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I'm not ready to put anyone on the same tier as the Kansas City Chiefs. And so far in the NFC, only the Seahawks and Packers occupy the upper echelon.

But after four games this season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are becoming exactly what we thought they could be when Tom Brady signed there in March.

The Bucs dropped their season opener to the Saints in a game where, if you remember, I cautioned you to not make any declarative statements about the GOAT. The next two weeks, the Bucs showed they can put away opponents like they did against the Panthers and Broncos. And on Sunday, Tampa Bay proved coming back from a deep deficit doesn't have to be that hard.

In the Bucs' 38-31 victory over the Chargers in Week 4, Tampa Bay stormed back from a 24-7 second quarter hole while withstanding a likely season-ending injury to tight end O.J. Howard and dealing with top receiver Mike Evans coming in and out of the game due to an ankle injury.

"It's a long season and we're 25% of the way through. It's not early anymore," Brady said after the game. "We have a decent sample size and we have to figure out what we're good at, what we're not good at and keep working to get better."

It was a wild Week 4 Sunday, and there's a lot to go over. John Breech, Ryan Wilson and host Will Brinson break it all down on the Pick Six Podcast; listen below and be sure to subscribe for daily NFL goodness.

With all due respect to Berkeley Preparatory Academy in Tampa, the Bucs spent a large portion of the season working on rhythm and timing at a small, private Christian school apparently deep in the woods. That Brady's pursuit of a seventh Lombardi hasn't gotten off to a world-beating start is hardly surprising.

But what we've seen are perceptible, weekly improvements by the Bucs. First breaking the backs of the Panthers in Week 2. Then toying with Denver's backup quarterbacks with various blitzes in Week 3. And then this week, the defense giving Brady a chance to tighten the margin at the end of the first half before the offense took over in the second half.

Brady has 11 touchdown passes to four interceptions this season after throwing five touchdown passes Sunday, and he may never figure out that out pass to Justin Watson, that Sunday was intercepted and housed for a pick-six for the second time this year. (Later he would say that comes down to execution, but I cannot imagine he'll be throwing that pass to that receiver in the remainder of a spooky season.) Any questions about his arm strength—which were ridiculous to begin with and asked only by people who haven't closely watched him the last two years—were quieted when he launched his longest completed pass in the air for 52.6 yards Sunday.

After a seven-catch, 122-yard showing from Evans, we can definitively say Brady and his top receiver have found their groove. That comes a week after Brady and Rob Gronkowski rewound the clock. And everyone in Tampa is happy.

Opponents should fear that the Buccaneers just treated the first quarter of the regular season like preseason. If so, they'll just keep getting better, and then we'll all feel comfortable calling them a Super Bowl contender.

Panthers making noise

A Panthers source texted me last week after their win against the Chargers saying "I really think we're going to win more games than people think." Today, the Panthers are 2-2.

I always thought it was unfair to group Carolina in the bottom-of-the-barrel NFL teams. Teddy Bridgewater is too good of a quarterback for them to Tank for Trevor. It'll be hard for me to pick the Panthers on Sundays, but they'll win games.

I think offensive coordinator Joe Brady has transitioned fantastically to the pros. The LSU mastermind has seen his offense post 30-plus points in two of their four games, and they've been competitive in all four contests. That's more than most teams in the NFL can say.

Robby Anderson has been a breath of fresh air for Carolina. Yes, the Panthers miss Christian McCaffrey, but Mike Davis has been more than serviceable in his time as the starter.

More Week 4 insider notes

  • Washington Football Team coach Ron Rivera is a fighter. His team should be inspired by his fight against cancer, especially when he's physically struggling throughout the game. I know Rivera is doing what's best for his health and his team, and I know sometimes those things can be in conflict. During this Crucial Catch month, I want his family to know I'm thinking about him. He is strength incarnate.  
  • I know Anthony Lynn doesn't want Tyrod Taylor to lose his job due to unavoidable injury, but at this point, I don't see how it's possible to take the ball out of Justin Herbert's hands. The rookie was 10 yards from his third straight 300-yard passing game and L.A. has its future at the position.
  • Houston has no business being 0-4. The Texans would have lost the first two games against the Chiefs and Ravens with or without DeAndre Hopkins, but they can't give the Vikings their first win of the season. Why has Bill O'Brien been entrusted with *more* job duties in the organization?
  • Zac Taylor finally understood that he couldn't keep putting his quarterback in harm's way behind that offensive line. In Joe Burrow's first pro win, he had 36 pass attempts while feeding Joe Mixon 25 times on the ground.