Once is a fluke. Twice is a coincidence. Three is a trend.
Drake London provided a valuable reminder to start Week 3: the players we thought were good before the season are probably still good. London and Bijan Robinson became the first teammates to top 150 scrimmage yards, and Atlanta reset their season. Meanwhile, the Packers' horrible offensive line and lack of run game are officially in trend status.
Week 3 will give us some answers on coincidence or trend.
Carolina has flipped from a Top 10 team in leaning on the run to one of the most extreme pass-heavy offenses. They have stopped hiding Bryce Young and now lean on him. Coincidence or trend?
Buffalo has cut it loose on offense, leaning on Josh Allen in ways they did not under Sean McDermott. Allen has not passed for 4,000 yards since 2023, but is on pace for 4,947. Their opponents, the Chargers, are one of the most shocking teams. Mike McDaniel's offense has players stuck, and it is quickly approaching now-or-never territory. Coincidence or trend?
A handful of situations we need to see a turn, otherwise preseason average draft position will be very incorrect:
Colston Loveland - Just one reception through two games; now he faces a defense that has been strong against tight ends with a backup quarterback.
Drake Maye - a preseason Top 5 quarterback and the runner-up for the 2025 MVP. Maye is QB29 through the first two games.
Travis Etienne Jr. - selected as a sure starting fantasy running back, Etienne has played in a nearly equal split with Kendre Miller in Week 1, then Alvin Kamara in Week 2. Etienne is working through an injury, further clouding his value.
It can get late early. Bucky Irving, Ladd McConkey, Chuba Hubbard, and Marvin Harrison Jr.. were early draft picks in 2025 who failed to deliver on their ADP. After this week, it gets much harder to continue believing.
Number Watch
Derrick Henry, Baltimore
29 Rushing Yards - Eric Dickerson, 13,259 Rushing Yards, 9th All-Time
1 Rushing Touchdown - Ray Rice, 37 Rushing Touchdowns, 2nd in Ravens history
1 Touchdown - Cris Carter, 131 Touchdowns, T-8th All-Time
Dickerson should fall in Week 3. Henry can move up multiple spots over the year, needing 871 to get to Curtis Martin at 6th. A rushing touchdown would bring him even with Rice on the Ravens record book.
Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco
1 Receiving Touchdown - Marshall Faulk, 36 receiving touchdowns, most by a running back
McCaffrey is closing in on becoming the best receiving running back in NFL history. He needs 1 yard to tie Marcus Allen for the 4th most yards, and his next touchdown will break a tie with Marshall Faulk for the most by a back.
Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit
1 Rushing Touchdown - Billy Sims, 42 rushing touchdowns, 2nd in Lions history
Gibbs next rushing touchdown will tie Sims for second, behind Barry Sanders 99 career touchdowns. Gibbs needs 145 rushing yards to catch Nick Pietrosante for fifth in Lions history. Gibbs is one of 13 players with 40+ rushing touchdowns through his first 50 games.
Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville
1 Passing Touchdown - Blake Bortles, 103 Passing Touchdowns, 2nd in Jaguars history
2 Rushing Touchdowns - Travis Etienne Jr., 25 rushing touchdowns, 4th in Jaguars history
Lawrence needs one passing touchdown to tie Bortles for the second most in Jaguars history. He is already second in passing yards with 18,067. Mark Brunell holds the top marks in both categories, with 25,698 passing yards and 144 passing touchdowns.
With two rushing touchdowns, he will tie former teammate Etienne for 4th in team history. Maurice Jones-Drew (68), Fred Taylor (62), and James Stewart (33) hold the Top 3 spots.
Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati
1 Reception - Carl Pickens, 530 receptions, 3rd in Bengals’ team history
177 Receiving Yards - Isaac Curtis, 7,101 receiving yards, 3rd in Bengals history
Chase could leap into the Top 3 in both receptions and yards in team history in Week 3. Hitting these marks would move him off the tracker; Chad Johnson (751 receptions, 10,783 yards) and A.J. Green III (649 receptions, 9,430 yards) are well ahead. Chase is 4th in touchdowns at 56; Pickens has 63, Green 65, and Chad Johnson 66, as the top of the board could happen in 2026.
Jared Goff, Detroit
84 Passing Yards - Johnny Unitas, 40,239 passing yards, 25th all-time / Joe Montana, 40,551 passing yards, 24th all-time
Goff should quickly pass Unitas on Sunday. A big day can get him to Montana. Goff could get close to the Top 20 over the course of the season; Drew Bledsoe is 20th at 44,611.
Patrick Mahomes II, Kansas City
1 Passing Touchdown - Joe Montana, 273 passing touchdowns, 20th all-time / Vinny Testaverde. 275 passing touchdowns, 19th
Mahomes needs one passing touchdown to move into the Top 20. He currently sits tied with Joe Flacco. He holds every Chiefs franchise record.
Zach Ertz, Philadelphia
10 Receptions - Harold Carmichael, 589 receptions, 1st in Eagles’ team history
Welcome back! The Eagles signed Ertz this week following an injury to Dallas Goedert. Ertz needs 10 catches to tie Carmichael at the top of the franchise leaderboard.
A quartet of receivers is making their way into the Top 10 of the career boards, sitting with the ability to pass NFL legends most every week. Each week we will see who is next.
Travis Kelce, Kansas City
2 Receptions - Tim Brown, 1,094 receptions, 7th All-Time / Cris Carter, 1,101, 6th / Marvin Harrison Jr., 1,102, 5th
24 Receiving Yards - Andre Reed, 13,198 yards, 19th / DeAndre Hopkins, 13,295 yards
Kelce sits at 1,092 catches, the eighth most in NFL history. He could leap into fifth as early as this weekend. Jason Witten is 4th, 134 receptions ahead. Kelce needs two receiving touchdowns to move from a tie for 27th to a tie for 19th.
Mike Evans, San Francisco
19 Receiving Yards - Kelce
2 receiving touchdowns - Tony Gonzalez, 111 receiving touchdowns, 9th All-time
Kelce passed Evans in Week 2, and the two are positioned to trade off positions on the board as they move up. Either could reach the edge of the Top 10 in 2026. Evans has 13,155 yards while Kelce has 13,174. Andre Johnson is 11th at 14,185. Reggie Wayne is 10th at 14,345.
Keenan Allen, Indianapolis
8 Receptions - Reggie Wayne, 1,070 receptions, 11th All-time
58 receiving yards - Charlie Joiner, 12,146 receiving yards, 30th All-time
Reggie Wayne is 8 catches away at 11th, Anquan Boldin is 14 away, and Terrell Owens is 16. Kelce is creating separation, sitting 30 catches ahead, but 41 catches over the season will move him into sixth, assuming Kelce keeps climbing ahead.
Davante Adams, LA Rams
3 receptions - Steve Smith, 1,031 receptions, 14th All-time
2 receiving touchdowns - Larry Fitzgerald, 121 receiving touchdowns, 6th All-time
Adams had a massive Week 2 and now sits 301 yards behind Evans. Steve Largent and Jason Witten are the only players between the two current NFC West receivers. Adams needs 192 yards to catch Witten. Two touchdowns will pull him even with Larry Fitzgerald.
Long Term Tracker
These numbers will not fall this week unless it is a record, but they're worth counting down.
Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia
6 Rushing Touchdowns - Steve Van Buren, 69 rushing touchdowns, 1st in Eagles history
Hurts is nearing the all-time Eagles franchise record for rushing touchdowns. Two rushing touchdowns would move him inside the Top 50 in career touchdowns, tying him with four others.
Josh Allen, Buffalo
12 Passing Touchdowns - Jim Kelly, 237 passing touchdowns, 1st in Bills history
Allen has five touchdowns through the first two games. His current pace likely isn't sustainable, but it would put him in position to break the record around Halloween.
Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh
11 Passing Touchdowns - Peyton Manning, 539 passing touchdowns, 3rd All-Time
Rodgers is not attacking his mark as quickly as Allen. He has just one touchdown through the first two games. Either that pace will pick up, or Rodgers may not be playing enough to hit the mark.