NFL 2026 RECAP: WEEK TWO

So here we are with week two. If you were expecting high scores like last week…you have my sympathies. Teams started falling back to Earth as we started to get more of a picture of how this season will play out. Let’s look at some of the highlights.

LIONS 31 – BILLS 41

The Buffalo Bills opened their new stadium to much fanfare and managed to reward the “Bills Mafia” (the nickname for the Bills’ fan base) with a big win. The Bills were able to hold on against a hard-pressed Detroit Lions team. This game was a call back to last week’s slate of games: a pure offensive slugfest where the defenses took a back seat. There were no turnovers generated, and both teams combined for 801 yards of total offense. What killed any chance the Lions had of winning was the penalties. They had 10 penalties for 58 yards, but the Bills didn’t get off free and clear either with 5 penalties for 46 yards. Josh Allen seemed to be untouchable against the Lions’ blitz, which is great news for the Bills. However, their defense will need to start showing signs of improvement than just eight pressures on the quarterback. The Bills host the Chargers next week. As for the Lions, boy were they humbled by this contest. This is what happens when you have several key players missing. The fact that the Lions blitzed on 11 of 23 dropbacks, and Allen was 7-of-10 for 98 yards, with two touchdowns and a sack should raise alarm bells. Things need to change as they host the Jets next week.

RAIDERS 26 – CHARGERS 14

LA fans will not like this review one little bit, but I know who will like it: DA RAIDERS! The Los Angeles Chargers find themselves in a sudden 0-2 hole to start the season after being overpowered by the new-look Las Vegas Raiders. I must be honest; I wasn’t sure if the Raiders would be this good without star tight end Brock Bowers considering they fell apart last year without him. But that was last year. This year, the Raiders can rely on more than one weapon, which allows Brock to actually get healthy. Kirk Cousins looks great, Tre Tucker put on an amazing performance reeling in five catches for 119 yards and a touchdown, and the Raiders are making a statement. I would like to see the Raiders use Ashton Jeanty more than they did in this game and give him more room to run. 21 rushes for 48 rushing yards is not something to write home about, and Jeanty needs to finally be unleashed. The Raiders go on the road next week to face the Saints. So, I know what you all are going to ask: what’s up with the Charger’s passing offense? Well, despite the hopes of offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, I could see the writing on the wall. I said this last week, and I will keep saying it: THIS WIDE RECEIVING CORPS IS BAD! After all this time, the best receiver for a star quarterback like Justin Herbert that you have is Ladd McConkey?! Look, McConkey is not “the guy.” He’s not a Ja’Marr Chase, he’s not a Puka Nacua, and he’s DEFINITELY not a Justin Jefferson. The Chargers need much better receivers than this. I’ve said it for years…and now the league finally knows it, too. The Chargers have a tough road matchup next week against the Bills.

STEELERS 3 – PATRIOTS 20

I’m going to be honest: I did not expect such a lobsided game. The New England Patriots shook off the sting of losing against the Seahawks last week to utterly shut down the Pittsburg Steelers. Despite the score, this was a defensive war of attrition as both sides committed two turnovers, and both offenses racked up 562 total yards. Of course, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye’s lingering issues are still a problem. Maye’s shaky decision-making and inaccuracy from the season opener carried over Sunday with a badly underthrown third-quarter interception. All four of Maye’s interceptions this season have come on throws of 15-plus yards. He had four of those INTs all last season. Are these issues fixable? Under normal circumstances, I’d say yes since this is only Week Two. However, Maye has had these issues since college. He needs to fix them now or the Patriots are going nowhere. The Patriots go on the road next week to face the Jaguars. As for the Steelers, talk about an offensive line implosion of alarming magnitudes. The O-line failed to protect 42-year-old QB Aaron Rodgers or get any kind of push in the run game. Rodgers was sacked four times, including a strip sack returned for a game-sealing touchdown after Spencer Anderson was manhandled by Christian Barmore. Things need to change or this will be a long season for the Steelers. We will see what happens next week as the Steelers host the Bengals.

PANTHERS 34 – FALCONS 3

HOLY MOLE HOLES! In a Landslide victory (your Stevie Nicks reference for the week, wink), the Carolina Panthers, a week removed from a horrible defensive performance, shut down the Atlanta Falcons. This one was no contest as the Panthers dominated on both sides of the ball and forced five Falcons turnovers. I don’t know what to make of the Panthers. One week after giving up 59 points and 552 yards to the Bears, the Panthers’ defense suffocated the Cooper Rush-led Falcons offense. In the first half, the Panthers’ defenders produced two turnovers, and then they limited star running back Bijan Robinson to only 72 rushing yards. We’ll have to see if this is for real or just a fluke as the Panthers head for the road next week against the Browns. As for the Falcons, well…enough is enough. After getting nothing out of Cooper Rush and Jack Strand at quarterback, Adam Schefter reported on Monday afternoon that Michael Penix Jr. will be the starting quarterback. Will that be enough to jump start this flailing Falcons team? Well, they don’t have much time to answer that, as they have a short week next week as they travel to face the Packers on Thursday Night Football.

SAINTS 24 – RAVENS 17

Here we go again: HOLY MOLE HOLES! In a huge upset, the New Orleans Saints knocked off the Baltimore Ravens. It’s amazing how this came about. The Saints were in a big hole, and the end of this game showed the Ravens STILL had more total yards than the Saints (the Ravens had 312 total yards while the Saints ended up with 298). But a huge fourth quarter made all the difference for the Saints to complete the comeback. Look, this isn’t ALL good. The Saints put themselves into an early hole for the second week in a row, but it worked out this time with some second-half heroics. The slow starts on offense are becoming a pattern under coach Kellen Moore. In other words, this is a problem and they need to fix it or next time they WON’T be so lucky just like in their loss last week to the Lions. The Saints have their work cut out for them next week as they host the red-hot Raiders. The real question on everyone’s mind is why do the Ravens continue to lose leads in the fourth quarter? Baltimore thought it would change its fortune late in games by changing head coaches (even though I thought it was big mistake). But just like it did so many times under John Harbaugh, the Ravens failed to finish in the fourth quarter in coach Jesse Minter’s second game. So, clearly the head coach wasn’t the problem, because now you have the exact same situation only with a less experienced coach. The Ravens head south next week as they play the Cowboys in the second international game of the season in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

VIKINGS 9 – BEARS 3

No, this is not a baseball score, even though it reads like one. If it did, I would say something like the Minnesota Vikings beat the Chicago Bears thanks to a grand slam and a two-run double. But again, this was a football game. There wasn’t much either team could do in this weather, as rain cooled down both offenses. It feels like the Vikings defense couldn’t have played this any better. The Bears’ offense scored 56 fewer points than it did last week. You try and top that statistic. The Vikings will probably need more out of their offense next week when they go on the road to face the Buccaneers. As for the Bears, oh did this go bad in every sense of the word. Bears quarterback Caleb Williams went down with a hamstring injury as every heart in Chicago stopped. Williams let out a yell as he grabbed for his hamstring and tried twice to get to his feet on his own. He was helped off the field by two trainers and spent several minutes in the injury tent before being carted back to the locker room. The news so far is that the hamstring injury was not as bad as everyone feared. The bad news is that his “week-to-week” status puts his ability to play in next week’s Monday Night Football match against the Eagles in serious jeopardy. The Bears better hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

BENGALS 20 – TEXANS 6

Raise your hands: who here actually said that the Bengals would start the season 2-0 while the Texans start 0-2? If your hand is up, buy a lotto ticket now. In what would have seemed to be an impossible feat several weeks ago, the Cincinnati Bengals defeated the Houston Texans. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow looked in top form leading the Bengals with 207 passing yards and two touchdowns. Despite that, the Texans actually outgained the Bengals in total yards by 374 to 267. But these Bengals are much better than any of us thought. The Bengals’ stars are playing like stars, and their defense is actually good for a change. The Bengals will try to make it three straight wins as they go on the road to face the Steelers. As for the Texans, this is not the start of the season they anticipated. Many knew the Texans’ offense would struggle without wide receiver Nico Collins, but their defense has hardly lived up to its hype. Not to mention, the Texans’ running game was brought to a screeching halt. Their backs had 14 carries for 18 yards, just one week removed from when they averaged 3.5 yards a carry. The Texans will have the chance to rebound next week as they go on the road to face the Colts.

PACKERS 20 – JETS 17 (OT)

Well folks, it doesn’t come much closer than this. The Green Bay Packers survived a brutal battle that went into overtime against the New York Jets. The sad part is that the Packers probably should have lost this game. The Jets had more total yards than the Packers (285 to 199), the Packers committed more turnovers, and they were beat on third downs by the Jets. The Packers were extremely fortunate to come away with the victory. But more importantly: the Packers NEEDED this win badly. Their last win came 287 days ago. Until this week, the Packers had lost six straight games. The last time they did this was the season of 1990-91. But the Packers lived to fight another day, but these struggles are still concerning. The Packers host what is left of the Falcons next week. That leads us to…the “same Old Jets.” A week removed from a statement win; we thought the Jets had finally changed their losing culture. If I may quote the grandmother from the movie Moana: “Nope!” It’s hard for anyone to change the Jets’ fortunes when you blow a 10-point lead in the home opener, squandering a chance to go 2-0 for the first time since 2015. No one wants to see their team melt down when it’s crunch time. Also, what happened to Breece Hall? He was so amazing last week, and yet he disappeared in this matchup. Only 16 carries for 29 yards is enough to make any coach and fantasy football manager cry. The Jets will have another chance to prove they can turn the corner on the road next week against the Lions.

EAGLES 24 – TITANS 20

It was the immortal Vin Scully, the late great “poet laureate” of LA, who said this phrase: “It wasn’t one for the art museum, but it was efficient…it got the job done.” That phrase perfectly fits the Philadelphia Eagles’ victory over the Tennessee Titans. It wasn’t a terrible game for Jalen Hurts and the Eagles. Hurts ended up completing 26 of 37 passes for 264 yards and two touchdowns. However, he did throw two interceptions, and that was why this wasn’t pretty for the Eagles. The offensive line was too leaky for the second straight week. The defense had issues suppressing an offense that ranked 31st in total yards (195) in Week 1. It doesn’t get easier for the Eagles going forward. The Eagles play the Bears next week on Monday Night Football. As for the Titans, I’m looking on the bright side of things. The offense found a nice groove with two impressive scoring drives, and the defense had interceptions by Amani Hooker and Marcus Harris that led to 10 points. So, there is a lot of good to get from this game, but the Titans need to find a way to win these close games…or these “moral victories” are going to mean less and less. The Titans will be hitting the road to face a banged-up Giants team next week.

BROWNS 23 – BUCCANEERS 19

For the third time this week: HOLY MOLE HOLES! The Cleveland Browns with the upset of the week as they took down the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This was an even matchup that could have gone either way. In the end, Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson outdueled Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (not to mention Watson may have saved his job as the starter). Watson threw two touchdown passes, including a go-ahead 17-yard toss to Blake Whiteheart in the fourth quarter of a game that faced a two-hour, twelve-minute delay due to lightning. As I said before, Watson has definitely saved his job by delivering arguably his best game in a Browns uniform. There is room for improvement, but for now the Browns will take a much-needed victory. They will return home to host the Panthers for a big early test. Looking at the Buccaneers, Mayfield and the offense have looked out of sync to land them in a 0-2 hole no one saw coming. Mayfield just has not looked comfortable. The Bucs only found the end zone once — in the third quarter with a 5-yard touchdown grab from Emeka Egbuka. The pair couldn’t replicate this on fourth down with the game on the line after a lengthy weather delay. The issue may be obvious: no more Mike Evans. The Buccaneers need answers and fast before they host the Vikings next week.

JAGUARS 13 – BRONCOS 20

Well, maybe the Denver Broncos aren’t quite back yet, but they did overcome a 13-3 deficit to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars. Scoring 17 unanswered points is huge for a Broncos team that suffered a season-opening dud last week against the Chiefs. It also snapped a nine-game regular season winning streak for the Jaguars. The Broncos were fortunate to get just enough offense with just enough time left to win, but they continue to ride the ragged edge of disaster in the red zone. The Broncos have scored just once on four first-and goal situations this season, and it came via rookie running Jonah Coleman on Sunday. Quarterback Bo Nix threw his second interception of the season in first-and-goal, and the Broncos have gone backward on two of those four drives. The red zone needs fixing, especially with a tough test next week as they host the Rams. As for the Jaguars, that blown lead is going to haunt them for the rest of this week. What happened to the pass rush we saw last week? After five sacks last week against the Browns, the Jaguars never sacked Nix despite the vulnerabilities exposed by the Chiefs last week. It’s back to the drawing board for the Jaguars’ pass rush. The Jaguars will host the Patriots next week.

DOLPHINS 13 – 49ERS 35

The San Francisco 49ers had next to no problems with their home opener as they took down the Miami Dolphins with brute force. Christian McCaffrey became the fourth-fastest player in the Super Bowl era with 100 career touchdowns, Brock Purdy played a near-perfect game, and the 49ers defense was relentless. However, beneath this impressive start is the old injury bug coming back to bite the 49ers. Demarcus Robinson left on a cart with a right ankle injury, leaving the 49ers’ wide receiver depth stressed again. Not to mention Mike Evans experienced a hip issue that sidelined him for the rest of the game. This will be something monitor during the week as the 49ers host the Cardinals next week. So, is there any bright spot for the Dolphins after this game? Well…I can’t find anything. The Dolphins are not doing much to protect Malik Willis at quarterback. Considering that their offensive line is at full strength, this should raise alarm bells. It doesn’t get easier as the Dolphins host the Chiefs next week.

SEAHAWKS 31 – CARDINALS 7

Evidently, last week’s win for the Arizona Cardinals is looking more and more like a fluke as they were steamrolled by the defending champion Seattle Seahawks. It has been quite the revelation for Seahawks quarterback Drew Lock. In his stint replacing Sam Darnold, Lock has proved himself a capable quarterback. In this contest, Lock completed 19 of 26 passes for 235 yards and three touchdowns. For the second straight week, the Seahawks showed they have the dominant defense, offensive weaponry and good enough backup quarterback to survive a stretch without their starter. They have a relatively easy stretch coming up while hoping Darnold can return to practice soon, but the Seahawks are obviously in no hurry to bring him back too quickly. The Seahawks go on the road to face the injury-plagued Commanders next week. As for the Cardinals, it again appears that their success last week was a fluke (or just the Chargers were worse than we all thought). Arizona’s defense went from stopping the run on a regular basis to hardly containing it. What’s worse is that the Cardinals gained 127 yards, which marked the first time they were held under 200 yards since November 2023. The Cardinals just couldn’t get anything going consistently offensively, with quarterback Jacoby Brissett throwing for 95 yards a week after passing for 277. Things don’t get better as the Cardinals go on the road to face the 49ers next week.

COMMANDERS 20 – COWBOYS 37

It may not have been pretty, but the Dallas Cowboys managed to avoid a very damaging loss to the Washington Commanders at home to keep their season afloat for the moment. It was a glorious night for Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott as he broke Tony Romo’s career franchise record for touchdown passes. In the other locker room…the word “somber” would be both a diplomatic way to describe it as well as an understatement. The Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels went down with another gruesome-looking dislocated left elbow. As great as this game was for the Cowboys, the question popping up again is if Dak Prescott will have to lead his team to outscore their opponents each and every week again this season. It looks that way. The defense had issues again, losing safety P.J. Locke (foot) and corner Cobie Durant (hamstring) in the first half. The Cowboys continue to struggle on third down, contain a running quarterback and turn pressures into sacks. How much longer can Prescott keep bailing out the Cowboys is the question once again this season. Their next game is against the Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Looking at the Commanders, we’ve seen this movie before. A horrid defense, an injured quarterback, and a double-digit defeat. And he’ll have to answer one giant question whenever he returns: Can he stay healthy? He has now exited four of his past five games with an injury. Not to mention the struggling defense could make this season turn ugly in a hurry. The Commanders will host the defending champion Seahawks next week.

COLTS 30 – CHIEFS 33 (OT)

This looks like it’s going to be a LONG season for the Indianapolis Colts, as their mistakes cost them in overtime against the Kansas City Chiefs. Colts quarterback Daniel Jones has looked like the same quarterback that the Giants cut long ago. Jones completed 22 of 31 passes for 210 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Now are the Chiefs “back” as contenders? Slow your roll there, bandwagoners. I am aware of the EXTREME favoritism for the Chiefs goes a long way in both the league and the media. But remember this: so far, the Chiefs have beaten a Broncos team just finding its footing and a Colts team who hasn’t found any footing at all. Don’t expect a real test for the Chiefs next week either as they travel to face the lowly Dolphins. The Colts…I could spend a whole article detailing what is going wrong for them. But I’ll try to summarize. The Colts’ defense gave up its most yards in a game in three seasons in last week’s loss to the Ravens (506 yards). And the prospects for that unit didn’t get better Sunday night, when the Colts consistently struggled to get stops against the Chiefs (523 yards). Whatever plan the Colts had for their defense to take pressure off of Jones, who is coming off a torn Achilles tendon…it’s NOT working. The Colts will host the Texans next week.

RAMS 28 – GIANTS 6

The jury is out on whether the Chiefs are back or not, but one thing is for certain: the Rams ARE BACK! The Los Angeles Rams shook off their dismal season opener in Australia to dominate the New York Giants in convincing fashion. Quarterback Matthew Stafford showed why he’s the reigning NFL MVP as he led the Rams with 327 passing yards, four touchdowns, and one interception. The real star of the game was Rams wide receiver Davante Adams. Adams ended up with eight catches for 195 yards and two touchdowns. In fact, Adams’ total receiving yards was greater than the TOTAL yards gained by the ENTIRE Giants team in this game (182). The night was also a milestone for Aaron Donald, who had three tackles for the Rams while completing his comeback with his first NFL game action in 32 months. The three-time AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year, who skipped the Week 1 trip to Melbourne, got wild cheers from Rams fans at every opportunity at SoFi Stadium. This has been the Rams team we have been waiting for…and the one that apparently missed the plane last week to Australia, and we can’t wait to see what they look like when Puka Nacua and Myles Garrett return healthy. We will see if the Rams can keep up the momentum as they visit the Broncos for Sunday Night Football. As for the Giants, this was a painful return to Earth after last week’s big victory over the Cowboys. Quarterback Jaxson Dart went down, and it was believed to be just a sprain. However, Adam Schefter reported late Tuesday morning that further testing showed the injury was worse than initially feared. The Giants and Dart are now faced with the idea that this might be the end of Dart’s season. The other injuries include wide receiver Malik Nabers and pass rusher Brian Burns. Nabers returned to the game though after popping his dislocated shoulder back into place, and Burns didn’t require a cart to be taken off the field. However, the Giants had a big wakeup call with this game. The Giants will have a chance to bounce back next week as they host the Titans.