We are almost a quarter of the way through the 2025-26 regular season, and most people are looking ahead to tomorrow night when the Los Angeles Rams play the San Francisco 49ers. Before we dive into that game, let’s look back at the hot takes that came out of Week Four and determine if they’re proper reactions or overreactions.
The Eagles are the best team in the NFL.
Proper reaction
It has been over a year since the last time the Philadelphia Eagles lost a football game that quarterback Jalen Hurts started and finished. The last loss Philly had where Hurts played the full game came against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on September 29th, 2024. Since then, they are 20-1, with their lone loss coming at the hands of the Washington Commanders, and Hurts only threw four passes in that game before leaving with an injury. They’re ninth in third- and fourth-down conversions offensively while ranking third in fourth-down conversions on the defensive side of the ball. Plus, they’re tied for fourth in turnover differential (+4). The stats aren’t going to wow anybody, but they are an undeniably well-coached football team that has won ten consecutive games dating back to last year. Nobody is playing better complementary football than the Philadelphia Eagles at the moment. Hell, Jalen Hurts was 0/8 passing in the second half of last week’s game, and they still found a way to win. That is all the evidence you need to see that this is the league’s best football team because nobody else in the NFL wins that game with that type of QB play.
The Ravens will miss the playoffs.
Overreeaction
Right now, things look incredibly bleak, especially with Lamar Jackson expected to be out for the next few weeks. However, the Ravens have a stretch of very winnable games that can put them right back in the hunt for a playoff spot. Their next two matchups against the Texans and Rams will be tough, but they could split those games and move to 2-4. Then, they have a bye week to get healthy. After that, they get the Bears, Dolphins, Vikings, Browns, Jets, Bengals, Steelers, and the Bengals again. Even if they lose three of those games, that would bring them to 7-7 with three games left in the regular season. They haven’t done themselves any favors through the first four weeks of the campaign, but it would be foolish to think a team with an MVP-level quarterback and a future Hall of Fame head coach won’t be competitive late in the season.
Proper reaction
I pointed it out yesterday, but their statistical incompetence bears repeating. This is a bottom-five team in terms of yards, passing, running, scoring, sacks allowed, and points given up. The saddest part is that they aren’t even competitive. They’re losing games by 17.25 points on average. Week One was the closest they have come to a victory this season, when they lost by eight points. Cam Ward will be a good quarterback in this league if the Titans can get him some protection. They also have a great defensive lineman in Jeffery Simmons. Outside of those two guys, though, this is easily the worst team in football. The roster is devoid of talent, and the coaches don’t know how to manage a team. They’ll be lucky to win at most four games this season, and even that feels like a stretch. The most Titans fans can hope for is that this organization doesn’t ruin Cam Ward, and it uses a high draft pick on either a top-flight wide receiver or a stud offensive lineman.
Puka Nacua will win the Offensive Player of the Year award.
Overreaction
Right now, it feels like it’s a three-man race between Puka Nacua, the Falcons’ Bijan Robinson, and the 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey. But McCaffrey’s receiving numbers will take a major hit once guys like George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk, Ricky Pearsall, and Jauan Jennings are fully healthy, so this will really be Bijan Robinson vs. Puka Nacua. This award usually favors running backs because they have the benefit of being able to rack up yards on the ground and through the air. The only way Puka Nacua will win this award is if he earns the wide receiver triple crown and finishes the regular season as the league leader in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Though he’s on pace to finish with the most receiving yards and receptions in the NFL, he only has one TD catch on the season, which will hurt his campaign. It feels more likely that Bijan Robinson will be able to average 146 scrimmage yards per game rather than Puka averaging 125.8 receiving yards per game over the length of a full season. Plus, Matthew Stafford will begin to give Davante Adams more targets as the season goes on and they build a stronger connection. Puka might be the favorite today, but sustaining his current rate of production feels almost impossible. If he does, he will obliterate the NFL’s single-season receiving yards record by almost 174 yards. Something tells me Puka Nacua will not finish the year with 2,137 receiving yards.
Tyreek Hill will never play another snap in the NFL again.
Proper reaction
If you didn’t see Tyreek Hill’s knee injury on Monday Night Football, consider yourself lucky. The best way to describe what happened is that Tyreek Hill’s leg was facing the wrong direction after he was tackled to the ground. He wasn’t smiling because he doesn’t have to play for the rest of the season. He was smiling because he was in shock. The Orthopedic Medical Group of Tampa Bay said that a person’s mind goes into shock after a devastating injury, allowing them to disassociate from the pain they are experiencing. That’s what happened on Monday because Hill suffered an apparent dislocated knee, which is much worse than a dislocated kneecap and often includes damage to ligaments (ACL, MCL, etc.). An injury this traumatic for a soon-to-be 32-year-old wide receiver who relies on speed could be a career ender. Obviously, nobody wants him to stop playing football. But the guy has made so much money and has such a long journey back to being fully healthy that he might just opt out of his contract and retire if he can’t play next season. At the very least, he’s probably played his last down in Miami.
Jaxson Dart has solved the Giants’ long-term quarterback concerns.
Overreeaction
Jaxson Dart looked very reliable in his first start, which came against a team that seems destined to make the playoffs, but we cannot make blanket statements about how a player’s career will pan out after just one game. After all, J.J. McCarthy was being hailed as the next Tom Brady after Week One, and he was basically benched two weeks later. With that being said, all the things you look for in a young quarterback were on display at MetLife Stadium last weekend. Dart didn’t turn the ball over. He handled the opposing pass rush well. And, most importantly, he scored two touchdowns on his way to a win. The jury’s still out on whether he is going to be a ten-year starter for the New York Giants, but the Jaxson Dart era is off to a great start, and Big Blue fans should be hopeful about how he’ll look the rest of the season. Don’t worry about the next ten to 15 years; worry about next week.
