NFL title candidate San Francisco is in crisis and Aaron Rodgers is experiencing a debacle

Only three wins in seven games: The San Francisco 49ers are in crisis after losing the Super Bowl. Aaron Rodgers feels the same way with his New York Jets. The most important things from the NFL weekend.

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Super-Bowl-Fluch in San Francisco

You can’t get any closer to winning the NFL title. Many American football stars are not able to reach the Super Bowl alone. To then lead until shortly before the end and at times with a double-digit gap, but then lose, must be a huge disappointment. That’s what happened to the San Francisco 49ers in February – and since then they’ve been suffering from a hangover known in the NFL as the Super Bowl Curse. The loser of the final game usually does not manage to build on the strong previous season in the following season.

On Sunday, the Niners met Super Bowl opponent Kansas City again. However, the Californians were unable to take revenge. Led by a strong defense and running back Kareem Hunt (83 yards, 2 touchdowns), the Chiefs defeated the team from San Francisco for the fifth time in a row. And the 28:18 victory didn’t even require a particularly good performance from superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who didn’t throw a touchdown pass, but did at least run into the end zone once.

While the Chiefs also won their sixth game of the season, the 49ers, who were actually considered favorites to reach the Super Bowl in their conference before the season, now have three wins and four defeats. Coach Kyle Shanahan’s team is in a real crisis. There wasn’t enough of the actually excellent offensive to be seen on Sunday, and otherwise it’s not quite at the same level as last season.

One reason for this are injuries like those to running back Christian McCaffrey or receiver Deebo Samuel, who only played briefly against Kansas City due to illness. Brandon Aiyuk, another important pass receiver, suffered an injury and a cruciate ligament tear is feared.

All-purpose weapon Christian McCaffrey will be sorely missed by the 49ers.Bild: www.imago-images.de

However, it cannot be overlooked that quarterback Brock Purdy always has his problems. The 24-year-old lacks consistency after an outstanding previous season. In the last game against Seattle he showed a strong reaction to two previous rather weak performances. Against the Chiefs, Purdy, who got into the end zone twice himself, was a total failure as a passer. The last pick in the draft in 2022 threw three interceptions. The one in the final quarter at 12:21 was particularly bitter, when he robbed his team of up to eight points near the end zone.

After such performances, there is always criticism of Purdy, who in the eyes of some simply benefits from his teammates and the system of offensive genius Shanahan. In order to save the season and possibly still fight for the title – San Francisco’s clear goal – they would need a flawless Purdy. Because the program doesn’t really get any easier with games against Dallas, Tampa Bay, Seattle, Green Bay and Buffalo in the next few weeks.

Next defeat for the New York Jets

The New York Jets also had an evening to forget. Although they took a 15:6 lead against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second quarter, the visitors failed to score a single point and lost 15:37. For the fourth time in a row, the Jets left the field as losers.

There is still no visible effect of Robert Saleh’s dismissal of coach two weeks ago. Furthermore, in their first game together in the Jets jersey, it was not yet clear that Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams in Green Bay were one of the best quarterback-receiver duos of this millennium. Adams, who was brought in via trade from Las Vegas, only managed three catches and gained 30 yards, although he was the target of a pass from Rodgers nine times.

Aaron Rodgers isn’t really getting going in New York.Bild: www.imago-images.de

On the other hand, Russell Wilson showed an impressive performance in his first game for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The 35-year-old was able to rely on receiver George Pickens (111 yards, 1 touchdown) on the one hand and running back Najee Harris (102 yards, 1 touchdown) on the other. The Steelers celebrated their fifth win in the seventh game, while the Jets have the exact opposite record and the experiment with their 40-year-old quarterback seems increasingly doomed to failure.

Vikings lose for the first time

The Minnesota Vikings are no longer undefeated. In a spectacular game, they were defeated by their NFC North rival Detroit 29:31. Despite a solid quarterback in Sam Darnold and strong performances from running back Aaron Jones (116 yards, 1 touchdown) and receiver Justin Jefferson (84 yards, 1 touchdown), the Lions were too strong in the end.

The Vikings defense simply couldn’t find a way to deal with Jared Goff and Co. Also because running back Jahmyr Gibbs had a fabulous day with 160 yards of space and two touchdowns. There was also the once again reliable German-American Amon-Ra St. Brown, who caught eight passes for 112 yards and scored a touchdown. In the end, it still took a field goal from Jake Bates for the Lions to prevail.

Thanks to the success, Detroit, which, like the Vikings, now has five wins and one loss, takes top spot in the division. With the Green Bay Packers (5 wins, 2 defeats), who beat Houston 24:22 for a weak quarterback CJ Stroud, and the Chicago Bears (4:2), the other teams in the NFC North are also very strong.

Die Rache des Saquon Barkley

When he returned to New York, Saquon Barkley left no doubt that he would do quite a bit of good for the Giants’ game. The 27-year-old running back, who said he did not receive a new contract offer in the spring after six years with the Giants, gained 187 yards and a touchdown at his old place of work. He almost single-handedly led the Philadelphia Eagles to a 28-3 victory in New York amid boos from opposing fans.

This may have been particularly painful for Giants owner John Mara. Before Barkley left, he said: “I would have a lot of trouble sleeping if he went to Philadelphia.” Looking at his team’s record (2 wins, 5 defeats) shouldn’t help either.

Jaguars comeback in London

After the horror performance in the 16:35 loss against Chicago a week ago, the Jacksonville Jaguars competed again in London. And things looked bad again at the start, the New England Patriots were already leading 10-0 after just over 16 minutes. But then the Jaguars turned up the heat. First quarterback Trevor Lawrence found his rookie receiver Brian Thomas Jr. in the end zone, then running back Tank Bigsby also scored a touchdown before Parker Washington carried a punt over 96 yards into the opposing end zone.

So the game was turned around and the Patriots, for whom rookie quarterback Drake Maye performed well, could no longer get close. In the end, Jacksonville won 32:16 and coach Doug Pederson’s position was probably saved, at least temporarily. With only two wins from seven games, the Jaguars are still clearly lagging behind expectations.

Watson seriously injured – and Daniels?

The fact that some fans cheered the horror injury says a lot about Deshaun Watson’s performance, and not just this season. Since he moved to the Cleveland Browns in 2022 and had to serve an eleven-game suspension, he has never really been able to convince. He also led the Browns to one win this season. When 29-year-old Watson tore his Achilles tendon against Cincinnati shortly before halftime, some of the team’s fans were happy about it – much to the annoyance of some players.

Replacement quarterback Jameis Winston said after the game: “I’m horrified by the reactions.” Cornerback Greg Newsome even declared: “That was bullshit. You don’t do that.” The Browns ultimately lost the game against the Bengals 14:21, which shouldn’t have helped to improve the mood in Cleveland. Especially since the first move of the game led to a spectacular touchdown for the guests.

Another quarterback, Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders, suffered an injury on Sunday. The 23-year-old rookie, who is having an excellent season so far, injured his ribs at the end of a long run in the first quarter. How serious the injury is is still unclear. The fact that he came back to the sideline smiling at the start of the second half was probably a good sign.

Even without Daniels, Washington clearly won 40:7 against the Carolina Panthers and celebrated its fifth win in the seventh game. The next week, Daniels would face the Chicago Bears for quarterback Caleb Williams. If Daniels gets fit in time, it would be the duel of the second and first picks in April’s NFL draft.

More highlights

In the Green Bay Packers’ 24:22 victory over the Houston Texans, Tucker Kraft scored this pike touchdown after a pass from Jordan Love:

DK Metcalf made an equally spectacular catch after a pass from receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba in his Seattle Seahawks’ 34:14 win in Atlanta:

Muscle man Metcalf also showed his athleticism and strength during teammate Kenneth Walker’s touchdown when he held Falcons defender AJ Terrell in check with one hand:

Despite the defeat against Detroit, the Minnesota Vikings also showed spectacular plays. Like here on Sam Darnold’s 51-yard pass to Jordan Addison:

With 125 yards, rookie receiver Keon Coleman was one of the best for the Buffalo Bills in the 34:10 win over Tennessee. He also demonstrated his assertiveness and agility:

He’s the best quarterback in the NFL, but he can also help his team with his feet, as Patrick Mahomes shows here:

All results

bild: foxsports.com