Week 3’s late Sunday slate may be a little light, but every game comes with a question that could shape the rest of the season.

Can the Cardinals bounce back from an ugly Week 2 loss? Will the undefeated 49ers keep rolling through the NFC West? What does the Vikings offense actually look like with Kyler Murray? Can the Buccaneers turn things around after an awful start to the season? And then there’s Raiders-Saints, a matchup between two teams coming off miserable 2025 seasons that suddenly look a lot more interesting than anyone expected.

Let’s get into what you need to know.

Arizona Cardinals At San Francisco 49ers

4:05 p.m. ET on FOX and Fox One

This is the most important game of the three because it’s the only division matchup.

Arizona and San Francisco will both play twice this season, and the results could matter when playoff tiebreakers come into play. The Cardinals are already 0-1 in the division after getting flattened 31-7 by Seattle last week. A win would even things up. A loss would put them two games behind the 49ers before September's even over.

Arizona's already shown us two very different versions of this team. The Cardinals beat the Chargers 26-14 in Mike LaFleur’s coaching debut, with Jacoby Brissett throwing for 277 yards and the defense forcing turnovers. Then, one week later, they managed just 151 total yards against Seattle. Marvin Harrison Jr. has somehow caught one pass through two games, which feels like more than a slow start. The Cardinals need to figure that out immediately.

San Francisco, meanwhile, has looked like a machine. The 49ers beat the Rams 27-7 in Australia and Miami 35-13 at home, becoming the first team in franchise history to open a season with consecutive 20-point wins. Brock Purdy has completed 45 of 56 passes for five touchdowns, and San Francisco hasn’t allowed a sack through two games.

The matchup to watch is Purdy against Arizona’s secondary. Jaxson Smith-Njigba just torched the Cardinals for 155 yards and three touchdowns, and Arizona just put cornerback Will Johnson on injured reserve. If Purdy keeps getting clean pockets, this game could get away from the Cardinals in a hurry.

Minnesota Vikings At Tampa Bay Buccaneers

4:05 p.m. ET on FOX and Fox One

Minnesota's 2-0, but we still haven’t really seen their starting quarterback.

Murray threw only five passes in his Vikings debut before suffering a nasty concussion. Carson Wentz finished the 39-22 comeback win over Green Bay and started the following week as Minnesota beat Chicago 9-3 in a rain-soaked game that didn't really look anything like modern offense. Murray's cleared the concussion protocol and will start in Tampa.

That makes this a different kind of test for the Vikings. The defense has already carried them to two division wins, coming up with eight sacks and four takeaways while allowing 12.5 points per game. Now Minnesota gets to find out how Murray fits alongside Justin Jefferson, Aaron Jones and an offense that's run the ball at a league-high 55.4%.

Tampa Bay's dealing with a much more frustrating question: How many times can one team beat themselves?

The Buccaneers are 0-2 after losing by six to Cincinnati and four to Cleveland. They have five giveaways and a minus-four turnover margin, and those giveaways have directly led to 27 opposing points. Baker Mayfield's also been sacked seven times.

That makes the matchup between Tampa Bay’s protection and Minnesota’s pass rush the obvious place to watch. Brian Flores’ defense has blitzed on nearly 80% of their snaps, and Dallas Turner leads the NFL with 20 quarterback pressures. If the Buccaneers can’t keep Mayfield upright and protect the football, they’re staring at 0-3. Only four teams since 1990 have recovered from that start to reach the playoffs.

Las Vegas Raiders At New Orleans Saints

4:25 p.m. ET on CBS and Paramount+

Last season, Las Vegas went 3-14 and New Orleans went 6-11. Two weeks into this season, neither of them seems all that interested in hanging around the bottom.

The Raiders are 2-0 under new head coach Klint Kubiak, scoring exactly 26 points in wins over Miami and the Chargers. Kirk Cousins has thrown six touchdown passes, and this rebuilt defense has eight sacks, three interceptions, and the league’s best pressure rate at 45.6%. Las Vegas hasn’t just lucked into two wins. They've looked organized, balanced and — honestly, this still feels weird to say — dependable.

New Orleans is 1-1 after losing an overtime thriller in Detroit and then climbing out of a 14-3 hole to beat Baltimore. Second-year quarterback Tyler Shough leads the NFL with 662 passing yards. Chris Olave already has 18 catches for 268 yards, and the Saints have the league’s second-ranked passing offense.

That sets up the afternoon’s clearest strength-on-strength matchup: Shough and Olave against the Raiders’ pass rush and young secondary. Las Vegas is giving up just 13.5 points per game, but they haven’t seen a passing attack putting up anything close to New Orleans’ 305.5 yards per game.

One of these teams gets to carry some real momentum into October. For two fan bases that had to sit through 20 combined losses last season, that’s a win in itself.

Don’t Forget About The Game In Rio

Baltimore and Dallas also kick off at 4:25 p.m. ET, but this one’s happening at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro as part of the NFL’s international series.

Get the full scoop on the unusual setting, the matchup, and everything else surrounding the game in our full Ravens–Cowboys Rio preview.

All stats courtesy of Fantasy Points Data

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