After all of the overreaction that came with Week 1, there were plenty of market corrections in Week 2. The Seattle Seahawks, Washington Redskins and Arizona Cardinals each picked up their first wins while the Cincinnati Bengals hit a wall to fall to 0-2. What can we look forward to seeing in Week 3? We’ll start with a matchup of two AFC playoff contenders that are dealing with several question marks heading in to this Sunday.
Houston Texans @ New England Patriots
Odds: New England -13
The Patriots followed up a stunning upset loss to the Kansas City Chiefs with a lopsided 36-20 win over the lowly New Orleans Saints. However, New England lost Rob Gronkowski and Rex Burkhead to injury. Remember that Danny Amendola was already out. They only have two healthy wide receivers on their roster right now.
Meanwhile, the Texans defense bounced back with an excellent performance in last week’s 13-9 win over the Bengals. Rookie quarterback Deshaun Watson provided a spark for their offense on the ground but still struggled through the air. Watson will be in tough on the road against the Patriots. The Houston defense could help take some of the pressure off of him with a strong performance against Tom Brady and a beat-up offense in New England on Sunday.
Seattle Seahawks @ Tennessee Titans
Odds: Tennessee -3
Russell Wilson survived a ton of hits in a 12-9 win over the San Francisco 49ers that was a lot closer than many expected it to be. Wilson could have an even tougher time this week on the road against a Dick LeBeau defense in Tennessee. The Titans are coming off an impressive 37-16 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Marcus Mariota and the offense will have an opportunity to make a statement against a tough Legion of Boom defense on Sunday.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Los Angeles Chargers
Odds: Kansas City -3
The Chiefs improved to 2-0 with a 27-20 win over the Philadelphia Eagles. Rookie running back Kareem Hunt is showing no signs of slowing down, running for 81 yards and two scores while Alex Smith threw for 251 yards and a touchdown. The Kansas City offense will look to continue rolling on Sunday in a divisional matchup with the Chargers.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Green Bay Packers
Odds: Green Bay -9
Injuries hit the Packers hard in a 34-23 loss to the Atlanta Falcons as Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Mike Daniels all went down. Thankfully for Aaron Rodgers and company, they get to host the Bengals on Sunday. Cincinnati fired its offensive coordinator after failing to score a touchdown through its first eight quarters of the 2017 season. It will be interesting to see if the change provides a spark for the Bengals offense at Lambeau Field on Sunday.
Oakland Raiders @ Washington Redskins
Odds: Oakland -3
Marshawn Lynch’s sideline celebration stole the headlines for the Raiders, who improved to 2-0 with a 45-20 win over the New York Jets in Week 2. It was a rather easy win for the Raiders as the Jets packed it in at the half.
As for Washington, Kirk Cousins and company are coming off a crucial 27-20 win over the Los Angeles Rams that put them at 1-1. While their Week 1 loss was sour, they are tied with the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles with the same record as both teams lost in Week 2.
Dallas Cowboys @ Arizona Cardinals
Odds: Dallas -3
The Cowboys hit a wall against the Denver Broncos’ “No Fly Zone” defense on Sunday. Ezekiel Elliott was limited to eight rushing yards on nine carries. Dak Prescott went 30-for-50 for 238 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. The Dallas offense should bounce back against an Arizona defense that looked suspect in a close 16-13 overtime win over the Indianapolis Colts last week. And remember, the Cards gave up 35 to the Detroit Lions in Week 1.
How much does Carson Palmer have left in the tank? After a couple of poor performances to open the year, Palmer will need to bounce back with a better game on Sunday in order for the Cardinals to have a shot against the Cowboys. It won’t help that David Johnson is out of the lineup for the foreseeable future.