Asked & Answered: Are the Vikings, Saints legit? When are we going to see the Trevor Lawrence magic?

(Grant Thomas/Yahoo Sports illustration)

Every week in the NFL season brings a host of new questions … and answers some old ones, too. Let’s run down what we learned in Week 2 … and what we’ll be wondering about in Week 3 and beyond.

ASKED: How far can the Vikings go?

We’re not yet ready to give up on all our “Sam Darnold is terrible” takes over the years; if we have to get rid of cherished beliefs like that, what else do we have? But you’ve got to admit Darnold has looked — well, not “rejuvenated,” that would imply he was juvenated to begin with — let’s go with “inspired.” He threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns, snaring a third of his yardage total on this absolute seed to Justin Jefferson:

Kevin O’Connell has the Vikings humming after Sunday’s big 23-17 win over the 49ers. Defensive coordinator Brian Flores is working magic on that side of the ball. It gets tougher from here — the Texans and Packers await — but it’s clear that this team won’t be the NFC North walkover everyone expected.

ANSWERED: Whether the Saints are legit

Beating the Panthers isn’t exactly the mark of a champion. Beating the brakes off Dallas, in Dallas, and you can start thinking about the division crown. The Saints have been spinning in place since Drew Brees retired, but Sunday’s utter beatdown of Dallas — 44-19, and it didn’t even seem that close — is the kind of game that makes us reassess everything we know about this team.

Given that the Saints’ quarterback is Derek Carr and their leading rusher was Alvin Kamara — both of whom we know very well at this point — the X factor is clearly new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who has managed to harness and then unleash an array of weapons. (Kamara getting 115 yards and three touchdowns on the ground? Three receivers topping 60 yards? It happened!) The question of Dallas’ viability is one that hangs over the Cowboys every year, but the Saints have put the league on notice that…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-09-16 13:37:39

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