We’ve passed week five in the NFL. We’ve got seven teams at 4-1. Two of them are from the AFC South? Houston’s not one? An eighth team at 3-1, in the Steelers. After 5 weeks, what do we make of the “ones”? (Sorry, Green Bay, your “one” comes with a tie…and apparently a taste associated with it per Jerry Jones.)
Can you pull a flaw from the “ones”? Yes, every single one of them, but you guessed it, one.
The AFC gives us four of them. Buffalo, Pittsburgh*, Indianapolis, and Jacksonville. Can Buffalo stop the run and handle being the top target clearly in the AFC? To the two teams in the AFC South. I love what you’re doing in the lands of cats and horses, I really do. However, this is a “what have you done for me lately?” league. It’s also a league constantly analyzed by the question, “Can you do it again?” We’ll monitor the developments of the next few weeks. As far as the black and yellow? Still not quite sure who you really are? Furthermore, are you a product of a dysfunctional division? Both things are likely true here.
The NFC brings us a more balanced four. One from each division. San Francisco, Tampa Bay, Detroit, and Philadelphia. The 49ers’ marketing department has yet again missed the opportunity to tap into the money tree of having multiple, sponsored Blue Tents on the San Francisco sideline. This team in the Shanahan/Lynch era has been the prototypical team for needing to “take a number” at the tents. However, over the next handful of weeks, they should get Aiyuk, Kittle, Mustapha, and more back. They also, as people are forgetting, have the most manageable schedule on paper, a last-place schedule they earned last year.
Tampa Bay might have an MVP under center—their first regular-season MVP in franchise history. No, not even TB12 did that, there. The Bucs will also improve exponentially. Mike Evans will be back, Godwin with his sea legs. Plus, the unquestioned Offensive Rookie of the Year, Emeka Egbuka, is still crushing it. My only concern with Tampa is that I don’t yet trust their defense. There’s a reason Tampa has come from behind so much. It’s not sustainable.
Philadelphia. Winning games is often the cologne that covers crap. Let me introduce you to Eau De Cheesesteak. Yes, the numbers are as bad as a cheese steak cologne sounds. 261.6 yards per game. That’s not a typo. The Eagles have the 3rd worst offense in the NFL. Only better than the Titans disaster and the Bengals. Yes, Cincy’s offense has fewer yards than their punter, Ryan Rehkow. The Eagles have the game’s most electric running back. They have Brown and Smith at WR, and this offense gets them bounced in its current construction in the first round. I’m just the messenger.
But that leaves one of the “ones” left—the Detroit Lions. I know most left them for dead in the first week. Rightfully so. But the one thing we all need to come to terms with is this. Dan Campbell’s Lions will never be judged by a regular season, ever again. They’re here for a while. This version of Dan Campbell’s Lions in 2025 is the most certain of the “ones” that are out there. A complete team, through the first five. For Campbell and this group of Motor City hellcats, it’s the 18th game and beyond that we will drop judgment on.
Lots of Football Left folks. It might be Detroit’s time. But check back in soon. The NFL never lacks drama. This season is certainly no exception.
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