Ranking The NFL's 9 Undefeated Teams From Best To Worst
09/17/2024 02:21 PM
The first two weeks of the 2024 NFL season are in the books and nine teams remain undefeated in the NFL. While it's no guarantee, teams that start 2-0 are usually in playoff contention by year's end barring the unforeseen.
So how do those nine unbeaten teams stack up as we head into Week 3 of the season?
We're ranking the nine undefeated teams from best to worst in this breakdown:
9. Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers are playing the kind of football that's worked for them for literal decades: Great defense, great rushing and efficient passing. It's worked to perfection against teams with either new coaches (Atlanta) and new quarterback (Denver), but it doesn't feel sustainable.
Nevertheless, Justin Fields is quickly proving that while he may not be the elite quarterback that the Bears thought he'd be, he can manage a game and play mistake-free football with the right supporting cast.
8. Seattle Seahawks
They may be eighth on this list but the Seahawks are by no means a bad undefeated team. Geno Smith is continuing to play efficient football, the Seahawks have a pretty good tandem of backs in Kenneth Walker III and Zack Charbonnet and the defense plays very solid football.
They don't seem to have that killer instinct quite yet but maybe it'll show up soon.
7. Los Angeles Chargers
Surprisingly, the story of the Chargers' fast start has been their rushing attack rather than their passing attack. J.K. Dobbins has a new lease on life, averaging over 130 yards per game to start the season while the defense has given up a grand total of 13 points.
Were it not for their division rivals, they might even be an AFC favorite.
6. Houston Texans
Simply put, C.J. Stroud looks like he could be a top 10 or even a top 5 quarterback in this league by the end of the year. He's a great quarterback with dependable wide receivers, has a great running back in Joe Mixon to keep defenses honest, and head coach DeMeco Ryans is a brilliant defensive mind who can keep the team within striking distance of victory all game.
It's just a shame we have to wait all the way until the end of December to see him go toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes for the first time.
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
He's no Tom Brady but Baker Mayfield has been playing so well since winning the starting job in 2023 that you'd think Brady was at least telling him where to throw the ball on every play.
It's more than just Baker though. Tampa Bay are averaging just shy of 28 points per game this season and their defense has yet to allow a touchdown through the air.
4. Minnesota Vikings
After seven years and three different teams, Sam Darnold has finally found himself in the right place at the right time. Granted, this Vikings team looks so good that it seems like even a rookie could throw for 5,000 yards in the offense, but Darnold is primed for Pro Bowl honors with the way he's playing so far.
The lynchpin of Darnold's success is all-world wide receiver Justin Jefferson and if anything happens to him, Darnold could start looking very average, very quickly. For now though, he is becoming yet another star that was once written off.
3. Kansas City Chiefs
Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good but the Chiefs definitely got bailed out with a bit of luck in their Week 2 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. They led that game for less than 13 minutes prior to their game-winning field goal.
As long as they have Patrick Mahomes throwing and Andy Reid coaching though, the Chiefs are never out of a game and the two-time defending champions should still be favorites to win their division.
2. Buffalo Bills
Buffalo's win over the Miami Dolphins on Thursday night has made them the prohibitive favorite in the AFC East now. The Dolphins have now lost starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa indefinitely while the Jets and Patriots are still trying to find an identity.
But more importantly, Buffalo simply look good. Josh Allen is efficient as always and the team finally seems to have a bonafide rushing attack with James Cook already averaging nearly 75 rushing yards per game.
1. New Orleans Saints
Time will tell if this is sustainable but right now the Saints are scoring at a rate that's very reminiscent of the Drew Brees days. They're scoring so often that their punter has only gone out three times in two games.
New Orleans have the No. 1 scoring offense and a top five defense to boot.
That said, they have two major tests coming up with the Philadelphia Eagles this week and a Monday night game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 5. If they're still unbeaten by then, it'll be time to start talking Super Bowl odds.
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Who do you think is the best team in the NFL?
Related: Stephen A. Smith Names Top 5 NFL Teams After Week 2
