NFL Winners and Losers from Week 3: Tua stakes MVP claim, Jags look lost

NFL Week 3 loser: Trevor Lawrence

Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars opened the season with an impressive 31-21 victory over the Indianapolis Colts. Buzz grew around Lawrence as a candidate to break into the top tier of NFL QBs, with the Jags — fresh off a wild card berth — profiling as genuine sleepers in the winnable AFC South.

Well, the AFC South is still winnable, but the Jags have lost two straight (while the Colts have won two straight to claim first place). Jacksonville played host to division rival Houston in Week 3 and the result was ugly. The Jags were stomped, 37-17, on their home field. Lawrence completed 27-of-40 passes for 279 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in the loss. Not terrible, but certainly not future MVP-type numbers.

The Jags are not taking the leap most fans expected. The Texans were 0-2 entering this contest and rookie C.J. Stroud was allowed to post an efficient 280 yards and two scores on the Jacksonville defense. If Lawrence and company don't turn around the ship, and quickly, Doug Pederson will need to start changing up the game plan.

NFL Week 3 winner: Cleveland Browns

Both literally and figuratively, the Cleveland Browns are Week 3 winners. A commanding 27-3 victory over the Tennessee Titans is enough to spark optimism, but it's especially uplifting after last week's disastrous loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers — a game that brought about the season-long absence of star runner Nick Chubb.

Deshaun Watson put together his best game of the season, completing 27-of-33 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns. The Browns couldn't find a one-for-one replacement for Chubb in the backfield, but the committee of Pierre Strong Jr., Jerome Ford, and Kareem Hunt was enough to keep the chains moving.

Cleveland is 2-1 with a couple huge wins now. The AFC North is anybody's to win and the Browns look the part of a potential contender.