Week four in the NFL season leaves us with three undefeated teams going for their fourth win. Early AFC powerhouses are also matching-up today, which may set the stage for eventual playoff tiebreakers. The Opening Drive kicks-off now!
(3-0) Detroit Lions at
(2-1) Dallas Cowboys
After putting up points on some less-than-explosive squads, the Lions get a chance to show their true colors against some decent competition. With how depleted and soft the Cowboy secondary is, they’ll have an excellent chance to get to 4-0. Both quarterbacks are in for some rough times against the opposing pass rush. Ndamukong Suh and DeMarcus Ware will Mess. You. Up.
(3-0) Buffalo Bills at(1-2) Cincinnati Bengals
Another fantastic story, the Bills get to travel to Cincy in hopes of continuing their undefeated ways. The Bengals have a sucktastic offense, but their defense is formidable, at the very least. This is a total trap game for the Bills, who could be coming down off the tremendous high that was taking down the Patriots.
(0-3) Minnesota Vikings at(0-3) Kansas City Chiefs
Battle of the Losers! The Vikings take their one-half-only show on the road to KC to take on the Chiefs, who are in complete and utter disarray. So if McNabb can just put together three quarters of halfway mediocre play, he’ll probably put up more points than the dysfunctional Chief offense can manage. At least one of these lousy teams will avoid 0-4. I’m betting on the Vikes.
(2-1) Pittsburgh Steelers at(2-1) Houston Texans
I’m… not sure what’ll happen here. The Pittsburgh run defense has been…crappy this season? That means the returning (and hopefully finally healthy) Arian Foster could be in for a superb day getting hand-offs from Matt Schaub. I’m still not on the Texans bandwagon, but the Steelers are vulnerable and inconsistent.
(2-1) San Francisco 49ers at(1-2) Philadelphia Eagles
San Fran’s front seven is not talked about enough. They could give Mike Vick another rough ride on Sunday in a game the Eagles NEED to win. Philly’s offensive line is particularly dreadful, contributing to Vick’s injury concerns. I still think the Eagles can pull this one out, but he could get rocked for a third straight week.
(2-1) New England Patriots at(2-1) Oakland Raiders
If the Raiders focus on their ground game with Darren McFadden, they could be playing right into New England’s hands. The Patriots have issues in the secondary, so they’d probably welcome a team that prefers to hand off. Jason Campbell is a statue in the pocket, so they might even get a pass rush on him. Oh yeah, and Brady and Belichick don’t like losing back-to-back.
(2-1) New York Jets at(2-1) Baltimore Ravens
While the Jets defense is reeling, the Ravens are rolling. This will be a test of which inconsistent offense (led by not-yet-arrived quarterbacks) can actually get on the scoreboard. Does anyone else see a 13-10 final score coming out of this?
That’s it for The Opening Drive! Check back Monday night for my recap of the weekend’s best surprises and results!
