The Post-Mortem, Week 3: Patriots, 49ers and Buccaneers have something in common

Two teams have failed to score an offensive touchdown in the second half of a game this season. The first is New England, though the Patriots are 2-1 thanks to a weak early schedule and perfect field goal kicking. The second, and more troubling, is San Francisco, now 1-2 after consecutive collapses in the second half. And this is not a new problem for the 49ers; from Week 1 of 2013 until today, only the Bucs have scored fewer touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters.

No football team wants to play a close game. A substantial lead in the fourth quarter allows one to rest, physically and mentally, and the accumulated stress of repeated nail-bitings can be extraordinary. Accordingly, we are increasingly concerned about the well-being of the Cleveland Browns, who lost to Baltimore by two points and are now 13-25 since the start of the 2010 seasons in games decided by one score. That's the worst winning percentage in the league in that span. We recommend that Browns fans embrace the silver lining here and start expecting to lose if the game is close late. It's the medically sound outlook.

There are no shortcuts to offensive health, but long completions come awfully close. Just look at the Colts, who completed eight passes of 20 yards or more. Or the Chargers, who got two-thirds of their passing output from just five deep completions. It is possible, however, to thrive without these long passing plays, as the Saints did against Minnesota despite completing only two deep throws. But to do so, an offense will need some substitute nutrient yardage, which New Orleans found in the form of six other receptions that gained at least 15 yards.

Take, for example, the Green Bay Packers, who are down from fourth last year in yards per carry to 23rd this year. Green Bay has not achieved 100 yards on the ground in a game yet this season, a distinction shared only by the Chicago Bears. Or, look at the Carolina Panthers, who only called ten runs in a Sunday night home loss to Pittsburgh. Since 2000, teams with 10 rushing attempts or fewer are 3-44.

Patient A is nearly unstoppable in the first half of games, helping the Broncos to either jump out to big leads or keep pace with high-scoring opponents. His average stat line at halftime reads as follows:

Patient B is Denver quarterback Peyton Manning in the first half against the Seattle Seahawks. And Patient A is Denver quarterback Peyton Manning in the first half against every other team.

• The much maligned Tony Romo found the secret to second half success: don't throw the ball too much. Romo only tried eight passes after halftime, completing seven for 88 yards and a touchdown. You can't intercept the pass that is never thrown.
• The similarly maligned Alex Smith was perfect in the second quarter against Miami, completing all six passes he threw for 88 yards and a touchdown.
• Eli Manning and the Giants got their first win of the year, jumping out to a 14-point lead in the first half and then holding off the Texans down the stretch. The Giants only enjoyed a lead entering the third quarter in five games they played last year, all of which they won.
• We just disproved the superstition that one cannot say nice things about Tony Romo, Alex Smith, and Eli Manning without being struck down by lightning.

• The Titans converted their first two third down attempts against the Bengals. They then failed on each of their next ten third downs, with lines to gain as long as 14 and as close as 1.
• Since 2005, NFL teams have a winning percentage of .729 when gaining 500 yards of offense in a non-overtime game. Washington, it would seem, was on the wrong side of history, losing to Philadelphia despite putting up 511 yards.