RADIO
Seattle Seahawks 24, Arizona Cardinals 20 (Thursday Night)
We kick off Week 4 with a NFC West divisional clash between the Seahawks and Cardinals. After dropping the season opener in a tight loss to San Francisco, Mike Macdonald’s Seattle squad enters this matchup the winners of two straight and fresh off the heels of a 44-13 beatdown of New Orleans in Week 3. While Sam Darnold is still finding his way on the offensive side of the ball, this Seahawks defense has looked elite while allowing the NFL’s second-fewest points per game.
The Cardinals now stand 2-1 on the year following a one-point loss to the Niners last week. However, Arizona’s biggest loss in Week 3 was veteran running back James Conner, who was lost for the season with a gruesome ankle injury. Second-year back Trey Benson will be tasked with filling Conner’s shoes, though it’s tough to envision much initial success against a stonewall Seattle front that’s allowing just 90 rushing yards per contest. Look for a defensive battle in this one with a potentially-elite Seahawks unit keeping Kyler Murray and the Cards in check.
Minnesota Vikings 21, Pittsburgh Steelers 20 (International Series - Dublin)
Though he mostly played the role of a game manager in Week 3’s 48-10 defensive-fueled destruction of the Bengals, Carson Wentz certainly looked like an upgrade over J.J. McCarthy at the QB position for this Vikings squad. A competent offense might be enough to keep Minnesota competitive, as Brian Flores’ aggressive defense has logged the NFL’s second-most sacks and third-most takeaways through the first three weeks of the season.
Flores will unleash the hounds this week in Dublin against Aaron Rodgers and a Steelers offense that ranks 30th in the league with an average of 262.3 total yards per game. Pittsburgh enters this matchup with a fortunate 2-1 record, but has looked shaky on both sides of the ball to this point.
Steelers left tackle Broderick Jones has been a swinging gate, allowing four sacks this season – which is tied for the most among all players. The lack of protection should force Rodgers into some mistakes against a Vikings defense that’s capable of taking advantage.
Buffalo Bills 31, New Orleans Saints 14
Two squads that sit firmly on opposite ends of the NFL spectrum, the 0-3 Saints travel to Orchard Park to take on the 3-0 Bills. As Clubber Lang said in Rocky III when asked for his pre-fight prediction, “Pain”. It’s the NFL, and crazy things can happen, but no need to overthink this one…Buffalo in big fashion.
Houston Texans 17, Tennessee Titans 13
If you’re having trouble sleeping, just tune into this AFC South matchup. Houston couldn’t avoid an 0-3 start to the season last week in Jacksonville, as their offense continued to look inept behind an offensive line that’s again arguably the worst in the NFL.
Things aren’t much prettier for the Titans, who also remain winless following a 41-20 thumping at the hands of the Colts in Week 3. These two squads are 28th and 32nd in the league in average points per game, so we can expect both offenses to struggle with Houston’s superior defense getting the win at home.
Detroit Lions 24, Cleveland Browns 14
The Browns pulled off a miracle upset over the Packers in Week 3, and they’ll look to surprise another NFC North squad in this matchup. Cleveland’s defense is legitimately good, as the Myles Garret-led unit is holding opposing offenses to just 231 total yards per game – the best mark in the league this season.
However, the Browns offense has offered no support while averaging a paltry 15.3 points per contest. Rookie running back Quinshon Judkins has been a nice spark, but Cleveland simply doesn’t have the firepower needed to keep pace with the Lions at Ford Field.
Atlanta Falcons 24, Washington Commanders 23
While Atlanta’s 30-0 loss at Carolina was one of Week 3’s biggest shockers, those sorts of puzzling, unpredictable performances almost feel embedded in the Falcons DNA at this point. So, it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise to see Raheem Morris’ Jekyll & Hyde squad rebound to play better at home against Washington this week.
The Commanders performed well last week in a 41-24 drubbing of the Raiders, despite the absence of superstar QB Jayden Daniels, who remains questionable vs. Atlanta as of this writing. Washington could also be without top wideout Terry McLaurin in this one. Assuming that one or both are out, I could see the Commanders offense scuffling a bit in this spot against an Atlanta team that will be hungry to bounce back from last week’s embarrassing loss.
Philadelphia Eagles 27, Tampa Bay Bucs 23
A battle of undefeated teams with the Eagles heading south to face the Bucs in Raymond James Stadium. Each of these squads produced electric come-from-behind wins in Week 3. Philadelphia was the beneficiary of a blocked kick against the Rams, while Tampa Bay fell victim to one, needing some last-minute Baker Mayfield heroics to overcome the Jets.
Tight games have been a common theme for the Bucs, as all three of their wins have been decided in the fourth quarter. Despite their stellar 3-0 record, Tampa comes into this matchup severely banged up. Already missing four trusted offensive linemen and a pair of talented pass catchers in Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan, the Bucs will now also be without franchise legend Mike Evans in Week 4.
Though I expect Mayfield and his injury-depleted group to show plenty of fight, their fourth-quarter magic will likely run out against a Philly roster that dripping with talent from top to bottom.
New England Patriots 26, Carolina Panthers 20
After an 0-2 start that had them looking like one of the worst teams in the league, Carolina upset Atlanta in a 30-0 blowout last week. A trip to Foxboro in Week 4 will be a nice litmus test in identifying the “real” Panthers. Quarterback Bryce Young successfully handled the role of game manager in last week’s win, but will likely need to do more this week against a New England that’s displayed extreme pass-funnel tendencies to this point.
The Pats will look to rebound from a crippling 21-14 loss to the Steelers – a game in which they suffered through a mind-blowing five turnovers. Assuming they can clean things up, New England’s rushing attack should find some daylight against a Carolina front that’s coughing up just over 137 rushing yards per game.
Los Angeles Chargers 23, New York Giants 17
Looking to inject some life into his 0-3 Giants squad, NY head coach Brian Daboll has named rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart the team’s starter for a Week 4 tilt with the Chargers. The G-Men traded back into the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft to select the Ole Miss gunslinger, and he’ll make his first pro start against a Bolts defense that’s been one of the league’s most lock-down units to this point.
L.A.’s defense has certainly played well, but the true story has been Justin Herbert, who has performed at an MVP-caliber level throughout the Chargers’ 3-0 start. He’s posted a 6:1 TD-to-INT ratio and should shred a NY defense that stands dead last in total yards allowed per game.
San Francisco 49ers 20, Jacksonville Jaguars 14
Despite their respective winning records, neither the Niners nor Jaguars have been overly impressive through the season’s first three weeks. Both squeaked out tight wins over divisional opponents in Week 3 with the San Francisco offense tallying just 16 points and Jacksonville mustering only 17.
While both of these offenses possess some weapons, expect this matchup to be a defensive battle throughout. Both of these defenses rank top-five in the league in fewest points allowed. Trevor Lawrence has not yet found the gas pedal of Liam Coen’s offense, while the Niners have, once again, been largely depleted by injuries to key personnel. Brock Purdy remains questionable as of this writing, though Mac Jones has done a nice enough job in relief to lean San Fran in this one.
Los Angeles Rams 28, Indianapolis Colts 27
Daniel Jones and the 3-0 Colts enter Week 4 as one of the NFL’s biggest surprises. Danny Dimes and company handled the Titans easily last week by a score of 41-20, but they did come away with a pair of notable injuries to key contributors, as veteran cornerback Kenny Moore and deep-threat receiver Alec Pierce are expected to miss this clash with the Rams.
The loss of Moore, specifically, will likely be felt in Week 4, as the Indy secondary will be charged with containing L.A.’s dynamic duo of Puka Nacua and Davante Adams – a pair of receivers who have combined for 546 yards and two TDs over the season’s first three weeks. The Rams defensive front held Saquon Barkley to just 46 rushing yards on 18 carries last week. If they have similar success against Jonathan Taylor in this matchup, Indy could be looking at its first loss of the year.
Chicago Bears 31, Las Vegas Raiders 28
Facing the elixir that is the Cowboys defense, the Bears put forth their best offensive effort of the Caleb Williams/Ben Johnson era to defeat Dallas 31-14 last week. While the Week 4 matchup against the Raiders isn’t quite as good, Williams and Johnson are likely excited at the prospect of facing a Las Vegas defense that’s coughing up nearly 360 total yards per game.
The bad news for Bears backers is that Chicago’s defense is arguably even worse, as they’ve relinquished a massive 31 points per game across their first three. This matchup profiles as a breakout spot for Las Vegas rookie Ashton Jeanty, who has started his career in pedestrian fashion. I could see this one devolving into a “bad teams shootout”. I’ll give the edge to a Chicago offense that might have found its groove last week.
Baltimore Ravens 24, Kansas City Chiefs 21
A month ago, few would have expected this Week 4 meeting between perma-contenders to feature both the Chiefs and Ravens sporting matching 1-2 records. Ahhh…the beauty of the NFL.
The deficiencies are easy to spot for both of these squads. Kansas City’s offense has fallen into a funk that has them stuck in the land of mid. Rashee Rice’s absence, Travis Kelce’s age, and Patrick Mahomes’ consistent downfield inaccuracy have led to the Chiefs standing 21st in the NFL in points per game.
In Baltimore, it’s been the opposite problem, as a Ravens defensive unit that was expected to be one of the league’s best, has been one of its worst to this point. Baltimore ranks 30th-or-worse in total yards, passing yards, rushing yards, and points allowed per game. Despite those struggles, I’m not sure this current version of the Chiefs offense can keep pace with Lamar Jackson.
Green Bay Packers 30, Dallas Cowboys 16 (Sunday Night)
We close the Sunday slate with the “Micah Parsons Bowl”, as the recently-traded Parsons returns to Dallas to face his former team. After looking bulletproof in their first two games of the season, Green Bay promptly dropped a stunner to Cleveland last week with Jordan Love and the Pack offense generating just 10 points.
Green Bay draws the mother of all get-right spots here, as the Cowboys defense has been a turnstile for opposing offenses. The Parsons-less unit has coughed up 71 combined points in their last two against the offensive juggernauts that are the Giants and Bears.
To compound problems for the flailing Cowboys, star wideout CeeDee Lamb and rookie guard Tyler Booker are both expected to be miss this game. Last week’s loss to the Browns should serve as an eye-opener for a Packers squad with title aspirations…they will get back on track in a big way here.
Miami Dolphins 24, New York Jets 21 (Monday Night)
The Monday Night Football schedule makers either have a sick sense of humor or horrible luck, as this battle of winless teams kicks off a Week 4 MNF doubleheader. For all of their respective struggles, both the ‘Fins and Jets were at least competitive in their Week 3 losses – Miami in a Thursday night loss to the Bills that was closer than expected and New York in a heartbreaker to the Bucs that required some last-second Baker Mayfield heroics.
The best we can hope for is a “so-bad-it’s-good” sorta situation to develop here, as these AFC East foes do battle to avoid the divisional cellar. We don’t know if it will be Justin Fields or Tyrod Taylor taking the snaps for New York as of this writing, but we do know that Tua Tagovailoa will be under center for Miami.
For all of the (reasonable) knocks on Tua, he has been a winning quarterback at Hard Rock Stadium, going 27-9 at home during his career. That record, combined with the team showing signs of life last week against Buffalo, lead me to give the Dolphins the slight edge here.
Denver Broncos 27, Cincinnati Bengals 17 (Monday Night)
For all the preseason buzz surrounding Sean Payton’s Broncos, they have undoubtedly disappointed en route to a 1-2 start. Lots of the issues can be attributed to second-year quarterback Bo Nix, who has been ho-hum to this point and currently sports a 5:3 TD-to-INT ratio. It also must be said that a Denver defense that was expected to be elite has failed to meet those expectations to this point.
With all those concerns and issues stated, this is clearly a spot for the Broncos to get back on track, as they host the Joe Burrow-less Bengals at Mile High. Burrow’s back-up, Jake Browning, has now tossed five interceptions since entering the Bengals lineup in relief of Burrow against Jacksonville in Week 2. Denver’s pass rush will tee off on Browning behind Cincy’s swiss-cheese offensive line, meaning more pressure-induced turnovers are a real possibility.
