Philadelphia coach Doug Pederson says, "you're two plays away from mayb

When last they met Mark Barron Jersey , the Eagles and Vikings were vying for a spot in the Super Bowl.Now they are searching for consistency."Each week — and (Eagles defensive coordinator) Jim Schwartz mentioned it and it's true," e being 0-4 and two plays away from being 4-0. That's how tight this thing really is."Coming off its championship season Philly has won twice at home and fallen twice on the road, last week blowing a 14-point lead to lose in overtime at Tennessee. The defense remains stout much of the time, but fell apart in key spots at the Titans, especially in OT."Therefore, with that being said," Pederson adds, "as coaches we got to make sure we're doing our part to prepare our players and get them ready for those situations."Minnesota's dilemma is deeper. While the Eagles are just a half-game out of the NFC East lead, the Vikings are 1-2-1 and trail Chicago and Green Bay in the NFC North.Most important, Minnesota must find a running game, ranking last. If Dalvin Cook can get healthy, it would be a huge help."It has been difficult," coach Mike Zimmer says. "We have to be patient with it, No. 1. Honestly, a little bit has been dictated with some of the scores throughout the last couple ballgames. It's important for us to have balance. It keeps the defensive line from pinning their ears back all the time. I think it helps the football team overall. We just have to do a better job."The weekend began Thursday night with New England's 38-24 home victory over Indianapolis.Tom Brady reached 500 touchdown passes and New England (3-2) won its second straight after a mediocre start to the season Brady also tied Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri, a former teammate, for most NFL victories with 226. Indianapolis dropped to 1-4.Off are Tampa Bay (2-2) and Chicago (3-1).Los Angeles Rams (4-0) at Seattle (2-2)The Seahawks' former Legion of Boom might have given LA's booming attacking fits. This group, while well coached and aggressive, figures to struggle with an offense that comes with 10 days off and has three wideouts who eclipsed 100 yards receiving last game: Brandin Cooks, Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods. Plus, the Rams are no slouches on defense.Seattle's season, despite two straight wins, got messier when it lost star safety Earl Thomas (broken leg) and tight end Will Dissly (patellar tendon) for the year. Thomas's parting gesture to the Seahawks sideline was not quite complimentary.Miami (3-1) at Cincinnati (3-1)Despite some awful statistics including being outgained by 435 yards and outscored 90-82, Miami leads the AFC East. Of course, it was routed in New England last weekend. The Dolphins do lead the league with nine interceptions.Also on top of their division Rob Havenstein Jersey Salute to Service , tied with Baltimore in the AFC North, the Bengals are struggling on defense, too. They rank last on third downs, allowing opponents to convert 57 percent. But the offense has sizzled, especially in the red zone: Cincinnati has scored in its past 34 trips, the longest active streak in the NFL.Baltimore (3-1) at Cleveland (1-2-1)Here's a matchup the former team from Cleveland loves. Baltimore has won five straight and 18 of the past 20 meetings under coach John Harbaugh.While defense always is the calling card for the Ravens, Joe Flacco has eight TD passes, only two interceptions, and Justin Tucker could make field goals Sunday kicking from Lake Erie.Oddly, this is the final intradivision road game for the Ravens, who beat Pittsburgh and lost to Cincinnati.Cleveland can play some D, too. It has a league-high 13 takeaways and DE Myles Garrett, the top overall choice in the 2017 draft, has 4 1/2 sacks this season and 11 1/2 in 15 games. He made a career-best nine tackles last week in an OT loss in Oakland.Jacksonville (3-1) at Kansas City (4-0)A matchup of elite AFC teams in which Kansas City's powerful offense led by emerging star quarterback Patrick Mahomes (14 TD passes, no interceptions, NFL-best 15 passes of at least 25 yards) faces the league's best defense. Jacksonville excels particularly in pass coverage, and the perspective matchup of cornerback Jalen Ramsey vs. wideout Tyreek Hill is a juicy one.The Jaguars haven't allowed an opponent to score on its opening possession this season. The Chiefs have scored 52 points in first quarters.Washington (2-1) at New Orleans (3-1), Monday nightA major test for the Redskins, coming off a bye and alone atop their division. The Saints showed against the Giants that they can win without Drew Brees putting on an aerial spectacular as Alvin Kamara scored three TDs rushing, Wil Lutz kicked four field goals, and the defense mostly befuddled New York.Washington's defense has been surprisingly effective, ranking third overall. It must slow Brees, who has 71,740 yards passing, needing 201 to move ahead of Peyton Manning for the career lead. He's passed for eight touchdowns with no interceptions, and has rushed for two TDs.Atlanta (1-3) at Pittsburgh (1-2-1)Which of these supposed contenders has been more disappointing?The Falcons have been hammered by injuries on defense Authentic Pharoh Cooper Jersey , down three starters already, placing an extra burden on the offense. Mostly, Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and company have come through — Atlanta has scored 116 points but allowed 122; only Tampa Bay and Oakland have been more generous.Pittsburgh's issues seem to run deeper than a porous D and too many turnovers, a league-worst nine (tied with the Bucs). The Steelers are runaway leaders in penalties, are missing star RB Le'Veon Bell in a contract dispute and are enveloped in far too much drama.Oakland (1-3) at Los Angeles Chargers (2-2)Both teams can move the ball and are vulnerable on defense, so a shootout might be in the offing.Derek Carr is fourth in the league in completions (120) and completion rate (71.0 percent), and the Raiders are one of three teams with a 100-yard receiver in every game this season.Los Angeles is more balanced. Melvin Gordon leads the AFC in yards from scrimmage (475) and first downs (25), and backup RB Austin Ekeler is averaging 8.6 scrimmage yards, tops for his position. Philip Rivers likes facing the Silver and Black having thrown 41 TDs vs. the Raiders, tied with Denver for his most against any opponent.New York Giants (1-3) at Carolina (2-1)Look for the Panthers to get off to a running start coming off their bye. They are No. 1 in rushing offense and the Giants are No. 29 in run defense. Panthers RB Christian McCaffrey is coming off a 28-carry, 184-yard performance against Cincinnati.New York doesn't score much despite two dynamic performers — WR Odell Beckham Jr. and second overall draft choice RB Saquon Barkley. But the rookie can become the third NFL player with at least 100 yards from scrimmage in his first five games, joining Adrian Peterson and Kareem Hunt.Green Bay (2-1-1) at Detroit (1-3)Aaron Rodgers is 13-3 against Detroit, but to win this one he might turn to his running game with his backfield banged up. The Lions rank last against the run, and Green Bay has a three-pronged attack.Although rookie Kerryon Johnson has spurred a decent running game for the Lions, they probably will concentrate on Matthew Stafford throwing to WRs Golden Tate, Marvin Jones and Kenny Golladay — the first trio of NFL teammates with 50-plus yards receiving each in five straight games played together.Tennessee (3-1) at Buffalo (1-3)Coming off a spectacular rally to beat defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia, the Titans are riding high. Expected to be potent rushing the ball, they've been so-so. But Marcus Mariota finished 30 of 43 for 344 yards and two touchdowns, plus a TD rushing against the Eagles, and Tennessee converted three fourth-down plays, one by penalty in overtime.The Bills got back to looking inept at Green Bay after that shocking win at Minnesota. They were shut out for first time since 2008 and had 145 yards offense, matching their fewest since a 40-7 loss at Chicago in 2006.Dallas (2-2) at Houston (1-3)Not exactly Santa Anna vs. Davy Crockett at the Alamo, this Texas showdown looks more like a skirmish.The Texans were ballyhooed as a club ready to rise as they got back the likes of J.J. Watt and Deshaun Watson. The first time they rose was last Sunday at Indianapolis, and they needed overtime and a gamble by Colts coach Frank Reich that backfired to get their lone victory.Dallas got its offense on track in beating Detroit and faces a mediocre pass defense. Problem is, the Cowboys rank 30th in passing and workhorse running back Zeke Elliott might be their primary receiver Limited Troy Hill Jersey , too.Since the Texans won their NFL debut against the Cowboys in 2002, Dallas has taken the next three meetings.Denver (2-2) at New York Jets (1-3)Both sides got off to nice starts in 2018 and now are struggling.New York has little offensive flair behind rookie QB Sam Darnold, which was to be expected. He'll face another difficult defense that can pressure the quarterback: Denver has 10 sacks, four by All-Pro Von Miller.The Broncos can run the ball with a pair of solid rookies, Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman, but Case Keenum has three touchdown passes and twice as many picks.Arizona (0-4) at San Francisco (1-3)This would seem a good spot for the Cardinals to eliminate that zero in the win column, the only team owning one. But the Niners, despite losing QB Jimmy Garoppolo, showed plenty of fight in their loss to the more talented Chargers.While the overall league is scoring at a record pace, Arizona has 37 points. Through four weeks, 13 teams had scored at least 37 points in a game. The Los Angeles Rams were still reeling from the mass shooting less than five miles from their training complex when wildfires consumed the nearby hills, forcing a canceled practice and the evacuation of many players and coaches from their homes.At the close of a horrific week in Thousand Oaks, a comeback victory over the Seattle Seahawks somehow seemed both more trivial and even sweeter to these resilient Rams.Brandin Cooks rushed for a 9-yard touchdown with 5:49 to play on the first snap after Dante Fowler forced and recovered a fumble by Russell Wilson, and the Rams bounced back from their first loss of the season with a 36-31 victory Sunday.Jared Goff was forced from his home during the week, but he passed for 318 yards and two touchdowns as the Rams (9-1) swept the season series with their division rivals."It's just been a tough week for the whole city, the whole area up there," Goff said of the Rams' weekday hometown, one hour northwest of downtown Los Angeles. "Hoping today provided a little bit of joy and regularity for those people."Todd Gurley rushed for 120 yards and a score as Los Angeles moved into commanding position for its second consecutive NFC West title, but only after plenty of late drama in a rivalry that's never lacking in excitement.Gerald Everett and Tyler Higbee caught TD passes for the Rams, who survived a topsy-turvy game with just enough big plays. Although the perfect season ended last week in New Orleans, Los Angeles still has never lost back-to-back games under coach Sean McVay."It means a lot, (because) there's a lot of tragedy that's been going on," said Aaron Donald, who had 2陆 sacks of Wilson after evacuating his family during the week. "We've all been affected by it. We had to move ourselves, so to win a game like this, a divisional game Robert Woods Jersey , we're trying to give people something to smile about."Fowler, the pass-rush specialist acquired from Jacksonville late last month, made up for his costly unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the third quarter by stripping Wilson of the ball and then recovering the fumble, setting up Cooks' run for a 12-point lead.Wilson threw three touchdown passes, rushed for 92 yards and nearly rallied the Seahawks (4-5) all the way back after his fumble.Wilson hit Mike Davis for a short TD catch to cap a 90-yard drive with 1:56 to play. After the Seattle defense held, he got the Seahawks to the Los Angeles 35 before throwing four straight incompletions in the final minute."I think the whole stadium was nervous on that last drive, (but) it didn't work out," Wilson said.Wilson also threw TD passes to Nick Vannett and Tyler Lockett , but the Seahawks have lost two straight after winning four of five.Seattle took the lead with Lockett's TD catch in the third quarter, but only because their drive was kept alive by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Fowler after a third-down stop."I knew I had to go out there and redeem myself," Fowler said.RUNAWAY LOSSRashaad Penny rushed for 108 yards and a touchdown in the injury absence of Chris Carson for the Seahawks., who had 273 yards rushing at the Coliseum after racking up 190 yards on the ground in their 33-31 loss to the Rams last month in Seattle. "On this day, we went nose to nose," Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. "That's a statement to guys running the football. That's the whole thing fitting together."GURLEY'S GAINSGurley scored his NFL-leading 17th touchdown in the second quarter on a 17-yard run. He also scored a TD in his franchise-record 13th consecutive game, extending his franchise record. He is the fourth player in league history to score a TD in each of his team's first 10 games.SACK MACHINEDonald has a career-high 12陆 sacks already this season. He teamed up with Ndamukong Suh for a huge third-down sack at the Los Angeles 15 in the fourth quarter, forcing Seattle to kick a field goal.BIG GIFTRams left tackle Andrew Whitworth is donating his game check to the Ventura County Community Foundation's Conejo Valley Victims Fund, which was set up to help the families of the 12 people killed Wednesday night by a gunman in Thousand Oaks, the home of the Rams' training complex. The Rams held a moment of silence before the game.INJURIESSeahawks: Carson sat out with a hip injury, while starting right guard D.J. Fluker missed the game with a calf injury.Rams: Receiver Cooper Kupp went down in the fourth quarter holding his left knee, which sidelined him earlier this season. McVay said the injury "doesn't look good right now."UP NEXTSeahawks: A short week to host the Green Bay Packers on Thursday.Rams: One of the biggest games of the regular season against the Kansas City Chiefs in Mexico City on Monday, Nov. 19.