star QB Justin Herbert a bit banged up.
Jacksonville look good for their 2-1 record at the moment. And I know just how much Pederson has worked on the team's culture in the offseason - I know what he stands for, what he expects of his players and how he carries himself - and it is resonating through that franchise and reflecting on his quarterback for sure.
In the AFC South, eight or nine wins could be enough to sneak into the playoffs, so they'll definitely be in the mix, Jacksonville.
This is why players don't like Thursday Night Football. As this could be a complete non-event as Miami travel to Cincinnati to face the Bengals on a short week.
The last thing the Dolphins needed after their epic against Buffalo on Sunday, playing in those scorching conditions, was to have Thursday Night Football immediately off the back of it.
I think it will be very tough for Miami to win that game and I don't expect them to because of what they went through on Sunday but, if they do, you can certainly count me a believer.
Join Neil Reynolds and guests for their two-hour NFL Review show looking back on the best of the weekend's action - every Tuesday from 9pm on Sky Sports NFL.
