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Week 1 of the 2026-27 NFL season is in the books, and there were some big-time surprises, such as the Arizona Cardinals taking down the Los Angeles Chargers. This shook up our Super Bowl Power Rankings entering Week 2.
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Below, I’ll look ahead to Week 2’s biggest games and what each result means for the early playoff picture, including Thursday Night Football.
Buffalo Bills vs. Detroit Lions (+4.5)
Thursday Night Football is typically known for some less-than-stellar games, but not this one. The Lions and Bills are both coming off wins in which they scored 30 points or more. For the Lions, it took overtime to beat the Saints 31-30. As for the Bills, they beat the Houston Texans 36-31.
In Week 1, Saints quarterback Tyler Shough threw for over 400 yards against the Lions. To be fair, a good chunk of that came in overtime. Still, he threw for 337 yards before overtime began.
The Lions secondary was a questionable unit heading into the season. Now, they have to contend with Josh Allen, who threw for 334 yards and rushed for 23 more with four total touchdowns against a sensational Texans defense. He has had two receivers go for 100 yards or more.
The Bills will also play their first regular-season game in their new stadium.
I expect a back-and-forth shootout, but the Bills come out on top, win by 7, and cover the spread — a result that would put an early dent in Detroit’s playoff odds after last year’s deep postseason run.
Houston Texans vs. Cincinnati Bengals (+3)
The Texans are coming off a loss to the Bills. In that game, they allowed Allen to complete 20 of 29 passes for 334 yards, two touchdowns, and run for two more. While Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow won’t be running like Allen, the Texans secondary needs to get back on track quickly. In this game, they’ll face the trio of Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins. On top of that, there’s running back Chase Brown.
It’s also worth pointing out that in Week 1, tight end Mike Gesicki led the team in receiving yards.
Chase was quiet in Week 1, catching just two passes for 12 yards, and there’s a slim chance that happens again, especially against a Texans secondary that had trouble slowing Allen down.
The Texans also allowed 14 pressures last week. Now, they’ll have to contain a defensive tackle duo of Jonathan Allen and Dexter Lawrence.
Also, the Texans did score 31 points, but running back David Montgomery scored twice on the ground despite averaging just 3 yards per carry. That could be difficult to replicate. The Bengals allowed just 89 rushing yards in Week 1, and no single running back had more than 45 yards.
In the passing game, the Bengals held Mayfield to just 216 passing yards.
Overall, I’ll lean toward the Texans winning the game, but the Bengals cover the spread — a bounce-back that would keep Cincinnati’s playoff push on track early after an 0-1 start.
Baltimore Ravens (-8.5) vs. New Orleans Saints
As mentioned, Shough had a massive day passing the ball, but during regulation, he completed 60% of his passes. Now, he’ll face a Ravens defense that held Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones to 19 completions on 31 attempts for 166 passing yards.
So, I have questions about Shough’s passing ability in this game, and the Saints defense had issues in Week 1.
They allowed 165 rushing yards to the Lions, and now they’re taking on a combination of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry. Jackson ran for 40 yards and a touchdown, and Henry had 144 yards and three touchdowns.
Also, the Saints take on a Ravens offense that should have wide receiver Zay Flowers back in the lineup after suffering a minor hamstring injury. He had 150 yards in Week 1 before he got hurt.
Defensively, the Ravens will face a Saints offensive line that allowed 22 pressures in Week 1, the second-most in the league. Meanwhile, the Ravens had 11 pressures in Week 1 and could be in line for even more.
I think the Ravens’ offense will ultimately prove to be too much, but definitely monitor Flowers’ status leading up to this game. A blowout loss here would be a second straight tough result for a Saints team whose playoff odds are already trending the wrong way.
Photo Credit: REUTERS
