Are the Jaguars and the Rams for real?
The defending champion Patriots crushed on their home field? The Jaguars defensively dominating on the road? The Rams nearly hanging 50 points on the scoreboard? There were plenty of unexpected results during Week 1 of the NFL season, but that’s not uncommon. The matchups of Week 2 often tell us whether opening-weekend performances were flashes in the pan or harbingers of things to come.
Bills at Panthers, 11 a.m. This game features two players who stung opponents on the ground and through the air on the way to victories in Week 1: Buffalo’s Lesean Mccoy and Carolina’s Christian Mccaffrey.
Vikings at Steelers, 11 a.m. Lost in Sam Bradford’s stellar Week 1 performance (346 yards passing, 3 TDS) was a strong debut by Minnesota running back Dalvin Cook, who rushed 127 yards on 22 carries.
Patriots at Saints, 11 a.m., KDVR-31. Expect Tom Brady to come out firing after a lackluster performance in a season-opening loss to the Chiefs. New England must get tight end Rob Gronkowski more involved.
Eagles at Chiefs, 11 a.m., KCNC-4. Can Alex Smith match his four-td performance against the Patriots? Offensively, Philly has to make gains on the ground after averaging only 2.4 yards per carry in its Week 1.
Bears at Buccaneers, 11 a.m. Tampa Bay plays its first game of the season after having its opener against the Dolphins postponed by Hurricane Irma. The Bucs will have their hands
full with Chicago rookie RB Tarik Cohen.
Cardinals at Colts, 11 a.m. Losing running back David Johnson to injury was a huge blow for Arizona, but they should have enough weapons to burn an Indianapolis defense that gave up 46 pointsto the Rams last week.
Browns at Ravens, 11 a.m. Cleveland rookie QB Deshone Kizer fared well in his NFL debut, a narrow loss to the Steelers. He faces a tall task against a Baltimore defense that shut out Cincinnati last week.
Titans at Jaguars, 11 a.m. Tennessee began the season with playoff aspirations.
Those would take a big hit if it fell to 0-2 with a loss to a Jaguars team that looked dominating at Houston last week.
Jets at Raiders, 2:05 p.m. RB Marshawn Lynch looked fresh with the Raiders and should have another big game against a Jets defense that gave up 190 rushing yards.
Dolphins at Chargers, 2:05 p.m. Jay Cutler makes his debut for the Dolphins, who have been practicing in Oxnard, Calif., all week in the wake of Hurricane Irma.
49ers at Seahawks, 2:25 p.m. San Francisco must run the ball better than it did against Carolina (51 yards). The task for Seattle: Protect QB Russell Wilson better.
Redskins at Rams, 2:25 p.m. Was L.A. QB Jared Goff’s big game against the Colts (21of-29 for 306 yards, 1 TD) a sign of things to come for the former No. 1 pick?
Lions at Giants, 6:30 p.m., Monday. Detroit QB Matthew Stafford threw four touchdown passes in a Week 1 win over the Cardinals. The Giants, meanwhile, never found the end zone in a 19-3 loss to Dallas.