Just when you think you have the NFL figured out, the league surprises you again. Week 3 of the 2024 season offered plenty of shocking results, astounding upsets, and highlight-reel plays.
Who looked the best during today’s games, and who’s already looking ahead to Week 4? Let’s take a step back and assess whose stock is up and whose is down after Week 3.
Stock Up | Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings
It’s officially time to take the Vikings seriously. Sam Darnold and Co. handed the 49ers their first loss of the season in Week 2 before dominating the previously undefeated Texans in a 34-7 Week 3 win.
Darnold tossed four touchdowns on Sunday and continues to look like a quarterback who could get paid next offseason. He’s scheduled to hit the free-agent market next March, but Darnold’s production could force Minnesota to consider its options. Rookie first-round pick J.J. McCarthy is still the club’s future, but a rival team might be willing to trade for a franchise-tagged Darnold if he keeps playing like this.
Vikings QB Sam Darnold posted two games with 2 passing TDs and a 100+ passer rating to the start the season. 🎯
He stays hot 🔥pic.twitter.com/R7bUXdL6o8
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) September 22, 2024
As impressive as the Vikings’ offense was in Week 3, Brian Flores’ defense was the talk of Sunday’s game.
Minnesota repeatedly battered Texans QB C.J. Stroud, holding him to the second-lowest EPA per dropback (-0.31) of his career. Vikings edge rusher Jonathan Greenard got after his former team, sacking Stroud three times while dominating at the point of attack. Stroud went down four times in total and threw two picks.
Vikings fans deserve credit, too. US Bank Stadium was so loud near the end of the first half that the Texans were flagged for three straight false starts, turning a third-and-4 into a third-and-19 while moving Houston out of field-goal range.
Minnesota’s schedule won’t get any easier with games against the Packers, Jets, and Lions over the next three weeks. But Kevin O’Connell’s team has proven they can compete with the NFL‘s best and has established itself as a legitimate playoff contender.
Stock Up | Justin Fields and the Pittsburgh Steelers
Like Darnold, Justin Fields is a one-time first-round quarterback hoping to cash in as a free agent in 2025.
And like Darnold, Fields is making the most of his newfound opportunity this season.
Fields and the Steelers moved to 3-0 on Sunday after he threw for 245 yards and one touchdown while running for another in Pittsburgh’s 20-10 win against the Chargers. He avoided mistakes for the third straight week. Fields took just two sacks, while his lone interception came on a tipped pass.
Fields’ skill set, combined with Pittsburgh’s elite defense (which has allowed fewer than 10 points in every game this season), represents a winning formula and might be the idealized version of how head coach Mike Tomlin and first-year OC Arthur Smith want to play.
Stock Down | Los Angeles Chargers
It’s not just that the Chargers fell to 2-1 after losing to the Steelers in Week 3. It’s that they might have lost three of their most important contributors in the process.
Justin Herbert went down with a high-ankle sprain in Week 2 and aggravated the injury on Sunday. Los Angeles has leaned into its rushing attack under Jim Harbaugh and first-year OC Greg Roman, but Herbert is one of the league’s best quarterbacks and offers a threat that backup Taylor Heinicke doesn’t.
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Herbert wasn’t the Bolts’ only potentially significant injury. Left tackle Rashawn Slater (pectoral) and right tackle Joe Alt (ankle) both left Sunday’s game. The Chargers’ identity has been centered around their offensive line in 2024, and Slater and Alt represent a dominant tackle tandem when healthy.
Stock Up | Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles had to face the Saints in Week 3, whose offense had scored 47 and 44 points over the first two weeks of the season. First-year offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak had pulled all the right levers. New Orleans’ 0.30 EPA per dropback was the third-best mark for an offense through two weeks over the past decade.
But Vic Fangio’s Philadelphia defense was up to the challenge. The Eagles gave up just one touchdown in their 15-12 win, holding Derek Carr to 5.7 yards per attempt. Safety Reed Blankenship sealed the Week 3 victory by picking off Carr with 55 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, allowing Philly to move to 2-1.
It was a gritty win for the Birds, who entered Week 3 without WR1 A.J. Brown and then lost WR2 DeVonta Smith to an in-game concussion. Saquon Barkley continued to make good as the Eagles’ primary offseason investment, averaging 8.6 yards per clip while scoring twice.
Stock Up | Malik Nabers and the New York Giants
Malik Nabers is a star — and Daniel Jones knows how to find him.
Who knows how the rest of Jones’ 2024 campaign will turn out, but he’s willing to pepper the Giants’ first-round rookie receiver with targets. Nabers’ 38.5% target share led the NFL entering Week 2.
Malik Nabers has a touchdown!
📺: #NYGvsCLE on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/4XDd73juH1— NFL (@NFL) September 22, 2024
Nabers was Jones’ favorite receiver again on Sunday, catching eight of 12 targets for 78 yards and two touchdowns, including one of the best catches of the year (in the video above). Per ESPN, Nabers is the first player in NFL history with at least 20 receptions and three receiving TDs in his first three games.
Stock Down | Chicago Bears Offense
What was Bears OC Shane Waldron thinking on Sunday?
Chicago was facing the Colts, which allowed the Texans to run for 213 yards in Week 1 before letting the Packers go for 261 in Week 2. Lining up in 12 personnel and pounding the rock seemed like a worthwhile game plan against an Indy front that couldn’t stop anyone on the ground.
Instead, Waldron had Williams drop back 56 times, the most of any quarterback in Week 3 (pending SNF and MNF). The No. 1 overall pick passed for 363 yards, but Chicago’s offensive attack never got into a rhythm in a 21-16 loss.
Stock Up | Green Bay Packers
Good coaching entails figuring out workable solutions in less-than-ideal circumstances.
The Packers are now 2-0 without Jordan Love (MCL) — and head coach/offensive play-caller Matt LaFleur has gotten them there by committing to the run more than almost any team in recent memory.
MORE: NFL Week 4 Power Rankings
With Malik Willis under center instead of Love, Green Bay has run the ball 90 times over the past two weeks. The Packers are just the fifth team over the past decade to post 90 rushing attempts over a two-game span (and four of those clubs featured Lamar Jackson-led Ravens offenses).
A dominant run game, plus a defense that’s held its opponents to 24 points over the past two weeks? They’re playing old-school football in Green Bay.
Stock Down | Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys’ run defense is a problem. Not just a minor annoyance — a blinking red, Defcon 1 problem.
Dallas let the Ravens run all over them in a 28-25 loss on Sunday. Baltimore put up 274 rushing yards at 6.1 yards per clip. Derrick Henry went for 151 and two touchdowns, Lamar Jackson added 87 yards, and even Justice Hill chipped in with 33.
The Ravens go 5 plays and 71 yards for a Lamar Jackson TD on their opening drive 🔥pic.twitter.com/zcXyWn6bSh
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) September 22, 2024
Mike Zimmer’s defense allowed a 50% rushing success rate against Baltimore. Dallas, who gave up 190 rushing yards to the Saints in Week 2, has allowed a 51.5% rushing success rate this season. For context, the Cardinals’ offense led the NFL in rushing success rate in 2023 at 42.9%.
The Cowboys (1-2) will face the Steelers, Lions, and 49ers over the next five weeks. All three teams have dynamic rushing attacks that will give Zimmer’s unit fits.
Stock Up | Carolina Panthers
While there might be some debate about whether Panthers owner David Tepper or head coach Dave Canales decided to bench Bryce Young after Week 2, both men might be trying to take credit after Carolina earned its first 2024 victory on Sunday.
Unfortunately for Young, veteran Andy Dalton showed the Panthers’ decision-makers what a functional NFL offense looks like. The 36-year-old completed 26 of 37 attempts for 319 yards and three touchdowns in Carolina’s 36-22 win against the Raiders.
Every part of the Panthers’ offense looked better with Dalton under center. Offseason trade acquisition Diontae Johnson posted eight catches for 122 yards and a touchdown, his best performance in three years. Chuba Hubbard led the NFL in rushing success rate (57.1%) in Week 3.
Stock Down | San Francisco 49ers
With seven minutes remaining in the third quarter, the 49ers had a two-touchdown lead against a Rams team missing Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua, and two offensive-line starters. — and somehow lost the game.
Matthew Stafford and Co. went TD-FG-TD-FG over their next four drives to emerge with a season-saving 27-24 win and deal San Francisco a Week 3 surprise.
The 49ers, who beat the Jets in Week 1 before losing to the Vikings in Week 2, are dealing with their own injuries. Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, and George Kittle weren’t available in Week 3, leaving Brock Purdy to find WR Jauan Jennings for three touchdowns.
The NFC is still wide open, but if the 49ers are fighting for the No. 1 seed at the end of the season, they might look back at this loss and wonder how they gave it away.