NFL Week 2 preview: 5 games you can’t miss this weekend
Here's our pick of the top five NFL Week 2 games – and who's showing them
An opening act that was chock-full of shocks – we're looking at you Jets and Giants and, for very different reasons, Rams, Chargers and Packers – has given NFL Week 2 a completely different feel.
It's probably why the slate is so wonky, with many of the best games set to play out simultaneously during Sunday's early-afternoon window. You've got some tough choices to make (unless you give up entirely and go with RedZone), but whichever game you go with, the outlook looks promising.
Scroll down for our pick of the top five NFL Week 2 games – and who's showing them.
Bengals vs Texans
- Sunday, 1pm ET, CBS/Paramount+ (US) | FREE on 5 (UK)
We stand to learn a lot from the Bengals' early-window clash with the Texans – specifically if Cincinnati's defense has gone from bad-to-good, and if Houston's has somehow gone the other way. The Texans ranked No.1 in the NFL for yards allowed last season and the Bengals No.31 (of 32), but you wouldn't have guessedit from their opening-day showings.
Packers vs Jets
- Sunday, 1pm ET, Fox/Fox One (US)
It took the Jets eight weeks to claim their first win last year. This time, they've done it straight out of the gate. No.2 pick David Bailey registered a sack on debut as New York embarrassed the Titans, while the Packers were all kinds of awful in a blowout by the Vikings, squandering a 12-point lead as just 21 of Jordan Love's 42 passes found their target. Green Bay have now lost six straight games – but this would take the biscuit.
Vikings vs Bears
Bears coach Ben Johnson raised eyebrows in preseason by stating his aim to break the NFL scoring record, and Chicago duly kicked off with a monster 59-point showing. The Brian Flores-run Vikings defense will provide a sterner test. However, while Minnesota's defense ranked at No.2 against the pass last season, it struggled to stop the run – and Williams, D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai combined for 291 yards and six touchdowns on the ground last week.
Raiders vs Chargers
- Sunday, 4.05pm ET, CBS/Paramount+ (US)
Chargers fans definitely won't want to miss this one, because they might not get a sniff of victory again until late November. The Bolts' schedule from Week 3 to Week 10 is horrendous, but on the bright side there's no possible way they could lose either of their first two fixtures... The Cardinals, who are projected to be at the very bottom of the pile come the end of the season, wiped the floor with them last weekend, and Justin Herbert was utterly lost in Mike McDaniel's new-look offense.
Giants vs Rams
- Monday, 8.15pm ET, ABC/ESPN/ESPN2/ESPN Unlimited (US)
The Rams were so bad in their opener they've gone from Super Bowl favorites to a potential bust in record time. The one saving grace from their atrocious showing in Melbourne is that they only flew out a day before the game, but with three tough fixtures set to follow this MNF meeting with the Giants, Sean McVay's men need to get a W on the board. Unfortunately for them, Big Blue look transformed under new coach John Harbaugh.
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Aatif is a freelance copywriter and journalist based in the UK. He’s written about technology, science and politics for publications including Gizmodo, The Independent, Trusted Reviews and Newsweek, but focuses on streaming at Future, an arrangement that combines two of his greatest passions: sport and penny-pinching.
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