Plenty of drama in Week 2 games

Ben Morse, CNN

CNN — The NFL play continues to supply drama, thrills and plays worthy of praise. The 14 games connected Sunday were nary exception, providing nary shortage of entertainment, pinch each matchup seemingly having play and noteworthy moments.

Here are nan main storylines from Week 2’s Sunday games:

Saints proceed basking commencement to season
Before nan commencement of nan season, The Athletic ran a study of fans of each 32 NFL teams to measure their hopes for nan upcoming season. The ‘Hope-O-Meter’ had nan New Orleans Saints classed past retired of each teams, arsenic supporters expressed trepidation for nan 2024 campaign.
But aft 2 weeks, those fears look misplaced aft nan team’s 2nd violative detonation put nan Dallas Cowboys distant pinch a convincing 44-19 victory.
For nan 2nd consecutive week, nan Saints discourtesy – nether caller coordinator Klint Kubiak – was almost unstoppable, pinch a operation of large plays from backmost Derek Carr and elusive moving from Alvin Kamara.
Against nan Cowboys, New Orleans scored touchdowns connected its first six possessions, pinch Kamara racking up 4 himself and different coming from a 70-yard Carr propulsion to Rashid Shaheed.
A tipped interception ended that streak, but by then, nan harm was already done arsenic nan Saints arrived successful Texas and stunned nan Cowboys successful their house.
Having scored 47 points successful their opener, nan Saints person now tallied 91 points successful their 2 games this season. According to nan NFL, only 2 teams since 1970 person scored nan aforesaid aliases much successful their first 2 games since 1970 – nan 1971 Cowboys (91 points) and 2009 Saints (93) – and some went connected to triumph nan Super Bowl.
For Kamara – who vanished pinch 180 full yards and 4 touchdowns – it was his 2nd profession crippled pinch astatine slightest 150 full yards and 4 TDs, leaving nan Saints moving backmost successful bully company.
The different 2 players successful nan Super Bowl era pinch much 150+ gait and four-plus TD games are Hall of Fame moving backs LaDainian Tomlinson (four) and Marshall Faulk (three), per nan NFL.
However, caput coach Dennis Allen was adamant that his squad wasn’t getting up of itself, contempt nan reddish basking opening to nan season.
“Look, this, this was a bully shot squad that we played, and we were surely fresh to spell play nan game,” Allen told reporters. “And yet I don’t deliberation we looked astatine this arsenic thing different than this is nan adjacent area connected our schedule, and really it’s astir us.”

Cowboys lose
For nan Cowboys, it was a disappointing location opener aft an awesome Week 1 triumph against nan Cleveland Browns.
Quarterback Dak Prescott looked scrambled throughout, throwing 2 interceptions and 1 touchdown.
Prescott said afterwards that he’s “confident” successful Dallas’ expertise to bounce backmost adjacent clip out.
“I cognize I tin spell successful location and group nan illustration of really we’re going to move forward, really we’re going to respond and really we’re going to attack this week. Understanding it’s a process,” he told reporters.
“I already echo it successful nan locker room really we’re not going undefeated. Coach McCarthy said that astatine nan extremity of nan day, swipe that each behind. We’re going to study from it. Can’t swipe it until we’ve learned from it. We build disconnected it.”

Last-second section extremity helps Chiefs down Bengals
The rivalry betwixt nan Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals has been 1 of nan AFC’s astir heated – and nan latest version of nan match-up was enthralling.
There was small to abstracted nan 2 teams for astir of nan encounter, pinch some squads trading touchdowns and section goals.
Evan McPherson’s section extremity midway done nan 4th gave nan Bengals a constrictive two-point advantage and, aft exchanging punts, nan Chiefs sewage nan shot backmost pinch conscionable complete 2 minutes remaining, needing a score.
And aft moving nan shot a fewer yards further, nan discourtesy group up a 51-yard section extremity for Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker to firearm done nan uprights arsenic clip expired to springiness Kansas City a 26-25 triumph and move to 2-0 connected nan season.
It wasn’t a beautiful show for nan Chiefs – Mahomes was intercepted doubly arsenic nan discourtesy struggled to find explosive plays extracurricular of a 44-yard touchdown drawback from Rashee Rice – but they now person an undefeated commencement to nan caller play arsenic they purpose for a historical Super Bowl three-peat.
After nan game, Mahomes said nan Chiefs person a batch to amended on, but nan team’s 2 reliable wins speak volumes.
“It conscionable shows that we tin still do it,” he said. “Those are 2 awesome shot teams [that] we’ve played these past 2 weeks, teams that we’ve played successful AFC Championship games.
“To beryllium capable to travel retired pinch wins, astatine home, that’s important. Obviously, we consciousness for illustration we tin get a batch better. We’re going to cleanable up nan mistakes, particularly connected nan offense. It starts pinch maine and past we’ll beryllium a amended squad [going] guardant arsenic nan play goes on.”
It’s a little affirmative commencement to nan play for nan Bengals, who are now winless done 2 weeks.
It was a much promising capacity though aft a Week 1 upset conclusion astatine nan hands of nan New England Patriots, pinch backmost Joe Burrow looking overmuch much for illustration himself.
The defense was a disruptive unit passim excessively – coming up pinch 3 turnovers – pinch protect extremity Trey Hendrickson peculiarly proving to beryllium a thorn successful Mahomes’ side.
But successful nan end, it was different conclusion for Cincinnati who big nan Washington Commanders connected Monday Night Football successful Week 3.

Ravens, Lions suffer upset location losses
Both nan Baltimore Ravens and Detroit Lions person aspirations of reaching nan Super Bowl.
But each squad suffered a astonishment upset conclusion astatine location connected Sunday, pinch nan Ravens losing 26-23 to nan Las Vegas Raiders and nan Lions downed 20-16 by nan Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Baltimore – who had mislaid a thrilling season-opener to nan Chiefs successful Week 1 – were beardown favorites against Las Vegas and looked to beryllium connected nan measurement to bouncing backmost arsenic they held a 10-point lead successful nan 4th quarter.
But done a operation of nan Raiders’ violative expertise and Baltimore’s self-inflicted woe – nan Ravens had 11 penalties for 109 yards connected Sunday – Las Vegas clawed its measurement backmost into nan contest, yet taking nan lead connected a section extremity pinch 31 seconds remaining.
Lamar Jackson and Co. couldn’t nutrient a last-second occurrence to rescue nan win, meaning nan Ravens fell to 0-2 and request to dramatically amended if they want to scope their lofty ceiling.
“Disappointing loss,” Ravens caput coach John Harbaugh told reporters afterwards.
“Tough loss. Could person gone our measurement for sure, but we didn’t get nan occupation done. 0-2. We are going to play a 17-game season, and we will beryllium defined by nan adjacent 15 games.
“So that’s going to beryllium our nonsubjective to play nan champion 15 games we can, beryllium nan champion shot squad we tin be. If we do that, we’re going to person a really bully play and person a changeable to triumph a batch of games and get successful nan playoffs and make a run. So that’s what we person to do large picture.”
Over successful nan NFC, nan Lions were besides upset astatine home, pinch nan Bucs avenging past season’s playoff nonaccomplishment astatine nan hands of Detroit successful awesome fashion.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield was fantabulous for nan 2nd week successful a row, contempt being continuously harassed by Lions protect extremity Aidan Hutchinson; nan erstwhile No. 2 wide prime had 4.5 sacks against Tampa Bay, nan second-most by a Detroit subordinate since individual sacks were first tracked successful 1982.
Mayfield’s relationship pinch Chris Godwin was productive throughout, pinch nan wide receiver finishing pinch 7 catches for 117 yards and a touchdown. Mayfield ran for what ended up being nan game-winning touchdown successful nan 3rd quarter.
Although nan Bucs discourtesy couldn’t seal nan triumph successful nan fourth, nan defense did capable to put nan clamps connected Jared Goff and nan Lions discourtesy to adjacent retired a celebrated triumph and commencement nan play 2-0.

Full Week 2 Sunday scores
Away @ location (winners successful bold)
(1-1) Las Vegas Raiders 26-23 Baltimore Ravens (0-2)

(2-0) Los Angeles Chargers 26-3 Carolina Panthers (0-2)

(2-0) New Orleans Saints 44-19 Dallas Cowboys (1-1)

(2-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20-16 Detroit Lions (1-1)

(0-2) Indianapolis Colts 10-16 Green Bay Packers (1-1)

(1-1) Cleveland Browns 18-13 Jacksonville Jaguars (0-2)

(1-1) San Francisco 49ers 17-23 Minnesota Vikings (2-0)

(2-0) Seattle Seahawks 23-20 (OT) New England Patriots (1-1)

(1-1) New York Jets 24-17 Tennessee Titans (0-2)

(0-2) New York Giants 18-21 Washington Commanders (1-1)

(0-2) Los Angeles Rams 10-41 Arizona Cardinals (1-1)

(2-0) Pittsburgh Steelers 13-6 Denver Broncos (0-2)

(0-2) Cincinnati Bengals 25-26 Kansas City Chiefs (2-0)

(1-1) Chicago Bears 13-19 Houston Texans (2-0)