Brian Robinson Jr. ran for two fourth-quarter touchdowns as the Washington Commanders rallied from an 18-point second-quarter deficit for a 35-33 road win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

Robinson ran for 87 yards on 18 carries and caught two passes for 42 yards in the game.

The former Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa star scored his touchdowns on a 2-yard run as the Commanders took a 28-24 lead with 13:25 to play and a 15-yard run as the lead expanded to 35-24 with 7:11 remaining.

But Washington had to sweat out the victory after yielding a 50-yard, Hail Mary touchdown as time expired. The Commanders stopped Denver’s 2-point conversion pass to hold a 2-0 record for the first time since 2011.

Robinson started his second NFL season on time after missing the first four games of his rookie campaign after being shot.

On Aug. 28, 2022, the day after the Commanders’ final preseason game, Robinson was shot in the hip and knee when he was accosted by two armed teens seeking to steal his Dodge Challenger Hellcat in Washington, according to District of Columbia police, who reported Robinson wrested a gun away from one of the boys before being shot by the other.

A second-round draft pick, Robinson didn’t make his NFL debut until Oct. 9. He went into the starting lineup the next week and played in 12 games before an injury kept him off the field in the season finale. Robinson ran for 797 yards and two touchdowns on 205 carries and caught nine passes for 60 yards and one touchdown as a rookie.

Robinson said after Sunday’s game that the shooting still affected his play.

“Every week, we going to take another step,” Robinson said. “I expect to continue to stride, take those strides in the right direction and eventually you’ll see the full potential in me. … I got a lot more in the tank I could show, and like I said, I’m taking those strides week in and week out, and eventually it’ll all be out on display.”

Robinson was among the 42 former Alabama players who got on the field on the second Sunday of the NFL’s 104th season.

Eight other former Alabama players were involved in the Washington-Denver game:

· Jonathan Allen started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Allen made three tackles.

· Commanders running back Derrick Gore is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Kareem Jackson started at right safety for the Broncos. Jackson made two tackles before being ejected from the game for a hit to the helmet of Washington tight end Logan Thomas with 1:47 left in the first half.

KAREEM JACKSON EJECTED FOR END-ZONE HIT

· Jerry Jeudy started at wide receiver for the Broncos. Jeudy caught three passes for 25 yards in his 2023 season debut. Jeudy missed the season-opener last week because of a hamstring injury.

· Commanders defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis is on injured reserve and not eligible to play. Mathis must miss at least the first four games of the season.

· Daron Payne (Shades Valley) started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Payne had five tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss, three quarterback hits and one pass breakup. With Washington trailing 21-14, Payne sacked Denver quarterback Russell Wilson for a 9-yard loss on first down, tackled running back Javonte Williams for a 2-yard loss on second down and batted down Wilson’s pass on third down on the Broncos’ opening possession of the second half.

· Broncos outside linebacker Drew Sanders did not record any stats. Sanders lost a fourth-quarter sack to a defensive penalty.

· Patrick Surtain II started at left cornerback for the Broncos. Surtain made three tackles.

In the other Sunday games:

Atlanta Falcons 25, Green Bay Packers 24

· Falcons safety DeMarcco Hellams played but not record any stats.

Buffalo Bills 38, Las Vegas Raiders 10

· Bills running back Damien Harris ran for 33 yards and one touchdown on seven carries. He capped Buffalo’s 11-play, 95-yard drive with a 1-yard plunge for the game’s final touchdown with 5:08 to play. Harris started the drive with three consecutive carries that gained 18 yards.

· Josh Jacobs started at running back for the Raiders. Jacobs netted minus-2 yards on nine rushing attempts and had 51 yards on five receptions. Jacobs led the NFL with 1,653 rushing yards last season, and he became the first reigning rushing champion to record a game with negative rushing yardage during the NFL’s AFC/NFC era. Jacobs’ longest run in the game gained 3 yards. He also had gains of 1 yard and 2 yards, three carries for no gain and losses of 1 yard and 3 and 4 yards. Until Sunday, Jacobs had never played in an NFL game without rushing for at least 16 yards.

· Bills wide receiver Tyrell Shavers is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Raiders defensive tackle Byron Young did not record any stats in his second NFL game.

Baltimore Ravens 27, Cincinnati Bengals 24

· Ravens cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis did not record any stats in his 2023 debut.

· Bengals safety Jordan Battle made one tackle in his second NFL game.

· Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey (Hoover) was designated as a game-day inactive. Humphrey had foot surgery during the preseason and also missed last week’s opening game.

· Irv Smith Jr. started at tight end for the Bengals. Smith had two receptions for 10 yards.

· Jonah Williams started at right offensive tackle for the Bengals.

Seattle Seahawks 37, Detroit Lions 31 (OT)

· Lions defensive back Brian Branch made four tackles in his second NFL game.

· Lions defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 17 yards on seven carries and caught seven passes for 39 yards. Gibbs became the second running back who played at Alabama to catch at least seven passes in an NFL regular-season game as a rookie. Najee Harris caught 14 passes for 102 yards in his third NFL game – the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 24-10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 26, 2021.

· Jarran Reed started at nose tackle for the Seahawks. Reed made two tackles, registered two quarterback hits and recovered a fumble. Reed recovered a Detroit fumble on the first snap of the second half at the Lions 23-yard line, and Seattle scored a touchdown two plays later to tie the game at 14-14.

· Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams is on reserve/suspended by the commissioner. Williams must sit out the first six games of the season for violating the NFL gambling policy.

Indianapolis Colts 31, Houston Texans 20

· Will Anderson Jr. started at defensive end for the Texans. Anderson made three tackles and registered Houston’s only quarterback hit.

· Colts cornerback Tony Brown made one tackle on special teams.

· Christian Harris started at weakside linebacker for the Texans. Harris made one tackle.

· Colts safety Ronnie Harrison is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Ryan Kelly started at center for the Colts. Kelly left the game to be evaluated for a concussion and did not return.

· Texans wide receiver John Metchie III had a 17-yard reception in his NFL debut. A second-round choice in the 2022 NFL Draft, Metchie missed last season while being treated for leukemia. He missed the opening game of 2023 last week because of a hamstring injury.

JOHN METCHIE III GETS HIS FIRST RECEPTION IN HIS LONG-AWAITED NFL DEBUT

· Henry To’oTo’o started at strongside linebacker for the Texans. In his NFL start and his second NFL game, To’oTo’o made seven tackles.

Kansas City Chiefs 17, Jacksonville Jaguars 9

· Calvin Ridley started at wide receiver for the Jaguars. Ridley had two receptions for 32 yards.

· Jaguars offensive tackle Cam Robinson in on reserve/suspended by the commissioner. He must miss the first four games of the season for violating the NFL’s Policy on Performance-Enhancing Substances.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27, Chicago Bears 17

· Eddie Jackson started at safety for the Bears. Jackson did not record any stats before leaving the game with a foot injury.

Tennessee Titans 27, Los Angeles Chargers 24 (OT)

· Titan defensive back Shyheim Carter is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Derrick Henry started at running back for the Titans. Henry ran for 80 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries and caught three passes for 15 yards. Henry scored on a 1-yard run as Tennessee cut Los Angeles’ lead to 11-7 with 7:09 left in the first half.

· Chargers punter JK Scott averaged 39.0 yards on six punts with a net of 37.2. Scott had a 40-yard punt returned 5 yards (before a holding penalty put the football at the Tennessee 25-yard line), a 29-yarder downed at the Tennessee 15, a 45-yarder for a fair catch at the Tennessee 13, a 44-yarder for a fair catch at the Tennessee 14, a 29-yarder for a fair catch at the Tennessee 18 and a 47-yarder returned 11 yards to the Tennessee 39.

New York Giants 31, Arizona Cardinals 28

· Giants center J.C. Hassenauer is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Xavier McKinney started at free safety for the Giants. McKinney made seven tackles and broke up a pass.

· Evan Neal started at right offensive tackle for the Giants.

· Giants cornerback Aaron Robinson is on reserve/physically unable to play. Robinson must miss at least the first four games of the season.

· A’Shawn Robinson started at defensive tackle for the Giants. Robinson made three tackles and recorded a tackle for loss.

· Giants wide receiver Cam Sims is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

San Francisco 49ers 30, Los Angeles Rams 23

· Forty-Niners cornerback Anthony Averett is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Rams tight end Miller Forristall is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Forty-Niners tight end Cameron Latu is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

Dallas Cowboys 30, New York Jets 10

· Trevon Diggs started at cornerback for the Cowboys. Diggs made one tackle, intercepted one pass and broke up another one. Diggs picked off New York cornerback Zach Wilson and returned it 8 yards to the Jets 47-yard line with 3:00 to play. Diggs is tied for 10th in NFL interceptions among former Alabama players with Don McNeal with 18.

· C.J. Mosley (Theodore) started at linebacker for the Jets. Mosley tied for the team lead with nine tackles, recorded one tackle for loss, registered one quarterback hit and broke up one pass.

· Quinnen Williams (Wenonah) started at defensive tackle for the Jets. Williams made six tackles and recorded two tackles for loss.

Miami Dolphins 24, New England Patriots 17

· Christian Barmore started at defensive tackle for the Patriots. Barmore had one tackle.

· Dolphins guard Lester Cotton (Central-Tuscaloosa) did not record any stats.

· Raekwon Davis started at nose tackle for the Dolphins. Davis made five tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.

· Dolphins defensive tackle Da’Shawn Hand did not record any stats in his 2023 season debut. Miami signed Hand to its active roster from its practice squad on Saturday to make him eligible to play for the first time since Week 1 of the 2022 campaign. Hand sustained a season-ending injury in last year’s opener.

· Patriots linebacker Anfernee Jennings (Dadeville) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Mac Jones started at quarterback for the Patriots. Jones completed 31-of-42 passes for 231 yards with one touchdown and one interception and ran for 25 yards on five carries. Jones’ touchdown came on a 6-yard pass to tight end Hunter Henry as New England cut Miami’s lead to 17-10 with 11:21 left to play.

· Tua Tagovailoa started at quarterback for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa completed 21-of-30 passes for 249 yards with one touchdown and one interception and ran four times for 3 yards. Tagovailoa’s touchdown came on a 2-yard pass to wide receiver Tyreek Hill as Miami took a 17-3 lead with 11 seconds left in the first half.

· Jaylen Waddle started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Waddle had four receptions for 86 yards before leaving the field to be evaluated for a concussion after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit with about four minutes to play.

· Patriots linebacker Mack Wilson (Carver-Montgomery) did not record any stats.

Week 2 started on Thursday night, when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Minnesota Vikings 34-28. Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith had four receptions for 131 yards and one touchdown.

Week 2 concludes on Monday, when the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers square off at 6:15 p.m. CDT at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers play at 7:15 p.m. at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh. ESPN will televise the Saints-Panthers game, and NBC will televise the Browns-Steelers game.

BRYCE YOUNG STUBBORN ENOUGH TO BE GREAT, CAROLINA COACH SAYS

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.