2025 NFL Preseason Recap and Fantasy Football Notes: Week 2

**** NOTES FOR EVERY GAME WILL BE UP AS SOON AS I WATCH THEM **** Follow me @walterfootball for updates.



2025 Preseason Notes: Week 1 | Week 2
2025 Fantasy Football Stock Pages: Week 1 | Week 2




Seahawks 33, Chiefs 16

While Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the Chiefs starters sat, Sam Darnold saw his first action as a Seahawk. The stats say that Darnold was flawless because he completed all four of his passes while leading his team down the field on a possession that culminated with a Zach Charbonnet touchdown. But was Darnold really that good?

The answer, simply, is no. Darnold’s first completion was a checkdown. His second completion was a checkdown. His third completion was a checkdown. And his fourth completion? You guessed it! A checkdown. I didn’t track Darnold’s air yards initially, but I decided to go back and watch him play a second time. His air yards on each pass were: 4, 0, 1, and -1. That’s a total of four air yards on four passes for an average of one air yard per throw. How amazing! Now, I know it was by design, perhaps to keep Darnold healthy in this meaningless game, but the point is that Darnold’s 4-of-4 for 34 yards should not be seen as impressive whatsoever.

Also, there was another negative for Darnold on the drive, which was that Jalen Milroe entered the game on a third-and-inches situation to run the “Tush Push,” which he converted. Anything that removes Darnold from the field is a negative for his already-shaky fantasy stock.

Here were Darnold’ targets:

Elijah Arroyo: 1
A.J. Barner: 1
Robbie Ouzts: 1
Jaxon Smith-Njigba: 1

Although Jalen Milroe ran the “Tush Push” on one occasion during the opening drive of the second preseason game, Zach Charbonnet had a great performance to improve his fantasy stock. Charbonnet rushed for nine yards per carry and looked every bit as tremendous as that stat line indicates. His first carry was a 13-yard explosive rush through a big hole, thanks to a huge block by rookie guard Grey Zabel. Later on that drive, Charbonnet burst through a huge hole for a 15-yard touchdown. With Zabel and mauling fullback Robbie Ouzts on the field, Seattle’s running backs are in for a big season, and Kenneth Walker was nowhere to be seen in this game because of his injury. Walker will likely return soon, but he’s injury-prone and could be traded because he’s in the final year of his contract. Charbonnet is a must-draft player in the mid rounds.

Milroe, as mentioned, converted a Tush Push on the opening drive. He saw extensive action beginning at the end of the third quarter once Drew Lock played two quarters. Milroe began with a nice gain on the ground via a read-option play and then completed a 20-yard pass, showing good accuracy. Milroe later messed up on a pass in the flat, but the color analyst pointed out that the rain may have affected Milroe’s release.

Milroe did well in a small sample size, but the night was a negative for his fantasy stock because Lock was so good. Preseason action can be misleading, so no one should believe in Lock, but the coaching staff may use that as an excuse to play Lock over Milroe once Darnold is inevitably benched.

NFL Preseason Announcers: If you want to listen to an aggravating broadcast, tune into this game. Seattle used its sideline reporter as the play-by-play guy, and it did not go very well.

Follow me @walterfootball for updates.


Titans 23, Falcons 20

The Falcons didn’t use any players of significance – their backfield was the duo of Easton Stick and Nathan Carter – so we will be focusing on the Titans entirely.

Cam Ward started for the Titans, but he completed only two of his seven passes. Anyone can look at the box score, so was Ward as bad as those numbers indicate? I would say no, and I think anyone who watched the game would agree.

Ward should have completed more than two passes. A pair of his attempts were dropped, including one that would’ve gone for 30 yards, but Van Jefferson let the ball fall through his hands. Chimere Dike dropped another pass that would’ve been a gain of 11 yards. Another incompletion should have been ruled pass interference. Even the Falcons homer announcers suggested that a flag should have been thrown. Ward’s longest completion, by the way, was a 35-yard pass to Ayomanor that was completed on a crossing route.

Ward wasn’t perfect, however. One misfire was an awkward pass into the flat, while another was a overthrow to Ayomanor. However, Ward looked good otherwise, especially when considering he was playing without his top weapons. Calvin Ridley, Tony Pollard, and Chig Okonkwo all sat.

Here were Ward’s targets:

Elic Ayomanor: 4
Chimere Dike: 2
Van Jefferson: 1
Bryce Oliver: 1

New Titans left tackle Dan Moore walked off the field gingerly during the second drive. Fortunately, he did so without any assistance, so he could be OK.

NFL Preseason Announcers: The Falcons broadcast annoyed me because they opted to show Falcons punting highlights over some Tennessee offensive plays. And no, there wasn’t a return touchdown, or even a long return involved. They replayed basic punts!

Follow me @walterfootball for updates.


2025 Preseason Notes: Week 1 | Week 2
2025 Fantasy Football Stock Pages: Week 1 | Week 2

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