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Minnesota 23, San Francisco 17 – This was a result which I had not foreseen. Perhaps I was expecting the Vikings to show the weaknesses and irregularities which seemed to define them last season, but it was another Minnesota team which has shown up so far this season. Beating the Giants on the road, even by blowout, is one thing. But besting the 49ers, one of the true elites and Super Bowl favorites this season is quite another. Minnesota got off to a decent start, and had built a 10-0 lead by midway through the second quarter, and took a 13-7 lead into the lockers by halftime. They added a touchdown for a 13-point lead in the third quarter and, critically, kept San Fran from scoring in that quarter, as well. The Niners did show signs of life and tried to rally in the fourth quarter, scoring a touchdown and making it a one possession game again. But Minnesota notched a field goal to expand the lead to nine again with just three and-a-half minutes to go. The 49ers got a field goal, but the Vikings held on for a big win, improving to 2-0 on the season. San Francisco, meanwhile, suffers their first loss of the season and falls to 1-1. Statistically, the two teams were quite even, but the Vikings were able to take advantage of their opportunities just a little bit better. My pick: Inaccurate
Washington 21, NY Giants – 18 – Leave it to the Giants to have a great game defensively, not allow a single touchdown, while their own offense scored three touchdowns, yet to still find a way to lose. Granted, Washington’s placekicker, Austin Seibert, had a record day. Prior to this, the most field goals any placekicker had made in a single game in franchise history was five, but Seibert blew past that record with seven. Still, going for two-point conversions twice proved not to be too wise for the G-Men. They missed a PAT attempt in the first quarter, than went for – and missed – both two-point conversions on their other two touchdowns. Improbable as that seems, that is what happened. And it cost Big Blue in a big way in this game. Somehow, the G-Men’s defense managed to bend without breaking. Washington held onto the ball for over 37 minutes and produced a total of 425 yards of offense, to just 304 for the Giants. Still, the Commanders were prevented from reaching the end zone even once, which should have translated, frankly, to a “W.” But it did not, and the Giants remain one of four winless in the NFC, and one of nine overall so far. Not good. My pick: Inaccurate
NY Jets 24, Tennessee 17 – I predicted that the Jets would top the Titans in this one. Just because I am not on the Gang Green Super Bowl wagon, does not mean that I feel that they are a terrible team. They have a tough defense, and it figured that the presence of a veteran quarterback – one of the greatest of all time – would help them. On this day, it did, as Aaron Rodgers completed 18 of 30 passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns. Not a banner day, but the kind of performance that helped lift them past Tennessee in this one. The Jets were opportunistic on defense, forcing two turnovers and four sacks. It was not an easy win, or even necessarily a pretty one. But a win’s a win, and Gang Green earned their first one of the season, improving to 1-1. Meanwhile, the Titans fall to 0-2 on the year. My pick: Accurate
LA Chargers 26, Carolina 3 – The Chargers earned a solid win against the Raiders to start the season, and then went on the road and simply dominated the Panthers in the second week. The Chargers built an impressive 20-0 lead by halftime, and never looked back. They produced 349 total yards and 21 first downs on offense, to just 159 yards and seven first downs for Carolina. Los Angeles held onto the ball for over 36 minutes, and had only three penalties costing them just 15 yards, while the undisciplined Panthers had nine penalties costing them 90 yards. And despite the Chargers actually producing more turnovers (two) than the Panthers (just one), this game really was never in question. Simply a dominant performance on both sides of the ball, as the Chargers improve to 2-0 on the young season. The Panthers, meanwhile, fall to 0-2, and have produced a total of 13 points on offense in their two games, easily the least of any team in the league other than the Falcons, who play on Monday Night Football. As for the Chargers, they will face their first real test next weekend, when they go on the road to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. My pick: Accurate
New Orleans 44, Dallas 19 – Now this result may have been the most shocking one of this weekend. It actually reminded me a bit of that blowout loss that the Cowboys suffered last January in the playoffs against Green Bay. New Orleans largely relied on the strength of the running of Alvin Kamara, who produced 115 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries. In the first half, the Saints kept producing touchdowns, while the ‘Boys mostly could only get field goals. New Orleans had built a very impressive 35-16 lead by halftime, and just never allowed Dallas back in this one. The biggest difference was the glaring difference in the running game for the two teams. New Orleans managed 190 rushing yards, while Dallas produced a mere 68 yards. They just had no answers against that Saints running game on this day. My pick: Wildly Inaccurate
Las Vegas 26, Baltimore 23 – Another of the numerous games which I got wrong this weekend. Admittedly, I expected the Ravens to come out playing better than this. But whatever criticisms people may have of Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew, he sure seems to have a gift for winning some games. He had a magnificent day in this one, completing 30 of 38 passes for 276 yards and one touchdown, although eh also had one INT. Mostly, this was the story of the Raiders coming back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter and getting hot, coming back to win it by playing immaculate football in the final minutes, and stealing one on the road against a team that had figured to be one of the elites in the AFC. My pick: Inaccurate
Seattle 23, New England 20 (OT) – This one was difficult to predict. And indeed, both teams played well enough to win. Neither team gave up any turnovers, and they were mostly even throughout. After the Pats scored a touchdown in the first to earn a 7-0 lead, neither team enjoyed a lead of more than four points for the rest of the game. Ultimately, it went all the way to overtime, and the opportunistic Seahawks just managed to earn the win with a field goal. Seattle improves to 2-0 and, rather astonishingly, stand alone (for now) atop the NFC West. Who saw that one coming? Meanwhile, the Pats fall to 1-1 after suffering their first loss of the season. My pick: Inaccurate
Green Bay 16, Indianapolis 10 – It felt like the Colts dropped a golden opportunity, with Love out of this game. But Indy quarterback Anthony Richardson threw three picks, which obviously hurt quite a bit. The Colts only had a field goal to show for their efforts until they finally scored a touchdown inside of the final two minutes. It was not a pretty win for Green Bay, but they held onto the ball for over forty minutes, and came up with a gameplan without love that gave them a chance. And they took that chance, and made the most of it, earning their first win of the season. The Packers improve to 1-1 on the season with their first win, while Indianapolis falls to 0-2, and still are seeking their first win this season. My pick: Accurate
Cleveland 18, Jacksonville 13 – While I got this prediction right in terms of which team ended up winning, it did not come the way I expected. It seemed that these two teams might produce a few more offensive fireworks than they actually managed to do. Each team earned exactly one touchdown, and otherwise relied on field goals. Nothing spectacular on offense for either team, although the Browns notably had 13 penalties costing them 100 yards. So they earn a sloppy, ugly win, but a win is a win. Cleveland improves to 1-1 on the year, while Jax drops to 0-2. My pick: Accurate
Tampa Bay 20, Detroit 16 – Another one which I clearly got wrong. My assumption was that Detroit was the better team, and that they would eventually overwhelm Tampa Bay. If you look at the statistics, and not the final score, you might think that the Lions proved it. They earned 463 yards and 26 first downs on offense, to just 216 yards and 14 first downs for the Bucs. The Bucs also barely ever converted on third down opportunities and allowed Detroit’s defense to get five sacks. Yet somehow, the Bucs managed to hang in there, and Baker Mayfield produced a stunning touchdown drive in the final minutes of the game to lift the Bucs over the Lions and kind of steal a win on the road. Who woulda thunk it, huh? My pick: Inaccurate
Arizona 41, LA Rams 10 – If the New Orleans romp over Dallas was not the game I got the most wrong this weekend, it would then surely be this one. The Rams seemed to be the better team in my estimation. Boy, was I ever wrong! The Cardinals offense was unstoppable, and had built a solid 21-0 lead by early in the second quarter. The Rams finally got on the scoreboard with a field goal, but were behind 24-3 by halftime. If there was any suspense left in this game, it was ended when the Cards scored yet another touchdown to take a 31-3 lead relatively early in the third quarter, then added yet another field goal for a 34-3 lead towards the end of the third quarter. After that, the points were largely cosmetic and meaningless. Overall, the Cardinals produced 489 yards and 24 first downs on offense, to just 245 yards and 14 first downs for the Rams. Arizona also held onto the ball for almost 37 minutes, and were surprisingly efficient on third down, converting 7 of 11 chances. An astonishingly dominant display by the Cardinals, who may be better than I had given them credit for, admittedly. Arizona improves to 1-1, while the Rams now fall to 0-2. Fans in LA might be saying “Uh, oh!: after this start to the season. A little too reminiscent of their disastrous title defense season two years ago, when they fell from the heights to have one of the worst records in the league. My pick: Wildly Inaccurate
Pittsburgh 13, Denver 6 – This was the kind of game that you figured would favor the Steelers. Low-scoring, tough defense, and few opportunities. Pittsburgh dominated this game more than the score might suggest, as they held a 16-0 lead until well into the fourth quarter, when the Broncos finally managed a couple of field goals to give themselves an outside chance. But they fell far short in this one. Pittsburgh remains unbeaten at 2-0, while Denver remains winless, falling to 0-2 on the year. My pick: Accurate
Kansas City 26, Cincinnati 25 – Give Cincy credit where credit is due: they always play the Chiefs tough. That’s difficult to do, given how talented and explosive KC tends to be. But somehow, these games – which always seem to be played at Arrowhead Stadium – always seem to come down to the final minute. The Bengals had won a few in a row for a while. But then, the Chiefs won that AFC title game a couple of years ago, and the momentum has now swing back in their favor. The Bengals can keep it close, like they did in this one. Somehow, it seems not quite enough in the past few seasons. This one was also a back and forth affair. The Bengals produced more yards, 320 to 286 for KC, although the Chiefs had a slight advantage in numbers of first downs. The Bengals got three turnovers, but they also had eight penalties which cost them 79 yards, while the Chiefs only had four penalties costing them 44 yards. Joe Burrow had a more impressive game than Mahomes did, completing 23 of 36 for 258 yards and two touchdowns, while Mahomes completed just 18 of 25 yards for 151 yards and two TD’s, but also two INT’s. Still, it was KC who had the answer at the end, with a last second field goal successfully converted, earning the defending champions a win by a razor thin margin. The win lifted Kansas City to 2-0 on the year, while Cincy fell to a surprising 0-2 start. My pick: Accurate
Houston 19, Chicago 13 – More or less what I was expecting. Maybe slightly more offense, particularly from the Texans, although games with the Bears often tend to be low-scoring affainrs, don’t they? Caleb Williams still has not produced too much at the helm, completing 23 of 37 for 174 yards and two INT’s. CJ Stroud, meanwhile, completed 23 of 36 passes for 260 yards and one touchdown. The defenses were tough on both sides, with neither offense producing much in the way of yards or first downs. The time of possession was mostly even, and the Texans only had one turnover, while Chicago had two. The Bears were penalized nine times for 60 yards, while Houston got 12 penalties costing a whopping 115 yards. Very undisciplined in that regard. Still, it was the Texans who took a bit better advantage of their opportunities, and earned a solid win, raising their record to 2-0. The Bears, meanwhile, suffer their first loss of the season and fall to 1-1. My pick: Accurate
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