Analysis: Vikings, Ravens, Buccaneers and Commanders were up for the challenge in a prove-it week

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Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings were the biggest surprise in September. Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars were the top disappointment.

NFL teams spend the first month of the season establishing their identity. Some figure it out faster than others.

Week 4 was filled with prove-it opportunities for many across the league. The Vikings, Ravens, Buccaneers and Commanders were among the teams up for the challenge. The Jaguars, Eagles, Jets and Browns were on the opposite end of that.

After leading the Vikings to consecutive wins at home against San Francisco and Houston, Darnold threw three touchdown passes to help Minnesota build an early 28-point lead in a 31-29 road victory over Green Bay.

The Vikings, a consensus pick to finish last in the NFC North, are off to a 4-0 start and Darnold is playing like an MVP candidate. Coach Kevin O’Connell’s club is leading a tough a division but they’ve got a long way to go, especially after nearly blowing a big lead.

“Lot of things still to clean up,” O’Connell said. “Starts with me. We’ll make sure we keep refining this football team. ... What happened today means absolutely nothing moving forward, other than we’ve gotta go back to work and continue to improve as a football team because I absolutely love this team.”

The Ravens made a statement in a prime-time matchup, routing previously unbeaten Buffalo 35-10 to even their record. Baltimore saved its season with a hard-fought win at Dallas last week and followed up with a convincing performance against Josh Allen and the Bills.

Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry are unstoppable when they both get going and the Ravens clearly aren’t finished. That 0-2 start is a memory now and they’ll be in the mix in a competitive AFC North.

A week after no-showing in a 26-7 home loss to Denver, the Buccaneers showed out in a 33-16 victory against Philadelphia that wasn’t as close as the final score.

Baker Mayfield picked apart the Eagles’ secondary and Tampa Bay’s defense dominated Jalen Hurts. The Buccaneers are 3-1 with two wins over 2023 playoff teams.

“We came out (with) a ‘hair on fire’ mentality,” Mayfield said. “Everybody was locked into what the plan was and that’s why we executed that quickly, but that needs to be the case every week.”

The Commanders, who lost their season opener in Tampa Bay, cruised to a 42-14 victory in Arizona to improve to 3-1. Rookie Jayden Daniels has been outstanding and Washington had no trouble playing on a short week six days after beating Cincinnati also on the road.

With Daniels leading a high-powered offense, the Commanders should compete for an NFC East title in a season that began with low expectations.

Jacksonville entered this year with championship aspirations but instead is off to an 0-4 start. The Jaguars blew a fourth-quarter lead and wasted several opportunities in a 24-20 loss at Houston.

Even though they’re a couple plays away from being 2-2, the reality is they face an uphill climb. Lawrence, who got a $275 million contract, has been inconsistent and criticism of coach Doug Pederson is intensifying.

“As coaches, we can’t go out there and make the plays, right?” Pederson said. “It’s a two-way street, so you guys can sit here and point the finger all you want, and that’s fine. Point it right at me. I can take it, OK? I can take it.”

The coach who replaced Pederson in Philadelphia also pointed the finger at himself after the Eagles (2-2) took a major step backward against the Buccaneers. They haven’t solved the problems that led to a late-season collapse and have now lost eight of 11 games since opening 10-1 last year.

Coach Nick Sirianni stressed improving the team’s fundamentals over the bye week. If not, his seat will only get hotter in a city where fans and media have been calling for his job since a playoff loss to the Buccaneers in January.

“We didn’t coach well enough and we didn’t play well enough - and that’s always going to start with me,” Sirianni said. “If we go out there, lay an egg, and we’re down 24-0, that’s going to start on me. I didn’t have the guys ready to start. But, our fundamentals weren’t what we needed it to be. We’ll make sure we’re working hard on that - (the) bye week is coming at a good time.”

Aaron Rodgers and the Jets are heading to London on a sour note after a lackluster effort in a 10-9 loss at home to Denver. Greg Zuerlein missed a potential winning 50-yard field goal in the final minute but it shouldn’t have been that close.

Rodgers struggled on a rainy, sloppy field and the offense was out of synch. The road doesn’t get easier for the Jets (2-2). They face the Vikings next Sunday.

Deshaun Watson and the Browns fell short in a comeback bid at Las Vegas, losing 20-16 to fall to 1-3. A year after Joe Flacco led Cleveland to the playoffs, the Browns are back in a familiar spot at the bottom of the standings. Watson hasn’t resembled the player he was in Houston and he’s willing to accept the blame.

“We’re not doing enough. It starts with me,” Watson said.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Baker Mayfield passes during the second half of an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) scores a touchdown against the Buffalo Bills during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) celebrates a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) looks to throw a pass during the second half of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A powerful typhoon was lashing the northernmost islands of the Philippines Monday, prompting officials to evacuate villagers, shut down schools and inter-island ferries and warn of “potentially very destructive” damage to coastal villages.

Typhoon Krathon was last tracked over the coastal waters of Balintang island off the provinces of Cagayan and Batanes with sustained winds of up to 175 kph (109 mph) and gusts of up to 215 kph (133 mph), according to government forecasters.

The slow-moving Krathon was blowing westward and could strengthen into a super typhoon when it veers northeastward Tuesday toward Taiwan, they said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage

Guilmar Cabejo, a police officer on the island of Sabtang in typhoon-prone Batanes, said the streets were deserted in the town of more than 1,800 people as the ferocious wind rattled roofs, walls and trees.

“There’s nobody outside, zero, because the wind is so strong,” Cabejo told The Associated Press by cellphone. “Nobody could stand normally outside in this wind, it will force anybody down to the ground."

Residents, locally renowned for their resilience against seasonal storms, strengthened their roofs with ropes, covered windows with wooden boards and secured their fishing boats away from the sea two days before the typhoon hit, he said.

The weather agency warned of “moderate to high risk of life-threatening storm surge” in the next 48 hours in the coastal villages of Batanes, the nearby Babuyan islands and Cagayan province and said fierce winds could rip off roofs, topple trees, damage farmlands and whip up high waves.

"The situation is potentially very destructive to the community,” it said.

Hundreds of villagers were evacuated away from the coast and flood-prone communities in Cagayan province, where power outages were reported. Classes in all levels were suspended Monday in several northern provinces as a precaution, officials said.

Sea voyages were also halted in northern towns and provinces being battered or threatened by the typhoon, locally called Julian, officials said.

About 20 storms and typhoons batter the Philippines each year. The archipelago also lies in the “Pacific Ring of Fire,” a region along most of the Pacific Ocean rim where many volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur, making the Southeast Asian nation one of the world’s most disaster-prone.

In 2013, Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest recorded tropical cyclones in the world, left more than 7,300 people dead or missing, flattened entire villages, swept ships inland and displaced more than 5 million in the central Philippines.

Residents negotiate floods caused by powerful Typhoon Krathon locally called "Typhoon Julian" at Bacarra, Ilocos Norte province, northern Philippines on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernie Dela Cruz)

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration weather specialist Veronica Torres points at an electronic board to show the strength of powerful Typhoon Krathon on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Quezon city, Philippines as it is projected to go towards Taiwan the next day after hitting northern Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Rescuers help residents evacuate to higher grounds as they negotiate floods caused by powerful Typhoon Krathon locally called "Typhoon Julian" at Bacarra, Ilocos Norte province, northern Philippines on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernie Dela Cruz)

Residents negotiate floods caused by powerful Typhoon Krathon locally called "Typhoon Julian" at Bacarra, Ilocos Norte province, northern Philippines on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernie Dela Cruz)

Rescuers help residents as they negotiate floods caused by powerful Typhoon Krathon locally called "Typhoon Julian" at Bacarra, Ilocos Norte province, northern Philippines on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernie Dela Cruz)

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration weather specialist Veronica Torres points at the path of powerful Typhoon Krathon on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Quezon city, Philippines as it is projected to go towards Taiwan the next day after hitting northern Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Residents negotiate floods caused by powerful Typhoon Krathon locally called "Typhoon Julian" at Bacarra, Ilocos Norte province, northern Philippines on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernie Dela Cruz)

A truck negotiates flood waters caused by powerful Typhoon Krathon locally called "Typhoon Julian" at Bacarra, Ilocos Norte province, northern Philippines on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernie Dela Cruz)

Rescuers help residents as they negotiate floods caused by powerful Typhoon Krathon locally called "Typhoon Julian" at Bacarra, Ilocos Norte province, northern Philippines on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernie Dela Cruz)