After four weeks of play in the NFL, the rubber is starting to meet the road. Everyone had time to ease into the offseason, with teams more or less running where they should be for the rest of the year. It’s been one of the most exciting starts to the season in recent memory, with lockouts down, dogs up and a complete shakeup coming around the league.
While it’s too early to confidently predict how this season will play out, we do have some ideas based on what we’ve seen so far. Here’s what we think we know about the NFL after four weeks.
We’ll see an unlikely MVP in 2026.
We’re more likely to see a surprise in the MVP race this year. We had the usual suspect favorites before the season started in Josh Allen, Matthew Stafford, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burroughs — but we’re feeling like none of those guys have the edge this season.
Allen is still playing good football, but has taken a small step back from his 2025 form earlier in the season. As for the rest of the popular field, it’s a mixed bag. Stafford has been mediocre; Jackson was good, but the injury bug is creeping in, while Joe Burrow was very good, but not electric.
For some men there is a wide open door for a dark horse to run through. Brooke Purdy from… Kirk Cousins?! Bryce Young is now the league leader in passing. At running back, Kenneth Walker and Bijan Robinson each have over 2,000 yards rushing. Then there’s CeeDee Lamb, who is on his way to a 2,000 yard receiving season with 17+ touchdowns.
Who has the talent to be ridiculous these days. They were not Preseason favorites, and the odds all of them The fight for the rest of the season is slim. I think we’re going to see a big surprise when the registration process ends.
The Eagles are in trouble.
Philadelphia sits at 2-2 on paper, which isn’t really that bad — but The mood in this football team is palpable.. Even looking at the Eagles’ two wins, they only managed single-point wins over the Chiefs and Titans, and currently sit at a significant -18 point differential. That puts them on par with the New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – hardly company you want to keep.
Offensively, the team is in disarray and the defense is keeping them in games, but they haven’t been able to do so yet Really They will face an elite team this season, with their opponent’s letter record sitting at 6-10. Something has to change to save the season, and fast.
Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs are back.
Doubting bosses is the NFL equivalent of “once a fool, shame on you — twice a fool, shame on me.” This team has been able to bounce back every time it has counted, and once again we are seeing Kansas City become one of the top teams in the league.
Patrick Mahomes quietly has a big comeback, which is wild considering there aren’t many quiet moments around Pat Mahomes. Meanwhile, the defense has been as good as any in the NFL, allowing just 77 points in four games and making the job as easy as possible for the offense.
With a legitimate running back in Kenneth Walker, the Chiefs look poised to make another deep run in the AFC after missing the playoffs a year ago. This team is back.
The Carolina Panthers are for real.
Carolina’s 2-2 overall record hardly jumps off the page, but something special is happening in Charlotte. Now heading into their bye week, the Panthers are running one of the NFL’s best offenses despite having an offensive line riddled with injury holes while getting hammered at wide receiver. Now, the Panthers are set to return as many as nine players, including five starters either on injured reserve or short-term after an injury, and will be completely reloaded before the midway point of the season.
It’s too early to tell if this is a legitimate contender (probably not because of defensive issues), but the reality is that the Panthers are no longer easy on the schedule. They feel that looking forward to their board will win them every game.
So did the Las Vegas Raiders
Sunday’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs kept the Las Vegas Raiders off the losing streak.
But in that loss, Kirk Cousins and The Raiders certainly made a comeback..
Through four weeks, the Raiders have been perhaps the most surprising story of the NFL season, but in Sunday’s loss, Las Vegas showed that they really can play with the NFL’s best. The Raiders took the lead on a Matt Gay field goal in the fourth quarter, and just when you thought a difficult sequence would end Las Vegas’ chances of a win – not only did the Chiefs take a 23-19 lead, but a flurry on the ensuing kickoff led to a second Kansas City touchdown to lead the Chiefs to a 30-19 Hurricanes comeback.
The late rally has fallen short, but the Raiders are for real.
We buried the falcons recently
After two weeks, The Atlanta Falcons were 0-2 in one of the worst passing games in recent NFL history..
A lot has changed since then.
Yes, the return of Michael Penix Jr. is part of that. The young quarterback completed 18-of-25 passes for 256 yards, a touchdown and a touchdown in a 35-14 win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 3, and went 15-for-20 against the New Orleans Saints on Monday night, throwing for 223 yards and a touchdown in a 45-24 win over Cooper Rush and Jack. Strand’s passing game took a big step forward.
But the Falcons are also reminded that they have one of the top talents in the game, Bijan Robinson. While held under the 100-yard mark in each of the first two weeks, Robinson ripped off 194 yards and a pair of touchdowns against the Packers, and another 145 yards and two scores against New Orleans.
Suddenly, this team we buried after two weeks looked like a potential problem in the NFC.
Things are rotten with the Texans and Chargers.
We have two groups I thought They were locks for the postseason in the AFC and are now both 0-4. Everything is going wrong for the Texans and Chargers, and while it’s worth noting that both are dealing with injuries, neither seem like they’ll even make it to the playoffs, let alone contend.
It’s the surprising way both organizations fight. The Texans defense has collapsed, allowing 109 points so far (26th in the NFL), and the normally safe Justin Herbert has turned into a turnover machine, throwing six interceptions in four games.
In both cases, it looks like a runaway freight train from their coaches and it’s unclear whether either can get their teams back on track.
