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NFL

Five must watch games of Week 3 in the NFL

The first couple weeks of the NFL’s regular season have been wild and Week 3 gives us more mouthwatering matchups to keep us glued to the sofa.

Update:
The first couple weeks of the NFL’s regular season have been wild and Week 3 gives us more mouthwatering matchups to keep us glued to the sofa.
Rob CarrAFP

The first two week of the NFL season have been nothing short of captivating. Last week we had three different teams with a win probability of 1% comeback from seemingly insurmountable deficits to win. There have been last second winners, overtime thrillers and endings that make you have to pick your jaw off the floor.

There are some surprise teams at 2-0 going into the third week of the season, and there are others who are unexpectedly 0-2 after their first two games. This weekend we have a full slate of football starting with Pittsburgh at Cleveland on Thursday, and after that there are a handful of can’t miss games on Sunday

Buffalo Bills vs. Miami Dolphins

The AFC East has a new powerhouse as of the beginning of this season. It appears the Miami Dolphins are for real, and they made it happen quicker than anyone could have imagined. Tua Tagovailoa is tied for the league lead for touchdown passes, and Tyreek Hill is the leading receiver in the NFL taking no time to feel right at home in South Beach.

They played the Patriots and the Ravens in the opening weeks of the season, but the real test will come this weekend. The Dolphins will travel north to take on their arch rivals, the Buffalo Bills.

No team in the NFL has had a better start to their season than the Buffalo Bills. They took down the defending champs in Week 1, and after beating the Rams they hosted last year’s No. 1 seed in the AFC in a blow out. Josh Allen looks is playing at an MVP level and last year’s top defensive unit in the league looks even stronger with Von Miller.

Las Vegas Raiders vs. Tennessee Titans

Two playoff teams from last year who came into this season with a plenty of expectations have bottomed out to start the season and come into Week 3 of the regular season seeking their first win.

Las Vegas was outclassed by the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 1 as Derek Carr threw three interceptions in the opening week. It looked like Josh McDaniels’ side was on their way to their first win of the season when they were up 20-0 before the Cardinals came storming back to win in overtime on a fumble recovery taken for a touchdown.

The Titans have had a disastrous start to their year after earning the first seed in the AFC entering last years playoffs. They lost A.J. Brown and Julio Jones last year and have yet to find their replacements. Derrick Henry is the one suffering most from the offseason departures. In two games he has just 107 total yards rushing and is averaging 3.1 yards a carry. A disappointing loss to the Giants was followed by an embarrassment in Buffalo on Monday night. Now they return home against another desperate team looking to avoid going 0-3 to start the year.

Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots

A couple of teams with playoff potential will face off in a game that could have big playoff implications much later in the season. Both the Ravens and the Pats are at 1-1 coming into the weekend and New England will look to keep the ball rolling while the Ravens are desperate to forget about their fourth quarter collapse last week.

Baltimore are still licking their wounds after giving up 28 points to the Miami Dolphins in what was a miraculous comeback down in South Beach. How does Lamar Jackson and the Ravens rebound after a devastating loss on Sunday? Jackson is having a fantastic start to the season, with six touchdowns and over 500 yards and 130 yards rushing. The problem isn’t the Ravens quarterback, it’s the secondary that has shown it’s vulnerability, especially on Sunday against the Dolphins.

Will Mac Jones be able to take advantage of those opportunities the Ravens are sure to let up at certain points throughout the game? Scoring has been an issue for Bill Belichick’s men over the first two games of the season. The Pats scored just 7 points in a loss to Miami and 17 points in their narrow win over Pittsburgh last week.

Kansas City Chiefs vs. Indianapolis Colts

One of the best looking teams of this early season takes on one of the flops of the first two weeks when the 2-0 Kansas City Chiefs travel to Indianapolis to square up against the 0-1-1 Colts.

If it wasn’t for the Buffalo Bills, the Kansas City Chiefs would be the best looking team in the league. They put a hurting on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1, shutting everyone up who thought their offense would struggle after Tyreek Hill went to Miami in the offseason. All the Chiefs did was put up 44 points and Patrick Mahomes threw for five touchdowns in the season opener. The most promising thing about they way KC is playing is their defense. It was rookie DB Jaylen Watson who made the difference against the Chargers when he took an interception 99 yards to the house to turn the tides on Thursday night.

The Colts came into this year with high expectations, but those hopes have quickly flatlined after a heavy dose of reality was served to Indy over the first couple weeks of the season. Maybe the most disappointing thing about the way they have opened the season is who they played and how they played them. Two of the worst teams from last year have tied the Colts and blown them out. Matt Ryan has just one touchdown and four interceptions coming into Week 3.

Green Bay Packers vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

It’s a Sunday Night showdown fit for a late January night as the Green Bay Packers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take the field in primetime. These are two teams that expect to be playing in February as long as their veteran quarterbacks are under center. It’s Brady vs. Rodgers in an early season NFC battle.

There is no way to sugar coat it. The Green Bay Packers were terrible in their season debut against the Minnesota Vikings. After sitting their starters in the preseason you could see the rust had not been shaken off from a long offseason. Even the four time MVP Aaron Rodgers looked rattled in Week 1 when he passed for less than 200 yards and an interception. The Packers No. 12 responded in the next game against the Bears on Monday night passing for 234 yards and two touchdowns and Aaron Jones had a total of 170 yards and two touchdowns in the 27-10 win.

Tampa Bay haven’t looked particularly good though the first two games of the season, but they are 2-0 going into the weekend. They are undefeated after playing Dallas and New Orleans in large part due to their defense. Dallas scored just a field goal against the Bucs D, and New Orleans was held to 10 points last week. Brady has yet to really turn it on this season. He’s averaging just 201 yards a game and has just two touchdowns and an interception. Tampa are due for an offensive explosion, so expect fireworks on Sunday night at Raymond James Stadium