FOUR DOWNS
Jimmy G is back!
You can’t win a Super Bowl in August, but the 49ers (1-1) may have given themselves a much better chance at winning one back then when they defied conventional wisdom and figured out a way to keep veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo on the roster.
After officially moving on to young QB Trey Lance in the offseason, it seemed crazy to keep Garoppolo, who took the team to the NFC championship game last year, and risk locker room drama.
That decision now looks prescient after Lance broke his ankle in the first quarter of the team’s home game against divisional rivals Seattle (1-1) yesterday, and was ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Jimmy G promptly picked up where he left off last season – good but not spectacular – which is more than enough to keep a stacked 49ers roster in playoff contention.
Tua silences critics
After being widely dismissed as a game manager with obvious limitations, third-year Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa dropped six touchdowns on a good Ravens (1-1) defense in a wild comeback win.
Miami (2-0) trailed 35-14 going into the final frame, but Tua was up to the task, throwing for 199 yards and four TDs in the fourth quarter to get the win.
Two games in, Tua has thrown as many TDs as Patrick Mahomes and has a higher yards per attempt, which, along with the two-headed receiving monster of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle (361 yards and four TDs combined against Baltimore), will make Miami a tough out going forward.
Rookies on show
The Lions (1-1) offense has scored almost as many points through two games (71) as Tom Brady’s Bucs (39) and Aaron Rodgers’ Packers (34) have combined, but the team has to be just as excited about the Week 2 performance of pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson.
After Detroit took him with the second overall pick in the NFL Draft this year, Hutchinson came with high expectations and he lived up to them in a win over the Commanders (1-1), becoming the first player in 20 years to notch three sacks in one of his first two games.
Wideout Garrett Wilson was selected eight picks later by the Jets (1-1), and he justified his lofty draft status by hauling in eight receptions for 102 yards and a pair of TDs, the last of which was the game winner against a quality Browns (1-1) secondary.
Panic index
HIGH: The Broncos (1-1) rebounded from a Week 1 loss to Seattle by beating the lowly Texans (0-1-1) at home, but it was far from convincing. Denver were booed by their own fans at times, and the early results of pairing QB import Russell Wilson with first-time head coach Nathaniel Hackett are not promising.
HIGH: The Colts (0-1-1) failed to score a point in a loss to the Jaguars. Enough said.
MEDIUM: Reigning AFC champs Cincinnati are now 0-2 in a tough division, after losing to a walk-off field goal by a Cooper Rush-led Cowboys (1-1). A bigger concern is the number of sacks (13!) QB Joe Burrow has taken through two games.
LOW: The Ravens allowed one of the biggest fourth quarter comebacks in NFL history against the Dolphins, but don’t blame QB Lamar Jackson, who threw for 318 yards and three TDs and ran for another 119 yards and a score. Pay the guy.
Titans@Bills, Tuesday, 7.15-10.15am, ESPN
Vikings@Eagles, Tuesday, 8:30-11:30 a.m., ESPN2
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