With their 25-11 victory Monday night, the Philadelphia Eagles handed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers their first loss of 2023 and kept themselves undefeated through three weeks.
It’s a far cry from their 8-0 start last year, but it’s certainly a start. And they’ve got a little company. The Eagles, Miami Dolphins and San Francisco 49ers are the league’s only undefeated teams through three weeks of play so far. Parity reigns once again.
Of the three, the 49ers have had the most difficult strength of schedule based on win records, though the real tests are still to come. The 49ers’ opponents have a combined win-loss record of 4-5 through three weeks, compared to that of the Eagles opponents (3-6) and Dolphins (2-7).
Still, no matter how early in the season, and how short the win streak, a lot of things need to go right to win an NFL game let alone string together a trio of Ws.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at each 3-0 squad and how they’re winning — and in some cases, completely dominating — games so far.
MIAMI DOLPHINS
Season so far:
Week 1: 36-34 @ Chargers
Week 2: 24-17 @ Patriots
Week 3: 70-20 vs. Broncos
How they’re winning: Everything about this offence is fast — really fast — and that starts with Tua Tagovailoa. The fourth-year starter is releasing the ball faster than any other quarterback in the league right now, averaging just 2.34 seconds per play.
Not only is that keeping opposing defences on their toes, it’s also helping keep Tua on his feet. Combine his quick release time with the strength of the offensive line this season, and you’ve got a QB who’s been sacked just once and tackled only a handful of times. After a scary 2022 season for Tua’s health, that’s music to everyone’s ears.
Of course, we cannot talk about speed without mentioning the dynamic fleet of playmakers — a group that owns the top five fastest ball-carriers in a game this season so far per Next Gen Stats.
Tyreek Hill has the fastest speed recorded at 22.07 m.p.h in the Week 3 throttling of the Dolphins.
Rookie running back Devon Achane hit 21.93 miles per hour en route to the end zone during his 67-yard rushing touchdown play against Denver on Sunday — one of his four TDs on the day. Hill also twice surpassed the 21 m.p.h. mark in Week 1 with a pair of big-play touchdowns, while RB Raheem Mostert had the fourth-fastest run of the season in Week 2.
It’s no surprise, then, that the Dolphins hit double-digit touchdowns faster than any other team and are on their way to historic season totals already — their 17 touchdowns on the year so far is seven more than the next highest total (Bills, Chargers, and Packers each have 10 total TDs) and their 130 points through three weeks leads the league by a significant margin (the Bills sit second in total points so far with 91).
Dolphins’ next three opponents:
Week 4: @ Bills
Week 5: vs. Giants
Week 6: vs. Panthers
This Sunday’s showdown against the Bills should be an absolute blast. The Bills rank second to the Dolphins in several offensive categories, while their defence leads the league in interceptions (7) and sits second in sacks (12). The battle for early AFC East dominance will be Tua’s toughest test yet.
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
Season so far:
Week 1: 25-20 @ Patriots
Week 2: 34-28 vs. Vikings
Week 3: 25-11 @ Buccaneers
How they’re winning: Three wins in, and we have yet to see the Eagles really clicking on offence at the rate we saw in 2022. The signs are there — Monday night’s win over Tampa Bay saw Jalen Hurts overcome a sluggish start (and, apparently, a flu bug) and connect with top receiver A.J. Brown to the tune of 131 yards, but overall this passing game hasn’t been as dominant as it was a year ago. But in the meantime, the club has leaned on the power of its strong run game to take over games.
Last year’s Eagles led the league in rushing touchdowns by a mile, and while this year’s squad has a new offensive coordinator at the helm and a new lead running back, the path to early-season success has looked familiar: run the ball early, and run the ball often. And, most importantly, run the ball by committee.
The acquisition of D’Andre Swift (currently the second most popular Swift in the NFL) following the departure of Miles Sanders has already paid dividends — Swift sits second in league rushing with 308 yards through three games and is used on first down more than any other RB in the NFL (tied with Dallas’s Tony Pollard and Washington’s Brian Robinson at 16).
Just as he did last year, Hurts is using his feet — he’s rushed for 100 yards already and has a trio of touchdowns to show for it.
On the other side of the ball, the Eagles boast the toughest unit to run against, allowing just 145 rushing yards so far this season. Smashmouth football lives on in Philly.
Eagles’ next three opponents:
Week 4: vs. Commanders
Week 5: @ Rams
Week 6: @ Jets
The Eagles opened last year with eight straight wins, an upset in Washington (temporarily) halting their momentum. Their next three opponents currently have a combined record of 4-5, a good sign for another season-opening streak to come. If things continue at this trajectory, circle Week 7 on your calendar: they host the Dolphins that week in what could be a very fun matchup.
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
Season so far:
Week 1: 30-7 @ Steelers
Week 2: 30-23 @ Rams
Week 3: 30-12 vs. Giants
How they’re winning: So complete is this club, it’s hard to pick just one point that separates San Francisco from the rest of the field. You can’t talk about the 49ers without praising this dynamic defence — one that is limiting opponents to just 4.6 yards per attempt through the air (second lowest behind the Browns’ 3.8), sits second in interceptions with five (tied with Dallas and Tampa Bay) behind Buffalo, and has allowed the third-lowest rushing total (159).
But it’s the offence we’ll highlight here because of just how many ways it can defeat you.
Quarterback Brock Purdy, now 8-0 in regular-season starts including last year’s run, has been a revelation thanks to his incredible pocket poise — he’s one of just four QBs who hasn’t thrown an interception this season (Justin Herbert, C.J. Stroud, and Joshua Dobbs are the others). He’s been really effective against the blitz, too.
It helps that every down features the threat of a breakout run from 49ers star running back Christian McCaffrey. He’s taking over games, sitting first in rushing yards (353), second in rushing attempts (60), third in rushing touchdowns and boasting Next Gen Stats’ top grade for rushing yards over expected. He’s scored in each game so far, and shows no signs of slowing down.
49ers’ next three opponents:
Week 4: vs. Cardinals
Week 5: vs. Cowboys
Week 6: @ Browns
Much like their fellow 3-0 clubs, the 49ers haven’t truly been tested yet. The Cowboys and Browns boast two of the top defences in the league, alongside the 49ers. Can San Francisco keep the momentum moving?
