The Biggest Question for Every NFL Game In Week 2

Good or bad, every NFL team made its first impressions during Week 1. While plenty can change between now and the end of the year, each team’s performance offered at least a glimpse at who it’ll be throughout 2026.

Still, these initial impressions have left plenty of questions, including what these first performances will mean when teams match up against their next opponents. As Week 2 kicks off, here’s one question for every game on the slate.

Lions at Bills: Can either defense slow down these offenses?

New Highmark Stadium could be treated to some fireworks when it opens for Lions-Bills on Thursday Night Football. Last time these two teams faced off in December 2024, they combined for over 1,000 yards, 90 points and seven passing touchdowns as the Bills won 48–42. Both defenses still have some question marks, with the Lions’ pass defense struggling against Tyler Shough and the Saints’ up-tempo offense in the second half and the Bills’ rushing defense remaining an issue since last season. Will either defense be able to limit the other offense, or at least make a clutch play or two to give their offense another possession?

Bengals at Texans: How will the Texans’ defense rebound against Joe Burrow?

The Texans’ defense goes from one star quarterback to another. After falling to Josh Allen and the Bills, the Texans will take on Joe Burrow and the Bengals in Week 2. The Texans had their worst defensive performance in over a year in Week 1, giving up 409 yards and 36 points, the most points they’ve allowed in a game since December 2023, when they gave up 36 points to the Browns. Even worse was the rate at which they gave up explosive plays. Per ESPN’s Ben Solak, the Texans gave up the highest rate of explosive plays since DeMeco Ryans took over as head coach.

Will the Texans’ defense tighten up against Burrow? Burrow had a solid but not spectacular performance in their win over Tampa Bay, throwing for 254 yards, one touchdown and one pick as Baker Mayfield’s fumbles propelled Cincinnati to victory. Burrow has not faced the Texans since 2023, when he threw for 347 yards, two touchdowns and two picks in a 30–27 loss.

Packers at Jets: Can the Packers run the ball against the Jets?

A number of things went wrong for the Packers in their collapse to the Vikings, including their inability to run the ball. With Josh Jacobs on the commissioner’s exempt list and the offensive line not playing great, the Packers rushed for just 66 yards while lead back MarShawn Lloyd managed 37 yards on 2.8 yards per carry. The Jets, meanwhile, controlled the clock for nearly 40 minutes in Week 1 by running the ball efficiently and holding Tennessee to 68 yards on the ground.

Saints at Ravens: Can New Orleans contain Derrick Henry?

The Saints’ defense will have its hands full with this new Declan Doyle–led Ravens offense, which rolled to 506 yards and 41 points on Sunday. The Saints did a good job against the Lions’ high-powered pass attack, but not as well with Jahmyr Gibbs, who rushed for 152 yards and two touchdowns. Gibbs, of course, is one of the best backs in the league, but Derrick Henry is no slouch either, even at age 32. Henry rushed 24 times for 144 yards and three touchdowns against the Colts. While Lamar Jackson & Co. can certainly beat teams in the passing game as well, slowing down the run will be a key start for New Orleans.

Eagles at Titans: Can Cam Ward play better?

The Eagles are unsurprisingly favored to beat the Titans, who will look to see more out second-year quarterback Cam Ward this week. Ward did not play well in the season opener against the Jets, completing 19-of-32 passes for 140 yards and a touchdown while putting up just 10 points—with seven of those points coming on a garbage time touchdown. Ward missed a number of open receivers throughout the game, and had one of his plays go viral for all the wrong reasons as he ran into a sack. He has struggled to be a consistent and accurate thrower, which showed itself again on Sunday.

The Titans had all offseason and this is the best they could come up with 😭 pic.twitter.com/ZtWZ6Y9bgN
— NFL Memes (@NFLMemes) September 13, 2026

It seems unlikely that Titans will upset the Eagles, but having Ward play better would at least be a silver lining for Tennessee.

Vikings at Bears: Can Brian Flores & Co. slow down this offense?

It’s safe to say that Ben Johnson’s offense is off to a good start after the Bears scored 59 points on a Panthers defense that’s not supposed to be that bad. The Bears were particularly explosive on the ground, rushing for 291 yards. The Vikings have one of the best defensive minds in the game in DC Brian Flores, but will he be able to slow down Johnson’s Bears? Flores and the Vikings gave up a few explosives to Christian Watson and the Packers in Week 1, but forced two turnovers and made a critical fourth-down stop to come back and win. They also shut down the Packers’ running game, holding it to 66 yards.

Browns at Buccaneers: Will the Browns defense rebound?

The Browns’ defense was expected to experience some level of a dropoff after losing Myles Garrett and defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz this offseason, but not as bad of one as Cleveland displayed against the Jaguars. The Jaguars had their complete way against a talented Browns defense in the 34–10 win. The Jaguars have a potent offense, but how will the Browns’ defense look against a motivated Baker Mayfield looking to get revenge on his former team and rebound from a turnover-littered performance in Week 1? The Browns’ quarterback situation was always expected to be a mess this season, but if the defense doesn’t improve, this really will be a long year for Cleveland.

Steelers at Patriots: Which offense will step up?

Both the Steelers’ and Patriots’ offenses got off to slow starts in Week 1. The Steelers defeated the Falcons 20–13—in large part thanks to T.J. Watt’s pick-six on third-string quarterback Cooper Rush—while the Patriots fell to the Seahawks 13–10 on opening night. Neither Maye nor Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers looked super sharp in their first games, with Rodgers missing several throws and Maye costing the Patriots the chance to win with three fourth-quarter interceptions.

Whichever offense is able to step up will have a good chance at leading its team to victory. Maye will have the challenge of trying to perform better without star receiver A.J. Brown, who was placed on injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury against the Seahawks.

Panthers at Falcons: Do the Falcons have answers for Bryce Young this time?

Outside of which quarterback will start for the Falcons, the biggest question in this game is if the Falcons can slow down Bryce Young and the Panthers’ offense. Young has gotten the better of the Falcons, beating them in four consecutive games. Last season, he led Carolina to a 30–0 shutout of Atlanta in Week 3 and then defeated them in an overtime shootout later in the year by throwing for 448 yards and three touchdowns. While the Panthers lost in Week 1, Young has momentum after throwing for 361 yards, three touchdowns and a pick in the high-scoring affair. The Falcons’ defense has been good under Jeff Ulbrich thus far, but will look to reverse its struggles against Young.

Raiders at Chargers: How will the Mike McDaniel offense look in Week 2?

Arguably the biggest disappointment of Week 1 was the Mike McDaniel offense, which mustered just 268 yards against what was supposed to be a lowly Cardinals team. McDaniel and the Chargers will now face another “beatable” opponent in the Raiders, who are coming off a nice win against the Dolphins. Will McDaniel be able to get the Chargers’ offense going against Las Vegas? They’ll need better results from the offensive line, which gave up three sacks and struggled to help the running game get going. The Raiders’ defense, meanwhile, have good momentum heading into SoFi after sacking Malik Willis five times in Week 1 and shutting down De’Von Achane. If the Chargers don’t protect better, they could be on the verge of another upset loss.

Jaguars at Broncos: Can Denver keep up with the Jaguars?

The Broncos have a lot of questions to answer after their blowout loss to the Chiefs, starting with whether they can rebound on short rest in time for their Week 2 matchup against the Jaguars, a team that already outclassed them a year ago in a 34–20 win. While the Broncos’ defense is the team’s strength, the unit looked lost against the Chiefs, struggling to defend the run and tackle. The Jaguars, meanwhile, were in midseason form in Week 1, with Trevor Lawrence tossing four touchdowns as Jacksonville pierced the Browns. If the Broncos’ defense can’t rebound quickly, they could be in for a long afternoon at Mile High Stadium.

The Broncos defense missed 28 tackles against the Chiefs, allowing 247 yards after missed tackles, the most yards allowed by any defense in a game since at least 2018.

The Broncos had eight different defenders miss multiple tackles on the night.#DENvsKC | #ChiefsKingdom
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 15, 2026

Commanders at Cowboys: Which offense will get in sync?

Both the Commanders’ and Cowboys’ offenses got off to rocky starts in Week 1. Jayden Daniels and the Commanders’ offense got off to a slow start, with him completing only 8-of-21 passes for 61 yards early in the game. Daniels was adjusting to a new offense under David Blough, and found a better rhythm in the fourth quarter against the Eagles’ stingy defense, completing 9-of-11 passes for 99 yards and two touchdowns and falling a two-point conversion short of tying the game. The Cowboys, meanwhile, struggled to get into a rhythm despite entering Year 2 of the Brian Schottenheimer offense. They didn’t have a chance to find their way late, as they only had two possessions in the second half of their loss to the Giants.

If their defenses are any indication, the Commanders’ offense could have an advantage. They’ll face a Cowboys defense that was pitiful against the Giants, allowing New York to run them over with the same play calls.

Dolphins at 49ers: How will the 49ers’ run defense hold up?

The 49ers put together a strong performance in their opener against the Rams in Australia, but if there’s one potential lingering concern it’s the run defense. The Rams rushed for 122 yards against the 49ers, and while their running attack slowed in the second half of the game, it was a clear spot where San Francisco might have a weakness. The Dolphins’ best weapon is running back De’Von Achane, who likely would need a big game for Miami to pull off the upset. The Raiders did a good job holding Achane to 36 yards rushing on 11 carries (3.3 yards per carry) in their win over the Dolphins.

While a strong game from Achane wouldn’t necessarily lead to a Dolphins win, it would be encouraging for the 49ers to keep him contained.

Seahawks at Cardinals: Do the Cardinals have another upset in them?

The Cardinals pulled off the upset of the week against the Chargers, but can they take down the reigning Super Bowl champions? The Cardinals got the win in part because of an Omarion Hampton fumble and a blocked punt, but they were still the better team against Los Angeles. Their offense looked good, even without heavily leaning on receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michael Wilson. The Seahawks will be without quarterback Sam Darnold and their secondary is banged-up, but neither of those things stopped them from playing well against the Patriots. What’s certain is the Cardinals will need to be better in the red zone for a real shot at the win, after settling for five field goal attempts in the game and making four of those kicks.

Colts at Chiefs: Can the Colts’ stop the Chiefs’ rushing attack?

The Colts got run over by the Ravens in Week 1, and the Chiefs just ran over the Broncos on Monday Night Football. Will the Colts be able to limit the Chiefs’ newfound rushing attack led by Kenneth Walker III? Indianapolis gave up 202 rushing yards to the Ravens, including 144 yards and three touchdowns to Derrick Henry at an average of 6.0 yards per carry. The Chiefs, meanwhile, saw Walker rush for a career high in yards and the most yards by a Kansas City running back in the Patrick Mahomes era. The Chiefs finished the week second in the league in EPA per rush (0.24), and though their passing attack wasn’t special against the Broncos, it won’t matter if the Colts can slow them down on the ground.

Giants at Rams: How will the Rams adjust to their first game back in Los Angeles?

The Rams’ plan to fly into Australia a day before their Week 1 game against the 49ers appeared to backfire as they lost 27–7. They have plenty of time to rest and reset before their Monday Night Football matchup against the Giants, but how will they rebound after their travels back to the U.S. and such a deflating loss?

They’ll be facing a Giants team that proved it’s no pushover in a tone-setting win over the Cowboys. The Giants played physical football to take down the Cowboys, consistently winning in the trenches. The Rams were the less physical, energetic team against the 49ers, something they’ll need to change to defeat New York.

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