NFL Week 4 Picks: Derek Carr, Justin Herbert duel on Monday night

Game of the week

Las Vegas astatine L.A. Chargers

Big-time Monday crippled betwixt the 3-0 Raiders (plus-3 1/2) and 2-1 Chargers. Las Vegas is averaging a league-best 471 yards, albeit aided by 2 overtime wins. But we spell with Bolts backmost Justin Herbert throwing a precocious touchdown.

Chargers 27, Raiders 23

Lock of the week

Tampa Bay astatine New England

During Tom Brady’s clip successful New England, the fig of times the Patriots were astatine slightest a seven-point location underdog: None. The Buccaneers are a seven-point favourite and a conjecture to Brady’s mindset is simple. He wants to dismantle his aged team.

Buccaneers 42, Patriots 20

Upset of the week

Detroit astatine Chicago

The Bears acceptable violative shot backmost successful past week’s nonaccomplishment astatine Cleveland, finishing with 47 yards (second-fewest successful squad past since 1940). The winless Lions (plus-three) are amended close present and manager Dan Campbell gets his archetypal win.

Lions 19, Bears 7

Around the NFC: Tom Brady heads backmost to New England connected cusp of all-time passing record

Kyusung Gong, The Associated Press

Tampa Bay Buccaneers backmost Tom Brady (12) smiles earlier an NFL shot crippled against the Los Angeles Rams Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021, successful Inglewood, Calif.

Brady nears record. Tampa Bay backmost Tom Brady faces New England for the archetypal clip since leaving the Patriots successful March 2020. Brady needs 68 passing yards to go the NFL’s all-time leader, a grounds presently held by Drew Brees (80,358). The apical 5 is Brees, Brady (80,291), Peyton Manning (71,940), Brett Favre (71,838) and Philip Rivers (63,440). A triumph would besides enactment Brady with Brees, Manning and Favre arsenic the lone quarterbacks to decision each 32 teams. Additionally connected the Tampa Bay milestone front, Rob Gronkowski needs 16 yards to ascent into 5th all-time successful receiving yards by a choky extremity (currently astatine 8,558).

Dallas “D” benignant of better. New Dallas antiaircraft coordinator Dan Quinn has already made a large interaction connected the Cowboys’ defence … benignant of. They pb the league with 8 takeaways and are tied for archetypal with a plus-five turnover margin. The Cowboys had 23 takeaways successful 16 games past year. But they participate Sunday’s location crippled against undefeated Carolina ranked tied for 26th successful astir yards allowed (402.0) and second-worst defending the walk (331.7). Takeaways, though, screen up a batch of warts.

Surprising Cardinals. Is Arizona for real? The Cardinals are 3-0 and person outscored their opponents 103-65, including 69-27 successful roadworthy wins implicit Tennessee and Jacksonville. They aren’t rushing it good (3.9-yard average), but six players person astatine slightest 10 catches and backmost Kyler Murray has a 113.4 passer standing (four interceptions, though). The adjacent 3 games volition assistance statement the Cardinals a contender oregon also-ran — astatine the Rams (Matthew Stafford is playing lights out), vs. San Francisco (who volition artifact Nick Bosa?) and astatine Cleveland (who volition artifact Myles Garrett?).

Around the AFC: Must-win clip for Kansas City entering crippled astatine Philadelphia? Yes.

Charlie Riedel, The Associated Press

Kansas City Chiefs backmost Patrick Mahomes passes during the 2nd fractional of an NFL shot crippled against the Los Angeles Chargers Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021, successful Kansas City, Mo.

Must-win for Chiefs? Kansas City has mislaid 2 consecutive games for lone the 3rd clip successful backmost Patrick Mahomes’ starting career. The Chiefs play astatine dreadful Philadelphia, which makes it a must-win due to the fact that 1-3 could mean 3 games down the Broncos oregon Las Vegas. Mahomes has a 39-10 starting grounds and a triumph volition let him to articulation Ken Stabler arsenic the lone quarterbacks successful the Super Bowl Era to triumph 40 of their archetypal 50 vocation starts. Stabler was 40-9-1. Tied for 3rd are Tom Brady and Danny White (38-12), followed by Dan Marino and Jim McMahon (37-13).

Steelers searching. Pittsburgh, truthful awesome successful its Week 1 triumph astatine Buffalo, has mislaid location games to Las Vegas and Cincinnati. Its moving crippled is breached (last successful yards per crippled and per transportation astatine 53.0 and 3.18, respectively) and backmost Ben Roethlisberger is 3rd successful the league with 130 walk attempts. It’s truthful atrocious that Bengals receiver Tyler Boyd said the Steelers “gave up,” past week. Well, manager Mike Tomlin didn’t similar that. “I don’t attraction astir Tyler Boyd’s sentiment astir what transpired astatine immoderate constituent during the game,” Tomlin said. Pittsburgh plays astatine Green Bay connected Sunday.

Month of the sacks. Last year, nary NFL subordinate reached 16 sacks (one per game); Pittsburgh’s T.J. Watt was archetypal astatine 15. But done 3 games, 16 players are averaging astatine slightest 1 sack per game, led by Cleveland’s Myles Garrett (5 1/2). The Broncos’ Von Miller is tied for 4th (four sacks). Garrett had 4 1/2 sacks successful past week’s triumph implicit lowly Chicago. Yes, the league has talented borderline rushers, but what the aboriginal games amusement is the deficiency of violative enactment depth.