2026-2027 NFL Season, Week 4 Review and Picks - Upset City

Three weeks are in the books in the National Football League and there have been plenty of surprises thus far. There was talk before the season began about the Los Angeles Rams finishing the season undefeated. That theory has gone way down the tubes with the Rams losing their second game in three starts and now sit at 1-2. There were other upsets in week three and teams that seemingly have righted their ship. Some teams that were expected to be bottom barrel teams have silenced their critics while other teams like the Rams that were expected to contend find themselves in early trouble after just three weeks.

Now for a look back…

Falcons 35 Packers 14. Obviously, Michael Penix Jr. is the difference maker for the Atlanta Falcons. No one could have seen this result coming. Additionally, it happened on Green Bay’s turf. The Pack is now 1-2 and has questions marks especially about the offense scoring just twice.

Colts 19 Texans 17. Two winless teams and someone’s “0” had to go. It was the Colts getting their first victory at home and the Texans now are 0-3 and better find answers quickly. With just 17 games in a season, getting to the postseason after an 0-3 start is difficult. This was supposed to be C.J. Stroud’s breakout season after a horrendous playoff run last year and it seems like it is more of a breakdown season at this point.

Jaguars 35 Patriots 6. We already knew Jacksonville had a good team, but New England? One week after embarrassing the Steelers they got smoked on the road. Last year there was talk about Drake Maye contending for the league Most Valuable Player award this year he is nowhere near playing at that level. The Pats won a one-sided game against Pittsburgh last week but this loss they suffered leaves their team completely red-faced. Maye tossed two picks, fumbled twice, and lost one of those. His QBR was a pathetic 48.6, and he was sacked three times. It can’t get much worse than that. Insult to injury? In 2025 Maye threw eight interceptions all season. A year later he’s already thrown six. His season QBR is 45.9. He has just one touchdown pass. He’s on pace to be sacked 42 times this season. OUCH.

Bills 24 Chargers 16. Jim Harbaugh must be pulling his hair out by now. His Chargers have lost the first three games of the season and join the Texans in desperation mode. You think Drake Maye’s QBR is bad? Justin Herbert finished this game with a mark of 27.4. Now that’s embarrassing. The ‘Bolts have been better than this for years to it remains to be seen how long Herbert can hold onto his job. The Bills are having that Buffalo kind of season so we wait to see how far they can take it in 2026.

Browns 21 Panthers 18. Upset #2 of the day. By winning two consecutive games does that mean the Browns are for real? Don’t count your chickens before they hatch. Let’s see how Cleveland does facing the Steelers then the Bengals and Ravens. Three very good teams. Deshaun Watson did enough to get his team in the win column, but he wasn’t spectacular by any means. He did miss 14 passes. To their advantage, the Browns’ remaining schedule is not that difficult. As for Carolina, they should be thankful for being in the NFC South.

Lions 31 Jets 24. No doubt this Jets team is better than from a year ago. The Lions are not playing at the level of being one of the NFC’s best teams.

Commanders 33 Seahawks 31. The Commanders had lost 12 straight until this victory. The difference in this game was a pick six of Sam Darnold. But Marcus Mariotta beating the world champs? Mariotta has been hanging around NFL teams for 12 years and with five different teams. I’m sure Seattle will move on from this loss but for Washington the question remains what to do with starter Jayden Daniels who continually gets injured.

Chiefs 24 Dolphins 10. No surprise here. To make matters worse for Miami in this game they lost star running back De’Von Achane to an ACL injury suffered in this game and his season is over. Miami at 0-3 can forget about the playoffs.

Giants 12 Titans 7. Another team sitting at 0-3 and most thought Cam Ward would take a step forward in his sophomore season. He hasn’t and Tennessee is another winless team with a season that is rapidly going down the tubes. With the Giants losing Jaxon Dart for the year, Jameis Winston has taken over and his numbers here were not good but in comes J.J. McCarthy from the Vikings by way of a trade. Will he see action this season wearing Giants’ blue? Possibly if Winston starts losing games.

49ers 36 Cardinals 30. Five teams remain unbeaten. Kansas City, Las Vegas, Minnesota, Buffalo, and San Francisco. Yet to win a game are Miami, Tennessee, Houston, the Chargers, and Tampa Bay. With the 49ers, they’ve been dangerous for years. Now they are off to a fast start while the Cardinals are playing respectable football led by the backfield strength of rookie Jeremiyah Love who ran for 90 yards facing San Francisco.

Vikings 23 Bucs 16. Kyler Murray returned from injury and did just enough to lead Minnesota’s offense while Baker Mayfield, who is having an off season, dislocated his thumb. Mayfield was expected to have a banner year and while initial reports indicated his injury is not serious, he will need to up his game in a big way to get the Bucs back in the picture. The Vikings finally said goodbye to J.J. McCarthy who blew his chance of being the starter in Minnesota as he was sent packing.

Ravens 34 Cowboys 31. A shootout at the O.K. Corral, more specifically, AT&T Stadium. Tied 31-31 with seven seconds left in the game, this wasn’t a repeat of the season finale for Baltimore from a year ago when a missed field goal cost them the AFC North title. Instead, Tyler Loop hit a long 56-yarder to win it for the Ravens. Crazy as it seems, there is a four-way tie for first place in the AFC North with Baltimore, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and the pesky Cleveland Browns all four teams at 2-1.

Raiders 35 Saints 27. The Saints shocked Baltimore in week two and maybe they thought the Raiders were well…the Raiders. Not so. Las Vegas is now 3-0. Kirk Cousins is making sure top rookie Fernando Mendoza does not see the field in 2026. The Saints you must give respect to. They are clawing and fighting for victories.

Broncos 30 Rams 26. I’m not sure this is an upset, but the Rams were supposed to be the team to beat in the NFC. Now they are 1-2 and must travel to Philadelphia next week to take on the Eagles who certainly do not want to lose again after getting KO’d by the Bears. Then the Rams are home for the Bills. Not an easy game there. Naturally they still have the 49ers twice to face but also play the Chiefs, Seahawks twice, the Packers, and the Cowboys. They might make the playoffs, but I believe it will be by a hair.

Bears 35 Eagles 14. How about that Case Keenum? Never say die my friends. 12 seasons in the NFL, nine different teams, and because of an injury to Caleb Williams he is thrust into the starting role on nationally televised Monday Night Football. Keenum responded with a 24 for 34 night and 247 yards passing with two touchdown throws. He also threw no picks and was not sacked. His QBR was a solid 100.8 as the Bears smacked down the Eagles 27-7.

For the record, I suffered my first losing record of the season incorrectly picking nine games while correctly picking seven other games’ winners. Let’s see how I fare with week number four.