One of seven Jay Cutler sacks
Week two of the 2012 NFL season is in the books and what a week it was. Here’s a recap of this week’s goings-on.
It was an impressive week for the rookie quarterbacks. Andrew Luck got his first win and looked solid in doing so. The Colts were able to stave off a Vikings comeback with an Adam Vinatieri 53-yard field goal. Luck finished the day 20-31 for 224 yards and 2 TD’s.
Ryan Tannehill shook off a rough week one to find victory against the hapless Raiders. Tannehill was an efficient 18-30 for 200 yards and a TD. Reggie Bush did most of the legwork in this contest with 172 yards on the ground and a TD.
The Seahawks handled the Dallas Cowboys behind a solid performance by Russell Wilson and their excellent defense. Wilson was 15-20 for 151 yards and a TD. Marshawn Lynch added 122 yards rushing and a TD to secure a 27-7 trouncing of the ‘Boys.
The Cleveland offense did a 180 from week one. Brandon Weeden was stellar in this contest following a week one clunker. Weeden finished the game 26-37 for 322 yards and 2 TD’s. Browns fans had to be delighted to see the growth in week two of Weeden. Equally important was the play of Trent Richardson. Richardson went over a hundred yards rushing and got in the endzone twice. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough as the Browns defense sorely missed Joe Haden and Sheldon Brown. Andy Dalton torched the secondary for 318 yards and 3 TD’s in 34-27 win for the Bengals.
It was a tough day for the Washington Redskins as they fell 31-28 to the St. Louis Rams. The news got worse after the game as they found out they will be without Brian Orakpo and Adam Carriker for the remainder of the season. Robert Griffin III was his spectacular self in this contest despite throwing his first NFL pick. Griffin finished 20-29 for 206 yards and a TD. He added 82 yards and two more scores on the ground. Sam Bradford continued his hot start to the season with over 300 yards and 3 TD’s in the win.
Thursday night’s contest saw the Green Bay Packers assert themselves after a week one loss to the ‘9ers. GB’s defense sacked Jay Cutler seven times and picked him off four more.
Buffalo rebounded after an embarrassing loss to the Jets in week one. The Bills dominated the Chiefs on their way to a 35-17 victory. The Chiefs look to be one of the worst teams in the NFL through two weeks as Romeo Crennel appears to be on the hot seat in KC.
The Cardinals are 2-0. Let me say that again. The Kevin Kolb-led Cardinals are 2-0 and just defeated the New England Patriots. New England was favored by 13.5 points but could never get things going on the offensive side of the ball. A rare missed field goal by Steven Gostkowski sealed the victory for the Cardinals as they are tied atop the NFC West.
The New York Giants scored 25 points in the 4th quarter to steal a victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Eli Manning was abysmal in the first half of this one but came out and dealt in the second half on his way to over 500 yards through the air. Tom Coughlin and Greg Schiano did their best Harbaugh-Schwartz after Coughlin took exception to Schiano’s team rolling the pile on a kneel down.
Speaking of Harbaugh and Schwartz, the 49ers faced off with the Lions on Sunday night. This game didn’t lack for hitting as the ‘9ers were able to secure a 27-19 victory over the Lions to start the season out 2-0.
Michael Vick had another rough contest but again found a way to lock down a victory late for the 2-0 Eagles. This time it came at the hands of one of the AFC’s best teams, the Baltimore Ravens. The Eagles lead the world in turnovers and will need to cut down on the mistakes if they want to continue a winning streak.
The New Orleans Saints may be realizing the importance of their head coach. The Saints took another one on the chin against division foe, Carolina Panthers. Cam Newton racked up 324 yards of total offense as the Panthers scored 35 on the Saints. The Saints will need to find ways to stop opposing offenses if they want to make it back in the Playoffs.
As expected, the Houston Texans dominated the Jacksonville Jaguars. Blaine Gabbert was terrible in this one as the Jags limp to an 0-2 start and might be the worst team in the NFL through two games. Arian Foster and Ben Tate ran at will on the Jags defense and may form the best 1-2 running punch in the NFL.
The Steelers defense carried them to victory over the New York Jets in a 27-10 victory. Mark Sanchez looked like Mark Sanchez in this contest as he finished 10-27 for 138 yards. Rex Ryan can expect to field Tebow Time questions all week.
Jake Locker led the Titans in rushing (21 yards) which isn’t a good sign for Tennessee. The Titans were rolled by the Chargers on Sunday, 38-10. Phillip Rivers looks like the Phillip Rivers of old through two games which is a good sign for SD fans.
Monday’s night’s contest between Atlanta and Denver was billed to the game of the week. It was unwatchable. The replacement officials were downright atrocious in this one, making the game a complete bore. Peyton Manning threw three picks in the first quarter but settled in late in this game. It wasn’t enough as the Falcons, behind Matt Ryan, secured a 27-21 victory.
And here’s our week two power rankings:
32. Jacksonville
31. Oakland
30. Cleveland
29. Kansas City
28. Minnesota
27. Tennessee
26. Miami
25. Indianapolis
24. Buffalo
23. Seattle
22. St. Louis
21. Washington
20. New York Jets
19. Arizona
18. New Orleans
17. Cincinnati
16. Carolina
15. Tampa Bay
14. New York Giants
13. Dallas
12. Chicago
11. Pittsburgh
10. Detroit
9. Denver
8. San Diego
7. New England
6. Baltimore
5. Philadelphia
4. Green Bay
3. Atlanta
2. Houston
1. San Francisco
