NFL Week 3 Predictions of the 2024-2025 Season; Multiple 3-0 & 0-3 Teams to Start the Year

New England Patriots at New York Jets

Another solid effort from the Patriots all things considered. A team with zero expectations came close to starting the season 2-0, unfortunately for the Patriots it seems likely they will now fall to 1-2 once matched up against another roster more complete than them. Despite decent success, their offense has been pretty poor, Jacoby Brissett has been avoiding turnovers but only has 270 passing yards through two games. He’s going up against a good Jets defense and Aaron Rodgers, it could be a tough afternoon.

The Jets got back on track last Sunday, and Aaron Rodgers got his first win as a quarterback  He hasn’t been super aggressive in pushing the ball down the field, but he’s still making good throws and threw some absolute beauties against the Titans. If the Jets can continue to get more comfortable on offense, this team can start to put some wins together.

Prediction: Jets 23, Patriots 16

New York Giants at Cleveland Browns

The Giants scored three touchdowns last Sunday and their opponents scored zero touchdowns. Surely that is a win. Not for the New York Giants who lost by giving up seven field goal drives and lost the game, that is truly incredible. They played better than week 1 but may have hit a new low. This team is in a tough spot and now they’re matched up against the Browns' defense, this does not equal a good time for the Giants and 0-3 seems likely.

Cleveland got back on track after getting rolled over in week 1 by looking a lot more like themselves from last year where their defense plays great and offensively solid enough to get a win. That is what they did and now they get to play Daniel Jones and that abysmal Giants offense. Expect the Browns defense to thrive this Sunday.

Prediction: Browns 20, Giants 13

Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints

What an absolute collapse Monday night against the Falcons. They were playing well, Hurts was playing well and they just needed one first down to seal the game. Then Saquon Barkley who is usually so reliable in the passing game dropped the easy first down which led the Eagles to settle for a field goal and stop the clock. Then their defense got absolutely gashed within a minute and couldn’t respond on the following drive. Now they’re playing a team that has a ton of momentum and they’re on the road. Despite all that, I do expect them to respond in a big way this Sunday.

How about New Orleans? They blew out the Panthers in week 1 but that’s the Panthers, they’re horrible now they did it on the road against the Cowboys. All of a sudden the Saints seem like a legit problem for a lot of teams. I’m still not betting on them this week but if they once again prove me wrong against another good team, then I may not ever bet against them again.

Prediction: Eagles 24, Saints 23

Houston Texans at Minnesota Vikings

A battle of two 2-0 teams, the Texans being 2-0 is no surprise at all who are coming off a six-point win at home against Chicago. The Texans are legit and their offense is ridiculous to stop, especially their passing game, how can you stop those trio of receivers? There is just too much talent and even if Minnesota has looked better than expected, can’t go against the Texans in this one.

In a week of upsets, the Vikings pulled off one of the bigger ones when they beat the 49ers who were looking unstoppable coming into the game. Sam Darnold is currently in the best stretch of his career at the moment with the playmakers at his disposal and hopefully, Justin Jefferson is good to go with his leg injury if the Vikings want to match the pace and playmaking ability of the Texans.

Prediction: Texans 27, Vikings 21

Denver Broncos at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Bo Nix is up to four interceptions to zero passing touchdowns through two games which is not ideal. The Bo Nix we saw in the preseason where he was comfortable, efficient, and playing well overall has not translated to the regular season yet. Now, it’s only been two games so nothing to be overly worried about yet but for the 0-2 Broncos, playing a red-hot Buccaneers is usually a recipe for an 0-3 start.

The Buccaneers continue to turn heads and these performances do not feel like a fluke, they’re playing extremely well as a team right now. They just took out one of the top NFC teams and Baker Mayfield continues to win the hearts of not only Buccaneers fans but also football fans in general. His leadership and willingness to put himself on the line for a first down or to score is inspiring and all of a sudden the Buccaneers can legit get off to a comfortable 3-0 start.

Prediction: Buccaneers 28, Broncos 14

Green Bay Packers at Tennessee Titans

Great coaching out the Packers a week ago. I mentioned in the last prediction article that they needed to essentially hide Malik Willis’ shortcomings and rely on the run game, defense, and his legs to win a few games while Jordan Love was out and they did that to absolute perfection against the Colts and the coaching staff deserves so much praise. Now if they can repeat that success against the drowning Titans then it’s already enough of a success with Malik. Which will also be poetic when Malik beats the Titans.

The Will Levis experiment continues to derail after these first two weeks, from making some awful decisions against the Bears that led to their loss, Levis had a similar performance against the Jets and now this team is on the rails quickly and this Packers defense could create even more problems for Levis and the Titans offense. It is worth noting that the defense has been playing pretty well despite the 0-2 start.

Prediction: Packers 20, Titans 16

Chicago Bears at Indianapolis Colts

The Bears are coming off a close loss against one of the best teams in the league and it was a close game. Some people are freaking out about the offense but it’s early into a new offense and quarterback. Caleb Williams was a lot better against the Texans than he was against the Titans and he did throw a pair of picks but it happens. It’s worth noting he was pressured on almost every single dropback. The offense line had a historically bad performance and reliable Keenan Allen was out. Also, it’s back-to-back weeks a receiver dropped a touchdown which means Caleb should be 2-2 in his TD-INT ratio which is normal for a rookie quarterback this early. Bears fans need to relax, they will be fine and their defense should lead them to a 2-1 start against a mistake-prone Anthony Richardson.

Speaking of Anthony Richardson, his playstyle has been well discussed at this point with his live-or-die attitude with his impressive arm and freakish athletic ability but shaky accuracy and decision making. It was on full display against the Packers when he tossed three interceptions and is now playing one of the best defenses in the league who just held CJ Stroud and the Texans to 19 points. It is winnable but their offense could get punched in the mouth.

Prediction: Bears 20, Colts 16

Los Angeles Chargers at Pittsburgh Steelers

A battle of two 2-0 teams that truthfully not many saw coming. Now it has to be mentioned that neither team has faced the toughest competition with the Chargers playing the Raiders and Panthers and the Steelers playing the best of the bunch with the Falcons and the poor Broncos. Regardless you can only play who is in front of you and now one of these teams will start 3-0. I’m putting my money on the team with the better quarterback and the Chargers which would be shocking to see this roster go 3-0 but it’s what they’ve accomplished if they can beat the Steelers.

Justin Fields has been himself so far, not overly dominant but relatively good, not passing for a lot of yards but not turning the ball over and using his legs to great effect. Defensively is where they have been shining and will be the reason if they can win the game but this is also by far the best quarterback they will be playing so it will be intriguing to see how they match up against Herbert and the Chargers offense.

Prediction: Chargers 21, Steelers 20

Miami Dolphins at Seattle Seahawks

Miami is in a tough situation right now. With Tua Tagovailoa suffering another concussion and now questions have been asked about his career in its entirety but it seems like he still wants to play once recovered regardless he has still been placed on IR and will miss at the very least four games. Now Skylar Thompson is taking the reins and he hasn’t seen extended playing time since 2022 where he did not play well. If he has taken another step forward, the Dolphins are talented enough around him to win a few games with Tua out but if he hasn’t then their season is going to quickly derail starting this Sunday.

2-0 for the Seahawks which is not all that surprising when you look at who they’ve matched up against so far with it being the Broncos or Patriots, two teams that are on the lower spectrum of talent in the league. Now with the huge injury to Tua, there is a legitimate chance for the Seahawks to start 3-0 this season which they could not ask for anything more.

Prediction: Seahawks 20, Dolphins 17

Carolina Panthers at Las Vegas Raiders

An absolute mess of a franchise is the Carolina Panthers. This is one of the worst rosters ever put together in the modern era of football. They have almost zero-star power, no depth, and horrible coaching and that is the pure truth of this team. Bryce Young was destined to fail with this team and now with just 18 starts, he’s heading to the bench because this team is so desperate to do anything to get a win. The job turns to Andy Dalton who’s had a long, good career in the twilight years regardless this is a higher floor, lower ceiling decision. Dalton is not their guy going forward but they just need any win to feel better I certainly won’t be picking them.

The Raiders who looked completely flat in week one against the Chargers somehow came out in week two and defeated the Ravens who seem to be having a lot of issues of their own at the moment. Still, it’s an impressive win and instead of starting 0-2 early in the season, there is a good chance they now move to 2-1 since they get to play the amateur organization.

Prediction: Raiders 27, Panthers 16

San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Rams

Odd outing for the 49ers who looked unstoppable in week one against the Jets fell to the Vikings but to their favor, the Vikings have looked like a legit good team with the emergence of Sam Darnold at this stage in his career. It was a close game and they’ve done a great job trying to replace the production from Christian McCaffery with Jordan Mason who’s playing fantastic so far and is making a name for himself. Now they play a talented, desperate Rams team and it could be a scary matchup but overall their talent should take them over the top.

The Los Angeles Rams are talented, they’re well coached and most expected for them to make a serious push for the playoffs this season and all of a sudden they’re 0-2 and could very well be on their way to moving to 0-3 since they’re playing this great 49ers team. It’s not impossible to make the playoffs after starting 0-3 but the chances are so much lower when in that situation so this game is a borderline must-win for the Rams but the form they have shown doesn’t leave enough confidence to make the selection.

Prediction: 49ers 24, Rams 21

Detroit Lions at Arizona Cardinals

The Lions for many are the favorites or at the least top 2 in the NFC but they fell to the Buccaneers who are playing great and now sit at 1-1. Nothing to worry about in all honesty for the Lions, they are the team everyone knows they are as their offense is still moving and the ball and the defense are decent but can collapse from time to time. This next game is no cakewalk against the Cardinals but they’re bigger, deeper, and more experienced and should get back to their winning ways.

Better than expected is what we’ve gotten from the Cardinals so far, pushing the Bills to the limit in week one, to dominating the Rams in week two, the Cardinals are looking far and improved with Kyler Murray quickly reminding everyone who he is. After a week where Marvin Harrison Jr got little to no targets bounced back last week and was just unstoppable. The Lions are going to focus on him aggressively so if Kyler Murray can spread the ball to others on offense, they have a true chance at another upset.

Prediction: Lions 28, Cardinals 26

Baltimore Ravens at Dallas Cowboys

The Ravens are a top team in the league, they still have Lamar Jackson, added Derrick Henry, have a talented defense, and pushed the Chiefs to the limit, and all of a sudden they’ve fallen to 0-2 and have a tough challenge to avoid 0-3 when they travel to Dallas to play the Cowboys. I’m betting on the Ravens playing desperate enough and willing their way to win their first game of the 2024 season.

What a change a week can do for a team, in the Cowboys' case, they rolled over the Browns in week one then got embarrassed the following week at home to the Saints. The Cowboys are back to their old ways of winning on the road and losing at home for whatever reason but the last two they’ve gotten embarrassed back when you consider the home playoff game against the Packers. They’re still talented but I can see them getting overwhelmed at home again, this time to the punishing run game of the Ravens, and surprisingly start 1-2 this season.

Prediction: Cowboys 27, Ravens 26

Kansas City Chiefs at Atlanta Falcons

The Chiefs in September have been borderline unstoppable in recent years and now they’re once again 2-0 and could very well be 3-0. This will not be the easiest week, however, playing the Falcons coming off a big clutch win against the Eagles. The injury bug has also hit Kansas City bad with Hollywood Brown being out for the entire season and Isiah Pacheco missing 6-8 weeks which is devastating. Still, Mahomes and the Chiefs will figure it out and make do with what they’ve got and improve to 3-0 like normal.

The Falcons came out flat in week one and were so close to a 0-2 start before going into a game against the Chiefs. Then in what was essentially a must-win this early into the season, Kirk Cousins led a perfect drive within a minute to win the game in thrilling passion before getting a game-securing interception. With it being at home and the injuries sustained by Chiefs, the win is possible but it’s still a tough mountain to climb.

Prediction: Chiefs 28, Falcons 23

Jacksonville Jaguars at Buffalo Bills

Disappointment is the name around Jacksonville right now and things just are not clicking right now. They’re 0-2 when and now are matched up against the Bills who look like one of the most complete teams in the league so this is a scary matchup and 0-3 is looking likely. It’s not out of the realm of possibility for the Jags to win just not likely.

The Bills are 2-0 and while their first game was a traditional Josh Allen matchup, in the last game, Allen wasn’t asked to do too much and they still dominated the Dolphins without much struggle. Allen is looking like he’s taken that next stop without the borderline top guy in the receiving room and James Cook is looking more and more like his brother in his prime and that should result in a 3-0 start.

Prediction: Bills 30, Jaguars 20

Washington Commanders at Cincinnati Bengals

An odd win for the 1-1 Commanders, who just secured a win 21-18 without scoring any touchdowns and giving up three touchdowns to the Giants, a bizarre win but a win regardless. They’re lacking some efficiency on offense that is holding them back a bit but the bigger issue is the defense, it is bad and their pass defense made Daniel Jones look serviceable which means Joe Burrow could have a big day.

A big day is what the Bengals might need out of Joe Burrow to get out of this 0-2 start. The Bengals cannot seem to get out of this slump to start the year every year. It keeps happening and the switch to the Bengals people know might happen this week as they nearly beat the Chiefs and are getting matched up in primetime against a bad defense. This could be exactly what the Bengals need to get their season back on track.

Prediction: Bengals 24, Commanders 20