NFL - Week Two Review

Chargers TE Antonio Gates burned the Seahawks D for three touchdowns.

There were more surprises around the NFL in Week Two as the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks were knocked off by the host San Diego Chargers, 30-21 behind a dominating offense that held the football for over 42 minutes in the game.
Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers passed for 284 yards and three touchdowns, all of them to tight end Antonio Gates, the Heftyinfo NFL Player of the Week, who had seven receptions for 96 yards and the three touchdowns.
The Chicago Bears beat the host San Francisco 49ers, 28-20 in the Sunday Night Football game in a huge comeback effort (they trailed 17-0 at one time) as QB Jay Cutler had four touchdown passes, three of them to wide receiver Brandon Marshall, to spark the effort. The Bears defense rose up and sacked 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick four times while also intercepting three passes, two of them by rookie Kyle Fuller. The 49ers had 16 penalties (for 118 yards) in the loss.
The Green Bay Packers had a similar performance to Chicago's earlier in the day as they overcame a 21-3 deficit at home to top the New York Jets, 31-24 behind three TD passes from Aaron Rodgers, who also passed for 346 yards. Green Bay WR Jordy Nelson had a career high 209 receiving yards, including an 80-yard TD reception, to help the big comeback win.
The Jets thought they had the potential tying score late in the game, but the touchdown pass was taken off the board because an assistant coach (Marty Mohrinweg) had called for time out just before the snap.
The Cleveland Browns won their home opener on a last second 29-yard field goal by kicker Billy Cundiff to shock the winless New Orleans Saints, 26-24. Browns defensive back Tashaun Gipson had a "pick six" interception, taking it back 62 yards to open a 16-3 lead prior to the Saints coming back to twice have a one-point edge, including 24-23 when running back Mark Ingram scored on a one-yard run early in the fourth quarter. But the Browns rallied as QB Brian Hoyer directed the game winning drive in the final minutes.

                                                              Around the NFL . . . . . . . .  

Carolina rolled over the Detroit Lions in a 24-7 win as the defense forced three turnovers and had four QB sacks to lead the way . . . . .  The New England Patriots got a big road win, blasting the Minnesota Vikings, 30-7 as their defense limited the Vikings to just 217 yards in total offense . . . . .  The Dallas Cowboys ambushed the host Tennessee Titans, 26-10 with four field goals and a huge game from RB DeMarco Murray, who ran for 167 yards and scored a touchdown . . . . .  Arizona improved to 2-0 with a 25-14 road win against the New York Giants as the defense got four turnovers, including two interceptions thrown by Eli Manning. The special teams played a big role in the victory for the Cardinals with four field goals and a 71-yard punt return for a score by Ted Ginn, Jr . . . . .  Buffalo won at home, 29-10 over a listless Miami Dolphins team as kicker Dan Carpenter (a former Dolphins player) drilled five field goals while C.J. Spiller took a kickoff back 102 yards for a touchdown . . . . .  The Washington Redskins pasted the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars, 41-10 but lost starting QB Robert Griffin III to an ankle injury and WR DeSean Jackson to a shoulder injury. Backup QB Kirk Cousins passed for 250 yards and a pair of scoring passes in the rout . . . . .  Houston won a yawner on the road 30-14 against the Oakland Raiders as they raced out to a 27-0 lead behind solid defense, which had four turnovers in the win. The Texans had good balance on offense, rushing for 188 yards and getting a TD pass from QB Ryan Fitzpatrick  . . . . .  The Cincinnati Bengals dominated in a home win, 24-10 over the Atlanta Falcons as they gained 472 total yards in offense, including 170 on the ground. The Bengals defense intercepted three passes in the win  . . . . .  The St. Louis Rams held on for a 19-17 road win against Tampa Bay as kicker Greg Zuerlein made four field goals and Zac Stacy scored a rushing TD to offset Buccaneers QB Josh McCown's two rushing scores . . . . .   Denver won at home, 24-17 against the Kansas City Chiefs as QB Peyton Manning threw for three touchdowns even though the Broncos were out gained in total yardage in the win . . . . .  The Baltimore Ravens steam rolled the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers, 26-6 last Thursday night behind two TD passes from Joe Flacco and 157 rushing yards in a balanced attack to improve to 1-1 for the season . . . . .  The Philadelphia Eagles won a thriller on the road 30-27 against the Indianapolis Colts as kicker Cody Parkey made a 36-yard field goal as time expired to win the Monday Night Football game. Eagles RB Darren Sproles scored a rushing TD and had seven receptions for 152 yards and QB Nick Foles passed for 331 yards with a TD and one interception. Colts QB Andrew Luck threw for three scores in the loss, which dropped Indy to 0-2 for the season. The Eagles improved to a 2-0 record.