Posts tagged: winners

Needing only a few inches to keep its final drive alive and give itself a chance to score a go-ahead touchdown, Atlanta was stuffed by Kansas City’s defense on Sunday, a stop that closed out the Chiefs’ narrow, 22-17 win that keeps them undefeated at 3-0.

In many ways the play, when running back Bijan Robinson ran to this left and lost three yards under pressure from Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton, was a microcosm of Atlanta’s frustrating offensive night. Atlanta, which is now 1-2, ran only 56 plays and gained only 3.3 yards per carry. 

This fourth quarter has had so many “almost” moments. Nearly a punt over the head of Chiefs punter Matt Araiza. Nearly a fumbled punt return. Nearly a bobbled reception. And this 15-play drive by the Falcons ends with two more “almost” plays — an incompletion on third-and-5 from the 6-yard line to Kyle Pitts that caromed off his hands and a defender, followed by an incompletion in the end zone to Drake London on fourth-and-5.

Instead of scoring what would have been a go-ahead touchdown or taking a field goal and pulling within two points of Kansas City, the Falcons wind up with nothing to show for their 83-yard drive.

After forcing a Kansas City punt, Atlanta looked to have given the ball back when punt returner Avery Wiliams was stripped of the ball and Kansas City recovered just yards from the end zone.

Instead, a replay review determined Williams was down before he fumbled — by a fortuitous moment when his forearm touched the turf. Atlanta’s offense has been shaky all night, but can it capitalize on a momentum swing?

Despite Kirk Cousins needing to run for his life to avoid Kansas City’s pressure on consecutive plays, Atlanta still has life early in the fourth quarter. The Falcons scored their first points of the second half on Younghoe Koo’s 54-yard field goal with 12 minutes to play that trims their deficit to 22-17.

Running right to left across the field, JuJu Smith-Schuster found open room to run and Patrick Mahomes recognized it immediately before connecting with Smith-Schuster on a 13-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter.

The Chiefs now lead 22-14, after Harrison Butker missed the extra point.

The Chiefs have no run 36 — yes, 36 — more plays than Atlanta.

Ever since Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce became teammates in Kansas City, the offense has revolved around that duo, plus a third option — usually a speedy receiver, or a back with an opportune sense of timing.

Tonight in Atlanta their offense has boiled down to Mahomes targeting Rashee Rice in the passing game (a career-high 12 receptions for 110 yards, including a touchdown) and Andy Reid dialing up touches for rookie Carson Steele in the running game. Steele has 15 carries for 64 yards, including 10 carries in the second half alone. Travis Kelce still hasn’t been much of a focus.

Harrison Butker’s third field goal of the game, from 21 yards, pushes Kansas City to the lead for the first time with nine minutes to go in the third quarter. Another long drive for the Chiefs — this time, 11 plays — that doesn’t finish in a touchdown. They’re 1 for 3 in the red zone so far. Keep monitoring their efficiency there.

At halftime in Atlanta, there’s one question hanging over the Chiefs: Can Patrick Mahomes continue to manufacture offense all by himself?

After attempting 25 passes in Week 1 and 28 in Week 2, Mahomes has already thrown 27 times — with 17 completions — in just Sunday’s first half against the Falcons. The results have been mixed, with 128 yards passing and one touchdown and interception apiece, but with the ground game producing only 67 yards on 15 carries, the Chiefs haven’t shown better options than their star QB’s right arm. Of the Chiefs’ 13 first downs, eight have come by passes.

The Falcons’ offense, meanwhile, is just trying to stay on the field, having run only 23 plays.

Unable to get much time to throw behind an offensive line featuring two backups, Kirk Cousins lobbed a pass that was easily intercepted by Chamarri Conner, who then lateraled to teammate Jaylen Watson for a few more yards. 

Late in the first half, Atlanta saw two of its offensive linemen hobble off with lower-leg injuries and were listed as questionable to return. Center Drew Dalman had his ankle rolled up on by a falling lineman, and right tackle Kaleb McGary followed him off the field shortly after.

Any issues with protection could be a problem for quarterback Kirk Cousins, who isn’t particularly mobile and is still recovering from tearing his Achilles tendon last season.

Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker fell to one knee while kicking his 53-yard field goal with 2:43 remaining in the first half that pulled Kansas City within 14-10. The drive stalled when Kansas City couldn’t convert on third-and-2. For the night, it’s 4-6 on third downs.

Falcons QB Kirk Cousins found Kyle Pitts for a 50-yard gain down to the 1-yard line and Atlanta scored one play later on a run by Bijan Robinson for a 14-7 Falcons lead. 

How unexpected was the big play through the air? Well, until that completion, Atlanta had only produced four pass plays of 20+ yards, and just one of 40-plus yards, in its previous two games combined. Both those marks ranked Atlanta near the bottom of the NFL.

Even while taking a forearm to his facemask, Patrick Mahomes is able to tie this game by ending yet another long Chiefs drive with a touchdown. His 13-yard pass to Rashee Rice ties it at 7-7 after a 13-play drive.

It’s only the first quarter, but Atlanta’s inability to turn its interception of Mahomes into points feels like it could be significant for the Falcons, who had the ball for only five plays before punting back to Kansas City.

After spending more than eight minutes driving down the field, the Chiefs come up empty after Patrick Mahomes was intercepted in the end zone on the drive’s 17th play by Justin Simmons. Simmons wasn’t the primary defender on tight end Noah Gray, but swooped in underneath the route to pick off Mahomes.

Incredibly, that’s the fourth consecutive game that Simmons has intercepted Mahomes.

Atlanta kept Kansas City’s defense guessing the entire first drive, one that ended with Falcons wideout Drake London wide open for a 14-yard touchdown catch from Kirk Cousins.

The Falcons lead 7-0 after a seven-play, 70-yard drive. As usual with the Chiefs, the question is now, how does Patrick Mahomes answer?

The Rams didn’t lead all day against San Francisco — until two seconds remained in the fourth quarter.

It was enough to secure the Rams’ first win.

Joshua Karty’s 37-yard field goal with two seconds left pushed Los Angeles ahead 27-24, and the Rams then survived a wild series of laterals by San Francisco as time ran out in a desperate attempt for its own go-ahead score to capped a wild ending and 14-point comeback at Sofi Stadium. 

The Rams had trailed by as much as 21-7 with seven minutes left in the third quarter.

Karty’s kick was set up after San Francisco committed three defensive penalties on one play with 42 seconds left, including a pass interference that moved the ball 25 yards to the San Francisco 25. Two plays later, Karty kicked the field goal. 

San Francisco outgained the Rams by 129 yards overall, committed fewer penalties, was slightly more efficient on third down and held the ball for six minutes longer. And yet, the 49ers (1-2) are now 0-2 this season on the road. The Rams are now 3-5 against San Francisco in Los Angeles under coach Sean McVay.

After a huge push by the Cowboys in the second half, the Ravens finally ran out the clock and secured the victory.

Baltimore was dominant on the ground for most of the day, and its rushing attack sealed the deal when needed most. Dallas went on a 22-7 run in the second half, but the deficit was too big to overcome.

It‘s the Ravens’ first win of the season and the Cowboys’ second straight loss. Both teams are now 1-2.

Dallas woke up in the second half and now we have a one-score game.

Dak Prescott found KaVontae Turpin for a 16-yard touchdown, the Cowboys converted the two pointer and now trail 28-25 with a little under three minutes to go.

The Lions will run out the clock and beat the Cardinals 20-13.

A nice bounce back for Detroit after losing to Tampa Bay a week ago. Jared Goff threw for 198 yards and David Montgomery ran for 106 more.

The Lions improve to 2-1. The Cardinals fall to 1-2.

Behind Kyren Williams’s third touchdown of the day, the Rams have tied San Francisco, 24-24, with 1:51 left in the fourth quarter. A missed field goal by San Francisco left Los Angeles a short field, and they went 55 yards for a touchdown in only three plays.

For the first time in the second half, someone has scored in Arizona. 

The Cardinals’ Matt Prater hit a 45-yard field goal to pull Arizona within 20-13 of Detroit with 3:48 to play. Until that scoring drive, Arizona’s previous six drives had ended either on downs, with a punt or interception.

Arizona defensive back Brian Branch and San Francisco’s Trey McBride collided violently midway through the fourth quarter and both players had to be helped off the field.

McBride caught a pass and lowered his shoulder as both players hit helmet-to-helmet, and both remained still on the field briefly as team personnel surrounded both. Branch was later moving around on the Cardinals sideline under his own power, while McBride was also taken off the field.

Dallas is making it interesting.

After recovering an onside kick, the Cowboys got into the end zone. But they failed a two-point attempt, keeping it a two-score game.

Wow! Dallas has recovered an onside kick, the first team to do so this season. The Cowboys had to declare the onside before doing so, but recovered anyway. Can they get another score?

Dallas has its first touchdown of the day.

After a 23-yard pass to KaVontae Turpin set them up at the 1, Dak Prescott snuck in for a touchdown. After a failed two-point attempt, Dallas trails 28-12.

Following San Francisco’s 13-play drive that ended in a field goal early in the fourth quarter, the Rams answered with … a 13-play drive that ended with a field goal. 

Joshua Kart’s 33-yarder with 6:15 remaining in the fourth quarter pulled the Rams within 24-17. But the question is, can the Rams’ defense get the ball back in time to give their offense a chance to tie? The 49ers’ scoring drives tonight have lasted 3:48, 7:53, 6:27 and 6:56.

San Francisco’s Jake Moody remains perfect on field-goal attempts this season, improving to 8-for-8 after a 26-yard kick that pushed the 49ers’ lead to 24-14 over the Rams with 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Miles Sanders pounded the ball into the end zone to extend Carolina’s lead in the second half.

Thanks in part to a couple Ravens penalties, the Cowboys’ defense finally stopped the bleeding, getting a much needed stop. Baltimore will punt, still leading 28-6 with under two minutes to go in the fourth.

Not sure if the Dallas defense or offense has been worse today. After the Ravens’ fourth touchdown, the Cowboys ran eight plays for only 23 yards and will punt. They are running out of time to stay in this game.

The Ravens are playing angry today.

On their first drive of the second half, Baltimore added to its lead over the Cowboys. The Ravens are now up 28-3 after a Derrick Henry 26-yard touchdown run.

Eddie Pineiro drilled a 35-yard field goal to pad Carolina’s lead on Vegas. This new-look offense behind Andy Dalton is humming.

Miami’s quarterback situation is going from bad to worse. With Tua Tagovailoa already out, now backup Skylar Thompson is leaving the game with an apparent rib injury.

Tim Boyle, signed to the active roster this week, is next up on the depth chart.

The Cowboys add three points before the second half, and they need all the points they can get. Baltimore leads 21-6 headed into the break.

The Cowboys’ defense is struggling for the second straight week.

Lamar Jackson found Rashod Bateman in the back of the end zone for Baltimore’s third touchdown of the first half. The Ravens now lead 21-3 with 25 seconds left in the second quarter.

After getting demolished by the Saints in Week 2, Dallas’s defense hasn’t stepped up so far in Week 3.

After nearly committing a disastrous turnover, Detroit finished a drive just before halftime against the Cardinals with a textbook hook-and-ladder touchdown play.

With just before two minutes left in the half, a pass by Detroit’s Jared Goff bounced off a helmet before being intercepted by Arizona’s Mack Wilson Sr. and returned for an apparent Cardinals touchdown that would have tied the score at 13. Instead, officials blew the play dead because of the two-minute warning. Replays showed the ball was snapped with 2:01 in the half, however.

Detroit took advantage and padded its lead quickly after, when Amon-Ra St. Brown ran a curl, caught the pass from Goff and then flipped it to teammate Jahmyr Gibbs, who tore up the sideline for 20 yards and a 20-7 lead.

Arizona ended the first half with a field goal to cut their deficit to 20-10.

After Carolina benched former No. 1 pick Bryce Young, they turned to Andy Dalton. So far, it’s worked out splendidly.

Dalton has 212 yards and three scores in the first half alone as the Panthers are up 21-7 on the Raiders just prior to half.

Two minutes and 28 seconds after taking over the ball, the Ravens punted back to the Cowboys. Dallas will have another chance to cut into the lead before halftime.

Dak Prescott was in the grasp of the Ravens’ defense and in the end zone but managed to get the ball out of his hands. The Cowboys avoided a safety, but punted trailing 14-3.

In a game that has been all about offense, Detroit took back its lead over Arizona, 13-7, after Jared Goff connected with Amon-Ra St. Brown for a five-yard touchdown early in the second quarter.

Goff has completed his first seven passes for 72 yards and a touchdown — with St. Brown responsible for three catches for 36 yards — while Arizona’s Kyler Murray completed his first four passes, including a touchdown.

Baltimore can’t get much going after a CeeDee Lamb fumble, and will punt back to the Cowboys. Nice stand by the Dallas defense.

San Francisco’s wideout caught touchdowns of 13 and four yards as part of a three-catch, 51-yard first quarter in Los Angeles that saw the 49ers lead the Rams 14-0.

Marvin Harrison Jr.’s one-catch NFL debut feels like a long time ago.

Arizona’s star rookie wideout caught a 10-yard touchdown pass from Kyler Murray to even the score with Detroit at 7-7. It was his latest impact play early in his first NFL season.

Of Harrison Jr.’s last six catches this season, three have gone for touchdowns. 

The Ravens now lead 14-3 after a seven-play, 70-yard drive that resulted in a Derrick Henry touchdown run.

Baltimore has had no issues moving the ball on Dallas so far. That’s two touchdowns on two drives for the 0-2 Ravens.

After a Ravens touchdown, the Cowboys cut into the lead with a field goal.

Dallas managed only 23 yards in seven plays, but Brandon Aubrey nailed a 65-yard field goal.

Detroit’s David Montgomery led off one of the more intriguing undercard matchups of the day with a one-yard dive for a touchdown and 7-0 Lions lead.

It was only right that Montgomery capped the opening drive with a touchdown, considering he had already carried it five times by that point, including a tough, 14-yard run, complete with a stiff-arm, that set up the touchdown.

A nine-yard run from Lamar Jackson gives Baltimore a 7-0 lead in Dallas.

For the first time in this young season, Cleveland’s quarterback created highlight-worthy plays against the Giants, including a perfectly placed 24-yard touchdown pass to Amari Cooper on Cleveland’s first play from scrimmage. Watson completed 21 of 37 passes for 196 yards, and added a second touchdown pass to Cooper in the fourth quarter. 

Yet Watson was sacked eight times and, facing a critical fourth-and-1 late in the fourth quarter, couldn’t find an open receiver before being tackled well short of the sticks. Given one more opportunity to score a go-ahead touchdown, Cleveland (1-2) managed only six yards on four plays before Watson’s final attempt went incomplete. The Giants are now 1-2.

Two false start penalties set the Cowboys back, and now they’ll punt after a strange seven-play, 13-yard drive.

Seattle is up 10 early on the Dolphins. The touchdown was set up by an impressive DK Metcalf catch.

Andy Dalton leads a touchdown drive for the Panthers.

Two weeks after Green Bay’s status as a trendy pick to make the Super Bowl appeared uncertain following an injury to star quarterback Jordan Love, the Packers still look like one of the top teams to beat in the NFC.

Love’s backup, Malik Willis, threw for 202 yards and a touchdown while completing 13 of his 19 passes, and also ran for 73 yards, including a touchdown to open the game’s scoring. The Packers never trailed and are now 2-1, including 2-0 since Willis was forced into the starting job.

Facing a blitz and pressure in his face, Derek Carr threw deep over the middle of the field off his back foot and was picked off! The Eagles are going to win.

The winless Broncos are no longer winless. And the undefeated Buccaneers are no longer undefeated.

Denver pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the day, winning 26-7. Bo Nix played his best game as a pro, throwing for 216 yards and running for a touchdown.

It was a much-needed bounce back for the Broncos. The Bucs were riding high after a win after the Lions, but Baker Mayfield struggled in this one. He threw for only 163 yards and was sacked seven times.

Another Saquon Barkley touchdown has the Eagles back on top. Following the Dallas Goedert 61-yard catch and run, Philly now leads 15-12 after a two-point conversion.

Wow! The Eagles looked dead in the water on 3rd-and-16, but Dallas Goedert caught a drag route and ran down the field inside the 10. That’s a huge play.

Is this the most improbable 3-0 team in the league?

Justin Fields and the Steelers are undefeated after a win over the Chargers today. Justin Herbert was limited with an ankle injury and left the game early. Fields was 25 of 32 with 245 yards with a touchdown and a pick.

Pittsburgh’s defense has been stout and its offense has been good enough early in the season. With Russell Wilson not having even taken a regular season snap yet, this is an incredibly encouraging start for the Steelers.

Derek Carr lofts a perfect throw to Chris Olave, and the Saints are back on top. New Orleans went for two after the touchdown and but couldn’t convert. It’s 12-7 Saints.

Derek Carr made a play the Saints have desperately needed. He uncorked a laser to Chris Olave for 29 yards, setting up New Orleans deep in Philly territory. Can the Saints get the go-ahead score?

Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze BOTH scored their first NFL touchdown on this play.

Injuries are piling up for the Eagles’ offense. Devonta Smith is now OUT with a concussion, following Lane Johnson, who left the game with the same injury earlier.

Wow. After a huge third-down conversion by the Eagles, the Saints defense held up in their own territory, forcing a fourth down.

Philly opted to kick a 60-yard field goal and it was a mistake. Jake Elliott wasn’t close, and New Orleans will take over on the 50.

Dallas Goedert made a juggling catch and ran free for a first down, a 28-yard gain that put the Eagles in Saints territory. Remember that catch if Philly pulls out this game.

The Eagles still lead, but it’s now 7-6 in New Orleans after a Saints field goal.

An eight-play, 50-yard drive only resulted in three points for New Orleans. Derek Carr needs to find something if the Saints are going to win this game. He’s 11 of 20 passing for only 94 yards so far today.

There are less than 10 minutes to go after the kick.

The Texans are on the board, and this game is far from over.

Saquon Barkley breaks free and the Eagles are on the board! A game-changing run gives Philly its first score and lead of the day.

The Eagles actually punted on fourth down for once — and it was blocked!

In a defensive battle, that’s a huge mistake. The Saints will take over deep in Philly territory.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert entered today’s game recovering from a high ankle sprain he suffered last week. He just exited the game in the third quarter and was replaced for at least one play by Taylor Heinicke after appearing to aggravate the injury.

Sam Darnold is now up to three touchdowns on the day.

It’s the first career touchdown for Emanuel Wilson.

Wow.

Philadelphia tried to convert a 4th-and-3 on its first drive after halftime, and Jalen Hurts was sacked for five yards. That’s the second straight failed fourth-down conversion for the Eagles.

Philly has moved the ball reasonably well and dominated the time of possession against the Saints, but the Eagles have no points to show for it.

The Eagles’ offense is already struggling today, and now they will be without one of their key players.

Right tackle Lane Johnson is out for the rest of today’s game against the Saints with a concussion.

Minnesota leads Houston 14-0 at halftime, and its defense has dominated.

The Texans are averaging only 3.8 yards per play. And phenom quarterback C.J. Stroud had thrown for only 94 yards and a pick.

As great as Sam Darnold has been so far this year, Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores deserves credit as well. This is the second straight week he’s faced a serious offensive challenge and Minnesota’s defense has been up to the task.

Malik Nabers is having himself a game. He has two touchdowns before halftime.

This was the biggest game of the early window, and it’s been a surprisingly defensive-minded contest.

The Saints had the hottest offense in the NFL through two weeks but have only three points in the first half. The Eagles have had a little more success moving the ball, but Jalen Hurts has two turnovers. Philadelphia also turned the ball over on downs right before the half, trying to convert a 4th-and-1 instead of kicking a short field goal.

Philly’s defense has really stepped up. New Orleans has only 71 yards at half and is averaging a meager 2.6 yards per play. Derek Carr has thrown for 51 yards, a far cry from the video game numbers he put up in the first two weeks.

The Bucs finally get on the board before halftime.

What a catch by Malik Nabers to give the Giants the lead in Cleveland.

The Colts broke a scoreless tie in Indy.

Jalen Hurts has an interception and a fumble today. He turned the ball over three times in Week 1, and threw a pick in Philly’s Week 2 win.

While Hurts has looked better physically at times — he ran the ball really well last week — the turnovers are troubling. He had only 6 interceptions in 2022 when the Eagles made it to the Super Bowl. He’s over halfway to that total this year through less than three full games.

The Steelers’ offense scores its second touchdown of the season.

Sam Darnold already has two touchdown passes today.

Will Levis’s weekly devastating turnover leads to a Green Bay touchdown.

Will Levis’s latest interception was not only a pick six, it was his sixth turnover of the season and the Titans haven’t played three full games yet. Tennessee hasn’t been a pushover early in the season. At the same time, Levis hasn’t exactly inspired confidence, with some baffling giveaways in each game so far.

The 0-2 Broncos have a two-touchdown lead on the 2-0 Buccaneers. This is a much needed bounceback from Denver, which looked so bad early in the season people were beginning to loudly question Sean Payton.

Bo Nix is keeping things pretty clean, he’s 5-of-6 for 72 yards. He’s rushed for a score and hasn’t made any mistakes.

The Chargers are on the board first in Pittsburgh.

The Titans have tied it up in Tennessee.

Minnesota takes an early lead in a battle of undefeated teams.

Denver has an early lead on the undefeated Bucs.

Malik Willis has a rushing touchdown against his former team.

After a Giants fumble on the opening kick, the Browns scored on their first play from scrimmage.

After losing wide receiver Puka Nacua (knee) in Week 1, the Rams will now be without Cooper Kupp (ankle) for an “extended period of time” after he suffered an injury in Week 2. The Rams are now missing their top two receivers, three offensive linemen in Jonah Jackson (shoulder), Steve Avila (knee), Joe Noteboom (ankle), safety John Johnson III (shoulder) and cornerback Darious Williams,

“We’ve had some unfortunate breaks,” head coach Sean McVay said. “It’s nothing like I’ve been exposed to. This is unique, but this is an opportunity for us to be what we say we want to be.”

You can go home again in the NFL.

Ravens QB Lamar Jackson has owned the NFC in his NFL career… he is 20-1 all- time in 21 starts vs the NFC, including eight straight wins in games he’s started at QB (5-0 in 2023).

New Orleans is undefeated after dominating the Panthers in Week 1 and then shocking the Cowboys in Week 2. In both matchups, they scored more than 40 points while allowing fewer than 20 points.

The Saints scored on each of their first 15 possessions this season. The team is seeing resurgent starts from veteran QB Derek Carr and Alvin Kamara, who scored four touchdowns (3 rushing, 1 receiving) last week. Kamara leads the NFL in scores through two weeks.

“I know it’s not going to be perfect, but I was going to exhaust everything that I could begin to imagine to try and be better this year,” Carr told reporters this week.

The Ravens have only started 0-3 one time in franchise history (2015) but it could happen again Sunday when Baltimore takes on Dallas.

“We’ve got to keep pounding the rock, and the rock is going to crack,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “That’s our job to keep pounding, not get discouraged, not think all is for nothing. Continue to work and our reward will be out there in our future… We’re not going to be defined by everyone that’s saying we’re not any good, or that the season is over after two games.”

After appearing at practice in a limited capacity during the week, Packers quarterback Jordan Love is OUT for today’s game against the Titans.

Here are some other notable actives/inactives:

With new offensive coordinator Greg Roman leading the way, the Chargers have 395 rush yards this season (second-most in the league through two games behind the Packers), including more than 175 rush yds in back-to-back games for the first time since 2007.

Offseason addition RB J.K. Dobbins is leading the NFL in rushing entering Week 3 with 266 yds (averaging 9.9 yards a carry).

Tennessee’s starting QB is having an up and down start to the season. Levis has two passing touchdowns and five turnovers (the most in the NFL) in the first two games of the season.

Cameras caught Titans head coach Brian Callahan yelling “what the f— are you doing?” after he fumbled in a Week 2 loss to the Jets.

“I don’t regret my feelings about it and how I felt in the moment,” he said Monday. “I just think I can do a better job. Just like I ask my players to control their emotions, I probably should control mine a little bit.”

The Titans are looking to avoid starting 0-3 for the 1st time since 2009.

The undefeated Buccaneers have thrived this season thanks largely to Mayfield. The former No. 1 pick now has six total touchdowns (five passing) with just one pick.

“Building chemistry and building this resiliency and the culture that we want,” he said after his team upset the Lions in Detroit in Week 2. “This is a huge win for us, and so we have to continue to build on that.”

Mayfield and Tampa Bay are 8-2 over the last 10 games (including playoffs) dating back to 2023.

Through two weeks, the Bears have the fewest passing yards, the second-fewest total yards (behind the Panthers) and the fifth-fewest rushing yards in the NFL.

“When it finally connects and we’re all in the same cylinder, it’s going to be good,” receiver DJ Moore said this week. “Right now, we’re still building… Until we get that puzzle fully complete, it’s going to be an up-and-down road.”

Caleb Williams, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, was hit 11 times in Week 2.

“I’m a little bruised up,” he admitted after the game.

If New York is going to get into the win column, they’ll have to take advantage of rookie stud receiver Malik Nabers. The former LSU star, picked No. 6 overall, had 10 receptions for 127 yards and a score in Week 2. His 18 targets was the most by a Giant in a single game since 2016.

His 25 targets this season is tied for the second most in the league.

The Browns rank in the middle of the NFL in passing yards per game at 179.5.

Week 2 was not good for many stars. Check out this list of players set to miss at least multiple weeks of the season, via NBC Sports:

• Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa (concussion) — placed on IR
• Chiefs RB Isiah Pacheco (fibula) — out 6-8 weeks
• Rams WR Cooper Kupp (ankle) — out “an extended period of time”
• Eagles WR A.J. Brown (hamstring) — out “a couple of weeks”
• 49ers WR Deebo Samuel (calf) — will miss “a couple” of weeks
• Jets DE Jermaine Johnson (Achilles) — out for the season