The Jets had opened up their season with a disappointing loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, where they looked like they were still in pre-season.
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But a steady offensive attack that began by a long throw to Julio Jones from 75 yards out got the Falcons rolling. Taiwan Jones had an bad muff of a kickoff that bounced off his face mask in the end zone and forced him to scramble to recover at the 2-yard line instead of getting a touchback. The Raiders dominated the time of possession against the Falcons and while it didn’t help them get the win this time, the more you can hang onto the ball and keep that Raiders defense on the bench, the better things are going to be. This week, it was his counterpart, Washington with a good showing, averaging over seven yards per carry against the Falcons. The favorite has covered the spread in 4 of the last 5 meetings between these two teams. Playing a home opener in front of their fans should rejuvenate that new and improved defense for the Raiders. First off, neither team is known for their defense, as both gave up over 30 points in week one.
By the time Carr got the ball in his hands again, there were 2 seconds on the clock, time enough only for a slapstick succession of laterals. Kemal Ishmael had a career-high 15 total tackles. It came when Vic Beasley Jr. forced Derek Carr to scramble out of bounds, technically registering a sack, but the pass rush struggled all day.
Cooper took those lessons from watching Julio Jones and ended up breaking all the major career receiving records at Alabama and following him into the National Football League as a first-round draft pick.
Penalties continue to cost the Falcons. When Smith talked to the media this week, he didn’t make any excuses for his play last Sunday.
Carr completed the pass to Michael Crabtree for a successful two-point conversion and a 35-34 win over the Saints. On the next play, Latavius Murray ran into the end zone for Oakland’s first touchdown. Raiders came out the gate cold, racking up just 33 yards of offense in the first quarter and an underwhelming 167 by the half.
Green Bay Packers K Mason Crosby K 4: I do not expect them to score many points on the road versus the Minnesota Vikings. However, in the second half, those numbers changed to 2,248 yards, 11 touchdowns and 10 picks. Philip Rivers will have to rely on Gordon and Woodhead to stay in the game and Gordon should get more looks in the red zone. Whatever happened in the locker room at halftime whipped the offense into shape.
Ryan frequently found his tight ends for big gains, completing 10 passes for 180 yards and a TD to Jacob Tamme, Austin Hooper and Levine Toilolo. Through two games, the Panthers, Falcons, and Bucs are all 1-1, while the Saints are 0-2.
The Falcons have always been up and down throughout the regular season, after their last significant run in 2012.
They had 155 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries, with six players getting at least one carry. The Raiders blocking tight end does the dirty work and rarely finds a pass headed his way.
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On the ground, the Atlanta Falcons were able to do as they pleased against the Oakland Raiders.
