Judging AFC Overreactions and Facts from Week 4
What a weekend it was for the AFC. The Buffalo Bills trounced the Miami Dolphins, Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs are the talk of Hollywood, the Cincinnati Bengals got hammered, and Zach Wilson might be back. Here are our takes.
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- The Buffalo Bills are the Best Team in the AFC
Overreaction or Accurate Reaction? Accurate Reaction
Coming into Sunday, the Miami Dolphins were the talk of the NFL. Amid their 3-0 NFL start and a 70-point performance in Week 3, a big test against the Buffalo Bills awaited, and man, were the Bills ready. From start to finish, the Bills dominated the Dolphins 48-20 in every area of the game. Since their Week 1 loss, the Bills have outscored their opponents 123-33, giving the rest of the AFC the understanding that the Bills are for real. Like every year with the Bills, they need to execute when it matters the most in the postseason, but for now, there is no reason they aren’t the top dog in the conference.
- New England Needs to Tear it Down
Overreaction or Accurate Reaction? Overreaction… for now
Sometimes, teams have bad games. That’s the reality of sports, but the New England Patriots had a bad game and some on Sunday. Their matchup against the Dallas Cowboys wasn’t an ideal spot as the Cowboys were coming off an embarrassing performance of their own against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3, but no one thought it would be bad enough to bench Mac Jones. In the future, the Patriots can at least rest easy that their three losses came against three of the top six teams in football, but they’ll need dominant showings against the New Orleans Saints and Las Vegas Raiders to right the ship in a hurry.
- Houston can Make the Postseason
Overreaction or Accurate Reaction? Accurate Reaction
The AFC South is wide open. The expected division champion Jacksonville Jaguars got off to a slow start, and the Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts haven’t been overly impressive. Still, the Houston Texans have taken the NFL community by storm over the past two weeks. They embarrassed the Jaguars in Week 3, followed it up in Week 4 with a dominant showing against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and now, they are no longer being taken lightly. Even better, a real opportunity to rack up some wins is ahead. The Texans remaining schedule only has three 2022 playoff teams: Jacksonville, Cincinnati, and Tampa Bay. Those teams are no longer considered a real threat. CJ Stroud is balling, and this team plays hard behind DeMeco Ryans, so watch out; Houston will make the playoffs.
- The Jets Will Make Some Noise with Zach Wilson
Overreaction or Accurate Reaction? Overreaction
Despite losing to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night Football 23-20, the New York Jets had a slight moral victory for not only hanging with Patrick Mahomes and the reigning champions but for how Zach Wilson looked. Frankly, it was the best version of Wilson we’ve seen. He passed for 245 yards and two touchdowns with a passer rating of 105.2 and seemingly appeared in command of everything the Jets were doing. In the future, I can guarantee Wilson will ball out against a Denver Broncos defense next week that just made Justin Fields look like a Pro Bowler. However, I envision the Philadelphia Eagles defense returning him to earth after that.
- Cincinnati is Just Plain Awful
Overreaction or Accurate Reaction? Accurate Reaction
I don’t know what to say about the Cincinnati Bengals. The proof is what everyone is seeing right in front of them. Despite their preseason expectations and the massive deal they handed Joe Burrow, they aren’t a good football team. We can’t ignore that Burrow looks visibly injured out there, but I’m tired of hearing the excuses being made for him. If you’re going to play, you have to perform. It doesn’t help that the offensive line stinks and the defense isn’t great either, but this is Burrow’s team, and he’s playing like a fringe starter instead of what he was given north of $250 million to do.
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