Week 2 Winners and Losers
Another week in the NFL is in the books.
It was a weekend of shocks in the NFL, as the most unpredictable sport in the world had another week of underdogs victories and late wins.
Here are the winners and losers of Week Two in the NFL.
Winner #1 – New Orleans Saints
There is only one place to start and that is the New Orleans Saints.
They earned a surprise 44-19 win on the road to the Dallas Cowboys in their home opener and look like they could be the real deal.
Of course, it has only been two weeks and one of those wins have come against the Carolina Panthers (more on them later). However, the Saints could not have done any more these first two weeks.
Under new offensive coordinator Kliff Kubiak, quarterback Derek Carr has looked the best he ever has and the team have scored 91 points across the first two weeks. They have even scored in 15 consecutive drives. He threw for 243 yards, making it 443 so far in 2024 along with his five touchdowns so far this season, the joint most in the league.
Alvin Kamara ran for 115 rushing yards and had four total touchdowns, Rashid Shaheed had 96 receiving yards along with one touchdown and Chris Olave had 81 receiving yards from four receptions.
With games against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Chargers and two against the Atlanta Falcons across the next eight gameweeks, we will know a lot more about this Saints team by Week 10.
If they play the way they have these first two weeks, there is every chance they could end Week 10 with a 7-3 or 8-2 record. At this point, we would have to take Dennis Allen’s team a lot more seriously.
Loser #1 – Bryce Young
It was not a good day for Bryce Young on Sunday, as he and the Panthers lost 26-3 to the Chargers. Young had just 84 yards, zero touchdowns and one interception. The defeat on Sunday was a hard watch, even for a neutral.
To make things worse for the 2023 first overall pick, he has now been benched for Andy Dalton ahead of their Week Three clash with the Las Vegas Raiders after just two games under new head coach Dave Canales.
The Panthers would not have traded away all of that stock to get Young a year ago if they did not feel he is the guy. It could be just a temporary thing, but there’s also a good chance that Young simply is not up to it.
Winner #2 – Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals had an impressive victory, demolishing a beaten-up Los Angeles Rams team 41-10. Marvin Harrison Jr announced himself to the NFL world after a difficult debut game.
In the win over the Rams, Harrison recorded 130 receiving yards as well as two receiving touchdowns. He was helped by quarterback Kyler Murray throwing him the ball, the 2019 first overall pick posing a perfect passer rating for the first time in his career. This is after he threw for 266 passing yards and three touchdowns, with zero interceptions and just four incomplete passes.
James Conner also proved a threat in the run game, continuing his trend as arguably the league’s most underrated back. He ran for 122 yards and one touchdown and the Cardinals defense recorded five sacks.
Loser #2 – New York Giants
The New York Giants made NFL history on Sunday but not the kind of record that you would want.
They became the first team in NFL history to score three touchdowns, allow zero and lose a game in regulation. This was of course not helped by the fact that kicker Graham Gano got injured. Daniel Jones did not throw for an interception and Malik Nabers had 127 yards and one touchdown to put the league on notice.
It is mindboggling how the Giants lost this game as they go 0-2, a far cry from their 6-1 start in 2022.
Winner #3 – Minnesota Vikings
It was a fantastic gameweek for the Minnesota Vikings, earning a shock 23-17 win over the San Francisco 49ers.
Sam Darnold had a brilliant game as his resurgence continues, throwing for 268 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
The highlight of the game came from his 97-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson. Are the Vikings for real? We will certainly know by the end of Week Seven, after games against the Houston Texans, Green Bay Packers, New York Jets and Detroit Lions.
Loser #3 – Miami Dolphins
It was a bad day all round for the Miami Dolphins, losing 31-10 to the Buffalo Bills at home. This was topped off with a concussion injury for QB1 Tua Tagovailoa as his future in the NFL remains uncertain.
Not only was this a loss that further strengthened the Bills stranglehold on the Dolphins, but one that may result in ending the Dolphins season before it really begins.