Week 5 gave the NFL a little bit of everything: shaky quarterback play, injuries that could reshape depth charts, and a few young players making it hard for coaches to keep them on the sideline. Some teams left Sunday with more questions than answers. Others found real sparks they can build on.
The Chargers might be sitting at the center of the league’s loudest offensive alarm right now. Entering Week 6, only Denver has scored fewer points than Los Angeles, and Justin Herbert’s latest outing didn’t do much to calm anyone down.
In a 23-17 loss to the Broncos, Herbert managed just 121 passing yards and one touchdown. For a quarterback of his caliber, that’s a startling number.
Some passers hit 121 yards before halftime. Herbert needed the whole game.
The problems around him keep piling up, too. Tre Harris left with a hamstring injury, adding another name to a battered receiver room that already includes Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston.
On the ground, Omarion Hampton was held to 33 yards on 14 carries, while Kimani Vidal gave the offense a small jolt with 57 rushing yards and a touchdown on eight carries. That doesn’t automatically make Vidal the answer, but it does put a real spotlight on whether Hampton should keep dominating the backfield work.
Green Bay, on the other hand, finally looked like the version of itself that can overwhelm people. The Packers rolled past Chicago 31-7, and Jordan Love was in complete command.
He threw for 367 yards and two touchdowns, both to Christian Watson, as the offense opened up in a big way. Watson was outstanding, finishing with six catches for 143 yards and those two scores.
Matthew Golden added six receptions for 123 yards, and Tucker Kraft chipped in with five catches for 64 yards.
The surprise in that one was MarShawn Lloyd. He scored twice and gave Green Bay the kind of physical edge in the backfield the offense has been missing.
The Packers also took the game over defensively, forcing five turnovers without giving the ball away once themselves. That turned a divisional matchup into a blowout fast.
Seattle had chances against San Francisco, but the mistakes were too much to survive. The Seahawks lost two fumbles and fell 32-29 to the undefeated 49ers.
Sam Darnold had a rough day under pressure, throwing two interceptions while rarely getting enough time to settle in. Jaxon Smith-Njigba still did his part with five catches for 102 yards and a touchdown, but Seattle clearly needs another receiver to step forward.
Tory Horton could be in line for a bigger look if the staff thinks he can handle it. Emanuel Wilson also stayed productive, finishing with 72 total yards and a touchdown.
Philadelphia’s loss in London may be the most unsettling result of the week. The Eagles fell 19-17 to Jacksonville and dropped to 2-3, while the offense produced only 22 rushing yards.
There is a real sense of disarray around the group now, and it would not be shocking if Nick Sirianni’s job becomes a legitimate midseason conversation. The talent is there, but the operation looks badly out of sync.
Will Shipley also went down with an injury and did not return. If Saquon Barkley cannot return in Week 6, Dameon Pierce could end up in the starting role.
Darius Cooper kept flashing with big plays, though his chances may shrink once DeVonta Smith is back.
The Jets got one of the cleaner breakout performances of the weekend from Braelon Allen. He ran for 116 yards and a touchdown, and that kind of showing should absolutely force New York to reconsider how it splits touches once Breece Hall returns.
Allen looks like he has earned a meaningful role. Rookie David Bailey also kept building an impressive season, posting three sacks in the win over Cleveland.
Garrett Wilson added another reminder of why he’s so dangerous against man coverage, catching seven passes for 104 yards and a touchdown. New York did take a hit, though, with tight end Kenyon Sadiq leaving with a concussion.
Pittsburgh keeps leaning on Jaylen Warren, and he keeps delivering. Warren finished with 188 total yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns, continuing to be one of the best players on the field for the Steelers.
His knack for explosive plays has become a huge part of what this offense is built around. Pat Freiermuth also came through with two touchdown catches from Aaron Rodgers.
The Steelers did lose Roman Wilson to a dislocated finger, and rookie Germie Bernard drew nine targets in another sign he’s becoming a more interesting piece in the passing game.
Las Vegas was on the wrong end of a 45-17 mess against New England, but Brock Bowers still looked like one of the league’s most special young talents. He caught eight passes for 110 yards and a touchdown even as the Raiders were overwhelmed.
Ashton Jeanty was active and finished with 10 carries for 27 yards and three catches for 50 yards. There are reports of a possible plantar fasciitis issue around Jeanty, so that situation will need to be watched closely.
The blowout also led to Fernando Mendoza getting his first professional snaps. He has clear upside, but there’s also value in letting him sit and learn behind an experienced veteran like Kirk Cousins.
In Other News...
Harbaughs Latest Admission Puts Chargers 0-5 Start Under A Microscope
Jim Harbaugh spent the aftermath of the Chargers latest loss doing what the locker room needed most from its head coach: owning the moment. After the defeat to the Broncos, Harbaugh accepted full responsibility for a fourth-quarter decision that helped swing the game, a candid admission that only sharpened the pressure around a team that is now 0-5 and trying to stop a season from slipping away before October is even over.
The Chargers have had enough trouble on offense to make every choice feel magnified, and Justin Herbert has been dealing with those struggles as the losses pile up. Next comes Kansas City, which only raises the stakes for a group that has not found an early-season answer and now has its coach publicly placing the burden on himself rather than letting the conversation drift elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Collapse Is Putting Ownership Under A Brutal Spotlight
The Chargers 0-5 start has already turned every part of the organization into a talking point, from coaching decisions to the way the roster has been built. For a team with playoff expectations and a quarterback still expected to anchor the franchise, the frustration goes beyond the field. The results have only sharpened the focus on how aggressively the team has tried to compete, and whether the current formula was ever built to withstand real adversity.
Ownership is now feeling the heat in a way that goes well beyond a bad month of football. The spending habits around the roster have become part of the conversation, and so has the long-term future of the people tasked with fixing this mess. If the losing keeps piling up, the Chargers could be staring at a much bigger reset than a simple midseason correction. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Loss Fuels Bigger Questions About How Competitive This Team Is
The Chargers 23-17 loss to the Broncos left more than a bad taste in the mouth, it reopened the familiar debate about how far this roster can really go when the margin tightens. Nick Canepas postgame grades painted a blunt picture of the performance, with the quarterback and receiver groups taking the hardest hits while special teams and coaching decisions came under the microscope as well.
Injuries only made the picture murkier, especially up front, where the offensive line was already working around absences. With a trip to Kansas City next on the schedule, the questions around protection, execution and overall competitiveness are only getting louder, and this one feels less like a one-off stumble than another test of where the Chargers actually stand. [Read more 🡒]