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Week 4 of the NFL will (hopefully) lead to an increase in football analysis and a decrease in extreme knee-jerking.
“The Broncos offense is trash.”
“Wait, the Broncos offense is amazing!”
“Aaron Rogers isn’t the same QB he used to be.”
“Look at how amazing Rogers is!”
“The Patriots are unbeatable.”
Blank team/player/coach is ... (enter your own very strong adverb and bonus points for giving them a nickname).
The NFL is a week-to-week league. Each week is extremely important, but teams, coaches, players, etc. are all going to have bad games due to challenging match-ups, sickness, bad luck or just not doing their jobs very well that day. I
f the Patriots or Broncos lose next week, this is likely not a sign of impending doom. If Trevor Siemian, Carson Wentz, Dak Prescott or Brock Osweiler throw seven touchdowns their next games, they could realistically follow that up with a game full of multiple interceptions. That’s the NFL.
There is still a lot to be discovered about all 32 NFL teams. Well, maybe not the Browns and the Bears - yikes. But the NFL is a fun roller coaster whether you enjoy the ups and downs or just like watching from the sidelines.
Here are the Week 4 power rankings from around the web.
ESPN: (1) last week 5
QB Trevor Siemian is getting better by the week and that could be a scary thing for the rest of the NFL. The reigning champs still have a top defense and plenty of skill on offense. The Broncos head east to face the turnover-prone Bucs in Week 4.
Top 5: 1. Broncos 2. Patriots 3. Seahawks 4. Vikings 5. Cardinals
NFL.com: (2) last week 3
Trevor Siemian -- take a bow, man. No team has impressed your hack writer more than the Broncos, particularly when it comes to the play they've gotten from this 2015 seventh-round pick. Like everyone else, I expected the defense to be phenomenal. (Minnesota, you've got a phenomenal unit, but I'm not taking the hot-take bait. Denver's D is still tops in this league.) On Sunday, Siemian was a THE factor in the win. The bombs to Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas made the highlight reels -- but to be honest, those were better plays (adjustments) by the receivers. I was more impressed by all of the small tasks Siemian performed throughout the day -- the kind of stuff that typically gets overlooked, but leads to wins. That said, 23 of 35 for 312 yards and four TDs is cherry.
Top 5: 1. Patriots 2. Broncos 3. Vikings 4. Packers 5. Seahawks
MHR: (1a) last week 1
All the reigning Super Bowl champions did through the first three weeks is take care of business with a Carolina team bent on revenge, a threatening Colts team led by Andrew Luck and a Bengals team that won of the AFC North in 2015. That’s all.
Top 5: 1a. Broncos 1b. Patriots 3. Eagles 4. Vikings 5. Steelers
SB Nation: (1) last week 1
The Broncos' defense is a nightmare to deal with, and C.J. Anderson is leading a more than competent rushing attack, so the last thing the rest of the NFL needs is a Denver quarterback capable of burning secondaries deep.
Top 5: 1. Broncos 2. Patriots 3. Vikings 4. Seahawks 5. Eagles
CBS Sports: (2) last week 2
If Trevor Siemian can play like he did at Cincinnati this team will be tough to beat. He might not be sitting down for a while.
Top 5: 1. Patriots 2. Broncos 3. Vikings 4. Packers 5. Eagles
Fox Sports: (2) last week 3
Trevor Siemian had the game of his life on Sunday – and that goes back to his college days. Siemian lit up the Bengals defense with 312 yards and four touchdowns as the Broncos moved to 3-0. The defense has shut down each and every offense it’s come across dating back to last season, and Siemian’s play has been better than that of Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler in 2015.
Top 5: 1. Patriots 2. Broncos 3. Vikings 4. Packers 5. Eagles
MMQB Fine Fifteen: (2) last week 5
Keep throwing shade, John Elway. Your bargain QB passed for 312 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs.
Top 5: 1. Patriots 2. Broncos 3. Vikings 4. Packers 5. Ravens