Five Things to Watch on Sunday | Bengals vs. Chiefs | The Mothership
2. The Bengals allowed 170 rushing yards last week.
The Patriots upset Cincinnati last Sunday in one of the more surprising outcomes of Week 1, and a primary reason behind that result was the performance of New England's rushing attack, which racked up 170 yards as a team.
Running back Rhamondre Stevenson led the way with 120 yards on 25 carries, averaging 4.8 yards-per-attempt. He also led the NFL in yards-after-contact (118) and forced missed tackles (10) last week. That effort ate up a lot of clock, too, as Cincinnati was limited to just eight offensive possessions on Sunday - the lowest figure for any team in Week 1.
The Chiefs averaged only 3:03 minutes and 6.2 plays across their five scoring drives last week, so it's unlikely Kansas City deploys a "keep away" style offense like New England did, but a commitment to the running game could still make a difference. Keep in mind, the top statistical game of running back Isiah Pacheco's career took place against the Bengals in Week 17 of last season. He rushed for 130 yards on just 18 carries in that game, averaging a whopping 7.2 yards-per-attempt.
NFL Week 2 picks, schedule, odds, injuries, fantasy tips | ESPN
Chiefs storyline to watch: Cincinnati's pass protection will dictate this game. In Burrow's lone defeat to Kansas City in the 2022 season's AFC Championship Game, he was sacked on 10.2% of his dropbacks (ESPN Research). That number dropped to 4.9% in Burrow's three victories, as his touchdowns per attempt tripled due to feasting on zone coverage. -- Adam Teicher
32 Thoughts Ahead of NFL Week 2 | Bleacher Report
Kansas City Chiefs: I'd like to take this opportunity to declare how bats -- t it is that Patrick Mahomes is now merely the 12th-highest-paid quarterback in the NFL! Watch him take advantage of extra rest and destroy a shaken Bengals team on Sunday.
Finding Americans Their Premier League Team Based on The NFL: Manchester City Are The Kansas City Chiefs of The Premier League | Barstool Sports
Let's start with the obvious. Both of these teams are led by absolute masterminds. Pep Guardiola at City is basically a skinny European Andy Reid. These guys aren't just coaching -- they're mentally abusing every team they play. Pep's been redefining how soccer is played, turning football into shit with his Haaland Tap-In Merchant offense, much like Reid has revolutionized the NFL with his pass-happy, Patrick Mahomes merchant offense. They don't just coach to win; they coach to ruin football.
If you want to talk about superstars, look no further than these two teams. Patrick Mahomes and Erling Haaland are basically the same human -- one just happens to throw footballs, the other hammers them into the back of the net. Both of these dudes are straight-up cheat codes. Mahomes can throw a football while Mintzy-eyeing the jumbotron and still hit a target 60 yards downfield. Haaland? He's the Premier League version of Marshawn Lynch, he just runs through a motherfuckers face and puts goals in the back of the net.
Fantasy football: 10 players who'll out/underperform projections in Week 2 of 2024 NFL season | NFL.com
Ja'Marr Chase
Cincinnati Bengals · WR
Matt: Week 1 was a disaster for this squad. Joe Burrow seemed hampered and ineffective, Ja'Marr Chase had just 12.2 fantasy points and the team only managed 10 real-life points in an embarrassing loss to the Patriots. With Tee Higgins likely to miss another start in Week 2, the hope for Chase is that he can bounce back against the Chiefs ... but I'm not buying the hope just yet.
Some portion of Chase's disappointing output in Week 1 had to have been tied to the lingering effects of his offseason holdout, which means things might not fully correct for a couple weeks. I need to see him and Burrow fire on all cylinders in 2024 before I feel confident about projecting a high-end WR1 performance.
How Chiefs newcomer Samaje Perine can help the offense -- and defense -- against the Bengals | The Athletic
"The entire defense," Perine said, laughing, before Thursday's practice. Of facing the Bengals, he later added: "It's going to be weird. This whole week has been very unusual.
"Even watching them (last Sunday) -- and last year I watched a couple of their games -- to where it's extra film work, it was very weird because I pick up on certain things that I've seen before that I remember during practice."
Russell Wilson questionable, but Justin Fields still in line to start vs. Broncos | NBC Sports
Head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters on Friday that Russell Wilson will be listed as questionable for Sunday's matchup against the Broncos. But as has been the case all week, the team is still preparing to start Fields.
"[O]bviously if [Wilson's] availability is questionable, then starting is less so," Tomlin said, via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. But we've been in that mindset all week, man. Like I've said, we've been focused on getting Justin ready to play and we'll continue in that mindset as we push forward toward game time."
With that, multiple reporters on the Steelers beat noted that Fields is likely to start with Kyle Allen as the team's backup and Wilson as the emergency No. 3, much like last week.
Tua Tagovailoa and his family need to think about his future (again) | USA Today
Most of all, this is what all of us, but especially Tagovailoa and his family, need to think about. I'm not in the business of telling people what to do with their own lives. But I don't ignore what I see with my own eyes and you don't need to be a brain expert to understand that what Tagovailoa is going through is extremely dangerous. You do not need to be an expert to know that repeated concussions aren't good for his long-term, well, existence.
None of us should tell him to retire. But his family should. His close friends should. Everyone who loves him and cares about him should. Go over the risks again. About CTE. About Parkinson's disease.
Chiefs News: Defense preparing for challenge from Bengals' Joe Burrow
On Thursday, the Chiefs' biggest defensive star left no doubt that Kansas City's locker room sees the Bengals as a major rival.
"It's [a] tough challenge and opponent," defensive tackle Chris Jones said before practice. "[They] always give us trouble. It's always a battle when we face those guys. Whether it's in a regular game or an AFC Championship, we know it's going to be a four-quarter battle."
From previous experience, Jones knows Sunday's early-season contest might directly affect eventual playoff seeding.
"Any time you face an opponent," he explained, "that can [be there] in the later part of the year, your record can be affected by it. Whether it comes down us having the same record or positioning [in the playoffs], I think it's very important. Especially for us and where we're trying to go and how [the playoffs are] only one bye week now. Also, the home-field advantage, which is important for us.
"We would definitely love to stay at home, but it's kind of early to be worried about that. I think more so, it's about making sure we're competing at a high level [when] facing a tough opponent -- an AFC opponent, at that."