Archives for October 4, 2026

MINNEAPOLIS – (Wire Service Previews) – Here are the four game previews for Sunday’s (October 4) late afternoon NFL games:

Miami Dolphins (0-3) at Minnesota Vikings (3-0)
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Vikings -10.5. Total 38.5.
Series rewind: Kirk Cousins outdueled Teddy Bridgewater to lead the Vikings past the Dolphins, 24-16, in the most recent meeting (October 2022), despite being outgained 458-234 in total yards. Miami has won the past two meetings and leads the all-time series 7-6.

The Dolphins are playing with losing margins, averaging 12 points per game while giving up 28.7. Revving up the offense became more complicated last week when RB De’Von Achane (ACL) was lost for the season. Minus Miami’s top playmaker, QB Malik Willis is fighting uphill while trying to solve the NFL’s most aggressive defensive coordinator Brian Flores. Flores and the Vikings hunt with a blitz-heavy scheme to force the ball out of the quarterback’s hand early. They have 14 sacks and four interceptions this season. The Dolphins are turning to Ollie Gordon II as the primary ballcarrier while starting a pair of rookies at wide receiver: Caleb Douglas and Chris Bell. The Vikings might have to shake things up on the offensive depth chart with wide receiver Justin Jefferson (ankle) hurting.

Denver Broncos (2-1) at San Francisco 49ers (3-0)
Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: 49ers -2.5. Total 47.5
Series rewind: This is the first meeting since 2022. The series is tied 8-8 including the playoffs, highlighted by the 49ers’ 55-10 romp against the Broncos in Super Bowl XXIV.

One of two unbeaten NFC teams remaining (with Minnesota), the 49ers lead the league in point differential (plus-48) and rank second in scoring (32.7 points per game) behind the fast start of quarterback Brock Purdy (league-leading 133.1 passer rating). San Francisco is just the fourth team since 1990 to allow zero sacks in each of its first three games. Four-time first-team All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner recorded a career-high 17 tackles in last week’s win against Arizona. Denver rallied from a 16-0 deficit to stun the Rams, 30-26, last Sunday night. Bo Nix fueled the rally with two third-quarter touchdown passes and the game-winning TD run with 47 seconds left. Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga — who played for the 49ers from 2021-24 — made NFL history with a sack and two interceptions in a single quarter. His fourth-quarter heroics against Los Angeles included a 66-yard pick-six. Five 49ers starters missed practice to start the week, including WR Mike Evans (ribs), DE Nick Bosa (knee, calf) and LB Dre Greenlaw (quad).

Kansas City Chiefs (3-0) at Las Vegas Raiders (3-0)
Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
Fan Duel: Chiefs -4.5. Total: 47.5
Series rewind: The teams split two meetings last season. The Las Vegas victory in the second matchup when Patrick Mahomes was sidelined with his knee injury was just the Raiders’ third win in the past 17 matchups with the Chiefs.

Both teams are undefeated and fighting for first place in the AFC West? Sounds like a flashback to the Raiders’ long-ago better days in Oakland. The Raiders haven’t started 4-0 since 2002 — a season in which they reached the Super Bowl before losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Las Vegas hasn’t allowed a single point in the fourth quarter during the surprise start that has seen Kirk Cousins throw nine touchdown passes in 92 attempts. New Raiders coach Klint Kubiak quickly has changed the atmosphere around the team. On the other side of the ball, linebacker Nakobe Dean has been a stellar free-agent pickup and leads the squad with 27 tackles, 3.5 stops for losses and three sacks. Cornerback Hezekiah Masses has three interceptions entering a matchup in which Las Vegas wishes to slow Mahomes. Saying the two-time NFL MVP regularly carves up the Raiders is putting it nicely – he has thrown 36 touchdowns against five interceptions while winning 13 of his 15 starts. Mahomes is doing well this season on his surgically repaired knee as he has passed for 812 yards and seven touchdowns against two interceptions. Kansas City is tied for seventh in scoring at 29.3 points (the Raiders are also part of that tie) and ranks second in total offense at 416.3 yards per game as running back Kenneth Walker III has pumped life into the running game with a league-leading 360 yards. Walker has two rushing touchdowns and two receiving scores. Linebacker Nick Bolton leads the defense with 28 tackles but one problem is that Kansas City has just four sacks and seven-time Pro Bowl defensive end Chris Jones doesn’t yet have one.Buy Game Tickets

Los Angeles Chargers (0-3) at Seattle Seahawks (2-1)
Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
Fan Duel: Seahawks -7. Total: 43.5
Series rewind: This is the first meeting since 2022 when the Seahawks recorded a 37-23 road victory. The Chargers have won three of the past five matchups after Seattle prevailed in the previous five.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba picked up where he left off after being the NFL Offensive Player of the Year last season. Smith-Njigba leads the NFL with 405 receiving yards and six touchdown catches and is tied for the league lead with 27 receptions. He has posted outings of 122, 155 and 128 receiving yards and fared well with backup Drew Lock as well as starter Sam Darnold. The latter was back from a Week 1 glute injury and threw for 379 yards and four touchdowns in last week’s 33-31 loss against the host Washington Commanders. Darnold also threw two interceptions as the Super Bowl champions saw their winning streak end at 12 games dating back to last November. Defensive tackle Leonard Williams is pacing the defensive with three sacks. The winless Chargers are nearing desperation mode and will fully be there with another loss. Of course, the 1994 team in San Diego reached the Super Bowl after opening with four straight losses when it was led by no-nonsense coach Bobby ‘Boss’ Ross and all-everything linebacker Junior Seau. But 32 years later, coach Jim Harbaugh brought in former Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel to run the offense and the unit isn’t clicking and has a high of just 16 points. The Chargers rank 29th in scoring offense at 14.7 points per game and 20th in total offense at 308.7 yards per game. Quarterback Justin Herbert’s completion percentage is 59.1% — his career rate is 66.3 – and he has thrown more interceptions (four) than touchdown passes (three). Ladd McConkey’s 12 catches lead the team.

ORCHARD PARK – (Wire Service Previews) – Week Four in the NFL begins the very important stretch of the schedule where the contenders separate themselves from the draftniks. There’s no better example than the New England at Buffalo game where – if the Patriots lose – will plummet them into a (1-3) hole a month into the 2026 season.

New England Patriots (1-2) at Buffalo Bills (3-0)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Bills -6.5, Total 48.5
Series rewind: The AFC East rivals have split the season series during each of the past three campaigns, with all six of those meetings decided by seven or fewer points.

The Bills have a chance to start 4-0 in back-to-back seasons for the first time 1991-92. Josh Allen is just the fourth player in NFL history — and first quarterback — with six or more rushing touchdowns in at least nine consecutive seasons, joining Marshall Faulk, LaDainian Tomlinson and Jim Brown. Bills running back James Cook has two career 100-yard games against the Patriots, going for 107 yards and two TDs at New England in Week 15 last season. Buffalo linebacker Greg Rousseau is just the third player since 1982 with multiple sacks in each of the season’s first three games, along with Mark Gastineau (1984) and Kevin Greene (1998). Patriots quarterback Drake Maye has thrown six interceptions and only one touchdown pass for an offense that ranks next to last in scoring at 12.0 points per game. New England has scored only one TD on six trips to the red zone. Pro Bowl cornerback Christian Gonzalez is looking for his third straight game against Buffalo with at least five tackles and a pass breakup.

Jacksonville Jaguars (2-1) at Cincinnati Bengals (2-1)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Bengals -2.5, Total 51.5
Series rewind: The Bengals have won the last four games against the Jaguars to level the all-time series at 13 apiece. That includes their costly 31-27 win in Week 2 last season, when Joe Burrow sustained a turf toe injury that sidelined him for nine games.

Cincinnati and Jacksonville enter this week’s game off decidedly different results. The Bengals took their first loss after a costly Burrow fumble doomed them in a 30-27 setback to division rival Pittsburgh, while the Jaguars dominated the New England Patriots 35-6 to send a statement to the rest of the AFC. The Bengals enter this game with a depleted secondary as Ja’Sir Taylor and Jalen Davis are on injured reserve while Jordan Battle, Bryan Cook and Kyle Dugger have all not practiced fully this week. That could be a problem against a Jacksonville offense helmed by Trevor Lawrence, who has thrown for seven touchdowns and two interceptions through three games. The Jaguars’ ground game also has been a strength, though, 10th in the league in rushing yards per game while rushing for 95-plus yards in every game so far this season. Cincinnati’s passing game also has been on point, with Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins combining for 429 yards and four touchdown catches early this season.

Green Bay Packers (1-2) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-3)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Packers -3.5, Total 38.5
Series rewind: Green Bay leads the all-time series 34-24-1 but Tampa Bay has won three of the last four, including 31-26 in the NFC Championship Game on Jan. 24, 2021.

Both the Packers and Buccaneers could badly lose in this game. The Packers, quickly buried in what again appears to be a very strong NFC North, were handily beaten 35-14 at home by the Atlanta Falcons. Green Bay’s ground game has not remotely helped quarterback Jordan Love, with the team’s 146 total rushing yards standing as its fewest through three games since 1933. The defense also isn’t helping, giving up 30.3 points per game — tied for third most in the NFL. To make matters worse, Love is completing just 52.4% of his passes. But Green Bay at least can enjoy having its starting quarterback available Sunday, with Tampa Bay unable to say the same after Baker Mayfield sustained a dislocated thumb late in last week’s loss to Minnesota. He’ll miss at least three weeks, leaving undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels to lead the offense after he beat out Jake Browning for the backup job. Daniels accounted for 90 total touchdowns (67 passing, 23 rushing) across 49 career games at Kansas, and now becomes the first un-drafted rookie to start a game in the first four weeks of the season since the 1970 NFL/AFL merger.

Tennessee Titans (0-3) at Baltimore Ravens (2-1)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Ravens -11.5, Total 42.5
Series rewind: The Ravens have won the last two games in the series to take a 14-13 lead. These teams have faced off twice in the playoffs this decade, with Baltimore winning a 2021 wild-card matchup while Tennessee came out on top in a 2020 AFC Divisional Round game.

Derrick Henry faces the team that drafted him for the first time on Sunday. The former second-round pick ran for 9,502 yards and 90 touchdowns over his first eight seasons in the league with Tennessee. He’s already up to 301 rushing yards (fifth in the NFL) and six rushing touchdowns (tied for the league lead this season) through three games this season for the Ravens. He could be in for another big day against a Tennessee defense which is allowing 126.3 yards per game. Luckily for Baltimore, quarterback Lamar Jackson returned to full practice on Thursday after he was limited with a back injury. Even though the Titans have surrounded last year’s No. 1 overall pick with a new coaching staff and wide receivers Calvin Ridley, Carnell Tate and Wan’Dale Robinson, Cam Ward’s 80.9 passer rating ranks 29th among 39 quarterbacks who have started at least one game this season, and his 168.0 passing yards per game rank 31st. Tennessee, still seeking its first win of the Robert Saleh era, has been close the last two weeks, losing 24-20 to the Eagles and 12-7 last week at the Giants.

Los Angeles Rams (1-2) at Philadelphia Eagles (2-1)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Eagles -3, Total 43.5
Series rewind: Including the postseason, the Eagles have swept the last four meetings with the Rams. That includes a 33-26 victory in Philadelphia in Week 3 last season.

The Eagles are the only NFL team that hasn’t scored a point in the first quarter or recorded a takeaway. When these teams met last September, Jalen Hurts outdueled eventual MVP Matthew Stafford. Hurts threw for three touchdowns and ran for a fourth while Stafford was held under 200 yards with two TDs and an interception. The Rams have outgained the Eagles by more than 300 yards through three games but only have six more points to show for it thanks to a mediocre performance in the red zone. Los Angeles should get a boost from the return of wideout Puka Nacua, a full participant in Thursday’s practice after missing two games with a hip injury. Davante Adams is just 9 yards away from 13,000 for his career and has six TDs in five career games vs. Philly. They will be facing an Eagles defense that began this week without top linebacker Zack Baun (concussion protocol). No. 1 wideout DeVonta Smith also missed Wednesday’s practice with a hamstring injury.

New York Jets (1-2) at Chicago Bears (2-1)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Bears -3.5. Total 42.5.
Series rewind: The Bears beat the Jets 31-10 in their last meeting in November 2022. Chicago has won five of the past six in the series.

Maybe it’s time to believe Bears coach Ben Johnson when he asserts it doesn’t matter which of his quarterbacks start a game, trusting the collective offense to perform regardless of No. 1 QB Caleb Williams’ status. Williams (hamstring) won’t play for a second consecutive game but the Bears did just fine in demolishing the Eagles behind Case Keenum, the 38-year-old No. 3 quarterback on the depth chart. Tyson Bagent (concussion) was sidelined last week and could be in the picture Sunday. But Keenum passed for 247 yards and accounted for three total touchdowns (two passing, one rushing) in a 27-7 victory over the Eagles after Bagent spent much of the previous week in concussion protocol. Taking care of the ball has kept the Jets in every game this season. Finishing has been another story. Geno Smith will be wary in this matchup after the Bears had three takeaways in a return to the aggressive, opportunistic style that helped the unit lead the NFL in that category last season. The Jets are coming in following back-to-back losses by a combined 10 points against the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions. Revving up the running game remains an area of emphasis for the Jets. Breece Hall is week-to-week with a quad injury he suffered in last Sunday’s 31-24 loss at Detroit. He has rushed for just 61 yards on 29 carries after gaining 102 yards on 22 attempts in the season opener. Enter Braelon Allen, who figures to see an accelerated workload in the backfield. Smith  sports a 75.5% completion rate. He was 31-of-37 passing for 321 yards with touchdown passes to Garrett Wilson, rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq and tight end Jeremy Ruckert against the Lions. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (groin) likely will face the Bears, providing a boost to a secondary bracing for a challenge.

Arizona Cardinals (1-2) at New York Giants (2-1)
Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
FanDuel odds: Cardinals -2.5. Total 43.5.
Series rewind: The Cardinals have a four-game winning streak at MetLife Stadium. The Giants won the last meeting, 31-28, in Glendale, Ariz., in the 2023 season.

Jameis Winston remains the quarterback for a second consecutive week, despite the Giants trading with for J.J. McCarthy on Monday. McCarthy, acquired to provide insurance with starter Jaxson Dart out for the season with a knee injury that required surgery, will be the primary backup. The Giants came away with a 12-7 win over Tennessee despite failing to put the ball in the end zone last week. Winston is 25-of-49 for 229 yards with no touchdowns and one interception in two games this season. The Cardinals showed some resilience in keeping it close in a 36-30 loss at San Francisco last Sunday, a week after being dominated at home by the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. Arizona’s offense has lacked the big plays, a few having been negated by penalties, but has been fairly efficient in moving the ball.