Can J.J. McCarthy find ways to beat Jessie Bates? Does Juwan Johnson have fantasy appeal? And could James Conner have a big rushing day?
Week 2 of the 2025 NFL season is here, and our NFL analysts have you covered at the 11th hour. Don’t miss our last-minute prep for a loaded slate.
First, analytics writer Seth Walder breaks down three stat trends that could be pivotal this weekend. Then fantasy football writer Eric Moody runs through five players who are rostered in under 50% of ESPN fantasy football leagues as of Saturday and could be started in a jam. That’s followed by NFL analyst Ben Solak predicting three potentially big surprises and NFL analyst Matt Bowen picking one key matchup to watch. Finally, sports betting analyst Pamela Maldonado gives her favorite bet of Week 2.
Can J.J. McCarthy find ways to beat Jessie Bates III in the Vikings’ pass game? Does Juwan Johnson have fantasy upside this week? Could James Conner have a big rushing day? And which NFC South team could pull an upset? Let’s dive in.
Jump to:
Stat trends | Fantasy sleepers
Potential surprises | Key matchup
Best bet of the week
Can QB Caleb Williams fix accuracy issues against the Lions?
Williams’ accuracy woes were on full display in Week 1. He recorded a 29% off-target rate and a negative-13% completion percentage over expectation (CPOE), which were both the worst among all quarterbacks per NFL Next Gen Stats.
What stands out the most about Williams’ career accuracy numbers is that the problems are particularly pronounced when throwing outside the numbers. He actually is roughly average when throwing between the numbers, with a 0% CPOE since the start of last season. But outside the numbers, that drops to minus-4%. And his 28% off-target rate outside the numbers is outdone only by Colts QB Anthony Richardson Sr.
In general, this actually makes me slightly more bullish on Chicago because of Williams’ new coach. No team threw more between the numbers last season than Ben Johnson’s Lions. But facing Detroit’s defense might not be the ideal matchup. The Lions faced throws between the numbers only 46% of the time last season, the third-lowest rate in the league. We don’t yet know if the Lions will deter middle-of-the-field targets in the same way under new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard, but the pattern largely held Week 1 against Green Bay (41% of targets between the numbers).
Can the Rams’ interior line hold off Titans DT Jeffery Simmons?
Injuries hit the Rams hard at guard in Week 1, with both Steve Avila and Kevin Dotson getting hurt in that game (though Avila returned in Dotson’s stead). Both are now week-to-week, and if at least one cannot play, that presumably means Beaux Limmer will step in again. Limmer played 870 snaps at center as a rookie, but his guard debut was shaky last week. He was beaten clean by Folorunso Fatukasi for a sack. The matchup will be tougher this time around against Simmons and the Titans.
Simmons ranked 10th in pass rush win rate as an interior rusher last season (12%) and eighth in Week 1 (14%). He would be a threat to QB Matthew Stafford against even the best guards, so this could be a challenging day with the Rams’ backups in there.
Will the Texans get their running game going against the Buccaneers?
Houston’s change at offensive coordinator from Bobby Slowik to Nick Caley has meant a dramatic shift in the team’s run scheme.
