It’s time to check in on the teams that can’t get out of their own way. The first few weeks of the 2022 NFL season have been somewhat unpredictable, but there are always a few teams we expect to disappoint their fan base. Now let’s get into the powerless ranking for Week 5.
Teams on the doorstep: Detroit Lions, New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts
Houston got its first win of the ‘22 campaign, making the Texans the last team in the NFL to jump into the win column. It wasn’t pretty, but when it’s your first of the year, it doesn’t matter. Houston outlasted Jacksonville, 13-6, on the back of running back Dameon Pierce, rushing for 99 yards and the go-ahead TD in the fourth quarter.
Davis Mills did just enough by not committing any turnovers, although he passed for only 140 yards. The Texans won this game on the ground and forced two Trevor Lawrence interceptions with their defense. This will probably be one of the few bright spots for Houston this year, as it’s hard to see the Texans winning more than four games this season.
The Raiders were up big, and before you knew it, they were in a battle with the Chiefs, who roared back from a 17-point deficit to win 30-29. Even when the Raiders were up 17-0 less than halfway through the second quarter, it never felt like the Chiefs were out of this game.
By halftime, Kansas City had cut the lead to 20-10, and the momentum felt like it’d changed considerably. Travis Kelce was on fire in this game, catching four TDs from Mahomes. Kelce had one of the craziest receiving stat lines you’ll ever see in this game. He caught seven balls, four of those TDs, and just 25 yards receiving. That’s the definition of maximizing your opportunities.
Kelce did the opposite of what Las Vegas has done all year, as they’ve essentially been in every game they’ve played but only come away with one victory thus far. If someone would’ve told Josh McDaniels his tenure as Raiders head coach would start off 1-4, he probably would have laughed out loud. But here we are in the middle of October, and Las Vegas is among the worst teams in the league.
Indeed, they aren’t as bad as their record indicates, but Bill Parcells would undoubtedly tell you otherwise.
Oh, and this happened:
Surprisingly the NFC East isn’t the worst division in football anymore, but the Commanders are the worst in that division. After losing to the Titans, 21-17, in Week 5, Washington has dropped four straight after opening the year with a win over Jacksonville.
Carson Wentz threw for 359 yards and two TDs, although he was missing one of his favorite new targets, rookie Jahan Dotson. Wentz was having a good day until the game’s last play. He threw a game-ending INT on third and goal from the two-yard line with nine seconds on the clock. That pick sealed the game for Tennessee and sent Commanders fans home upset once again.
How do you steal headlines a quarter through the season if you’ve got just one win in five weeks? You fire your head coach after another embarrassing loss and get a jump on every other team that’ll be head coach hunting come January.
The Panthers gave Matt Rhule the axe after two-plus seasons as coach and an 11-27 record. Carolina’s offense is terrible, the defense is bad, and its QB is precisely what most of us thought he was in Cleveland — barely average. Baker Mayfield was 20-of-26 against the 49ers on Sunday while passing for 215 yards and an INT. The Panthers got rocked, 37-15, and owner David Tepper had seen enough to pull the plug on Rhule.
Mayfield suffered a high ankle sprain in the loss and could miss time with the injury. With Sam Darnold on injured reserve, P.J. Walker is on fill-in duty until Baker is ready to return. Looks like another long dreadful season in Carolina.
The Steelers got knocked down early in this one and never recovered. After cutting the score to 7-3 in the first quarter, Pittsburgh was outscored 31-0 by Buffalo the rest of the way. Kenny Pickett’s first career start wasn’t the worst, but it wasn’t good either. He passed 52 times for 327 yards and an INT.
Pittsburgh still cannot run the ball to save their lives, as Najee Harris rushed 11 times for 20 yards. The Steelers were only down 10-3 after one quarter but then let the game slip away, getting shutout 21-0 in the second quarter. Pittsburgh’s defense never stood a chance, and they weren’t even on the field for 24 minutes. In that time, the Steelers gave up over 550 yards to the Bills and five TDs.
Mike Tomlin’s never endured a losing season, but it’s looking like this might be the year.