It feels impossible, but two weeks of the 2022 NFL season are already in the books. We’re onto Week 3. The first two weeks have included some already extremely memorable games and finishes.
In Week 1, we were treated to multiple overtime games, although looking back on those games, is “treated” really the right word? Maybe tortured…At any rate, there was excitement from start to finish in Week 1 and the Week 2 encore was no different. Tua Tagovailoa went off for six touchdowns in a Dolphins comeback victory. Cooper Rush and the Dallas Cowboys got an impressive win at home over the Cincinnati Bengals.
The New York Jets recovered an onside kick as Joe Flacco led a comeback on the road against Cleveland. The New York Giants shockingly improved to 2-0 on the season with a win over the Carolina Panthers. Crazy things are happening around the NFL, and we can probably expect more of the same in Week 3. Let’s take a look at 20 bold predictions as the NFL season continues on.
20 bold predictions for NFL Week 3
20. Mitchell Trubisky gets benched for Kenny Pickett
On Thursday Night Football, the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers get together for what could be shaping up to be the most anticlimactic matchup of the entire week. Through two games so far this season, Mitch Trubisky has not been what the Pittsburgh Steelers need under center to consistently win football games. Against the Cleveland Browns, things could get ugly.
Myles Garrett has three sacks in the Browns’ first two games, and against a suspect Steelers offensive line, he could absolutely feast. Given the lack of offense we’ve seen from the Steelers in the first two weeks, it wouldn’t be surprising in the least to see Kenny Pickett get his number called at some point in this Thursday night matchup, especially if things get out of hand. Let’s say Trubisky throws a pick, maybe gets stripped on a sack…those kinds of things start adding up.
Mike Tomlin will make the change.
19. Josh Allen and Tua Tagovailoa combine for 7 touchdown passes
Tua Tagovailoa threw six touchdown passes in the Dolphins’ miraculous Week 2 win over the Baltimore Ravens. The Dolphins offense was a great combination of explosive plays downfield and Tua hitting his receivers in stride in the short passing game to allow them to gain yards after the catch. Shockingly enough, this Week 3 matchup between the Dolphins and Bills might just be the very definition of must-see TV in Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season.
Allen himself threw four touchdowns in the Bills’ Week 2 rout over the Tennessee Titans, so these two combined for 10 touchdowns this past week. Is predicting them to go for seven total touchdown tosses in this game even really a bold prediction? Six touchdown passes is an outlier for any QB, but it was particularly shocking from Tagovailoa.
Let’s say we get an AFC East showdown and these two combine for seven touchdown passes.
18. Joe Flacco and the Jets win again…convincingly
The New York Jets pulled off an improbable comeback victory in Week 2 over the Cleveland Browns. Joe Flacco was out there wheeling and dealing like it was the 2012 playoffs or something. What got into this guy?
Not only was Flacco out there making plays, but he was also distributing the ball all around to the Jets’ new plethora of receiving targets. It was a sight to behold. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Flacco gets the job done again in Week 3. The Jets are taking on the Cincinnati Bengals, who are a shocking 0-2 team. Could the Bengals start the season 0-3 with a loss to the Jets?
Robert Saleh might just have this Jets crew believing after that Week 2 miracle.
17. Davante Adams scores three touchdowns in a win
The Las Vegas Raiders looked like they were cruising to a win over Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals in Week 2…until they weren’t. The Cardinals came storming back and the Raiders blew their second straight game to open the season. It was an ugly loss at home for the Raiders, but will they bounce back in Week 3?
I think the Raiders are going to force-feed their new best offensive weapon, Davante Adams, who has already been targeted a whopping 24 times in the Raiders’ first two games. I think Adams will get three touchdowns in this game for the Raiders, and Vegas will get on the board for its first win of the 2022 season in convincing fashion over the suddenly hapless Titans.
16. Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints each have a defensive TD
The Carolina Panthers take on the New Orleans Saints in Week 3 of the 2022 NFL season, and both Jameis Winston and Baker Mayfield are struggling just a bit to open the season. Mayfield is completing under 54 percent of his passes and was an atrocious 14-of-29 in Week 2.
Winston is coming off of a three-interception game against his former team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Both of these quarterbacks have shown they will put the ball in harm’s way and I think with plenty of playmakers on either side of the ball in this one, we’re going to see some defensive fireworks. I’m calling each team here scoring a defensive touchdown in this one.
15. Lamar Jackson eclipses 500 yards of offense vs. Patriots
The Baltimore Ravens lost a heartbreaker against the Miami Dolphins in Week 2, but make no mistake about it — Lamar Jackson was on point. Jackson eclipsed 400 yards of total offense in defeat and against the New England Patriots, I think he’s going to be an unstoppable force.
Nothing against the Patriots and their defense — we know that unit is always going to be strong under Bill Belichick. The issue here is the Patriots are now having to defend against a ticked off Lamar Jackson who is going to realize that he is going to have to go into MVP mode if the Ravens are going to go anywhere this season. Jackson throws for 400 and runs for 100 against the Patriots, eclipsing 500 total yards of offense and rekindling those MVP talks.
14. Detroit Lions eclipse 40 points vs. Vikings
The Detroit Lions have been one of the NFL’s most impressive teams through two weeks, which surprises absolutely nobody that has been reading this site for the last six months. Passengers of the Lions hype train, this is your captain speaking. We’re expecting plenty of air traffic from Detroit throughout the duration of the season, please sit back and enjoy the ride.
The Lions are averaging 35.5 points per game and their offense looks borderline unstoppable. The Minnesota Vikings had a tough time with the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 2 and the Detroit Lions are going to be no different. I think Detroit is going to establish itself as the second best team in the NFC North with a convincing win over the Vikings and over 40 points scored in this game.
13. Carson Wentz throws 4 INT vs. his former team
The Philadelphia Eagles have been having their way with Kirk Cousins on Monday Night Football, and they will ride that momentum wave into Week 3 against the Washington Commanders and Carson Wentz.
Wentz has been solid for the Commanders so far, statistically speaking, throwing seven touchdowns compared to three interceptions. Although the Commanders are playing this one at home, I’m going to say that Wentz has a complete dud of a game against his former team, throwing four interceptions and really causing some concerns for the Commanders faithful.
12. Kansas City Chiefs run into a stumbling block vs. Colts
The Kansas City Chiefs don’t appear to have really skipped a beat this season without Tyreek Hill. Hill, by the way, looks great with the Miami Dolphins. Although the Chiefs might be bordering on unstoppable with Hill on the roster, it’s hard to look at this team and see anything but a Super Bowl contender.
But nobody is going undefeated this season. Okay, are the Bills going undefeated? The Bills might go undefeated. No, nobody’s going undefeated.
The point is, I’m calling this shot from downtown. The Colts are due, and the Chiefs flirted with disaster on a few occasions against the Chargers as Mahomes put the ball into harm’s way a few times en route to a Chiefs win. The Colts have been bad to start this season, tying with the Texans in Week 1 before getting skunked in Week 2 by the Jaguars. But that’s why they call these bold predictions.
11. Texans vs. Bears ends up being one of the best games of the week
The Houston Texans are 0-1-1. The Bears are 1-1. Before the 2022 season, many expected these two teams to compete for the top pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, but not before they met for a regular season matchup you might otherwise skip watching and go with your spouse to Costco on Sunday afternoon instead.
No, I’m calling my shot here — this game will be worth passing on Costco for. Justin Fields, Davis Mills — two second-year quarterbacks with tremendous talent who have had varying levels of success thus far in their careers. This game features some very good, young defensive talent. It’s got two interesting young quarterbacks.
I’m going to say this ends up being one of the more entertaining games on the Week 3 slate.
10. Trevor Lawrence stays hot, throws 4 TD passes vs. Chargers
Trevor Lawrence is starting to heat up, isn’t he? In a blowout Week 2 win, Lawrence showed out with a completion rate over 83 percent and two touchdowns with no interceptions. So far this season, his touchdown percentage per attempt is up more than double what it was last season (up to 4.2 percent from 2.0 percent). Now, he gets a matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 2 where he will be tested by a strong pass rush and secondary.
And I think he’s going to pass that test with flying colors. Maybe we get the chance to see a true shootout in this game between Lawrence and Justin Herbert. One way or another, I think we’re going to see a four-touchdown performance from Lawrence against Los Angeles.
9. Jaguars rookie Travon Walker goes off for three sacks
Justin Herbert will have had some time to heal up after last week’s Thursday night matchup against Kansas City. Herbert suffered an injury to his ribs in that game and looked like he was out there finishing the game in some serious and considerable pain. At this point, there’s been no indication that Herbert’s status against the Jaguars for Week 3 is in doubt, which means he’ll be out there getting rushed by the exciting young duo of Josh Allen and top pick Travon Walker.
Allen and Walker have combined for three sacks and five QB hits in the Jaguars’ first two games, and in Week 3 they’ll have the opportunity to attack an offensive line that allowed Herbert to be sacked twice and hit a bunch more against the Chiefs. For top pick Travon Walker, I see this as a huge coming-out party with three sacks.
8. Matthew Stafford adds 3 more interceptions…and 3 more touchdowns
Matthew Stafford has proven — you can throw interceptions and still have a ton of success. He did it last year, throwing 17 interceptions in the regular season while also throwing 41 touchdown passes and leading the Rams to a Super Bowl victory. This year, he’s off to a similar start.
Through the first two games of the season, Stafford has four touchdown passes and five interceptions. His interception percentage right now is up at a staggering 6.5 percent. Yes, Stafford has got to go out and be smarter with the ball, but he’s always been a gunslinger.
After the Rams’ win in Week 2, I think Stafford is going to come out slinging once again in Week 3, throwing three touchdowns and three picks.
7. Kyler Murray wills the Cardinals to a 10-point victory
The Arizona Cardinals are taking on the Los Angeles Rams in Week 3 after their shocking and very fun comeback win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 2. Kyler Murray willed his team to victory and obviously got some big help from the defense in overtime. Although the Cardinals are one of the more overrated teams in the league, in my opinion, I think they’re going to be tougher earlier on in the season like they have been in recent years.
Kyler Murray is going to be playing with tremendous confidence after what we saw against the Raiders and I think we’re going to see him put the team on his back en route to a big divisional win over the Rams.
6. The Aarons stay white hot for the Packers
There’s probably no doubt about this week’s “Game of the Week”. Everyone is going to be tuned in to see Aaron Rodgers go up against Tom Brady, a battle of all-time great players who are still playing MVP football late in their careers. After Week 1, Packers fans were probably a little concerned as their team got destroyed by the Minnesota Vikings.
In Week 2 against the Bears, the Packers looked like, well, the Packers. It was Aaron Rodgers and Aaron Jones absolutely torching Chicago, and that momentum is going to carry into NFL Week 3. The Aarons are going to keep things going after Rodgers had a pair of touchdown throws and just six incomplete passes against the Bears, while Jones had 132 yards rushing, 38 yards receiving, and two total scores.
5. Tom Brady throws at least three picks vs. Packers
If the Aarons are going to have success on Sunday, it means that Tom Brady might have some struggles.
Through the Buccaneers’ first two games, Brady has just two touchdowns and one interception. He completed less than 53 percent of his throws against the Saints. Against Green Bay’s vaunted defense, is he going to have Chris Godwin? He won’t have Mike Evans. He doesn’t have Antonio Brown or Rob Gronkowski anymore. Even Tyler Johnson is no longer with the Bucs.
While Brady could still pull out his GOAT card and have a huge game against Green Bay, it just looks like he’s a little distracted and easily triggered out there right now. I think Brady’s frustration combined with the lack of weapons out there against Green Bay will cause him to make some errant throws, resulting in three picks on the day.
4. Drake London has 200 yards receiving
Drake London was the top wide receiver selected in the 2022 NFL Draft, and so far, he’s made the Falcons look smart for that pick in just two games. London has 13 receptions for 160 yards in the Falcons’ first two games of the season, but I’m thinking he’s going off for even more in Week 3.
As in, a lot more.
I’m calling a huge shot here that London takes over the game as the Falcons travel to Seattle to play against the Seahawks. This will be the rookie’s big coming out party as he racks up over 200 yards receiving against Seattle with the Falcons coming away victorious.
3. Jimmy Garoppolo strip-sacked twice vs. Broncos
Trey Lance had season-ending surgery to repair his broken ankle and the 49ers suddenly look like geniuses for not trading Jimmy Garoppolo to the highest bidder back in March or April, or at all. Having Garoppolo on the roster could be massive for the 49ers as this season progresses. He’s undoubtedly a safer option out there than Lance at this point.
But against the Denver Broncos, on the road, Garoppolo is in for it. The Denver Broncos have five forced fumbles as a defense already this season. The pressure off the edge has been getting home the first two weeks and I think Garoppolo is going to have a tough time with the likes of Randy Gregory, Bradley Chubb, and Baron Browning.
2. Russell Wilson goes off for 4 TDs against a familiar foe
So far, not so good for the Denver Broncos’ offense. Nathaniel Hackett’s crew has been terrible in the red zone so far this season which is uncharacteristic for Russell Wilson, whose Seahawks were one of the best in that area last year. So were Hackett’s Packers, by the way. After two games of learning experiences for the Broncos, I’m going to say that Wilson and the Denver offense turn it up in a big way against the San Francisco 49ers.
Wilson is no stranger to the 49ers and he’s had their number through the years. He’s 16-4 in regular season matchups against the 49ers with 36 touchdown passes against them, the most he’s got against any individual opponent. Despite their struggles through the years, Russ had worse luck against the Cardinals. I think in this one, the Broncos are going to put to rest a lot of doubts people are having about their offense, which is #1 in the NFL in yards per possession.
Against the 49ers, the Broncos will close out their strong drives with TDs, four from Wilson’s right arm.
1. Micah Parsons leads Cowboys to win with four-sack game
Micah Parsons has to be the early favorite for Defensive MVP. This guy is an absolute terror, a true game-wrecker in every sense of the word. The Dallas Cowboys desperately need Parsons to step up in the absence of Dak Prescott. Of course, Parsons doesn’t play the quarterback position, but he’s capable of impacting the other team’s quarterback better than pretty much anyone else in the league right now.
Over the course of a game, Parsons’ productivity can absolutely wear teams out. Dallas is taking on the upstart Giants, a surprise 2-0 team to open the 2022 season. Parsons is going to be living in the Giants’ backfield and haunting their dreams for the foreseeable future after this one.