MJ Jorge, Contributor

No sport draws as much North American attention as the NFL, and after outperforming all other programming in USA broadcasting last year, sports or otherwise, the 2025-26 season is only set to achieve an even higher standard. At the time of writing, three weeks are already in the books, and with Week 5 set to take effect at the time of publishing, there’s plenty to analyse in what has already been an incredibly entertaining NFL season.

Getting off on the wrong foot(ball)

There are six winless teams (New York Giants, New York Jets, Houston Texans, Miami Dolphins, Tennessee Titans and New Orleans Saints) currently in this NFL season three weeks in (0-3). The only other seasons where we have multiple teams being winless three weeks in is 2013, 2019 and 2020.

According to Sports Illustrated, the chances of making the playoffs after starting 0-3 lie at 2.5 per cent. Only six out of 251 teams in the history of the NFL have ever made the playoffs under those circumstances, making the margin for error extremely narrow. Depending on which division and conference a team plays in, making the playoffs can be much easier or more difficult. For example, Eric Edholm of NFL.com ranks the NFC North as the toughest division, necessitating a higher level of winning just to make the playoffs than playing in what he considers the weakest division, the AFC South. 

With only seven playoff spots between the two conferences, no spots are guaranteed even late in the season, as teams remain vulnerable as late as December. 

Supply, demand and run-pass options

The demand for quarterbacks to be great early is hurting the NFL. Every year, some teams position themselves to get a high draft pick with the hopes of selecting a quarterback that can jumpstart their future. 

A quarterback is like the CEO of a company; even though the general manager is responsible for organising the right team and the head coach’s job is to develop the quarterback and the rest of the team, the quarterback sets the tone for the success of every play at every game of every season.

If the quarterback in question is able to develop accordingly, the organisation is in a great position to succeed and they can build a team to win championships. If the quarterback fails, the team could be in for a disaster as everyone else’s jobs become infinitely more important. Questions arise, decisions have to be made and blame can be shifted in multiple directions, leading to the breaking up of some middling, developing teams. 

There are multiple quarterbacks that are leading the “quarterback resurgence” after not being able to be successful with their original teams. Names that come to mind are the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield, Seattle Seahawks’ Sam Darnold and Detroit Lions’ Jared Goff. 

Former QB Tom Brady, who is considered the greatest quarterback of all time, has been very critical of NFL teams not properly developing quarterbacks.

“There’s a lot of people who have no idea what they’re doing when they’re tasked with coaching a quarterback or calling an offense,” Brady said. “How is he getting the level of development that the guy (who has the best offensive coordinator or quarterbacks coach) is getting?”

Brady credits his development to his coach, Bill Belichick, who is arguably the greatest head coach ever. Despite coaching the defensive side of football, Belichick developed Brady into a better prepared quarterback than the typical offensively oriented coaches who normally handle quarterback development. After Brady’s QB coach, Dick Rehbein, passed away eight weeks before Brady’s first-ever game in the NFL, Belichick picked up right where Rehbein left off. Obviously, the rest is history, as Brady became the winningest quarterback of all time with seven Super Bowl victories.

Three must-see matchups

Week 5: Los Angeles Rams vs San Francisco 49ers 

At the time of writing, the 49ers are undefeated at 3-0 despite suffering multiple injuries. Quarterback Brock Purdy missed the last two games, but is expected to play in this matchup. Running back Christian McCaffrey is healthy after missing 13 games last year.

This will be the first divisional game for the Rams against the 49ers as they look to establish themselves in a tough NFC conference. Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua has played at an unbelievable level, posting two games of over 100 yards and one game of 91 yards with a rushing touchdown. The Niners will likely look to counter and establish their running game with McCaffrey.

Week 10: Green Bay Packers vs Philadelphia Eagles 

The Philadelphia Eagles are looking to win back-to-back Super Bowls this season but have to contend with having a huge target on their back. Jalen Hurts has done nothing but win games and make deep playoff runs since joining Philadelphia. The Eagles found success last year against the Packers in the playoffs and will look to get a win on the road in this exciting mid-season clash. 

However, the Green Bay Packers have been one of the better teams in the NFL this season after adding Micah Parsons. Coach Matt Laleur continues to produce double digit win seasons, dating back to quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ back-to-back MVP’s. Jordan Love now quarterbacks their offense, with his biggest flaws being inconsistency and a high turnover rate—Love has had back to back seasons of double digit turnovers in 11 last season and 14 the year before. 

In order for the Packers to find success, they will need to establish the run with Josh Jacobs and establish the defence with stout linebacker Micah Parsons. Parsons was traded a few days before the season started and will look to help contribute as Green Bay aim to prove their mettle against the defending champions of the world.

Week 17: Detroit Lions vs Minnesota Vikings

The Detroit Lions are on a mission as they look to win the NFC North for the third straight year. Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson is back, healthy and playing at an elite defensive-player-of-the-year level. First-year offensive coordinator John Morton and fellow rookie defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard are continuing to build their already solid reputations, while the running back tandem of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs continue to lead the Lions’ offense, something that will help them on Christmas Day against the Minnesota Vikings.

With a run defence that ranks 22nd out of 32 teams, the biggest question for the Vikings is second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy’s ability to produce successful results. Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold played for the Vikings last season and threw for 35 touchdowns and won 14 games, but underperformed the last three games of the season, including the playoff wild card game vs the Los Angeles Rams. If McCarthy is able to just play at an average level, the Vikings can be successful and even earn home field advantage for the playoffs.