NFL Week 6 Overreactions: Time for the Colts to clean house? AJ Brown trades Patriots error?

The battle between two of the NFL’s most hapless franchises lived up to its lack of hype on Sunday. In fact, in terms of enthusiasm, he more than lived up to it. But the product on the field was a special kind of fun-bad.

Titans 26, Colts 20. It’s Tennessee’s first win of the year, and a great one at that. The Titans trailed 13-0 at halftime and looked completely lifeless. Bench camera room? Throw in the towel? It seemed on the brink.

And then the Colts, being the generous team that they are, literally gave it away over the next four possessions:

• Jonathan Taylor fumbled on the first play of the second half. The Titans turned that into a field goal.
• With the Colts within field goal range on the next drive, Daniel Jones threw an atrocious interception. The Titans turned that into another field goal.
• The Colts then went three-and-out and gave up a 58-yard Chimere Dike return, setting up the Titans for their only offensive touchdown of the day.
• On the next drive, Julius Chestnut blocked a punt and Oluwafemi Oladejo recovered the loose ball and scored a touchdown.

From 13-0 to 20-13 in around 18 minutes of play. Horrible stuff. The Colts actually tied the game on a Taylor touchdown, only for the defense to commit terrible pass interference to set up a Titans field goal. Tennessee scored another field goal late.

A collapse in three stages? Against a winless team? For an organization that is already skating on ice? Check, check, check. Which leads me to say…

Shane Steichen won’t last the season, and Chris Ballard and Daniel Jones will be gone by week one of 2027

Overreaction or reality: Reality

Since 2020, there have been 16 coaching changes during the season. Shane Steichen will be next or, at the very least, join this list.

It was an unacceptable collapse. The Titans are completely inept offensively. The only way they could do Nothing It was if the Colts missed it, and the Colts missed it again and again. I generally consider Steichen to be a good offensive mind, but as a head coach you have to be more than that. You are responsible for everything, and in this area, Indianapolis is not nearly good enough.

However, Steichen can’t play the game, so we turn to the players…and the person who chose them. Chris Ballard is in his 10th season as general manager of the Colts. The team had one playoff victory during that span, and that was in 2018, its second year. He failed to find a quarterback and his last attempt turned out to be as bad as the others.

Remember, early in Ballard’s tenure, he had Andrew Luck. Andrew Luck retired before the 2019 season. It was that long. Inexcusable. He tried half measures with veterans. He tried to draft one (Anthony Richardson). He failed in every way. The defense remains uncertain at best, even after the blockbuster (and, in retrospect, misjudged) Gardner commercial sauce.

But really, it all came down to Jones: He went 22 of 42 for 269 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He took six bags. He is tied for first in the NFL in turnovers. On Sunday, he just didn’t put an NFL-caliber product on the field.

Remember, the Colts signed him to a two-year, $88 million contract this offseason, even though they weren’t bidding with…anyone. There is an opt-out after this year that would result in a $35 million dead cap hit, but continuing with it would be even more punishing for a franchise that should have been reset long ago.

Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon is known for standing on the sidelines and take notes. His only notes needed for Sunday? It’s time to clean up.

The Rams won’t make the playoffs playing like this

Overreaction or reality: Reality

This is simply a non-playoff team at this time. Here are the eye-popping numbers from the Rams’ stunning win Defeat 18-16 to the cardinals:

• As a 13.5-point favorite, Matthew Stafford suffered the biggest upset of his career. It’s also the NFL’s biggest upset in the last five years.
• The Rams had no plays of more than 20 yards on their first nine possessions Sunday.
• Stafford’s average pass traveled 4.8 yards downfield, the fourth-fewest number of his Rams career and his lowest since 2024. For reference, the lowest air yard per attempt this year is 4.9, belonging to Bo Nix.
• The Rams did not sack Jacoby Brissett and are tied for third-fewest sacks in the NFL this season.
• The Rams are the fifth preseason Super Bowl favorite in the last 50 years to have an average below .500 through six games.
• The Rams have won the turnover battle once in six games this season. And they lost that game – to the Bills last week – anyway.

Sean McVay summed it up best: “I can’t say anything positive today.”

The offense has very little juice, outside of an occasional great play from Puka Nacua or Davante Adams. It really seems to be stagnating; Stafford used play action on 37 percent of his dropbacks last year and averaged 8.4 yards per pass on those throws. This year, this figure fell to 25% and 7.2 respectively. And when a team has no juice, it has little room for error. But the Rams continue to make mistakes: penalties, turnovers, missed missions, etc.

Meanwhile, defense doesn’t do much damage. And special teams problems remain. New kicker Blake Grupe was injured in the first quarter, forcing the Rams to adjust on the fly.

Even if the Rams had won, it’s not good enough. Sean McVay said it. If they lose in Week 7, it’s officially panic time.

We found an alien life form and his name is Josh Allen

Overreaction or reality: Reality

No words are necessary.

Either Browns or Steelers will win the AFC North

Overreaction or reality: Overreaction

Well, well, well, what if it’s not a three-way tie at the top of the AFC North for six weeks?! The Browns, Steelers and Ravens are all 4-2, and the Bengals (bye this weekend) aren’t far behind at 3-2.

Cleveland technically leads the division thanks to Sunday’s 13-10 win over Lamar Jackson-less Baltimore, and Pittsburgh is second because it has a better record in the division.

Sorry, Browns and Steelers fans, but neither of you are winning the division. Cleveland’s biggest win this season is four points. He lost to the Jets last week. Deshaun Watson looked terrible on Sunday. The Steelers looked just as awful, needing a late comeback to force overtime against the Baker Mayfield-less Buccaneers. It turns out that playing against backup quarterbacks is very useful.

Both teams rank in the bottom half of all-important offensive stats. The quarterback play simply isn’t good enough and won’t be good enough, especially against Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow rather than Tyler Huntley and Jalon Daniels.

The Patriots made a mistake by trading for AJ Brown

Overreaction or reality: Overreaction

AJ Brown’s big return from IR was… not so grand. Three catches for 27 yards on 10 targets. Officially, he was charged with two drops. Unofficially, given his high standards, it was probably more. He even successfully completed a Jets onside kick, but fortunately for him, a teammate recovered to clinch the Patriots’ 26-19 victory.

It’s worth worrying in the beginning, but to say the trade was a failure or a mistake would be a drastic overreaction. Yes, it was a difficult start with the injury and the disappointing return. But let’s not dismiss it. He won on the routes that New England led him to win: quick in-breaks and deep balls. Drake Maye missed on one of each, and Brown failed to take advantage of any other chances he had. did to have. It seems silly to say, but if you cut the tape just before the ball arrived, Brown’s film would seem encouraging.

Of course, he must make the plays that are there. Getting open doesn’t gain yards, score points, or win games. Brown will bounce back and he can still be a huge boost. He returned earlier than expected from his sprained ankle. Let’s give him a week’s grace.

CJ Stroud will be one of the five highest-paid quarterbacks this offseason…and he deserves it

Overreaction or reality: Reality

Another week, another stellar performance for CJ Stroud. The fourth-year pro passed for 312 yards, three touchdowns and an interception and led the way in the Texans’ 34-31 victory over the Jaguars.

The numbers are one thing, but the movie is just as good, if not better. This is one of the best throws you’ll see all season.

So this one…

This is Stroud at his best: a huge, laser-precise arm that can access all parts of the field. We’ve missed him in recent years, and the Texans should be very happy to have him back. Not only that, but he’s getting better at mitigating negative plays. His interception Sunday was really bad, but it was his first of the year. He also takes fewer devastating sacks than last season. And he does all this without having much of a running game yet.

The Texans and Stroud did not receive extensions this offseason. He had been horrible in the playoffs, and although both sides said the right things, no agreement was reached.

He is, however, on track to get that massive extension this offseason. This offseason is shaping up to be huge for quarterback contracts – Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and Bo Nix from the 2024 class, Bryce Young from Stroud’s 2023 class and Lamar Jackson are all looking for a new deal. Stroud’s deal will put him among the five highest-paid quarterbacks, and it will be well-deserved.

Brad Idzik will be a promising candidate for head coach in 2027

Overreaction or reality: Reality

The Panthers outscored the injured Eagles 25-14 in easy fashion. Bryce Young threw two touchdown passes and Chuba Hubbard ran for 120 yards and scored. Philadelphia was without Jalen Hurts, its top three running backs and a group of other players. This isn’t a super remarkable result by any measure.

But Philadelphia still has a very good defense, and Brad Idzik threw a great game, including the two touchdowns to Tommy Tremble.

I was also very impressed with Young’s work on RPO throws, something Idzik and Young have worked very well on in this offense.

Idzik took over the calls from Dave Canales this offseason. It was a perfect promotion. Carolina has one of the most aggressive offenses in the NFL in terms of success rate. This is a really well-designed attack that empowers Young and accentuates his strengths. In an NFL that loves young, innovative players, Idzik is part of the next wave of hotshots.