Chris Simms' Team-by-Team Grades for NFL Week 3

All good quarterbacks accept blame and deflect praise. 

Well, I’m guilty of jetting out to two major cities last week. And I’m fortunate to have a squad at Bleacher Report that can make me sound smart from any coast or time zone (and make several Chipotle runs when I get back).

I’m full of brown rice and NFL knowledge. Let’s grade some NFL teams from Week 3.

Quick note: I’m only factoring in what I saw from the most recent round of games—stats, game tape, toughness, team style, etc. If you’re looking for a more complete picture of how all 32 teams look, check out my power rankings.

Dallas Cowboys

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Offense: Dak Prescott isn't going to make my jaw drop with any throw. He's just a solid thrower who knows where to place a pass with accuracy and timing. He must love the fact that his rookie backfield mate, Ezekiel Elliott, fixed his fumbling issues in a flash—140 rushing yards is no joke.

Defense: Dallas trotted out its big lineup across the defensive line. It worked for the second straight week; Tyrone Crawford, Jack Crawford, Maliek Collins and Terrell McClain plugged up Chicago's run game with ease. The Cowboys allowed almost 400 yards of total offense, but the Bears only scored 17 points.

Grade: A-

Philadelphia Eagles

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Offense: No one can match up with the Eagles' screen game. Maybe because they have a rookie quarterback who threatens defenses in the 20- to 30-yard range. Or because they have a trio of shifty, speedy backs in Darren Sproles, Kenjon Barner and Wendell Smallwood. Andy Reid passed on a staple of his offense to Doug Pederson.

Defense: I'm a big fan of Fletcher Cox around these parts. I think he's the next big-name defensive lineman. But this group is so much more than him. It's Bennie Logan. It's Brandon Graham. You hire Jim Schwartz to coach players up for a game like this. What a win.

Grade: A+

New York Giants

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Offense: Big Blue's offense handled Washington's defense on Sunday. The Giants just couldn't get out of their own way. A lost fumble here, a end-zone interception there. A whopping 128 yards of penalties! They still had a chance to win… before Eli Manning threw a game-icing interception.

Defense: Their pressures didn't hit home against Washington's banged-up O-line enough. Their tackling was not the best. And minus three starters, their secondary depth was exposed. I might've been too quick to anoint Steve Spagnuolo's group as the next big thing. They were sloppy.

Grade: C

Washington Redskins

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Offense: Matt Jones went for 65 yards on 17 carries. That's great by Redskins standards. Washington just needs the threat of the run to be successful. It'll eliminate more chances of Kirk Cousins turnovers and keep defenses honest.

Defense: A below-average day was highlighted with some amazing plays. How about Quinton Dunbar's one-handed red-zone pick? Or Su'a Cravens' diving interception 12 minutes later? Both were "wow" plays for a group that doesn't make many of them.

Grade: B+

Buffalo Bills

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Offense: Here's what happens when you put a headset on a former running backs coach. New offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn called a run-heavy game and his ball-carriers came through—especially LeSean McCoy, who made a few cuts that were right out of his Eagles highlight reel.

Defense: Everyone bagged on Rex and Rob Ryan all week long. Now let's face the facts—their group is undermanned, down a few stars and playing its heart out. Case in point: Stephon Gilmore, who locked down receivers all afternoon at his corner spot. Maybe they're not so bad after all.

Grade: A-

Miami Dolphins

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Offense: Adam Gase Face is real, you guys. This coach won't stand for the kind of offensive roller coaster he witnessed against Cleveland on Sunday, so he benched right tackle Ja'Wuan James in hopes someone would break out on the ground. Right now, Miami's leading rusher is Ryan Tannehill.

Defense: The Dolphins were exposed on all fronts by Terrelle Pryor and would've been on the hook for a fourth-quarter collapse. The Browns Browns'd the ending with a missed field goal, but make no mistake—this is a bad, bad group.

Grade: C+

New York Jets

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Offense: "Oh, we need Ryan Fitzpatrick back! He's so perfect for our offense!" Like my Jets fan impression? It's even funnier now that FitzMagic threw six interceptions against a team that rarely blows anyone out. It's hard to believe this guy torched the Buffalo Bills just 10 days earlier.

Defense: The Jets are good to let up one deep throw a game to an an opposing tight end. It didn't happen; Travis Kelce tore them apart underneath instead. Rookie Darron Lee wasn't able to stop him at all.

Grade: C-

New England Patriots

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Offense: Bill Belichick got his edge by dialing his playbook back to leather-helmet times. Just look at this Jacoby Brissett rushing touchdown—it's a twist on the old Wing-T offense. Leave it to the man who tried an actual drop kick to dust off a few old playbooks and find the stuff that fit his rookie in the modern day.

Defense: What did New England's defense do on a short week? Just prevented Brock Osweiler and all of his deep throws from crossing midfield until late in the third quarter. Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia should put this game's box score on his resume when other teams start asking about their vacancies.

Grade: A

Chicago Bears

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Offense: Dull and duller. The Brian Hoyer-Bears marriage started off predictably. He didn't test Dallas' secondary downfield until midway through the fourth quarter. It's dink-and-dunk and gets stopped in short yardage. Kevin White is a nonfactor.

Defense: Ezekiel Elliott took his first carry through a hole wider than three Refrigerator Perrys. Chicago's run defense didn't get any better from there. Dallas controlled the ball for almost 11 more minutes because this injury-riddled group couldn't get off the field.

Grade: C

Detroit Lions

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Offense: Detroit out-gained (418-324) and out-possessed (roughly 35 minutes to 25) the Packers in Week 3. Marvin Jones made his mark as a true game-breaking receiver as well. So what went wrong? I point to Eric Ebron's second-quarter fumble, as Detroit was heading in to cut Green Bay's lead. Instead, we had a 24-3 game within minutes.

Defense: Aaron Rodgers took every inch he could against a defense that was down five starters. No red-zone stop. No turnovers. Just bad football to put Detroit behind so much.

Grade: C+

Green Bay Packers

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Offense: I'm starting to sound like the president of the Aaron Rodgers fan club over here. So let's point out two other Packers instead—Eddie Lacy and Jordy Nelson. Lacy went for 103 yards on 17 carries. Nelson still isn't fully back up to speed, but he did hit the 100-yard mark for the first time since undergoing knee surgery last year. Both guys are huge to Green Bay's success.

Defense: No Morgan Burnett. No Sam Shields. No Clay Matthews. But guys like Nick Perry (seven tackles, two sacks) came through to prevent an epic collapse. Credit defensive coordinator Dom Capers for stringing them together.

Grade: A

Minnesota Vikings

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Offense: We're back to the regularly scheduled Vikings offense. It won't ask much of Sam Bradford—just one or two big throws or third-down conversions and no mistakes. It can withstand the loss of a star running back or two starting offensive linemen. And it can apparently weather a defensive storm like the one Carolina presents and win on the road there.

Defense: Minnesota is eight deep, multiple in its looks and interchangeable along all four spots. You see Brian Robison inside, Tom Johnson outside and Everson Griffen standing up. Head coach Mike Zimmer is overseeing his dream defensive line right now, and it just rocked the Panthers' power running game.

Grade: A+

Cincinnati Bengals

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Offense: This Bengals offense was running smoothly. They were running Jeremy Hill hard for two big scoring drives and then…they ran right into quicksand. The Broncos defense turned it on and the Bengals couldn't keep up.

Defense: What a bad time for Adam Jones to cramp up. He limped off the field right before Demaryius Thomas took his replacement, Chris Lewis-Harris, deep on a 55-yard touchdown. Head coach Marvin Lewis put the pressure on his secondary and they couldn't come through.

Grade: B+

Cleveland Browns

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Offense: Terrelle Pryor is apparently the second coming of Kordell Stewart. He took his "Slash" role seriously, running through and behind the Dolphins D. Hue Jackson was brilliant to use him like that in what ended up being a closer game than I imagined.

Defense: These days, you find positives in the play of Cleveland's young players. Two guys showed up on Sunday: Briean Boddy-Calhoun and Tyrone Holmes. The latter dialed up some pressure on Ryan Tannehill early on, and the former took Tannehill's wobbly throw back for six. Not a bad outing minus Joe Haden.

Grade: A

Baltimore Ravens

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Offense: Maybe this new-look offensive line isn't so new after all. Rookie Ronnie Stanley was flagged twice and beaten outside a few times. Old reliable Marshal Yanda is a rare penalty magnet in 2016. Pressure got to Joe Flacco a little too easily and the run game was nonexistent. Not a great home showing.

Defense: The Ravens have the front seven to win ugly games like this. Their line rotation of Timmy Jernigan-Michael Pierce-Lawrence Guy-Zachary Orr didn't welcome Chris Ivory back. And Terrell Suggs looked like his vintage self with a pair of fourth-quarter sacks.

Grade: B

Pittsburgh Steelers

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Offense: I was half-right. This game was won in the trenches—by the Philadelphia Eagles. I didn't think Maurkice Pouncey, David DeCastro and all of Pittsburgh's stars would have their lunch stolen by this Philly front. And I never in a million years thought that Big Ben and Antonio Brown would be held without a touchdown.

Defense: A rookie quarterback just picked Pittsburgh apart like he was the two-time Super Bowl winner. So it's back to the drawing board for a group that looked vastly improved. What needs to change first? They have one sack after three games.

Grade: F

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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Offense: The name of the game for two straight weeks? Turnovers. Jameis Winston can throw pretty ball after pretty ball, but if some end up in the opposing team's hands, he'll lose. And what the hell was up with that last-ditch scoring play, Jameis? A little more field awareness, please.

Defense: Quick! Name Tampa Bay's starting safeties. Tavon Austin can't tell you because he was too busy running right by them. (A: It's Chris Conte and Bradley McDougald.)

Grade: C+

Atlanta Falcons

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Offense: The Falcons offense is sneaking into football's top five and it has everything to do with their backfield. The emergence of Tevin Coleman and Devonta Freeman is just what Atlanta needs to weather whatever Julio Jones (one catch, 16 yards) is dealing with. Meanwhile, Matt Ryan was enough of a threat to keep Saints defenders out of the box.

Defense: I realize it's Drew freakin' Brees. They did turn him over once for a 90-yard pick-six. I just wonder if this defense will ever find what it's been looking for since 2006—a game-changing pass-rusher. They can't pressure passers and Brees made them pay. He won't be the last to do so.

Grade: B+

Carolina Panthers

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Offense: To me, Cam Newton looks greedy on film right now. He doesn't want chain-moving plays; he's looking for Kelvin Benjamin and Ted Ginn Jr. downfield. Here's the thing—those passes take time to develop. Cam will have plenty of time when he plays the Atlanta Falcons in Week 4, but that wasn't the case against the Vikings. Not the Broncos. Not any elite defense. And that's the issue at the core of this team.

Defense: Carolina's front seven is impressive and talented. The difference on Sunday? They lack the explosive outside pass-rushers that teams like the Vikings have. Sam Bradford was allowed to sit back on too many throws and pinpoint his passes.

Grade: B

New Orleans Saints

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Offense: Drew Brees made one mistake—one!—and that cost his team its first win. Deion Jones returned a tipped Brees throw 90 yards for the game-sealing score. Otherwise? A 376-yard, three-touchdown losing effort from No. 9. It's nothing out of the ordinary.

Defense: It's hard to knock the Saints defense. They're so depleted on that side of the ball—Kenny Vaccaro, Sheldon Rankins, both starting cornerbacks, etc.—but their understudies form a unit that's absolutely awful, and it's ruining one of the years we have left of Brees in New Orleans.

Grade: B-

Indianapolis Colts

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Offense: We saw some life out of the run game. We saw more out of Andrew Luck's arm, and that's even more impressive after the Broncos battered him last week. His game-winning throw to T.Y. Hilton still had its regular zip, bad shoulder and all.

Defense: It must feel good to make the other team one-dimensional for once. Getting Henry Anderson back helped against the run. Melvin Gordon and Co. only managed 37 net rushing yards. Safety Clayton Geathers (six tackles, forced fumble) also came up huge.

Grade: A-

Jacksonville Jaguars

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Offense: Blake Bortles takes longer than a baseball pitcher to wind up and deliver a football. It's no big shock that he's been picked five times over the last two weeks. He also did his offensive line no favors when he moved directly into two Baltimore blitzes. Yuck.

Defense: You don't mess with Steve Smith unless you're really good. Jalen Ramsey is really good. So is Yannick Ngakoue, who's pressuring passers far more as a rookie than Dante Fowler Jr. is.

Grade: C-

Houston Texans

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Offense: The Texans might not know how to piece a drive together. Brock Osweiler couldn't keep drives going when New England took his vertical reads away. The same goes for Lamar Miller; Houston couldn't establish a running game against five Patriots in the box.

Defense: League-leading defense in sacks? Meet Bill Belichick. Houston only tallied one quarterback takedown. J.J. Watt would've had a bigger impact if he stayed in Texas.

Grade: D

Tennessee Titans

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Offense: Taylor Lewan is a problem, but he's not the problem. Tennessee's leading receiver was Jace Amaro, fresh off the Jets' scrap heap. No other receiver had more than three catches. It says a lot that Marcus Mariota was looking for Andre Johnson to tie the game. The weapons just aren't there.

Defense: Credit defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau for once again proving his scheme makes good players, not the the other way around. Derek Carr managed only 249 passing yards after lighting it up in his two previous weeks. LeBeau needs to talk to Brice McCain about the angle he took on Seth Roberts to end the first half, though. It gave the Raiders a 17-3 lead.

Grade: C+

San Francisco 49ers

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Offense: Tick tock. Tick tock. That's the sound of time running out on the Blaine Gabbert era. His 119 passing yards were a pitiful reminder that A) He's a limited quarterback, and B) He's playing in a limited system. Chip Kelly couldn't do worse with Colin Kaepernick.

Defense: I thought this defense was physical enough to hold its own against Seattle's weak line. I was incorrect. Christine Michael bulldozed over them like he was Marshawn Lynch, and no Niners cornerback could stick with Doug Baldwin or Tyler Lockett. Yuck.

Grade: C

Arizona Cardinals

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Offense: I look at film the way quarterbacks do because I don't know anything else. So trust me when I say Carson Palmer is making some of the worst decisions of his career. I couldn't believe some of the balls he tried to fit to guys that were so covered.

Defense: What the hell happened to Arizona's defense? It's like they saw their Week 4 opponent—a ground-and-pound, run-first team—and just ignored what they do best. No one should run for 208 yards on a group with so many stars and big names on it.

Grade: D

Los Angeles Rams

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Offense: Tavon Austin could be special if the Rams used him correctly. The problem is games like Sunday are an aberration in Austin's career. Case Keenum looked good throwing deep to No. 11. Keep Austin going vertical and good things might happen.

Defense: Jameis Winston's passing stats look gaudy. Look closer: The Rams forced two huge turnovers that resulted in 14 points and forced Winston to throw. As time expired, they delivered the knockout blow and forced him to scramble. In short, they carried the day.

Grade: B+

Seattle Seahawks

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Offense: Who is this team and what did they do with the predictable Seahawks passing game? Russell Wilson didn't need his mobility to rip passes through wide-open windows. He even found…Jimmy Graham. When he has a 100 yards, you know your offense is humming.

Defense: Just the Legion of Boom doing Legion of Boom things—like giving up 119 total passing yards. And winning.

Grade: A

Denver Broncos

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Offense: Gary Kubiak said his first-year starter needed to showcase better decision-making. How'd Trevor Siemian respond? A four-touchdown, no-interception day is how. The Bengals dared No. 13 to throw by packing the box and bottling up C.J. Anderson. He went off for 312 yards and threw a couple of critic-silencing dimes to Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders.

Defense: This game was neck-and-neck when both teams headed to the locker room at halftime. Then, the Broncos decided they were done messing around. Andy Dalton hardly advanced under constant heat from Von—I mean, Shane Ray. The latter looked like the former after a breakout week.

Grade: A-

San Diego Chargers

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Offense: You know what's weird? Philip Rivers missed some throws he normally connects on in this game—like a wide-open Travis Benjamin in the end zone that would've made this game one-sided. No. 17 needs a lot more help from the running game these days. He also can't afford any fumbles from future Antonio Gates replacements.

Defense: It's 4th-and-7 and the Colts have the ball on their own 20-yard line. You let Indianaplois convert? That 63-yarder from Andrew Luck to T.Y. Hilton was just the icing on top of a crappy ending. C'mon, San Diego.

Grade: C

Kansas City Chiefs

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Offense: They were more opportunistic than good. Alex Smith finished with fewer than 250 passing yards, but the Chiefs converted almost half of their third-down plays. Their red-zone offense needs work. So, yeah, a typical Chiefs win.

Defense: Sometimes a team gifts a few turnovers. It never gifts eight. This defense is something else, and Marcus Peters is the best break-on-the-ball cornerback since Deion Sanders.

Grade: A

Oakland Raiders

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Offense: Hello, Latavius Murray. I haven't seen that many explosive runs from No. 28 since he made his debut in Kansas City a few seasons ago. Even more encouraging: The Raiders were able to find a way to win despite O-line injuries.

Defense: This defense isn't what it needs to be yet. A better team might've picked them apart on Sunday. But this 10-point effort might've been exactly the starting point they needed. Credit head coach Jack Del Rio for switching to younger players in Cory James (inside linebacker) and first-round pick Karl Joseph (safety). Both moves panned out.

Grade: B