NFL Insights – Week One & Two
It’s hard to believe, but we’re already into week 3 of the 2022 NFL regular season. A lot has happened over the first 2 weeks. Early Lombardi contenders have emerged while other franchises (see Browns, Cleveland) seem determined to make life as hard as possible for themselves. There has been a lot to process in the short-lived season thus far, and you can get our beat on what’s being going on below.
The Steelers are struggling.
After playing lights out against their division rival Bengals in week one, the Steelers put on a thoroughly lackluster performance against an equally struggling Patriots side. Without TJ Watt leading the charge, the defense became mortal and Mac Jones had all the time in the world to make throws. Mitch Trubisky on the other hand couldn’t complete a pass over 25 yards, opting instead to dump the ball off to his backs on third and long situations. We can expect chants of “Kenny! Kenny!” to continue until fans get their way or they sort out the complete mess they have on their hands.
Will Trey Lance ever live up to his potential?
Boy, are the 49ers glad they didn’t trade Jimmy G this offseason. Despite being voted a captain, and being one of the highest paid back up QB’s in the league, Garoppolo started the season on the bench. That was until Lance fractured his leg against the Seahawks last Sunday. After spending the 2021 season as a backup/situational QB, this year was meant to Lance’s time to shine. Instead, the 49ers and their star signal caller will have to wait until next time around to see if the hype is real. Trey Lance has now not had a full season of football in over three years and will be eager to get his recovery on track in preparation for inheriting the starting job again next season.
What’s with all the fumbles?
Watching the Week One NFL in 60 on Game Pass, I couldn’t help but notice the amount of fumbling going on. Like a serious amount. Every second game seemed to have balls being dropped all over the shop. Was it just an outlier or did the lack of a 4th preseason game lead to a lack of adequate ball handling time for the players? There’s been an inordinately high proportion of turnovers in the short lived 2022 season. Joe Burrow turned the ball over 4 times in his week 1 matchup against the Steelers, but that’s not entirely on his as his protection was an absolute shambles. Last years Superbowl winning QB Matt Stafford has thrown 5 picks this season so far, something the Rams will want to sort out pretty sharpish if they’re serious about defending their title.
Are the Lions…good???
The longtime whipping boys of the NFL seem to finally be turning things around. No, we haven’t all collectively suffered a blow to the head. The Lions actually look like they’ve put together a formula to win games, a novel concept in Motor City. It all starts with the Coach. The Lions have a true believer in Dan Campbell, a man who has his players back and isn’t afraid to get a bit rah rah when it’s required. You can’t help but quietly root for him, despite a general sense of apathy towards his team. They’ve also added some much-needed talent on both sides of the ball. Aidan Hutchinson had three sacks against the Commanders on Sunday, already staking his claim to the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. On offense, The Lions have unearthed an absolute gem in WR Amon – Ra St Brown. The 2nd year pro has already amassed 180 yards and 3 TD’s on 17 receptions this season. So far so good in Detroit, but will it last? That remains to be seen.