Tips, predictions and best bets for the second week of the NFL
USA TODAY Sports’ Lorenzo Reyes is back with his best NFL picks for Week 2 of the NFL season.
From the loss of the clearly favored Cincinnati Bengals to the New England Patriots to the big comebacks of the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins, the opening week of the 2024 NFL season was full of surprises.
While the schedule for Week 2 looks significantly quieter, the lack of high-profile matchups could set the stage for some more big twists.
Consensus is back in a big way this week: USA TODAY Sports’ six experts have unanimously given their picks for 11 of the 16 upcoming games. But we asked the writers to offer one key prediction for this week’s games.
Here are USA TODAY Sports’ bold predictions for Week 2 in the NFL:
Caleb Williams has to wait until Week 3 to find the end zone
Despite starting his NFL career 1-0, Caleb Williams’ debut with the Chicago Bears was statistically not a star. He completed less than half of his passes (48.3%), had fewer than 100 passing yards (93), and averaged 3.2 yards per attempt. The Bears still beat the Tennessee Titans despite not scoring an offensive touchdown. They won’t have so much luck against the Houston Texans on Sunday Night Football.
Houston allowed 27 points in a Week 1 win over the Indianapolis Colts, but they were effective against the run, holding Jonathan Taylor to 3.0 yards per run and quarterback Anthony Richardson largely in check on the ground. What brought the Texans down were explosive moves at the expense of Richardson’s arm and two touchdown plays that went over 50 yards.
Williams and the Bears offense pose no such threat — at least not at this stage. Chicago’s running game won’t save Williams. Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans will let his defense fly all over the field and confuse him. And the rookie will have to wait until Week 3 for his first career touchdown.
— Chris Bumbaca
Jordan Mason will exceed the 100 rushing yards mark again
The 49ers will be cautious with Christian McCaffrey, who is dealing with calf and Achilles injuries. With McCaffrey still recovering, the 49ers will boost Mason’s production, and the reserve running back will deliver for the second week in a row. Mason will break the 100-yard mark again after his stellar performance in which he set career highs in both runs (28) and rushing yards (147) in Week 1. The 49ers have advantages in forward defense against the Minnesota Vikings, especially on the edges. Expect 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan to have plenty of zone runs in his game plan. Mason will seize the opportunity and run with confidence and authority. Mason had five runs of 10 or more yards in Week 1. He could match that number in Minnesota.
— Tyler Dragon
Bucs will send an important signal with victory at Lions
The Lions beat Todd Bowles’ team twice last season – in a Week 6 encounter in Tampa and in the divisional playoffs in Detroit. Therefore, the Bucs, who have won the NFC South title three times in a row, should be highly motivated not to lose three times in a row to the Leos since the start of 2023. Bad for Tampa Bay: All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield is expected to miss the game with a foot injury, putting even more pressure on an already thin secondary to compete against receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams and tight end Sam LaPorta. Good for the Bucs: Baker Mayfield started the season with a bang – he threw passes for 289 yards and 4 TDs and had the league’s best passer rating (146.4) in Week 1 – and he has one of the NFL’s best 1-2 receiver combinations in two games with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Dan Campbell’s combative team secured a spot in the NFC title game in January by knocking off the Bucs, deciding a game that was tied 17-17 early in the fourth quarter. Now the Bucs return to raucous Ford Field with another chance to prove if they can compete.
— Jarrett Bell
Seahawks score six sacks in win over Patriots
Malcolm Butler’s return to Foxborough as “keeper of the light” is a flawless troll job by New England — and a reminder that both teams are far from their Super Bowl 49 form. But while Mike Macdonald’s defense can’t be mentioned in the same breath as the Legion of Boom, there are plenty of reasons to believe the unit could cause serious problems for the Patriots on Sunday. Jacoby Brissett took just one sack in Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals, but he had the highest pressure rate (48.3%) of any quarterback, according to Next Gen Stats. That speaks to Brissett’s presence and composure in the pocket, but he could face a significantly tougher challenge with the Seahawks. With big threats both inside from Leonard Williams and rookie Byron Murphy, and along the side from Boye Mafe, Macdonald’s complex scheme offers a variety of ways to generate pressure without blitzing frequently. Six sacks is a high bar – the Dallas Cowboys were the only team to reach that number in Week 1, and that was against a Cleveland Browns team missing its top two offensive tackles – but the Seahawks can break that mark against a team that appears to be significantly undermanned on offense.
—Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz
