NFL Week Two Recaps

Recap: The Super Bowl Champions stay atop the NFC East and are off to a 2-0 start after handling the St. Louis Rams for an easy 41-13 victory. The Rams closed in on the Giants and actually made the game close as it was only 13-6 at halftime but the Giants scored 28 points in the second half to ensure the Rams couldn’t claw their way back.

Why the Giants Won: The Giants came out and took control of the game during the second half. The Giants came out and ran the ball and mixed it up on offense and continued to keep the Rams defense on their heels. The Giants were also able to expose the Rams offensive line which has looked very porous during the first two games of the season and the Giants were able to rack up six sacks on the day.

Why the Rams Lost: The Rams had eight situations during the day where they faced third down and more than six yards and they failed to convert and of those opportunities. The Rams went all last week without getting a third down conversion at all. This is an offense that cannot function in third and long situations and it doesn’t help that the Rams have now given up 10 sacks and countless pressures during the first two weeks of the season.

It Was Over When: Justin Tuck returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter. This opened up the game and Gave the Giants a 34-13 lead and put it on ice for the Super Bowl Champions.

Game Ball: I would have to give the game ball to the entire offensive line for the Giants. The Giants had exactly 200 yards on the ground and it didn’t matter if it was Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward or Ahmad Bradhsaw, everyone had success.

Recap: The extra time off the Redskins got after losing the season opener was something that concerned Saints coach Sean Payton all week long and it showed as the Saints indeed came away empty handed during their trip to Washington falling 29-24.

Why the Redskins Won: The Redskins offense that was completely dead a week ago seemed to wake up as they outgained the highpowered Saints 455-250. The Redskins receivers seemed to help quarterback Jason Campbell this week, especially after an opener where everyone in Washington seemed to be questioning whether Jason Campbell was the long term solution behind center.

Why the Saints Lost: The Saints lost the all important turnover battle as they turned it over 3 times to only one for Washington. The other area where New Orleans has been struggling continues to be running the football. Reggie Bush  is a great talent out of the backfield catching the football and creates a lot of mismatches but running the football effectively continues to be a problem. The Saints now only have 156 yards rushing through the first two games of the season and the balance doesn’t seem to be there. They are 1-1 and have a better start than last year but they barely beat the Buccaneers a week ago and still need to be concerned with their start to the season.

It Was Over When: The Saints failed to stop the Redskins on 4^th and 2 late in the game. Santana Moss caught an 8 yard pass to end the game right then and there. The Saints had time to drive for a touchdown had they gotten a stop at that point.

Game Ball: I have to give the ball to Jason Campbell. The scrutiny he has been under in Washington has been deafening. Todd Collin shad success leading the team into the playoffs last year and after last week the boo birds were out. To see Campbell respond with a big game was encouraging.

Recap: Well it wasn’t pretty but he Indianapolis Colts broke into the win column with a hard fought 18-15 victory against the Vikings on the road after Minnesota failed repeatedly to punch the ball into the end zone early on.

Why the Colts Won: The bend but do not break approach. The Colts not only won this game they scored the last 18 points of the game after being down 15-0. Point is the Vikings failed to get into the end zone and had to rely on 5 Ryan Longwell field goals. The inability for Minnesota to punch it in allowed Indianapolis to stick around and eventually win.

Why the Vikings Lost: Goes back to what I talked about. Not being able to put the ball in the end zone and that revolves around no balance for the offense. Adrian Peterson is one of the best backs in the league and had over 100 yards before halftime but Tarvaris Jackson doesn’t scare anybody and in the red zone the Colts just stacked the box and dared the Vikings to beat them through the air and they couldn’t.

It Was Over When: Minnesota got the ball back with under two minutes to go in a tie game and couldn’t pick up a first down allowing the Colts to get the ball back. Justin Forsett had a nice 25 yard punt return which gave the Colts great field position and allowed the Colts a chance to win with one of the most clutch kickers ever in Adam Vinatieri.

Game Ball: I would love to give it to Peterson in a losing effort but I have to say Anthony Gonzalez. He is starting to show that the Colts have more at receiver than just Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. Gonzalez is really needed now with the injury to Dallas Clark and he came up with some big catches today and had 137 yards receiving.

Recap: The Raiders got a big win in the division but the question now becomes whether this is enough to buy time for their coach Lane Kiffin to keep his job as reports have him out of town regardless of how this game turned out.

Why the Raiders Won: Darren McFadden had a huge day and he made it look easy. There were a number of runs where he seemed to be five yards past the line of scrimmage before he was even touched. Michael Bush and Justin Fargas also had their share of yards as well and it was 300 yards on the ground for Oakland when all was said and done.

Why the Chiefs Lost: They couldn’t stop the run. JaMarcus Russell threw for less than 60 yards and they still couldn’t get a victory. The Chiefs are still undecided as to who to use at quarterback as now Tyler Thigpen seen action meaning the Chiefs have used three quarterbacks in two games.

It Was Over When: Darren McFadden’s impressive 19-yard touchdown run in the third quarter put this game out of reach.

Game Ball: Have to say McFadden because he out the team on his shoulders with JaMarcus Russell continuing to struggle and made sure the Raiders didn’t need Russell to win this game. The running of McFadden seemed to open the ground attack up for all of the backs and the Chiefs defense couldn’t get off the field.