NFL Winners and Losers: Eagles are 4-0 and they're far from playing their best yet

Last season when the Philadelphia Eagles left Tampa Bay, they looked broken. In the calendar year that has passed since then, they’re 20-1.

The Eagles haven’t always been great to start this season but they’ve been good enough to go 4-0. Facing a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that was 3-0 coming in, the Eagles dominated the first half. Jalen Hurts started 10 of 11 for 98 yards as the Eagles built a 21-3 lead over a team that is a clear favorite to win its division. Last season the Buccaneers beat Philadelphia 33-16 and it seemed like a continuation of the previous season, when the Eagles faded hard down the stretch. Philadelphia has been the NFL’s best team since then.

The special teams, which sealed the win over the Rams last week with a blocked field goal as time expired, got the scoring going with a blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown. The Eagles decided to be more pass heavy than normal against a top-ranked run defense anchored by Vita Vea, and Hurts threw two touchdown passes to tight end Dallas Goedert. Then in the third quarter, the Eagles faked a tush push and Barkley scored on an easy outside run. The defense kept the Buccaneers out of the end zone in the first half as they built a 24-6 halftime lead.

Then the Eagles let up. There were big Tampa Bay touchdown passes to Emeka Egbuka and Bucky Irving. The offense completely stalled. But when the Eagles needed one stop to win the game, they got it. A big sack of Baker Mayfield on second down practically put the Buccaneers away. The Eagles held on to win 31-25.

The Eagles being 4-0 is scary because they’ve yet to play their best game. The offense has been up and down, though we saw in the first half that it is capable of being very good when the passing game is clicking. The defense let the Buccaneers back in the game on Sunday, and last week was pushed around in the first half by the Rams. The Eagles have rallied to do just enough to win each game, though there has also been enough issues to keep Philly sports talk radio busy.

And Philadelphia should get better. The Eagles already have good wins against the Chiefs, Rams and Buccaneers, who are all considered playoff caliber teams. They’re 4-0 despite not playing their best. And if they repeat what they did last season after visiting Tampa Bay, they’ll start to peak in the weeks ahead. That’s a scary thought for the rest of the NFL.

Here are the rest of the winners and losers from Week 4 of the NFL season:

WINNERS

Michael Penix Jr.: Being a young quarterback in the NFL means every week is a referendum on whether you can be a franchise player. Ask Penix.

Penix was a big topic this week after the Falcons were shut out by the Panthers last week. Penix looked terrible. There were questions about whether Kirk Cousins would get a shot.

Those questions won’t be asked this week. Penix was very good in a 34-27 win over the Washington Commanders. Penix threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns as the Falcons were comfortably ahead for plenty of the game. Penix looked like a completely different player than he did last week. But he’s a bad game from the roller coaster going back down again. That’s life for a second-year quarterback.

James Cook: Cook asked for a raise this offseason, wanting to be paid like one of the top backs in the NFL. He got a raise, and has probably already outplayed his new salary.

Cook had another big game as the Bills got a tougher-than-expected 31-19 win over the New Orleans Saints. Cook had 117 rushing yards and a touchdown. The Bills have had consecutive game against the Dolphins and Saints, so some sleepwalking through those isn’t too surprising. But the Bills are 4-0, and Cook is a huge reason for that.

The Bills needed some players to rise up and take pressure of Josh Allen, who can carry a team when needed and is often asked to do so. If Cook continues to play like one of the best backs in the NFL — he was very productive last season but has gone to another level so far this season — it will be harder than ever to stop Buffalo’s offense.

Payton Wilson: Jordan Addison should not be tracked down by many defensive players. Definitely not many linebackers.

Wilson made a phenomenal play and it might have saved a win for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The second-year Steelers linebacker didn’t give up on a play in the fourth quarter after Addison, the Minnesota Vikings’ 2024 first-round pick, got behind the defense and seemed to have an 82-yard touchdown. He got just 81 yards due to Wilson sprinting downfield and tripping Addison up.

The Vikings scored but it took valuable time off the clock. Addison was tackled with a little more than 3:10 left. The Vikings scored with 2:08 left in the game. Perhaps, with another minute to work with on their final possession, the Vikings could have tied the game or won it. Instead, the Steelers defense held and they got a 24-21 win in the first NFL game at Ireland. Pittsburgh improved to 3-1 with the win.

Wilson’s hustle play will get him plenty of respect from Steelers fans, and the Steelers themselves as well.

New York Giants: But …

LOSERS

New York Giants: Giants fans had a heck of a ride on Sunday. Jaxson Dart started and immediately showed the playmaking that made him a star of the preseason. To see a first-round quarterback play like that is exciting. The Giants finally have something to get excited about. For a little while.

The Giants can’t seem to have nice things. The 21-18 win over the Los Angeles Chargers was overshadowed by one of the big key injuries of the early NFL season, when Malik Nabers’ knee buckled as he jumped for a deep pass. Losing Nabers, the team’s 2024 first-round pick who is already one of the league’s most dynamic players, is devastating.

It was a weird day for Giants fans. They got a big upset win with their quarterback of the future leading the way. But they couldn’t fully celebrate.

Panthers defense: How bad was the Atlanta Falcons’ offense last week?

The Panthers somehow shut out the Falcons last week. In Carolina’s other three games the defense has practically been as bad as last season when they allowed the most points for a season in NFL history. The Patriots, who had not played well through three weeks, destroyed the Panthers 42-13 on Sunday. The Panthers took a 6-0 lead and then nothing went right. The Panthers’ special teams allowed an 87-yard punt return touchdown, the offense did almost nothing with Bryce Young not creating much and the defense got worked by Drake Maye. Maye had two passing touchdowns and another one rushing. He won’t be the last offensive player to have a big game against Carolina this season.

Joe Flacco: The Browns benching Flacco this season was a question of when, not if. And it might come pretty soon.

Flacco wasn’t good as the Browns got blown out by the Detroit Lions 34-10. Flacco didn’t play well. He completed 16 of 34 passes for just 184 yards and threw two interceptions. There will start to be questions about when rookie Dillon Gabriel will get a shot. It seems unlikely it will happen in Week 5, when the Browns play a tough Vikings defense in London. And maybe it won’t happen the next week, when Cleveland plays at the Steelers. But it doesn’t seem like it will be too long before the Browns see what Gabriel can do.

Brian Callahan: Callahan gave up play-calling duties this week. So, what would you say you do here?

The Tennessee Titans might be asking that soon. The Titans are somehow even worse than last season when they went 3-14. They’re 0-4, which brings Callahan’s record to 3-18 as their coach. Cam Ward was brought in as an upgrade at quarterback, but he hasn’t done much and the Titans were shut out 26-0 by the Houston Texans on Sunday. It was ugly all around, and especially for the offense. It’s hard to know if the significant offensive issues are due to Ward or the coaching around him. It’s not like changing play callers helped.

There have been no signs of progress from the Titans since Callahan was hired. It might not be long before Tennessee considers a change.

NFL Winners and Losers: Eagles are 4-0 and they’re far from playing their best yet

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