NFL Trade Rumors
We’re through Week 2 and 10 NFL teams remain undefeated at 2-0 entering Week 3. That’s almost a third of the league, and naturally, not all of them will go on to have spectacular seasons. While being 2-0 isn’t as good an indicator of success as being 0-2 is for having a disappointing season, we can still learn a lot from which teams have made it unscathed thus far. This time last year, we were talking about how awesome the Saints looked. Clearly, not every 2-0 team will go on to great things. But which ones are legit, and which ones might be frauds?
I think most of us can agree that the Eagles, Rams, Bills and Packers are basically living up to expectations as contenders. But the other six teams — the Colts, Cardinals, 49ers, Bengals, Chargers and Buccaneers — are more of a conversation.
Which of these teams might be legit, and which are on fraud watch? Let’s examine:
It’s been a tough two weeks for Bengals fans. For years, the story of the early stretch of the season in the Joe Burrow-era in Cincinnati has been slow starts. Ever since they played in the Super Bowl following the 2021 season, the opening weeks have not been kind. Even in 2022, a year they went to the AFC Championship Game, they started 0-2. In 2023, they started 0-2 and 1-3, and then last season, they went 0-3 and 1-4 to start the season.
In both 2023 and 2024, the Bengals finished the season 9-8 and missed the playoffs. By the end of the year, they’d be one of the best teams in football, but they played so poorly to open each season that they dug themselves a hole they couldn’t get out of.
This season was supposed to be different. Burrow and the starters played drives in multiple preseason games, something they’d never done before. Coaches and players alike indicated the intensity in training camp would be amped up — all with the goal of getting the team more prepared to hit the ground running and start the season stronger.
Well, though two games, the Bengals are undefeated. So mission accomplished, in that sense. But they haven’t looked good at all, struggling to a one-point win against the Browns in Week 1 before mounting a furious comeback to steal a game against the Jaguars in Week 2. The Browns might be the worst team in the NFL, and Cincinnati mustered seven total yards of offense against them in the second half. Seven! They needed a pair of freak interceptions off dropped passes to pull that one out.
Out of the Jacksonville game, the big talking point is Burrow’s injury. He’s out for at least three months with a serious turf toe injury that requires surgery. If the Bengals are still in playoff contention by then, he could return for the final few games, but that’s a big if. The Bengals face a gauntlet over the...
