5 Takeaways from September Football
The first month of the NFL is one of the most important months of the season, from the first impressions of each team, the rookies, the new additions to teams, and the new coaches. Throughout the first month, we usually have some frauds, some pretenders, and some contenders. What have we learned so far this month?
The AFC might just run through Kansas City once again. With the addition of K9, the Chiefs offense looks balanced, deadly, and strong. We knew last season the lack of offense was due to the lack of receiving talent, aging Kelce, and a poor running game that ranked 25th in the league. The free agent signing of super bowl winner Kenneth Walker has helped take the load off of Mahomes and has re-balanced a seemingly stagnant offense.
Currently, the Chiefs are 3-0 and are averaging 29 points per game, and the run game ranks top 5. Mahomes looks comfortable, Bieniemy is back, and Arrowhead is booming.
On the opposite side of the totem pole, the Chargers are more cooked than ever in the Herbert era. The offense is anemic, Herbert looks uncomfortable, the interior offensive line is atrocious, and Omarion Hampton has not been unlocked yet. This team has not won a game yet, which is extremely concerning considering they have played the Cardinals and Raiders so far.
Their schedule only gets tougher this month, with meetings in Seattle, Kansas City, and LA (versus the Rams) coming in the next month. Their only home game this month will be in Denver too. The Chargers have a real possibility to start this season 0-7, which might just be an end to the Harbaugh and Hebert era.
Drake Maye has struggled mightily this season, with a grotesque 1:6 Touchdown to Interception Ratio. The offense is averaging 12 points per game, which ranks 31st in the league. But, in hindsight, this should not come as a shock. In the playoffs, the Patriots offense was mid at best. With 6 touchdowns and 4 interceptions over the 4-game stint, it was the defense that propelled the Pats to the Super Bowl.
I do believe this is just a tough stretch of games for the 3rd year man, but at 1-2, if he does not improve drastically over the next few games the Patriots might find themselves in a very uncomfortable position. I expect this upcoming game against Buffalo to be a 'Get Right' game for him.
The Packers are kind of bad. Ever since Micah Parsons got injured in week 15 last season against Denver, the Pack only win has come against the Jets....in overtime. They are a painful 1-7 since the injury, and I don't know how it'll get better. Their offense has struggled, especially with the running game that ranks dead last in yards and yards per attempt. Jordan Love has been solid this season but simply has not been good enough to help this team push forward.
In an already stacked NFC North, I do not see how the Packers can fight back this season without wholesale changes, whether that's a trade or a firing. Luckily, their schedule isn't too bad with games in Tampa, against Caleb-less bears, and Dallas coming up. If the packers make a charge this year, it HAS to be over these next 3 games.
The 49ers are just a darn good football team. Every year this team gets bitten by the injury bug in the worst way, and they find a way to rattle off a playoff appearance. This year marks no different, but the offense looks insane to start the new season. Brock Purdy has been playing MVP ball, Mike Evans is a great fit, Deebo turned back the clock, and the defense behind Fred Warner has been excellent. There might not be a gap larger between the best player at their position and second place when it comes to the linebacker position. Fred Warner is THAT good.
With a dominating win over LA and Miami, the 49ers are looking like they will be at the top of the NFC this year. A highly anticipated couple of games against Denver and Seattle will really clarify whether this team is for real or not. Let's see what happens.
This season will be lots of fun, and we are very excited to see who comes out on top at the end of the year. As any other season, we will be watching for pretenders and our contenders every week.
