Pleasant surprises of the NFL season so far: Brock Purdy for MVP and actual Raiders competence

It’s still early in the 2026 season but a number of teams and players have found unexpected levels of success in the last few weeks

Last season ended with a Super Bowl in which neither team – the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots – had been expected to participate. Before that, we had a 44-year-old grandfather returning from a four-season layoff to give the Indianapolis Colts unexpected cheer in an otherwise miserable season, while the Chicago Bears and Jacksonville Jaguars rebounded from bad 2024 seasons to win their divisions.

It’s early to state which surprises will be the most fun to recall this time around, but here are four to watch as things progress.