NFL Football - Week Three Review

This past weekend showed the old phrase, "That is why they play the games"  to be so true.
The Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland Browns and to a lesser extent, Miami Dolphins, pulled off surprising wins

in Week Three.
The Browns win was the real shocker as they went into Minnesota and beat the Vikings, 31-27 behind the big performance from third-string quarterback Bryan Hoyer (pictured upper right), the Heftyinfo NFL Player of the Week, who had 321 yards passing with three touchdowns (and three interceptions), including the game winning toss to tight end Jordan Cameron with just 51 seconds left in the game.
The Browns defense limited Vikings running back to Adrian Peterson to 88 rushing yards and one touchdown while QB Christian Ponder scored two rushing touchdowns in the losing effort.
Meanwhile, the Indianapolis Colts went out west and smacked the San Francisco 49ers in the mouth, rolling to a 27-7 upset win as three rushing touchdowns and solid defense (limiting the 'Niners to just 254 yards) paved the way for Indy. The 49ers have been outscored 56-10 in their last two games, both blowout losses.
The Chicago Bears won the Sunday Night Football game in Pittsburgh, beating the Steelers, 40-23 behind two defensive scores (interception return and fumble recovery return) and five turnovers to go with rushing touchdowns from Matt Forte' and Michael Bush and a TD pass from Jay Cutler to Earl Bennett to put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter. Steelers' QB Ben Roethlisberger passed for 406 yards with two touchdowns and two picks in the loss.
The Detroit Lions kept the host Washington Redskins winless with a 27-20 victory as Matthew Stafford threw for two touchdowns (along with 385 passing yards) and the defense came up with two turnovers to help make the difference in the win.
What is with the New York Giants?
They were blasted by the host Carolina Panthers, 38-0 as QB Eli Manning was sacked seven times (six in

Cam Newton

the first half) and totaled just 150 yards in offense. Meanwhile, Panthers' QB Cam Newton threw for three touchdowns and ran for  another to get his team their first win of the season. The Giants fell to 0-3 and have been outscored 115-54 for the season.
New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees got it going at home against the Arizona Cardinals in a 31-7 rout as he passed for  342 yards and three touchdowns while also running for another score to help his team improve to a perfect 3-0 record for the year.
The Miami Dolphins rolled to 3-0 for the season as well with a come-from-behind 27-23 home win against the Atlanta Falcons. QB Ryan Tannehill threw a one-yard scoring pass to tight end Dion Sims with 38 seconds left in regulation to provide the final score. The Falcons twice blew ten-point leads in the game.

      Elsewhere around the NFL in  Week Three  . . .

New England stayed a perfect 3-0 as well with a 23-3 win against  Tampa Bay (0-3) as Tom Brady had two TD passes . . . The Cincinnati Bengals stormed back from a 16-point deficit to beat the visiting Green Bay Packers, 34-30 as Terrence Newman returned a fumble recovery 58 yards for the deciding score. The Bengals defense intercepted Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers twice and also had two fumble recoveries . . .  Baltimore blasted the visiting Houston Texans, 30-9 by holding them to three field goals while getting a punt return TD by Tandon Doss and a 37-yard interception return for score from Daryl Smith. The Ravens defense limited Houston to just 264 total yards in offense  . . .  The Dallas Cowboys made quick work of the visiting St. Louis Rams in a 31-7 win as they rolled out to a 24-0 early in the third quarter. Dallas QB Tony Romo had three TD passes in the game . . . The Tennessee Titans pulled off a late-game thrilling win 20-17 over the San Diego Chargers as QB Jake Locker hit rookie wide receiver Justin Hunter with a 34-yard scoring pass with just 15 seconds remaining . . .  The New York Jets got two TD passes and a rushing score from rookie QB Geno Smith to outlast the visiting Buffalo Bills, 27-20 and improve to 2-1. Buffalo (1-2) allowed 513 yards in total offense in the loss . . . The Seattle Seahawks crushed the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars, 45-17 behind a balanced attack (156 rushing yards and 323 passing) and four touchdown passes from QB Russell Wilson . . .  The Kansas City Chiefs (3-0) went into Philadelphia last Thursday night and pasted the Eagles, 26-16 to give Head Coach Andy Reid a win over his former team as linebacker Justin Houston recorded 4 1/2 QB sacks . . .  The Monday Night Football game featured the Denver Broncos improving to 3-0 by crushing the visiting Oakland Raiders, 37-21 behind three more TD passes from QB Peyton Manning, who has thrown for 12 touchdowns in the first three games with no interceptions.