The starting eleven: The most convincing (and surprising) NFC performances

Welcome to the starting lineup. This NFL season, we will bring together the greatest stories, showcase outstanding players and showcase the most breathtaking achievements of the week. Let's dive in.

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1. After a convincing 27-9 win against the Saints, the Rams once again look like the NFC class. The Rams won Sunday's NFC championship rematch, beating a Saints team led by Teddy Bridgewater for three quarters after Drew Brees' injury following a thumb injury. Now with a 2-0 record, Brees is expected to stay on the board for at least six weeks, and the Eagles are tilting in the face of the Falcons on Sunday night, Los Angeles may well have the highest scoring track in the NFC .

After a shaky start to the season in a 30-27 road victory against Carolina, Jared Goff had a much better appearance in his first home game. A 57-yard shot by Brandin Cooks on the third and 16th at the start of the first quarter and a short shot by Cooks for a 2-yard touchdown in the third, his best shots of the day. The Rams quarterback was significantly more accurate than the Panthers in the first week.

The Rams' win against the Saints – even without Brees on the field – reminded us how talented and well trained this team is. McVay has added some new wrinkles to his scheme after last year's late-season difficulties at the Rams, including wider reception screens near the red zone and a much larger number of three-receiver sets. . But what makes this system so difficult to defend has always been characterized. In the second quarter, the Rams gave Todd Gurley the advantage in the first and the 10th match for a total of 20 yards. Two pieces later, Goff simulated an identical pitch before hitting Robert Woods for an easy 14-yard complement to New Orleans' 11-yard line. When this offense clicks, each facet works together. In two games of the season, the Rams' plan seems once again a puzzle, even for the best defenses in the league.

2. The loss of Brees is a blow to the saints, but the state of NFC South should give them hope. The news that Brees will miss in the next six weeks after a thumb operation puts the Saints behind the eight ball in a tight race of the NFC. But Carolina's tough debut should help New Orleans stay alive in the division.

Cam Newton was downright awful in the Panthers' 20-14 loss to Tampa Bay on Thursday. He completed only 24 of his 50 attempts and consistently missed shots at all levels of the field. And what is even more worrying is the Panthers' refusal to use Newton as a runner, even in short-distance situations and around the goal line. In two games, he only carried the ball five times for a total of less than 2 yards. Carolina's patented power passes have been remarkably absent from the game plan. Newton's ability to create imbalances in high leverage areas has been an advantage for the Panthers since his selection in 2011. He has made more than 100 attempts in eight in his nine seasons, with at least four touchdowns each year. After two matches, he scored only 40 attempts for the year. It seems that Carolina is trying to limit the number of strokes that the QB undergoes after undergoing shoulder surgery during the off season. His difficulties at the start of the season could be attributed to the lingering effects of this operation, but if the Panthers can not fix the boat quickly, they might not be in the playoff picture before Halloween.

3. With their second win in two weeks, the Cowboys look like a potential juggernaut. Dallas had the advantage of playing against the Giants and Redskins to open the season, but the way Dak Prescott and Co. played in their 2-0 start was astounding, no matter the competition. Prescott completed 26 of 30 passes for a total of 269 yards and three touchdowns in the Cowboys' 31-21 win over Washington on Sunday, and for the second week in a row, offensive coordinator Kellen Moore was able to tap into an absent version of that offense for the last two seasons. Dallas continues to mix throws in play – such as Devin Smith's 51-yard touchdown in the second quarter – with a solid running game and timed Prescott rushes in both short-distance and red-zone situations.

The Cowboys will not receive broadcaster Michael Gallup for two to four weeks when he recovers from arthroscopic knee surgery, but if Smith is able to offer Prescott a stretching presence on the court, this offense should continue to occur in the absence of Gallup. The quality of their opponents has definitely been lacking compared to a team like the Rams, but so far, the Cowboys have been one of the most impressive teams in the conference.

4. Russell Wilson's monster match in Pittsburgh's 28-26 win at Seattle is another reminder that the Seahawks' offense is at its best when Wilson is the nerve center. The quarterback star has completed 29 of his 35 passes for 300 yards and three touchdowns against the Steelers and has been overall brilliant throughout the afternoon. Wilson successfully played as goalkeeper by distributing the ball from shotguns. His 28-yard pass to DK Metcalf in the middle of the fourth quarter was further proof that he could launch the most beautiful deep ball of the entire NFL.

But the most encouraging part of Seattle's win on Sunday was not the one Wilson's shots went, it was how fast he realized them. Wilson's average run time was only 1.89 seconds, according to NFL Next Gen stats. This is the fastest release time for a quarterback since 2016 and more than a full second faster than Wilson's 2018 average (3.02 seconds). Seahawks coach Pete Carroll it is noted On Monday, Wilson's performance against Pittsburgh was reminiscent of Seattle's attack at the end of the 2015 season, which had been the best part of Wilson's career. Brian Schottenheimer, offensive coordinator of Carroll and Seattle, would do well to remember this advance, because when the Seahawks put the ball in the hands of their best player, their team is completely different.

5. For the second week in a row, the new-look Packers showed they did not need Aaron Rodgers' star performance to win. Rodgers managed a handful of shots in the key moments of Green Bay's 21-16 win over Minnesota, but he finished with just 209 yards passing. With the emergence of the Packers defense and strong running, it was more than enough. Aaron Jones had several wins en route to 116 yards as Green Bay slotted an excellent ground defense against the Vikings. The defense also had another great match. After Free Staff signing Za'Darius Smith tormented the Bears offensive line in the opening game of the season, Kenny Clark wreaked havoc in Minnesota. The fourth-year defensive tackle finished with a sack, a quarterback shot and five assists in 33 hurried throws and the Viking rookie center crushed Garrett Bradbury. The Packers are sitting at the top of the NFC North at 2-0, and they have been able to get there without placing an undue burden on their superstar quarterback.

6. Mitchell Trubisky and Kirk Cousins, two times less successful than Sunday, raise doubts about the position of the Bears and Vikings in the hierarchy of the NFC. The Trubisky Bears were able to win a stellar 16-14 win over the Broncos on the road, but Chicago's third-year quarterback had another tough exit after his nightmarish opening match against Green Bay. Trubisky finished 16 of his 27 goals for just 120 yards, was inaccurate at all levels of the field and started a handful of passes that could easily have been intercepted. After giving up the race early against the Packers, Bears head coach Matt Nagy called 29 games against 27 against Denver. A good portion of the Bears' 153 yards rushing was played by Cordarrelle Patterson and Taylor Gabriel in a game in the third quarter, which is disturbing. Nagy's approach and the Bears' offensive production indicate that Chicago is doing everything in its power to limit Trubisky's impact. And after 16 starts in this system over the past two seasons, there seems to be no reason to believe that things will improve significantly.

The Vikings face the same problem with Kirk Cousins. The Cousins' experience has always been a roller-coaster, with a mix of brilliant throws and safety problems that hurt their heads, and Sunday's game was no different. After scoring just 10 assists in the Falcons' first week of Minnesota win, Cousins ​​lost 32 games to Green Bay Sunday with disastrous results. He completed only 14 of his 32 shots for 230 yards, with an interception and a lost fumble. The Vikings want to face Dalvin Cook and the hasty attack, but there will be many times when they will have to rely on Cousins ​​in key situations – and Sunday showed how things can go wrong .

7. The Eagles' 24-20 defeat against Atlanta is likely a small loss of speed in what will be a successful season, but some of the problems that affected the team on Sunday night could become problematic later on. Carson Wentz was able to rebound after a brutal first half against the Falcons, but the Eagles' other problems did not seem as easy to settle. Philly High School was probably the most important question mark for the upcoming full lineup in the season. Calvin Ridley and Julio Jones both had some wild games (105 and 105 yards respectively), which included a handful of long receptions. The Eagles' running game was also missing against a Falcons defense beaten by the Vikings during the first week. Miles Sanders scored 28 yards in 10 runs and Jordan Howard was even worse, totaling just 18 yards in 18 yards. Philly's offensive line will likely be better in the run as the season progresses, but the Eagles have been working hard to reshape their group of halfmens this season, and there was not much left to show for that during the second week.

8. The NFL's renewed emphasis on call waiting is problematic. As a former NFL offensive lineman, Geoff Schwartz highlighted On Twitter, 70 possession penalties have been accepted between Thursday and Sunday games, and there will likely be more on Monday. Last season, there was only one week with more than 53. The league made an effort to quell the delays this year, likely to allow the defenses to regain ground. But so far, all that has been accomplished is to create more hectic games. In recent years, the NFL has been successful in correcting unsuccessful arbitration policies, including a focus on last year's abusive calls to the pass, which was dropped at the end of the month. of September. This should be another case where the league office realizes its mistake and returns to the status quo.

9. This week in tales of the band: Kyle Shanahan is always the master of the shenanigans. Shanahan used this type of game design back in the past successfully, and against the Bengals on Sunday, he added a difference by bringing Marquise Goodwin through the training. This resulted in an easy 38-yard touchdown. Jimmy Garoppolo finished the match with 10 out of 10 shots for a total of 213 yards and two touchdowns in a Sunday action-match, which is downright silly. These types of throws are going to be a staple of the Niners attack under Shanahan, and so far, that's why San Francisco is sitting at 2-0.

10. The week online gambling moment that made me go back: Kenny Clark is mean, naughty. Clark's initial power, combined with the speed with which he made his secondary move and entered the backfield, is a perfect example of what makes the former first-round pick one of the most defensive players in the game. -estimates of the league. At just 23, Clark is expected to play the 2020 season with his fifth-year option of $ 9.5 million – but I'm not sure it will go that far. He is online for a huge Green Bay pay day and should get it as soon as possible.

11. This week in NFL players, they are absolutely not like us: Do not say the word "regression" around Patrick Mahomes.