How Week 1 Risers and Fallers Did in Week 2 of NFL Preseason

NFL Preseason Week 2 is in the books, and we have our eyes on the positive and negative trends.

Before we move on to the games, let’s review last week’s Risers and Fallers. This will give us an idea if teams are improving, getting worse or staying about the same.

NFL PRESEASON WEEK 1 FALLERS LOOKBACK

San Francisco 49ers: Last week we had theSan Francisco 49ers as a Faller after an unimpressive showing versus the Houston Texans. In Week 2 of the NFL Preseason the 49ers took on the Dallas Cowboys and came away with a 23-6. A quick look at the score might give you an impression the 49ers have corrected their shortcomings. The Dallas Cowboys starters played only one series if at all, and the rest of the players were on the field but played to avoid injuries. The Dallas Cowboys were not completely successful in this endeavor as they lost backup quarterback Brandon Weeden to a concussion.

The same issues we mentioned last week continued to plague the San Francisco 49ers, mainly Colin Kaepernick, who remained inaccurate in his passing. He completed just 2-of-5 passes for 13 yards. It was hard to grade the 49ers defense in this one, but one could guess they are going to be on the field a long time if the 49ers can’t get their passing game on track. The 49ers remain a team to fade.

Indianapolis Colts: Last week we said the Indianapolis Colts better find a defense in the NFL Preseason or their Super Bowl Hype will come crashing down. Unfortunately, the Indianapolis Colts did not find their defense yet, allowing Jay Cutler to pick them apart, going 8-of-9 for 69 yards. The Indianapolis Colts are setting themselves up for a lot of shootouts this year, and that is not what you want see from a preseason Super Bowl contender.

NFL PRESEASON WEEK 1 RISERS LOOKBACK

Minnesota Vikings: The folks in Minnesota have to be getting excited about their Minnesota Vikings. Teddy Bridgewater is continuing his Russell Wilson impersonation with accurate passing and timely scrambles. The only red flag for the Minnesota Vikings in this preseason is All-Pro Kicker Blair Walsh, who seems to have lost his mojo. Walsh is just 2-of-6 on field goal attempts this preseason and also has a missed extra point. That is a quick way to the unemployment line.

Cincinnati Bengals: The Bengals might have celebrated their success a little too early this preseason as they got shellacked by Heisman Trophy- and NCAA National Champion-winning Quarterback Jameis Winston, who just last week looked like a rookie versus the previously mentioned Minnesota Vikings. Many Survivor Pool players will tell you they cringe at the thought of selecting the Cincinnati Bengals because of occasional performances like this. We expect a much better performance in Week 3 of preseason from the Bengals.

Now let’s look a couple teams from Week 2 of the NFL Preseason action. All offseason you heard about the madness of Chip Kelly in Philadelphia. Our impression so far this preseason is the Philadelphia Eagles offense looks dominant and that there might be a method to Chip Kelly’s madness. Sam Bradford looked sharp in his first action back in over a year, completing 3-of-5 passes for 35 yards, and the one-two combo of RBs DeMarco Murray and Ryan Mathews should give the Eagles fresh legs to pound the football all four quarters. The Philadelphia Eagles defense also looked fast, getting two interceptions off of Baltimore Ravens Quarterback Joe Flacco. A third Flacco pass was tipped and happened to fall the Ravens way, setting up a Baltimore score. The Philadelphia Eagles are a riser in Week 2 of the NFL Preseason.

We are starting to get concerned about the New York Giants in Week 2. The New York Giants came away with a 22-12 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, but if you watched the game like we did you saw a lot of red flags from the Giants. Eli Manning continued to struggle, getting just four completions in 14 attempts for 46 yards. Rookie sensation and Madden 16 cover player Odell Beckham Jr. has yet to get a catch in the preseason. The Giants defense is not the strength of the team like it was in during their Super Bowl runs, so the Giants better get the offense figured out in Week 3. The Giants are fallers in Week 2 of the Preseason.

We will be back next week with a recap of our risers and fallers so you can make the best Survivor Pool picks in Week 1 of the NFL Regular Season.