Welcome back to week 3 of the Sunday Circle, your home for NFL weekly recaps as well as a player who may have broken out and a player you might need to worry about. 

Packers 30, 49ers 28

You simply can’t leave Aaron Rodgers time. San Fran took the lead with 37 seconds left and the Packers had no timeouts. But they made the critical mistake of not covering Davante Adams on the final drive of the game. Rodgers looked Surgical on the last drive to set up a game-winning 51 yard Mason Crosby field goal. The Packers makeshift O-line missing their top 2 guys and let up only one sack against a very formidable Niners pass rush. The Niners shouldn’t take much from this loss. They should still be fine. Although the packers ability to keep Rodgers clean should scare NFC opponents for when they’re back healthy.

Ravens 19, Lions 17

There is really only one reason to cover this game. Justin Tucker is the greatest kicker of all time and he proved it week 3 by hitting a 66-yard field goal to win the game in Detroit. 2 yards further than the previous record, and the first one not in Denver since Tom Dempsey hit a 63 yarder in 1970.

Chargers 30, Chiefs 24

Are the Chiefs in trouble? Probably not but it is fun to speculate now that they have fallen to 1-2. Turning the ball over has been a massive issue for Kansas City adding 4 more turnovers to their total. Mahomes didn’t look very clean and was outplayed by Herbert. The Chargers looked good capitalizing on Chiefs turnovers. Mike Williams has looked like a star all year garnering double-digit targets in almost every game this year. They are going to have to find a consistent running game as I do not think Ekeler is a back that can handle an RB1 workload. A great win for LA, and a rough week for Kansas City. It looks like they’re going to have to clean up their offense before it’s too late.

Raiders 31, Dolphins 28

Just like everyone expected this year the Raiders are 3-0 and sit atop the AFC West. Derek Carr has looked great this year throwing for over 400 yards a game. The dolphins looked good in their first full game without Tua. Jacoby Brissett throwing almost 50 times was probably not what Miami wants to do every week, but their defense came up with a big touchdown that kept them in the game. I think the Raiders might have a chance to be something this year if Carr can keep it up. The AFC West is going to be a tough division this year.

Rams 34, Buccaneers 24 

The Rams are the best team in football right now as Stafford continues his MVP campaign. Their defense stifled the Buccs running game and Tom Brady ended up being Tampa’s leading rusher with 14 yards all game. Forcing Tampa to become one-dimensional is how you beat them, and the Rams did exactly that. Tampa in all honesty is fine. Brady threw for over 400 yards they just went up against a buzzsaw right now in LA. 

Player that might’ve broken out – Mike Gesicki (Miami)

Ok, full disclosure I’ve loved Mike Gesicki since he was at Penn State, but I really do think he might have broken out this week. He was never able to find a rhythm with Tua, but with Brissett he became the number one weapon on the team getting 12 targets against Vegas. That’s more targets than he had in two weeks with Tua at the helm. Now, this could be because Miami threw the ball 49 times, but it sure seemed like Brissett loves Gesicki, and it would make sense. Jack Doyle made a pro bowl in Brissett’s only year as a full time starter in Indianapolis.

Player to be concerned about – Ben Roethlisberger (Pittsburgh)

It’s starting to look like the end for Big Ben. He has no mobility, does not seem to have any confidence in his deep ball, and is checking the ball down a lot. Najee Harris had 19 targets in week 3. This isn’t really a hot take. Big Ben hasn’t looked great in a while but he looked brutal against Cincinnati throwing 2 bad interceptions. Hopefully he can turn it around week 4 in Green Bay, but I see this being a long year for the Yinzers in Pittsburgh.