NFL Winners and Losers from Week 2: D'Andre Swift soars, Chargers grounded

NFL Week 2 loser: Joe Burrow

Again!

He's shaking off rust after missing all of preseason and most of training camp, so Joe Burrow deserves some slack. Odds are the highest-paid player in NFL history hasn't suddenly forgetten how to throw a football. Burrow has been a winner his entire professional (and amateur) career and the Bengals have already been to a Super Bowl with Burrow under center. Patience is a virtue.

That said, Burrow was god awful in Week 1, throwing for a laughable 82 yards. He followed it up with a more impressive but still depressing Week 2, completing 27-of-41 passes for 222 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. He averaged 5.4 yards per completion with Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins as his primary wideouts. How does one accomplish that?

The Bengals lost 27-24 to the Baltimore Ravens. That's a good team, as were the Cleveland Browns in Week 1, but the Bengals are 0-2 with two losses to division opponents. Cincy was supposed to run away with the division, but something will have to change fast for fans to feel good about their chances moving forward.

NFL Week 2 winner: Puka Nacua

The Los Angeles Rams lost 30-23 to the San Francisco 49ers. On the surface, that's a difficult blow delivered by a division rival. That said, the Rams were supposed to sorta-tank this season. A Week 1 smackdown of the Seahawks followed by a close battle with a quality Niners team suggests that maybe Sean McVay's team is back in the fold.

Matthew Stafford delivered another vintage performance, for reasons good and bad. He completed 34-of-55 passes for 307 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions as the Rams aired it out again, again, and again. Stafford has long been a quantity over quality kind of passer, often to his benefit. This was a prime example.

What's mildly surprising is that Los Angeles is finding so much success through the air without star wideout Cooper Kupp. The main beneficiary has been fifth-round rookie Puka Nacua, who was responsible for 15 of Stafford's 34 completions, worth 147 yards, in Week 2. He has been the perfect Kupp facsimile, working short routes over the middle and providing a safety release valve for Stafford close to the line of scrimmage (9.8 yards per catch).

Until Kupp gets back, it looks like fifth-round rookie Puka Nacua might be the most productive wide receiver in football. Nobody had that on their bingo card!