Week 2 in the NFL usually comes with a little clarity. This year, it arrives with a pile of questions after an opening slate that was loud, chaotic and loaded with points.
Week 1 produced 791 points, or 49.4 per game, matching the highest-scoring opening week since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. The Chicago Bears’ 59-37 road win over the Carolina Panthers was the kind of game that made the offensive surge impossible to ignore.
There are plenty of theories for why offenses have jumped out ahead of defenses this early, including a lack of physicality and tackling in training camp. But the bigger answer is probably the way the league has been built and coached, with roster construction and philosophy leaning hard toward offense.
Even so, it would be a surprise if Week 2 stays quite that wild. The problem for defenses is that several high-powered attacks already look dangerous, while a number of units on the other side of the ball have real issues.
For the Los Angeles Chargers and Green Bay Packers, the panic button is not fully pressed yet. But it is getting warm.
The Chargers’ 26-14 home loss to an Arizona Cardinals team many evaluators expected to be among the league’s worst was a rough opener. Now they turn around and host the Las Vegas Raiders.
There is no such thing as a true “must-win” in Week 2, but this one comes close when you look at what’s ahead: at the Buffalo Bills, at the Seattle Seahawks, vs. the Denver Broncos, at the Kansas City Chiefs, at the Los Angeles Rams, vs. the Houston Texans, at the Baltimore Ravens. That is a brutal stretch, and dropping home games to teams like the Cardinals and Raiders can haunt you fast.
Green Bay’s situation looks different, but the frustration is just as real. The Packers had control against the Minnesota Vikings before giving up 29 unanswered points in the second half and losing 39-22.
That collapse only deepened a pattern that has been building since last season. A loss on the road to the New York Jets in Week 2 would send the noise in Green Bay soaring.
The Denver Broncos are in a similar spot. Their 31-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday night at Arrowhead Stadium was a flat showing from top to bottom.
Denver’s defense, which was supposed to be elite, was exposed, and Bo Nix struggled badly at quarterback. Losing in Kansas City under the lights is one thing.
Starting 0-1 and staring at what comes next is another.
The Broncos’ upcoming run is nasty: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2, vs.
Los Angeles Rams in Week 3, at San Francisco 49ers in Week 4, at Los Angeles Chargers in Week 5, and vs. Seattle Seahawks in Week 6.
Jacksonville is the only game Denver is currently favored in, and that edge is only 2.5 points. Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars offense looked strong in Week 1, which makes Sunday a serious test.
If Denver’s offense looks bad again, Sean Payton might take the playcalling duties back from Davis Webb.
In Cleveland, the Deshaun Watson question feels less like a question and more like a countdown. For now, the Browns appear set to keep trotting him out there for at least one more game. But the direction seems obvious: it looks like a matter of when, not if, Watson is benched for Shedeur Sanders.
Watson has already criticized Browns fans and the media, and he did not play well throughout camp. Cleveland managed just 10 points in Week 1, and Watson was part of the problem.
He is 31 now and has not been an effective quarterback since 2020. The Browns are also a team going nowhere, which makes the long view matter more than stubbornness.
Sanders might not be the answer, but there is at least some upside worth exploring. With Watson, the Browns already know what they have.
The Los Angeles Rams also land in the “probably fine” category, even after a rough start and a new injury blow. Their Week 1 trip to Australia ended in a 27-7 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and the travel plan drew plenty of criticism. Then came the news that superstar pass rusher Myles Garrett was placed on injured reserve Thursday after arthroscopic knee surgery, meaning he will miss at least four games.
Even with that, the Rams still look like one of the league’s loaded teams and remain the betting favorite to win the Super Bowl. The defense may take a step back without Garrett and while franchise legend Aaron Donald works toward return-from-retirement form, but the offense should be able to carry the load at times.
If the Rams lose at home to the New York Giants on Monday Night Football and fall to 0-2, then the conversation changes. Until then, they still belong in the “don’t overreact yet” bucket.
In Other News...
Chargers Suddenly Have A Week 2 Problem They Cant Ignore
The Chargers are already dealing with the kind of early-season attrition that can change a game plan before it ever gets off the ground. After losing starting center Tyler Biadasz to a season-ending injury in the preseason and then opening Week 2 on the back of a loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the injury list keeps growing in ways that touch both sides of the ball. Wide receiver Keandre Lambert-Smith landed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, and the team responded by bringing in Gary Jennings and Marquez Valdes-Scantling to help shore up the receiving group.
Defensively, the front is also worth watching as the Chargers turn their attention to the Las Vegas Raiders. Teair Tart and Dalvin Tomlinson were both limited in practice because of injuries, leaving Los Angeles to manage another round of uncertainty along the line. For a team trying to settle in early, the issue is no longer just who can play, but how many moving parts it can absorb before the calendar even gets comfortable. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Could Be Forced To Lean On Brenen Thompson Early
Ladd McConkeys rib injury has suddenly made the Chargers receiver rotation a lot thinner than it looked a week ago. McConkey did not practice midweek, and with KeAndre Lambert-Smith now on injured reserve, the margin for error at wideout has shrunk enough that the team may need to lean harder on its younger options for the upcoming game.
Brenen Thompson is the name that jumps out if McConkey cannot go. The rookie has made his reputation on speed, and that trait becomes even more valuable when a passing game needs someone to stretch the field in a hurry. Even if the Chargers choose to spread the snaps around, Thompson looks like the player with the clearest path to a bigger workload in a receiver room that suddenly needs answers. [Read more 🡒]
Chargers Suddenly Have An Early Roster Problem They Can't Ignore
A disappointing Week 1 outing has put the Chargers in a position where roster questions are already harder to ignore than they hoped in September. With draft picks and salary-cap space available, Los Angeles is being mentioned as a team that could be active in the trade market, and the early focus is squarely on shoring up a defensive line that looks thin and vulnerable to injury concerns.
Kristopher Knox pointed to Titans lineman Solomon Thomas as a possible name for the Chargers to consider, which fits the kind of move this front office may need to explore if it wants more reliable depth up front. The challenge now is not just identifying help, but deciding how aggressive to be this early in the season, especially when the first game has already exposed a weakness the Chargers cant afford to let linger. [Read more 🡒]