Welcome to Week 4. A week where there is no San Francisco 49ers football. For the staff this gives us a bit of a breather, but we definitely have some games to talk about. The important NFC West games don’t happen until this afternoon, but there are some fun games in the morning to watch.
The two I’m most interested in is the Los Angeles Chargers vs. Miami Dolphins and the Cleveland Browns vs. Baltimore Ravens. The Chargers/Dolphins game is a game where I will (unsuccessfully) root for Miami. Why? Because the crappier the Chargers/Steelers are, the better odds the NFL flexes 49ers-Rams into Sunday Night Football in two weeks. If the Chargers take a loss to Miami and the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Pittsburgh Steelers Monday night, it’s a foregone conclusion that that game is less than idea for the NFL. So go Dolphins. Then again, they may as well cancel the game and give the Chargers the win before someone gets hurt. The Chargers are actually trying.
The other one is Cleveland/Baltimore. This is more of a game to look at what the Browns do in an away game against a decent team. At this point, I’d put the Ravens, Browns, and 49ers on the same level. Considering the Browns are coming to Santa Clara next week, I’d like to get a look at what the 49ers are dealing with or if I was wrong to put them on the 49ers’ level.
I also am interested in New England/Buffalo. The Bill have been getting their yearly hype in three games, but Tom Brady has made Buffalo his house for the better half of his career. Can Buffalo finally get it together? We’ll see with that defense.
What are you watching for the morning?
NFL Sunday schedule for Week 4 (all times Pacific)
Tennessee Titans at Atlanta Falcons, 10 a.m., CBS
Washington at New York Giants, 10 a.m., FOX
Los Angeles Chargers at Miami Dolphins, 10 a.m., CBS
Oakland Raiders at Indianapolis Colts, 10 a.m., CBS
Carolina Panthers at Houston Texans, 10 a.m., FOX
Kansas City Chiefs at Detroit Lions, 10 a.m., FOX
Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens, 10 a.m., CBS
New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills, 10 a.m., CBS