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NFC Hierarchy/Obituary: Week 3 edition

14) Giants (0-2): My perception of the Giants' 40-37 loss to the Cowboys is that it is being viewed as a moral victory of sorts, since (a) they lost the previous eight matchups to Dallas and at least this time they came close; and (b) it was a fun, exciting game. But let's be clear. There's no moral victory over a team that went 7-10 last season, and traded their best player just before the start of the season.

And sure, the offense put up a lot of points. That's good. But also, the defense looked like garbage, and that's what the Giants are supposed to be able to hang their hat on. That's not good.

In my opinion, the Giants' loss was particularly damaging because Russell Wilson played great, almost certainly prolonging his status as the team's starter. All that's going to do is waste valuable experience that Jaxson Dart can be gaining on the job.

I did move them up ahead of the Panthers this week, so that's something.

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13) Bears (0-2): The Bears aren't just 0-2. Their losses were both to NFC North rivals. That's nothing new. Their divisional records the last five years:

• 2024: 1-5

• 2023: 2-4

• 2022: 0-6

• 2021: 2-4

• 2020: 2-4

If the Bears lose at home Week 3 to the Cowboys, we might be writing our first obituary of the season.

Last week: 12

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12) Vikings (1-1): J.J. McCarthy was alarmingly bad in front of a national audience on Sunday night, when he was picked off twice and sacked six times. To add injury to insult, McCarthy is now also out 2-4 weeks with a high ankle sprain.

If you'll recall, the Vikings traded their former QB2 Sam Howell to the Eagles and then signed... Carson Wentz!

As pointed out by ESPN's Bill Barnwell, if he starts Week 3, Wentz will become the first quarterback in NFL history to start at least one game for six different teams in six consecutive seasons:

Eagles (2020)

Colts (2021)

Commanders (2022)

Rams (2023)

Chiefs (2024)

Vikings (2025)

Their season has potential to go sideways very quickly.

Also, the Vikings play the Bengals Week 3, which means we might have a backup vs. backup game already, with Joe Burrow expected to miss a few months.

Last week: 5

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11) Cowboys (1-1): Brandon Aubrey is on a track to be the best kicker in NFL history. What's remarkable about his game-tying 64-yard field goal attempt on Sunday was that anyone who has seen him kick knew he was going to drain it.

And then of course he drilled a 46-yard chip shot in overtime.

Last week: 13

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10) Falcons (1-1): Who the hell thought Falcons-Vikings would be a good SNF game in Week 2? Lol.

Last week: 11

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9) Seahawks (1-1): The Seahawks' pass rush has been excellent so far this season.

Last week: 10

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8) Cardinals (2-0): The Cardinals got up 27-3 on the Panthers, before nearly choking the game away in the second half. But, they survived and are 2-0 for the first time since 2021. They also had to sweat out a win over the Saints Week 1. So, you know, two of the worst teams in the league game them competitive games that went down to the wire.

In Week 3, they play a very banged up 49ers team that might have to start Mac Jones for the second straight game.

Last week: 8

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7) 49ers (2-0): For what it's worth, Mac Jones had good numbers Week 2 while replacing Brock Purdy. He was 26 of 39 for 279 yards, 3 TDs, and 0 INTs.

Barring a tie, either the fraud Niners or fraud Cardinals will be 3-0 after Week 3.

Last week: 9

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6) Commanders (1-1): Hey, remember when the Commanders' roster got flagged for being exceedingly old?

• Two of their old players — RB Austin Ekeler (30) and EDGE Deatrich Wise (31) — are potentially done for the season with Achilles and quadriceps injuries, respectively.

• CB Marshon Lattimore (29) looked cooked last year, but there was reasonable hope that he'd be healthier and thus better in 2025. Nope. He has clearly lost a step and is either giving up a lot of separation or holding onto receivers for dear life because he knows he's about to get beat.

• S Will Harris (30 in December) had a brutal game. Couldn't cover, couldn't tackle.

Old guys aside, three of the Commanders' most important players have not had ideal starts to their seasons:

• Rookie RT Josh Conerly looks overwhelmed. In fairness, he has gone up against Brian Burns and Micah Parsons the first two weeks of the season, so it's been a trial by fire. But there are a lot of great edge rushers, league-wide. That could be a rough spot all season.

• LB Frankie Luvu, one of the most overrated players in the NFL, has more missed tackles (5) than solo tackles (4) through the first two games, per PFF. He also got absolutely trucked by Josh Jacobs at the goal line.

• And last but not least, Jayden Daniels was a star as a rookie and it was always going to be hard for him to match his excellence of a season ago, but so far not so good. Also, he has a sprained knee.

None of the above is surprising, by the way.

Last week: 6

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5) Lions (1-1): The Lions lost Week 1 and their offense looked nothing like the juggernaut they were last season. As a result, a common reaction (self included here) was to wonder if the loss of OC Ben Johnson was a big problem. Welp, Jared Goff and the Lions offense responded.

Goff was 23 of 28 for 334 yards (11.9 YPA), 5 TDs, and 0 INTs, while Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery combined to carry 23 times for 151 yards and 2 TDs.

Great Monday Night Football matchup Week 3: Lions at Ravens.

Last week: 7

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4) Rams (2-0): Matthew Stafford didn't practice this summer until August 18 because of an aggravated disk in his back, so there rightfully was some concern that he might not look like the best version of himself when the season began. Welp, he looks just fine.

Last week: 4

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3) Buccaneers (2-0): Baker Mayfield has now led game-winning drives in each of the Bucs' wins this season.

• Week 1 final drive, in 1:18: 4/5, 63 yards, TD.

• Week 2 final drive, in 2:04: 8/10, 78 yards, capped by a Rachaad White rushing TD.

Like him or not, Mayfield competes, and he's clutch. And the Bucs got two road wins to start the season without Tristin Wirfs and Chris Godwin.

Last week: 3

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2) Packers (2-0): So far in 2025, the Packers' defense has faced the No. 1 and No. 5 scoring offenses of 2024 in the Lions and Commanders.

Both of those teams got some garbage time yards and points in Green Bay, but the Packers shut each of them down early. In the first halves of those games, the Lions and Commanders combined for just six points, 12 first downs, and 205 yards. Beyond the pass rush, which is obviously improved with the addition of Micah Parsons, that defense is fast and they fly to the football in waves.

Last week: 2

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1) Eagles (2-0): The Eagles ran six (lol) Tush Pushes on Sunday. They pretty clearly false started on at least one of them.

But, it didn't get flagged. Adam Schefter said, "This game was lost in March. This game was lost when the NFL owners refused to ban the Tush Push from happening. It wasn't lost yesterday. It was lost in March. And there might be a lot of games that they Eagles play that are lost in March, because this play is unstoppable."

Lol, what a dweeby thing to say. Honestly, I can't believe we're still going in circles on this. The Tush Push isn't unstoppable. If it were, every team would run it. There's just one team that runs it at an extremely high level.

Now, if the Eagles false start on the play, then they should absolutely be penalized. Similarly, when defensive linemen line up in the neutral zone, they too should be flagged. By all means, enforce the rules.

Spoiler: When Roger Goodell tries again to ban it next offseason and there's no new data to support claims that it's "too dangerous," the reason to ban will become, "It's too hard to officiate."