The Athletic has live coverage of Seahawks vs. Bengals Week 6 NFL action.
NFL Week 6 is upon us and begins with another international contest as the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans face off in London.
From then on, another 14 games will take place on Sunday and Monday. There’s a little bit of everything on the list: teams desperate to win, like the Bears and Minnesota Vikings, who meet in Chicago and hope to improve on their 1-4 record. Or the Washington Commanders, who travel to Atlanta in desperate need of a win to cool the hot seat that coach Ron Rivera finds himself in after last week’s debacle.
There are reunions, like Josh McDaniels and the Raiders welcoming Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots to Las Vegas, and Kellen Moore and the Chargers preparing for a shootout with the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night in Los Angeles. And there is much more.
Here are five of the most intriguing storylines to follow. (Find the NFL Week 6 schedule here.)
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He and his San Francisco 49ers teammates destroyed the Cowboys’ vaunted defense and improved to 5-0. But now the young Purdy (10-0 as a starter in the regular season) faces another formidable opponent.
The Cleveland Browns boast the league’s best defense, which has held teams to 196.8 yards per game and is led by Myles Garrett, who has 5 1/2 sacks this season and an NFL-high 37 1 since 2021 /2 sacks can show. A big part of the 49ers’ success comes from their reliance on the running game to provide balance. San Francisco averages 156.4 rushing yards per game. Christian McCaffrey leads the NFL with 510 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. However, Cleveland has one of the best run defenses and has held opponents to just 71.8 rushing yards per game.
This strong running game support has helped Purdy continue his rise. He leads the league in both passer rating and quarterback EPA while averaging 254.2 yards per game to go along with his nine touchdowns and no interceptions. However, Cleveland also has the best pass defense in the league (125.0 yards per game) and has given up an average of just 15 points per game (also tops). Who will win in this classic battle between unstoppable force and immovable object? (49ers at Browns, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)
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The Dolphins and wide receiver Tyreek Hill are expected to deliver another stellar performance against the winless Carolina Panthers. Hill had eight catches and 181 yards, which was his third 150-yard catch this season. No player has ever had four games with more than 150 yards through the first six games of the season, but Hill – with 11 in his career – could achieve the historic feat.
Meanwhile, the Dolphins, who are averaging 513.6 yards and 36.2 points per game, need 432 yards to become just the second team in NFL history (after the St. Louis Rams in 2000) to do so in just reached the 3,000-yard mark in six games. Coach Mike McDaniel became snappy as he downplayed the significance of such an achievement when asked about it earlier this week. However, given the rarity and dizzyingly impressive manner in which his team performs, the Dolphins are must-see television every time they take the field. (Panthers at Dolphins, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)
The No. 2 pick looks to continue his impressive start to his career as he and the 2-3 Houston Texans host the 3-2 New Orleans Saints. The Ohio State product has made a seamless transition to the NFL, ranking fourth in the league with 1,461 passing yards. Averaging 292.2 yards per game, Stroud has seven touchdown passes and no interceptions (Purdy is the only other full-time starter without a pick). The Saints pose a significant challenge as they have one of the best pass defenses in the league and have seven interceptions (tied for third-most). Stroud and the Texans have won two of their last three games. (Saints at Texans, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)
The Cincinnati Bengals have won two of their last three games and are hoping they have finally turned things around after their slow start to the season.
Joe Burrow reports that his strained calf is almost at full strength and he looks like his old self again. Last week, he posted a season-high 317 passing yards and three touchdowns while completing 78.3 percent of his passes. It was Burrow’s first 300-yard day of the season and only his second with a touchdown pass.
The Bengals (2-3) still have a long way to go. But a win on Sunday at the start of their bye would go a long way toward putting them back in the hunt for the AFC North, which includes the Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2), Baltimore Ravens (3-2) and Browns (2nd). :3) include ), in that order. But the Seattle Seahawks, looking to return from their bye and build on their 3-1 start, are no slouches. They have won three straight, including two on the road, and have a defense that ranks among the league’s leaders in sacks (16). (Seahawks at Bengals, 1 p.m. ET.)
5. Lions-Bucs: Possible playoff preview?
The 4-1 Detroit Lions will put their three-game winning streak on the line when they travel to Tampa Bay to face the 3-1 Buccaneers, who have surprised some around the league with what appears to be a quick rebound after retooling this offseason have.
With both teams sitting at the top of their division standings, Sunday’s game could be a first taste of a future playoff duel. The Lions have one of the best offenses in the league, averaging 384.4 yards and 29.6 points per game, but they also have a top-10 defense. That could cause some problems for the Bucs (301.5 yards, 21.0 points).
This game is also a showdown between former No. 1 draft picks. Jared Goff (2016 first) has successfully established himself with the Lions after falling out of favor with the Los Angeles Rams. He helped bring stability and progress to Detroit, and that’s exactly what Baker Mayfield (first introduced in 2018) hopes to achieve for Tampa Bay as he and the Buccaneers write new chapters. (Lions at Buccaneers, 4:25 p.m. ET.)
(Photos by Baker Mayfield, Brock Purdy, Jared Goff: Dustin Satloff, Harry How, Nic Antaya / Getty Images)
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