Alex Frank | Sports Director Zach Fries | Staff Reporter Joe Petrosino | Staff Reporter
Ethan Bastian | Staff Reporter Sean McMahon | Staff Reporter
Could the first three weeks of the NFL season have been any wilder?
How wild has it been? The Cleveland Browns currently have a better record than the New England Patriots. Yes, you read that correctly.
Week three was tough for all of us.
None of us expected the Buffalo Bills to go into Minnesota and not just beat but dominate the Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions to make Tom Brady and the New England Patriots to look flat out pathetic.
Here are the updated standings in the #BattlefortheBoathouse and our week four picks.
The broadcasters for the games are in parantheses.
- Alex, Zach and Joe: 10-8 Sean: 9-9 5. Ethan: 6-12
Thursday
Minnesota Vikings @ Los Angeles Rams – 8:20 E.T. on FOX and NFL Network (Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews, Kristina Pink)
Alex: Rams 41 Vikings 37 Zach: Rams 27 Vikings 21 Joe: Rams 27 Vikings 24
Ethan: Rams 35 Vikings 31 Sean: Rams Vikings 16
Zach: Coming off a surprising home loss to Buffalo, Minnesota will look to show everyone that it was a fluke. Minnesota has talent defensively, as they are led by safety Harrison Smith and corner back Xavier Rhodes. They will be tested, however, by the explosive Rams offense led by quarterback Jared Goff and running back Todd Gurley. I think Minnesota will play much better, but the Rams have too many weapons on offense.
Joe: I have been looking forward to this game all week with two of the top teams in the league, with probably the two best defenses as well. The Vikings are coming off an embarrassing loss to the Bills last week in a game nobody gave the Bills a chance. That being said, I like the dynamic offense of the Rams and their ability to make big plays to come through for them tonight in what should be the game of the week.
Sunday
Detroit Lions @ Dallas Cowboys – 1 p.m. on FOX (Kevin Burkhardt, Charles Davis, Pam Oliver)
Alex: Lions 30 Cowboys 20 Zach: Lions 31 Cowboys 27 Joe: Lions 35 Cowboys 27
Ethan: Cowboys 24 Lions 21 Sean: Lions 24 Cowboys 20
Zach: Two 1-2 teams square off in a pivotal matchup in Jerry World. The Lions are fresh off a much-needed win versus New England. The Cowboys are coming off a dreadful performance at Seattle. I expect both offenses to come alive, but Matt Stafford has too many playmakers on offense. The Lions win a close one.
New Orleans Saints @ New York Giants – 4:25 p.m. on CBS (Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson)
Alex: Saints 31 Giants 24 Zach: Saints 28 Giants 20 Joe: Giants 33 Cowboys 28
Ethan: Saints 34 Giants 21 Sean: Giants 32 Saints 24
Ethan: Coming off a shoot-out in last week’s showdown in Atlanta, the Saints should be both encouraged and discouraged. On the bright side, they have a great offense like always with Drew Brees and Michael Thomas looking unstoppable, but on the down side the defense can’t stop a bloody nose right now which has been an Achilles heel for many years. Fortunately for them, they play a Giants team with a bad O-line and not much offensive production in three games, so I’m rolling with the Saints.
Baltimore Ravens @ Pittsburgh Steelers – 8:20 p.m. on NBC (Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya)
Alex: Steelers 37 Ravens 21 Zach: Steelers 24 Ravens 19 Joe: Steelers 24 Ravens 17
Ethan: Steelers 27 Ravens 24 Sean: Ravens 28 Steelers 25
Alex: America’s Game of the Week for week four features one of the NFL’s fiercest rivalries that has produced several close games over the years. Several AFC North titles have also been decided by this meeting, and a Bengals loss today at Atlanta would make this game a battle for first place. The Steelers have had their struggles and drama this season, particularly on defense. Last week at Tampa Bay, though, they intercepted Ryan Fitzpatrick three times in the first half and also forced a fumble. Playing at home, I think they slow down the Ravens offense and Ben Roethlisberger continues what has been a really good start to the season for the 15th-year veteran.
Monday
Kansas City Chiefs @ Denver Broncos – 8:15 p.m. on ESPN (Joe Tessitore, Jason Witten, Booger McFarland, Lisa Salters)
Alex: Chiefs 34 Broncos 24 Zach: Chiefs 33 Broncos 23 Joe: Broncos 35 Chiefs 31
Ethan: Chiefs 42 Broncos 30 Sean: Chiefs 24 Broncos 16
Sean: The Chiefs have been playing really well so far in the season. They are one of only two teams still undefeated in the AFC. However, the Broncos are second in the AFC West behind, you guessed it, the Chiefs. This will definitely be a shoot-out but I see the Chiefs coming out on top and moving to 4-0.