At the Water Cooler : Week 3

football, games, week 3

If you like turnovers, sacks, penalties, and upset victories…this week was for you! Here’s a recap of the Week 3 action thus far:

Kansas City Chiefs at Philadelphia Eagles (Chiefs won, 26-16)

It was a great night for Andy Reid and fans of the Andy Reid Eagles era. It wasn’t such a great night for current Eagles fans.

Green Bay Packers at Cincinnati Bengals (Bengals won, 34-30)

I don’t want to talk about it.

St. Louis Rams at Dallas Cowboys (Cowboys won, 31-7)

There was a blatant foul on one of the Cowboys’ touchdowns so the score shouldn’t have counted, but even still, it was a convincing win for the Cowboys.

San Diego Chargers at Tennessee Titans (Titans won, 20-17)

Titans QB Jake Locker has waited a long time for a game-winning drive like the one he had on Sunday. Great win for the Titans.

Cleveland Browns at Minnesota Vikings (BROWNS WON, 31-27)

Who saw this one coming?

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New England Patriots (Patriots won, 23-3)

We all saw this one coming.

Arizona Cardinals at New Orleans Saints (Saints won, 31-7)

I think it’s safe to say the Saints are back in business. They’re off to a 3-0 start.

Detroit Lions at Washington Redskins (Lions won, 27-20)

This might have been a loss for the Redskins, but RGIII looked much more like himself which is a win for them in the long run.

New York Giants at Carolina Panthers (Panthers won, 38-0)

There are no words for this year’s Giants team. All I can do is offer apologies to my home state.

Houston Texans at Baltimore Ravens (Ravens won, 30-9)

I’m similarly stymied over this year’s Texans team. What happened, guys?

Atlanta Falcons at Miami Dolphins (Miami won, 27-23)

This was a statement win for the Dolphins, who went into the game as the Vegas favorite but no one credited as the actual favorite. The dolphins (the DOLPHINS) are 3-0!

Buffalo Bills at New York Jets (Jets won, 27-20)

I’d comment on this game but I think they’re still out there on the field picking up the surplus of yellow flags.

Indianapolis Colts at San Francisco 49ers (Colts won, 27-7)

Colts QB Andrew Luck returned to California and put up impressive numbers against his former college coach and current 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Jacksonville Jaguars at Seattle Seahawks (Seattle won, 45-17)

I’m actually surprised that this wasn’t a more traumatic experience for the Jaguars.

Chicago Bears at Pittsburgh Steelers (Chicago won, 40-23)

This game proved something we already knew: the Bears are good. The Steelers are not.

Oakland Raiders at Denver Broncos (Monday at 8:40pm, ESPN)

This has the potential to be ugly for the Raiders.

What To Know : Week 3

What to Know: Week 3:

GAME OF THE WEEK: Lots of great contenders here – Jets at Miami, Houston at Denver, Philadelphia at Arizona. But I think my pick for game of the week is New England at Baltimore. Both teams are AFC super powers and both lost ugly games last week – Baltimore to Philadelphia and New England to Arizona – so both teams will be looking for redemption on Sunday night. Both also have 1-1 records, so they’re looking to be on the right side of the win/loss ratio after Week 3.

PLAYER TO WATCH: Wes Welker. He’s a wide receiver for the Patriots, formerly one of their biggest stars, who has seemingly been demoted in favor of their innovative tight end system. The Patriots and Welker have been going through some messy contract negotiations, which might also be lending to Welker’s limited role. And Boston isn’t necessarily the kindest of places when it comes to phasing players out. If Welker still doesn’t receive any meaningful snaps despite Aaron Hernandez (one half of the aforementioned tight end system) being out on injury it could be a sign that his days in New England might be coming to an end.

STORYLINE TO KNOW: I think it’s still the replacement refs. Their performance quality seems to be getting worse rather than better. Hopefully no games have an unfair outcome based on bad calls…and hopefully Ed Hochuli and the gang are able to come back soon!

RECIPES TO MAKE:

30 minute buffalo chicken soup

crispy chocolate peanut butter cups

caramel apple cheesecake bars

hot blueberry cheddar dip (I KNOW?!?!)

speculoos, candied bacon, and nutella s’mores (come ON! oh my word!!!)