NFL Week 2 Heroes and Villains

Every NFL Sunday there are players who capture and break hearts across America. BetAmerica's weekly Heroes and Villains feature will highlight the players who made and lost money for NFL bettors. Let's take a look at Week 2.

Villain: Julio Jones

The Philadelphia Eagles were two minutes away from grinding out a victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Hampered by injuries all night, it all began before the game, when second-string tight end Dallas Goedert suffered an injury. Quarterback Carson Wentz lost two more pass catchers—DeSean Jackson (groin) and Alshon Jeffery (calf)—in the first quarter.

Without two of his best weapons, Wentz relied on Nelson Agholor and Zach Ertz to mount a fourth-quarter comeback. Wentz capped off an impressive 13-play, 8:29 drive with a quarterback sneak to take the lead and cover the one-point sprea. With only three minutes to play, all the Eagles' defense had to do was hang on, but Julio Jones had other plans. An explosive block from Jake Matthews on fourth down sprung Jones free for a 54-yard touchdown that gave the Falcons the win and the cover.

Hero: Gardner Minshew

Favored by seven points, the Houston Texans never trailed the Jacksonville Jaguars. A fourth-quarter DeShaun Watson touchdown gave Houston a comfortable ten-point lead, but it wasn't enough to slow down the Washington State gunslinger.

Gardner Minshew immediately responded and led the Jags to a field goal that created a push. He then gave Jags fans the cover with an incredible scrambling touchdown in the final 30 seconds of regulation. Jacksonville head coach Doug Marrone went for two and failed, which eliminated any hope for an overtime Houston cover. Never bet against the power of Minshew's 'stache.

Villain: Aaron Donald

NFL fans were supposed to get treated to a shootout in the NFC Championship rematch between the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints. The total was set at 52.5 before kickoff. Then Drew Brees' thumb collided with Aaron Donald's hand. With the Saints quarterback on the sideline, the Rams took complete control in a blowout victory. The two combined for only 36 points, more than two touchdowns shy of the line.

Hero: Eddy Pineiro

Eddy Pineiro is Chicago's messiah. A season after the Bears met their demise in the playoffs with an infamous double-doink from Cody Parkey, Pineiro delivered a 53-yard field goal as time expired to lift Chicago to a 16-14 win over the Denver Broncos.

"This was an emotional kick," Pineiro told reporters. "With everything I've been through—the whole kicking situation, the Augusta silence, the media, everybody piling on."

Two years ago the Florida kicker took the field at The Swamp to chants of "ED-DY! ED-DY!" As a senior he had the best field goal percentage in the nation when he knocked in 17-18 attempts (94.4%) to set a school record. Signed by the Oakland Raiders as a free agent, a groin injury put him on injured reserve for the entire 2018 season.

The Bears' preseason trade for the kicker paid off at the expense of their former defensive coordinator. Vic Fangio was on the Chicago sideline for last year's double-doink, and he was in the stadium Sunday as Denver's head coach. At least the Broncos still covered the 2.5 points.