2019 NFL power rankings, Week 4: Saints rise, Chargers slide

Recap: Given the play of the Redskins’ defense the first two weeks of 2019, Matt Nagy’s offense and in particular quarterback Mitch Trubisky might have a chance to get well on Monday night at Landover. In their first two games this season, the Bears have scored a total of 19 points and reached the end zone just once. The young signal-caller is hitting on only 58.3 percent of his passes. Now under the command of Chuck Pagano, the Chicago defense has picked up where it left off in 2018, bad news for the rest of the league. It’s been so far so good for kicker Eddy Pineiro, who has connected on one PAT and all four of his field goal attempts, including a pair from 50-plus yards.

Next Week: Six days after their trip to D.C. the Bears head back to the Windy City and take on the rival Minnesota Vikings. A season ago, Chicago swept this rivalry for the first time since 2011. There was a 25-20 Sunday night victory at Soldier Field (Week 11) followed by a 24-10 victory at Minneapolis in both teams’ regular-season finale.

Playoff hopes: While Monday night’s game at Washington is obviously important, the team has to be careful not to look ahead to their Week 4 clash with the rival Minnesota Vikings. The Bears have already lost one home game against a divisional foe this season. Simply put, Nagy’s team needs to take care of business against the Redskins.

Recap: After notching a pair of wins at MetLife Stadium over the Jets and Giants, respectively, Sean McDermott’s team home opener would be against the winless Cincinnati Bengals. And when the Bills jumped out to a 14-0 lead at intermission, Sean McDermott’s club appeared to be controlling the tempo of the game. But a funny thing happened on the way to what appeared to be a convincing win as the Bengals scored the next 17 points of the game. But as was the case in Week 1 against the Jets, Buffalo rallied in the fourth quarter and a seven-play, 78-yard drive with less than five minutes to play culminated with a one-yard TD run by ageless runner Frank Gore.

Next Week: The Bills have faced the Patriots a total of 38 times since Bill Belichick took over in Foxborough way back in 2000. The team has dropped 33 of those meetings and are currently in the midst of a five-game losing streak in this rivalry. To add insult to being dominated, Buffalo has dropped seven straight at home to the Pats.

Playoff hopes: The Bills are in the midst of a stretch where they are playing four home games in six weeks (off in Week 6). McDermott’s team kicked things off with a win over the Bengals but now comes the real test vs. the NFL’s defending champions. If this team is to contend in the AFC East, they need to hold serve at home against the Pats.

Next: Nos. 14 and 13