Time for panic? The case for or against every 0-2 NFL team
Since the NFL expanded to a 14-team playoff in 2020, 32 teams have begun the season with an 0-2 record. Only two — the 2023 Texans and 2022 Bengals — rallied to make the playoffs. Including the 12-team playoff that was enacted in 1990, just 32 of 279 teams (11.5%) that dropped their first two games earned the trip to a postseason.
It’s not impossible, but opening the season potentially two games back from other teams competing for a playoff spot certainly raises the stakes of every remaining game. With nine teams having started their 2024 campaigns winless, here’s how they stack up:
Still Playoff Contenders
Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals
A week after falling one Isaiah Likely shoe size away from taking down the defending champs, the Ravens converted just three of 11 third-down attempts and committed 11 penalties in a 26-23 loss to Las Vegas. The Ravens made a ridiculous amount of mistakes Sunday, and I believe the roster is far too talented for their struggles to continue. The schedule lightens up in the middle of the season, but the next few weeks (@Cowboys, Bills, @Bengals) will be tough.
New England completely stifled Cincinnati’s offense in Week 1, but the Bengals finally found rhythm in KC. Joe Burrow did a much better job of moving the chains in his second outing, and the Bengals’ defense played just well enough to come up with a win until a defensive pass interference call on fourth-and-16 put the Chiefs in winning field goal range. It’s the third straight year of the Bengals starting 0-2, and just like the last two seasons, I see no reason to be worried. Upcoming matchups against Washington and Carolina provide great opportunities for a bounce-back.
Getting Nervous
Los Angeles Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars, Indianapolis Colts
Based solely on their overtime loss to the Lions in Week 1, one could’ve argued the Rams deserve to be in the Playoff Contender tier. However, a 41-10 bludgeoning at the hands of the Cardinals exposed weaknesses all over the field, as Arizona ran wild for almost 500 total yards. Kyler Murray diced up a defense that was supposed to still be strong, even minus Aaron Donald, and with Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp facing significant injury time, things might get rocky for LA.
The Jaguars very well could be 2-0 right now, but collapsed in the second half against the Dolphins and put on an offensive disasterclass in a winnable game against the lowly Browns. Trevor Lawrence has been far from perfect and must play better; however, the issues with the playcalling and offensive line have been the most prominent culprits and have overshadowed a good defensive start to the season. A bright spot — two of Jacksonville’s AFC South rivals are also 0-2.
The Colts have a quarterback with an unbelievable arm who can make the most otherworldly throws, yet sometimes struggles to hit the easy ones. As Anthony Richardson develops, the run defense has been brutal, allowing a league-high 237 yards per game and letting opponents soak up an average of 40 minutes of possession each week. Just like the Jaguars, though, both of the two losses could have been wins if a few plays shook differently, and with a passer that can complete throws like this, I’m skeptical to count Indianapolis out yet:
Sound the Alarm
Denver Broncos, New York Giants, Tennessee Titans, Carolina Panthers
How many of these teams have buyer’s remorse with their quarterbacks?
After being touted as the Broncos’ savior because of a good preseason (when will they learn?), Bo Nix has struggled with downfield accuracy and has made several flat-out poor decisions to start his rookie season. He was just 2-for-12 with two interceptions in Week 2 when throwing further than 10 yards, including this brutal pick in the end zone:
At 24 years old, Nix was tabbed by many as one of the most pro-ready quarterback prospects. While he’s just two games into his NFL career and has time to grow, that hasn’t been the case so far.
The Giants rewarded Daniel Jones’ 2022 playoff run with a four-year, $160 million contract, and now he’s probably the most hated man in New York (sorry Trae Young). Only the Panthers have scored less than the G-Men through two weeks, and while Jones’ performance in Washington was not as abominable as in Week 1 against Minnesota, the offense was far from smooth.
It’s clear that, between a dysfunctional offense and a defense that has been dismantled by the run, this Giants team is not going to be contending for a playoff spot in 2024. New York’s next five games (@Browns, Cowboys, @Seahawks, Bengals, Eagles) are not forgiving either.
If you take out Will Levis’ two most boneheaded turnovers, he’s actually played pretty well to start the season. He has a completion percentage over expected of +6.9% — fourth best in the league after finishing last (-3.2%) in CPOE in 2023 — despite being pressured on a league-high 53.4% of dropbacks. However, you can’t take those big mistakes out, and the Titans are 0-2, in large part, because of them.
If Levis had just taken a sack on both plays, Tennessee would’ve had a very good chance at winning the games. This team doesn’t appear to be the quite at the “sky is falling” level of the other teams in this tier, as the defense (first in total yardage and passing yards allowed) has been quite good, but Levis has to cool it with the hero ball and make better decisions if he wants to prove he’s Tennessee’s long-term answer under center.
As for Carolina… how much is there to actually say?
The Panthers have been outscored 73-13 in two weeks. They’re last in total offense and 25th in total defense. Management traded two first-rounders, two second-rounders and D.J. Moore for Bryce Young, who has combined for 245 passing yards, zero touchdowns and three interceptions on 55.4% accuracy to begin his sophomore campaign. Young has a league-worst EPA of -40.2, is last in passer rating (44.1) and yards per attempt (4.4), has the sixth-worst CPOE at -9% and had a quarterback rating (QBR) of just 6.5 in Sunday’s 26-3 loss to the Chargers.
It’s bad — so bad that Carolina has now bailed on its former No. 1 overall pick just 18 games into his young career. Whether Young’s benching in favor of Andy Dalton is permanent or just a short stint to allow him to take a step back and rebuild his confidence, the fact that the last year-plus have gone as poorly as they have is an indictment of the entire Panthers’ organization, from top to bottom.