1. I’ve already said my piece on the toxic discussion about Caleb Williams’ emotional reaction to his hamstring injury, and I don’t feel like I have much more to add. That said, since I called out the idiotic former players and talking heads that talked trash about Williams being too “extra” about a hamstring strain, let me shout out ex-Bear Kyle Long for being a real one.
2. The rash of injuries to young quarterbacks this past week was brutal. At this point, the world just has it out for Jayden Daniels,
who dislocated his elbow on a freak play. It feels like RG3 all over again as far as the excitement of Daniels’ rookie year being completely ruined by bad luck and shaky health afterward. Then, Jaxson Dart goes down with a knee injury that, after initially seemed manageable, looks like it could be season-ending—after having put up a stunning Week 1 performance against the Dallas Cowboys. Plus, you’re taking Williams and Tyson Bagent from us this week? Hate it.
3. Has any football player of this past generation been more insufferable than Aaron Rodgers? Seriously, this might be my question of the week to answer in the comments below. Because how are you going to play like that and then take shots st the coaching staff? Especially when you turned the ball over twice? We’re not going to act like Mike McCarthy is some kind of savant at this point in his career. But his longtime quarterback’s lack of self-awareness and reflection will never cease to amaze me. I’d say, “Just retire already,” but I’m also kind of enjoying him realizing in real time that he’s bad while being unable to admit or acknowledge it.
4. Maybe it really was Eric Bieniemy all along. Okay, but really: the Kansas City Chiefs look like a rejuvenated offense even with Patrick Mahomes still finding his footing post-ACL injury. I wasn’t sure how much stock I should put in Kenneth Walker coming into this season, given how the Chiefs struggled last year even with Mahomes. But apparently I didn’t buy nearly enough. I guess all KC needed was to get Matt Nagy away from the offensive coordinator spot.
5. I’m sorry, you can’t make me take the Raiders seriously with this 2-0 start. It’s just not going to happen. (Though maybe they’ll be better than I expected in an AFC West that looks way less mighty than in years past with the Chargers back to Chargering.) But you have to admit, this is an absolute dream scenario for the Fernando Mendoza development plan Vegas hoped to implement. Plenty of teams love the idea of drafting a kid and sitting him all season only to see the plan implode within three games because the veteran starter is awful. So far, Kirk Cousins is giving Klint Kubiak and Co. exactly what they need to keep Mendoza on the bench (barring injury). I’ve started coming around to the idea that sometimes these kids just need time to chill out and watch a seasoned pro do things. Then again, you don’t normally get someone like Cousins as your vet. Someone’s usually trying to peddle us Jacoby Brissett (sorry, bro) or Gardner Minshew. That’s the magic of it for Vegas and Mendoza.
6. Don’t be surprised if the Sean Payton-Mike MacDonald becomes a hot topic when training camp comes around, especially when it comes to filming plays. Payton was reportedly upset that Macdonald and the Seattle Seahawks watched plays posted to X as part of their scouting for last year’s matchup in Week 1, even threatening to go full Spygate on them until Seattle got litigation ready. While media members are generally prohibited from taking video during team periods or any time formations were being walked through, teams have a harder time stopping fans from snagging video of plays and posting them online. Technically, there’s nothing illegal about what Seattle did since the plays are in a public forum. One could see that loophole being contested heading into next season.
7. I’ll probably always have a slight soft spot for Kellen Moore just because he’s the one football player my wife has heard of. (They both grew up in Prosser, Washington—aka the middle of nowhere.) So it’s pretty fun seeing the Saints coming out guns blazing in 2026. Taking down a Ravens team that should be a legit contender in Week 2 after putting up a valiant effort in a loss against Detroit in Week 1 is a great start for a young team hoping to compete in a wide-open NFC South. Also, Tyler Shough is on a mission to make sure we all know how to pronounce his name correctly with the way he’s playing so far.
8. Look, I’m all for a good Josh Allen glaze—the guy is really good. But can we chill on even the suggestion that he’s the best running quarterback ever? He has indeed scored a lot of touchdowns on the ground, more than anyone in NFL history (83). You know who’s third after Cam Newton’s 75 rushing scores? Jalen Hurts (63), in two fewer seasons, mind you. You gonna tell me that Jalen Hurts is the third-best rushing QB of all time? Are we really going to argue any one of these three names is better than Lamar Jackson or Michael Vick just because they didn’t punch it in as often? Let’s be for real now. They want Allen to get another MVP so bad…
9. I never bought into the weirdness about CJ Stroud “little-broing” Caleb Williams by giving him advice after their game two years ago. Like, oh no, a second-year player acted like he had more experience than a rookie? How insulting! What I will say is: good lord, Stroud is going through a generational aura loss after that Rookie of the Year campaign. It’s not just all the injuries, the offensive coordinator changes, or lack of running game, either. Then again, he’s not the only one: Justin Herbert has put himself on fraud watch this year—a sentence I’m sad to be writing. The NFL is a fickle place, man.
10. I’m never doubting Brian Flores again. My bad, dawg. Also, given that this man was definitely right about Tua not being very good, is he allowed to have a head-coaching job again? I know there’s almost no chance of that as long as his lawsuit against the NFL is active. I’m just saying that if the NFL were actually a meritocracy, he’d have the top job somewhere that wasn’t Minnesota and, therefore, wouldn’t be torturing the Bears twice a year.
