The Baker’s Dozen , Week 4 from laiyongcai92's blog

 Rams shine, Bears dominate, Bills return to badness Another week in the NFL Atlanta Falcons Hoodie has come and gone. Week 4 is now in the books, and with it we have an even clearer picture of the NFL landscape in 2018. The Rams and Chiefs are currently the class of their respective conferences, while the Bills and Cardinals find themselves at the bottom. There was action. There was drama. There was also some damn good football. Let’s talk about it.Here are thirteen takeaways from Week 4 of the 2018 NFL season.The Rams are the NFL’s best teamStarting out 4-0 is impressive on its own, but the Rams have been ever better than their record. Through four weeks of play, Los Angeles looks like the best team in the NFL—and I’m not sure it’s particularly close. Jared Goff has grown significantly over the past two seasons, and the Rams defense has improved drastically from 2017. This team will be tough to beat all season long.Buffalo’s upset win over the Vikings was a flukeIt was fun to see the Bills (1-3) get that upset win over Minnesota (1-2-1) in Week 3, but I think we all knew the truth: the Bills are bad. Buffalo proved that with a 22-0 loss to the Packers (2-1-1), who aren’t exactly known for their defense. Josh Allen is always going to be a high-variance QB, and on a team with little to nothing in the way of offensive weapons, it’s going to be mostly bad.The Bucs collapsed against the BearsI definitely saw this one coming, but a lot of you didn’t believe me when I said Fitzmagic was over after Week 3. Well, here’s your proof: Tampa Bay (2-2) getting absolutely manhandled by the Bears (3-1) to the tune of 48-10. Nothing worked on offense for the Buccaneers Youth Customized Atlanta Falcons Jerseys , and the team even trotted out Winston to try and save the day. The defense is also legitimately worse than the Falcons’, and they don’t have any injury excuses.The Bears have one of the NFL’s best defensesSpeaking of defenses, Chicago has a great one. The trade for Khalil Mack turned this unit from fringe top-10 to elite almost overnight. Mack is simply one of the best players in the NFL at any position, and he’s been dominant through four weeks for the Bears. The jury is still out on Mitchell Trubisky and the offense, but this defense will keep them in just about any game. Chicago could be the best team in the NFC North.Miami was a fraudAnother outcome we should’ve known was coming. A 3-0 Miami team heads to face a reeling 1-3 New England squad with a chance to bury them and take control of the division. How did the Dolphins respond to such a challenge? By laying an absolute egg, to the tune of 38-7. They’ve played a cupcake schedule to this point and really aren’t as good as their 3-1 record.The Titans know how to win uglyThis is like the reverse outcome of what happened between Miami and New England. I expected the Titans (3-1) to be shown up by an Eagles (2-2) team that now has a healthy Carson Wentz and Alshon Jeffery. Well, that didn’t happen. Marcus Mariota played well and the defense did enough to hold Philadelphia in check and take it to overtime. Tennessee doesn’t look great doing it, but they keep finding ways to win—and that’s all the matters in the NFL.Houston avoids 0-4, but they’re still strugglingOne of Week 3’s desperate teams looking to avoid the almost-certain playoff death that accompanies an 0-4 start, the Texans (1-3) managed to pull it off in overtime against the Colts (1-3). Deshaun Watson was sharp and benefited from a nice performance from rookie WR Keke Coutee. That defense is still a major problem, however—and the offensive line is struggling mightily in both pass protection and run blocking.The Colts are...decent?Indianapolis is probably better than their 1-3 record, which is a surprise based on what I thought they were to start the season. Andrew Luck had a vintage performance, throwing for 464 yards and 4 TDs. The backfield is still a mess, but the defense is steadily improving. They’ve been close to wins against several good teams this season www.falconsauthorizedshops.com , and I expect them to remain competitive throughout the 2018 season.Josh Rosen looked good in his first start with ArizonaWhile Josh Rosen couldn’t keep the Cardinals from falling to 0-4 against the Seahawks (2-2), he had a much better performance than the box score showed. Arizona isn’t likely to compete for a playoff spot, but their defense is still solid enough to keep them in games if the offense can step up to the challenge. With Rosen at the helm, they’ve got a chance.The Steelers are reelingIf Falcons fans want a reason for optimism this week, look no further than the Steelers’ (1-2-1) most recent performance at home against the Ravens (3-1). You’ll see a maddeningly inconsistent Roethlisberger, a run game that could get absolutely nothing going, and a defense that is in competition for the worst in the league. Pittsburgh is just as desperate as Atlanta for a win on Sunday.Baltimore’s offense has really improved in 2018If somebody told me that the Ravens’ offense had improved measurably in 2018, I probably would’ve assumed it was because Lamar Jackson was starting at QB. That hasn’t happened, but maybe it’s because Flacco is concerned about his job security. While Baltimore’s run game is hit or miss, the passing game has been much better—John Brown has been a huge addition to the receiving corps. The defense is still one of the NFL’s top units, and the Ravens look like a playoff contender through four weeks.Oakland edges out Browns in OT, still badWhile the Browns (1-2-1) have looked a lot better with Baker Mayfield under center, they still seem to have difficulty winning games—particularly in overtime. Their misfortune helped the Raiders (1-3) avoid an 0-4 start, but make no mistake: they’re still a bad team on the whole. Marshawn Lynch has been excellent Womens Jake Matthews Jersey , however, and this offense is still capable of good days.Baker’s Bonus Take: Patrick Mahomes is legitThe Chiefs (4-0) had a real test on Monday night against the Broncos (2-2). Denver’s crowd was rowdy, and the defense cooked up a scheme that frustrated Patrick Mahomes for most of the night. But Mahomes responded like a true franchise QB: he rallied, made adjustments, and brought Kansas City back late in the game. The Chiefs have an exploitable defense, but that has so far been little more than a footnote with Mahomes at the helm. Let’s see if Kansas City can keep up this pace through the remainder of the season, but one thing is certain: they’re a lot of fun to watch.What are your thoughts on everything that happened in Week 4? Were you surprised by the Bucs’ reversion to an awful team on Sunday? Who do you think the best and worst teams in the NFC and AFC are after four weeks?Falcons vs. Bengals: Final score predictions for Week 4 DWFalcons 24 - Bengals 21The Bengals defensive front could cause problems during the day. Geno Atkins in particular terrifies me. That said, the past two offensive performances makes me think that Steve Sarkisian is gaining confidence as a play caller and is already anticipating their defensive front. I think the Bengals will slow our offense more than the Saints and Panthers, but I also believe we have some good matchups against their offense. Getting Takk McKinley back will be the difference here, as I think he’ll keep Andy Dalton from getting too comfortable in the pocket and limit their offense just enough to get the win.Kevin KnightFalcons 31 - Bengals 24The Falcons offense will once again have to carry the team in this one. Cincinnati’s defense is better than New Orleans’, particularly in the pass rushing department, but not by much. They’ve also struggled against the run far more than the Saints, which could make the Falcons’ play-action offense even more dangerous and help keep Andy Dalton and the Bengals’ offense on the sidelines. That’s really the best hope for this Falcons defense in keeping Cincy under 30 points, although the return of Takk McKinley should help Atlanta get some pressure up front. It’ll probably be uncomfortable http://www.falconsfootballauthentics.com/matt-ryan-jersey-authentic , but the Falcons should get back to .500 on Sunday.Adnan IkicFalcons 34 - Bengals 24I have full faith in the offense to keep humming against a team that couldn’t even begin to penetrate Carolina’s injury plagued offensive line this past Sunday. Tevin Coleman should find some more running lanes to work with this week than he saw against New Orleans, and Matt Ryan should find himself operating within a clean pocket. You just expect the offense to score every time they touch the ball at this point. On defense, the pass rush should make more of an impact than we saw last Sunday with the return of Takk McKinley. Get some pressure on Andy Dalton’s and make him play catch up and he’ll make some mistakes (four interceptions thrown last game). The Bengals’ offense won’t get shut down but they won’t keep up.Cory WoodroofFalcons 30 - Bengals 28 This game has me more conflicted than any in the immediate future for the Falcons. The Bengals offense are going to be able to do a lot of things effectively against Atlanta’s defense; this is not a good matchup in the slightest. If they can put A.J. Green in the slot and get Gio Bernard active in the passing game, this could be an ugly afternoon for the defenders. They’re already fighting an uphill climb with losing Ricardo Allen from a communication standpoint. Atlanta is going to have to score 30 once again to get out of Dodge on this, though the Bengals defense has talent. Expect this one to be a “to the last whistle” affair once more, with home field and a field goal the difference to get Atlanta to 2-2. It’s time for Atlanta’s defensive coaching staff to step up and fill in the gaps where the talent cannot.Dave ChoateFalcons 31 - Bengals 27A hard-fought, frustrating game that is in doubt until the end? Very little defense and plenty of offense? That sounds like a 2018 Falcons game, doesn’t it? Enough questions. Atlanta can win this game if the offense keeps humming and the defense gets its act together even a little, and I think they will. A loss here puts the Falcons in a rough spot, and they shouldn’t lack for motivation. Allen StrkFalcons 30 - Bengals 28Expect this to be the third consecutive topsy-turvy game inside the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. With all the problems surrounding Atlanta’s defense, it’s hard to expect any straightforward games against half-decent opposition. The Bengals could be viewed as even better than half-decent. A rapidly improving offense featured a revamped coaching staff and plethora of playmakers will give Dan Quinn’s decimated defense serious problems. For all the defensive shortcomings, the offense appears to be ready for any challenge. Picking apart a subpar Bengals’ secondary shouldn’t be too difficult for Matt Ryan. As long as the protection holds up, the Falcons should win another high-scoring affair. Don’t be surprised to see Matt Bryant hit a game-winning field goal.