It’s only the second week of the new NFL season, but that’s never stopped players from setting new records we thought were achievable. While plenty of records are set and broken in all sports, professional football is a whole different story.
It’s not easy to keep the same energy throughout all the weeks in the NFL, although some players decide to ramp it up in the second week. In this article, we’ll look at some of the most important NFL Week 2 records accomplished, including who set the record, what it was for, when it was and what team it was for.
Dallas Cowboys Micah Parsons made his mark in Week 2 of the NFL by going his 10th career game with 2+ sacks. Parsons is one of five players to reach this height of 10+ games with two or more sacks, along with Reggie White (16), Richard Dent (12), Shawne Merriman (12) and Aldon Smith (12).
Stroud made waves before even achieving his first NFL victory. By the second week of the NFL in 2023, C.J. Stroud put 626 passing yards without throwing a single pick. Being a designated QB at such a young age is already difficult, yet Stroud seems to have no trouble being a prospect rookie, as there hasn’t been another rookie quarterback to throw this many reception yards with no interceptions since the 1970 merger.
Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills overcame one of the worst starts he had in Week 2 and turned it into a masterful Week 2 performance. In a heated game vs. the Raiders, Allen threw 83.8% on his passing conversion, scoring three touchdowns to seal the deal.
To make it even better, Allen would go down as the first player ever to throw three or more touchdowns and complete 80% of his passes on five separate occasions throughout his career. He’d beat the likes of Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Lamar Jackson and Kirk Cousins, all of whom would do the same as Allen, but only for four games.
After having already set his Week 1 record for the youngest player to throw and rush for a touchdown, Anthony Richardson would accomplish a similar fear in Week 2. Unfortunately, Richardson would be put on hiatus due to concussion protocol.
Although in a game vs. the Texans in NFL Week 2, he’d score two rushing touchdowns just in the first quarter. Doing this gives Anthony Richardson the record for most rushing touchdowns by the end of the first quarter in just Week 2 of the 2023 NFL season.
Impressively, Puka Nacua of the Los Angeles Rams would set a record that many young wide receivers dream of. By Week 2 in the NFL 2023 season, Nacua caught 15 receptions against the 49ers and still managed to lose the game. This would be the record for most receptions by a rookie in a single game.
But even more impressive is that he had 10 receptions in his first game, meaning by the end of NFL Week 2, Nacua had 25 total receptions in two games, another rookie record. From this incredible Week 2 (and Week 1) performance, Puka Nacua would go down as one of five players in NFL history to have 10 catches with 100+ receiving yards in their team’s first two games of the season, along with Cooper Kupp, Miles Austin, Isaac Bruce and Andre Rison.
Liam has been a major sports fan and soccer player for over a decade, with a particular focus on major top-level soccer leagues, including the EPL, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and MLS. He has written numerous promotional articles for various top sportsbooks and continues to publish historical and factual sports articles covering the NFL, MLS, NHL, MLB, EPL and more.