Ravens have problems against Raiders, Vikings win over 49ers
Prince Grimes analyzes all the ups and downs of the second week of the 2024 NFL season.
Sport in Seriousness
NFL power rankings entering week three of the 2024 season (previous ranking in parentheses):
1. Kansas City Chiefs (1): The goal of winning three straight Super Bowls is still on track, despite an average margin of four points, albeit against two supposed AFC contenders. And when you have backup OT Wanya Morris snatching TDs, it doesn’t matter if TE Travis Kelce is averaging less than 20 yards per game. Still, that feels like a shaky position given the serious injuries to WR Hollywood Brown and RB Isiah Pacheco.
2. Houston Texans (6): They have two mediocre wins against seemingly mediocre opponents (Colts, Bears). But the defense looks particularly good, and no other team has a two-game lead in their entire division.
3. Buffalo Bills (8): One reason the newly formed AFC East champions should be encouraged? How about OLB Von Miller, who after two weeks has collected nine pressures and two sacks? In all of last season, when he was on the mend from an ACL reconstruction, he had five pressures and zero sacks in 12 games.
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11): Maybe that’s a little too much respect for winning just two games. But maybe the three-time defending NFC South champions deserve a little more, given their performance in the Roaring Twenties. And what about QB Baker Mayfield, who accounted for four of the Bucs’ seven rushing first downs?
5. Detroit Lions (2): According to ESPN Research, their six red zone drives without a touchdown were the most in a club game in 43 years. One of those was the botched march at the end of the first half that Dan Campbell took the blame for and cited as the reason for his team’s loss in the playoff rematch against the Bucs.
6. New Orleans Saints (24): They destroyed a bad team in Week 1 and then a decent one on Sunday. New OC Klint Kubiak’s system has certainly appealed to QB Derek Carr (league-best 5 TD passes and 142.4 passer rating while leading the team in points in his first 15 drives of the season) and RB Alvin Kamara (league-best 5 TDs and 290 yards from the faceoff line). Amazing how seemingly flagging veterans can be revitalized by a fresh approach.
7. Minnesota Vikings (23): They destroyed a bad team in Week 1 and then beat a great team on Sunday. But their old friend Danielle Hunter returns to the Twin Cities this weekend and his Texans are sure to test the Vikes’ buzzing connection between Sam Darnold and Justin Jefferson.
8. San Francisco 49ers (3): RB Christian McCaffrey is on the injured list, WR Deebo Samuel will be inactive for the next few weeks with a calf strain, and WR Brandon Aiyuk has been just a little better than inactive as he continues to recover from an inactive summer spent trying to earn his new contract. And Pro Bowl S Talanoa Hufanga (ACL) isn’t quite ready to return. Otherwise? All good here.
9. Philadelphia Eagles (5): They looked more comfortable in South America than in South Philly, considering the decision-making of HC Nick Sirianni, the hands of RB Saquon Barkley, the general coverage of the secondary and the game-winning interception by QB Jalen Hurts that led to a collective failure on Monday night.
10. New York Jets (12): On the positive side, DE Will McDonald IV recorded three sacks in Sunday’s win, matching his rookie year total (2023). On the negative side, DE Jermaine Johnson is out with a torn Achilles tendon. It seems like it’s time to make a breakout move with LB Haason Reddick out.
11. Green Bay Packers (16): One of the league’s oldest franchises was the first to win 800 regular-season games. This team with over 100 years of history has the league’s youngest roster for the second year in a row – players with an average age of 24.91 in 2024… including a 25-year-old quarterback (Jordan Love) who is unlikely to be out for long due to his MCL injury.
12. Pittsburgh Steelers (17): If they continue to lead the league in turnover differential (+5) while allowing 8 points per week, it may not matter if they even play a quarterback.
13. Atlanta Falcons (19): Quarterback Kirk Cousins appeared much more relaxed – both in terms of his Achilles tendon surgery and on the prime-time stage – after making a sudden turnaround on Monday night and beating Philadelphia, tying his team’s record before entering a brutal three-week home series (Chiefs, Saints, Bucs).
14. Los Angeles Chargers (18): While the schedule wasn’t particularly demanding, it was still conducive to redemption tours for RB JK Dobbins, WR Quentin Johnston and OLB Joey Bosa. The Bolts are half the battle for a .500 start for the Harbaugh brothers in 2024.
15. Baltimore Ravens (4): They are the downside of the Harbaughs’ record for 2024. John’s team suffered another of its infamous fourth-quarter collapses on Sunday after once again blowing a double-digit lead. A near-win against the Chiefs and a face-plating against an inferior team leaves them with an 0-2 record.
16.Cincinnati Bengals (14): A face-flop against an inferior team and a near-win against the Chiefs also leaves Cincinnati at 0-2. The problems here could last much longer, however, if disgruntled WR Ja’Marr Chase continues to lose control.
17. Arizona Cardinals (21): They’re second only to the Saints with 69 points scored, and given their weapons and the injuries plaguing the rest of the NFC West, the Cards are a team to keep a close eye on.
18. Dallas Cowboys (7): So much for comfort food. America’s Team has been beaten by a surprise 92-51 score in its last two games at AT&T Stadium… and its next visitor will be a cranky Ravens team on Sunday.
19. Cleveland Browns (22): Want to guess how many 300-yard passing games quarterback Deshaun Watson has completed since coming to Cleveland? Answer: I’m still waiting for the first one.
20. Seattle Seahawks (25): A fortunate 2-0 start on Sunday gave wide receivers DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba the opportunity to become the first Seattle teammates to each record at least 10 catches for 100 yards in the same game.
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21. Las Vegas Raiders (30): If you’re going to make a pass rusher the flagship of your organization, it might as well be someone like Maxx Crosby, who hasn’t missed a single snap this season.
22. Indianapolis Colts (9): The easiest way to end a very disappointing 0-2 start? Lose the ball four times and field a defense that allows by far the most rushing yards per game (237) in the league. Indy hasn’t had the ball for 40 minutes in two games.
23. Jacksonville Jaguars (15): “TrEverBank Stadium?” At least the title sponsor is an honest broker for one week. “We’re bad right now,” QB Trevor Lawrence said after losing his seventh straight start.
24. Chicago Bears (20): Despite the rocky start, rookie quarterback Caleb Williams doesn’t even have to average 250 yards per game to become the franchise’s first 4,000-yard passer in a season.
25. Miami Dolphins (13): Between WR Tyreek Hill and QB Tua Tagovailoa, there certainly weren’t many opportunities to focus on football for a franchise whose future prospects are very uncertain after Tua’s recent concussion.
26. Los Angeles Rams (10): The strength of this team at the start of the season was its receiver corps, which may now be LA’s weakness as Demarcus Robinson and Tyler Johnson are now indefinite starting wide receivers.
27. Washington Commanders (26): With his 132 rushing yards in two games, Jayden Daniels surpassed former Washington star Robert Griffin III as the best quarterback in his first two NFL games during the Super Bowl era (since 1966).
28. New England Patriots (27): Their running game is outperforming their passing game by 55 yards per week so far, but that division of labor is working pretty well. No Pats wide receiver has more than 28 receiving yards, and yet the team has been so close to a 2-0 start.
29. Tennessee Titans (29): Rookie HC Brian Callahan didn’t get into this business to entertain us, but his ruthless criticism of, well, football-irresponsible QB Will Levis was at least refreshing.
30. Denver Broncos (28): To recap, Sean Payton’s offense is averaging 7.7 fewer points and 48 fewer yards per game since QB Russell Wilson was cut from the roster late last season.
31. New York Giants (32): It’s not clear if it’s possible to overuse a rookie wideout, but the G-Men could test that idea — the Rams’ injured Cooper Kupp is the only one in the league with more targets than Malik Nabers’ 25.
32. Carolina Panthers (31): If Joe Flacco could get up off the couch at age 38 to save the Browns a year ago, why shouldn’t Andy Dalton be able to do it at age 36 by simply handing his clipboard, er, tablet, to Bryce Young after the team surprisingly cut him after two starts in 2024?
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Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Nate Davis on X, formerly Twitter, @ByNateDavis.
