Malik Willis starred for the Green Bay Packers in the absence of Jordan Love, while Derrick Henry dismantled the Dallas Cowboys defense; watch the Cowboys take on the New York Giants to kick off Week Four on Thursday night, live on Sky Sports NFL from 1.15am Friday
Monday 23 September 2024 14:51, UK
The NFL's heavyweight champion, Amon-Ra St. Brown's dog impression, Matt LaFleur genius and textbook Matthew Stafford. We hand out our awards from a dramatic Sunday across the league...
There may still be no greater sight in the world of boxing than two iron-fisted heavyweights teetering on the edge of sudden chaos as they trade blows under the main event lights, before one eventually lands his spine-shuddering finisher to leave his fellow colossus of an opponent sprawled out on the canvas as if a mere mortal. In an era of unrivalled intricacy and finesse, sport still thrives on displays of pedestalled brawn your average fan could only dream of replicating. Ask the 96,000 inside Wembley, and they will tell you the image of Anthony Joshua flat out on the canvas after defeat to Daniel Dubois will live long in the memory.
Come NFL Sunday, where more of the world's greatest athletes take centre stage, and there may still be no greater sight in football than that of Derrick Henry swatting flailing tacklers while building freight-train momentum as he carries defenders in tow on another electric chunk play run.
Henry continues to defy running back longevity with a bruising style that seems to have lost not a bit of speed despite him leading the league in carries in four of the last five seasons. On Sunday he contributed 151 of Baltimore's 274 rushing yards to further expose a Dallas Cowboys defense that could not live with the Ravens on the ground during a 28-25 defeat for Mike McCarthy's side.
It became something of an arrival game for Henry in his best outing yet since signing with the Ravens during the offseason following eight seasons with the Tennessee Titans. His defining drive took place at the beginning of the third quarter, Henry punching a crease before delivering an insulting stiff arm to fend off Caelen Carson on a 29-yard run, before capping the series with a 26-yard house call to give the Ravens a 28-6 lead. He finished with two touchdowns on the day while averaging six yards per carry.
Sunday proved the first meaningful demonstration of the nightmarish-tandem that is Lamar Jackson and Henry as the Ravens duo gashed a Cowboys defense that continues to struggle against the run. Baltimore's downfall during the 2023 season was a lack of ground control upon reaching the playoffs, Henry arriving as perhaps the perfect remedy as the league's quintessential wear-down bell-cow in an era when bell-cows are supposedly out.
He remains a majestic mauling spectacle out of the backfield, making grown men look silly and beefing up a Ravens team with the talent to do something special this season.
And on that note, hard not to chuckle at the image of this Cowboys fan after seeing Dak Prescott sacked by Kyle Van Noy on third-and-18.
With the exception of a late fightback, the Cowboys were never really in the contest, their porous defense continuing to look incapable of stopping anybody.
Watching Anthony Richardson and Caleb Williams find their feet in the NFL is going to be a roller-coaster, and quite the nail-biting flirt with catastrophe for Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears fans. The pair demand a constant spotlight as two of the league's most talented young play-callers, Richardson the most athletically-gifted player to ever test at the quarterback position and Williams the Patrick Mahomes-likened No 1 overall pick.
Richardson produced the latest reminder of his bazooka arm with a 44-yard heave to Alec Pierce to set up the Colts on the four-yard line, before flipping an inexcusable end zone interception to Tremaine Edmunds while rolling to his left three players later. Field-tilting genius had become must-score carelessness. There are moments of mastery from Richardson of which few others in the league are capable, but so too frustrating easy misses - including a dreadful overthrown interception while sliding up through the pocket in the third quarter.
Williams himself endured another mixed bag day. His embodying drive came on the back of Richardson's first pick, the Bears quarterback conjuring a back-shoulder dime to Rome Odunze for 47 yards down the sideline, only to toss a telegraphed interception to Jaylon Jones three plays later to set up a Colts touchdown drive. He finished the game 33 of 52 passing for 363 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions within an offense that is still yet to lay down its identity.
Malik Nabers is beginning to look like the definition of a 'quarter-elevator' as the emerging focal point of a New York Giants offense that has not possessed a wide receiver of his calibre or potential in some time. Twice on the same drive he rescued his quarterback Daniel Jones, first making a stunning Randy Moss-style catch over Martin Emerson to prevent an interception before leaping to reach a high pass for a stunning touchdown catch while showing incredible body control at the back of the end zone.
He finished with eight catches for 78 yards and two touchdowns, making him the first player in NFL history with 20-plus catches, 250-plus receiving yards and three-plus touchdowns in his first three career games as the Giants beat the Cleveland Browns 21-15 to clinch their first win of the year.
Dexter Lawrence meanwhile continued to prove why he is one of the league's best players at the heart of a Giants defense that sacked Deshaun Watson eight times, their most in a game since December 2014.
Matthew Stafford biting down on the gumshield and throwing haymakers might sit just behind a Derrick Henry run among the NFL's finest sights. The Los Angeles Rams quarterback, coupled with some Sean McVay genius, led his side back from a 14-0 deficit to stun the San Francisco 49ers, his clutch moment coming in the form of a 50-yard bomb to Tutu Atwell to set up Kyren Williams' four-yard rushing score to punish Jake Moody's missed field goal and bring the game level at 24-24 with two minutes to play.
The Rams, missing star receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, would force a punt moments later before rookie kicker Joshua Karty won the game with a 37-yard field goal with two seconds left.
"I'm not into improbable, probable," said Stafford. "NFL is an improbable business, I'll tell you that much. You never know what's gonna happen week in and week out. You've got to go out there and earn it and prove it, and we did that."
P.S. Spare a thought for 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings, who dazzled with a career-best 11 catches for 175 yards and three touchdowns in the absence of Deebo Samuel, Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle - including his own Randy Moss-esque catch.
The NFL witnessed some coaching clinics on Sunday, at the forefront of which was Matt LaFleur as his Green Bay Packers defeated the Tennessee Titans 30-14 behind Malik Willis in just his second start at quarterback for the team. Willis went 13 of 19 for 202 yards and a touchdown while carrying the ball six times for 73 yards and a score to Green Bay to victory in the absence of Jordan Love.
A defining image for the performance was Emanuel Wilson's screen play touchdown, glorious play-design seeing LaFleur rip the Titans defense in two as he ushered Bo Melton in and out on a whip motion before sending blockers left to open a clear path for his running back to race to the end zone. It was the story of the day, misdirection and motion teeing Willis up for success and taking full advantage of his ability outside of the pocket.
The same must be said for Kevin O'Connell as he continues to prove himself as one of the NFL's elite offensive minds, a resurgent Sam Darnold throwing for four more touchdowns as the Minnesota Vikings dismantled CJ Stroud's Houston Texans.
It can become a sorry sight to witness a team loaded with talent and led by one of the NFL's most innovative head coaches face the prospect of a wasted season. Mike McDaniel's Miami Dolphins are stuck in quarterback hell as they adjust to life without Tua Tagovailoa, who will quite rightly be given all the time in the world to recover from his latest concussion and decide how he wishes to proceed this season.
The Dolphins learned swiftly that Skylar Thompson is not the solution in a bid to keep their campaign alive, the backup quarterback looking incapable of moving the football as he completed just 13 of 19 passes for 107 yards while being harassed by Mike Macdonald's defense in a 24-3 defeat to the Seattle Seahawks. What's more, Thompson was forced to leave the game with a rib injury as he was replaced by *checks notes* Tim Boyle.
Tyreek Hill was restricted to just three catches for 40 yards while De'Von Achane managed just 30 rushing yards from his 11 carries behind an offensive line that continues to be a debilitating issue in Miami. McDaniel's high-octane offense has fallen stagnant, and that is a concern.
Remarkably, Justin Simmons has now intercepted Patrick Mahomes six times in his career after picking off the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback again in Sunday night's 22-17 loss for the Atlanta Falcons.
Amon-Ra St Brown became the latest player to imitate the dog crawl celebration made famous by YouTuber Kai Cenat, following on from Colorado star Travis Hunter.
The Detroit Lions wide receiver had seven catches for 75 yards and a touchdown in his side's 20-13 win over the Arizona Cardinals.
Watch the Jacksonville Jaguars take on the Buffalo Bills while the Cincinnati Bengals face the Washington Commanders in a Monday Night Football double-header live on Sky Sports.
