1ST QTR...Grades

[ATL96Steeler]

4 games does not make a season, but most NFL HCs often break the season into quarters.

How do you grade your team's 1st QTR?

Who were you wrong and right about so far? (not your team)

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Steelers grade...B, 3-1 with wins over WAS, CIN, and KC...the blow out loss to PHI and still not settled in the secondary or pass rush keeps them below a B+ or better.

I was right about...CAR, I thought they would take a step back, it looks like they have taken 2 steps back...edge pass rusher and CB play is clearly less than LY.

I was wrong about...TN, I thought they would be 2-2. TB, the look like the same old Bucs to be honest. DEN, 4-0, didn't see that coming.

 

[Broncos6482]

Broncos - A. Pretty much everything went right for the Broncos the first quarter. They won all 4 games, the offense improved from last year, the pass defense actually looks better, and they stayed mostly healthy, with only minor injuries in areas where they have depth. Probably the only area of concern right now is the run defense, although it was much better yesterday.

Right about: Minnesota. I picked them to go to the Super Bowl, and so far they've done nothing to dissuade me. That defense is really, really good and will give them a chance to win every week. They remind me a lot of Denver last year.

Wrong about: A lot of teams actually. I thought Arizona would be better, the Raiders would be worse, the Lions would be better, the Colts would be better, but I was probably most wrong about the Eagles. I didn't think Wentz was very good, I didn't think Peterson would make a good head coach, and I think they'd compete with the Browns for the worst record in the league. Couldn't have been more wrong about any of that.

 

[Rex Racer]

I'll give the Pats an A- even with yesterday's clunker against the minor league team from Buffalo. No one knew what to expect in the first 4 games without Brady and the two youngins did well enough to get them to 3-1. Not having Dion Lewis yet and a very limited Gronkowski makes me feel even better about their start.

I didn't think Carolina would be nearly as good as last year and I thought Cam Newton's immaturity would continue to be an issue and I was right.

I never thought Minny would be this strong out of the gate, especially after losing their QB. I was wrong.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Broncos - A. Pretty much everything went right for the Broncos the first quarter. They won all 4 games, the offense improved from last year, the pass defense actually looks better, and they stayed mostly healthy, with only minor injuries in areas where they have depth. Probably the only area of concern right now is the run defense, although it was much better yesterday.

Right about: Minnesota. I picked them to go to the Super Bowl, and so far they've done nothing to dissuade me. That defense is really, really good and will give them a chance to win every week. They remind me a lot of Denver last year.

Wrong about: A lot of teams actually. I thought Arizona would be better, the Raiders would be worse, the Lions would be better, the Colts would be better, but I was probably most wrong about the Eagles. I didn't think Wentz was very good, I didn't think Peterson would make a good head coach, and I think they'd compete with the Browns for the worst record in the league. Couldn't have been more wrong about any of that.

Agree on the Broncos...can't get much better...scary they have been able to keep it rolling with totally green QBs.

 

[Tainthappening]

Packers get an incomplete for now... skipped the exam in Week 4

 

[bksballer89]

Saints D-

Same old Saints. Offense needs to score 28-35 points weekly to stand a chance. And just like previous seasons they still have trouble winning close games as we saw in week 1 vs Oakland and week 2 vs the Giants. Team could easily be 3-1 or 0-4. Not very positive for the rest of the season. 5-11 season seems pretty certain

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I'll give the Pats an A- even with yesterday's clunker against the minor league team from Buffalo. No one knew what to expect in the first 4 games without Brady and the two youngins did well enough to get them to 3-1. Not having Dion Lewis yet and a very limited Gronkowski makes me feel even better about their start.

I didn't think Carolina would be nearly as good as last year and I thought Cam Newton's immaturity would continue to be an issue and I was right.

I never thought Minny would be this strong out of the gate, especially after losing their QB. I was wrong.

I was kinda right about NE...I thought 2-2 worse case and 3-1 would be good.

CAR...Cam hasn't played as well, but that was to be expected coming off an MVP season...not sure how much his antics have hurt them. Three areas seems to be the big factors...run game, pass DEF.

 

[Gooch1034]

Steelers grade...B, 3-1 with wins over WAS, CIN, and KC...the blow out loss to PHI and still not settled in the secondary or pass rush keeps them below a B+ or better.

I was right about...CAR, I thought they would take a step back, it looks like they have taken 2 steps back...edge pass rusher and CB play is clearly less than LY.

I was wrong about...TN, I thought they would be 2-2. TB, the look like the same old Bucs to be honest. DEN, 4-0, didn't see that coming.

Totally agree with your Steelers grade. The ass kicking by Philly was just odd but it counts. I think if the Steelers stay healthy, their "2nd qtr" grade and beyond will improve. The defense tightened up late last season so my guess is the same will happen this season.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Saints D-

Same old Saints. Offense needs to score 28-35 points weekly to stand a chance. And just like previous seasons they still have trouble winning close games as we saw in week 1 vs Oakland and week 2 vs the Giants. Team could easily be 3-1 or 0-4. Not very positive for the rest of the season. 5-11 season seems pretty certain

Fair grade...I thought the Saints were 9 win team top side...lot of major injuries...especially on DEF for an already thin DEF...but if not a gift from SD, they are 0-4.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Totally agree with your Steelers grade. The ass kicking by Philly was just odd but it counts. I think if the Steelers stay healthy, their "2nd qtr" grade and beyond will improve. The defense tightened up late last season so my guess is the same will happen this season.

I've been worried about the pass rush...last night Butler turned it up from the beginning...if they can take that DEF effort on the road, they should be right there near the top of the AFC come Jan.

 

[Gooch1034]

I've been worried about the pass rush...last night Butler turned it up from the beginning...if they can take that DEF effort on the road, they should be right there near the top of the AFC come Jan.

Getting that type of effort week after week is the hardest part for the Steelers. They cant decide if they are good defensively or not. Hopefully last nights game gave them some confidence.

 

[blue_suns]

Ravens B-. Still playing games close, but they're finding ways to win. Still need to work on O-line and secondary if they want to keep it up.

The Good: Overall defense making plays late in games, getting turnovers unlike last year. Special teams really making a difference this year (although Hester fumbling is becoming a problem). Passing game is decent if Flacco is actually able to get time to throw the ball.

The Bad: The O-line has been playing subpar all season with bad blocking and penalties and it's made the run game non existent. The Raiders were all over Flacco yesterday. Offensive play calling isn't helping either. Secondary needs to play better as they play the better WRs in the league later in the season.

 

[cdumler7]

Broncos A--I'm not sure you can give them anything else at this point. Offensively they look much better than last year. In fact they are 5th as a scoring offense in the NFL average 27.8 points per game. The defense has looked almost as dominant as last year. They have struggled early in games but once they get a feel for what teams are doing it is one of those situations where you better have a pretty good lead going into half time. Then even special teams has been impressive. Most Bronco fans did not like the move to get rid of Colquitt but through the 1st quarter of the season the rookie has actually been out punting Colquitt. So very impressed and have actually exceeded even me as a homer of what I thought they would be at this point.

Things I was right about--Well I said a while ago that I thought the Chiefs defense wouldn't be quite what it was last year and would have some struggles with missing Houston and having so much youth in the secondary. Well yesterday showed both of those struggles.

Osweiler--Said that he would struggle and wouldn't be worth the money they are paying him in Houston and well so far I would say that has held true.

Things I was wrong about--I thought Jacksonville would look a bit better this year. I bought into the hype and while they won yesterday they still look like a team quite a ways from being competitive.

Arizona--I picked them for the NFC to be in the Super Bowl. I'm not completely abandoning that idea but they have looked pretty bad on both sides of the ball. They are not the same team of the last few years for sure.

 

[Gooch1034]

Ravens B-. Still playing games close, but they're finding ways to win. Still need to work on O-line and secondary if they want to keep it up.

The Good: Overall defense making plays late in games, getting turnovers unlike last year. Special teams really making a difference this year (although Hester fumbling is becoming a problem). Passing game is decent if Flacco is actually able to get time to throw the ball.

The Bad: The O-line has been playing subpar all season with bad blocking and penalties and it's made the run game non existent. The Raiders were all over Flacco yesterday. Offensive play calling isn't helping either. Secondary needs to play better as they play the better WRs in the league later in the season.

I haven't been able to see them play a full game yet but what I have seen looks like they have improved. Especially their passing game.

 

[shopson67]

I'll give the Pats an A- even with yesterday's clunker against the minor league team from Buffalo.

Throwing insults at the team that shut them out, lol.

 

[blue_suns]

I haven't been able to see them play a full game yet but what I have seen looks like they have improved. Especially their passing game.

The passing game can do some damage if the line gives Flacco time to throw. He and Wallace have good chemistry already and Pitta hasn't lost a step since his injuries. They've been one dimensional due to the running game not being effective this year (West did have a good game yesterday, finally)

 

[NWPATSFAN]

Throwing insults at the team that shut them out, lol.

Can the depth of your hatred be measured? Your tears taste a little rancid.

 

[NWPATSFAN]

NE I give a strong B. They had their issues to deal with and came thru pretty well. I didn't give them an A because it wasn't the toughest schedule. Plus they had issues on the D and STs.

Teams I got right; Denver, Oakland and Minny

Teams I missed the boat on;
Arizona, Atlanta and Houston

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Getting that type of effort week after week is the hardest part for the Steelers. They cant decide if they are good defensively or not. Hopefully last nights game gave them some confidence.

Agreed...by effort...part of that is schematic...the rush 3 or 4 and drop 7 or 8 strategy they employed the 1st 3 weeks was not a big part of the part of the game plan last night. I assume Tomlin met with Butler and said we need to dial it up.

I really think they were trying get Davis, Golden, and Burns comfortable with theirs...but the PHI game threw a wrench into those plans....lol. I expect them to be a better DEF in DEC than they are today.