2024 NFL season, Week 2: What We Learned from Sunday’s games

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Eric Edholm’s takeaways:

1. Marvin Harrison Jr. has arrived. In Week 1, the Cardinals had trouble getting the ball to their rookie phenom in a one-catch dud of a debut. Consider that one dead and buried. Harrison exploded for touchdown catches of 23 and 60 yards in the first three-plus minutes of Sunday’s win. Harrison had more targets at the end of the first quarter (five) than he received all game last week. Amazingly, all of Harrison’s catches came in that first quarter, so they still can work on that connection, even if the Rams adjusted their defense and the Cardinals took their foot off the pass-game gas pedal up in a blowout. Still, don’t overlook those four catches. It’s always nice when you surpass what your Hall Of Fame dad did as a rookie – see below – but the more important development for the Cardinals was getting Harrison loose after his inauspicious debut. With Kyler Murray, Trey McBride, James Conner, Harrison and others, the Cardinals’ offense is starting to become very, very interesting.
2. Rams’ shorthanded offense went backward in Week 2. In spite of losing receiver Puka Nacua and linemen Steve Avila and Joe Noteboom last week, the Rams rang up nearly 400 yards of offense and nearly beat the Lions at Ford Field. But even with right tackle Rob Havenstein back in the lineup, the Rams allowed three sacks on Matthew Stafford’s first 11 dropbacks. Considering the way the Cardinals struggled to consistently pressure Josh Allen in Week 1, it was a surprising development for their defense. The Rams’ run game also was shut down early. They turned the ball over on downs and went three-and-out three times in their first five possessions, finding themselves in a 24-3 hole. Stafford rallied them late in the first half, but the Cardinals once more stopped them on downs right before halftime. Had they cut it to a two-score game there, the Rams’ chances of winning would have been much higher. Stafford clearly was gutting through this one, but it’s he not going to have it much easier the next three games against the 49ers, Bears and Packers before the Week 6 bye. The Rams started 3-6 a year ago and still made the playoffs, and it looks like they’ll need to climb out of another early hole this year at 0-2.
3. Kyler Murray, Jonathan Gannon could be a winning pair. There was not an overwhelming chorus of celebration when the Cards hired Gannon as their coach, especially amid questions about Murray’s development following his 2022 ACL injury. But both have earned some praise since then, especially in Sunday’s blowout of the Rams, a team that had their number previously. Murray looked more comfortable with each start down the stretch last season, and he built on a hot-and-cold Week 1 showing with his best performance in recent memory. Murray had the Rams flailing at him early as a scrambler (59 rush yards) while also buying time in the pocket, and he diced them up for 266 pass yards on only 21 attempts. The 99-yard drive before the half was Murray at the Cardinals’ offense at their finest. And credit Gannon for getting his defense ready to come after Stafford and a battered Rams offense. The Cardinals were the aggressors all game, as Arizona delivered yet another statement victory in Week 2 at home under Gannon after taking down Dallas one year ago.

Next Gen stat of the game: Kyler Murray completed each of his five deep passes for 156 yards and three touchdowns in the first half. Murray did not attempt a deep pass in the second half. The probability of Murray completing all five deep attempts was just 0.3%. Murray also completed each of his four passes on the run for 119 yards and two touchdowns, good for his second-most yards when traveling over 8 mph in a game in his career. 

NFL Research: Cardinals WR Marvin Harrison Jr. is the first rookie to have 4+ receptions and 2+ receiving TD in a first quarter since his dad, Colts WR Marvin Harrison, did it in 1996. In fact, Harrison Jr. had more receiving yards (130) in the first quarter in Week 2 than his dad had in any single game as a rookie in 1996.