Much of the action in Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season epitomized the sloppiness we’ve come to expect from early-season football. While that didn’t make for the most fun Sunday slate of games, it certainly doesn’t diminish the abundance of interesting storylines developing league-wide. Let’s get to it!
- It was unclear based on one bad half against the Saints what the real state of the Lions defense was. If Thursday night was any indication, they’ve got a long season of shootouts ahead of them. Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph can’t get back soon enough.
- The dropped interception by Kamari Lassiter that would’ve sealed a Texans victory over the Bills in Week 1 looms large as a sliding doors moment now for both teams. The 2-0 Bills are being talked about as perhaps the best team in the league, while the 0-2 Texans would be feeling a lot better had they managed to beat one of the two elite quarterbacks they played to start the year.
- The Texans have been a roller coaster on offense through two weeks, and while the problems are many, one was clear this week: pre-snap adjustments. I can’t say for sure whether this is more the product of rigidity by Nick Caley, a shortcoming in CJ Stroud’s game, or some combination of the two. The Bengals did little to disguise their heaviest blitzes on Sunday, and yet Stroud never instructed additional blockers to stay home. On the other hand, Cincinnati showed some light boxes (in the course of normal game action, not just late with a double-digit lead), but the Texans didn’t check those plays to runs against such favorable looks. If the offense is going to get better, that has to play a role.
- While the Texans did have self-inflicted offensive struggles and the absence of Nico Collins was felt, the Bengals deserve plenty of credit for finding multiple ways to win, especially given their checkered history in September throughout recent years. They took advantage of several takeaways in Week 1 while utilizing Mike Gesicki more than usual to get their offense rolling as well as you might expect. Then in Week 2, they limited a safe Houston offense to six points while getting their own offense, limited by an elite defensive opponent, via the tried and true connection between Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase. The three remaining teams ahead of their early Week 6 bye are all beatable by a team playing this well.
- Given the nature of how Caleb Williams plays the game and how Brian Flores likes to call a defense, Sunday’s game was terrific demonstration of controlled chaos from both sides. It’s good to hear that Williams will likely be back by the time these two meet in Minneapolis.
- Sticking to the much-discussed hamstring injury for Williams, I of course wish him well in being back on the field as soon as possible. But it will be interesting in the short-term to see just how much fallout there is from his absence, however long that may be. The Bears play the Eagles on Monday night, who are coming off of two uninspiring wins. I believe Williams would lead a victory in that matchup, but I can’t say the same about Case Keenum, who now appears slated to start as Tyson Bagent deals with a concussion. If this goes on a few weeks, just how much of a lead will the Vikings be able to build in the division?
- Going back to those Vikings, it seems there aren’t enough compliments for what Flores does. Many defensive coaches, even his fellow blitz-happy ones, would have defaulted to extra coverage late in the game to avoid a bust. But not him. He brought more and more pressure, forcing a near-pick in the red zone on second down of the final drive, followed by a fourth down sack to seal the game. He doesn’t let off the gas for any reason, and it’s going to get him another head coaching opportunity sooner rather than later.
- Todd Bowles, on the other hand, is likely running out of time on his second head coaching job. Losing to the Bengals was understandable, but losing to the Browns increased the temperature on what was already the hottest seat in the league. The schedule isn’t letting up anytime soon, and his job status will need to be monitored week-to-week barring a sudden and dramatic uptick in performance from the team.
- Elsewhere in the NFC South, Bryce Young put together a second good performance to start the year, albeit against another vulnerable defense. He has two more such games coming up against Cleveland and Detroit, respectively. The first real test will be on the other side of the bye, when the Panthers go to Philadelphia.
- The Saints are the favorite in the division at this point, however, and they’ve been fun. Two big second-half comebacks, one that led to an overtime loss and one that became a win, don’t answer many questions about who they actually are, but they do make them the sort of entertaining team that should be regularly monitored now.
- Drake Maye has yet to look like an MVP finalist through two weeks, but the Patriots still beat the Steelers running away. This Steelers defense is at least solid, but the offense has to find a way to stay in games against good teams, something that was a struggle more than once in 2025.
- Through two weeks, the Packers simply haven’t looked very good. They built a big lead over the Vikings (who lost Kyler Murray early in the game) before collapsing horribly, then needed overtime to beat the Jets. Coming into the season without two of your best players is understandably hard, but in the NFL you’re expected to find a way to win no matter who’s available. While the upcoming matchup with the Falcons is a welcome sight and it’s not quite time to hit the panic button just yet, in the current NFC North and NFC as a whole, they need to find a way soon.
- The Chargers have been even more inexplicably disappointing to watch than the Packers. While it can take time for players to gel with a new scheme, they began their season with what seemed like some of their easiest potential wins. Now at 0-2, they’re going into a brutal stretch with little margin for error and the crushing weight of lofty expectations that could go very much unmet.
- The Dallas defense has shown little to no improvement over last year’s unit, though it is still September and they have time to grow. The big concern after the Week 1 loss, though, was the underwhelming performance of the offense. That dominance was back this week in earnest, as they scored 37 points on only eight possessions, and the Dak Prescott-CeeDee Lamb battery looked unstoppable. That sort of showing will keep them in games even if the defense continues to disappoint.
- In the AFC, the Broncos and Jaguars join the Patriots as prime regression candidates coming off a 2025 regular season chock full of favorable luck. Sunday afternoon’s game did little to make me think we shouldn’t still be tempering expectations for both of those teams.
- Chiefs-Colts may have been the best game of the season through two weeks, rivaled only by the Bills-Texans matchup in Week 1. It was refreshing to see the caliber of offense we’ve come to expect from the Chiefs continue its presence from last Monday after the 2025 futility we saw from that group. It was especially good to see a wide variety of quality contributors, as the weapons are and have been the biggest question other than the structural integrity of Patrick Mahomes’s knee. As for the Colts, a well-fought but back-breaking loss that essentially pushes them to the brink for next week’s division bout with the likewise 0-2 Texans.
- Balancing salary cap considerations with putting the best possible team on the field is never easy, and Michael Pittman, Jr. is obviously dealing with injuries of his own now, but you have to wonder if the Colts are regretting that trade at all now that Alec Pierce is struggling to stay on the field once again.
- Two young quarterbacks, Jayden Daniels and Jaxson Dart, with reputations for reckless play likely sustained long-term injuries this week, but both happened in the pocket.
- The biggest issue for the Rams last season was their special teams, which were the worst in the league. While it’s too early to say where they will finish this year, I noticed them getting very close to blocking multiple punts last night, an encouraging sign, and likely a result for which the dam will eventually break.
- While Aaron Donald wasn’t quite the all-time legend we’ve seen him be in his first game post-retirement last night, he did cause some pressure and had a TFL in his return. His play at an advanced age dramatically outpaced that of Odell Beckham Jr., who I’d nearly forgotten was back on the Giants until he passed behind a coach being shown on the sideline with about three minutes left in the game.
- I was a bit surprised not to see Ty Simpson in the 4th quarter last night as the margin of victory increased for the Rams, as I assumed they would want to continue getting him live reps to prepare for the future. My guess is Sean McVay wanted to get one win officially out of the way and start prepping for the short week leading up to a trip to Denver.
- Congratulations are in order for two quarterbacks on significant touchdown milestones this week. Dak Prescott passed Tony Romo to become the all-time passing touchdown leader for the Cowboys. Matthew Stafford, meanwhile, moved to 6th on the all-time touchdown list, passing Philip Rivers, into a place he will retire unless he provides two encores of last year’s 46-touchdown season.
