The records around the NFL will continue to widen across the month of September as the leagues’ clubs charge forward through their 2025 schedules. Sixteen teams started on the campaign enjoying the taste of a Week 1 victory, while the remaining 16 squads went back to the drawing board to figure out how to design their first win of the season.
If you followed along last week, you are still alive in your Survivor Pool. Congratulations, dear reader! Arizona, Denver, and Washington all emerged victorious in their openers. Meanwhile, Cincinnati barely escaped Cleveland with a one-point win, making that selection a justifiable “avoid “ team in Week 1. Let’s see if we can do that during the NFL’s Week 2, shall we?
Dallas Cowboys (vs. New York Giants)
The Cowboys hung tough in front of Michael Jordan in their opener, a 24-20 road loss to the Philadelphia Eagles last Thursday. Dallas battles another NFC East foe in Week 2, however, this time they get the benefit (?) of the blinding lights in AT&T Stadium for the 1 p.m. kickoff against the Giants. Dak Prescott brings a 13-game winning streak into the game against Big Blue and will be looking to inch closer to Bob Greise’s NFL record of 17 consecutive victories on Sunday.
New York’s offense struggled to generate offense against Washington in the 21-6 season-opening loss. Starting QB Russell Wilson finished 17-of-37 passing for 168 yards and led the team with 44 rushing yards on eight carries. The Giants will need more help from their running back room – Tyrone Tracy Jr., Devin Singletary, and Cam Skattebo – to have any chance of grabbing their first win of the season.
San Francisco 49ers (at New Orleans Saints)
The 49ers prevailed over the Seattle Seahawks, 17-14, following a late touchdown from third-string TE Jake Tonges. RB Christian McCaffrey totaled 142 yards on 31 ball touches – 22 carries for 69 yards and nine catches for 73 yards – but he did not find the end zone against Seattle. San Francisco did enough to get by a stingy Seahawks squad last weekend, and the 49ers should have enough offensive firepower to get past a Saints team that finished 5-12 in 2024.
New Orleans stood cleat-to-cleat with the Arizona Cardinals in a six-point loss in Week 1. Despite feeling ill, Kyler Murray completed 21-of-29 passes for 163 yards and two passing scores. However, the 10-point advantage was too much to overcome in the second half as Arizona managed only a field goal after the break. The Saints will need more than 45 yards from Alvin Kamara if they plan to avoid dropping QB Spencer Rattler back to pass another 40+ times on Sunday afternoon.
Rattler completed 27-of-46 passes for 214 yards as he watched his NFL record slip to 0-7. New Orleans signal caller has a few more games before surpassing an undesirable NFL record – the double-digit losses without picking up a win. Currently, Brody Croyle owns an 0-10 record over five seasons for the Kansas City Chiefs (2006-2010).
Baltimore Ravens (vs. Cleveland Browns)
The Ravens were left in awe as Bills QB Josh Allen led the Bills to 16 points over the last four minutes to steal a Week 1 home victory. Baltimore returns to M&T Bank Stadium this afternoon looking to return to a .500 record with a win over the Cleveland Browns, a squad that squandered a chance to beat Cincinnati last weekend. The Ravens showcased enough offensive firepower to stand head-to-head with Buffalo last weekend. It’ll be a tough task for the Cleveland defense to slow down the high-flying Ravens attack.
If there is a silver lining in that Browns loss, it was the defense keeping Cincinnati’s offense in check. QB Joe Burrow completed 14-of-23 passes for 113 yards, while the Bengals rushing game took the afternoon off. Chase Brown received 21 carries for 43 yards and a touchdown score. Still, Cincinnati will need more than 2 yards per carry out of their star running back to grab their first win of the 2025 season.
Avoid: Buffalo Bills (at New York Jets)
After last weekend’s incredible fourth quarter comeback against the Ravens last Sunday night, the Bills are primed to run through the Jets for their second win of the season. Pump the breaks on selecting Buffalo this week. The Bills allowed 238 rushing yards to Baltimore’s talented rushing attack, including three rushing touchdowns. Buffalo will need to shore up the rushing defense against QB Justin Fields and HB Breece Hall, a duo who combined for 155 yards on the ground against the Pittsburgh Steelers last weekend.
Fields and company looked solid, racking up nearly 400 yards in offense in their Week 1 loss to Pittsburgh. While the defense limited the run game to just 53 yards, Aaron Rodgers worked the air game for 271 yards and four touchdown passes. Will the Jets defense be able to handle a surgical passer like Josh Allen to avoid the 0-2 start in 2025?
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