Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season absolutely delivered with big twists and turns, exciting finishes, and as always -- the unexpected. How will Week 2 go as an encore?
The NFL has plenty of big-time matchups set for the spotlight, which doesn't even include the Super Bowl LIX rematch between the Chiefs and Eagles. Still, every primetime matchup features at least one playoff team from a season ago, some of the biggest star quarterbacks in the NFL, and some of the brightest up-and-coming players as well.
We've already made full NFL picks and score predictions for the slate of games in Week 2, but here, we'll focus more directly on each primetime matchup.
Week 2 NFL Predictions: Picks and score predictions for every primetime matchup
Washington Commanders (1-0) @ Green Bay Packers
Thursday, September 11, 8:15 PM ET
Week 2 starts off with an absolute banger as Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers play host to Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders. Not surprisingly, these two teams looked fantastic in Week 1 but the Packers came away with a more "impressive" win considering they destroyed the Lions, who won 15 games a season ago.
This matchup is going to come down to each quarterback and limiting mistakes. The Packers traded for Micah Parsons before the start of the season, in case you missed that one, and that move paid immediate dividends. Plus, a move like that just send a jolt through the entire organization. It tells everyone from the top down of the organization that there's belief in a championship-caliber season.
It's going to be a lot, even for a team as strong as the Commanders, to go on the road and deal with in Week 1. While I think this could be an epic matchup and back-and-forth game that comes down to who has the ball last, I'm rolling with the Packers in a tight one.
Prediction: Packers win 27-24
Atlanta Falcons (0-1) @ Minnesota Vikings (1-0)
Sunday, September 14, 8:20 PM ET
After a dismal three quarters, JJ McCarthy turned it up with three touchdowns in the 4th quarter as the Vikings came storming from behind to beat the Chicago Bears.
It was enough, even with a pick-six earlier in the game, to earn him NFC Player of the Week honors. Wild.
As impressive as McCarthy was, Michael Penix Jr. was equally impressive for the Falcons, leading what should have been a game-winning drive. The defense couldn't come through for him.
Penix was let down against the Bucs in Week 1, and that might be the unfortunate reality a number of times this season. Until we see the Falcons' defense catch up to the offense, I don't know if we can really project that team to go on the road and beat a team as talented as the Vikings.
We'll see if Minnesota can build on that 4th quarter against the Bears, but under the lights on Sunday Night Football, that Vikings fan base is going to be going ballistic to see their newly crowned franchise QB in person for the first time in a regular season game.
Prediction: Vikings win 23-19
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0) @ Houston Texans (0-1)
Monday, September 15, 7:00 PM ET
Week 1 of the 2025 season was a massive disappointment for the Houston Texans. Not only did they lose, but their offense didn't put up much of a fight, scoring just nine points.
Concerns from last season were anything but squashed, and it feels very much like this team is back to the proverbial drawing board. We need to see CJ Stroud be that star player we all know he's capable of being. And if he can bounce back against the Bucs, it would be a big statement.
The Monday night doubleheader starts off with Stroud trying to do just that against Baker Mayfield and the Bucs, who have no shortage of weapons offensively to spread the ball to. This is going to be a major test for Derek Stingley Jr. and the stellar Texans secondary, but should be a great battle.
I've got the Texans bouncing back at home to get their first win of the season.
Prediction: Texans win 24-22
Los Angeles Chargers (1-0) @ Las Vegas Raiders (1-0)
Monday, September 15, 10:00 PM ET
Two of the most impressive quarterbacks in Week 1 of the 2025 season were AFC West passers, but perhaps not the ones you might have expected.
After showing such a commitment to running the ball last year, it felt like the Los Angeles Chargers unleashed Justin Herbert in Week 1, and they had a ton of success doing it. Herbert carved up the Kansas City Chiefs in the season opener for the Chargers, and obviously has a chance to repeat that type of performance against a rather weak Raiders secondary.
Geno Smith also carved up the Patriots in Week 1, but they didn't have their best player (Christian Gonzalez) and the Chargers present a much tougher task overall. It's going to be fun to see these two go toe-to-toe and we might see these teams lean more heavily on their 1st-round rookie running backs.
As strong of a start as Geno Smith had in Week 1, it's hard to see the Raiders outscoring the Chargers with the way they played in Week 1.
Prediction: Chargers win 31-21