National Football League

NFL Week 5: Best Games to Watch

Updated Mar. 5, 2020 12:00 a.m. ET

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Oct 2, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) celebrates his touchdown catch with quarterback Matt Ryan (2) in the fourth quarter of their game against the Carolina Panthers at the Georgia Dome. The Falcons won 48-33. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Which games should you be going out of your way to watch in NFL Week 5?

With the way things have shaped up over the first four weeks of the 2016 season, football fans should be even more excited about what’s in store when it comes to the best games to watch for NFL Week 5.

From the return of Tom Brady under center with the New England Patriots to the high-powered offense of the Atlanta Falcons squaring off against one of the league’s top defenses in the Denver Broncos, there’s plenty of reason to believe Week 5 could turn out to be one of the best yet. As crazy as it sounds, the Falcons find themselves in the perfection situation to prove they belong in the category of contenders if they can find a way to win against the Broncos.

Obviously, this won’t be the easiest of tasks for Atlanta, but it’s certainly possible with the way their offense has been playing over the last three games. Denver’s defense may rank near the top of the league, but Sunday’s matchup could turn out to be their toughest challenge yet.

Along with this exciting matchup between the Broncos and Falcons, here’s a look at the other best games to watch from Week 5 of the 2016 NFL season.

Aug 26, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) looks to pass the ball during the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

5. Patriots vs. Browns

Before anyone freaks out, the only reason why this game between the New England Patriots and Cleveland Browns is even on this list is due to the fact that Tom Brady is back from his four-game suspension.

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At best, many expected the Patriots to go 2-2 without Brady under center. But this team is sitting pretty heading into Sunday’s matchup against the Browns with a 3-1 record. While most teams would worry about their star players looking rusty after missing four games, there’s no reason for New England to worry about Brady in his first game back.

If anything, the Patriots should feel confident about Brady when considering the quarterback will be playing with an extra chip on his shoulder thanks to the suspension. For a player that’s always ranked near the top of the league from a competitive standpoint, one can only imagine the type of numbers Brady is going to put up in his highly anticipated return in Week 5.

Unfortunately for Cleveland, this defense will be forced to deal with an angry Brady looking to make an immediate impact on offense. Meanwhile, New England also looks to bounce back from last weekend’s disastrous performance against their division rivals in the Buffalo Bills.

Sep 25, 2016; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning (10) prepares to throw the ball during the first half against the Washington Redskinds at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

4. Giants vs. Packers

Remember when it was almost impossible to defeat the Green Bay Packers while playing in Lambeau? Unfortunately, times have changed for the Packers over the last couple of years. Despite this team being well rested after their bye week, they will face a difficult matchup at home against the New York Giants in Week 5.

The last time these two teams squared off in Lambeau was in 2012 when the Giants shocked the NFL world in the Divisional Round of the playoffs by pulling off a 37-20 win over the Packers en route to winning the Super Bowl. In fact, New York has won the last three contests between these two teams, but the Packers will do everything in their power to put an end to that streak on Sunday.

Green Bay may be 2-1 on the year, but Aaron Rodgers knows this team still has a long uphill battle in the division when considering the hot start by the Minnesota Vikings. As bad as it sounds, both teams can’t afford to suffer another loss this early in the season, which makes this matchup even more intriguing to watch.

With the amount of weapons each team has in the passing game, don’t be surprised if this matchup between the Packers and Giants turns out to be a shootout through the air.

Oct 2, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott (21) celebrates after making a first down conversion during the fourth quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi

3. Bengals vs. Cowboys

It’s not every game the Dallas Cowboys are going to enter a game as underdogs while playing at home, but that will be the case on Sunday when the team squares off against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Unfortunately for Marvin Lewis and company, the first four games have been anything but easy for the Bengals as this team has already lost two tough games to playoff-caliber teams in the Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos. While Cincinnati is coming off an impressive win against the Miami Dolphins, the defense will need to be on top of their game when it comes to shutting down Dak Prescott and the rest of Dallas’ offense.

A few months ago, nobody could have predicted the Cowboys to be sitting at 3-1 with a rookie quarterback under center. But Prescott’s impressive play has been one of the best stories from the 2016 season. The fact that Prescott has yet to throw an interception in his first four games shows is simply amazing to think about. However, the Bengals will be the toughest defense the rookie has faced yet.

Even without Dez Bryant, Prescott will still have plenty to work with on offense as this game has a good chance of being decided in the fourth quarter.

Oct 3, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Jerick McKinnon (21) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Stefon Diggs (14) during the fourth quarter against the New York Giants at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings defeated the Giants 24-10. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

2. Texans vs. Vikings

It’s amazing to think the Minnesota Vikings lost both Teddy Bridgewater and Adrian Peterson, yet are still arguably the best team in the NFC heading into Week 5 as they face another tough matchup against the Houston Texans.

A few weeks ago, this game seemed to be more hyped up due to these teams having two of the best defenses in the league. Now, the Texans’ defense is unfortunately adjusting to life without J.J. Watt. On top of that, Houston’s offense hasn’t exactly lived up to the hype and will arguably face their toughest task yet against one of the league’s top defenses in Minnesota.

With the way the Vikings’ defense has shut down Rodgers, Cam Newton, and Manning over the last three weeks, finding a way to contain Brock Osweiler should be no problem for Minnesota while playing in front of their own crowd. Even still, the Texans aren’t a team to be taken lightly.

Keep in mind that Houston is a team many considered to be a Super Bowl contender at the beginning of the season. Though they’ve seen their fair share of struggles, it’s only a matter of time before the offense wakes up and reaches their potential. If that does happen on Sunday, this could turn out to be one of the most exciting Week 5 games to watch.

Oct 2, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) scores a touchdown in the fourth quarter of their game against the Carolina Panthers at the Georgia Dome. The Falcons won 48-33. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

1. Falcons vs. Broncos

After a surprise loss on opening weekend to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, everyone expected the Atlanta Falcons to be heading towards another disappointing season. Instead, the Falcons have emerged as one of the hottest teams in football over the last three weeks and are coming off an impressive win against the defending NFC Champions in the Carolina Panthers.

So if the Falcons can pull off a win the way they did against the Panthers, why can’t they do the same against the Denver Broncos?

What the Broncos have accomplished so far this year has been simply amazing as this defense has held their opponents to 20 points or less in each of their first four games. Between already shutting down the Panthers and Bengals, Denver’s defense seems capable of handling any offense. However, there’s no question Wade Phillips is going to have his hands full with the potential damage behind Matt Ryan and Julio Jones.

Last weekend against the Panthers, Ryan and Jones made a huge statement in regards to being one of the leagues top quarterback-wideout duos. Without a doubt, these two will need to be on top of their game on Sunday. There’s nothing like watching one of the league’s top offenses facing off against one of the best defenses and this game should live up to all the hype.

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