NFL Week 4 RECAP
NFL Week 4 Takes
By: Andrew Ferguson
The 2026 NFL Season is like prime Game of Thrones. You never know what characters are going to get randomly killed off, huge battle scenes and old characters show up that have been missing for 2 seasons (Joe Mixon). The cliffhangers after Monday Night Football waiting for Thursday make you speculate on what’s going to happen next and everyone’s talking about it at the water coolers at work. Are the Falcons this week’s Joffrey? Spoiling Monday Night Football for the Saints was such a feel good moment and I haven’t had that thrill of win in years. Now if I could just convince my wife to watch GOT. She’s just happy her Raiders are 3-1.
But so much can change over a one week period, but at the same time, trends start to develop. Who is actually legit and who are frauds? Let’s get into what happened in Week 4:
1) The Lions Miss Ben Johnson
Ben Johnson deserves to be a coach of the year candidate for what he’s doing in Chicago alone. But for how bad the Lions miss him, he deserves another award. In his 3 years in Detroit, the Lions went 36-15. Since his departure, the Lions have gone 11-10 and missed the playoffs entirely in 2026. Meanwhile, the Bears have won their division in the previous year and currently sit at 3-1 this year and have already started 3 different QBs. Now the Lions struggles aren’t entirely on the offense as they statistically have the worst ranked defense in the league right now and are allowing over 40 points per game to opponents. An area that Dan Campbell should be specializing in. The Lions have top tier weapons at WR and RB and a good TE in LaPorta that I can see Dan Campbell being on the hot seat sooner rather than later. He’s a blue collar coach though and he’s loved within the organization and by the fans so it could be an emotional separation when that time comes. Either way, this team was gifted a pretty easy schedule for the year and they’ve done nothing to prove they can handle it, make the playoffs or make that Super Bowl run that I predicted at the beginning of the season.
2) Did the Rams Officially Avoid Hitting the Panic Button?
I’d say…almost. A comeback win against an Eagles team that has its own struggles (and its own segment to come in this article) isn’t that impressive. I do still believe in the Eagles defense though and Stafford really struggled until he made the comeback in the 4th quarter. However, that win was huge because they go right into a matchup against Buffalo which a lot of people thought could be an early Super Bowl preview. It is in LA though and a win here could silence the doubters and put the Rams back on track as Super Bowl favorites. They have a much more manageable schedule coming up over the 7 weeks so with a couple of big wins under the belt, Garrett/Puka getting healthy and some easier opponents could allow them to build momentum. I’m still being a little cautious but love the Rams overall.
3) What’s Up With the Eagles?
A few things are what’s up. Jalen Hurts may be past his prime when it comes to throwing the football. And if that’s the case, they are doing a horrible job running the ball. Saquon seems to take on a new injury every game and at the age of 29, we might be seeing the decline in his game sadly. Sean Mannion is the new Offensive Coordinator in Philly and the talk all offseason was how this run game would vastly improve and Saquon would see more open lanes like he did 2 years ago when he had a historic season. The offensive playcalling has been atrocious in return and they had a franchise worst, 0/12 on 3rd downs this past Sunday. The Eagles letting AJ Brown leave is looking to be a big mistake too because not only is Saquon dealing with multiple injuries, DeVonta Smith is the new WR1 that’s week-to-week with a hamstring injury. We’re seeing massive regression in the offense, injuries and blown leads. This team might be on the outside looking in this year for a playoff appearance.
4) Are the Patriots Back?
Were they ever really there? I’m sort of kidding but I’ve definitely voiced my opinions on last year’s schedule and playoff run they had. It took 2026 to show who they really are. However, it was worse than anticipated in those first 3 games. Drake Maye was playing awful and the AFC champs from last year were sitting at 1-2. But winning silences everything. A huge win against the Bills who are the AFC favorites within their division and on the road to get you back to 2-2 is just what the doctor ordered. Maye finally looked good doing so as well. He threw for 3 TDs and still has the legs to scramble and extend plays. The Patriots have a favorable schedule in the coming weeks so we’ll really find out who they are then.
5) What are the Falcons?
If I told you a team was averaging 40 points per game and 224 rush yards per game, you’d think they’re top 5 in the league’s power rankings right? Well what if I told you that team was the Atlanta Falcons? Because that’s what they’ve done against the Packers and Saints over the last 2 weeks. So what are the Falcons? This is who they are and those first 2 weeks should have 0 indication of who they are/were. 3rd and 4th string QB play isn’t fair to judge a team (unless you’re the Bears). The best part is, they’ve done it in 2 primetime games so the entire world is watching Bijan prove why he’s the best RB in the league. And what’s even better? They get to do it again against the Ravens on Sunday Night Football. Another showing like this and I’m tempted to put the Falcons higher on my power rankings because 3 games in a row is no fluke.
6) Is it Time to Take Bryce Young Seriously?
We’re now a quarter of the way through the season and Bryce Young leads the NFL in passing yards. So the answer is yes. He just embarrassed the Lions with 329 yards without one of his top weapons in Jalen Coker. The Young/McMillan combo is officially here and it’s officially scary. McMillan is a second year talent and physical specimen that I don’t know how you stop him. This NFC South race is sneakily starting to heat up and an early win against the Falcons that are tied with them for the division lead is now looking to be a bigger game than expected. There are still questions about this team’s defense but Bryce is proving he can manage this offense effectively enough to put up big numbers. Watch out for Panthers vs. Falcons round two this year.
7) Should the Chiefs be Super Bowl Favorites?
What’s not to like about a healthy Mahomes, Andy Reid calling the plays and the best run game he’s ever had in his career? Well, the only thing holding this offense back is the pass catching injuries Kansas City took this past week. But even with Rice going down for however long, this team’s priority is Ken Walker. The Chiefs are undefeated and I’m sky rocketing them up to my number 1 spot in the power rankings this week until I see any reason not to. The Chiefs have some tough games coming up and I’m interested to see how well they perform without big play WRs. The return of Tyreek Hill is also on the horizon and if he’s healthy, could be a lot of fun to watch this reunion.
8) Are the Vikings Going to be Able to Sustain this Run?
Winning makes everything better. But when it comes to if you are a legit contender, I need to see a healthier offense and have them actually score TDs. It’s going to be hard for me to be fully bought in. Of the 3, 4-0 teams, the Chiefs and 49ers have 14 and 16 TDs on the season while the Vikings have 6. O’Connell is coaching his tail off and the defense is showing up. I need to see Kyler and Jefferson be the combo Minnesota was hoping for. Getting to 4-0 is impressive and at this point, you’re in a good spot to make the playoffs but that’s about it. O’Connell always seems to get it figured out no matter who’s at QB though. We need to see fully healthy Kyler and Jefferson to judge this offense so give it time.
9) What Head Coach Gets Fired First?
Let’s look at some options that I believe to be on the hot seat: Demeco Ryans is 0-4 with the Texans, the Harbaugh/McDaniels combo is 0-4 with the Chargers, Dan Quinn is sitting at 1-3 with the Commanders, and Todd Bowles is sitting at 0-4 with the Bucs. Some sleeper hot seat candidates are both Matt LeFleur with the Packers and Zach Taylor with the Bengals. Despite being 2-2, they’re sitting in last place in their division. But to answer the question as to who is the first coach fired, it has to be Todd Bowles. You cannot have the excuse of Baker Mayfield being hurt as a reason to keep him around because this team was highly underperforming even while he was playing. But hey as a Falcons fan, keep him around! And while you’re at it, keep Zach Robinson as your offensive coordinator. This hire was so bad in Atlanta, I’m not sure what Tampa saw in Robinson to feel confident he could do a good job with them. But I’m loving it. Poor coaching and an underperforming team equals one thing. Bowles is the first coach out before the season ends.
10) How Far Can the Cowboys Go?
The Cowboys almost fell into a 1-3 hole but was able to come back from behind against Houston to get to 2-2. We know what this offense is capable of, but it’s the defense that continues to hold them back every year. And in 2026, it hasn’t gotten any better as they rank towards the bottom in a lot of major categories, especially in stopping the run. They definitely made plenty of moves to the roster to figure some of these gaps out but they haven’t quite hit their stride yet. But I’m willing to be patient and the addition of Joey Porter Jr. is hopefully the right fit for the secondary. I’m not sold on the division leading Giants without Dart and the Eagles are falling apart right in front of our eyes. I think the Cowboys figure out the defense and leap into the lead in this division in no time. Take a sigh of relief from this past weekend and be patient. Is this their year? It all depends on the defense.
