Welcome to the Riker Report, where I open up my game day files each week and share a quick-hitter observation or development from each of the eight NFL divisions. Week 2 continued the mayhem from the regular season’s opening week, with comebacks, shocking blowouts and defensive masterclasses shaking up the balance of power in the league. Let’s dive right in.
AFC East: Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffers his third concussion in three seasons
In the most concerning development of this young NFL season, Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa left Thursday Night Football with a concussion after taking a hit from Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin. Even scarier than the injury itself was Tagovailoa’s history with head injuries. Tagovailoa missed games in 2022 with a pair of diagnosed concussions and could miss additional time this season with his latest concussion. NFL coaches and players have been united in their support of Tagovailoa, though perceptions on Tagovailoa’s path forward have varied. Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said he would advise Tagovailoa to retire, and Miami coach Mike McDaniel — the leader of a team that may fall out of contention if Tagovailoa misses extended time — conveyed that Tagovailoa’s family and future come before football. At just 26 years old and coming off the best season of his career, Tagovailoa seems to have turned a corner and emerged as the best Miami quarterback since Dan Marino, but football should take a backseat. On Tuesday, the Dolphins placed Tagovailoa on the injured reserve, and Tagovailoa has approached the setback by seeking the advice of neurologists — a wise move in a harrowing situation.
NFC East: The Eagles can’t seal off a Monday Night Football victory, and the boos are getting amplified
Philadelphia had one of the worst finishes of any team to the 2023 season — that’s been well-documented. But their victorious trip to Brazil to kick off their season proved that the Eagles can hold their own with elite offenses and that running back Saquon Barkley, the team’s marquee free agent acquisition, was well worth the investment. And after Dallas dropped their home opener against New Orleans, the Eagles looked primed to improve to 2-0 and take the division lead in their matchup against an underperforming Falcons offense and Kirk Cousins. Instead, Philly let the final game of Week 2 slip away, blowing a 21-15 lead and surrendering a six-play, 70-yard drive to Cousins’ Falcons in front of their home fans in a 22-21 loss. Quarterback Jalen Hurts’ interception sealed the defeat, but Barkley’s wide-open drop on third-and-3 with less than two minutes remaining may sting the most. Is last season’s slide becoming part of a larger trend?
In a related note, the NFC East is shaping up as one of the most comically dysfunctional divisions in the sport, with two underperforming playoff contenders and two teams on a treadmill of rebuilding cycles, and it’s that duel at the top between the Eagles and Cowboys that has captivated me for much of the past decade. Whether outsiders are debating their respective quarterbacks, their second-guessed head coaches, their talent-rich rosters or the fanbases themselves, these archrivals have quite an interesting back-and-forth developing again this season. 1-1 records seem fitting for each.
AFC North: Steelers improve to 2-0 behind masterful defensive performance
All viewers who endured the Broncos-Steelers side of the CBS afternoon broadcast (while Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes were playing on the screens of most of the country) deserve a participation ribbon. The 13-6 slugfest seemed like an entirely different sport than is showcased in the primetime slots, with a backup quarterback one-upping an erratic rookie in the lowest scoring game of the week. Somehow I’ve seen two Steelers games and two Broncos games through the first two weeks of the season (it’s not for the entertainment value, that’s for sure), and the most obvious takeaway to me is that Pittsburgh’s defense looks capable of winning the division on its own. Through two games, the Steelers have surrendered a total of 16 points and have lifted the team to a 2-0 start despite a the Steelers only scoring single offensive touchdown in those games. The secondary has forced Kirk Cousins and Bo Nix into a combined four interceptions, and Pittsburgh overall boasts a pristine 5:0 takeaway to turnover ratio. The intrigue with the Steelers is in their uncertain quarterback situation; the reason for optimism is a defense that is quickly proving itself to be the class of the AFC.
NFC North: Could the Vikings win the NFC North?
There will (almost certainly) not be a longer play from scrimmage this season, and quite possibly not a more impressive one, than Minnesota quarterback Sam Darnold’s 97-yard bomb to All-Pro receiver Justin Jefferson against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. The accuracy from Darnold, the journeyman quarterback and former 49er, to Jefferson was amazing in its own right, only to be surpassed by Jefferson’s catch and weaving dash through the talented San Francisco defense into the end zone. The play announced the arrival of a Vikings team that most wrote off after rookie J.J. McCarthy’s season-ending injury to playoff contention and proved pivotal in the Vikings’ home upset of the San Francisco 49ers, the Super Bowl favorites in the NFC and my Super Bowl pick in 2024. It’s hard to imagine a better start out of the gates for the Vikings, who battered the Giants 28-6 in Week 1 before pulling off one of the upsets of the week behind Darnold’s 268 passing yards. And suddenly, the Vikings have a full game lead over the rest of the NFC North, despite being the consensus last-place team in season projections. A fall to earth seems more likely than a division crown, but between the Vikings’ coaching staff and resilience so far, there’s a lot to like in Minnesota.
AFC South: Will Levis returns to surrender cobra mode with another brutal turnover
Titans quarterback Will Levis has been the proverbial wreck that is impossible to ignore, and against the Jets he offered himself up for meme fodder for the second week in a row. A week after an inexplicable throwaway-turned-pick six that doomed the Titans against the Chicago Bears, Levis had another mind-numbing turnover, this time in the red zone with Tennessee battling with the favored Jets for their first win. Levis stumbled out of the pocket, then decided to toss the football underhand instead of taking a sack and living to see another down. Running back Tyjae Spears couldn’t corral the loose ball and the Jets pounced on the opportunity. Titans coach Brian Callahan used language not suitable for television broadcasts as Levis returned to the Tennessee sideline, and his reaction must have mirrored that of Tennessee’s fanbase. The Titans have played two playoff contenders closer than expected in the first two weeks, but how will this team function with the head coach screaming expletives at his starting quarterback? Former Steeler Mason Rudolph is the backup quarterback, for reference, but I’m all for seeing the Levis show continue to simultaneously dazzle and infuriate viewers, depending on their rooting allegiances.
NFC South: Saints pound Cowboys as offense posts 40+ points in second week
The NFC South was, by far, the juiciest NFL division this week. Carolina benching its 2023 number one overall pick Bryce Young for Andy Dalton after two weeks. Tampa Bay exacting revenge for its Divisional Round loss with an upset of the Lions in Detroit. Atlanta eking out the win in Philadelphia on Monday Night Football. I’m opting for the game I watched most closely, and the one that plunged me into a pool of despair. That would be the New Orleans Saints’ 44-19 shellacking of the Dallas Cowboys in the early Sunday window, which ended a 16-game home winning streak in the regular season for America’s Team. There’s no doubt the Saints deserved it, and the final score doesn’t do justice to the Saints’ dominance. Running back Alvin Kamara was a fantasy football owner’s dream with four total touchdowns and 180 yards from scrimmage, while embattled quarterback Derek Carr torched the Cowboys for 243 yards on 11 attempts and earned a nearly-perfect 99.4 QBR, according to ESPN. The Saints defense, the clear strength, also showed up to play and intercepted two Dak Prescott passes. New Orleans’ first punt of the season came with fewer than 10 minutes remaining in regulation, underscoring just how dominant the Saints have been so far. I’m not buying the Saints as Super Bowl contenders just yet, but 44 points on the Dallas defense in Dallas is much more eye-catching than blowing out the Carolina Panthers and has New Orleans on my radar (a little late, perhaps). Even with a shaky year in 2023, the Saints finished with a winning record, and their 2-0 start to 2024 could launch them back in the playoffs in what most pundits considered an unremarkable season.
AFC West: Dissecting the Raiders’ incredible 10-point fourth quarter comeback
The pre-autumn wind is a Raider, to paraphrase NFL Films narrator John Facenda. Ironically, that’s the turn of phrase that got stuck in my head before the Raiders-Ravens clash on CBS, and though I did not expect Las Vegas to put up much of a fight in the Ravens’ home opener, the Raiders indeed “pillaged just for fun” in the fourth quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Despite trailing 23-13 in the fourth quarter — with less than a 10% chance of victory, according to ESPN Analytics — journeyman quarterback Gardner Minshew ignited a dormant passing attack and led three consecutive scoring drives to shock the reigning AFC North champions. The most impressive aspect of the Raiders’ comeback was the play of their two receiving weapons, wide receiver Davante Adams and first-round pick and tight end Brock Bowers, who shined against the Ravens’ top-ranked secondary and delivered with clutch play after clutch play. Pass rusher Maxx Crosby shined all game long and made as much of an impact as any of the offensive players with two sacks and a total of four tackles for a loss. The Raiders appear to be the third-ranked team in the AFC West at best behind the Chiefs and Chargers, but their first victory of the season was a testament to their fierce mentality and All-Pro talents.
NFC West: The 2024 season is battering and bruising the Los Angeles Rams
For most of the past decade, the Los Angeles Rams have carved out a space in Super Bowl contention, while the Los Angeles Chargers have failed to capitalize on their talent and have caught the injury bug year after year. Two catalysts have changed that dynamic: head coach Jim Harbaugh has instilled an element of grit to the Chargers and led them to a convincing 2-0 start, while two members of the Rams’ defense, legendary Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald and defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, left the organization. Of course, football injuries are not contagious between teams, but the Chargers seem to have passed off that plague to their SoFi Stadium suitemates. Wide receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua are out of action for a crucial stretch of upcoming games, while the offensive line tasked with protecting 36-year-old quarterback Matthew Stafford is missing the majority of its starters. One week after the Rams stole my NFC West spotlight for their valiant efforts in a loss, they’re back on it in an extreme danger watch due to the injuries, a burn-the-tape showing against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 2 and an 0-2 start that has dropped them to last place in the NFC West. It’s rare to have the best coach and best quarterback in the division and sink to the bottom, but that’s the hand the Rams have been dealt, with little time to turn their fortunes around.
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