NFL Takeaways Through Week 6
BUCCANEERS HAVE A GOOD CHANCE TO REPEAT
It’s incredible to think that 44 year old QB Tom brady is playing some of the best football of his career but it certainly looks that way through 6 weeks. The defending Superbowl champions are one of the best teams in the NFC and have one of the top 3 offenses averaging over 32 points per game to pair with a decent defense led by veterans Shaq Barrett and Jason Pierre Paul. If Tampa Bay can figure out their defense and continue to dominate on the offensive side of the ball, there is no reason to believe they couldn’t repeat as Superbowl champs.
CARDINALS CONTINUE UNDEFEATED streak
Arizona continues to lead the way in the NFL as the leagues only remaining undefeated team and they continue to impress week by week. The Cardinals recently traded for former Pro Bowl TE Zach Ertz from the Eagles in a trade that should not only be beneficial for the Cardinals offense but add another weapon for QB Kyler Murray. Not only will the Cardinals get better, but the progression of Murray has been a great sight to see and should make Arizona a legit contender in the NFC.
DAK PRESCOTT FOR COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR……AND MVP
Dallas suffered one of the biggest losses in the beginning of their 2020 season when star QB Dak Prescott suffered a season ending ankle injury. While medicine has come a long way over the last decade, severe leg injuries are always something to monitor for any athlete, but especially a team’s star QB who is known for using his legs to make plays. Since his return to the field, one could argue that Prescott is playing the best football of his young career since his rookie year. So far through 6 weeks, Prescott is top 5 amongst all QBs in yards, completion % and touchdowns and is currently the leader in the clubhouse for comeback player of the year and should be in contention for MVP considering the rise of the Cowboys this season.
COWBOYS HAVE A FUTURE STAR ON DEFENSE
Out of all the second year players who could make a jump in 2021, no sophomore has lit the NFL on fire more than Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs. Diggs is leading the league in interceptions with 7 which is more than double the second player on the list and not to mention a couple of those picks resulted in touchdowns. Dallas has been looking for a quality CB since the departure of Byron Jones and it seems like they have a future pro bowler in Diggs who will be in conversation for defensive player of the year when its all said and done.
GRUDEN WILL NOT BE THE ONLY Head coach REPLACED
Former HC Jon Gruden was the headline of every sports news station for the last few weeks after the news of him sending derogatory emails that led to his eventual resignation from the Las Vegas Raiders. Even though Gruden was the first HC gone from the NFL this season, he will certainly not be the last. Most of the time there are 4 or 5 teams that fire their HC for various reasons and this year should be no different. Here are the HCs that I believe have the hottest seats who have the greatest chance of either resigning or being terminated from their current team:
- Urban Meyer- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Matt Nagy- Chicago Bears
- Mike Zimmer- Minnesota Vikings
- Vic Fangio- Denver Broncos
- Joe Judge- New York Giants
Of the 5 HCs listed above, the 3 that I believe will be gone by the end of the season are Urban Meyer, Matt Nagy and Joe Judge. Meyer had some negative press come his way this season and with the team starting 1-5 its not hard to why he might choose to move on after only one season. Matt Nagy has had success in Chicago but its apparent his tenure with the Bears is on thin ice and could crack if they continue to post poor offensive performances this season. Unlike the two HCs mentioned above, Joe Judge is an interesting one because while the Giants haven’t been terrible, they haven’t been great either and the Judge hire has always been a weird one to me from the beginning. Maybe the Giants ownership and management team give Judge another year but it would be surprising to me if they chose to go in a different direction following this season. It will certainly be an interesting story to monitor if more coaches get on the hot seat or maybe their seat cools down from good performances, only time will tell.