NFL Week 4: Decision day

There's plenty of praise, and blame, to go around after Sunday's action.

The NFL always keeps us on our toes. Just when we think we have a player or team figured out, they look completely different the following week. 

Although there weren’t any major upsets in Week 4 like there were in Week 3, this Sunday still provided a few surprises and competitive matchups that came down to the wire. One single decision or play by itself doesn’t determine the outcome of a game, but those moments can affect the result in ways both big and small. 

For this newsletter, I picked out some of the best and worst decisions — that happened both in game and elsewhere — that caught my attention this weekend.

Good decision: Josh Allen quickly moved on from the Bills’ Week 1 loss

Just a few weeks ago, Josh Allen was distraught. It was right after the first Monday Night Football of the season, when the Jets had come back, in improbable fashion, to beat the Bills in overtime. Allen, who had turned the ball over four times, pointed the finger squarely at himself.

It was far from a promising start to the season, but credit to Allen: He didn’t dwell on his mistakes. Instead, he bounced back quickly with an efficient, turnover-free game against the Raiders. The Bills won easily, as they did the following week against the Commanders. 

The Dolphins presented a bigger challenger, however, considering they had just racked up 70 points and 700+ yards in Week 3. Yet while the Buffalo defense — still without Von Miller! — harassed Tua Tagovailoa all afternoon, Allen lit up Miami’s defense. He totaled 320 yards on 21-of-25 passing with four touchdowns, zero interceptions, and a perfect passer rating. Allen also ran in another score to cap off the best game of his career, and one that likely vaulted him to the front of the MVP race.

Bad decision: Pretty much everything Mac Jones did against the Cowboys

Let’s stay in the AFC East, where a different quarterback stumbled to the worst game of his career. Mac Jones hasn’t put up great numbers this season, but he was coming off his top EPA rate (Expected Points Added per dropback) of the year, which came against the Jets’ tough defense.

I don’t know if Jones was simply “off” all afternoon or if the Dallas defense felt that it needed to prove something after the Cowboys’ surprising loss to the Cardinals a week ago. Either way, Jones will want to take the Josh Allen approach and forget about Week 4 posthaste. 

Jones’ first drive in AT&T Stadium was mostly fine: he led the Patriots to a field goal (which ended up being their only points all day). Things began to unravel on the next drive, though.

On fourth-and-1 at the Dallas 41-yard line, New England decided to let Jones — who is definitely not Jalen Hurts — keep the ball to try to pick up the first down. It did not work. On the Pats’ next possession, Jones fumbled the ball, which was then scooped up by Leighton Vander Esch for a touchdown. Two drives later, Jones threw an ill-advised pass across his body that turned into a DaRon Bland pick-six. Two drives after that, Jones was intercepted by Bland again. 

After one more three-and-out, Bill Belichick — who was headed for the biggest loss of his entire career, and remember that he coached the Browns! — benched Jones for Bailey Zappe, a move that is not permanent. But that could change if Jones doesn’t follow team captain Matthew Slater’s sage advice: “Hit the reset, move forward. You’ve got to flush it.”

Good decision: Most of what Justin Fields and Zach Wilson did (until the end)

On Sunday, two of the most maligned starting quarterbacks in the league right now came alive and reminded us all of why they were first-round picks a few years ago. Then, that ray of hope was cruelly extinguished.

We’ll mostly focus on the positives here. First up was Justin Fields, who was dealing early for the Bears. Fields set a franchise record with 16 straight completions in the first half, a streak that only ended because of a Hail Mary attempt right before halftime. He even wrapped up Sunday as Week 4’s leading passer in the NFL, with 335 yards (his first 300+yard game) and a career-high four touchdowns. 

For three glorious quarters, almost everything was going right for Chicago’s offense. The Bears brought back play action, Fields showed nice touch on his passes, and his receivers made an honest-to-god effort. (Never mind that this came against the Broncos’ historically awful defense. It’s still progress!)

But then the Bears collapsed. The defense couldn’t get a stop. The offensive line left a pass rusher unblocked and Fields was stripped for what became a defensive touchdown. And then Matt Eberflus elected to go for it on fourth-and-1 rather than kick a field goal in a tie game, and he took the ball out of Fields’ hands when, earlier in the drive, the QB had scrambled for a 20-yard gain on third down. Khalil Herbert failed to get the first down, the Broncos hit a field goal, and a late Fields pick sealed the game, tied for the biggest blown loss in Bears history. 

It was a devastating ending for what had been a performance that Fields needed. He couldn’t make a play when it mattered most, but his coaches and defense let him down more than anything. 

Speaking of gut punches, Zach Wilson’s Sunday night was a roller coaster (really, his entire season). After Jets legend Joe Namath dumped all over Wilson earlier in the week, the current Jets quarterback promised he’d try to prove his doubters wrong against the reigning Super Bowl champs in what was surely one of the most-watched sporting events of the year. 

Props to Wilson, who was not fazed by a quick 17-0 deficit, because he was playing out of his mind against the Chiefs. Wilson completed nearly 72 percent of his passes for 245 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions, and a career-high 105.2 passer rating. He spread the ball around to 10 different receivers and was throwing on a rope. He also ran in a game-tying two-point conversion. For most of the evening, he outplayed Patrick Mahomes. Until the end, that is. 

With KC holding a three-point lead in the fourth quarter, Wilson directed the Jets to midfield and ended up fumbling a snap, which the Chiefs recovered. The Jets never got the ball back, for reasons unrelated to Wilson, who still took the blame for the loss in such a heartbreaking way. 

Thankfully, Wilson’s teammates and coach had his back, and he was praised afterward by Chiefs players. Maybe he can build off this otherwise impressive outing next week when the Jets face … ooh, the Broncos. 

Good decision: Patrick Mahomes slid in bounds

The Chiefs were able to secure the win over the Jets by running out the last 7:24 left in the game (with a little help from the officiating). The home team could’ve gotten the ball back once more if Mahomes had scrambled all the way to the end zone on third-and-8. Instead, he picked up the first down and stayed in bounds, a smart decision on a night when Mahomes made several baffling ones.  

Bad decision: Asante Samuel Jr. slid in bounds

On the one hand, the Chargers have managed to close out their last two games unlike their first two — they could easily be 4-0 or 0-4 instead of their current 2-2 record. On the other hand, they don’t have to make it so difficult for themselves every single week. 

This time, they let a 24-7 halftime lead shrink to 24-17 against a backup rookie quarterback making his first start. And that was even with Khalil Mack acting as a one-man wrecking crew against his former team, to the tune of six sacks (yes, you read that right), five TFL, four QB hits, two forced fumbles, and a pass defended.

The Raiders even had a chance to tie the game with three minutes remaining because for the second week in a row, Brandon Staley chose to go for it on fourth-and-1 deep in Chargers territory and his offense came up short. Vegas already had good field position to start the drive and quickly got into the red zone thanks to Davante Adams’ fourth-down gymnastics. 

Luckily for the Chargers, Asante Samuel Jr. was there to pick off Aidan O’Connell on the ensuing play¹. Unluckily for the Chargers, Samuel slid rather than try to run it back for more yardage and a possible pick-six. So with 2:33 left at their own 11-yard line, an injured Justin Herbert and Co. had to try to run out the clock or risk the Raiders getting another shot to tie things up. Luckily again for the Chargers, Herbert’s “flesh wound” didn’t stop him from throwing a dime on third-and-10 to ice the game.

And at least it was a valuable learning experience for Samuel. 

Good decision: The Texans remembering their fans

It’s been a rough few years for Texans fans, who haven’t had much to celebrate since January 2020, when they rallied to beat the Bills in the playoffs. Their fortunes started to change earlier this year, first when they hired former Texans captain DeMeco Ryans as their new head coach and then again when they aced the draft, headlined by first-rounders C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr.

I thought the Texans would be better than their projections but would still require patience from their supporters. But a month into the season, Houston is further along than I believed it would be. The Texans have noticeably improved each week, a claim that no other team but the Bills can make right now. 

On Sunday, the Texans gave the rollicking home crowd, which welcomed J.J. Watt into the Ring of Honor, something to cheer about on the field. Stroud was not sacked once, despite his third-string offensive line facing T.J. Watt. The rookie’s ball placement was precise as usual as he carved up the Steelers with 302 yards passing, two touchdowns, and zero turnovers. 

The Texans skated to a 30-6 win, their first in Houston since December 2021. Stroud knew exactly how long the fans had waited to bask in a home victory and had a message that I’m sure was music to their ears: "Y'all deserve to feel special.”

Isn’t that what every fanbase wants to hear?

Bad decision: The Vikings can’t stop turning the ball over at the goal line

The Vikings earned their first win of 2023 in spite of a problem that has continued to plague them all season: turnovers. 

Specifically, turnovers in the red zone. Because while Minnesota has coughed it up a league-leading 11 times this season, four of them have happened at the goal line, one in each game. 

This week, Kirk Cousins’ pick-six put the Vikings in an early hole. They were able to claw out of it, however, unlike in their three losses. But maybe that’s because they were playing the still-winless Panthers. As they saw in the first three weeks, those are the kind of wasted opportunities that haunt you against better opponents.

1. Not a good playcall, Josh McDaniels!