4. Seattle Seahawks
Last week: 3rd
It feels a little dirty to do this, but we have to drop the Seattle Seahawks down a bit after the injury to Sam Darnold. And this is with all due respect to the performance by backup quarterback Drew Lock, who made some sensational plays coming on in relief of the injured Darnold.
Of course, Lock wouldn't have been in the position he was to help the Seahawks get a win in their season opener against the Patriots if it wasn't for the Seattle defense. They were absolutely suffocating against New England, especially when the Patriots attempted to throw the ball downfield.
Seattle had 3 interceptions, all of them in the 4th quarter. That's the definition of clutch, and this team looks like it's going to be in every game this season because of that defense.
Offensively, we might be having a different discussion. We'll see what the long-term outlook is for Darnold, but Seattle will have a much tougher time going forward with Lock under center, even if he's one of the better backups in the league.
3. Buffalo Bills
Last week: 6th
The Buffalo Bills looked absolutely outstanding offensively in their season opener against the Houston Texans. The defense? That might be a work in progress for first-year defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard.
But the performance of Buffalo's defense in a wildly entertaining shootout against the Houston Texans doesn't overshadow just how important of a Week 1 statement Buffalo just made. To go into Houston and score 36 points?
It was an indicator of what everyone has been anticipating from Josh Allen this season. He put on the Superman cape and played the role against what could be the best defense in the entire NFL. Allen made it look way too easy.
What's even crazier about the Bills' performance against Houston is that they didn't even have the ball for 24 minutes of time of possession. The Texans had the ball for over 36 minutes in this game, converted 4-of-5 red zone attempts, and were 7-of-16 on 3rd downs. The Bills' defense has work to do, but when you've got Josh Allen, the defense doesn't have to be perfect (or even good, apparently).
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