The NFL Roundup - Week 2 - The Most Fascinating Games to Watch on Sunday

Written by John Edward Betancourt

It never ceases to amaze me just how important Week 2 in the NFL always turns out to be. After all, if your team starts the season 0-2, their chances of making the playoffs are astronomical. But if you start off 2-0, well...there's a better chance that your favorite team will have a shot at reaching the all important tournament. Which means that teams that suffered a loss in Week 1, or squeaked out a win, will be giving it their all this week to increase their chances at the postseason and that's precisely what we'll be focusing on today; those teams, and a player for that matter, that will be fighting hard for their future come Sunday. 

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Dallas Cowboys at Denver Broncos
Sports Authority Field at Mile High - 4:25 p.m. EST - FOX

The Dallas Cowboys did a wonderful job manhandling their proverbial nemesis in the New York Giants last week, and the poise and strength with which they did that, should be of major concern for the Denver Broncos. Because while the Broncos secured a solid win over the Chargers, they exposed some glaring issues to the rest of the league, issues that the Cowboys will no doubt be looking to take advantage of...their offensive and defensive line play. Denver's O-line once again regressed, allowing for QB Trevor Siemian to take way too much punishment, and the defense, thanks to injuries, were porous against the run. Which means that if the Broncos cannot shore up those two weaknesses, there's a fair chance Dallas will punish Denver with their run game and neutralize the offense by stopping Siemian before he has the chance to do any damage and if that happens...well, the Broncos may fall to 1-1, something that is a bad place to be in the ultra competitive AFC West.

New England Patriots at New Orleans Saints
Mercedes-Benz Superdome - 1:00 p.m. EST - CBS

While I have no doubt that the New Orleans Saints want to win on Sunday, something tells me the New England Patriots want this one more. It's rare to see the Pats go 0-1 to start the season, but here we are, with New England sitting at just that, which means this game is incredibly critical for Tom Brady and his boys. Because they can ill afford to go 0-2 with so many teams chasing them in the AFC which means that in order to win this one, they'll have to play mistake free football on defense, shoring up the holes on the D line and playing tight coverage on the Saints' receivers and if they accomplish that, and if Tom Brady can regain his accuracy when he's under center, then the Patriots can forget about their Week 1 mistake. But...if New Orleans comes out swinging and gets under New England's skin...there's a fair chance the season starts off in disastrous fashion for the Patriots. 

Miami Dolphins at Los Angeles Chargers 
StubHub Center - 4:05 p.m. EST - CBS

Sure the Los Angeles Chargers are looking for a win in their brand new home this week, and sure, they would like to pull off such a feat in spectacular fashion with solid defensive play and by putting up a ton of points on the scoreboard. But let's be honest, this game is really about one particular player; Miami Quarterback Jay Cutler. After all, at the end of last year, it seemed as though it was curtains for Cutler. After years of disdain from the fans for his 'aloof' attitude, and up and down play that never quite realized Cutler's potential coming out of college, #6 seemed done in this league. No team would sign him, so he signed a contract to join the broadcasting team at FOX. But injuries brought Cutler back into the fold and well...this is likely his last chance to show that he is indeed a top tier quarterback. So expect Cutler to show the league something in this game, hopefully something positive for that matter, so that his career, which is coming to a close, ends on a positive note. 

Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons
Sunday Night Football
Mercedes-Benz Stadium - 8:30 pm. EST - NBC

This particular game is less about something to prove, seeing as to how both of these teams won their first game of the season in solid fashion, no, instead, this particular contest is just going to be flat out fun to watch. After all, this is a rematch of the NFC Championship Game from last season, which was thrilling to say the least, and considering the fact that both of these offenses were electric in Week 1, I think it's safe to assume we can expect more of the same. So, don't be surprised to see a lot of touchdowns in this game as Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan take to the skies to thrill the fans, and the winner of this one, will be the team that figures out how to slow the damage the opposing quarterback imposes upon them.