By Mike Jones, Ted Nguyen and Jourdan Rodrigue
Each Sunday, three of The Athletic’s NFL writers react to the biggest news, plays and performances from the day’s games.
A high-scoring Week 2 of the NFL season included a riveting back-and-forth affair between the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants; star turns from a pair of backup quarterbacks; and worrisome losses for the Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears.
It’s still early, but that excuse might not last very long if the losses keep piling up. The Athletic NFL writers Mike Jones, Ted Nguyen and Jourdan Rodrigue share their thoughts on a wild Week 2.
The Bears and first-year head coach Ben Johnson are 0-2 after two NFC North games, and QB Caleb Williams was underwhelming again in Sunday’s 52-21 loss to the Lions. How concerned should Chicago be?
Jones: I’ll say moderately concerned. Look, it’s a first-year head coach and a second-year quarterback, so it’s going to be a process. Also, the Lions are on a different level than the Bears. Having said that, there are indeed some troubling aspects when it comes to Williams. He’s just not very accurate. He’s late on a lot of throws. He also tends to rely on his athleticism too much, thinking he can extend plays and eventually make something happen. Johnson might need to further simplify things for Williams: Give him half-field reads and lean more heavily on the run game to set up play-action opportunities and see if that helps ease some pressure on Williams and helps him play with better rhythm.
Nguyen: I’m not concerned about Johnson but I am about Williams. Johnson is one of the best play callers in the league, but right now, it’s a battle trying to coach Williams into becoming the quarterback that he needs to operate his offense. There have been some flashes but obviously too many negative plays. I don’t think it should be a surprise that it’s going to be a process. It doesn’t help that they ran into an angry and extremely talented Lions team that got embarrassed by the Packers in Week 1. It’s only Week 2, and we’ve seen the Bears play against two teams that were expected to be among the best in the NFC. The Vikings, who they faced last week, have one of the best defenses in the league. My concern for Johnson is at 0, but my concern for Williams is about a 3 out of 10. It looks like he’s trying his best to fight the demon on his shoulder on every snap.
.@aidanhutch97 with the pressure, @JKERB25 with the pick 🤝 #CHIvsDET 📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/kNg6BeFheJ
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) September 14, 2025
Rodrigue: Chicago should be concerned, but not necessarily surprised. Based on reports of sloppy practices throughout training camp, and the time we knew it would take for Johnson’s offense — not just the quarterback, the entire operation — to get off the ground, rational viewers knew this would be a longer-term project for the organization than just a couple of weeks. As soon as the Bears’ offense goes off script, problems arise. Williams and the offense scored on their first possession against Detroit. Over the next four possessions, the Bears then punted, lost a fumble, turned the ball over on downs and saw Williams throw an interception. It’s not just the offense: The Bears’ defense looks shaky, too. Chicago gave up 456 total yards by the start of the fourth quarter. And then the Lions opened the fourth quarter with a rub-it-in score. There’s a long way to go in Chicago. By the way, after 12 penalties in Week 1 against Minnesota, the Bears racked up another eight on Sunday. That’s not the sign of a disciplined team.
The Dolphins are 0-2 after a 33-27 loss to the Patriots. They allowed points on their opponents’ first 10 drives this season and now face a Thursday night trip to Buffalo. Is it already hopeless in Miami?
Rodrigue: There have been recent “success stories” of 0-2 teams making the playoffs. The Los Angeles Rams went all the way to the divisional round after an 0-2 start in 2024. The Houston Texans did the same in 2023, and the 2022 Cincinnati Bengals did them one better, advancing to the AFC Championship Game. But none of those teams — to my knowledge — had to have a players-only meeting after Week 1 like these Dolphins did. I hate to write off a team (and coaching staff and front office) so early in the season, but the vibes seem very, very off in Miami right now. And how about New England’s expensive free agency acquisition Milton Williams getting the quick pressure and sack on Tua Tagovailoa on fourth down to throw cold water on a potential comeback drive? Where one AFC East team may be trending up, another is very much trending down.
Jones: Week 2 is too early to write an obituary, and the Dolphins did look better this week before falling short. But this team just doesn’t have the feel of a squad that’s going to make a playoff run. Give them credit for fighting to the end. De’Von Achane thought he had a touchdown to lift his team late, but he stepped out of bounds, and then things went south for Miami. The game pretty much embodied what we can expect from the Dolphins this season. They’ll make some plays, put up some points, and even make things interesting here and there. But when it really matters, they’ll cripple themselves with self-inflicted wounds, and thus, won’t really be a factor down the stretch of the season.
Nguyen: They were at least able to wake up their offense against the Patriots and we saw them look like they did when they were humming in the past, with Tagovailoa throwing anticipation darts to Tyreek Hill (6 catches for 109 yards). However, that secondary is the worst in the league, their offensive line is terrible, and they can’t still run inside. Their pass rush, which was supposed to be a strength, hasn’t shown any teeth so far. So … indeed, this team is cooked, as the kids say. The secondary is going to get pummeled by Josh Allen and company. Miami will be 0-3 and the seat will keep heating up for head coach Mike McDaniel.
Two teams with big expectations — the 49ers and Bengals — won behind backup QBs on Sunday. Which win was more impressive, and which team is better equipped to compete without its starting QB?
Nguyen: Cincinnati’s Jake Browning has more tools to work with, being able to throw to Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and he’s proven himself to be a high-end backup. San Francisco’s Mac Jones played well and helped the 49ers get a much-needed win (26-21 over the Saints). He was accurate and avoided the big mistake. I thought Browning succeeded in a tougher situation. He was the backup coming into the game so he didn’t get starter reps all week, and after Joe Burrow got hurt, Browning had to step in against a tough Jaguars team, already down 14-7. Browning did throw three interceptions, which is never good, but ultimately came out with a win.
Rodrigue: While Browning gutted through a sudden change without the benefit of a week of practice with the first-team offense, Mac Jones simply played a cleaner game. Jones didn’t just take the usual safety-blanket options — Christian McCaffrey, whom he hit for a short seven-yard touchdown, may look like the “point and throw” outlet on paper but it was a tough completion over a defender to the back corner of the end zone that required some touch. Jones also hit Jauan Jennings with good timing, right in the void between a couple of defenders, and it turned into a 42-yard touchdown. I tip my cap to Browning for his effort in a tough spot, but Jones has Kyle Shanahan, McCaffrey, Jennings and Ricky Pearsall and the benefits of a Shana-plan for these next few weeks. And he didn’t turn the ball over.
Mac Jones to Jauan Jennings for the 42-yard TD!
SFvsNO on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/oRKIHFajpv
— NFL (@NFL) September 14, 2025
Jones: This is a tough one. I initially was going to give Jones the nod because, in addition to completing 26 of 39 passes for 279 yards and three touchdowns, he also didn’t throw a single interception. But I’m going with Browning instead. Yes, he turned the ball over multiple times (three picks), and yes, he had the better supporting cast. But unlike Jones, he didn’t get any reps with the first-team offense all week. He also delivered in the most high-pressure of situations as he directed a 15-play, 92-yard scoring drive to lift his team to the game-winning score with 18 seconds left on the clock. On that drive, Browning completed 9 of 12 passes and punched the ball in from a yard out for the winning touchdown. Hats off, Jake Browning.
Brandon Aubrey saved the Cowboys with a 64-yard field goal to force overtime and a 46-yarder for a 40-37 win over the Giants. What, if anything, did we learn about these teams?
Jones: If we’re being honest, the Cowboys are a team with plenty of limitations, just like the Giants. So this was a pretty even matchup. The Giants came to play. Giants QB Russell Wilson responded well to the post-Week 1 adversity and passed for 450 yards and three touchdowns before that backbreaking INT in overtime. Wilson showed what he could do when he had time. The Cowboys only sacked him three times and hit him six times over 70 minutes. It’s hard to win when you struggle to get to the quarterback, but that’s the call Jerry Jones made when he shipped Micah Parsons to Green Bay. This was a roller coaster of a day for the Cowboys, but that’s what this team is: full of highs and lows, solid enough to not stink, and not good enough to dominate anyone.
Rodrigue: I’ll bravely admit it: I am pleasantly surprised by this Cowboys team under Brian Schottenheimer so far in this young season. I am, of course, operating under the premise that teams will move the ball and score points on this Dallas defense (especially minus a certain future Hall of Fame do-it-all defender). Still, bearing that in mind, this team is feisty. Whether it’s an emerging run game led by smart scheme (Klayton Adams’ impact is quite clear already in his first year as offensive coordinator) and a reborn Javonte Williams — who had another good day with 97 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries — or Dak Prescott and a solid cast around him knowing they need to score a lot, I think I’ll enjoy watching this team in 2025, all the more so if their games keep coming down to the wire. They are, after all, in the entertainment business — right Jerry?
BRANDON AUBREY TIES IT WITH A 64-YARD FIELD GOAL.
THIS GAME IS MADNESS.
NYGvsDAL on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/1vZpzajkAw
— NFL (@NFL) September 14, 2025
Nguyen: I came away a little more impressed with the Giants. My expectations for the Giants’ offense was very low, but they were able to protect Wilson, who still has the ability to throw a beautiful moon ball. He threw a few deep beauties in this game. Also, that Giants pass rush is relentless. Prescott looked uncomfortable for most of the game until the fourth quarter; maybe that pass rush tired out a bit. Obviously, the Cowboys showed great resilience battling back, but I expected this team to get in shootouts. I didn’t expect the Giants to be able to hang in that sort of game. If New York’s offense can play at a baseline level, it could keep Wilson out there for longer and remain patient with rookie QB Jaxson Dart. (Also, I don’t know if it’s the best idea to throw Dart on the field for random zone read-plays in the fourth quarter when you need to score a touchdown to win the game.)
(Photo: Nic Antaya / Getty Images)