The 2026 NFL season moves into Week 3 with eight undefeated teams looking to maintain perfect starts, several stars chasing historic milestones and the league preparing to make history in Brazil.
The marquee international matchup sends the Baltimore Ravens and Dallas Cowboys to Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET. It will be the first NFL regular-season game ever played in Rio and marks the third consecutive season with an NFL game in Brazil following games in São Paulo in 2024 and 2025.
The matchup also launches a five-week run of international games, with the NFL playing outside the United States every Sunday from Weeks 3 through 7.
Four AFC Teams Chase 3-0 Starts
Buffalo, Kansas City, Cincinnati and Las Vegas enter Week 3 at 2-0.
The Bills host the Los Angeles Chargers after scoring at least 35 points and producing more than 400 yards of offense in each of their first two games. Buffalo can become just the fourth team in NFL history to reach both marks in each of its first three games.
Josh Allen has been at the center of that offensive explosion. He is the first player in league history with five touchdown passes and four rushing touchdowns through the opening two games of a season.
Allen can add two more unprecedented accomplishments Sunday. He can become the first quarterback with multiple rushing touchdowns in three consecutive games and the first with a passing touchdown, rushing touchdown and passer rating of at least 120 in three straight games.
Kenneth Walker Powers Kansas City
The Chiefs visit Miami with the NFL’s top-ranked offense at 457.5 yards per game.
Running back Kenneth Walker has made an immediate impact in Kansas City, leading the league with 369 scrimmage yards. That represents the most scrimmage yards ever by a non-rookie in his first two games with a new team.
Walker has produced at least 175 scrimmage yards in both games, becoming only the fifth player in NFL history to accomplish that feat over the first two weeks of a season.
Burrow and Chase Head to Pittsburgh
Cincinnati puts its perfect record on the line against Pittsburgh in an AFC North matchup.
Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase enter Week 3 with 50 career touchdown connections. They are one of only four quarterback-receiver combinations in NFL history to reach 50 while both players were under age 30.
On the other side, Aaron Rodgers enters the game with 164 regular-season victories. A Steelers win would allow Rodgers to tie Ben Roethlisberger’s 165 for fifth-most by a quarterback in NFL history.
Raiders Look for First 3-0 Start Since 2021
Las Vegas travels to New Orleans behind 38-year-old quarterback Kirk Cousins, who leads the AFC with six touchdown passes.
Cousins became only the third quarterback age 38 or older to throw at least three touchdown passes in each of his team’s first two games, joining Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.
Saints quarterback Tyler Shough has also started quickly. Shough leads the NFL with 62 completions and 662 passing yards through two weeks.
NFC’s Perfect Four
Seattle, Minnesota, San Francisco and Philadelphia comprise the NFC’s four remaining undefeated teams.
The defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks travel to Washington looking to begin 3-0. Head coach Mike Macdonald owns a 29-10 record, including the postseason, since taking over in 2024 and can become the sixth head coach since 1970 to win at least 30 of his first 40 games.
Seattle wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba has picked up where he left off after leading the NFL with 1,793 receiving yards in 2025. He leads the league again with 277 yards through two games.
Purdy and McCaffrey Keep Making History
San Francisco hosts Arizona following a Week 2 performance in which Brock Purdy made NFL history.
Purdy completed 20 of 22 passes for 287 yards and two touchdowns while adding a rushing score against Miami. He became the first player ever to complete at least 90 percent of his passes while throwing for at least 285 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for another score.
Christian McCaffrey also reached a major milestone with two rushing touchdowns. He recorded his 100th career scrimmage touchdown in his 114th game, passing Jerry Rice to become the fourth-fastest player to reach the mark during the Super Bowl era.
Justin Jefferson Continues Historic Pace
Minnesota visits Tampa Bay looking for its second 3-0 start in three seasons.
Justin Jefferson enters the game with 8,627 career receiving yards. The 27-year-old passed DeAndre Hopkins in Week 2 for the second-most receiving yards ever accumulated before age 28.
Only Randy Moss, with 9,142 yards, recorded more.
Minnesota’s defense has also made an early impact. Linebacker Dallas Turner is tied for third in the league with three sacks and leads the NFL with 20 quarterback pressures and 11 quarterback hits through two weeks.
Eagles and Bears Meet on Monday Night
Philadelphia travels to Chicago for Monday Night Football after Jalen Hurts delivered another late-game victory in Week 2.
Hurts connected with Darius Cooper for the winning touchdown with nine seconds remaining in Philadelphia’s 24-20 victory over Tennessee. Hurts has engineered eight fourth-quarter comebacks since 2023, trailing only Green Bay’s Jordan Love over that span.
Saquon Barkley enters Monday night with at least 100 scrimmage yards in five consecutive Monday Night Football appearances.
Rams Continue Historic Primetime Opening
The Los Angeles Rams travel to Denver on Sunday Night Football in a matchup between two of last season’s four conference championship participants.
Los Angeles will become the first team since 1970 to begin a season with three consecutive primetime games.
Matthew Stafford enters Week 3 after throwing four touchdown passes last week. His 427 career regular-season touchdown passes moved him past Philip Rivers for sixth place in NFL history.
Denver quarterback Bo Nix has accumulated 25 victories since entering the league in 2024, placing him among five starting quarterbacks with at least 25 wins over the past three seasons.
With eight teams attempting to remain unbeaten, a historic first NFL game in Rio de Janeiro and some of the league’s biggest stars already approaching major records, Week 3 offers another packed slate as the 2026 season begins to take shape.
Source: NFL
