Surprising Starts!!

So, after 3 weeks, there are only 3 unbeaten teams left in the NFL.  Whats most surprising is the identity of these 3 teams.  In the NFC, only the Chicago Bears remain, following victories over the Lions, Cowboys and the Packers.  In the AFC there are 2 unbeaten teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers, following wins against the Falcons, Titans and Buccaneers, and the Kansas City Chiefs, following victories over the Chargers, Browns and 49'ers.

The fact that the Steelers are unbeaten may not seem like such a big deal to most.  But when you consider the fact that they have won these games without franchise QB 'Big' Ben Roethlisberger, who is currently serving a 4 game suspension, this is quite an amazing fact.  Add to this - the QB who the Steelers selected to replace Big Ben while he was out Dennis Dixon, also got injured in their game against the Titans.  This meant that the game in Tampa this past Sunday, the Steelers had their 3rd choice QB starting Charlie Batch.  So the back up QB's have played well, right!!  Not really.  The Steelers currently rank dead last in the passing offence category and 26th in total yards gained.  So how is this team 3 - 0?  Only 1 word can describe this - DEFENCE!!  The Steelers defence has always been known as a solid defence.  This year is no exception.  They are ranked 3rd in the NFL against the run, 6th in total yards conceded and 1st in points conceded.  This combined with the 3rd ranked rush offence (led by number 34 Rashard Mendenhall - pictured) has been enough to see off their opponents so far.  This unbeaten record may be under threat this week though, as the Steelers welcome division rival Baltimore Ravens to Heinz Field.  This will be the last game the Steelers play without Big Ben, and even if they lose this game, they have surprised everyone without him.

The Kansas City Chiefs are a huge surprise to be unbeaten.  They opened the season with a fantastic home win on Monday Night Football against the division rival Chargers.  Alot of people saw this as a fluke as 2 of the 3 TDs were huge plays.  Jamaal Charles (pictured) scored on a 56 yard run, and Dexter McCluster returned a 94 yard punt return.  The rest of the box score seems to be in the favor of the Chargers, as Rivers threw for 298 yards, compared to Cassel's 68.  Everyone had made up their mind, this was a freak result, and the Chiefs would soon come back down to earth.  The Chiefs though traveled to Cleveland, and pulled out an ugly win.  3 FG's and a INT return for a TD saw them beat the Browns 16 - 14.  This again was seen as a fluke as the Chiefs had not scored any offencive points.  Their 3rd game though, a home clash against the 49'ers, silenced a number of their doubters.  The Chiefs scored 4 offencive TD's including 3 TD passes from Matt Cassel who also had 250 yards.  This was a big performance for Cassel as even Chief fans were questioning his ability.  The Chiefs have relied on big plays and their number one ranked rush attack so far, they have a bye this week, followed by games @ Indianapolis and @ Houston.  How long will the Chiefs stay unbeaten?

The Chicago Bears are a great story this season so far.  They started out with a win that never should have been against division rival Detroit Lions 19 - 14.  I say this as Lions WR Calvin Johnson, in my eyes made a great catch for a TD, which was ruled out.  The Bears breathed a sigh of relief, but fans were worried as they looked poor in the game.  Their next game was a trip to Dallas, where the Cowboys were looking to put right their season following an opening day loss against the Redskins.  The Bears though were fantastic in that game, led by QB Jay Cutler (pictured) who had 277 yards and 3 TD's, who looks like a much better player than he did last year.  But could the Bears follow up against division rival Green Bay?  They did, thanks in part to the Packers self destructing. The Packers committed 18 penalties for 152 yards.  The 20 - 17 win left the Bears 3 - 0, after defeating 2 of the NFC's supposed best.  So are the Bears the best team in the NFC??  They travel to New York to take on the Giants this week, if they win this, you could make a very good argument to back this thought!

So these 3 teams are undeafed for now, but who will last the longest??  Looking at their next games all 3 could lose, but for now, well done to these surprising teams!