Texans and Raiders best 0-2 playoff hopefuls
Bleak as a 0-2 start is in the NFL, it’s not necessarily a death knell.
Sure, leave the gate with consecutive defeats and there’s an 88 percent chance you miss the playoffs under the league’s current format.
Yet 2012 was the last time the postseason didn’t include a team that had to overcome the 0-2 hurdle. Simple math suggests one of this year’s seven slow starters will persevere, so let’s handicap the field.
7. Cardinals: They’re better than, say, the Bills from a pure talent perspective — though that’s not evident on film. But unlike Buffalo, the Cards are mired in the loaded NFC, so their
outlook might actually be the most glum.
6. Bills: Their setbacks have come by a collective 55 points, worst in the league. And now LeSean McCoy’s hurt. It would appear you made some kind of Faustian bargain with Andy Dalton in 2017, Bills Mafia. (BTW, next two are at Minnesota and Green Bay. R.I.P., 2018 Bills.)
5. Lions: New coach. New culture. Same old Lions? After an embarrassing home debut against an average Jets team, Matt Patricia’s bunch looked better in Sunday’s three-point heartbreaker at San Francisco.
Still, Detroit is too reliant on quarterback Matthew Stafford and definitely isn’t in the same class as its NFC North brethren Packers and Vikings. The situation is unlikely to improve Sunday night with a wounded Patriots team heading to Motown in what’s shaping up as an unhappy reunion for Patricia.
4. Giants: Their losses are by a total of 12 points, though it never felt like they were really in Sunday’s 20-13 defeat at Dallas. Eli Manning, Saquon Barkley and Odell Beckham Jr. should make them formidable, but only if the offensive line re- bounds. Defensively, it would help to get pass rusher Olivier Vernon (high ankle sprain) back.
But the biggest obstacle might be the schedule. The Giants’ next five games are at Houston, home against the Saints, at Carolina, home against the Eagles and at Atlanta. Yikes. 3. Seahawks: They had the misfortune of opening with two road contests. But before you’re lulled into thinking the 12th Man can save them, don’t forget the Seahawks were a .500 team at Century-Link Field in 2017 and have lost four of five in the Emerald City.
The new problems, namely the loss of so many key veterans on defense, only augment the usual ones: poor blocking, no run game and too much burden on Russell Wilson. Howev- er, if Seattle can recapture the magic in its own building, the schedule does conclude with five of seven at home ... and it should help to face Arizona twice.
2. Raiders: They hung around with a loaded Rams squad for most of Week 1 until the game eventually got out of hand. They didn’t trail at Denver on Sunday ... until the final six seconds. Of course, falter- ing late raises questions as to whether Jon Gruden has too many veterans on this roster and if it has staying power over the long haul. And the Khalil Mack fiasco continues to undermine Oakland’s ability to prevail, even if a high-potential offense hits high gear under Gruden.
What lies ahead? A crosscountry trip to Miami in Week 3 for a 1 p.m. ET start, a Week 6 “home” game in London and two more 1 p.m. kickoffs in the Eastern time zone plus the always rough journey to Arrowhead over the final six weeks.
1. Texans: They also played their first two away from home, including Week 1 at New England. Houston ended both games possessing the ball and down one score, though Deshaun Watson didn’t do a good job managing the clock Sunday in Nashville.
Still, no reason this team should go in the tank. The next four games (three at NRG Stadium) are winnable leading up to a Week 7 date at Jacksonville. Coach Bill O’Brien surmounted 0-2 in 2015 to take the Texans to the AFC South crown despite using four starting quarterbacks. This club has far superior talent but needs Watson and J.J. Watt to round into pre-injury form soon. They’ll host the equally desperate Giants in Week 3.