The NFL Roundup - Week 4

It already seems like the 2015 NFL regular season is flying by because guess what? Week 4 is already upon us. Yes the quarter mark for the season has arrived and at this point you would think everyone is settling into routines, but that's simply not the case. Each team can still surprise and some are facing some incredible challenges as they all fight for a shot at the Lombardi Trophy. Clearly every team still has a story to tell and here are some of the stories to watch four as Week 4 kicks off tonight. 

How will the Chicago Bears respond on the field in the middle of a fire sale?
It's no secret that John Fox and the Bears organization as a whole are beginning to dump players left and right for cap reasons, performance reasons, the list goes on and on. But how will the players respond to all of this? After all often times a fire sale means the team has considered giving up on the season and to see it in Week 4 has to be a little scary for Bears fans who were hoping for more. The players could see this as giving up and do the same or they could start fighting for their jobs to ensure that they either land on another team that wants them...or maybe Chicago starts winning some games in exciting fashion. Guess we will see.

The Quarterback Controversy in Cleveland is now underway. 
TMZ broke the report this week that several players for the Browns are severely upset with the fact that the team is starting Josh McCown over Johnny Manziel. Granted the obligatory denials came from other players as well, but no doubt the controversy is brewing inside that locker room. It's no surprise to see more dysfunction coming from Ohio, after all their GM is finishing up his four game suspension for texting down to the coaching staff what plays HE wanted to see, but there is a genuine problem on their hands for sure. Manziel has actually cleaned up his life and his game play clearly since well...he's looked pretty good under center. McCown looked so so in preseason and was out quick in week one and so so once again in his week 3 return. At this point, Browns fans need something and when you're already 1-2...why not give the kid a shot and see what he can do with it? If he sucks you can move on, if he's the hero...coaching jobs are saved. This will be a story to keep an eye on.

It may be an ugly game in New Orleans this week. 
It is quite possible the battle of the backups will be underway in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome this weekend when the Cowboys take on the Saints. As of press time Drew Brees still isn't cleared to play and Brandon Weeden is the incumbent starter for Dallas and for football fans, this could be one stinker of a game. Neither QB did much of anything last week on the field and barring some football miracle, I don't see that happening this week either to be honest. Expect a lot of running, expect a lot of incomplete passes and for the die hard fans watching, hopefully something special happens so that you can tell the tale of how all of us doubters were wrong. 

When will the Miami Dolphins finally get it together? 
The Dolphins were supposed to be stellar on defense by adding Ndamukong Suh to the lineup. He's not had a sack in three weeks. They handed QB Ryan Tannehill a massive top tier contract, committing the franchise to him for years in fact...only to get a pretty pedestrian performance as well and to top it off the team is 1-2 heading into their contest with the Jets. The whole football world is watching and waiting for Miami to live up to the hype...but when will they? It's a question I keep asking myself week after week and I just don't have an answer. Really it comes down to Joe Philbin, as the coach he has to get this team going and whether he likes it or not, he has to do it soon...or it's time for another new regime in Miami.


Will the Ravens finally find a win? 
As week four starts Thursday night it will be hard not to focus on the remaining undefeated teams left in the NFL. It’s also hard not to notice Baltimore has yet to win a game as they visit Pittsburgh (2-1) for what could be one of the roughest games for both teams. Recovering from a deficit of 0-4 isn’t unheard of but given the Ravens' division this could be the beginning of the end for them. This might be there one chance to keep it tight within the division as the Steelers take to the field light one Ben Roethlisberger who is expected to miss up to 4 to 6 weeks from his knee injury. The Steelers will be putting Michael Vick to fill the void who had a less than stellar year with the Jets last season and has a very different style under center then Ben. Both teams are looking at a must win so as not to lose any more footing in the division but I feel that the Ravens are going to take advantage of this better with an unsure Vick and by overpowering the front line. Vick has said it’s not just up to him to with this game, something new from him but I have a feeling if put under pressure we will see the old Vick try and take control. This will be the best chance for the Ravens to beat the Steelers let alone at home this season. 

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OUR PICKS OF THE WEEK

John's Picks
Minnesota Vikings at Denver Broncos - Denver
St. Louis Rams at Arizona Cardinals - Arizona
Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Redskins - Washington
Oakland Raiders at Chicago Bears - Oakland
New York Jets at Miami Dolphins - New York

Scotty's Picks
Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers - Pittsburgh
Cleveland Browns at San Diego Chargers - San Diego
Jacksonville Jaguars at Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis
Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Carolina 
New York Giants at Buffalo Bills - Buffalo! Sexy Rexy! That's all I've got to say.

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