NFL 2025-26 Week Five Preview: Can the Patriots handle the “Cold Front?”
The first start for an NFL quarterback often does not determine his success in the league, but it is hard to ignore the start to the “Jaxson Dart Era” for the Giants.
Week four featured arguably the second biggest upset so far this season. Many believed the Chargers would kill the Giants but that was not the case. Giants rookie quarterback Jaxon Dart made his first NFL start and while it was nothing flashy, he and the Giants got it done in a 21-18 upset win.
Will week five feature a big upset? In week five the games featured are an NFC West showdown on TNF and a “Cold Front” coming in for an AFC East showdown on SNF. A new addition to the weekly previews will be Uniform Matchup of the Week–or UMOTW for short. This week includes a 1976 throwback matchup.
*All stats and standings come from https://www.espn.com/nfl/standings, https://www.espn.com/nfl/stats, https://www.profootballnetwork.com/nfl-playoff-predictor and https://www.nfl.com/stats/player-stats/.*
The Rams seek their first divisional win on TNF in Los Angeles
After blowing a two score lead against the Eagles in week three, the Rams bounced back nicely with a week four win over the Colts.
Once again, Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua made his case for the best wide receiver in football. Nacua put out another impressive outing of 13 catches, 170 yards and a touchdown and became the first player this season to cross the 500-yard mark in receiving yards. Nacua has made a case for the 2025 Offensive Player of the Year.
Nacua has also opened up the doorway for his two partners-in-crime at wide receiver. Long time veteran Davante Adams caught a touchdown for the third straight time this season. Tutu Atwell hauled in just his second catch of the season but turned into gold as he took it 88 yards for a touchdown.
The Rams defense did some dirty work in week four. Safety Karmen Curl picked off Colts quarterback Daniel Jones not once but twice. Both came in crucial points of the game with the first stopping momentum in the first half while the second came at the end of the game to seal the win. Pass rusher Byron Young added yet another sack to bring his total to five now on the season. On the other side of the defense, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Jared Verse, also got to Jones once as well–bringing his total to two sacks on the season.
The 49ers also played an AFC South opponent but their outcome was the opposite. It was just a rough day all around for the team.
To kick things off 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy threw two interceptions–both to Jaguars off-ball linebacker Devin Lloyd. To add insult to injury, the team also lost two fumbles. Running back Christian McCaffery could not get the ball moving on the ground at 2.9 yards per carry on 17 attempts. On the flip side for McCaffery though, he led the team in receiving yards at 92 and added a receiving touchdown to his resume. Continuing the offensive struggles into this week, Purdy and starting wide receivers Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings have all been ruled out for this game. A huge blow to an already struggling offense.
The struggles did not stop there though. Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington took a punt back to the house from 87 yards out late in the game, completely shifting the momentum.
Defensive, the pass rush clearly showed they are missing superstar pass rusher Nick Bosa–who tore his ACL in the team’s week three matchup against the Cardinals. The team failed to sack Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence once.
In what could be a close game with some divisional tension, the Rams say no and blow out the 49ers.
Final Score: 49ers 13 – Rams 30
The Winter Soldier shows off the Bills new “Cold Front” NFL Rivalry Uniforms under the Sunday Night Lights
Up next for the 2025 NFL Rivalry Uniforms, the Buffalo Bills. The Bills are a northern team and thus decided to go towards an icy feel. The “Cold Front” uniforms include royal blue, silver and white in the uniform. On the inside of the jersey the words “Bill Mafia” is stitched.
Enough talk about the uniforms, the Bills are the best team in football right now. A lot of this comes from their MVP level quarterback Josh Allen. Allen plays the game like no other quarterback. Oh the receiver is 60 plus yards downfield, he will throw it perfectly downfield right into his hands. Allen is now taking off with the ball so they will just tackle him no? Wrong, Allen runs over defenders. Allen is easily proving why he won the MVP last year and looks like the front-runner to win it again this year with 10 total touchdowns–seven passing and three rushing–and 1123 total yards–964 passing and 159 rushing while only turning over the ball once.
Speaking of rushing, Bills running back James Cook might be the best back in football this season. Cook currently sits at 401 yards rushing with five rushing touchdowns. Cook is only one of two players this season to score a touchdown through each game started–with the other being Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze. There is not much to say about Cook other than he is patient at the line and goes from zero to 100 at any moment on the field.
The Patriots are coming off a nice blowout win over the Panthers of 42-13 in a game they dominated not only on offense but on defense and special teams as well. Quarterback Drake Maye has looked like, as some would say, a Josh Allen-light. Maye is more turnover prone than Allen is–at least this season–but overall has that same build and arm talent that Allen features–just to a less-developed extent. Maye missed just three passes on 17 attempts versus the Panthers on his way to 203 passing yards and two passing touchdowns while adding a rushing touchdown as well.
Defensively the Patriots were nothing flashy but stout. They held the Panthers to just 4.6 yards per carry on 28 attempts. The Panthers converted five third down conversions on 14 attempts while only converting once in their three tries on fourth down.
The Jaguars’ Parker Washington was not the only player with a punt return touchdown this week. Patriots cornerback Marcus Jones also ran back an 87-yard punt return touchdown. Jones also added some extra help to the team’s field position with another 80 yards from two other punt returns.
This should be a fun and close game. The Patriots will “shock” everyone and keep the game close but Allen continues to make his MVP case.
Final Score: Patriots 27 – Bills 30
UMOTW: Buccaneers and Seahawks show off elite Throwback Uniforms
The Buccaneers and Seahawks outdid themselves this week by both announcing they would be wearing their throwbacks. The throwbacks serve as a callback to the teams’ first matchup as franchises back in 1976.
For the second time this season the Buccaneers are wearing their away Creamsicle Throwbacks. The uniform is slicked out white from head to toe with accent colors of Florida orange and red.
The Seahawks are going back to their roots wearing their 1990s Era Throwbacks. The base color of the uniform is a royal blue with accents of apple green and silver.
In what should be an aesthetically pleasing matchup, the Seahawks defense shows out when it matters most.
Final Score: Buccaneers 21 – Seahawks 23
Remaining Games:
Vikings at Browns | In London, England: Dillon Gabriel shines in his first start. Final Score: Vikings 17 – Browns 20
Cowboys at Jets: Cowboys offense just keeps humming as the team moves to .500. Final Score: Cowboys 30 – Jets 17
Giants at Saints: The Giants rookies continue to give this team hope for the future. Final Score: Giants 24 – Saints 14
Raiders at Colts: Jonathan Taylor continues to make his case for OPOY. Final Score: Raiders 17 – Colts 34
Dolphins at Panthers: Bryce Young finally finds some stride in a three touchdown game. Final Score: Dolphins 20 – Panthers 24
Broncos at Eagles: Eagles almost fall in the trap but sneak out last second win. Final Broncos 21 – Eagles 23
Texans at Ravens: Texans take advantage of a beaten down Ravens team in a massive win. Final Score: Texans 27 – Ravens 17
Titans at Cardinals: Cam Ward almost finds his first win but his defense lets him down. Final Score: Titans 22 – Cardinals 25
Lions at Bengals: Lions offense continues to roll, dropping 40 points in a blowout win. Final Score: Lions 41 – Bengals 14
Commanders at Chargers: Chargers offense bounces back in a close win. Final Score: Commanders 24 – Chargers 27
MNF Chiefs at Jaguars: Chiefs keep rolling but the Jaguars defense makes the big stop. Final Score: Chiefs 21 – Jaguars 24
Teams on Bye and their next opponent:
Steelers | host the Browns
Packers | host the Bengals
Falcons | host the Bills on MNF
Bears | travel to the Commanders on MNF
Standings after Week Four: Conference Ranking | Overall Record | Divisional Record
AFC East
1 Bills 4-0 | 2-0
9 Patriots 2-2 | 1-0
13 Dolphins 1-3 | 1-2
15 Jets 0-4 | 0-2
AFC West
2 Chargers 3-1 | 3-0
7 Chiefs 2-2 | 0-1
8 Broncos 2-2 | 0-1
10 Raiders 1-3 | 0-1
AFC North
3 Steelers 3-1 | 0-0
6 Bengals 2-2 | 1-0
12 Ravens 1-3 | 1-0
14 Browns 1-3 | 0-2
AFC South
4 Colts 3-1 | 1-0
5 Jaguars 3-1 | 1-0
11 Texans 1-3 | 1-1
16 Titans 0-4 | 0-2
NFC East
1 Eagles 4-0 | 1-0
12 Commanders 2-2 | 1-0
13 Cowboys 1-2-1 | 1-1
15 Giants 1-3 | 0-2
NFC West
2 49ers 3-1 | 2-0
5 Seahawks 3-1 | 1-1
6 Rams 3-1 | 0-0
10 Cardinals 2-2 | 0-2
NFC North
3 Lions 3-1 | 1-1
7 Packers 2-1-1 | 1-0
8 Vikings 2-2 | 1-0
11 Bears 2-2 | 0-2
NFC South
4 Buccaneers 3-1 | 1-0
9 Falcons 2-2 | 0-2
14 Panthers 1-3 | 1-0
16 Saints 0-4 | 0-0
Power Rankings after Week Four:
- Bills | N/C 9. Chargers | -7 17. Vikings | -8 25. Giants | +6
- Eagles | +1 10. Colts | -2 18. Patriots | +1 26. Panthers | -6
- Lions | +1 11. Packers | -1 19. Broncos | +3 27. Raiders | +1
- Rams | +2 12. Ravens | -5 20. Cowboys | +4 28. Bengals | -2
- Seahawks | +9 13. Steelers | +5 21. Texans | +2 29. Dolphins | +3
- Chiefs | +6 14. Commanders | -3 22. Falcons | +5 30. Saints | -1
- Buccaneers | -2 15. 49ers | -1 23. Cardinals | -7 31. Jets | -6
- Jaguars | +7 16. Bears | +1 24. Browns | -3 32. Titans | -2
N/C: No Change
Biggest Riser(s): Seahawks 13 → 5
Biggest Faller(s): Chargers 2 → 9 | Cardinals 16 → 23
