The Biggest Surprises and Disappointments of the NFL Season, So Far

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I don't care if you're the biggest Jaguars fan in the world, nobody saw this coming. Not only has Gardner Minshew shined as a starting QB, but he's making folks wonder if Nick Foles will ever be the guy in Jacksonville. While the Jags currently sit at 2-3 in the standings, they look to have a future star at QB with Minshew. 

While some folks had the Bills pegged as a playoff team this year, I'm not sure anyone thought their defense would be this good right now. It's still unclear just how good Josh Allen is as a QB, but with the way the Bills play defense, he doesn't have to do a whole ton for them to win games. With how the AFC is shaping up right now, the Bills are looking like a pretty solid lock at one of the two Wild Card spots. Get the tables out, Buffalo. 

Danny Dimes might be the real deal, folks. While plenty of people questioned the selection of Jones during the draft, he's proven that he at least belongs on an NFL field. He's poised, cool under pressure and can move around in the pocket for a guy his size. Oh, and he's doing all of this with Saquon Barkley sidelined with an ankle injury. The Giants likely won't win a ton of games this season, but it certainly appears like Daniel Jones is the QB of the future in New York. 

This 49ers team appears to be very real. They're one of two undefeated teams in the NFL and their defense looks to be one of the best in the league. The 49ers aren't asking a ton from Jimmy G right now, but with how well Kyle Shannahan schemes and their explosive running game, they don't need their QB to do all that much. The NFC West might be the best division in football, with the 49ers, Seahawks, and Rams all looking legit. Going to be a battle all season long. 

Just about everyone wrote off the Colts when Andrew Luck shocked the world with his retirement announcement in August. You know who didn't panic? The Colts themselves, and behind Jacoby Brissett, they look like one of the best teams in the AFC. It's not easy to go into Kansas City and beat Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, but the Colts did just that, and in primetime, no less. While Brissett will likely never be as good as Luck, it's clear he's more than capable of leading the Colts to the playoffs. 

Disappointments

Where else could we start when talking about disappointments so far in the NFL season? The Browns season is far from over, but they've now been blown out in two out of five games this year. Baker Mayfield looks like a shell of himself and Odell Beckham Jr. has four catches over the past two weeks. It's hard to pin this on one person, but the Browns might have some serious issues that they need to fix ASAP. 

Injuries play a big part of the Chargers early season struggles, but they also probably shouldn't be losing to the woeful Denver Broncos at home. With Melvin Gordon now back on the team, things should get better for the Chargers, but you can't help but wonder how much Rivers has left in the tank going forward. The race for the AFC Wild Card is going to be a true battle down the stretch. 

People didn't have huge expectations for the Atlanta Falcons coming into this season, but did anyone think they would be this bad? Matt Ryan is near the top of the league in interceptions and the defense is out here giving up 50 points in games. The Falcons are far from a perfect team but they have way too much talent to be this bad. 

When you win the NFC, there are big expectations going into the next season. That's exactly why the Rams find themselves on the disappointing side of this list through five games this season. Jared Goff has looked pedestrian for most of this season, and the Rams defense has been gashed on multiple occasions. While it would be foolish to write off the Rams at this point, they do play in maybe the best division in football. It's going to be a real slugfest in the NFC. 

The Bears were a trendy Super Bowl pick before the season started, and with their elite defense led by Khalil Mack, you could see why. However, the Bears offense has been dismal to start the year, with Mitch Trubisky failing to take the next step early in this season before he got hurt with a shoulder injury. This isn't to put the entire blame on Trubisky, as head coach Matt Nagy hasn't been able to unlock the magic that the Bears had last season. It's still early, but the Bears will need to figure out their offensive struggles soon with a tough schedule approaching.