Week 4 left a few teams with real reasons to look over their shoulders, and three stood out in particular: the Buffalo Bills, Houston Texans, and Philadelphia Eagles.
For Buffalo, the first loss of the season came at home, and it came against the Patriots. That alone stings, but the bigger issue is what the game exposed.
The Bills missed a chance to create separation from what looks like their biggest AFC East threat, and now New England sits just a game back with the head-to-head edge. That’s a problem worth noting, even if there’s still plenty of football left.
The defense is the part that should really have Buffalo on edge. This was the third time in four games the Bills gave up more than 30 points, and their 107 points allowed are the second-highest total in the AFC after four games. That’s not the kind of early-season profile you want, especially with a Monday night trip to Los Angeles to face the Rams coming up next.
Houston’s situation is even more alarming on the surface. The Texans have allowed 109 points through four weeks, the most in the AFC, and Sunday’s loss in the Lone Star Showdown dropped them to 0-4.
That kind of start puts a team in a brutal spot. Only one team has ever made the playoffs after opening 0-4, the San Diego Chargers in 1992, and that club went all the way to the Super Bowl.
If Houston is going to keep this season alive, the defense has to tighten up and the run game has to show something. David Montgomery has been stuck in second gear all season long, and it feels like he may not have been the right choice to bring in and lead this backfield.
The offensive line hasn’t helped much, but Montgomery has looked slow so far. Next up is a trip to Tennessee to face the winless Titans, and if the Texans can’t make a statement there, this season will feel even more buried for DeMeco Ryans and his group.
Philadelphia’s worries are different, but they’re just as real. The injury list keeps growing, and Sunday brought another tough stretch: Dallas Goedert and Devonta Smith were already out, then Saquon Barkley went down in the first quarter. Even so, the Eagles hung with the Rams for four quarters and pushed it to the final minute.
Still, the bigger concern is what’s happening on offense. Jalen Hurts and Sean Mannion haven’t exactly looked like they’ve fully settled into this system, and the results reflect that.
Around the league, plenty of teams are working through the same kind of adjustment under new offensive play callers, so Philadelphia isn’t alone. Of the 32 teams in the league, 21 entered the 2026 season with a new offensive coordinator, and several have had trouble scoring consistently early on.
But the Eagles were supposed to be better than this. Like the Chargers and Broncos, they came into the season with expectations, and the production just hasn’t matched them yet.
Through four games, only the Packers and Falcons have scored fewer points among NFC teams. That is not where Coach Sirianni or Eagles fans expected this group to be.
And the schedule doesn’t offer much relief. Philadelphia heads to Duvall next week to face a Jaguars team that just beat the Bengals in Cincinnati.
In Other News...
Bills Patriots Finish Sparks Officiating Debate Buffalo Fans Wont Ignore
Julian Edelman added his voice to the discussion after the Patriots 29-26 win over the Bills, publicly questioning the officiating in a game that already had plenty of people talking. The finish was tight, the stakes were obvious, and the calls along the way did not do much to quiet either side, especially with a contested illegal hands-to-the-face penalty and a holding call drawing immediate attention.
Bill Vinovich was the lead official on a crew that has already been under the microscope for controversial decisions earlier this season, which only sharpened the focus on this latest matchup. For a Patriots result that should have been celebrated for its grit, the conversation instead drifted quickly toward the whistle and why so many Buffalo fans felt they had plenty to complain about after it was over. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Suddenly Have A Bigger Receiver Decision Than They Wanted
Mack Hollins early exit from Sundays game gave the Patriots another reminder of how thin they are at wide receiver right now. The veteran left with a calf injury, and Mike Vrabel said Hollins could miss practice for a few days as the team gets a better read on it, leaving New England to juggle snaps in a position group already dealing with other injury-related uncertainty and roster limitations.
Efton Chism III was the biggest beneficiary of the opening, playing a season-high number of snaps and hauling in the game-winning touchdown. His performance came at an opportune time for a team searching for reliable options, and it may force the Patriots to consider whether his role needs to grow even if Hollins is back sooner rather than later. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Reaction Added Even More Fuel To Patriots Statement Win
The Patriots win over Buffalo already carried plenty of weight inside the division, but the reaction from the Bills afterward only sharpened the edge on it. A road loss can sting on its own, especially when it comes against a rival in Foxborough, but the postgame mood around Buffalo suggested this one landed a little harder than usual.
Cornerback Max Hairston reportedly left the locker room without speaking to reporters, and CJ Gardner-Johnson added another layer with dismissive comments about Efton Chism, calling him a practice-squad player even though Chism is on New Englands 53-man roster. For the Patriots, it was the kind of extra bulletin-board material that can linger well beyond one afternoon, and it offered another reminder that statement wins do not always end when the clock hits zero. [Read more 🡒]