Through three weeks, we've seen a trend start to develop. Road teams won six of 14 games for the second straight Sunday, but unlike last week, quarterbacks ruled the day.
Teddy Bridgewater and Blake Bortlesmade their debuts, Andy Dalton caught -- yes, caught -- a touchdown pass, and one notable Cowboy was at the helm of a monumental comeback. But only one can earn honors of Greatest On The Road. Here are this weeks stars away from home.
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Greatest on the Road ...
Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs
At 0-2, Kansas City reached Week 3 in a state of confusion. Are they the team that contended for the AFC West crown in 2013, or were we seeing more of the turnover in playoff teams from one season to the next?
The Chiefs hit Miami like gangbusters. Knile Davis powered a rushing attack that ate up 161 yards on the ground, but it was Smith who made the biggest difference. The former top pick of the 2005 draft hit tight end Travis Kelce on a short pass in the flats and Kelce did the rest, motoring down the left sideline and diving for the pylon to put the Chiefs ahead 14-0. Miami came storming back to cut the lead to 14-10, but Smith quelled the comeback attempt, avoiding the blitz and firing a dart in the face of pressure to running back Joe McKnight for an 11-yard touchdown.
Deep in the Miami redzone and leading 21-15 with 4:39 left to play, Smith found McKnight again, this time on a 4-yard touchdown pass to put the Chiefs ahead by two scores. One could look at the final statistics and point out Smith's fumble lost and safety, but I'm giving him a pass on the safety -- his teammates failed to block a five-man rush with six linemen and two backs. That's not Smith's fault. But he had plenty to do with Kansas City's first win of 2014.
Also considered ...
Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh faced similar doubts heading into Charlotte for a Sunday night game against the Carolina Panthers.
Antonio Brown helped put those concerns on hold.
Leading 9-3 with 11:10 left in the third, Ben Roethlisberger made one of his trademark plays, letting a pass fly as he was taken down. The ball landed in Brown's welcoming hands, and he dragged his toes in the back corner of the endzone for the score.
The Steelers' ground game got going later in the third, but the game was far from over. That's when Roethlisberger bought time with his feet, shuffled to the right and found Brown coming across the middle on a drag route for a 7-yard touchdown pass, Brown's second of the night.
Brown finished with 10 catches for 90 yards and two touchdowns. The Steelers finished with their second victory of the season.
Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys weren't supposed to be 1-1 heading into Week 3 of the season. And trailing 21-0 to the St. Louis Rams, it looked like we were finally seeing the Cowboys we expected to watch for much of 2014.
Then the Dallas offense got going.
The Cowboys stormed back, cutting the deficit to 11 before half. Tony Romo kept the momentum in the favor of the Cowboys in the third quarter, sparking a huge comeback with a 68-yard touchdown pass to Dez Bryant to trim the Rams' lead to four. Two possessions later, Romo connected with Terrance Williams on a 12-yard touchdown to give Dallas its first lead of the game. On the first play of the ensuing drive, Bruce Carter iced it for the Cowboys, returning an interception 25 yards for the decisive touchdown.
Romo doesn't get the honor this week, because he had plenty of help on offense. Running back DeMarco Murray rushed for 100 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries, and Bryant did his fair share of the work, catching six passes for 89 yards.
