Must see games in Week 5: Bucs vs. Falcons, Jets vs. Vikings, Bills vs. Texans, Ravens vs. Bengals, Saints vs. Chiefs
A month into the NFL season and we have a lot more questions than answers coming into Week 5. Some of those questions could be answered this weekend.
Week 5 starts on Thursday in Atlanta with a massive early season NFC showdown between to division rivals from the Mercedes Benz Stadium. There are just two remaining undefeated teams coming into the second month of the season, while just one team is still searching for their first win of the year. The 4-0 Minnesota Vikings will be in the early slot, kicking off Week 5′s Sunday slate from London against the New York Jets, and the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs will wrap up the weekend against the New Orleans Saints on Monday night from Arrowhead.
Buccaneers @ Falcons, Thursday at 8:15 pm ET
Suddenly the NFC South is among the best, if not the best division, in football. Three teams are serious playoff contenders and two of them square off on Thursday night to kickoff Week 5. The Buccaneers are 3-1 and finally have their offense playing on par or better than their excellent defense. Tampa has been a defense first team, even since Tom Brady was there, and now Baker Mayfield has helped turned this offense into a powerhouse. The Falcons won their second game of the season last weekend, and for the second time they won it in late, dramatic fashion. The Falcons are still looking for a statement win and they can do so against a good Bucs team on Thursday night. Who will take the early advantage in the race for the NFC South on Thursday night?
Jets @ Vikings, Sunday 9:30 am ET
The International games begin from London this weekend as the Jets and the Vikings square off from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The Vikings are the talk of the NFL season so far, with their undefeated record, their dominant defense and MVP candidate QB who has gone from zero to hero in the span of a month. The Jets are 2-2 and things are getting a little turbulent in New York after an ugly game against the Broncos last week. There were some comments made by head coach Robert Saleh that didn’t sit too well with his QB Aaron Rodgers, and the Jets are making headlines more for what’s happening off the field than on the field. Can the Jets snap out of it, or will the Vikings stay undefeated for yet another week?
Bills @ Texans, Sunday at 1:00 pm ET
Two teams that are tabbed of being capable of knocking the Chiefs off their throne in the AFC go head to head from Houston on Sunday afternoon. The Bills are licking their wounds after getting blown over against the Ravens last week for their first defeat of the season. They were flying high after the first three weeks of the season, but they were handed a dose of reality by another conference contender in Baltimore. Now they travel to Houston where the Texans responded to their first loss of the season with a narrow victory against a desperate division rival in Jacksonville. The Texans are young and going through a bit of an early season rough patch, but this week will be a chance to send a message to the rest of the teams in the AFC. There is a little added fuel to the fire considering there will be a reunion of Stefon Diggs and Josh Allen who had a rocky relationship in Buffalo, and since Diggs left this offseason there have been words exchanged about one and other.
Ravens @ Bengals, Sunday at 1:00 pm ET
The Ravens may have lost their first two games of the season, and were shadowed in doubt as the naysayers hopped on the anti-Baltimore bandwagon. That wagon is a little lighter coming into Week 5 following their last two games. They blew out the Cowboys in Dallas, and bullied the Bills last week as Derrick Henry looks to have found his feet in this run heavy Ravens offense. All of the sudden they are looking like one of the best teams in the league, and will take on AFC North rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals. Cincy has been one of the biggest disappointments of the first month of the season, but they are coming off their first win of the season against the lowly Panthers. This is a massive game for the Bengals. They need a win against a good team, but more importantly they cannot lose fourth game in the first five weeks of the season.
Saints vs. Chiefs Monday 8:20 pm ET
It was only a couple weeks ago we woke up after Week 2 talking about the Saints being the best team in the league. They smashed the Panthers in the season opener, and then obliterated the Cowboys. They were the highest scoring team in the league with 92 points after a couple weeks of the season. They have lost two straight against tough teams and take on the two time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. Kansas City is undefeated after four one-possession wins to start the season. They have been decimated by injury over the last couple weeks and go into their Monday night match up with out their starting running back, Isaiah Pacheco, and their best wide receiver, Rashee Rice, out for the season. The Chiefs are trying to stay undefeated in the face of adversity while the Saints are trying to stop a two game losing skid in primetime on Monday night.