Week 3 was all about the nail-biter.
Of Sunday's 14 games, 12 ended within one score, and most came down to the final play, including Matthew Stafford's last-second interception to cement the Rams' second-half collapse at Denver in the nightcap.
Let's run through key storylines in the aftermath of a Sunday that provided a plethora of heart palpitations, including:
But first, we head to Brazil, which hosted an early contender for Game of the Season on Sunday.
Tyler Loop nails game-winning field goal in Rio
Football's ability to inspire never ceases.
Ravens kicker Tyler Loop rode a rocky path during his rookie campaign, culminating in a season-ending miss in the team's Week 18 loss to the rival Steelers with the AFC North title (and the accompanying playoff berth) on the line. That pushed 44-yard kick attempt set in motion an offseason of change in Baltimore. Loop fended off questions about his future, keeping his job despite the immense fallout.
A blocked attempt in Week 2's disappointing loss to the Saints revived questions about the 2025 draft pick. Then, on Sunday in Rio de Janeiro, Loop got his shot to brush away the haze of the past.
After the Ravens' defense bowed up and kept Dallas out of the end zone late in the fourth quarter, seven seconds remained in 31-31 game. Lamar Jackson rocketed a missile that Zay Flowers leaped to snag for a 27-yard gain, with the receiver immediately getting down as Jackson called a timeout with 1 second remaining and the ball now at Dallas' 38-yard line. Loop lined up the 56-yard attempt and calmly banged it through, with CBS Sports' Jim Nantz eloquently calling the game-winning boot “a trio in Rio.”
Ravens players celebrated with their sometimes-maligned kicker as they pulled off a last-second victory despite stumbles along the way.
Loop's kick on Sunday didn't erase the previous big miss or guarantee anything about his future. However, it provided oxygen to a flickering flame. That one kick could have revived a career.
"I was saying on the sideline, 'Your legacy starting now,' because I feel like he has been facing adversity," Jackson said of Loop. "I said, 'What a way to start your legacy in Brazil,' and he finished the rest. He did it. Shout out to special teams, shout out to Loop."
Jackson's part shouldn't be understated, either. His ability to deliver that late laser over the middle -- without taking too much time -- was pivotal, as was Flowers' snag and haste to get down. The Ravens moved the ball well on Sunday, but they also were stuffed in short-yardage situations several times.
In a young season in Jesse Minter's first campaign, the 34-31 win showed fortitude: from the defense keeping the Cowboys out of the end zone on their final drive to Jackson making a play to Loop nailing the winner. It's the type of victory that could propel a team.
The Ravens needed the win in a hotly contested division.
The Steelers' offense showed life in a 30-27 victory over the Bengals, with Aaron Rodgers finally hitting on some deep strikes after two weeks of them falling incomplete. If the Pittsburgh offense can keep splashing plays, and Rodgers isn't broken in half, the Steelers will be a tough out.
Cincinnati's defense came back to the pack a bit after an excellent start to the season. That's not too much of a surprise. That's not why Cincy lost, however. Special teams issues were the real killer, as the punt crew gave the Steelers extra chances. Joe Burrow still had a shot late, but a final-drive fumble sealed it. It's a stinging loss to a division rival, but not one that should worry Bengals fans.
The Browns' defense was locked in again to improve Cleveland to 2-1, stymying Bryce Young and a Panthers offense that had moved the ball well in the first two weeks. Deshaun Watson showed that, when he avoids the big mistake, he can be a net positive for Cleveland and make game-winning plays. That's new.
Patriots have a Drake Maye problem
The Patriots were pegged to regress in 2026, partly because of their tougher schedule after winning the AFC East. That might be one element of New England's 1-2 start, but it's far from the story.
The biggest issue isn't that the Pats are facing teams that make them pay for mistakes; it's that Drake Maye has regressed to the point that he's making rookie-level blunders in Year 3. Week 1's calamitous turnover fest in Seattle has snowballed. Maye has seven giveaways through the first three games of the season, the most by any player in the NFL. His seven turnovers are the most by a Patriots player in the team's first three games of a season over the last 30 years, per NFL Research.
Perhaps he can explain away the embarrassing fumble in Sunday's blowout loss to Jacksonville, saying there was blood on the ball from the center. But there was no excuse for his second-quarter interception in the end zone. It was a ball that should never have been thrown. That's Maye's biggest issue right now: He's not seeing things clearly. Defenses studied his weaknesses all offseason, and he hasn't adjusted. Until Maye does, more upchucks like Sunday's performance will ensue.
"I think quarterbacks want to make plays," Vrabel said Monday morning on the Greg Hill Show, via ESPN's Mike Reiss. "I think they want to throw touchdowns. I think sometimes when Greg and I go golfing, we really want to make a good score, right? Sometimes we're so focused on it, we try to choke the life out of the golf club, and we're squeezing it so damn tight that the ball has no choice but to go sideways.
"We need to stop trying to choke the life out of every single play. We need to relax. We need to settle in and go play football and not try to force things that aren't there."
Are 3-0 Raiders for real?
I already noted last week that the way Las Vegas has been winning is different under Klint Kubiak. It feels repeatable.
The defense has been opportunistic, taking advantage of turnovers. Las Vegas had four takeaways in the fourth quarter of its Week 3 win at New Orleans. The Raiders had only three fourth-quarter takeaways in the entire 2025 season, according to NFL Research. It's also the first time a team has forced at least four fourth-quarter takeaways in a game since the Cowboys in Week 13 of 2022 vs. the Colts. Yes, the Raiders benefited from a controversial fumble call on Tyler Shough. It also takes players creating such opportunities to benefit from them.
Tight end Brock Bowers' return was pivotal. Vegas doesn't win in NOLA without his 10-catch, 116-yard, one-TD performance. Kubiak deployed Bowers all over the formation, in-line and detached, making him a matchup nightmare. Despite Bowers missing the first two games after undergoing a knee procedure, a magical season for the TE appears quite viable, with Kirk Cousins force-feeding his top target. This offense needs one more outside option to be complete.
The Raiders are the darlings of the league right now, and rightfully so. Kubiak has quickly shown he can win in the big chair. His coordinators have been excellent. Cousins has been steady. Playmakers are making plays. But I should point out that the Raiders' opponents are a combined 1-8 through three weeks. The real test comes in next Sunday, when Kansas City visits Las Vegas.
"It's a great f---ing win," Raiders star defender Maxx Crosby said postgame in the locker room. "But we've got a great f---ing team coming into town. We already know what it is. It's the f---ing Kansas City Chiefs.
"Enjoy this s--- tonight, take care of your bodies, and we're f---ing on a warpath to get what we want, men."
49ers dominating, but injuries continue to pile up
San Francisco 49ers fans should thank their stars for Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey -- and pray they don't succumb to the injury bug that continues to plague the club.
Purdy is on an MVP tear through three games. The QB has been laser accurate, always finding the right target and rarely making unforced errors. He threw for 297 yards and four touchdowns with zero turnovers in Sunday's win over the Cardinals. It marked his 14th career game with a 130+ passer rating -- the most by any player before turning 27 in league history, surpassing Lamar Jackson, per NFL Research. Purdy is now tied with Hall of Famer Joe Montana for the second-most games with a 130+ passer rating in 49ers history, trailing only Hall of Famer Steve Young (22).
Purdy's ability to hit his targets in stride sets up extra yards. His TD pass to Mike Evans was the latest "How on Earth did he drop that into the tiniest window?" throw from the 49ers QB this season. Precision Purdy.
The Niners have needed Purdy and McCaffrey to max out, as the rest of the club continues to deal with injuries. On Sunday, Evans exited with a rib injury and offensive tackle Trent Williams suffered a stinger, while linebacker Dre Greenlaw left with a quad issue. With Nick Bosa (calf) expected to miss multiple weeks, the injuries on defense have begun to take their toll -- as they did last year -- and the Cardinals were able to scrap their way back into the contest on Sunday, making the score look closer than the contest felt.
Assessing playoff hopes for 0-3 squads
According to NFL Research, only seven teams in NFL history have started the season 0-3 and gone on to make the playoffs. The Houston Texans teams of 2025 and 2018 are the only teams to do so since 2000.
Currently, five teams sit at 0-3: the Texans, Chargers, Dolphins, Buccaneers and Titans.
Let's take a quick look at each team:
The Texans, much like I noted last week, have a chance to dig themselves out thanks to an excellent defense. The offense getting Nico Collins and Tank Dell back should help, but the O-line remains a concern with no obvious solution at this stage.
“That’s something that we’re lacking right now is explosives,” C.J. Stroud said after Sunday's last-second loss to the Colts, per the Houston Chronicle. “Too many three-and-outs. ... We’ve got to find a way to generate more explosives.”
The Chargers' offense is an unmitigated disaster through three weeks. Nothing is easy. Everything feels overcomplicated. Justin Herbert is playing like a rusty Tin Man. It’s gross. The L.A. offense is 29th in EPA per play and 31st in rush EPA. Disgusting, given their assets. Despite the concerns, Jim Harbaugh backed new coordinator Mike McDaniel, saying there is “no disconnect” with the offense following Sunday's loss to the Bills in which the Bolts scored just 16 points.
"If you're not on board and you don't think this can get turned around, then get out of here," wideout Ladd McConkey said, per ESPN. "I feel like we got the people to do it. We got all we need. We just got to go execute."
Harbaugh’s pedigree is keeping him from any kind of hot seat in L.A. Most coaches would have their job called for after a game in which they didn’t make their opponent pay for a litany of turnovers.
Miami showed some spunk on Sunday in an eventual 14-point loss to an undefeated Kansas City team. It’s probably a good thing when your opponent is upset it didn’t blow your doors off earlier. The biggest issue: Running back De’Von Achane’s season-ending knee injury wipes out a cornerstone of the new regime's rebuild.
“I think we’ve got to take the wins, the small wins that happen within the game,” wide receiver Malik Washington said, via the South Florida Sun Sentinel. “Guys stepping up, guys making plays, us growing as a team, we’re playing more together. We’re figuring it out, we’re getting inspired by each other. We’re playing for the brothers to the left and right, and that’s what you want to see. The wins will come; we’ll just keep fighting. Obviously, it’s not success because we didn’t win, but those little small victories, we’ve got to hold on to those.”
The Buccaneers have played ugly football through three weeks. Baker Mayfield was ineffective before leaving the game with a dislocated thumb on his right throwing hand. We’ll see how long he’s knocked out for, as there was already a lot wrong with the offense.
The O-line has experienced ongoing issues with missed blocks and penalties. Sunday, Tampa regularly wiped out big plays with holds. Mayfield hasn’t been comfortable and was off the mark regularly in a loss to the Vikings. Luckily for the Bucs, the only winless squad in the NFC, they play in a division where everyone is 1-2 or worse. (Yes, the NFC South is the only division without a winning team.)
“We’re 0-3 and we’re a game out of first place, so we have to get our stuff together,” head coach Todd Bowles said. “We [have to] reach down and do more, to a coach, to a person, to a player. We [have to] do more and figure out what [more] we can do. How can we be better and come back tomorrow and get ready to go?”
Can they dig out of a hole if Baker is out for even a few weeks?
EDITOR'S UPDATE: Todd Bowles told reporters on Monday that Baker Mayfield will miss a minimum of three weeks, with undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels set to take the starting reins.
Tennessee's offense continued its sluggish start under Brian Daboll, who couldn’t puncture his former team on Sunday until it was too late. The Titans began the game against the Giants with five straight three-and-outs, their longest streak to begin a game since Week 5 of 2013 against the Chiefs, per NFL Research. Tennessee's 54 yards of total offense in the first half marked its fewest since Week 12 of 2010 (vs. Texans). Cam Ward got things going in the final two frames and put his team in a chance to pull out the road win. However, on first-and-goal from the 7-yard line, he threw an ill-advised pass across his body that was picked off by Jevon Holland with 17 seconds remaining. Ward can’t make that type of throw, particularly on first down. Live for another play, and perhaps the Titans could have pulled off the road victory against a deteriorating Giants team.
"We did a lot of good things, and for Cam, just keep your head up and keep going,” Titans coach Robert Saleh said, via the team's official site. “Last week we had the game in our hands and lost it from a defensive standpoint; this week, from an offensive standpoint, we couldn't quite finish. Eventually, if we keep putting ourselves in these positions, we'll find a way to win."
Finding ways to win is what separates the good teams from the also-rans. Right now, the Titans are in the latter group.
Week 3 Sunday spotlight
In the Lions' 31-24 win over the Jets, Gibbs carried the ball 20 times for 99 yards and two touchdowns, adding seven receptions (on eight targets) for 65 receiving yards and another score. Gibbs gained 57 yards after the catch and forced eight missed tackles across his touches, per Next Gen Stats. Gibbs has now forced 29 missed tackles this season.
