Best And Worst Of NFL Week Four

The first month of the NFL season is now in the books, with a lot of things going down that people never really saw coming. The Patriots got crushed by Kansas City, which not too many saw coming. Washington has struggled again, this time getting blown out by the Giants. Cincinnati and Arizona are the only undefeated teams left, due to having bye weeks this week, while Oakland and Jacksonville still can't buy a win even if they tried. Week four was the first week of the season where there weren't too many players going down to injury, Vernon Davis of the 49ers (hip) and Joique Bell of the Lions (concussion) were the only real stars who went down with injuries. With all that going on, there were some exciting games played in week four, here's some of the best and worst from this past week on the gridiron.

Best:
Steve Smith, Wide Receiver Baltimore Ravens
Smith wasn't happy when the Carolina Panthers let him go. What was Carolina's loss was Baltimore's gain. Smith went out and proved that the wide receiver still had a lot left in the tank, with 7 catches for 139 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns, the best numbers for any receiver this past week. Yeah I think it's safe to say that Smith is still a threat in this game and Carolina made a big mistake in letting him walk. I'm sure that Joe Flacco and the Ravens are very happy he's in their lineup.

Worst:
Carolina Panthers Defense
A year ago the Panthers had a stellar defense. In fact, only the Seahawks had a better defensive unit than the Panthers in 2013. This year, however, it has been a bit of a different story. Over the last two weeks, Carolina has been cracked for 75 points and more than 900 yards, something you never expected to happen. Plus throw in the fact that Steve Smith lit these guys up for 139 yards didn't help their case much. Still the Panther defense has the potential to be great again, they just really need to tighten up and play better.

Best:
Andrew Luck, Quarterback Indianapolis Colts
When the Colts started the season 0-2, Andrew Luck was getting ripped on for underachieving. Now Luck has flipped the switch and got Indy back on the right track. Last week, he topped all passers going 29 for 41, throwing for 393 yards and 4 touchdowns. In total, over the last two weeks Luck has thrown for 763 yards and eight TDs. It's safe to say that he has brought the Colts quite a bit of Luck over the last two weeks.

Worst:
Geno Smith, Quarterback New York Jets
Sometimes a second year quarterback has their struggles. It happens to everybody in this game. players do struggle from time to time. This, however, may be getting a little ridiculous. Sunday, Smith barely completed half his passes and turned the ball over two more times as the Jets lost to an NFC North team at home for the second time in six days. Smith also cursed at one of the many upset fans with his performance on his way off the field, though he later offered a thorough apology. Still, head out to the bullpen, Mr. Vick. Rex Ryan says he's sticking with Smith, but the leash has to be getting tight.

Best:
Minnesota Vikings Running Game
Without Adrian Peterson on the field for the Vikings, it looked like the run game in Minnesota was going to take a big hit. Think about it, Minnesota now has Matt Asiata and Jerick McKinnon running the ball. Two guys nobody ever heard of at the start of the year. This week, however, they made a statement that they can carry the ball in the Twin Cities. This week, against Atlanta, the two combined for 252 yards from scrimmage and three TDs. At least for this past week, the Vikings found a solid running game.

Worst:
Atlanta Falcons Offensive Line
Not the league's most formidable quintet to begin with, Atlanta lost LG Justin Blalock, RT Lamar Holmes and C Joe Hawley to injuries Sunday, forcing second-year TE Levine Toilolo to shift to right tackle. Even with all that going down, they didn't do a very good job of allowing Matt Ryan and that offense to get set up, which is part of the reason the Falcons got blown out in week four by the Vikings.

Best:
Reggie Wayne, Wide Receiver Indianapolis Colts
There were some question marks about Wayne heading into this year. He's 35 years old and coming off the ACL injury that cost him most of last year. So there was no guarantees as to whether or not he could still produce at a high level. This week, Wayne showed he still has quite a bit left in the tank. He snared seven of Luck's passes for 119 yards and a TD. With 1,029 career grabs, Wayne moved into seventh place all-time, and his 13,873 career receiving yards now rank him in the top-10 in NFL history.

Worst:
Ben Roethlisberger, Quarterback Pittsburgh Steelers
This wasn't a bad performance by Big Ben, but more a case of back luck than anything. Ben had a good game, throwing for 314 passing yards and three TDs. The problem is he got little help from his blockers (five sacks), or backs (85 rushing yards, 3.1 yards per carry), or defense (squandered seven-point fourth-quarter lead). Ben deserved a little more help than he got on Sunday.

So there you have it, some of the best and worst from week four in the NFL!