It’s your last chance to get caught up on the happenings at PFF before the next slate of games is upon us and our new ‘PFF Week’ posts provide quick access to the week that was. The ‘Down South’ edition covers all things pertaining to the AFC and NFC South divisions for a one-stop Saturday shop built to keep you in the loop and on top of your football-watching game.
Week 3 Wrap
One of the better examples of the phrase “Any team can win on any given Sunday in the NFL” came last week with the teams in the AFC and NFC South. Virtually every given scenario occurred with these eight teams. The Panthers crushed the Giants' spirits while the Falcons gave up a late fourth quarter come-from-behind drive in a loss to Miami. The effects of the Bucs' loss to New England went beyond the field as it cost a quarterback his job and firmly put a head coach on the hot seat. The Saints were on the other end of the spectrum as they shattered the Cardinals, proving how valuable quality coaching is to a team.
In the AFC South, the Texans experienced how “mighty mo” shifts in a game can hand a team a loss as they gave up a special teams and defense scores for touchdowns. Indianapolis pulled off its own stunning win by upsetting the 49ers on the road while the Titans behind Jake Locker had their own comeback win against the Chargers. The Jaguars…well, even their diehard fans saw that one coming.
Looking to catch up on what you missed with your AFC/NFC South teams? Here are the ReFocused articles last week’s games:
Tampa Bay at New England | Arizona at New Orleans | NY Giants at Carolina | Atlanta at Miami
San Diego at Tennessee | Houston at Baltimore | Indianapolis at San Francisco | Jacksonville at Seattle
PFF analysis doesn’t just stop with the games themselves. The big picture has to be looked at which includes Khaled Elsayed’s PFF Team of the Week and his “Had a Bad Day” Team as well. Find out any of the rookies from these eight teams manage to place in the Race for Rookie of the Year and be pleased to find that three have made the cut. A more focused breakdown of just the First-Rounders after three weeks is also available along with an NFC South player making a mark on the Secret Superstars. Had enough quality analysis yet? No, no you haven’t, which is why you can also take a peek at Nathan Jahnke’s 32 Observations which gives you an interesting mark to enjoy on each team in the league.
Looking to Week 4
Now that we’ve all had time to catch our collective breath after last weekend’s games it's time for the next set of matchups. Will the Bucs rally around the change at quarterback or is their 2013 season truly scuttled? Do the Colts carry their momentum from the 49ers win forward or will they fall into a trap game at Jacksonville? Will the Texans finally live up to their talent level after three games or will they get bullied about in their own stadium by the Seahawks. Can the Falcons overcome their injuries especially at linebacker to counter the Patriots on Sunday Night Football? Will the Saints continue their impressive turnaround from 2012 with a win over the Dolphins on Monday Night Football? PFF’s Three to Focus On series for these games gives you talking points that many fans haven’t considered. Give them a look and impress your friends at gametime.
Arizona at Tampa Bay | New England at Atlanta | Miami at New Orleans
Indianapolis at Jacksonville | NY Jets at Tennessee | Baltimore at Buffalo
Want to know how your favorite team stacks up as a whole against other teams in the NFL in the eyes of the PFF analysts? Then take a glance at the PFF Power Rankings and see. While one team out of the eight teams from the South is near the top there is a pretty decent spread of thought for the rest of the teams of where they should be except for one as the Jaguars rest comfortably at the bottom. Also available for your perusal is the PFF Pick’em: Week 4 where they are an impressive 17-3 on games with a consensus call.
Additionally
• Continuous improvement is a fundamental theme here at PFF as new and relevant content is delivered with the addition of PFF’s coverage of special teams in a series called The Third Phase.
• In this week’s Palazzolo’s Pitch: The League Gets Smaller, Steve covers how the shift in body types on defense has brought about a change in schemes and the players needed to fill them.
• Peter Damilatis has his Injury Report: Next Man Up, Week 4 which fills you in on the key players that have to step up in the face of adversity.
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