Ranking the NFL’s surprise 2-0 teams

The first two weeks of the NFL season have been highly unusual, but they have been fun. About half of the games have been decided by one possession or less. Home-field advantage hasn’t been there, with half of all games having been won by the road team. Scoring is up. Fourth-quarter comebacks have been plentiful.

After all of that, seven teams have emerged with 2-0 records. Two aren’t surprising: The defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers look like the front-runners in the NFC, and the Los Angeles Rams have validated their reputation as one of the most talented teams in the league.

Arizona Cardinals: Kyler Murray is off to an MVPcaliber start and is carrying the Cardinals. He is completing 73.5 percent of his passes, is averaging more than 10 yards per attempt and has a quarterback rating of 121.5 after leading Arizona to wins over the Tennessee Titans and Minnesota Vikings.

What’s most impressive is that Murray has been spreading the ball around. DeAndre Hopkins has 10 catches for 137 yards and three touchdowns, but Arizona’s secondary targets have been getting involved, too. Rookie Rondale Moore has caught 11 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown; Christian Kirk has eight catches for 135 yards and two scores; and veteran acquisition A.J. Green has five catches for 69 yards and a touchdown.

Las Vegas Raiders: After three losing seasons, Jon Gruden has appeared to have turned this team around. The Raiders opened with wins over AFC North teams — the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers — and the key has been quarterback Derek Carr. He is averaging more than 400 passing yards while completing 66.7 percent of his passes. Tight end Darren Waller is a star, and wide receiver Henry Ruggs III is a dangerous deep threat. On defense, pass rusher Maxx Crosby has been a difference-maker.

San Francisco 49ers: The 49ers have taken advantage of a favorable opening schedule to earn a 2-0 record, but injuries remain a concern.

They lost their best cornerback, Jason Verrett, for the season with a torn ACL, and their second-best cornerback, Emmanuel Moseley, missed the first two games with a knee injury. They also have been hit hard at running back, with starter Raheem Mostert suffering a season-ending knee injury in the opener and rookies Elijah Mitchell and Trey Sermon getting hurt in Sunday’s win over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Denver Broncos: In the NFL, scheduling is everything, and the Broncos opened with the easiest schedule in the league. They already have earned wins over the New York Giants and Jacksonville Jaguars, with the New York Jets on deck for Week 3.

But their opening two wins came on the road, and there’s plenty to like about this team. First-round pick Patrick Surtain II has looked great filling in at cornerback for the injured Ronald Darby, and edge rusher Von Miller has three sacks.

Carolina Panthers: The Week 1 win over the Jets might not have been impressive to many, but the Panthers’ 26-7 victory over a New Orleans Saints team that blew out the Packers the week before turned some heads.

Quarterback Sam Darnold, liberated from the Jets, is playing well. He has completed 68.5 percent of his passes and has three touchdowns against just one interception. He has benefited from having running back Christian McCaffrey and wide receiver DJ Moore at his disposal.