The First Read: Buy or sell five surprise teams off to hot starts? Risers/sliders from Week 3; MVP rankings

The Chargers knew head coach Jim Harbaugh would be a difference-maker when they hired him back in January. The man has been a winner with every team he’s ever coached. You already can see the difference in this Los Angeles squad compared with those of recent memory. These Chargers are more disciplined, less prone to error and completely committed to a blue-collar style of football that relies heavily on the run game and defense. The Bolts won their first two games because of those factors, but now comes the part that is all too familiar for this franchise: Finding a way to push through injuries to key stars as the competition improves. Quarterback Justin Herbert is dealing with a high ankle sprain he aggravated in Sunday’s loss at Pittsburgh. Los Angeles also watched other star players go down in that contest, including edge rusher Joey Bosa and offensive tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater. Those are some tough injuries to take on when the Kansas City Chiefs are next up on the schedule. The Chargers look gritty enough to make things hard on any opponent, but it won’t be easy to win consistently if the best players on a limited roster aren’t healthy. Harbaugh will turn this group into a playoff team. It just isn’t likely to happen this year without a lot of things going right. DECISION: SELL

Minnesota entered this season as one of the more underrated teams in the league, and now you can see why. The Vikings have plenty of talent, especially on offense. The question was whether they could get enough consistent quarterback play to be competitive, which is where Sam Darnold has made all the difference. Credit Minnesota for believing in the notion that a journeyman who had failed as a starter with the Jets and Panthers could resurrect himself as a bridge quarterback for this franchise. Darnold hasn’t merely been serviceable — he’s turned into an early MVP candidate, one who threw four touchdown passes and no interceptions in Sunday’s 34-7 win over Houston. The Vikings also have benefitted from the crafty schemes of defensive coordinator Brian Flores, as the Texans and 49ers combined for just 24 total points in losses to Minnesota. Flores has been quite effective at utilizing two edge rushers the Vikings acquired in the offseason: Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel. Greenard had three sacks against the Texans, while Van Ginkel had a sack and a pick-six in a Week 1 win over the Giants. Minnesota might not be the sexiest team in the NFC North, but that doesn’t matter when you’re undefeated. Nothing about these Vikes feels like a fluke. DECISION: BUY

New Orleans came back to earth on Sunday, which wasn’t that surprising. The Saints weren’t going to average 45.5 points per game for the entire season. What was more eye-opening about their 15-12 loss to Philadelphia was how their strengths became weaknesses. The Saints came into the contest with the third-best rushing attack in the league, then averaged just 3.1 yards per carry on Sunday. They ranked second in the league in rushing defense, then allowed the Eagles to gain 172 yards on 25 carries. Philadelphia also was able to generate some explosive plays in the fourth quarter — a 65-yard touchdown run by Saquon Barkley and a 61-yard reception by tight end Dallas Goedert — that led to New Orleans’ loss. The good news is this was only one game. The Saints have shown enough on offense to be confident in the pairing of quarterback Derek Carr and first-year offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. They also created four sacks and took the ball away from Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts twice (on a fumble and an interception). Most importantly, the Saints play in the NFC South. They nearly won this division last year with a team that was far less formidable. They should be in the hunt this season so long as they can stay healthy. DECISION: BUY 

The Jets are slowly revealing what can happen with a healthy Aaron Rodgers. Yes, he played conservatively in his first two games, but he elevated his performance in a Thursday night win over New England (going 27-for-35 for 281 yards and two touchdowns). For those who want to point to the Patriots’ limitations, this is the same team that frustrated Joe Burrow and the Bengals in a season-opening upset. Watching Rodgers dissect that defense was something the Jets faithful have been waiting for years to see. He now has five touchdown passes and one interception, and he’s creating more confidence in the playmakers around him. Rookie Braelon Allen has emerged as a strong counterpart to Breece Hall in the backfield. Garrett Wilson is developing the chemistry with Rodgers that many envisioned. The offensive line hasn’t been an issue, either. There are tougher games ahead — and the defense still needs to find its groove — but there’s a lot to like about where the Jets stand after three weeks. The AFC also doesn’t look as tough as it did when the season began (and the Dolphins already are dealing with the loss of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for at least a month), so the playoffs look very realistic for a team that is in win-now mode. DECISION: BUY 

Seattle is easily the toughest team on this list to assess because of its schedule. The Seahawks haven’t lost, but they’ve also faced one team led by a rookie quarterback (Denver), another that is likely headed for a high pick in next year’s draft (New England) and a third that is playing without its quarterback and lost the backup to injury during the game (Miami). This is certainly one way to achieve a fast start in the NFL. The problem is the Seahawks haven’t looked that impressive, with Sunday’s 24-3 over the Dolphins being Exhibit A. As lopsided as the final score was, Seattle committed 11 penalties and actually lost the turnover battle (two to zero). Injuries also are an issue with this team, as it came into Sunday without some key offensive players (running back Kenneth Walker III, right tackle Abe Lucas and backup right tackle George Fant) and then lost two important contributors on defense (defensive linemen Leonard Williams and Byron Murphy II). The competition also gets much harder moving forward. Over the next five weeks, Seattle will face four tough opponents: Detroit, San Francisco, Atlanta and Buffalo. We’ll know a lot more about the Seahawks after that stretch, but the news might not be as positive. DECISION: SELL

The only complaint about Barkley this season has been a critical drop that could have clinched a win in a loss to Atlanta in Week 2. He’s currently averaging 117 rushing yards per game, and he produced 147 ground yards and two scores in Sunday’s win over New Orleans. Barkley’s 65-yard touchdown run gave the Eagles a fourth-quarter lead and his 4-yard TD run gave them the game. There was a lot of talk about Barkley not being worth a big investment when Philadelphia signed him in free agency. He is.

All that offseason hype about what McKinney would mean to the Green Bay defense has been accurate. His leadership, range and playmaking have been key factors in the Packers’ improved play on that side of the ball. McKinney picked up his third interception of the season in Sunday’s win over Tennessee, and Green Bay already has seven picks through three games (the team had that many interceptions all of last season). There have been a number of positive storylines around the Packers so far — including the inspired play of backup quarterback Malik Willis while filling in for Jordan Love — but McKinney is right up there at the top of the list.

The Jets’ second-year edge rusher is breaking out at the right time. He has five sacks through three games — and that production means even more when considering the Jets lost Jermaine Johnson to a season-ending Achilles tear and Haason Reddick has yet to show up for work because of a contract dispute. Yes, the Jets have a great defense when it’s intact. When it’s not, it needs emerging talents like McDonald to step up.

All the goodwill the Cowboys defensive coordinator engendered in Week 1 clearly came down to one significant fact: Dallas was facing an offense led by beleaguered Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson. It’s been pretty ugly ever since, with the Cowboys taking another beating this past Sunday. Dallas once again can’t stop the run, as Baltimore ran for 274 yards in a 28-25 win. That effort follows a 44-19 loss to New Orleans in Week 2 when the Saints gained 190 yards on the ground. Zimmer was supposed to bring more toughness to this unit after Dan Quinn moved on to coach the Commanders. It needs to happen soon.

Things aren’t getting any easier for this unit. Chicago’s offensive line has faced a ton of scrutiny for its inability to consistently protect rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who’s already been sacked 13 times. Sunday’s loss to Indianapolis created its own frustrating moments, as the Bears managed just 63 yards on 28 carries against a Colts team that surrendered 474 rushing yards in its first two games. This line isn’t to blame for everything that ails the Bears’ offense, but it’s a big part of the problem.

Achane was one of the league’s breakout performers at this point last season, but this year has been quite different. The same player who averaged 7.8 yards per carry in 2023 is only picking up 3.5 per attempt after Sunday’s loss to Seattle. The Dolphins proved in that game that they are going to struggle mightily with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sidelined with a concussion. It would help if more playmakers emerged to make up for what they’re missing in the passing game.

Minnesota Vikings

3-0

AT

Green Bay Packers

2-1

The NFC North is shaking out to be the toughest division in football, with these two teams about to meet in a key early-season showdown. The Packers very well could have Jordan Love back after the quarterback missed two games with a knee injury. If so, he’ll return just in time to face a Vikings defense that has frustrated the 49ers and Texans over the past two weeks. This is already a heated rivalry, and it will be even more so come Sunday. 

• DraftKings odds: +425
• Weeks in top five: 3
• Next game: at Ravens (SNF) | Sunday, Sept. 29

• DraftKings odds: +250
• Weeks in top five: 3
• Next game: at Chargers | Sunday, Sept. 29

• DraftKings odds: +750
• Weeks in top five: 3
• Next game: vs. Jaguars | Sunday, Sept. 29

• DraftKings odds: +1700
• Weeks in top five: 2
• Next game: vs. Bills (SNF) | Sunday, Sept. 29

• DraftKings odds: +3000
• Weeks in top five: 1
• Next game: at Packers | Sunday, Sept. 29