It’s safe to say there were some fireworks on the opening week of the NFL’s 107th season. There were three games in which both teams scored at least 30 points, and a total of 11 clubs reached that mark.
This week, there are only three games that feature teams that both got off to 1-0 starts. Likewise, there are three contests where a club is seeking its first victory of 2026.
There are six interconference games this week, which includes a premier matchup at Orchard Park on Thursday night.
Football food for thought in Week 2 of the 2026 NFL Season
Thursday, Sept. 17
Detroit (1-0) at Buffalo (1-0): Both the Lions and Bills survived nailbiters in Week 1, and each team gave up at least 30 points in the process. A year ago, each of these clubs scored exactly 481 points. These clubs combined for 90 points in their last meeting, a wild 48-42 Buffalo victory in Week 15 of 2024 at Ford Field.
Sunday, Sept. 20
New Orleans (0-1) at Baltimore (1-0): The Saints hit the road for the second straight week off a one-point overtime loss at Detroit. Their defense gave up 156 yards rushing and a pair of TDs to Jahmyr Gibbs, and now must deal with Derrick Henry, who ran for 144 yards and three scores last Sunday at Indianapolis.
Cincinnati (1-0) at Houston (0-1): Both the Bengals and the Texans scores more than 30 points in Week 1, but only Zac Taylor’s club came away with a win. Cincinnati forced four turnovers in knocking off the Buccaneers, while Houston’s defense couldn’t stop Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen in the closing moments.
Cleveland (0-1) at Tampa Bay (0-1): For the second straight week, the Browns are in the Sunshine State. They face Buccaneers’ quarterback Baker Mayfield, the first overall selection by Cleveland in the 2018 NFL draft. Both he and Deshaun Watson had their problems holding onto the football last week in ugly losses.
Pittsburgh (1-0) at New England (0-1): Pittsburgh’s offense was pedestrian last Sunday, but the team scratched out a win over the depleted Falcons. Mike Vrabel’s club has had more than a week to prepare for this game. In Week 3 of 2025, the Steelers won at Foxborough thanks to five Patriots’ turnovers.
Minnesota (1-0) at Chicago (1-0): The Bears (59) and Vikings (39) combined to score 98 points in their Week 1 wins over Carolina and Green Bay, respectively. As for this series, the road team prevailed in both games a year ago. Kevin O’Connell’s team has won six straight games dating back to Week 14 of 2025.
Philadelphia (1-0) at Tennessee (0-1): Last week, the Birds hung on for a win over Washington, while the Titans’ offense gained 195 total yards in their 23-10 loss to the Jets. Under Nick Sirianni, the Eagles own 30-13 regular-season road record dating back to 2021. Tennessee is 2-16 at home dating back to 2024.
Green Bay (0-1) at N.Y. Jets (1-0): Dating back to last season and including that playoff collapse against the Bears in Chicago, Matt LaFleur‘s club has now dropped six straight games. Meanwhile, the Jets seek their first 2-0 start since 2015. Breece Hall ran for 102 yards and a score in last week’s win at Tennessee.
Carolina (0-1) at Atlanta (0-1): The Panthers’ new-look defense was humbled at home on Sunday as the Bears scored eight touchdowns and gained 552 yards of total offense. The Falcons and quarterback Cooper Rush ran into too much T.J. Watt at Pittsburgh. Carolina has won three straight in this series.
Las Vegas (1-0) at L.A. Chargers (0-1): Raiders’ quarterback Kirk Cousins was a mixed bag in last week’s home win over the Dolphins, throwing for 160 yards and three touchdowns while serving up a pair of interceptions. The Bolts’ home loss to the Cardinals was arguably the most perplexing result of Week 1.
Jacksonville (1-0) at Denver (0-1): Liam Coen’s team picked up where it left off during the 2025 regular season and made it nine consecutive victories via a rout of the Browns. Of last season’s 14 playoff teams, the Broncos may have had the worst Week 1 performance this season, laying an egg at Kansas City.
Washington (0-1) at Dallas (0-1): Talk about a lack of creativity? Dating back to Week 16 of 2025, the Commanders will have faced the Eagles, Cowboys, Eagles, Eagles and now Cowboys, respectively. So much that improved Dallas’ defense, which gave up 394 total yards in Sunday night’s loss to the Giants.
Seattle (1-0) at Arizona (1-0): Dating back to Week 12 of 2025 and including the playoffs, the ‘Hawks have now won 11 straight games. The team has also had the Cardinals’ number as of late, prevailing in the last nine meetings. Arizona’s upset of the Chargers in Week 1 snapped a nine-game losing streak by the team.
Miami (0-1) at San Francisco (1-0): The first game of the Jeff Hafley Era in South Florida had its ups and down but still resulted in a loss to the Raiders. The 49ers made it look easy against the rival Rams as their defense limited 2025 NFL MVP Matthew Stafford and company to 290 yards of offense and seven points.
Sunday night
Indianapolis (0-1) at Kansas City (1-0): After what Baltimore’s Derrick Henry (144 rushing yards, 3 TDs) did to the Indianapolis’ defense last Sunday, the Colts (losers of 8 straight games) could be in for another long outing against Kansas City’s Kenneth Walker III, who ripped the Broncos for 173 yards and a touchdown.
Monday, Sept. 21
N.Y. Giants (1-0) at L.A. Rams (0-1): Big Blue is back in prime time for the second straight week and seeks their first 2-0 start since 2022. Sean McVay’s club was pushed around by the rival 49ers, 27-7, in Australia, and looks to avoid a second 0-2 start in three years. No team scored fewer points than the Rams in Week 1.
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