Five weeks into the NFL season, we are getting to the point where it becomes harder to dismiss what we are seeing as an early-season fluke. Contenders are beginning to separate themselves, struggling teams are starting to face some uncomfortable questions, and every week seems to produce at least one ending that reminds us why the NFL remains the most unpredictable sports league in America. Week 5 certainly didn’t disappoint. The Commanders found an almost unbelievable way not to win a football game, the Eagles made a move that could tell us much more about their future than their present, the Patriots suddenly look like they could be a problem in the AFC, and the Lions reminded everyone why they remain one of the most dangerous teams in the NFC.
The Commanders Gave Us a Lesson in How NOT to Finish a Football Game
There are losses that happen because the other team simply makes a better play, and then there are games where you spend the next several days wondering how a professional football team allowed something to happen. Technically, Washington didn’t even lose Sunday. The Commanders tied the New York Giants 27-27 in overtime, but it certainly had to feel like a loss when they walked off the field. Washington was given a golden opportunity after Cam Skattebo fumbled with two minutes remaining in overtime. Jayden Daniels and the Commanders moved the ball into Giants territory and eventually reached the New York 24-yard line, putting themselves within realistic field-goal range with a chance to win the game. Then everything fell apart.
With no timeouts remaining, Daniels went down inbounds and Washington inexplicably failed to get lined up and spike the football before time expired. There was no field-goal attempt, no final shot at the end zone and no dramatic miss. The clock simply reached zero while the Commanders were standing on the field with a potential game-winning kick sitting right in front of them. Head coach Dan Quinn accepted responsibility for the breakdown afterward, and rightfully so. Players have responsibilities in those situations, but end-of-game preparation ultimately falls on the coaching staff. A professional football team has to know exactly what it is going to do before that situation ever occurs.
What makes it worse is that Washington desperately needed this game. The Commanders are now 1-3-1, and instead of talking about an encouraging return from Daniels, who once again showed how dangerous he can be with his legs, everyone is talking about one of the most embarrassing examples of clock management we have seen in quite some time. Daniels ran for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns and had Washington positioned to escape with a victory, but none of that will be remembered as much as those final seconds. In a league where the difference between making and missing the playoffs can be one game, giving one away without even attempting the winning field goal is simply unacceptable.
Are the Eagles Quietly Starting a Rebuild?
The Philadelphia Eagles have been one of the NFL’s model franchises for much of the last decade, and one of the biggest reasons has been Howie Roseman’s willingness to make difficult decisions before everyone else realizes they need to be made. That is why the decision to trade two-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman Cam Jurgens to the Baltimore Ravens deserves more attention than your average in-season trade. Philadelphia sent Jurgens and a 2027 seventh-round pick to Baltimore for a 2027 fifth-rounder and a 2028 second-round pick. Coming immediately after Lane Johnson‘s retirement, the move suddenly leaves an offensive line that had been one of Philadelphia’s greatest strengths looking very different.
Roseman has pushed back against the idea that the Eagles are rebuilding, and there are legitimate football reasons for moving Jurgens. He had struggled this season after being moved to guard, and Philadelphia received significant future draft compensation. But actions speak louder than words in the NFL. When a team trades a 27-year-old, two-time Pro Bowler for future draft picks while another cornerstone of the offensive line retires, it is reasonable to wonder whether management is beginning to look beyond the current season. That question became even louder after Philadelphia’s 19-17 loss to Jacksonville dropped the Eagles to 2-3.
The Eagles are still talented enough to turn their season around, so calling this a complete rebuild would be premature. But Philadelphia has now lost three straight, its roster is dealing with injuries, and some of the pieces that helped make this team a perennial NFC contender are beginning to disappear. Roseman has always been one of the league’s most aggressive general managers, and he rarely waits until a roster completely collapses before thinking about the next version of it. Maybe the Jurgens trade is simply a football decision involving a struggling player. Or maybe Week 5 gave us our first real indication that the next version of the Philadelphia Eagles is already beginning to take shape.
The Patriots Might Be Back Much Faster Than Anyone Expected
Last week we talked about Mike Vrabel and the Patriots having Buffalo’s number. After Week 5, it might be time to broaden the conversation. Maybe New England isn’t merely a young team capable of occasionally upsetting somebody. Maybe the Patriots are becoming a legitimate threat in the AFC. Their 45-17 demolition of the Las Vegas Raiders was the type of performance that gets everyone’s attention because New England didn’t squeak out a victory or survive because of a lucky bounce. The Patriots dominated the game and looked like the superior football team from beginning to end.
The biggest reason for optimism is Drake Maye. After struggling badly earlier in the season, Maye exploded against Las Vegas, completing 26 of 34 passes for 374 yards and four touchdowns without throwing an interception. New England piled up 536 yards of total offense, and suddenly an offense that looked like it might hold this team back is beginning to look like one of its biggest strengths. That is exactly what Patriots fans wanted to see when Maye was drafted. Young quarterbacks don’t develop in a straight line, and there are going to be ugly stretches, but when a quarterback with Maye’s physical ability begins combining those tools with confidence and command of the offense, things can change very quickly.
Vrabel also appears to be putting his fingerprints all over this team. The Patriots are playing physical football, they are responding after adversity, and they don’t look intimidated by anybody. There are still plenty of questions, particularly with injuries beginning to pile up, and at 3-2 nobody should start making Super Bowl reservations just yet. But the Patriots suddenly look like a team nobody is going to enjoy seeing on the schedule. After years of searching for an identity following the end of the Bill Belichick era, New England may finally have found one again. If Maye continues playing anywhere close to the level we saw Sunday, the Patriots could become relevant in the AFC much sooner than many people expected.
The Lions Reminded Everyone Just How Dangerous They Can Be
Detroit entered Week 5 needing the kind of performance that reminds everyone exactly what this roster is capable of, and the Lions delivered it with a 45-21 demolition of the Arizona Cardinals. The final score tells part of the story, but the way Detroit won might be even more important. The offense was explosive, the running game controlled the football, Jared Goff protected it, and a defense that had been one of the biggest concerns surrounding the Lions finally gave the offense some breathing room. Detroit led 24-7 at halftime and never allowed Arizona to seriously threaten after that.
Jahmyr Gibbs was at the center of everything, rushing for 151 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries while adding another 56 yards through the air. Goff threw for 271 yards and three touchdowns without an interception, and Detroit finished with 412 yards of offense without committing a turnover. When Gibbs is running like that and Goff is distributing the football without giving possessions away, Detroit becomes extremely difficult to defend because there simply aren’t many weaknesses for a defense to attack. Take away the running game and Goff can hurt you through the air. Focus too heavily on the receivers and Gibbs can take over the game.
The most encouraging development, however, may have been the defense. Detroit’s offense has rarely been the question. The issue has been whether the defense can make enough stops when January arrives and the Lions run into the best teams in the NFC. Arizona isn’t exactly the measuring stick for a Super Bowl contender, but Week 5 was progress. At 3-2, Detroit hasn’t separated itself from the rest of the conference, but the Lions don’t need to be crowned in October. They simply need to keep improving. If the defense can become merely dependable while Goff, Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta and the rest of that offense continue doing what they do, Detroit remains one of the teams nobody in the NFC will want to face when the games really begin to matter.
Week 5 Gave Us Questions That Could Define the Season
That is ultimately what we learned from Week 5. Washington showed us that talent doesn’t matter if you can’t execute the most basic situational football when the game is on the line. Philadelphia gave us reason to wonder whether one of the NFC’s most successful organizations is already beginning to turn the page toward its next roster. New England showed that its rebuilding process may be much further along than most of us thought, while Detroit reminded everyone that the road through the NFC could still eventually run through the Motor City.
Five weeks aren’t enough to tell us how this season will end, but they are enough to start believing what we’re seeing. The Patriots are becoming dangerous. The Lions remain dangerous. The Eagles have legitimate questions to answer, and the Commanders just threw away the kind of opportunity that struggling teams simply cannot afford to waste. Week 6 will undoubtedly change the conversation again, but after five weeks, the identities of these teams are beginning to come into focus.
