NFL Game Recaps: Week 2, 2023

NFL Game Recaps of previous weeks and seasons can be found via links at the bottom of the page.

Eagles 34, Vikings 28

The Vikings entered this game with some concerns on their offensive line. Those were a bit quelled when left tackle Christian Darrisaw, who was considered questionable, was ruled active. This was great news for Minnesota because center Garrett Bradbury was already ruled out.

Darrisaw, however, failed to play. His absence was felt to start the second half, which was the deciding factor in this game. The Vikings had possession while down just 13-7, but the backup left tackle allowed edge rusher Josh Sweat to blow by him. Sweat strip-sacked Kirk Cousins and gave the Eagles a short field, which turned into a quick touchdown. This was one of two crushing turnovers that decided this game, with the other being a Justin Jefferson fumble into the end zone from the Philadelphia 1-yard line. This resulted in a potential 10-point swing in Philadelphia’s favor.

With the Vikings having issues blocking without Darrisaw and Bradbury, the Eagles were able to establish leads of 27-7 and 34-21. Minnesota came through at the end with a back-door push to help its bettors.
Jalen Hurts posted a great fantasy stat line in this victory, but he got off to a slow start. He threw an interception on a telegraphed pass and didn’t get anywhere on designed runs on third down. Hurts, however, would go on to complete some deep passes to DeVonta Smith and plunged into the end zone a couple of times via the team’s patented sneaks.

Hurts finished 18-of-23 for 193 yards, one touchdown and an interception to go along with 35 rushing yards and two scores on the ground. Hurts appeared to throw a second touchdown in the fourth quarter, but A.J. Brown’s apparent score was negated by a penalty. Hurts doesn’t look incredibly sharp right now, but that could be attributed to the new offensive coordinator.
Speaking of Brown, he did a lot of complaining on the sidelines because he had just four catches for 29 yards. His poor stats were the byproduct of Smith being wide open, the negated touchdown, and the Eagles’ penchant for running the ball heavily once they discovered that the Vikings couldn’t stop their ground attack. Brown was still second in receiving behind Smith and his four grabs for 131 yards and a touchdown.

The Eagles’ rushing attack could not be contained despite Kenneth Gainwell’s absence. D’Andre Swift was a monster with 175 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries.
While Swift was dominant, Alexander Mattison was anything but. Mattison mustered only 28 yards on eight carries. He also dropped a pass and lost a fumble. He would have lost a second fumble had a penalty not negated it.
Cousins, thanks to garbage time, posted terrific fantasy stats. He went 31-of-44 for 364 yards and four touchdowns. He didn’t play nearly as well as those numbers indicate. Cousins had just 140 yards by the half.
Several players were able to benefit from Cousins’ garbage time. Jefferson reeled in 11 catches for 159 yards, but wasn’t able to find the end zone, aside from the one play in which he fumbled into it. Jordan Addison (3-72) caught a 62-yard touchdown in the third quarter. T.J. Hockenson (7-66) scored twice, including the all-important push touchdown. K.J. Osborn (3-34) also scored, but dropped two balls.

Ravens 27, Bengals 24

Joe Burrow had a miserable performance against the Browns in the opener, but he was playing hurt and in poor conditions. He was expected to rebound in this game, given that the Ravens would be missing two key members in their secondary. However, there was some concern that he would not be 100 percent in the wake of his calf injury. Those worries turned out to be warranted, as the Bengals dropped to 0-2 in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score indicates.

For evidence of this, the Bengals were down 27-17 before a late touchdown brought the margin to within three. Despite this pseudo garbage-time touchdown, the Bengals still were outgained 415-282. They averaged one fewer yard per play and lost the time-of-possession battle by seven minutes. The reason why the score was misleading was because Cincinnati scored a touchdown on a punt return in the opening half. The Bengals were rather lifeless otherwise.

There’s a good chance Cincinnati will be able to bounce back from its 0-2 start, but that would require Burrow to be 100 percent. Despite practicing fully throughout the week, Burrow was clearly hobbled, as he threw mostly checkdowns. This included a short toss on an early third-and-9 that had the crowd very frustrated. Throughout the game, Burrow threw just seven passes that traveled more than 12 yards in the air. Most of those attempts were incomplete, including two that floated out of bounds. Burrow was seen limping off the field following the final touchdown and then using a massage gun on his balky calf on the sideline.

Burrow being banged up would explain why he threw for just 222 yards on 41 attempts. He completed 27 passes and threw two touchdowns, but was intercepted as well on a telegraphed throw in the red zone. In fairness, Burrow missed out on a third score when Ja’Marr Chase dropped the ball in the end zone. Burrow was also better in the second half, so perhaps this is a positive trend heading into Week 3.
The Ravens, meanwhile, were able to look much better than they did last week following their lethargic performance versus the Texans. Lamar Jackson was so careless with the football in that game, but was far sharper in this contest, going 24-of-33 for 237 yards and two touchdowns. He also scrambled 12 times for 54 rushing yards. He had scrambles of 19 and 15 negated by holding penalties. One of these penalties occurred on a sequence in which the Ravens ruined a drive of theirs by numerous infractions. Jackson’s one mistake didn’t end up costing him, as a lost fumble of his was negated by a penalty.
Curiously, Nelson Agholor led the Ravens in receiving with five grabs for 63 yards and a touchdown. It helped that Odell Beckham Jr. (3-29) was knocked out with an early injury, but it was still an unexpected result. Zay Flowers (4-62) was next on the stat sheet, thanks to an impressive deep catch threw traffic, followed by Mark Andrews (5-45). Andrews scored a touchdown, but also dropped a pass. Rashod Bateman (3-18) continued to be a disappointment.
Gus Edwards rushed for 62 yard and a touchdown on 10 carries. Justice Hill (11-41) predictably took a step backward from last week’s fluky performance. Edwards was barely the leading rusher in this game, as Joe Mixon ran for 59 yards on 13 carries. He also caught four passes for 36 receiving yards.
Cincinnati’s leading receiver was Tee Higgins, who caught eight of his 12 targets for 89 yards and two touchdowns. He greatly out-produced Chase, who was limited to just five grabs for 31 yards. Chase drew an interference flag in the first half, but was guilty of the aforementioned dropped touchdown.

Falcons 25, Packers 24

The Packers didn’t have their All-Pro left tackle, David Bakhtiari, as well as their top two play-makers, Aaron Jones and Christian Watson, for this game. Yet, for a while, it seemed as though they would prevail. They led 24-12, as some of their young receivers made big plays. With the Falcons defense being unable to get off the field, the Packers improving to 2-0 appeared to be a certainty.

No one told the Falcons this, however, as Atlanta continued its game plan of ceaselessly pounding the ball. Despite trailing by double digits in the second half, the Falcons ran the ball 35 times with their two backs. Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier were both very effective, especially the former. Robinson dashed for 124 yards on 19 carries, and he also caught four passes for 48 receiving yards. Robinson picked up some big gains in the fourth quarter to complete the comeback, as Atlanta finally took a 25-24 lead on a Younghoe Koo field goal. The Packers had one more chance at the end, but went four-and-out as Atlanta’s defense stepped up after struggling earlier in the afternoon.
Robinson and Allgeier weren’t the only Falcons who had success running the ball. Desmond Ridder was effective as a scrambler, rushing 10 times for 39 yards and a touchdown. He needed this success on the ground because he wasn’t very good as a passer. Ridder went 19-of-32 for 237 yards, one touchdown and an interception, which occurred when Ridder was hit upon release. Ridder is lucky he wasn’t intercepted a second time, as he had a potential pick-six that was dropped.
Ridder’s lone aerial touchdown went to Drake London, who caught six passes for 67 yards. It appeared as tough Ridder had a second passing score to Mack Hollins (3-60), but replay review showed that he was barely out of bounds before both feet landed inbounds.
As for the Packers, “No Cookie” Jordan Love performed well prior to the final drive, especially when considering his missing personnel. He went 14-of-25 for 151 yards and three touchdowns. He also picked up 23 rushing yards, thanks to a key 24-yard scramble.
With Watson and Jones sidelined, two rookies topped Green Bay’s receiving list. Dontayvion Wicks paced the team in receiving with two grabs for 40 yards and a touchdown, which doesn’t include a deep pass interference flag on the opening drive. Jayden Reed (4-37) scored twice. Romeo Doubs had just two catches for 30 yards, but drew an interference flag.
A.J. Dillon was a disappointment, given Jones’ absence. He rushed for just 55 yards on 15 carries, and he caught only one pass for eight yards.

Bills 38, Raiders 10

Despite what the final score may say, the Bills appeared to be in trouble of falling to 0-2 at one point in this game. The Raiders marched down the field on the opening drive to score a touchdown when Jimmy Garoppolo threw a quick pass to Davante Adams. Buffalo’s offense, meanwhile, went three-and-out on its opening possession. Losing to the Jets on the road in an emotional environment was one thing, but suffering a defeat to the lowly Raiders was inexcusable.

Well, it didn’t take too long for things to course correct. Following the Bills’ three-and-out, Jimmy Garoppolo threw an interception when he panicked under pressure. This set up a Bills touchdown on a short field. This was the first of three Buffalo scores in the opening half, as Buffalo went into the locker room up 21-10 – a lead that could have been larger had the Bills not stalled at the goal line on a second-quarter drive.

The Bills ultimately prevailed 38-10, as they sat on the ball for what seemed like an eternity at times. They won the time-of-possession battle by 21 minutes, and they even held the ball for 13 minutes in the third quarter!

Josh Allen misfired on just six occasions. Rebounding well from the loss to the Jets, Allen went 31-of-37 for 274 yards and three touchdowns. He didn’t run much – three scrambles, seven rushing yards – but it’s not like he needed to do so.

Of course, it can’t be too much of a surprise that Allen was so much better against the Raiders than he was versus the Jets, given that the Raiders struggle against the deep pass. Naturally, Gabriel Davis had a great performance with six catches for 92 yards and a touchdown. He outgained Stefon Diggs, though Diggs was able to convert all seven of his targets for 66 yards.

James Cook also had a big day. Cook dashed for 123 yards on just 17 carries. He was vultured at the goal line by both Damien Harris (7-33) and Latavius Murray (6-22), but Cook made up for it in the passing game, catching four passes for 36 receiving yards.
Josh Jacobs did more as a receiver than Cook – five catches, 51 yards – which was absolutely necessary for his PPR owners because Jacobs got absolutely nothing on the ground. Jacobs was limited to just two rushing yards on nine carries. Making matters worse, Jacobs was responsible for an interception because he allowed linebacker Matt Milano to rip the ball away from him.
With no running game, Garoppolo couldn’t sustain what he was able to accomplish on the opening drive. Garoppolo went 16-of-24 for just 185 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. One of his picks wasn’t his fault because of the Jacobs mishap, but he was guilty of his first pick.
Thanks to his opening drive heroics, Adams had a solid fantasy outing with six catches for 84 yards and a touchdown. He and Jacobs were the only Raiders with more than 23 receiving yards.

Titans 27, Chargers 24

The Chargers came into the season with plenty of hope that they could meet expectations if they could remain healthy. They were missing a couple of players in this game, including Austin Ekeler, but they had an easy matchup in which they could overcome the running back’s absence. This turned out not to be the case, as the Chargers fell to 0-2 after losing to Tennessee in overtime.

A dreadful pass defense was the Chargers’ undoing versus the Dolphins, as the defense couldn’t get off the field against Ryan Tannehill when they didn’t sack him on third down. In fact, Tannehill, who looked like the worst starting quarterback in the NFL last week, misfired on just four occasions. He was able to hit multiple deep passes, taking the lead late in the fourth quarter.

Tannehill went 20-of-24 for 246 yards and a touchdown. He also scored a second time on the ground on his only scramble of the day. This was very impressive, as Tannehill was playing behind a patchwork offensive line missing first-round rookie Peter Skoronski. Tannehill took five sacks, including one on a fourth-and-4 on the opening drive in which he had no chance against a Kenneth Murray blitz, so credit the veteran quarterback for thriving despite these miserable conditions.
What’s even more impressive about Tannehill’s outing against the Chargers was that DeAndre Hopkins wasn’t 100 percent. Hopkins was questionable heading into this contest. He played, but wasn’t quite himself. He caught only four passes for 40 yards, and he dropped a ball. He was outgained by Treylon Burks (3-76) and he lost a potential touchdown to Nick Westbrook (3-25).
Tannehill was naturally aided by a solid rushing attack. Derrick Henry rushed for 80 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries, while Tyjae Spears chipped in with 49 yards on five tries. Tennessee’s running backs paved the way for victory in overtime.
The Chargers couldn’t equal Tennessee’s rushing attack with Ekeler being sidelined. Joshua Kelley was steamed in DFS circles as a viable replacement, but he was a huge disappointment. Kelley mustered only 39 yards on 13 carries, and he dropped a pass. In fact, he lost some work to undrafted rookie Elijah Dotson.
Justin Herbert did what he could with Ekeler sidelined. He made some amazing throws in this game, as he battled a secondary missing two starters. He went 27-of-41 for 305 yards and two touchdowns. One of his scores occurred when Herbert appeared to be sacked on two separate situations, yet he managed to break free and find his receiver in the end zone. Herbert, however, came up small in overtime. This included a disjointed third down in which he and the rest of the team looked out of whack, prompting him to throw the ball deep to no one on third down. The Chargers never saw possession again.
Keenan Allen had a monster game. He caught eight passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns. Mike Williams also secured eight receptions for 83 yards.

Buccaneers 27, Bears 17

The Bears received terrible news the day before this game, as Pro Bowl guard Nate Davis had to excuse himself due to a death in the family. Obviously, something like that trumps anything in a stupid football game, but Davis’ absence was going to be felt against a Tampa Bay defensive line that features Vita Vea in the interior. This turned out to be the case, as Fields was swarmed heavily in this defeat. Fields took six sacks and threw two interceptions in what turned out to be an embarrassing loss.

In all fairness to the offensive line, not all six sacks of the mobile quarterback were their fault. For instance, Fields fumbled on a strip-sack in the second quarter because he held the ball for an eternity. This was just one of a few instances where Fields waited way too long in the pocket. Fields, who went 16-of-29 for 211 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, has regressed in every aspect thus far in 2023, even as a runner. In what was a baffling turn of events, Fields scrambled just four times, picking up three rushing yards and a score. Fields ran twice on the opening drive, so by my math, that means he ran just twice the rest of the game, which is poor coaching and decision-making on Fields’ part. The touchdown saved Fields’ fantasy owners, but Fields’ reluctance to run makes him far worse as a quarterback because his passing and pocket awareness are terrible.
Meanwhile, the Buccaneers were able to keep Fields on the sideline because of constant third-down conversions. They were 8-of-15 on third downs, connecting on some long-yardage situations. On the opening drive alone, Baker Mayfield hit Chris Godwin on a third-and-8 and then third-and-11 to Mike Evans.

Mayfield had a great game overall, going 26-of-34 for 317 yards and one touchdown. He could have thrown a second touchdown, but in a rare mistake for him, he missed Godwin in the end zone on the opening drive. In what was another error, Mayfield appeared to throw an interception on his second pass, but Bears safety Jaquan Brisker dropped the ball. Still, this was a terrific performance, albeit against what easily could be the worst defense in the NFL.
Of course, it helped Mayfield that Evans was going nuts. He made several big plays in this contest, catching six balls for 171 yards and a touchdown. It should be noted that Evans got away with a blatant offensive pass interference on his 60-yard reception, but he was tremendous otherwise. Godwin was next on the stat sheet with five grabs for 58 yards.
Rachaad White is one of the worst runners among starting backs in the NFL, yet he was able to look good against this woeful Chicago defense. White dashed for 73 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. White was far and away the leading rusher in this contest, as the Bears seemingly forgot about Khalil Herbert (7-35) at times.
The only Chicago play-maker of note was D.J. Moore, who caught six balls for 104 yards. Cole Kmet (4-38) was next on the stat sheet, though he dropped a pass. Kmet was followed by Chase Claypool (3-36), who caught a touchdown but was very inefficient on his eight targets. In fact, Claypool was nearly responsible for a Fields interception because he didn’t fight for the ball hard enough.
For those who bet the Bears and bought up to +3, this loss was a tough one to swallow. Chicago had possession down three with a couple of minutes remaining, but Fields tossed a careless screen pass that was returned for six by Shaq Barrett. It would have been nice to salvage a push, but this turned out to be a loss because of the turnover.

Chiefs 17, Jaguars 9

Anyone expecting fireworks from these two prolific offenses had to be sorely disappointed. This turned into a defensive struggle, as both teams had trouble remaining on the field, partly due to third-down incompetence. The Chiefs were 4-of-13 on third down, while the Jaguars were just 3-of-12. The Chiefs had more success moving the chains with 399 net yards compared to Jacksonville’s 271. However, Kansas City repeatedly shot themselves in the foot. For instance, Travis Kelce had a 17-yard catch negated by a hold, and he later dropped a touchdown. Justin Watson lost a fumble in Jacksonville territory. Mahomes also was intercepted as he was hit upon release by Josh Allen.

However, with the exception of the Kelce drop, all of these mistakes occurred in the first half. The Chiefs got their act together following intermission to eventually establish control of this game, allowing them to bounce back from their opening-night loss to the Lions.
Mahomes finished 29-of-41 for 305 yards, two touchdowns and the aforementioned interception. He also scrambled seven times for 30 rushing yards. It was not a surprise to see him improve upon Week 1 after getting Kelce back from injury.

Kelce, by the way, didn’t have a monster stat line – four catches, 26 yards – especially on nine targets, but his presence opened things up for everyone else. This includes Kadarius Toney, who was able to redeem himself from his humiliating performance versus the Lions. Toney caught five passes for 35 yards. More importantly, he didn’t drop a pass. He happened to fumble, but managed to recover the ball, albeit taking a big loss in the process. Skyy Moore, meanwhile, led the Chiefs in receiving with three grabs for 70 yards and a touchdown, though a big chunk of his yardage came on the final play of the game.
The Chiefs seemed to forget about Isiah Pacheco, who ran well but didn’t do so enough. He rushed for 70 yards on just 12 carries. No other Kansas City running back logged more than one carry, so this was not an instance of Pacheco relinquishing work to his teammates. Andy Reid simply forgot about the ground attack, which is not a surprise.
The Jaguars didn’t run the ball enough either, with Travis Etienne seeing the same number of rushes as Pacheco despite Trevor Lawrence throwing 41 passes. Etienne didn’t run as well as Pacheco, mustering 40 yards on 12 carries.
As for Lawrence, he went 22-of-41 for 216 yards. He also scrambled five times for 26 rushing yards. This was obviously a disappointing result for him, as he came into this game with a superior supporting cast than he did when he lost to Kansas City in the playoffs in January. To be fair, his “superior” supporting cast was responsible for four drops.
Speaking of those drops, Calvin Ridley was a big disappointment with just two catches on eight targets for 32 yards. He dropped two passes, though he just barely missed out on a pair of touchdowns. Christian Kirk was the team’s leading receiver with Zay Jones banged up. Kirk caught 11 passes for 110 yards, though he also was guilty of two dropped balls.

Colts 31, Texans 20

The Colts won their first game of the Shane Steichen-Anthony Richardson era, but they can’t possibly feel great at the moment. They spent a major draft resource to obtain Richardson, but in two games, he has suffered two injuries. He was banged up at the end of last week’s loss to the Jaguars, and he suffered a concussion in the opening quarter of this affair.

It’s a real shame for Richardson, who appeared on his way to a huge performance. He was 5-of-6 for 50 yards and a rushing touchdown on the opening drive, and he scored a second time on the ground following a C.J. Stroud lost fumble on a strip-sack. However, that was the end of Richardson’s afternoon because he was sidelined with a concussion evaluation. Richardson is a dynamic talent with an enormous ceiling, but he also takes some big hits, so it seems unlikely that he’ll be very durable throughout his career.
Richardson wasn’t missed very much in this game, as Gardner Minshew was highly efficient against what was thought to be a terrific Houston defense. Minshew managed the game well with just four misfires. He went 19-of-23 for 171 yards and a touchdown.

Minshew was able to be very efficient because the Colts ran so well throughout the afternoon. They did so early with Richardson scrambling thrice for 35 yards and two touchdowns, and they did so late with Zack Moss, who rumbled for 88 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. He also contributed with four catches for 19 receiving yards.
Michael Pittman Jr. led the Colts in receiving with eight grabs for 56 yards. Rookie Josh Downs chipped in with four grabs for 37 yards, while Alec Pierce (2-28) was a bit of an afterthought.
It’s unclear whether Houston’s offense was more or less disappointing than its defense. The stats say otherwise because Stroud went 30-of-47 for 384 yards, two touchdowns and a lost fumble, but that stat line was very misleading. Stroud was just 8-of-15 for 110 yards in the opening half, so most of his production came in garbage time.
Thanks to garbage time, some Houston receivers were able to generate quality fantasy outings. This includes Nico Collins, who caught seven passes for 146 yards and a touchdown. Rookie Tank Dell also showed well with seven grabs for 72 yards and a score.
Houston got nothing out of its running game. Dameon Pierce was limited to just 31 yards on 15 carries.

Seahawks 37, Lions 31
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: So much for the Seahawks being the worst team in the NFL. Their defense still sucks, but Geno Smith was amazing despite missing both tackles.
A year ago, Detroit and Seattle had an epic shootout in which the Seahawks came out on top, and once again, Geno Smith was able to outduel Jared Goff for a road win. Detroit’s defense struggled on third down, did not get much pressure on Smith, and could not force a take away. Smith took advantage of clean pockets and a vulnerable Lions secondary to lead the Seahawks to a tough, overtime road win.
Seattle took the opening drive of the game down the field, aided from some bad calls by the officials, while using D.K. Metcalf and Kenneth Walker before the latter plunged into the end zone. The Lions quickly tied the game, using their running back tandem and seeing Goff completing two passes to Josh Reynolds for 42 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown strike. Detroit then put together a nice drive into Seattle territory, but Devon Witherspoon broke up a fourth-down pass. A 31-yard pass to Noah Fant had the Seahawks set up for points afterward, but Jason Myers shanked the field goal attempt.

After a Witherspoon pass interference, the Lions targeted Witherspoon with a flea flicker, and the rookie bit on the fake to let Goff loft in an easy 36-yard touchdown to Kalif Raymond. Just before the intermission, Myers missed a 56-yard field goal, leaving the Lions with a 14-7 lead heading into the locker room.

On the first play from scrimmage of the third quarter, Detroit’s David Montgomery was stripped by Uchenna Nwosu and Seattle recovered the loose ball at the Lions 23. A couple of plays later, Walker scored again to tie the game at 14. Detroit moved into Seattle territory on a few plays using St. Brown, but a touchdown pass to Montgomery was taken away by a mistaken penalty. St. Brown took a shovel pass for a fourth-down conversion, which set up a first-and-goal. A few plays later, Montgomery pounded the ball into the end zone to give the Lions a 21-14 lead. Seattle responded with a nice drive that utilized Walker and some precision passes to create a field goal and make it 21-17.

Close to midfield, a fourth-down pass by the Lions went incomplete, giving Seattle the ball in Detroit territory to open the fourth quarter. A pass to tight end Will Dissly got the Seahawks moving, and Smith converted a third-and-10 with a completion to Tyler Lockett. On second-and-goal, Smith connected with Lockett for a touchdown to put the Seahawks up 24-21. On the ensuing possession, Goff’s pickless streak came to an end, Tre Brown intercepting the pass and running it back to the end zone for a score from 40 yards out.

Down 31-21, the Lions were without St. Brown and Montgomery, but their rookies made some huge plays. Tight end Sam LaPorta caught two passes for 35 yards, and running back Jahmyr Gibbs converted a third-and-7 to set up a short touchdown pass to Reynolds.

The Seahawks got the ball back with three minutes remaining, but they went backward and Smith took a terrible sack from Alex Anzalone on a third down for a loss of 17 yards. The ensuing punt from the end zone gave the Lions the ball at midfield with just under two minutes remaining. Goff hit a few completions to get the ball to the 20, and Riley Patterson drilled a 38-yard field goal to send the game to overtime.

On the first possession of overtime, Smith rifled the ball down the field, and on a third down inside the 10, he connected with Tyler Lockett for a short touchdown to pull out the win.
Geno Smith completed 32-of-41 passes for 328 yards and two touchdowns.
Kenneth Walker ran for 43 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns. He also had one catch for 11 yards.
Metcalf caught six passes for 75 yards while missing some time with a hip injury. Lockett (8-59-2), Noah Fant (4-56), Will Dissly (3-35) and Colby Parkinson (2-41) all brought in some huge catches.
Goff completed 28-of-35 passes for 323 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
Montgomery ran 16 times for 67 yards and a touchdown. He also made a seven-yard reception. Early in the fourth quarter, however, Montgomery was carted into the locker room with a thigh injury. Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 17 yards on seven carries and had seven receptions for 39 yards.
St. Brown caught six passes for 102 yards but also missed part of the second half with a toe injury.

Redskins 35, Broncos 33
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell

EDITOR’S NOTE: There was a zero-percent chance the Broncos were converting that two-pointer at the end. I know there was pass interference, but even with another chance, it just wasn’t happening.
This was one of the craziest games the NFL will probably see all season. Late in the first half, the Broncos were up 21-3 thanks to Russell Wilson throwing some dimes deep down the field and the Denver pass rush pummeling Sam Howell. Then in the second quarter, the game changed when Jamin Davis stripped Wilson. The Redskins then started rolling all over the Denver defense. The vaunted Washington defense front came alive led, by Daron Payne, and the Redskins erased two Denver leads to take a 11-point lead late in the fourth quarter. Wilson pulled off a near-comeback, including a ridiculous Hail Mary touchdown with no time on the clock, but the two-point attempt was knocked away to give Washington the road win. Ron Rivera, Jack Del Rio and Eric Bienemy did a great job of making adjustments to turn this game around.
Washington moved the ball into Denver territory to start the game, but after a Randy Gregory sack, Joey Slye missed a 49-yard field goal. The Broncos promptly moved down the field thanks to some chunk runs from Javonte Williams and Wilson. The drive ended with Jaleel McLaughlin darting into the end zone. Howell soon moved the ball into Denver territory, but a Nik Bonitto sack killed the drive. This time, Slye made the field goal to make it 7-3 Denver. The Broncos promptly responded with Wilson throwing a perfect 60-yard bomb to Marvin Mims Jr. for a touchdown.

Wilson and Mims connected on another deep ball early in second quarter, with Mims beating Emmanuel Forbes down the sideline for a 54-yard completion. To finish the drive, Wilson hit Brandon Johnson on a crossing route and he scooted into the end zone for a 16-yard touchdown. Mims later returned a punt 45 yards, but then Wilson was stripped by Jamin Davis and Washington recovered near midfield. A penalty and some decent gains, including a 13-yard end around from Curtis Samuel, set up a first-and-goal. On fourth-and-goal, Logan Thomas caught a touchdown, and after successfully converting the two-point try, Washington was behind 21-11. Just before halftime, Howell took off on a good run that was called back on a penatly. He then lofted in a 35-yard pass to John Bates to set up Slye to hit a 49-yard field goal that made the score 21-14 Denver at the half.

Daron Payne opened the third quarter with a sack, a tackle for a loss, and a pass batted – on consecutive downs – to get the ball back for the Redskins near midfield. Howell had a nice run on that drive shortly before lofting in a perfect strike to Terry McLaurin for a 30-yard touchdown that tied things up at 21-21.

Wilson started to slump afterward, not seeing some wide open receivers and then throwing a bad pass that was picked off by Emmanuel Forbes. However, Slye missed another field goal, and that seemed to give Denver a spark. Wilson connected with Courtland Sutton (5-66) to move into Washington territory, but a Chase Young sack forced a field goal that put the Broncos up 24-21 entering the fourth quarter.

Washington got in position to score with a 27-yard run from Brian Robinson and then a 36-yard pass to Antonio Gibson. Robinson powered into the end zone to give the Redskins a 28-24 lead. Shortly later, Robinson got loose on a screen for a 34-yard gain. To end the drive, Robinson scored from a few yards out to put Washington up 35-24 with seven minutes remaining.

Denver moved down the field in response, with Wilson connecting finding Courtland Sutton and some runs from Wilson, but Chase Young and Montez Sweat forced a field goal to cut Washington’s lead to 35-27 with just under two minutes remaining. The Broncos soon got the ball back with just under a minute remaining. They moved to ball to midfield, and on the final play of the game, the Hail Mary pass was tipped three times before Brandon Johnson (2-66-2) controlled it in end zone to make the score 35-33 with no time on the clock. The two-point conversion attempt, however, was knocked away incomplete, clinching the win for Washington.

Howell was 27-of-39 for 299 yards and two touchdowns.

Robinson ran for 87 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries. He also caught two receptions for 42 yards.

Terry McLaurin led Washington in receiving with five catches for 54 yards.

Russell Wilson completed 18-of-32 passes for 308 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. He also ran for 56 yards and led Denver on the ground.

Javonte Williams ran for 44 yards on 12 attempts.

Marvin Mims Jr. caught two passes for 113 yards and a touchdown.

49ers 30, Rams 23

The Rams didn’t stand a chance against the 49ers last year, but they gave San Francisco all they could handle this time around. This was a tie game at halftime and just a three-point San Francisco lead entering the final quarter. However, the 49ers controlled the final 15 minutes, particularly with their elite defensive line. The Rams had several mishaps in the fourth quarter because the 49ers won in the trenches, giving San Francisco its second victory of the season.
Despite the loss, the Rams made history in this game. Puka Nacua caught 15 passes for 147 yards, becoming the NFL’s all-time leading receiver for all players in their first two starts. It was thought that Los Angeles would sorely miss Cooper Kupp, but Nacua has been the real deal.
Although we had some great Nacua heroics, the Rams had issues stopping the 49ers offense when mistakes weren’t being made. Brock Purdy had a rare mediocre performance, missing several open receivers deep downfield. He went 17-of-25 for 206 scoreless yards, though he was able to sneak into the end zone to save his fantasy owners.
Both Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk were missed deep by Purdy. Samuel led the 49ers with six catches for 63 yards, and he also scored on a rushing touchdowns, as he ran for 38 additional yards on five carries. Aiyuk, conversely, took a big step backward after his brilliant Week 1 performance. He had just three receptions for 43 yards. He also dropped a pass.
Christian McCaffrey had a big performance, dashing for 116 yards and a touchdown on 20 attempts. Surprisingly, McCaffrey didn’t do much as a receiver out of the backfield, catching three passes for 19 yards.
McCaffrey wasn’t the only highly productive running back in this contest. Kyren Williams had just 52 yards on 14 carries, but he scored a touchdown and did a lot as a receiver. He caught six passes for 48 receiving yards and a second score. Unfortunately for Williams, he was responsible for one of Matthew Stafford’s two interceptions when the ball deflected off his hands.
Speaking of Stafford, he went 34-of-55 for 307 yards, one touchdown and a pair of interceptions. He played well for most of the afternoon, but made a couple of mistakes that ended up costing his team, including a blatant intentional grounding penalty that seemed unnecessary.
Aside from Nacua, Stafford targeted Tutu Atwell the most. Atwell caught seven passes for 77 yards. Meanwhile, Tyler Higbee (3-12) was a huge disappointment.

Giants 31, Cardinals 28

At one point, it seemed as though the Giants would have the most futile start for any team through two weeks in NFL history. They lost 40-0 in Week 1 and were down 20-0 at halftime of this contest. They were on pace to begin the year being outscored 80-0!

The Giants had nothing go right for them in the first half. They couldn’t stop Joshua Dobbs, who was 12-of-16 for 146 yards at intermission. Meanwhile, the offense was generating nothing. Saquon Barkley didn’t help matters by being responsible for an interception by dropping a pass.

It’s unclear how it happened, but the switch flipped for the Giants following intermission. Jones suddenly couldn’t miss, going 15-of-19 in the second half. He also picked up big chunks of yardage on the ground. Barkley had some nice gains as well, as New York slowly and surely chipped away at Arizona’s lead. With the Cardinals unable to pick up first downs in the fourth quarter, the Giants put themselves in position to kick the game-winning field goal. They prevailed, but it came at a price, as Barkley suffered an injury on the final drive. Barkley, who rushed for 63 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries, slammed his helmet on the ground in frustration, perhaps knowing that the injury happened to be severe.

The Giants will likely have to move forward with Matt Breida for the next few weeks. If Jones can perform like he did in the second half of this game, the Giants will be able to survive without Barkley. Then again, Jones may have trouble matching this production against teams with stronger defenses, which is pretty much everyone in the NFL. Jones went 26-of-37 for 321 yards, two touchdowns and the aforementioned Barkley interception.
Jones connected on a couple of deep passes to rookie Jalin Hyatt, who led the Giants in receiving. Hyatt caught two balls for 89 yards, including a 58-yard bomb. Darren Waller saw the most targets, snatching six receptions for 76 yards.
As for the Cardinals, Dobbs couldn’t continue his strong first half, but still had a solid game overall. He went 21-of-31 for 228 yards and a touchdown. He also scrambled thrice for 41 rushing yards and a second score on the ground.
Dobbs’ lone receiving touchdown went to Marquise Brown (6-54). He was third on the receiving list for Arizona, finishing behind Zach Ertz (6-56) and Michael Wilson (3-56).
James Conner had a strong outing, rushing for 106 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries. He handled just 10 carries in the second half despite the Cardinals owning such a big lead.

Cowboys 30, Jets 10

Given the Aaron Rodgers injury, the Jets had to at least be competitive with the Cowboys to give their fans some hope that their team to contend with the upper echelon in the NFL with Zach Wilson at quarterback. This was only one game, but based on this result, it appears as though the Jets’ 2023 season will end in disappointment.

Wilson had no chance against the Cowboys. He made one great throw in this game when he hit Garrett Wilson with a strike, which was good enough for a 68-yard touchdown to give the team some life after a 10-0 deficit. However, the Jets’ offense imploded after that. The unit as a whole had just 62 net yards in the second half, committing numerous turnovers in the process. Dalvin Cook crushed the Jets’ hopes with a lost fumble, and then Zach Wilson decided to throw an interception when he hurled the ball late across his body.

Wilson ended up just 12-of-27 for 170 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He commanded the offense to just 12 first downs, as New York was just 1-of-10 on third down. The Jets, for some reason, haven’t signed a backup quarterback yet. It’s obvious that they need someone to challenge Wilson after this outcome.
The Cowboys, meanwhile, had surprising success moving the chains on the Jets’ defense. They achieved 26 first downs, converting 9-of-18 third downs. Dak Prescott was extremely efficient, misfiring on just seven attempts. He went 31-of-38 for 255 yards and two touchdowns. He made just one glaring mistake, but wasn’t penalized for it. Sauce Gardner appeared to have a pick-six in his hands, but he dropped the ball. Prescott also missed out on a third touchdown by missing Jake Ferguson, but he had a great afternoon aside from these two blunders.
CeeDee Lamb did most of the damage against the Jets’ secondary. He caught 11 of his 13 targets for 143 yards. No one else logged more than 37 receiving yards.
Tony Pollard was given 25 carries, but couldn’t do much with them. He mustered only 72 yards on 25 carries. However, he made up for it for his PPR owners, catching seven passes for 37 receiving yards. The Jets did a good job of swarming Pollard, particularly when he was given chances inside the New York 5-yard line.
The Jets had no semblance of a running game. Cook, who fumbled, mustered only seven yards on four carries. Breece Hall had nine yards on his four attempts. Zach Wilson was the only Jet with double-digit rushing yardage; he scrambled five times for 36 yards.
Garrett Wilson paced the Jets in receiving because of his 68-yard touchdown. However, he was only able to convert two of his eight targets, registering 83 yards and a score in the process. Tyler Conklin (5-50) was the only other Jet with more than 23 receiving yards.

Dolphins 24, Patriots 17

Tua Tagovailoa entered this game with a 4-0 record against Bill Belichick. However, with an entire offseason to prepare for this game, Belichick could have shown Tagovailoa different schemes to beat the Dolphin quarterback for the first time. Of course, all of this could be thrown out the window if his offensive line couldn’t block, which was a concern with all the injuries up front entering this contest.

The blocking issues ruined this potential victory for the Patriots. Mac Jones didn’t have time to throw, while the New England backs failed to have much running room. Then again, it didn’t help that Rhamondre Stevenson completely disappeared in the second quarter in favor of the ineffective Ezekiel Elliott.

New England remembered Stevenson in the second half, but it was too late by then. The Dolphins established a 24-10 lead, but the Patriots cut the lead with Stevenson running. Jones also caught fire versus a tired pass rush, but a final drive stalled over midfield when the Patriots tried a lateral to convert a fourth down that just fell inches shy of the line to gain.
Despite what happened offensively, Belichick’s defense once again didn’t have a chance against Tagovailoa, who went 21-of-30 for 249 yards, one touchdown and an interception. The Patriots’ talented pass rush got to Tagovailoa only once despite the continued absence of Terron Armstead. Tagovailoa gets rid of the ball so quickly for opposing pass rushes to rattle him.
Tyreek Hill didn’t have the dominant performance we saw from a week ago. He was able to score, however, as he caught five passes for 40 yards. He was second in receiving behind Jaylen Waddle (4-86).
With the Patriots worried about Tagovailoa and his receivers, the Dolphins were able to gash the Patriots on the ground. Raheem Mostert burst for 121 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries. Mostert outgained Stevenson by a wide margin; Stevenson gained just 50 yards on 15 carries, but he also scored a touchdown.
Jones, as mentioned, caught fire in the second half to give himself a respectable stat line: 31-of-42, 231 yards, one touchdown and an interception.
DeVante Parker paced the Patriots in receiving with six catches for 57 yards, just barely outgaining Hunter Henry (6-52), who scored a touchdown. Kendrick Bourne saw more targets than anyone else (9), but caught just four passes for 29 yards. Jones took a couple of deep shots to Bourne, but couldn’t connect.

Saints 20, Panthers 17

The Panthers mortgaged the farm to trade up from No. 9 to 1 in the 2023 NFL Draft. Despite the deal, the organization was conflicted on which quarterback to draft. The coaches wanted to select C.J. Stroud, while the front office desired Bryce Young. The latter got their way, but it’s fair to wonder if there is some buyer’s remorse already. It’s obviously way too early to call Young a bust, but he looks like a bust.

Carolina’s receiving corps and interior offensive line are dreadful, but Young looked flustered throughout the evening. He misfired poorly and seldom took downfield chances. When he did throw deep, the passes were off the mark. Young also fumbled twice. He lost one fumble near the red zone, while the second was negated by penalty.

Young’s final numbers don’t look terrible – 22-of-33, 153 yards, one touchdown; two carries, 34 rushing yards – but keep in mind that they were a byproduct of a garbage-time touchdown drive at the very end. Young had just 66 passing yards at halftime, and he didn’t even try to scramble until the second half. Young’s best play of the evening was a 26-yard scramble that set up a field goal, so it’s unclear why he doesn’t utilize his legs nearly enough.
On the other side, the Saints had a bit of a Pyrrhic victory, as they prevailed while losing Jamaal Williams to injury. Luckily for them, they’ll have Alvin Kamara returning from suspension in Week 4. Rookie Kendre Miller should also be back from injury next week.

New Orleans got the victory, but didn’t get much from Derek Carr. The veteran quarterback was pedestrian in this contest, going 21-of-36 for 228 yards and an interception. Chris Olave bailed Carr out with an acrobatic one-handed catch that set up the Saints’ first touchdown of the night. Carr had trouble dealing with Carolina’s pass rush, and his pick was horrendous, as he fired a pass into heavy traffic. Carr was better in the second half, but only after the Panthers lost Shaq Thompson to injury.
Olave and Tony Jones Jr. were the heroes for the Saints’ offense. Including his ridiculous one-handed catch, Olave logged six receptions for 86 yards. It appeared as though he scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter, but his foot grazed the out-of-bounds line. Rashid Shaheed (4-63) was next on the stat sheet, followed by Michael Thomas (7-55).

Jones, meanwhile, took over for the injured Williams and ran well. The stats don’t show it – 12 carries, 34 yards – but he picked up short-yardage attempts at a high rate, and he scored two touchdowns. He and Taysom Hill (9-75) split the workload after Williams (9-29) was knocked out of the game.
The top Carolina skill player was Adam Thielen, who caught seven passes for 54 yards and the push touchdown at the very end. Thielen should have had another 15-yard reception added to his total, but Young missed him poorly. Jonathan Mingo (3-26) dropped a pass. Meanwhile, Miles Sanders (14-43) lost the receiving work to Chuba Hubbard, who caught five passes for 34 receiving yards.

Steelers 26, Browns 22

Cleveland football fans must think they are cursed. The Browns had a promising start to the season, beating the Bengals soundly and holding a lead for most of the night in Pittsburgh, but disaster struck in this game. Nick Chubb received a carry near the goal line, but was seen grimacing in pain as he struggled to get up. Chubb was ultimately carted off the field in an air cast, which could mark the end of his season.

This would obviously be a monumental loss for the Browns, as Chubb is arguably the best runner in the NFL. Jerome Ford looked good in relief of Chubb in this game, but there’s no comparing the two players, as Chubb is an elite talent.

Despite the Chubb injury, the Browns had a real chance to win this game. They held a 22-19 lead entering the fourth quarter after overcoming a fluky pick-six to start the game. Myles Garrett and the rest of the Cleveland front swarmed Kenny Pickett, who struggled throughout the evening. It didn’t seem like Pickett would be able to lead the team to victory, but he didn’t have to because Pittsburgh’s defense scored its second defensive touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter. Alex Highsmith knocked the ball out of Deshaun Watson’s hands, allowing T.J. Watt to have a scoop and score. The Steelers took a 26-22 lead as a result, and their defense put the clamps on the Browns for the rest of the final quarter to clinch the victory.
This was a crucial win for the Steelers, but the concerns with Pickett will continue to linger. The Steelers won in spite of Pickett, who completed only half of his passes. Pickett went 15-of-30 for 222 yards, one touchdown and an interception where he didn’t see the safety. Pickett missed numerous receivers throughout the night. The good news is that Pickett will have a much easier matchup next week as the Steelers play the Raiders, but it’s hard to feel optimistic about him right now.
Another issue the Steelers must overcome is the sketchy play-calling. For some reason, Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Matt Canada loves to involve some of the lesser-talented players on offense like Gunner Olszewski and Najee Harris. Running Harris at this point, especially in second-and-long situations, is inexcusable. Harris is a sunk cost, and the Steelers must realize this. Harris mustered only 43 yards on 10 carries, but 21 yards came on one burst. He also dropped a pass. Meanwhile, Jaylen Warren continued to be the better player. Warren didn’t get to do much on the ground (6-20), but he caught four passes for 66 receiving yards.
Warren was second on the Steelers in receiving, finishing behind George Pickens, who scored on a 71-yard touchdown. Pickens reeled in four receptions for 127 yards and a touchdown.
Going back to the Browns, Watson didn’t have the best night either, going 22-of-40 for 235 yards, one touchdown and an interception. Watson easily could have thrown two picks, but a Pittsburgh defender dropped the ball in the end zone. Watson’s interception, which was taken back for six, wasn’t his fault because the ball bounced off Hunter Bryant’s hands. This was one of two drops Bryant had on the evening.
The Browns obviously missed Chubb, but Ford was excellent. He dashed for 106 yards on just 16 carries, including a 69-yard scamper where he appeared to score before replay review reversed it. He also caught three passes for 25 receiving yards and a touchdown.
While Chubb was knocked out, Cleveland’s other star skill player, Amari Cooper, was able to suit up despite being questionable heading into this game. Cooper led the team in receiving with seven grabs for 90 yards, followed by David Njoku (4-48), who lost a fumble in the second half.

For more thoughts, check out my updated NFL Power Rankings, which will be posted Tuesday morning.

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