The AFC North: NFL 2019 Week 3 Preview
Lamar Jackson vs. 2018 MVP Patrick Mahomes should deliver one hell of a game. Jackson has a QB rating of 145.2 so far this year and both him and Mahomes have seven touchdowns for no interceptions.
The Ravens lead the league in rushing – Jackson ran for 120-yards last week and Mark Ingram II for 47-yards. The Chiefs could only manage 31-yards on 22 carries against the Raiders so expect an aerial raid.
The Ravens rush defence has allowed only 1.8-yards per carry compared to an exploitable 6-yards by the Chiefs. The Chiefs have also allowed 70% of opposition passes to be completed, ranking them 24th in the NFL. The Ravens defence ranks 2nd best in least points allowed.
The Cardinals can look to exploit the Baltimore secondary on big time plays as they allowed rookie Kyler Murray to connect on four plays of 30+ yards. Overall the Ravens rank 4th best on opponent completions allowed with 55%.
The Steelers will need to protect Mason Rudolph who played good last week on debut following Roethlisberger’s injury, throwing two touchdowns and leading a field-goal drive.
The 49ers pass rush will relish the opportunity at home to face a quarterback in his first start with a wobbly offensive line. They 49ers rush unit is ranked 5th in the league with seven sacks at a 9.3% sack rate.
Their own offensive line unit is the best in the league so far conceding only a single sack for the year at a rate of 2% of their total plays.
The ‘Steel Curtain’ of Pittsburgh have only been good enough to be ranked 15th with five sacks at a rate of 6.6%. The secondary will however be boosted by the trade of star safety Minkah Fitzpatrick from Miami in exchange for a 1st round pick.
Jimmy Garoppolo and 49ers will be looking for their first 3-0 start in 21 years and Pittsburgh looking to avoid a first 0-3 start for only the second time in 20 years.
The Rams will be going for their fourth straight road win. The Browns will be looking to prove the hype is for real following a 23-3 win over a third-string quarterback Jets.
Myles Garrett leads the league in sacks with five and will be looking to lead an explosive pass rush. He’ll be up against an o-like that’s conceded four sacks this year ranking them 14th.
Aaron Donald recorded 20.5 sacks last season. The Browns o-line is 24th ranked in pass protection and will need to put it together for Baker Mayfield to get out of this one alive.
Jared Goff has been extremely shaky and in his last eight games he’s thrown nine TD’s and nine interceptions with a QB-rating of 76.2. Expect Todd Gurley to be heavily involved as the Rams o-line is ranked 2nd in run blocking.
The Bengals have the worst rush in the NFL with 54-yards in two games, with Joe Mixon also struggling on 1.9 YPC on 17 carries. The Bills have one of the better defences in the league which could turn this game one dimensional.
Even with A.J. Green out for the Bengals, the Bills secondary will need to be on high alert as John Ross leads the league in receiving yards at the beginning of week 3 with 270-yards on 11 receptions and 3 TD’s.
Expect an aerial raid from Andy Dalton who threw for a career high 418-yards in the season opener.
Buffalo is tied for first in the league in total rushing touchdowns with four, but it’s quarterback Josh Allen who’s become the offensive catalyst.
In the first six drives of the season the Bills turned the ball over four times. Since then, there have been 16 drives for six touchdowns and no turnovers. It might be a long one for a Bengals D that allowed 572-yards last week against the 49ers.