Last night officially closed out Week 5 of the 2015 NFL season. And after five weeks, there remain six teams undefeated. Six teams that have either engineered 4th quarter comebacks, made game-winning overtime plays, or just plain outplayed their opponents. Whatever the reason, these undefeated teams are no joke and each of them bring elements to the field that should warrant some form of fear. After all, they’re not only doing it right, they’re doing it better than any of the other twenty-six teams. So congratulations to the Bengals, Broncos, Falcons, Packers, Patriots, and Panthers. Well deserved!
Keys To Their Success
Elite Quarterbacks
It’s no surprise that Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and Peyton Manning are among the best at the QB position in today’s game. But Cam Newton, Andy Dalton, and Matt Ryan have evident makings to shine even brighter just like the aforementioned quarterbacks. What is separating them from all other QB’s can be attributed to their decision making in two-minute drills and reading defenses to either call an audible or not. I’m not saying that many other QB’s aren’t doing just this – because they are, but at this stage in the season, these six are showing smart choices in order to win games.
Running Game
The incredible back field productivity from these teams gives their offenses more weapons and more options for play calling. Put up against a weak rush defense, it provides ways to eat up time on the clock as well. In the Falcons last game, second-year running back Devonta Freeman gave head coach Dan Quinn no reason to panic when his QB and top receiver seemed to be miscommunicating. Freeman helped the Falcons win Sunday with 197 yards and a touchdown. The Packers’ Eddie Lacy hasn’t had the impact he had last season with Green Bay, but even being on the field draws the eyes of the defense and possibly creating an open open receiver for Rodgers to throw to. Dion Lewis for the Patriots has been nearly impossible to stop over their four games and we could be in for a repeat of last years game against the Colts if they haven’t yet learned their lesson when Jonas Gray ran for 201 yards and four touchdowns last November. New England no longer has Gray, but Lewis will evade pass rushers with his stop-on-a-dime run style and 5’8” build.
Defense
The Broncos defense is one to watch out for. They are only allowing their opponents an average of 17.2 points per game and it stems from their outstanding secondary and pass rush. Aquib Talib is dangerous one-on-one with receivers and is an interception machine. DeMarcus Ware along with Von Miller are a nightmare for offensive linemen trying to protect their QB. That being said, it’s a good thing Denver has just one more game before their BYE since both Ware and Talib are sporting injuries. Ware is even out for two weeks. While the Panthers strong defense is nothing new, they are the unsung heroes of the Carolina team. It was reported earlier today that the Panthers defense leader, Luke Kuechly, is now out of the league’s concussion protocol and could return very soon. He will be a huge help against a hot Matt Ryan, Julio Jones, and Devonta Freeman.
The Most “Complete” Team
Arguably, the Patriots, have the most complete team. On all sides of the ball, offense, defense, and special teams, New England is healthy and making game-winning plays. On Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys, Tom Brady and co. scored 30 points. That was expected even with Dallas’ defense sacking Brady five times. The story of how they played after half-time shows why this team is playing their best season in a while. “This is a scary team. As long as they have Brady, Gronk, and this D, that’s the best team in the NFL” provides Steve Marriuci. Veteran players on offense along with Gronkowski are Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, and LeGarrett Blount round out who can score points effectively and elude defenses as to what play and routes they will run next. And while the Patriots defense isn’t as stout as Denver’s, they were able to force three-and-outs on six straight Cowboys possessions. On special teams, Ryan Allen’s punts and Stephen Gostkowski’s kicks pinned the Cowboys back deep in their own territory many times. Gostkowski also made a career long 57 yard field goal. He also set another NFL record on September 27 against the Jaguars when he made his 423rd consecutive extra point.
Remaining Schedules: Who Stands a Chance To Stay Undefeated
Sadly enough, not all of these teams will remain unbeaten.
Looking ahead it seems as if the Patriots have the easiest remaining schedule. The toughest competition they face is the Denver Broncos. The New York Giants always put up a good fight when playing the Patriots. Rivalry in all. It’s a sure thing that they will walk away once again winning the AFC East.
The Broncos have two games ahead of them that will seem on the outset as tough ones. Granted they will be at home, but Manning isn’t playing his best even though he is still putting up record setting numbers. Defense will need to play as well as they have and hopefully have Ware and Talib back and fully healthy when they take on the Packers and Bengals.
Atlanta has a pretty smooth sailing schedule left. They play the Panthers – their division rival – twice late in the season. My prediction is that they will narrowly win these games if not by one score than in overtime. They will for sure win the NFC South.
Speaking of the Panthers, their remaining schedule isn’t the easiest and will need to not only rely on defense to win them. Teams that they could possibly struggle against will be Green Bay, Indy, and Seattle.
The Bengals have some rough ones headed their way. Even though they have proved their resilience and toughness so far, it will be exciting to watch what goes down when they play the Ravens one more time along with the Cardinals and Rams who both have hot offenses. Cincinnati has all the pieces to win so it will be down to whether they can beat the Steelers twice to win a tough AFC North.
Finally, the Packers will have a couple of fun ones away in Denver and Arizona that could make or break a perfect season.
Looking forward, I foresee New England having a perfect season reminiscent of 2007. I also see Green Bay pulling out a perfect season as well. If Denver’s defense can stay truly healthy, they will be the thorn in the Packers and Patriots side. Regardless of my assumptions, it looks as if the last few weeks of regular season will be a fun and interesting one.