Teams began righting the ships after Week 1 while others started floundering after two weeks. Some surprises, other expectations met, but a whole lot of action to cover.
Bills 31, Dolphins 10: It was the day of the diminutive, undersized running backs as James Cook scored three touchdowns and De’Von Achane tallied 165 total yards and a score in Buffalo’s big divisional win. Tua Tagovailoa, meanwhile, notched his 27th concussion in the loss. Josh Allen had a measly 141 total yards and no scores. Khalil Shakir led the Bills with 5 catches for 54 yards.
Saints 44, Cowboys 19: Somebody needs to investigate what the water boy is giving to the players down in Louisiana because through two games the Saints are opening up a can of whoop-ass. Klint Kubiak’s offense racked up 432 total yards with 115 on the ground by Alvin Kamara, who also scored 4 total touchdowns. Rashid Shaheed tallied 96 yards and a touchdown on 4 catches. The Cowboys’ Jalen Tolbert had his best career game with 6 catches for 82 yards.
Buccaneers 20, Lions 16: Baker Mayfield continued his 2024 tear adding 219 total yards and two scores to his incredible start. Chris Godwin caught 7 balls for 117 yards and a score. Bucky Irving continues to outplay Rachaad White, recording 22 rushing yards to White’s 18. Jahmyr Gibbs paced the Lions with 84 rushing yards while David Montgomery tallied 35 and a touchdown. Amon-Ra St. Brown racked up 11 catches for 119 yards.
Packers 16, Colts 10: You know you’re an incredible coach and offensive play caller when you can win a game with Malik Willis as your starting quarterback. Matt LaFleur’s guys bought some time without Jordan Love while riding Josh Jacobs to the tune of 151 yards on 31 carries. Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks each caught 3 passes with Wicks scoring a touchdown. Anthony Richardson continues to struggle for the Colts. He threw for 204 yards and a score while also throwing 3 picks. Jonathan Taylor rushed for 103 yards on 12 carries and Alec Pierce led the way with 5 catches for 56 yards and a score.
Jets 24, Titans 17: Can there be a less exciting, less fantasy-relevant team than the New York Jets? Sure, Breece Hall had a “good” day, but was vultured by his backup, Braelon Allen, who notched two touchdowns. Aaron Rodgers and Garrett Wilson, meanwhile, continue to underwhelm. Rodgers threw for 176 yards and two touchdowns, one to Hall and one to Allen. Wilson had just 57 yards on 4 catches. Will Levis continues to play like a bonehead, tossing another ill-advised throw for a pick. Calvin Ridley had 4 catches for 77 yards and a touchdown while also tallying a rushing score.
Vikings 23, 49ers 17: Somebody needs to bubble wrap the Niners ‘cuz they’re dropping like flies. Deebo Samuel suffered a calf strain in this one but that didn’t stop him from catching 8 balls for 110 yards. George Kittle tallied 7 catches for 76 yards and a touchdown. Jordan Mason had another strong performance with 100 yards on 20 carries. Sam Darnold tossed two touchdowns — including a 97-yard catch and run to Justin Jefferson — and gained 268 passing yards. Ty Chandler had 82 rushing yards and Jefferson finished with 133 yards and the score on just 4 catches.
Seahawks 23, Patriots 20: DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba each had over 10 receptions and Metcalf tallied a touchdown in Seattle’s close victory over the Patriots. Geno Smith threw for 327 yards and Zach Charbonnet tallied 38 yards and a score in fill-in duty for Ken Walker. Rhamondre Stevenson picked up 81 yards and a score and Antonio Gibson added 96 yards. Hunter Henry had a big day with 8 catches for 109 yards.
Commanders 21, Giants 18: Jayden Daniels tallied 270 total yards while Brian Robinson rushed for 133 in Washington’s (underwhelming?) 21-18 victory over their division rival New York Giants. Zach Ertz’s old bones rolled out onto the field for 4 catches for 62 yards. For the Giants, Malik Nabers had a career day with 10 catches for 127 yards and a touchdown. Devin Singletary rushed for 95 yards and a score.
Chargers 26, Panthers 3: The Panthers’ trade-up with the Bears last year looks even worse now after Carolina benched its former first overall pick following another disastrous outing. Andy Dalton will step into the starting lineup and try to salvage fantasy production for players like Adam Thielen and Diontae Johnson. For now, there are very few players of use on that Panthers squad. J.K. Dobbins is having a career resurgence — for now, until his next unfortunate injury — as he rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown in this one. Quentin Johnston slapped on a pair of sticky gloves and corralled 5 catches for 51 yards and 2 — yes, 2 — touchdowns.
Browns 18, Jaguars 13: The Browns outlasted the Jaguars in a low-scoring battle featuring 252 combined rushing yards. Deshaun Watson was able to get out of his own way long enough to lead them to victory. He had 206 total yards and a rushing touchdown. Jerry Jeudy led the way with 5 catches for 73 yards. His fellow castoff receiver, Elijah Moore, had 6 catches for 44 yards. Brian Thomas Jr. had two big catches for the Jaguars, finishing with 94 yards. Brenton Strange — Who? What? Why? — had 3 catches for 65 yards. Travis Etienne had 52 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Raiders 26, Ravens 23: Uh-oh. Something sour is going on in Baltimore as the Ravens are 0-2 out of the gate. Fantasy stats were plentiful, at least. Lamar Jackson had 292 total yards and one touchdown pass. Derrick Henry rushed for 84 yards and a score. Zay Flowers caught 7 passes for 91 yards and a touchdown. For the Raiders, Davante Adams caught 9 passes for 110 yards and a touchdown. Rookie Brock Bowers tallied 9 catches for 98 yards.
Cardinals 41, Rams 10: Watch out for the Cardinals! They could be playoff bound this year after Marvin Harrison and the birds pounded the Rams. Harrison had 4 catches for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns. Kyler Murray threw for 266 yards and 3 scores while rushing for another 59 yards. James Conner tallied 122 yards on 21 carries and scored a touchdown. Kyren Williams had an abysmal 25 yards on 12 carries but salvaged his day with a touchdown. Demarcus Robinson caught 2 passes for 50 yards while Cooper Kupp added 4 grabs for 37 yards. Matthew Stafford passed for 216 yards.
Steelers 13, Broncos 6: Justin Fields is 2-0 with the Steelers and is making Mike Tomlin’s choice difficult when Russell Wilson is healthy. Now, in fairness to fantasy owners, Fields has hardly been start worthy in his two appearances. In this one, he threw for just 117 yards, rushed for 27, and recorded just one touchdown. Najee Harris had a mundane appearance, picking up just 69 rushing yards. Pat Freiermuth led the team with 4 catches for 39 yards. Bo Nix led the Broncos with 25 rushing yards — sorry, Javonte Williams owners. He also passed for 246 yards and 2 interceptions. Josh Reynolds recorded 4 catches for 93 yards.
Chiefs 26, Bengals 25: The Chiefs put together a nice comeback victory with a little help from some zebra-shirt wearing friends — did I say that? Patrick Mahomes had 151 passing yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Isiah Pacheco had 90 yards on 19 carries but he’s going to miss some time. Rashee Rice led the way with 5 catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. Xavier Worthy returned to earth where he belongs with just 2 catches for 17 yards. I hope you sold him high last week.
Texans 19, Bears 13: Caleb Williams continued to flounder behind a Swiss cheese offensive line as the Texans obliterated the rookie quarterback. D.J. Moore caught 6 balls for 53 yards and that was really about it for the Bears. C.J. Stroud had 260 yards and a touchdown. Nico Collins caught 8 balls for 135 yards and a touchdown. Ka’imi Fairbairn drilled 4 field goals, 3 of them beyond 50 yards.
Falcons 22, Eagles 21: The Falcons mounted an incredible comeback win — or Eagles coach Nick Sirianni blew another one, take your pick — as Kirk Cousins threw for 241 yards and two scores. Bijan Robinson rushed for 97 yards on 14 carries and added 4 catches for 25 yards. The squeaky wheel — Drake London — got the grease this week and finished with 6 catches for 54 yards while Darnell Mooney tallied 88 yards and a touchdown on 3 catches. Jalen Hurts tallied 268 total yards, Saquon Barkley added 116 all-purpose yards, and DeVonta Smith had 76 yards and a touchdown on 7 catches.
