One of the most popular ways to tout your football knowledge is in a survivor pool. Each week, you select a team to win their game with the goal being surviving as long as possible. The catch is you can only choose a team once, so it's imperative you think ahead when selecting.
Last week, I gave out the Broncos and Commanders; if you took either, you advanced to Week 2. Below are a couple of more strong NFL survivor pool picks to stay alive in your pool.
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NFL Week 2 Survivor Pool Picks
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams opened their season with an impressive win over the Texans. Houston was one of the top-rated defenses in the league last year, and they gave the Rams some fits in Week 1, but Los Angeles still averaged 5.2 yards per play. The Titans are a step down on that end of the ball.
Denver struggled to move the ball at times against Tennessee, but it was overall a poor performance from second-year quarterback Bo Nix. Nix was 25-of-40 with only four yards per attempt (YPA) and turned the ball over three times. Matthew Stafford, with his group of playmakers, should move the ball all over this defense.
Meanwhile, the Rams should find similar success as Denver on the defensive side. Cam Ward was sacked six times and looked incredibly uncomfortable at times. Jared Verse and the Rams' front will force Ward into some more poor decisions.
It's tough to back road teams in Survivor, but the Rams are a team that bucks that trend. Since 2021, Matthew Stafford has led the Rams to a 17-11 road record, a better winning percentage (.607) than at home (.600). With the league having some more game tape on Cam Ward, Sean McVay will be able to exploit the matchups and lead the Rams to a win.
Dallas Cowboys
One of the biggest surprises of Week 1 was the near-upset of the defending champion Eagles on Thursday night. Dallas, after moving on from star defensive player Micah Parsons, managed to hold the Eagles to fewer than five yards per play and was a couple of key drops away from pulling off the biggest underdog win of the week.
In Week 2, the Cowboys host another division rival in the New York Giants. After their loss to the Commanders, the Giants were noncommittal on a starting quarterback in this matchup (they have since committed to Russell Wilson starting again). As poor as the New York offense was, with 3.7 yards per play, it was their defense that allowed 432 yards and 6.6 yards per play, including 6.9 yards per carry (YPC) on the ground.
Dallas had no issue moving the ball against an elite Eagles front seven, although notably without Jalen Carter. They put up 119 yards and 5.4 YPC. Dallas should clean up a lot of mistakes that cost them in Week 1. The loss should provide some motivation for a team that is looking to prove doubters wrong. Even though it's against a divisional foe, this is the right matchup at the right time for the Cowboys.
