Week 3 NFL takeaways: Fast starts by Chiefs, Pats, Cowboys

Mecole Hardman, Demarcus Robinson and Darrel Williams showed the Chiefs’ quality offensive depth. The Chiefs can thrive in the passing game when the injured Tyreek Hill is out of the lineup, as evidenced by Hardman and Robinson each scoring a touchdown. And Williams led the Chiefs in rushing, giving the Chiefs some confidence they will be OK if Damien Williams and LeSean McCoy can’t play because of injuries in next week’s game at Detroit. — Adam Teicher

Next game: at Detroit (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

The Ravens aren’t ready to be mentioned among the NFL’s elite. Lamar Jackson struggled for three quarters, the defense couldn’t slow down Patrick Mahomes and costly penalties proved too much to overcome. The Ravens (2-1) generated plenty of national buzz in routing the woeful Dolphins and beating Kyler Murray in his first road start of the season. But when matched against one of the best teams in the AFC, the Ravens made too many mistakes to pull off an upset. The Ravens will find where they measure up in the AFC North next Sunday when they host the Browns. — Jamison Hensley

Next game: vs. Cleveland (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

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Quarterback Jacoby Brissett showed he can be the guy. He opened the game with 16 consecutive completions to tie Peyton Manning for the fifth-most in franchise history, and his 310 yards passing should end the thought of him not being able to be an effective downfield passer. Brissett didn’t rely on just one or two receivers, either — he completed passes to nine different players. He finished the game 28-of-37 for 310 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. — Mike Wells

Next game: vs. Indianapolis (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

The Falcons have to play with more discipline. They were penalized 16 times for 128 yards on Sunday, including a defensive holding call on Damontae Kazee at the 10:33 mark of the fourth quarter when the Colts faced third-and-10 from their own 47 and Brissett threw an incomplete pass. It kept the Indianapolis drive alive with a first down and eventually resulted in Marlon Mack‘s 4-yard touchdown that proved to be the difference in the final margin. “You just can’t hold. That’s it,” Kazee said. Coach Dan Quinn, now coordinating defense, expects much better out of his team, particularly with procedural penalties. In three games, the Falcons have accumulated 35 penalties for 264 yards. Such lack of discipline has to change, starting with the Titans next week. — Vaughn McClure

Next game: vs. Tennessee (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

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Winning on the road against a good team shows the Lions will compete in the NFC North. “Obviously, it’s a tough game against a tough team,” wide receiver Marvin Jones II said. “That’s a good team right there … so us doing that, showing resiliency throughout whatever, that’s big.” Are the Lions for real? We’ll find out next week when they host Patrick Mahomes and the unbeaten Chiefs. — Michael Rothstein

Next game: vs. Kansas City (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

Mistakes cost the Eagles amid injuries. The Eagles’ inability to capitalize on Malcolm Jenkins‘ blocked field goal put the Super Bowl hopefuls in a precarious position. Philadelphia (1-2) has loads of talent but early injuries have hit the veteran-laden roster. And with DeSean Jackson (abdominal strain) expected to miss Thursday’s game in Green Bay, and Alshon Jeffery (quad) iffy, the Eagles remain shorthanded. — Tim McManus

Next game: at Green Bay (8:20 p.m. ET, Thursday, Sept. 26)

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The Packers are getting their money’s worth out of Preston Smith and Za’Darius Smith. They dished out $36 million in signing-bonus money alone to the duo, but they already have more combined sacks (7.5) than last year’s starting edge rusher combo of Clay Matthews (3.5) and Nick Perry (1.5) posted all season. That sent the Packers to 3-0 heading into Thursday’s quick turnaround game against the Eagles, as the Smiths combined for five of the Packers’ six sacks and nine of their 13 pressures. It was also the second time in three weeks the defense has forced at least three turnovers, helping allow Aaron Rodgers and the new offense to get away with the slow start. — Rob Demovsky

Next game: vs. Philadelphia (8:20 p.m. ET, Thursday, Sept. 26)

The Broncos are battling themselves in addition to their opponents. They have moments when they look to be rounding into the tough-minded team, but there are still too many moments when they make the mistakes that doom their chances to win. It makes a Week 4 home game against Jacksonville all the more important. The Broncos keep saying they’re close to putting things together — “Right there, one or two plays,” said defensive end Shelby Harris on Sunday. But there has to be some kind of pay-off on the field for their efforts. — Jeff Legwold

Next game: vs. Jacksonville (4:25 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

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The Patriots are winning with defense. With the Tom Brady-led offense dealing with a myriad of injury issues, the attacking defense is the backbone of the team, sparking memories of the dominant units of the early 2000s that led the team to three Super Bowl titles. The D made it look easy Sunday against third-string quarterback Luke Falk and the Jets (touchdowns were scored on a pick-six and a muffed punt). Next up is a visit to face the Bills, who aren’t in the offensive powerhouse category, either, but should provide a greater challenge. — Mike Reiss

Next game: at Buffalo (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

The spotlight will be on coach Adam Gase as the Jets head into their bye week. The Jets are off to one of the worst offensive starts in team history, and Gase used words such as “brutal” and “atrocious” to describe Sunday’s performance. He should get some slack because he started Falk, but there were other issues, including a veteran offensive line that looked completely out of sync. They need Sam Darnold (mono) in the lineup, and soon. — Rich Cimini

Next game: at Philadelphia (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Oct. 6)

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The Vikings are getting a major return on their investment in running back Dalvin Cook. Yes, Minnesota has faced some lackluster defenses that have struggled against the run, but topping 100 yards and scoring a rushing touchdown in the first three games is incredible. He’s averaging more than 6.5 yards per carry and has breathed life into this offense when it needed it the most. Given the way the Vikings have built a run-first mentality, it’s not hard to predict Cook continuing to turn in performances like he did against the Raiders moving forward, even against defenses that are harder to run on, like the Bears next Sunday. — Courtney Cronin

Next game: at Chicago (4:25 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

It’s only three games old, but the season might already be on the brink. Defensive end Josh Mauro said, “If you feel comfortable after losing like that, there’s something wrong with you.” Added linebacker Tahir Whitehead: “If we don’t get this corrected, it’s going to continue to poke its head up. We just need to … hold ourselves accountable, and make sure that there aren’t any people that are feeling comfortable after this loss because there are a lot of things that need to be fixed. And unless we fix them, it’s going to be a long season.” The Raiders head to Indianapolis to face the Colts next week and don’t play in Oakland again until Nov. 3. — Paul Gutierrez

Next game: at Indianapolis (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

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Dallas adjusted at halftime to reach 3-0 for the first time since 2008 and for just the sixth time in Jerry Jones’ tenure as owner. In four of the previous five times, they made the playoffs, including Super Bowl seasons in 1992 and 1995. Nobody is saying that about this team — yet — but it is off to the start it needed with a more difficult schedule later in the season. What stood out about Sunday’s win was the Cowboys overcoming a poor first half. “Our ability to kind of process what’s keeping us back and then getting it fixed then seeing that transfer over into success, I mean, it doesn’t always happen within games,” tight end Jason Witten said. — Todd Archer

Next game: at New Orleans (8:20 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

There was positive progress for the Dolphins after being embarrassed over their first two weeks. Josh Rosen had a few nice drives early in his first start for the Dolphins, who outplayed the Cowboys in the first half. But the result was ultimately the same — a mistake-heavy blowout loss. The Dolphins don’t want any moral victories. The Chargers come to town next Sunday, and it doesn’t seem like the blowouts will stop anytime soon. The Dolphins have been outscored 133-16 in their first three games, a minus-117 point differential, the worst in the Super Bowl era. — Cameron Wolfe

Next game: vs. L.A. Chargers (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

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Josh Allen needs to discover the balance between extending a play and extending a drive. His ability to keep plays alive and make throws downfield put the Bills ahead for good Sunday — but also kept them from putting the Bengals away throughout most of the second half. His delayed decision to throw the ball away and move on to the next play led to an ugly interception and the Bengals’ first touchdown of the game. “I was trying to do the right thing,” he said. “Just one of those plays where, at the last split-second, I made a bad decision.” Bad decisions by Allen would cost the unbeaten Bills any chance of beating the unbeaten Patriots next week at home. — Marcel Louis-Jacques

Next game: vs. New England (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

A top priority for Bengals coach Zac Taylor will be making sure the team doesn’t believe it’s as bad as its 0-3 record. The Bengals almost pulled off their second road win in as many games but couldn’t put together two solid drives to withstand the Bills. As the onslaught from outsiders begins, Taylor is working to fortify the self-belief of a team that has lost 10 of its last 11 games. “We know that it’s errors that we’re bringing upon ourselves,” Taylor said. “Once we can fix that and just catch our break eventually, we’re going to be in good shape.” — Ben Baby

Next game: at Pittsburgh (8:15 p.m. ET, Monday, Sept. 30)

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The Jaguars were abysmal at running the ball. They had to rely on rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew II to move the offense, and the sixth-round pick showed Thursday night that he’s up to the challenge, throwing for 204 yards and two touchdowns. The Jaguars ran for 89 yards but 69 of that came on one run in the fourth quarter. Until that point, Leoard Fournette had negative rushing yards, mainly because of how poorly the offensive line played. That’s happened in back-to-back weeks, and there needs to be significant improvement next week in Denver or it’s going to be the Minshew show again. — Mike DiRocco

Next game: at Denver (4:25 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

The Titans offense is reeling after two lifeless losses to division rivals. The defense tried to keep them in the game, but the struggles on offense continued. Marcus Mariota made a couple of nice throws but also missed a couple of wide-open receivers for what would have been timely big gains. Tennessee’s offensive line gave up nine sacks against the Jaguars, increasing their total to 17 allowed this season. That trend can’t continue if the Titans plan to break their two-game losing streak next week against the Falcons. — Turron Davenport

Next game: at Atlanta (1 p.m. ET, Sunday, Sept. 29)

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