The Pittsburgh Steelers' defense was missing Troy Polamalu and James Harrison. The New York Jets' offense was riding high after a huge Week 1 performance. Yet Heinz Field continued to be Rex Ryan's personal house of horrors.
Here's what else we learned during Sunday's late games:
-- Dan Hanzus
»Rams coach Jeff Fisher made a commitment to Sam Bradford this offseason, and the third-year pro looks more comfortable than ever. This offense is a solid fit for Bradford, who threw for 310 yards and three touchdowns -- including 15 completions to Danny Amendola, who tied Flipper Anderson and Isaac Bruce for a Rams record.
» Credit to Redskins coach Mike Shanahan, who continues to borrow from Baylor's offense to furnish rookie Robert Griffin III opportunities to make smart decisions. We saw RG3 confidently choose the run over the pass -- for 82 yards on the ground -- when it made sense and when the Rams had little chance to stop him.
» The surprise of the game was Rams running back Daryl Richardson, a seventh-round draft pick who took over for Steven Jackson in the third quarter and piled up 83 yards on the ground and another 19 through the air. Look for this to be the story of the week in St. Louis as Fisher navigates the future of his backfield.
»Rams rookie cornerback Janoris Jenkins turned heads with a violent hit on Fred Davis, who attempted to pull in a pass from RG3. The Redskins tight end didn't have possession of the ball, but no flag was thrown. Shanahan was livid.
»Dumbest play of the game and probably the day: Redskins wide receiver Josh Morgan launching the ball at Rams cornerback Cortland Finnegan inside the two-minute warning, turning a potentially game-tying field goal into a St. Louis victory.
-- Marc Sessler
»Cowboys tight end Jason Witten dropped a few passes and had a miscommunication with Tony Romo. Witten doesn't seem back up to speed after missing most of the preseason.
»Seahawks rookie quarterback Russell Wilson had just five incompletions in 20 throws. He kept the chains moving in the second half and made some nice decisions on third downs to keep drives alive.
» The Cowboys moved the ball in the first half, but they were absolutely steamrolled after that. Led by Marshawn Lynch, the Seahawks put together three clock-killing drives after halftime. The Cowboys had just 34 yards of offense after halftime until the final few meaningless seconds.
» The Seahawks remain one of the best run-stopping teams in football. They made DeMarco Murray look ordinary.
-- Gregg Rosenthal
»Norv Turner finally has one of his Chargers teams out of the gate fast. This is exactly what he needed to avoid the inevitable "hot seat" talk in San Diego.
» Perhaps Tennessee's Week 1 loss said more about the Titans than the New England Patriots. Tennessee's defense has looked especially disappointing in both games. The unit can't stop the run and keep getting blown off the ball.
»Chargers tight end Dante Rosario had three touchdown catches out of four total grabs. No, he's not going to Wally Pipp Antonio Gates out of a job.
»Chris Johnson's nightmare start to the season continued with eight carries for 17 yards. Jake Locker, who completed only half of his passes, led the Titans in rushing with 21 yards.
-- Gregg Rosenthal
