Week 2 in the NFL provided ample late-game drama, opening up with a blow-out win on Thursday night football in Buffalo’s favor over Miami.
Bills running back James Cook led the team with three touchdowns in the first half of this game, while Josh Allen went 13/19 throwing for 139 yards, and 1 touchdown. A contest that also included a frightening injury in the third quarter to Dolphins QB, Tua Tagovailoa: an injury that had the entire football world conversing about if Tua should step away from the game after his history of concussions – suffering his third. The question right now is, how many is too many for Tua?
The Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, attempting to start the season 2-0 for the fifth time in Patrick Mahomes’s eighth season. Dramatically, the Chiefs pulled out the 26-25 win over Cincinnati late in the fourth quarter. A costly pass interference penalty came on fourth-and-20 in the Chiefs’ favor, putting them in field goal range and giving Harrison Butker a chance to cap off the win.
Then there’s the injury to last year’s NFL Offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffrey (Achilles tendonitis) who has been placed on IR since Week 1 and has yet to touch the field this season. In Jordan Mason’s third year in the NFL, he has done a spectacular job standing out as that next man up for San Fransisco. When star RB was marked on IR, fans were worried about the success 49ers would create without him, but Mason pulled out 324 yards, 4.8 average yards per carry, and 2 touchdowns. On the other hand, Kansas City star running back Isiah Pacheco suffered a fractured fibula late in the game and is expected to miss 6-8 weeks.
On the field, the New Orleans Saints battered the Dallas Cowboys in the early window, winning 44-19. Then Cleveland took a 16-3 win in the second half before holding off the Jacksonville Jaguars with an 18-13 victory. It’s a bit of a disastrous start for Jacksonville, as teams that start 0-2 only make the playoffs 11.5% of the time.
And for the first time ever, Aaron Rodgers had his first win as a member of the New York Jets. The Jets rallied in a 24-17 victory over Tennessee to improve to 1-1. New York’s defense continues to dominate, forcing two turnovers and four sacks against Titans QB Will Levis. The Jets also stiffened in the red zone, only allowing a touchdown on one of four trips. Tennessee’s turnovers have been a killer for them thus far, and the Jets’ defense took advantage of every single hole they could get to. As for the Jets offense, Breece Hall has been the do-it-all weapon. He recorded 14 carries for 62 yards while catching seven passes for 52 yards and a touchdown.
There’s so much to look forward to in week 3, with a ton of highlight moments and momentum-gaining wins in week 2. On the other hand, there are a bunch of injuries that will affect teams heavily, and although it’s still very early in the season, the playoff picture is already blooming. Which route will your team take?
