GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN – SEPTEMBER 7: Micah Parsons #1 of the Green Bay Packers celebrates a sack of Jared Goff #16 of the Detroit Lions during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game, at Lambeau Field on September 7, 2025 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images)
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The 2025 NFL season has already hit Week 4, and it’s shaping up to be one of the more interesting in recent years. There have been career resurgences, expected contenders starting slow, and new teams rising up.
This week has a team turning to a rookie quarterback to turn things around, a superstar returns to play his former team, and two contenders fighting to stay out of the league’s basement.
These are the top NFL storylines to watch in Week 4.
Biggest NFL Week 4 Storylines
Jaxson Dart’s First NFL Start
It took three games and one of the worst goal-to-go sequences ever, but it’s finally the Jaxson Dart show in New Jersey. After starting 0-3 and with the heat on him, New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll announced that the 2025 first-round pick will get his first start when the Giants face the Los Angeles Chargers.
While you can’t take everything that happens in the preseason to heart, what Dart showed should excite fans of Big Blue. He displayed the poise you want from a potential franchise leader and made some throws—that touchdown to Lil’Jordan Humphrey, a thing of beauty—that had fans immediately clamoring for him to start.
Is Dart the best option right now for the Giants? Maybe not. Perhaps Jameis Winston is the safer choice at this stage. But when you’re a coach on the hot seat with a rookie quarterback, you need to throw everything at the wall to see what sticks—and what might save your job.
Now we’ll have to see if Dart can lift a team that ranks 31st in both third-down conversions (27.5%) and red-zone scoring (20%).
Daniel Jones’ First Major Test Of The Year
To say Daniel Jones has been a surprise through three games would be an understatement. When he was named the starter over Anthony Richardson before the start of the regular season, many were questioning the decision of head coach Shane Steichen. As it turns out, he appears to be right in his choice.
Jones has looked like everything fans in New York expected him to be when he was taken sixth overall in 2019.
So far this season, Jones is third in the NFL in passing yards (816), third in yards per attempt (9.3), fifth in yards-per-game (272), and number one in QBR (85.8). He led the Colts to blowout wins over Miami and Tennessee as well as a comeback win over Denver. Indianapolis is 3-0 for the first time since 2009, something not even Andrew Luck was able to accomplish.
But, you can’t look at this start and not think of the quality of opponents. Indianapolis’ first three opponents have a combined record of 1-8. Week 4 has them heading to Los Angeles to take on a Rams team that will be mad after blowing a 19-point second half lead to Philadelphia.
This will be Jones’ first major test of the season. If he’s going to stay at the top of the QB rankings for another week, and show everyone that what’s happening isn’t a fluke, he’s going to have to have another strong game against a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE – SEPTEMBER 21: Daniel Jones #17 of the Indianapolis Colts runs with the ball during the first quarter against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium on September 21, 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Johnnie Izquierdo/Getty Images)
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Micah Parsons Returns To Dallas
There might not be a bigger “former player faces his former team” matchup this season than what happens in Week 4. Micah Parsons, the elite pass rusher who has had at least 12 sacks in each of his first four years, returns to Dallas to take on a Cowboys team that traded him just before the start of the season.
Through three games this year, the Cowboys are giving up the most passing yards (288), third-most total yards (397.7), and sixth-most points (30.7) per game. They also have only managed four sacks in three games while the Packers have 10 as a team.
Against the Browns, Parsons showed why Green Bay made him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history. According to Next Gen Stats, Parsons had eight pressures on 28 pass-rushing snaps. The 28.6% rate was his highest in a game since 2023. His 24% win rate for the season is good for 10th in the NFL.
Parsons told the Associated Press that sacking Dak Prescott is “going to be painful,” but he’s trying to treat it as just another game to prepare for.
“So, for me, it’s just all about playing another game and just doing what I do best, and that’s just be a disruptive football player.”
For all of the fans watching, however, it’ll be anything but a normal game on Sunday night.
Ravens and Chiefs Isn’t What Was Expected
At 4:25 p.m. EST on Sunday afternoon, the country will be sitting down to watch a battle between two powerhouses of the AFC when the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens take the field. At least, that’s what many expected.
After three weeks, both teams sit at 1-2, with their chances at the conference’s number one seed slipping away earlier than expected. The Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers are 3-0, with favorable matchups against the Saints and Giants, respectively. Whichever team loses on Sunday will likely fall three games behind the top seed.
Seeding aside, this is a game that could turn a disappointing start into a disappointing season. The Ravens, despite leading the league in points per game (37), rank 31st in points allowed per game (32), 31st in passing yards allowed per game (266.3), and 30th in rushing yards allowed per game (149). Derrick Henry, despite looking strong for much of the opener against Buffalo, has developed a fumbling problem that directly impacted the outcome of two games. Meanwhile, Lamar Jackson has already been sacked 12 times this season—more than halfway to the 23 sacks he took in all of 2024.
For Kansas City, they find themselves in the bottom third in points per game (20) and Patrick Mahomes looks off through three games. He’s made decisions that have had people scratching their heads, and wondering aloud if something’s wrong. For as great of a quarterback as he’s been, having only three touchdowns and completing just 59% of your passes over three games isn’t the greatest start. And it’s not what the Chiefs and their fans have come to expect from a player who’s played in the AFC Championship each of the last seven years.
Speaking of something unexpected, Travis Kelce, a surefire Hall of Famer when his career winds down, is on pace for his lowest catch total (57) and yards (759) since his rookie season when he played in just one game. There have been more sideline tantrums than touchdowns for Kelce this year, and it’s likely not something fans want to keep seeing.
You can say the team will get better once Xavier Worthy and Rashee Rice return, but the problems on the field don’t look like something two receivers can solve.
By the end of the game, one of these contenders will have the same record as either the New York Jets or Miami Dolphins.
ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 18: Head coach Mike McDaniel of the Miami Dolphins looks on during the second quarter of the NFL 2025 game between Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium on September 18, 2025 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Bryan Bennett/Getty Images)
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The Worst Monday Night Football Lineup Ever?
Speaking of the Jets and Dolphins, could Monday Night Football’s Week 4 games look any worse on paper? This week features another doubleheader—more like staggered start times—with the Jets facing the Dolphins and the Cincinnati Bengals taking on the Denver Broncos.
The Bengals and Broncos, at least during the offseason, looked like they could produce a great matchup between a 2024 playoff team and one trying to get back. Unfortunately, with Joe Burrow injured and the rocky start for Bo Nix and Denver, excitement is in short supply.
As for the Dolphins versus the Jets, does anyone really want to sit through three hours watching two teams that could reasonably be picking in the top five of the 2026 NFL Draft?
Three of the four Monday night teams (Bengals, Jets, and Dolphins) rank in the bottom 10 in both yards per game and points allowed, and none of the four rank in the top 15 in scoring.
This is shaping up to be a night for diehards and sports bettors, not casual fans.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikestraw/2025/09/25/nfl-week-4-preview-top-storylines-and-matchups-to-watch/
