Some Games to Watch This Week Around the NFL

• Patriots–Bucs: This could be a great game. Drake Maye and the Patriots have looked really good in his second year, and he’s legitimately in the MVP conversation halfway through the season. Baker Mayfield is one of the toughest, fiercest “dawgs” out there, and especially in the waning minutes of the game, he is must-watch TV. He won’t care about the optics whatsoever—the only thing he wants to do is find a way to drive his team down the field. Whether that means lowering his shoulder into a defender a foot taller than him or slinging a perfectly placed ball to his receiver makes no difference to him. It’s all about driving his team down the field. He’s become one of the league’s better QBs, and it’s one of the greatest reclamation stories still being written.

• Ravens–Vikings: Can the Ravens really make the playoffs? Really? They started 1-5. The odds were (are?) certainly stacked against them. But their division is not very strong this year, and with Lamar Jackson back, the sky is the limit. Yes, they are still decimated by injury—most of whom are not coming back this season—but there’s a chance they could crawl back from the hole they got into and sneak into the playoffs. And once you’re in, anything can happen as long as you have a good team. Meanwhile, J.J. McCarthy and the Vikings should be feeling pretty good about themselves coming off their impressive victory over the Lions. There’s just something about McCarthy that I (and many others) am finding appealing. He’s easy to like in my eyes. Maybe it’s his authenticity? I hope he has success in this league.

• Rams–49ers: A battle of NFC West rivals, both of whom are playing supremely well thus far. Mac Jones is yet another example of a struggling QB who joined the 49ers and found the magic sauce. It’s really incredible. Makes me wonder—if Brock Purdy were drafted by another team, what would his career look like? Is Kyle Shanahan the true reason behind all his success?

• Steelers–Chargers (SNF): The Steelers have looked both very good and very flat this year, but they’re 5-3, so I guess that has to mean something. Their defense has not impressed, which is not very Mike-Tomlin-like. For the Chargers I still remain on the side of “Justin Herbert is overrated”—mainly because of what I’ve seen in big moments from him in his career: bad throws, bad decisions, etc. But this should make for an entertaining game.

• Eagles–Packers (MNF): This should line up as the game of the week— two of the three best teams in the NFC in my eyes. The Eagles can’t wait to show off all their new shiny toys they picked up this week at the deadline (Jaelan Phillips from the Dolphins, Jaire Alexander from the Ravens, and Michael Carter II from the Jets). The Packers, meanwhile, have only played one quality team this year (unless you count the Steelers—which I don’t) in the Week 1 win over the Lions, so we’ll see how they match up against a now-much-more-complete Eagles squad. Two great defenses going up against two great offenses? I’ll take it any day of the week!