Top NFL Week 2 Stories: Bengals-Chiefs Next Chapter; CJ Stroud, Caleb Williams on SNF
Watch the Sunday Night Football broadcast of the Bears vs. Texans live today
The NFL kicked off the 2024 season in style with an action-packed slate of games featuring renewed rivalries, new faces, comeback performances and 10 games decided by a touchdown or less.
Can Week 2 produce a worthy encore? The action began Thursday night between division rivals Buffalo and Miami, with the Bills winning 31-10 — and the Dolphins wondering what happens next after Tua Tagovailoa suffered another concussion. It continues with 14 more games on Sunday before concluding Monday night in Philadelphia for Falcons-Eagles.
Here are six compelling NFL storylines to follow in Week 2. (Find the schedule here.)
GALLING DEEPER
NFL Week 2 Roundtable: Jordan Love’s Status, Cowboys Hype, Bears-Texans
1. Which teams with a 0-1 score will rebound?
The 16 teams that lost last week seem to be bouncing back with performances that reflect improvement and promise. An 0-2 hole is undesirable, because the odds of making the playoffs after such a start are slim. (Since 2002, about 90 percent of 0-2 teams have missed the playoffs.)
Sunday probably can’t come soon enough for Aaron Rodgers and the Jets, who entered the season with Super Bowl hopes but looked vastly outmatched against a real contender in San Francisco. Rodgers returned from a torn Achilles tendon to escape Sunday night’s game unscathed. But New York’s offense sputtered. Rodgers completed 13 of 21 passes for 167 yards, a touchdown and an interception, while the Jets managed just 68 rushing yards. The defensive effort also left much to be desired.
Next up is a road game against the Tennessee Titans, who also lost in Week 1. We’ll see if that season opener was enough to knock the rust off Rodgers and his still-new offensive teammates, or if it’ll take even longer to get going. In the meantime, the Titans are hoping young Will Levis can improve on the ball security issues that ruined Tennessee against the Chicago Bears.
The Ravens, Packers, Bengals, Jaguars, Browns and Rams, who were widely predicted to make the playoffs, are also trying to bounce back from their Week 1 losses. (Jets at Titans, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)
2. Can Malik Willis keep the Packers afloat?
Quarterback Jordan Love led the Packers to an impressive playoff run last season, which included surprising the Cowboys and nearly beating the 49ers before parlaying it into a massive contract extension. However, the sprained MCL he suffered in the final seconds of the Packers’ loss to the Eagles in Brazil could hurt Green Bay’s chances of overtaking the Detroit Lions for the NFC North.
Love is listed as questionable for Sunday, but Week 4 is likely the earliest he returns, leaving coach Matt LaFleur to turn to Willis, the former Liberty University star and 2022 Titans third-round pick.
Green Bay acquired Willis in a trade on Aug. 27, so he’s still working on learning the playbook. And Willis is still an inexperienced prospect, having appeared in just 11 games before this season. He went 1-2 as a starter while throwing three interceptions and no touchdowns in 2022 and attempting just five passes in three games last season. LaFleur is an excellent quarterbacks coach, offensive architect and play caller. But can he really position Willis for success this early in the quarterback’s tenure in Green Bay? LaFleur believes the answer is yes.
The Packers will need Willis to manage the game and handle the ball to keep them afloat while Love recovers. His first test will be against a scrappy Indianapolis Colts team at Lambeau Field. (Colts at Packers, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)
Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs play the Bengals on Sunday. (Denny Medley / USA Today)
3. Bengals-Chiefs: AFC Title Preview?
The NFL schedulers refused to help the Chiefs with their title defense. After a heavyweight clash with the Ravens in Week 1, the Chiefs host the Bengals — another team built to challenge them for AFC supremacy.
Patrick Mahomes is the gold standard for this generation of quarterbacks, but Joe Burrow holds a 3-1 record against his Chiefs counterpart. He defeated Mahomes in both regular-season meetings (a 34-31 shootout in Week 17 in 2021 and a 27-24 duel in Week 13 in 2022). They are 1-1 in the postseason. Burrow defeated Mahomes 27-24 in the AFC Championship Game in January 2022, and Mahomes avenged that loss with a 23-20 triumph in the subsequent conference title game. How will that meeting play out?
GALLING DEEPER
Joe Burrow’s slow start and questions about his wrist tie in with the Bengals’ showdown with the Chiefs
Based on last week’s performance against Baltimore, Mahomes and the Chiefs appear to be even more dangerous in 2024 than they were during last season’s title defense run. Burrow, meanwhile, is waiting for his arsenal to return to full strength. Contract disputes between the Bengals and his top two receivers, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, have prevented him from laying a solid foundation for the season. With a rusty Chase (who also said he was recovering from food poisoning) and Higgins sidelined with a hamstring injury, Burrow managed just 164 passing yards in a 16-10 loss to New England last week. Can the Bengals bounce back this week and give the Chiefs another tough challenge? (Bengals at Chiefs, Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET.)
4. Mayo-Macdonald rookie coach chess match
Two of the season’s most intriguing figures: New England coach Jerod Mayo, the former Patriots linebacker turned assistant to Bill Belichick; and Seattle coach Mike Macdonald, the former Baltimore defensive coordinator.
The 37-year-old Macdonald was one of the most sought-after coaches of the past hiring cycle, while Patriots brass have long viewed Mayo, 38, as their future head coach. Sunday’s meeting of the young coaches in Foxboro will mark just the sixth time in NFL history that two coaches under the age of 40 have faced off.
Both led their teams to victories in Week 1. Mayo’s Patriots surprised a Bengals team short-handed despite being in the midst of a rebuild. Macdonald’s Seahawks bounced back from a slow start to beat the Broncos at home. The Patriots and Seahawks are still establishing their identities, but both coaches are committed to playing a physical brand of football while relying heavily on their defenses to make the plays. It’s a break from the trend of high-scoring, offense-driven operations, so Sunday’s game could feel a bit like a throwback.
GALLING DEEPER
How the Seahawks and Patriots are preparing for Sunday’s clash with similar styles
An interesting sideline to this meeting: the quarterback position, which also shares similarities. The Seahawks’ offense is led by Geno Smith, who revived his career after six years as a reserve and is entering his third season as Seattle’s starter. Meanwhile, New England’s starter is Jacoby Brissett, who has spent the majority of his nine-year career as a reserve. He’s looking to prove that, like Smith, he can provide the stabilizing force and playmaking ability needed to lead a winning team. (Seahawks at Patriots, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)
Baker Mayfield and the Bucs are on the right track after beating the Commanders in Week 1. (Nathan Ray Seebeck / USA Today)
5. Bucs-Lions NFC playoff rematch
The last time these teams met, in the divisional round of the playoffs, the Lions defeated the Buccaneers 31-23. Now, eight months later, these teams are looking to build a 1-0 record for repeat playoff runs.
Both teams staged strong starts in Week 1. Baker Mayfield led the Bucs to a blowout of Washington after throwing four touchdown passes, 289 yards, no interceptions and a 146.4 passer rating. Mayfield’s effectiveness has reflected his continued comfort in Tampa. In his last eight starts, he has averaged 278.6 yards per game while throwing 20 touchdown passes and just four interceptions. He’ll lead the Buccaneers against a Detroit defense anchored by Aidan Hutchinson, who has 15 sacks in 20 home games (including the playoffs), and a Lions offense led by Jared Goff. Goff led an eight-play, 70-yard, game-winning drive in overtime against the Rams last week.
We should be in for a treat between these two gunslingers and their teams. In the January playoff meeting, Goff threw for 287 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions. But Mayfield came down firing. He racked up 349 passing yards and three touchdowns and pulled within eight points with a touchdown pass to Mike Evans with 4:37 left. But then Detroit linebacker Derrick Barnes ended Tampa Bay’s comeback saga with an interception with 1:35 left. (Bucs at Lions, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET.)
6. Stroud vs. Williams: The Next Generation
Sunday night’s action offers a treat: a showdown between Houston’s C.J. Stroud, the top quarterback from last year’s draft class, and Chicago’s Caleb Williams, the first pick in this year’s draft. If the predictions are correct, these two will eventually become the faces of the league.
Stroud certainly seems headed in that direction after a record-breaking rookie season. Now, he and the Texans host the Bears and look to build on last year’s surprising success, followed by last week’s win over AFC South rival Indianapolis. Stroud continued to impress in Week 1, throwing for 234 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.
GALLING DEEPER
Everything is different for the Texans thanks to CJ Stroud: ‘He has a dog in him’
Williams opened his career with a win over the Titans — but delivered a forgettable performance (14-for-29 for 93 yards and no touchdowns). Chicago’s victory came largely on the strength of some solid special teams and defensive play. In the second half, Chicago scored on a blocked punt that safety Jonathan Owens returned 21 yards for a touchdown and a 43-yard pick six by cornerback Tyrique Stevenson. On the plus side, Williams didn’t commit a turnover. But the Bears expect more from him, and he delivers. After the game, Williams vowed, “I’m going to get better.” Excelling against a talented Texans defense, however, could prove challenging. (Bears at Texans, Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET.)
(Top photo of Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
