Things we learned:
Aaron Rodgers is officially clutch:
Reporters and beat writers galore seemingly always had the narrative that Aaron Rodgers wasn’t clutch stuck in their heads until Sunday afternoon. Big throws and game-winning drives have not been uncommon for Rodgers, who has completed four hail-mary passes in the last 2 seasons. That being said, it took the Packers leader until Week 3 of his tenth season to get his first overtime win against Cincinnati only a couple weeks ago, an unfathomable statistic. Despite the poor overtime record, teams with a lead fear the Packer offense with anything more than one-minute and a timeout. Heck, he led a 95-yard touchdown drive with :55 seconds capped off by a hail-mary on the road, in a playoff game against Arizona in the 2016 playoffs . As long as there is time on the clock, Aaron Rodgers has a good chance to work his magic and pullout a victory.
The AFC South is a mess (again):
Another year, another hodgepodge in the AFC South. The Jacksonville Jaguars currently sit on top of the division with a 3-2 record, while every other team in the division right behind at 2-3. Those records aren’t indicative of the injury riddled rosters. Houston just lost their star defensive end and team leader, JJ Watt, for the season with a bone fracture in his left leg. The Titans starting quarterback Marcus Mariota sat this week with an injured left hamstring that hindered his throwing ability, and the Colts have not even had a single snap out of Andrew Luck this season thus far. The biggest surprise from the division is the stifling Jacksonville defense which forced five interceptions against Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers this week. Time will tell how far the defense can carry the Jaguars this season.
The Raiders Aren’t Who We Thought They Were:
Now I understand losing your MVP-caliber quarterback is not ideal, but the Raiders were supposed to be much more than that. The 20th ranked scoring defense in 2016 was expected to make the next step and All-Pro linebacker Khalil Mack was supposed to be the leader. While small improvements have been made, including a climb to the 16th ranked scoring defense so far in 2017, it has not been enough as the team has lost three straight after starting 2-0. The offense though it had made significant improvements as well after pulling Marshawn Lynch out of retirement, that is not the case. Lynch has amounted 194 yards through 5 games so far this season, including two touchdowns. To top it all off, third-year wideout Amari Cooper is having the worst year of his short career thus far, hauling in 13 catches for 118 yards on 33 targets and one touchdown. The team hopes Derek Carr will return from his lower-back injury this week and right the ship against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Questions We Still Have:
Are the Jets Still Trying to Tank?
Nobody expected the Jets to have a winning record this season, especially five weeks into the campaign, but here they are at 3-2. A three game win-streak has the Jets above .500, which takes head coach Todd Bowles off the hot-seat for now, but at what point do the Jets commit to the tank? The offense is not getting any younger with Matt Forte and Bilal Powell in the backfield, and the team still does not have a franchise starting quarterback. New York shows a little more promise on defense with rookie Jamal Adams looking better each week and 2016 first-round pick Darron Lee stepping up as the team’s second leading tackler. A tougher schedule awaits the Jets, so it does not seem likely they stay near the top of the AFC East.
Can Alex Smith Maintain His MVP Caliber Play?
The Kansas City Chiefs are the last remaining undefeated team in the NFL, led by Alex Smith and the explosive Chiefs offense. Smith has the Chiefs leading the NFL with 32.8 points per game and leads the league with a 125.8 passer rating thus far. Rookie sensation Kareem Hunt has taken the load off of Alex Smith thanks to his league leading 609 yards rushing, and has proven to be valuable in the passing game, amounting 166 yards through the air. The threat of Hunt has opened up lanes for guys like Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill, making Smith appear like a methodical surgeon cutting of defenses week after week. With Pittsburgh and Oakland coming up, Alex Smith could continue to tear up the NFL and maintain the best year of his career so far.
Where Do The Giants Go From Here?
Playoff expectations were in-the-air when the 2017 season began, but fast-forward to October and the New York Giants are still looking for their first win of the season. To make things worse, arguably their best player, Odell Beckham Jr. has a fractured ankle and will miss the rest of 2017. Their wide-receiving core suffered an even worse fate Sunday, also losing Dwayne Harris for the year with a fractured ankle, and receivers Sterling Shepard and Brandon Marshall leaving the game with lower-body injuries. The woes are not strictly on the offensive side of the ball as the Giants defense has dropped from the second-best scoring defense in 2016 to 26th thus far in 2017. New York has made minimal changes to right the ship thus far, but perhaps a good start could be finding Eli Manning’s successor as it appears his Super Bowl winning days are behind him.
Stay tuned for Week 6 in the NFL and MLB Playoff updates this week.
View From The Bench 