Week 3 left a few NFL teams with real reasons to worry, and not the kind that disappear after a quick Sunday bounce-back. Injuries, shaky execution, bad offense, and defensive breakdowns are all piling up for clubs that came into the year with expectations. The season is young, but after what happened this weekend, the margin for error is getting thin fast.
The Los Angeles Chargers are back on the concern list for a second straight week, and the loss in Buffalo only deepened the unease. A 10-0 lead after the first quarter should have put them in control, especially with Josh Allen and the Bills coughing up five turnovers. Instead, the game slipped away in ugly fashion.
That’s the part that stands out: how do you win the turnover battle 5-1, jump out to a 10-point edge, and still get blown out? Justin Herbert has looked lost at times, the ground game has barely existed through three weeks, and the offense has produced just 44 points in that span. Mike McDaniel was supposed to turn this group into an offensive juggernaut, but the results have been nowhere close.
Buffalo’s defense had not exactly been shutting teams down either, giving up 31 points in each of its first two games to the Texans and Lions. So when the Chargers managed only one touchdown and three field goals, that was a glaring red flag. Even that touchdown came with help, after James Cook fumbled on his first carry and gave Los Angeles the ball in Bills territory.
The end of the game only made the mess look worse. With the Chargers trailing 17-13 and just over five minutes left, they faced a 3rd and 10 from their own 45.
Quenten Johnston dropped a catch beyond the sticks, and then the offense stayed on the field amid confusion. The next rushed snap produced an incomplete pass, and suddenly Josh Allen had the ball 45 yards from the end zone.
Buffalo finished the job and pushed the lead to 24-13 with just under two minutes left. Maybe punting would have changed the outcome, maybe not.
Either way, the bigger point is impossible to miss: after three games, this isn’t working. Mike McDaniels isn’t working, and the noise around him is only going to grow.
The Green Bay Packers have their own set of problems, and they don’t look small. Through three games, the offense has not clicked, and the team should probably be grateful it escaped Week 2 with a win over the Jets. If the offensive line doesn’t improve, the problems are going to keep snowballing.
The run game has struggled, but that’s only part of the issue. Jordan Love has been operating under heavy pressure, with Green Bay allowing one of the league’s worst pressure rates on pass plays. That issue goes beyond simply missing Josh Jacobs.
The defense hasn’t been much better. On Thursday night, the Packers looked disorganized while Bijan Robinson and Drake London carved them up. The hope is that Micah Parsons returning in a couple of weeks will help steady things, but right now the defense is not holding up its end.
And yes, the online chatter has already started. The “Fire LaFleur” noise is out there, and a win over the struggling Bucs next weekend would at least quiet it for a bit.
Tampa Bay is in the worst spot of the three. The Buccaneers have opened with three straight losses, and now Baker Mayfield is dealing with a thumb injury on his throwing hand. Losing to the Vikings without Justin Jefferson for most of Sunday’s game only made the situation look more bleak.
Mayfield’s injury came late, but he can’t escape responsibility for the loss itself. He had already been through more than three quarters with a healthy right thumb and still completed only 50% of his passes, finishing with a touchdown and an interception.
The run game didn’t offer much help either. Bucky Irvin found little room, Kenneth Gainwell found even less, and Gainwell ended with negative rushing yardage.
Right now, the whole operation looks broken. If Mayfield misses significant time, draft prep for next year might as well begin in Tampa. There are two small comforts for Buccaneers fans: the NFC South is bunched up, with a three-way tie for first place just a game ahead of Tampa at 1-2, and next week brings the Packers in a “Battle of the Bays” that probably deserves a harsher nickname at this point: “The Bay of Pigs Bowl.”
In Other News...
Justin Herbert Took A Brutal National TV Shot In Chargers Loss
Justin Herberts rough night against Buffalo got even louder in the fourth quarter, when a mistake in a big spot turned into national-TV criticism from one of the most recognizable voices in football. In the Chargers Week 3 loss, Herberts interception was picked off by Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and quickly helped set up the kind of response drive that can swing a game, with Buffalo finishing off a 24-16 win.
Tom Brady, working the FOX booth with Kevin Burkhardt, did not soften the moment as it unfolded. For Herbert and the Chargers, it was the sort of sequence that can linger beyond the box score, especially when the turnover comes late enough to change the entire feel of the game and leaves the team trying to explain another missed chance against a quality opponent. [Read more 🡒]
Tom Brady Took A Brutal Public Shot At Justin Herbert
During the Chargers' matchup with the Bills, Justin Herbert ran into one of those nationally televised moments that gets replayed long after the snap itself. A pass intended for the offense instead ended up in C.J. Gardner-Johnson's hands, and Tom Brady, working the game as a color commentator, did not soften the critique one bit.
Brady went right at Herbert's awareness and decision-making on the play, even using the phrase "Meatball Sub" to describe the throw's placement. It was the kind of blunt, unsparing analysis that has already become part of Brady's early broadcasting identity, and for Chargers fans, it only added to the sting of watching a mistake turn into a turnover on a big stage. [Read more 🡒]
Former Chargers Lineman Just Landed A Telling New Opportunity
The Packers are adding some more heft up front by signing offensive lineman Mekhi Becton, a former first-round pick who has already carved out a career as a Super Bowl champion with the Eagles. Before the move became official, Becton worked out with Green Bay, giving the team a closer look at a player they believe can help stabilize an offensive line that has recently had its share of struggles.
For Chargers fans, it is a reminder of how often linemen continue to find new chances to reset their careers elsewhere. Bectons latest opportunity comes at a time when Green Bay is clearly looking for answers in the trenches, and his arrival gives the Packers another option as they try to steady that part of the roster. [Read more 🡒]