Three games into the new season you might expect the four teams from last year's conference championship games to have eight or nine wins among the four teams.
Following the Vikings 23-20 loss to the Packers late Sunday afternoon, the teams who played for the Super Bowl berths last January 17th are 1-11 in 1999. The Vikings have the lone win of the bunch, while the two-time champion Broncos, the NFC champion Falcons and the AFC runner-up Jets are all 0-3 after the first three weeks of the 1999 season.
The NFL has long sought parity throughout the league, but certainly having the four best teams from last season with a combined .083 winning percentage is not what they had in mind.
| Week 3 NFL Recap |
| Rams 35 (2-0), Falcons 7 (0-3) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
71.4: Third-down efficiency by the Rams, who were 10-for-14 in third-down situations for the game.
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| Player of the Game |
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Kurt Warner, QB, St. Louis. Warner dominated the Falcons' defense with three touchdown passes in the first half, and a touchdown run in the second half. |
| Breakdown |
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The Rams offense moved the ball at will against the Falcons in the first half, scoring touchdowns on their first four possessions. St. Louis exhibited big-play ability with Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce in the first half, and then ground out some yards and used the clock in the second half to keep the Falcons off the field.
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| Chiefs 31 (2-1) Lions 21 (2-1) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
383: Total yards for Kansas City's offense.
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| Player of the Game |
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Elvis Grbac, QB, Chiefs. Grbac looked comfortable in the pocket and made great decisions all day long. He completed 20-of-29 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns. |
| Breakdown |
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The Chiefs denied the Lions their first 3-0 start since 1980 by controlling the ball with their running back-by-committee system in Kimble Anders' absence. Donnell Bennett rushed for 73 yards and a touchdown and Rashaan Shehee added 46 yards and a score. The Chiefs finish the decade of the '90's with a 30-11 record in the month of September, for a 73 percent winning percentage in the month, the best of any team for the decade. |
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| Panthers 27 (1-2), Bengals 3 (0-3) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
73.9: Completion percentage for Panthers QB Steve Beuerlein in Carolina's first win under George Seifert.
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| Player of the Game |
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Tim Biakabutuka, RB, Carolina. Biakabutuka gained 132 yards on eight carries and scored two touchdowns against the struggling Bengals defense.
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| Breakdown |
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Carolina got its first win under new head coach George Seifert with an imrpessive offensive output that featured a nice balance between the pass and the run. The Bengals actually outgained the Panthers 372-343 for the game, but Carolina came up with the big offensive plays that broke the game open.
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| Redskins 27 (2-1), Jets 20 (0-3) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
6: Sacks by the high-priced Redskins defense who played their best game of the season. |
| Player of the Game |
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Stephen Davis, RB, Washington. Davis continues to find the endzone at a spectacular pace, with three more rushing touchdowns today boosting his season total to eight.
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| Breakdown |
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The Redskins didn't have the same amazing offensive output that they did in the first two weeks, but they pulled out a big road win in a hard-fought game. Davis' 93 yards on 24 carries give him 328 yards on 71 carries so far this season. He continues to give the Redskins a potent running option in the redzone, punching the ball into the endzone almost everytime Washington gets inside the 10-yard line.
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| Seahawks 29 (2-1), Steelers 10 (2-1) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
5: Field goals by Todd Peterson (in six attempts) that helped Seattle put points on the board when the offense stalled in the redzone. |
| Player of the Game |
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Darrin Smith, LB, Seattle. Smith led a great defensive effort by the Seahawks with 11 total tackles.
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| Breakdown |
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Kordell Stewart was pulled from the game after throwing three first-half interceptions. Mike Tomczak didn't fare much better with two interceptions of his own. Seattle's offense didn't exactly light up the scoreboard, but the Seahawks got big plays from the defense and special teams units early in the game to give them a quick lead.
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| Ravens 17 (1-2), Browns 10 (0-3) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
189: Total offense for the Browns against the Ravens, giving them a whopping total of 467 yards in three games. |
| Player of the Game |
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Peter Boulware, LB, Baltimore. Boulware had two sacks, added six tackles and forced a fumble in the Ravens' impressive defensive effort.
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| Breakdown |
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Stoney Case struggled thowing the ball for the Ravens just as Scott Mitchell had the previous two weeks, but he brought a different element to Brian Billick's offense with his ability to scramble away from trouble. Case completed less than 50 percent of his passes and threw three interceptions, but his 57 rushing yards on 11 carries included two short touchdowns that proved to be the difference in the game. Cleveland's passing game continues to be abysmal, with Tim Couch completing only 13-of-32 passes for 123 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
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| Buccaneers 13 (2-1), Broncos 10 (0-3) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
193: Terrell Davis' total rushing yards after three games, putting him on pace for 1,029 yards this season, or just more than half of the 2,008 yards he ran for in 1998. |
| Player of the Game |
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Mike Alstott, RB, Tampa Bay. Alstott did most of his damage in the first quarter, but he finished with 131 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries.
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| Breakdown |
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Denver's floundering offense certainly met its match Sunday in the powerful Buccaneers' defense. Tampa Bay only allowed eight first downs to the Broncos and held them to 173 total yards for the game. Denver faces the 0-3 Jets next Sunday at Mile High Stadium in a battle of underachieving AFC Championship game represntatives from last year.
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| Bills 26 (2-1) Eagles 0 (0-3) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
22: Eagles' total rushing yards for the game. |
| Player of the Game |
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Doug Flutie, QB, Buffalo. Flutie continued his efficient play at quarterback, throwing for only 175 yards, but completing 69 percent of his passes, and adding 32 yards on five carries on the ground.
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| Breakdown |
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Buffalo controlled the ball for 37:22 with an excellent running attack that totalled 191 yards on the day. The Bills attacking defense held Philadelphia to 169 total yards of offense and forced two fumbles in shutting down the Eagles' rushing game. Duce Staley finished with six yards on 10 carries, and Donovan McNabb actually led the Eagles in rushing yards by scrambling for 10 yards on his only carry of the day.
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| Colts 27 (2-1), Chargers 19 (1-1) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
468: Total yards gained by the impressive Colts offense against last year's top-ranked defense on Sunday. |
| Player of the Game |
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Marvin Harrison, WR, Indianapolis. Harrison continued his amazing start to the 1999 season by catching 13 passes for 196 yards and one touchdown. He now has 28 catches for 422 yards and six touchdowns in the first three games of 1999.
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| Breakdown |
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Indianapolis struggled running the football against the Chargers with Edgerrin James only gaining 46 yards on 17 carries, but with Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison in such a groove a running game wasn't needed on Sunday. The Colts converted half of their third-down plays and held the Chargers to a 5-for-15 success rate on third down. Indianapolis has a bye week next Sunday before hosting the Dolphins in a key AFC East matchup on October 10.
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| Raiders 24 (2-1), Bears 17 (1-2) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
34: Yards rushing for the Bears against the quick, young Raiders defensive front who caused problems along the line all game long. |
| Player of the Game |
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Tim Brown, WR, Oakland. Brown caught nine passes for 121 yards and a touchdown, and surpassed the 700-career catch plateau .
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| Breakdown |
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Oakland may want to join the NFC Central after having three impressive performances against Green Bay, Minnesota and Chicago to start the season. The Raiders now jump into their division schedule with a big game next Sunday at Seattle followed by a home matchup the next week against rival Denver. Considering that they have the league's toughest schedule this season, a 2-1 start against the Packers, Vikings and Bears is sure to please Raiders owner Al Davis.
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| Packers 23 (2-1), Vikings 20 (1-2) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
13: Yards receiving by Randy Moss against a beefed-up Packers seconday. |
| Player of the Game |
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Brett Favre, QB, Green Bay. Favre worked his two-minute magic for the second time in three weeks to pull out the huge win over the arch-rival Vikings.
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| Breakdown |
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Brett Favre's 15th-career game-winning drive of his career pulled out a win for the Packers in what has been an amazingly competitive the Packers-Vikings rivalry has been over the years. The teams have met 76 times in regular season play with only a one-game difference between them in wins, and only 127 points separating them in scoring. Despite the loss on Sunday, the Vikings still lead the all-time series 38-37-1, but the Packers have scored more points than Minnesota, with a 1,512-1,385 lead in total points.
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| Titans 20 (3-0), Jaguars 19 (2-1) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
138: Advantage in total yards gained that the Jaguars held over the Titans. |
| Player of the Game |
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Samari Rolle, CB, Tennessee. Rolle picked off a Mark Brunell pass in the endzone late in the game to preserve the close win for the Titans.
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| Breakdown |
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Many experts thought that the Jaguars could run the table in the AFC Central this season with a 10-0 divisional record. But the Titans (ne: Oilers) have now won in Jacksonville four times in the last five season. Tennesse's win in Jacksonville could turn out to be big later in the season if the two teams are battling for playoff positioning in the AFC Central. The Titans now sit at 3-0 atop the division with a tough game at San Francisco coming up next Sunday. Jacksonville enters a critical stretch of its schedule with road games at Pittsburgh and at the Jets the next two weeks.
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| Patriots 16 (3-0), Giants 14 (1-2) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
0: Number of turnovers committed in the game -- the first turnover-free game in the NFL this season. |
| Player of the Game |
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Terry Glenn, WR, New England. Glenn grabbed five passes for 95 yards on Sunday night, including a spectacular 45-yard diving catch that led to Terry Allen's 1-yard TD run in the second quarter.
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| Breakdown |
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New England stayed undefeated after three games to take the division lead over idle 2-0 Miami. The Patriots travel to Cleveland next Sunday to face the lowly Browns. The Giants' rushing offense finished almost right on their average of 55.5 yards rushing per game by getting only 57 yards on the ground Sunday night at New England. Sean Bennett is the Giants' leading rusher with only 70 yards on 18 carries in three games this season. If the Giants can't get the ground game going against the 0-3 Eagles next Sunday, their hopes for a playoff berth will be dealt a severe blow.
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| 49ers 24 (2-1), Cardinals 10 (1-2) |
| Review |
Key Stat |
Game Summary and
Game Recap |
210: Rushing yards by the 49ers against the soft Cardinals defense, besting their previous season total through two games by 28 yards. |
| Player of the Game |
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Charles Haley, DE, San Francisco. Haley had three solo tackles and two sacks of Jake Plummer on the night.
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| Breakdown |
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The loss of Steve Young to a mild concussion in the second quarter vastly changed the 49ers gameplan. After throwing the ball 23 times in the first half in jumping out to a 17-0 haltime lead, the Niners kept it on the ground in the second half to run time off the clock and preserve their lead. Charlie Garner ran for 75 yards on 21 carries and added a touchdown, and Lawrence Phillips carried the ball nine time for 102 yards and a game-sealing 68-yard touchdown run with under two minutes to play.
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