Here are a few things to keep an eye on Week 2 of the NFL regular season:
Veteran Viking
Despite hauling in only one reception in the season opener, six-year receiver Jarius Wright is just happy to be back out on the field, making a difference.
Postgame, Wright spoke with the media about how it felt to be back on the field.
“It felt great to be back in the offense, to be involved in the offense and have the chance to make plays. I’m not a selfish guy I don’t have to play the whole game; I just want opportunities to make plays and help the team win, and that’s my main priority, winning the game.”
After playing only eight games last season, Wright came off the bench in Monday’s season opener and pulled in a 21-yard grab in the middle of a three-play, 74-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter to spark Minnesota’s offense on its way to a 29-19 victory over the Saints. Look for Vikings' quarterback Sam Bradford to go to the sure-handed receiver more often.
D-Line Duo
Patriot defensive linemen Trey Flowers and rookie Deatrich Wise, Jr. stood out in Week 1 of the regular season. Flowers was one of four Patriot defenders to play every snap of their season opener. The duo combined for six total tackles, three tackles for loss, all three of the Patriot’s sacks and four quarterback hurries, including this one by Wise:
Deatrich Wise borrowing Trey Flowers' bull snatch. Good hand inside hand placement, gets him sideways, pulls forward, QB hit. #Patriots pic.twitter.com/ChkLUQq36U
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) September 9, 2017
Arkansas is one of five teams to have two former players in an NFL defensive line rotation. Others include Boise State (Dallas – Demarcus Lawrence and Tyrone Crawford), California (Los Angeles Chargers – Brandon Mebane and Chris McCain), Southern California (New York Jets – Leonard Williams and Claude Pelon), Oregon (San Francisco – Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner) and Penn State (Tennessee – Austin Johnson and DaQuan Jones).
Quiet Opening Night
Charger tight end Hunter Henry had a relatively quiet season opener. Henry was not targeted in the Chargers loss to the Denver Broncos on Monday night, as he was used primarily as a blocker. In fact, Charger quarterback Phillip Rivers only targeted a tight end once in the first three quarters. Look for that to change this week against the Miami Dolphins.