Jordan’s Serial: NFL 2013 – Week 2 Takeaways
Week 2 wasn’t too far removed from its predecessor. There were lots of close finishes, some high scoring and big plays. There were a few upsets along the way, as well as the favoured teams making some big noise. Here is a quick recap of what happened in the second week of the 2013 season.
JETS 10 PATRIOTS 13
Notch this one up as a win for the rain. Neither team could move the ball with great efficiency due to the torrid conditions that made the game a dour spectacle. The NEW YORK JETS will probably see this game as one that slipped away, they managed to keep the NEW ENGLAND offense off the field long enough to give themselves a shot. An off target Geno Smith put paid to any hint of an upset.
RAMS 24 FALCONS 31
After a strong outing in week one, St. LOUIS had a rude awakening against ATLANTA finding themselves down big early. Just as last week though the Rams proved they are made of strong stuff and saw a comeback just fall short. The Falcons were back to their 2012 guise and when they are in full flow will once again prove hard to stop.
CHARGERS 33 EAGLES 30
The team that always finds a way to lose did just the opposite. SAN DIEGO hung in and in a game that they were never behind in finally got the win their play deserved. PHILADELPHIA were stung by a fast start but got their fast-groove on and kept coming back to keep the visitors second guessing themselves. In the end Philip Rivers & Co. had the answer.
COWBOYS 16 CHIEFS 17
If were honest with ourselves we kind of saw this coming. This is just the sort of game that DALLAS continuously slips up on, but in this case it’s doing KANSAS CITY an injustice. The Chiefs played a fine game, taking and making the most of chances given to them and ones they earned. Could the Cowboys have won this game? Sure, but they weren’t assertive or creative enough. Chiefs have now equalled their win total for last season. Dark Horse? (I’ll keep using that one until it pays off)
DOLPHINS 24 COLTS 20
A lot was said about MIAMI during preseason that they could be the surprise package this year. Well after a routine win in week one, they backed it up with a solid outing in INDIANAPOLIS. This could go down as a shock result, the Colts at home with Andrew Luck at the helm have grown into a solid playoff calibre team. Time will tell if the Dolphins can prove the “experts” right.
TITANS 24 TEXANS 30
Another nail biter of a win for HOUSTON. After digging one out last Monday night, they had to pool on all their resources again to outfight a TENNESSEE team that looked like they might pull off an upset. The Titans will see this as one that got away but will gain confidence from the way they played. Probably too much for them to do already given that they are now 2 games out of the division lead but could play spoiler.
REDSKINS 20 PACKERS 38
GREEN BAY were hot early and stopped the Redskins from doing anything worthwhile on its first 8 series. By the time the Packers were 31-0 up and the game was effectively over, WASHINGTON started (or at least were allowed) to play. The Redskins tackling was non-existent and they have the distinction of being the first team since 1967 to have yielded over 1,000 yards. The Packers power display puts them firmly on the map for NFC title contention.
BROWNS 6 RAVENS 14
Not to suggest that CLEVELAND aren’t a good football team but for a long time they were 6-0 up and heading towards an almighty scalp. BALTIMORE needed this though and were not going to be denied and 2 late scores righted any potential wrongs. The mere fact that the Browns ran the current champions close will be further proof that the AFC North division is as wide open as…the NFC East?
PANTHERS 23 BILLS 24
The nearly men of week one backed up that display with a stunning come from behind win this week. This BUFFALO team really could be the Dark Horse I mention so often. The AFC East will be fiercely played out. EJ Manuel was the hero with his winning TD pass with just 2 ticks remaining. CAROLINA once again has to lick their wounds and regroup, they haven’t done too much wrong so far this year and the 0-2 record doesn’t show the real story.
VIKINGS 30 BEARS 31
A wild game that almost had two back-to-back kickoff returns for touchdowns to start proceedings, it was only fitting then that CHICAGO won the game in the closing moments to move ahead in the NFC North. Stranger things have happened but Jay Cutler is starting to be a clutch QB. Who’d have thought that? MINNESOTA will feel unlucky to be 0-2 and need to get a W on the board soon or this could be another false dawn in their franchise history.
SAINTS 16 BUCCANEERS 14
A shocker of an ending for TAMPA BAY. They controlled this one throughout and should have sealed it with a field goal in the closing moments. The kick missed and you don’t give the NEW ORLEANS offense any chance to think they may get a shot. The Buccaneers now have the distinction of being the only team in NFL history to have lost games by field goals in the last 5 seconds of their opening two games.
LIONS 21 CARDINALS 25
A fast start by DETROIT and in particular Calvin Johnson was eventually pegged back by a resolute ARIZONA. Make no mistake this Cardinals team can play hard on both sides of the ball and may just surprise some of the teams in the NFC West. Detroit will be wondering how this lost this one, and will want to bounce back straight away before they fall too far out of sight in the North.
JAGUARS 9 RAIDERS 19
If you want a confidence boost in the NFL you simply play JACKSONVILLE. They helped make a very ordinary OAKLAND team look like playoff contenders. So that may be doing the Raiders a slight injustice, after all you still have to execute your game plan, which they did and almost managed to keep the Jags out of the end zone in doing so. The Jaguars did get a TD in garbage time and things don’t get easier this week at the Seahawks. That could get ugly in a hurry.
BRONCOS 41 GIANTS 23
For a while the Manning Bowl was a contest, in fact the New Yorkers could have been forgiven for thinking that they may just pull this one off. Three TD’s in just under six minutes put paid to that. Peyton beat Eli, again. DENVER got over 40 points, again. Some perspective here, as good as Denver were, the NEW YORK GIANTS were bad. Denver will lose this season (bold prediction?) but not this week on Monday Night Football.
49ERS 3 SEAHAWKS 29
The biggest matchup of the weekend and it didn’t disappoint. Well in terms of closeness in scoreline it did. At 5-0 and an hour’s rain delay because of lightning, SEATTLE finally got their rhythm. It’s taken a while but the 2013 Seahawks are here, and boy doesn’t SAN FRANCISCO know it. This isn’t the end of the season and the Niners will still end up winning more than they lose but for now Seattle have a serious edge on their closest rivals.
STEELERS 10 BENGALS 20
PITTSBURGH is in trouble. Not just because they are 0-2, but because they cannot move the football. In anyone’s book that spells trouble in the NFL. They really are in uncharted territory and Coach Tomlin has his biggest challenge yet in solving their problems. CINCINNATI however will see this as the first piece in them realising that they do have the talent to challenge in the AFC. It wasn’t an outstanding performance, but one in which they did what they had to do.
