Passing offense in the NFL this season is still very much a work in progress. None of the 196 passes thrown by the rookie quarterbacks have been caught for a touchdown, and you’ll never believe who is the only quarterback to throw for 250 yards in both games so far (Hint: Uncle Rico).
Simply put, passing numbers are down about as low as they’ve ever been to start a season in the 32-team era (since 2002):
- The 69 touchdown passes through Week 2 are the fewest to start an NFL season since 2006 had 67 touchdown passes.
- There were 114 touchdown passes, a record, through Week 2 of the 2018 season, and there were 110 in the pandemic years in 2020 and 2021.
- The average for touchdown passes through Week 2 since 2002 is 92.7 touchdown passes.
- Teams are averaging 193.6 net passing yards per game through Week 2, the lowest average in the 32-team era.
- 2008 was the only other season under 200.0 yards per game at this point with 197.5 yards.
- In 2016, teams averaged 258.4 net passing yards per game, the highest season since 2002, and the average for the 32-team era is 226.6 passing yards.
Besides the historic low volume of passing in this era, we have a shocking development in which quarterbacks are excelling right now. The AFC was thought to house the majority of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. But as of today, 7-of-8 quarterbacks at the top of ESPN’s QBR metric are from the NFC. Josh Allen, who ranks No. 3, is the only AFC quarterback in the top eight.
It’s only been two games, a fact I had to remind myself numerous times while doing these rankings. But it seems I may have picked a very confusing season to undertake this project as I’m just not ready to declare Derek Carr, Kyler Murray, and Sam Darnold are the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
In that sense, maybe it’s more important than ever to get a weekly recap and feel for what’s going on this season. We also already have a quarterback benched after two games, so you’ll have to scroll to the very bottom for the possible last words on Bryce Young in Carolina because it’s Red Rifle Andy Dalton time going forward.
Each Wednesday at 365Scores, we are going to rank all 32 NFL quarterbacks from top to bottom. The methodology is to start with our preseason quarterback rankings from July, which were based on a mixture of career value and emphasis on recent play. Then each week, we will adjust the rankings to account for the latest game to get a sense of which quarterbacks are performing the best in the 2024 season.
Note: Many statistical references will be made to data from Next Gen Stats (NGS).
Table of Contents
1. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
Week 2 rank: 1 (0)
I do not agree with MVP favorite Patrick Mahomes’ odds improving to +260 at FanDuel after Sunday’s 26-25 win over Cincinnati, which statistically is one of the least effective games of his career. Mahomes only gained a first down on 25.9% of his passing plays, and his 31.0 QBR ranked 26th in Week 2. Mahomes’ 151 passing yards are the fewest he’s ever had in an NFL game he finished.
At the same time, I’m not convinced this is some “terrible” game the Chiefs should be worried about as the Bengals usually play them tough, he was 18-of-25 with a couple of throwaways, and the Chiefs still scored 20 offensive points on nine drives even with the obligatory fumble by rookie back Carson Steele.
It was a game of give and take for the Chiefs. They failed on their opening drive to punch it in from the 2-yard line, so Mahomes threw a touchdown to an offensive lineman in the third quarter on a trick play. Mahomes also threw another long touchdown (44 yards) to Rashee Rice this week, but in trying to replicate that success, he threw an interception after an incredible one-handed grab by corner Cam Taylor-Britt to end the third quarter.
It’s the braindead interception over the middle early in the game that Mahomes needs to clean up after he did the same against Baltimore in Week 1. But the area of concern is his rookie left tackle Kingsley Suamataia, who was abused by Trey Hendrickson and benched late in the game after some killer penalties too.
In fact, penalties are why this became Mahomes’ lowest passing yardage game ever as he lost 70 passing yards on penalties, including 62 in the fourth quarter alone.
Days later, people still want to complain about the defensive pass interference on 4th-and-16 that extended the drive for the Chiefs after an incomplete pass. But what about the call wasn’t correct? The defender got there early and tried to play the ball through the receiver, which should be a flag.
The call was correct. If the Chiefs “get all the calls” then why did they get penalized for illegal hands to the face on a 4th-and-6 on the previous snap? That wiped out a 21-yard completion to Rice to the Cincinnati 34, which would have been another game-winning play by Mahomes to set up kicker Harrison Butker, who eventually made the winning field goal from the Cincinnati 32.
Even on the previous drive, Mahomes converted a 3rd-and-10 with Travis Kelce making a great play for 41 yards into field goal range, and that was called back too for holding on Suamataia.
All the penalty calls were correct, yet people only want to focus on the last one for some reason.
But Mahomes and the Chiefs will need to play sharper in Atlanta this week, and it’s getting harder with running back Isiah Pacheco joining Hollywood Brown on the mend for the next two months or so. But Mahomes usually plays better on the road than at home anyway, so I’d expect a stronger game from him and a lot more passing. This is the first time in his regular-season career that he’s thrown fewer than 30 passes in three straight games.
2. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills
Week 2 rank: 2 (0)
Josh Allen absolutely owns the Miami Dolphins as he improved his record to 12-2 against them. However, the Bills were so dominant in that 31-10 win last Thursday that between James Cook’s effort and the defense providing the only score of the second half with a pick-six, Allen didn’t have to do much. He threw for 139 yards and only rushed for 2 more yards. Allen’s 141 total yards were his third-fewest in a game he played 90% of the snaps in.
Allen’s NFL record streak of 13 straight games with multiple touchdown passes against the same opponent also ended as he only threw one scoring toss to Cook to start the game.
Allen’s volume stats are way down but he has been very efficient through two games, and he’ll have a chance to drop the Jaguars to 0-3 on Monday night.
3. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
Week 2 rank: 4 (+1)
I was hoping to see C.J. Stroud dominate in his first prime-time start at home in the NFL regular season, but the offense definitely struggled to close things out after the hot start. But that connection to Nico Collins is outstanding as there’s no denying who the WR1 is in Houston.
But with the other first-round quarterbacks drafted in 2021-23 struggling so much right now, Stroud is the savior for those drafts. We’ll see how he fares in Minnesota, the team that just knocked off the 49ers with their unique defense that isn’t afraid to mix blitzes with 3-man rushes under Brian Flores. Another learning experience for Stroud, who rarely ever puts the ball in harm’s way.
4. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
Week 2 rank: 3 (-1)
Did you know Lamar Jackson hasn’t led a game-winning drive in a game where the Ravens allowed more than 17 points since November 2021? He had an opportunity to do so in this one, but Maxx Crosby quickly put a stop to that with a sack as the Ravens are having lots of issues up front.
For the first time in his career, Jackson has lost three straight starts going back to the AFC Championship Game. He’s also throwing the ball more than usual, which isn’t ideal for how Baltimore likes to play.
Suddenly, the Ravens are close to facing a must-win game in Dallas, a defense that was just eviscerated by Derek Carr and the Saints. But with Derrick Henry looking old, the defense looking a bit lost without coordinator Mike Macdonald, and Justin Tucker being the only kicker in the league who can’t reliably hit a 50-yard field goal in 2024, things are piling up quickly on Jackson to deliver for a team that’s struggling after they made it look so easy last year.
5. Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
Week 2 rank: 5 (0)
I was shocked to learn the 49ers hadn’t won in Minnesota since 1992, and that streak continued with another upset loss. Apparently, Brian Flores’ defensive scheme is kryptonite to Brock Purdy, who played there last year in a loss in a game where Chrisitan McCaffrey was inactive. Purdy wasn’t concussed this time like in 2023, but he still made some mistakes on drives that short-circuited in scoring territory in a 23-17 loss.
Purdy still threw for 319 yards, but he took 6 sacks against that unique Minnesota defense, fumbled on one of them, threw a pick, and turned it over on downs twice in the second quarter too.
The 49ers are getting banged up as Deebo Samuel is going to be out now with an injury too. The pressure on Purdy will grow, but at least Jordan Mason looks like a fair replacement for McCaffrey.
6. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers
Week 2 rank: 6 (0)
Honestly, our top six quarterbacks all didn’t do that much this week, or they took a loss in a game they were heavily favored to win. But this is the last week we’re giving Justin Herbert so much leeway for not having to do much to get an easy win. Though, don’t you think he’s earned it after how his first four seasons went? Herbert is finally experiencing what it’s like for a quarterback to have a running game and defense, but the Chargers have even exceeded expectations on that front so far.
The Chargers are the first team since the 2018 Titans to have consecutive games where they allowed no more than 10 points, rushed for 175 yards, and didn’t throw more than 26 passes. The 1985 Bears were the last team to do that for more than two straight games (they did it in four, actually), so Herbert should expect a tougher challenge in Pittsburgh this week.
But he’s soaking up this 2-0 start as he only has 8 more passing yards (274) than J.K. Dobbins has in rushing yards right now. Herbert threw a pair of touchdowns to Quentin Johnston in Carolina, so that’s an encouraging sign for the young receiver.
7. Derek Carr, New Orleans Saints
Week 2 rank: 17 (+10)
Are we really about to witness the peak Derek Carr year the same season the Saints will host the Super Bowl in February? I wrote in the summer how we may be sleeping on the Saints, how they have weapons and a new offensive coordinator in Klint Kubiak, and how their hot finish on the scoreboard should carry over to some success this year.
But I never imagined one of the craziest stats I’ve ever seen in how Carr led 15 straight scoring drives to begin the 2024 season for the Saints.
I’m really not sure any quarterback has ever done that before, and the only documented streak within reach was 13 drives by Drew Brees for the 2018 Saints. Carr has achieved this by sitting out the final two drives in Week 1 as the Saints ran out the clock and didn’t do much. But he scored on his first 9 drives in that game against Carolina, then went 6-for-6 at scoring touchdowns in Dallas, a game he finished 11-of-16 for 243 yards, which is also absurd.
The 2024 Saints turning into the 2007 Patriots by just using the players they already had like Rashid Shaheed, Chris Olave, and Alvin Kamara was never on my BINGO card, but here we are through Week 2.
Carr leads the NFL in QBR (96.2), yards per attempt (11.4), touchdown passes (5), passer rating (142.4), and adjusted net yards per pass attempt (12.10).
Carr is using play-action passing on 45.2% of his throws, which leads the NFL according to NGS. But even without play-action, he still leads all quarterbacks in EPA/dropback (+0.53).
Get those MVP bets in now before this season really takes off for Carr? People will be waiting for the other shoe to drop here, but what if he’s just really found the best situation for his career in Year 11? It’s only two games, but the Saints were showing signs of this late last season.
I’m very intrigued by this one.
8. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
Week 2 rank: 8 (0)
It felt like déjà vu for Dak Prescott as the Cowboys watched an underdog come into their stadium and pile up touchdowns like the Packers did in the playoffs. This time, the Saints were 6-for-6 at scoring touchdowns to start the game, leading Prescott to throw more dangerous passes as he was picked twice in the 44-19 loss.
Not much the quarterback can do on a day like that as the Cowboys did manage to score on 5-of-6 drives to start the game, but all but one of those were field goals while the Saints kept stacking touchdowns.
Huge game this week with the Cowboys (1-1) hosting the Ravens (0-2). If Gardner Minshew can come back and beat the Ravens in Baltimore, Prescott has no excuse not to perform better this week.
9. Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
Week 2 rank: 19 (+10)
Kyler Murray is short, but his targets (Marvin Harrison Jr. and Trey McBride) are tall and incredibly talented. Throw in James Conner in the backfield and this could be an exceptionally fun offense to watch this season if Murray keeps playing like this.
Murray joins Ken Anderson (1974 Bengals vs. Colts) as the only quarterbacks to have a perfect 158.3 passer rating (min. 20 attempts) and rush for over 50 yards in the same game in NFL history. Murray was brilliant in a 41-10 win over the Rams.
According to NGS, Murray leads all quarterbacks with +25.3 EPA as a passer this season, and his 91.3 QBR is ranked behind only Carr. Can’t wait to see what he can do against Detroit this week.
10. Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 2 rank: 15 (+5)
For only the second time in his career, Baker Mayfield played an entire game and threw fewer than 20 passes. He tried to throw more, but 4.5 sacks by Aidan Hutchinson made it a difficult day in Detroit.
But Mayfield was efficient with the throws he got off as he averaged 9.74 yards per attempt, and he also rushed for 34 yards and the go-ahead touchdown late in the third quarter.
Mayfield ranks No. 4 in EPA per play and No. 6 in QBR (69.6) this season.
11. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
Week 2 rank: 7 (-4)
It was not Jalen Hurts’ fault that Saquon Barkley dropped a game-clinching pass on third down against the Falcons, but you can absolutely question why the Eagles would throw in the first place. Running is safer, and running twice probably would have been the best strategy to kill the clock and convert on fourth down to end it.
The Eagles didn’t find their offense until Hurts started using his legs in the second quarter in a game where A.J. Brown was out. DeVonta Smith played well, but they didn’t show much else at receiver again. Then after blowing the final sequence and going up 6 for some reason, the defense blew the lead and put Hurts in a bind.
However, he only needed about 15 more yards and had a timeout to set up his strong-legged kicker for the win. Hurts forced a terrible pass under pressure, and it ended up being the game’s only turnover on a game-ending interception.
It felt a little like the Eagles’ loss on Monday night to the Seahawks (Drew Lock) last year. This is starting to become too frequent for Hurts and Nick Sirianni.
12. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals
Week 2 rank: 9 (-3)
The Bengals do this great job of holding the Chiefs to 23-to-26 points and giving Joe Burrow and the offense an opportunity to snub them out late in the game. That’s how their meetings have gone since 2021, and Sunday’s 26-25 loss was no exception.
Cincinnati again showed a great understanding of film study against the Chiefs, and they hit them up with a different plan of attack as Burrow’s tight ends gained 151 of his 258 passing yards, the most prolific game for Burrow’s tight ends in his NFL career. They usually are an offense dominated by their wideouts, but with Tee Higgins still out and a quiet game from Ja’Marr Chase (35 yards and a bad 15-yard penalty in the fourth quarter), it was up to the tight ends.
The Bengals again won the turnover battle against the Chiefs, but Burrow’s strip-sack for a touchdown was a huge blow to start the fourth quarter as the Bengals led 22-17 at the time. You can’t cough up the lead like that. Later, Burrow had a third down to keep working the clock down with a small lead, but he took another sack that ended the drive, and then he never saw the ball again after the Chiefs won on a last-second field goal.
Not a bad game from Burrow, but once again, the Chiefs turned him over in the fourth quarter and sacked him in the most crucial down. The Bengals are 0-2 for the third year in a row.
13. Geno Smith, Seattle Seahawks
Week 2 rank: 20 (+7)
Going to New England is not the challenge it used to be. But I must say Geno Smith had one of his finest career games as he completed 75% of his passes for 327 yards, no turnovers, and he did this despite only getting 38 yards from his running game as Kenneth Walker was out.
The offense went into a funk midway through after a great start, but he delivered on the game-tying drive and then the game-winning drive in overtime. He got monster games out of D.K. Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba with both catching at least 10 passes for over 100 yards, something that’s only been done 25 times in NFL history.
With Seattle about to catch the Dolphins without Tua Tagovailoa, then a Monday night trip to Detroit where Geno has lit up the Lions in wins the last two years, this could be a sneaky great year for Smith and the Seahawks. Especially if the injuries keep piling up for the 49ers.
14. Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings
Week 2 rank: 22 (+8)
We have been deceived by Sam Darnold’s September starts before, but what if this year is different? He was effective and efficient once again in Week 2 against a quality San Francisco defense. The 97-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson was beautiful and will challenge for the longest play you’ll see in 2024, but he also helped put the 49ers away with a great throw long after Jefferson left the game injured:
Keep in mind Jordan Addison didn’t play in this game, and they still haven’t got T.J. Hockenson back at tight end, so this offense can get even better. I’m skeptical to go all in on Darnold having a Year 7 breakout, but Kevin O’Connell does have a quarterback-friendly offense, and there is some precedent with Alex Smith needing this long to figure some things out.
If Darnold keeps this up through the upcoming 3-game slate against the Texans, Packers, and Jets, you have to believe he’s legitimately arrived. Just hope he doesn’t start seeing ghosts again with Halloween approaching.
15. Kirk Cousins, Atlanta Falcons
Week 2 rank: 21 (+6)
Kirk Cousins still looked a little physically underwhelming in Philadelphia on Monday night. But when he got the ball late with a chance to win the game, he finally made use of his protection and drove the ball down the field, using the sidelines like an expert to quickly put together a 70-yard touchdown drive to beat the Eagles in a stunner.
It was the first game-winning touchdown pass in the fourth quarter of the 2024 NFL season. Cousins finished with respectable numbers, but he needs to play more like the quarterback in that big moment for the rest of the game instead of the timid passing offense they’ve been running so far in Atlanta.
16. Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers
Week 2 rank: 10 (-6)
Not quite sure how to handle short-term injuries with this yet, but Jordan Love obviously didn’t play last week with his MCL sprain. The good news is he was reportedly close, so maybe we’ll see him in Week 3.
But what a good example of the importance of coaching in Green Bay. Matt LaFleur was able to prepare Malik Willis, who was 0-for-3 at passing for 100 yards in his NFL starts, and he got a win out of him with an excellent ground game despite barely throwing the ball. Willis even eclipsed 100 yards for the first time in the 16-10 win over the Colts, who fortunately have a terrible run defense that allowed the Packers to get by without Love.
But there will be high expectations for Love to play much better when he returns. Week 1 in Brazil was not good, but we’ll see what he does on a nicer field.
17. Aaron Rodgers, New York Jets
Week 2 rank: 14 (-3)
Aaron Rodgers finally snapped the longest streak of his career (7 games) without throwing multiple touchdown passes in a game in a 24-17 win over the Titans. It was an effort good enough to win in Tennessee, but the Jets are going to have to get much better than this to move up into the playoff class or beat Buffalo for the AFC East this year.
Rodgers certainly leaned on big days from his running backs, including a beautiful 26-yard catch by Breece Hall, who looked more like Garrett Wilson on the catch.
The Old Man is on this Thursday, and I don’t just mean the FX series starring Jeff Bridges. We’ll see Rodgers in prime time again this Thursday against the Patriots. See how he looks on a short week at this stage of his career.
18. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
Week 2 rank: 11 (-7)
Injuries to the wide receivers, offensive line, and secondary are threatening to destroy this season for the Rams more than anything else. Matthew Stafford never had much of a chance in Arizona with the Cardinals jumping out to multiple touchdowns early, and he lost Cooper Kupp to injury after they already lost Puka Nacua in Week 1.
It’s getting late early for the 0-2 Rams, and I’m not sure Stafford is going to have a chance to rebound with what’s left of this team as the Nacua and Kupp injuries both sound like extended time out.
They rebounded from a 3-6 start last year, but it’s looking more dire this time as the Rams are currently averaging 15.0 points per game and not finishing enough drives for touchdowns.
19. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
Week 2 rank: 12 (-7)
Something has just been off with this Detroit offense through two games. Jameson Williams looks better than Josh Reynolds ever did last year, so it’s not that change at WR2. They still have their backfield duo, Sam LaPorta at tight end, and Amon-Ra St. Brown is a great No. 1 target.
But Jared Goff’s play has been a little more erratic than usual, and it could just be one of those mini-slumps to start a season against some teams that ended their season in Detroit and were ready for these games.
But that was a pretty brutal finish against Tampa Bay in which Goff had four chances to get a go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter and couldn’t cash in any of them despite driving into Tampa territory each time. It was a huge waste of a respectable defensive effort against what has been a hot offense with Baker Mayfield.
20. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
Week 2 rank: 13 (-7)
Not trying to kick a man when he’s down, but Tua Tagovailoa was having one of the worst games of his career even before the scary situation where he suffered another concussion last Thursday.
That’s likely the fourth concussion he’s had since September 2022 as the Dolphins played coy with the original one against Buffalo that year, citing it as a “back injury” instead even when we saw a wobbly Tua almost fall down on the field.
It’s up to the doctors and Tagovailoa himself to decide about his playing future, but if you watch each play he suffered a concussion on, there’s really no pattern to any of it. There’s no magic fix in his game to prevent this. A Guardian helmet might not even help him at this point, and each concussion makes you more likely for more in the future.
It’s his life and his decision, so I’m not going to implore him to retire at 26 years old. But it’s not out of line to say he could have prevented this one by sliding after he got the first down. He basically put his head right into Damar Hamlin’s chest, and what a coincidence for that to be the player he collided with like this.
On Tuesday, the Dolphins announced Tagovailoa will go on injured reserve, missing at least the next four games. I hope the Dolphins don’t rush him back from this one too. He is the reason the new protocol is in place for concussions. You just wish the Dolphins would have done the right thing in September 2022 and not played him in Cincinnati that night four days after the Buffalo incident. Maybe things would be better today.
21. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 2 rank: 16 (-5)
On deep throws (20-plus yards), Trevor Lawrence has been great this season, completing 6-of-8 passes for 190 yards and a touchdown. But as we looked at in the Jacksonville preview, throwing deep is not his game in the NFL.
Lawrence needs to throw shorter passes and get in rhythm if he’s going to have a successful day. Against the Browns, he completed under 50% of his passes, which makes him 2-21 when he doesn’t complete better than 60%. The connection to Christian Kirk is still broken, and it didn’t help that tight end Evan Engram injured himself in warm-ups and was made inactive at the last second.
But Lawrence continues to struggle in the quick game he desperately needs for Jacksonville (0-2) to win games. On short passes (under 10 yards), his EPA/dropback is the fourth worst in the league according to NGS.
Lawrence is averaging 11.0 air yards per attempt, which is second in the league behind only Anthony Richardson (13.7). But that’s not his game. He has the worst record in the NFL since 2018 when his air yards exceed 8.0.
It will be interesting to track this trend for the rest of the season.
22. Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders
Week 2 rank: 26 (+4)
There’s a Monday night doubleheader next week, and while Bills-Jaguars may be the “better” game on paper, I think I might check out more of Bengals-Commanders as Jayden Daniels is fascinating so far.
He just had a game against the Giants where he led the team to a field goal on 7-of-7 drives, the only such game in NFL history. Before Sunday, no other team ever had a game with no turnovers, no punts, and more than five field goal attempts. It doesn’t speak well to their red-zone play, but it’s hard to argue with 3.0 points per drive and the first game-winning drive of his career.
Daniels also had some decent drive stats in Week 1 in Tampa Bay when his defense was obliterated. Between the short passes and his running ability, he can really string together long drives that put points on the board, and he hasn’t even come close to figuring out how to throw to No. 1 wideout Terry McLaurin yet.
I’m very intrigued by Daniels, who should be the new favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year over Caleb Williams or at least the leading quarterback candidate for the award. He has outplayed Williams and Bo Nix so far.
23. Gardner Minshew, Las Vegas Raiders
Week 2 rank: 23 (0)
Can you believe Gardner Minshew has gone into Baltimore in each of the last two seasons and got a huge upset win over Lamar Jackson and the Ravens? He did it with the Colts last year, and he pulled it off this time with the Raiders, who were the biggest underdogs in Week 2 at 8.5 points.
Minshew is also the only quarterback to throw for 250 yards in both games this season. He was 18-of-21 for 208 yards and a touchdown while targeting Davante Adams and rookie tight end Brock Bowers in Baltimore. Those are great weapons to have, but Minshew also pulled this off with no running game as the Raiders had 16 carries for 28 yards to try supporting him on the road.
Minshew is kind of like the Ryan Fitzpatrick of the 2020s. He’s good enough to win you some games you didn’t expect to, but probably not good enough to get you to the playoffs. But with the problems the Raiders are having in establishing the run, they should just let Minshew cook and enjoy the magic show, for better or worse.
24. Justin Fields, Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 2 rank: 24 (0)
It is very hard to evaluate the season Justin Fields is having when it seems like all of his best plays get negated by penalty, such as this 50-yard bomb to George Pickens that everyone raved about:
It didn’t count for holding, and the Steelers won 13-6 a week after winning 18-10 in Atlanta. One thing we’re not doing here is praising Fields for being 2-0 when the offense is averaging 15.5 points per game. The Steelers are 2-0 because the defense is allowing 8.0 points per game. How long will that continue? We’ll find out this week against the Chargers, a team with a quarterback (Justin Herbert) who can actually challenge Fields to have to score in the fourth quarter to win a game.
Then we can really start to judge him. But right now, the Steelers are just having him manage the game as they have yet to commit a turnover this season. They also haven’t cracked 270 yards of offense in either game and have one touchdown, but don’t tell that to the “2-0” crowd.
25. Anthony Richardson, Indianapolis Colts
Week 2 rank: 18 (-7)
We probably jumped the gun with Richardson’s erratic performance against the Texans last week, because he was much more bust than boom in Green Bay in a 16-10 loss.
Green Bay’s dominance on the ground in the first half made it hard for Richardson and the offense to get into a rhythm. But you look at that performance Green Bay had with Malik Willis and Josh Jacobs in their backfield, and you start to wonder if maybe the Colts shouldn’t be trying this more with Richardson and Jonathan Taylor. The latter rushed for over 100 yards, but he only had 12 carries as Richardson struggled with 3 interceptions on 34 passes (one on a Hail Mary to end things).
They have to start finding easier plays for Richardson, and he needs to take them and make them. Not everything needs to make the highlight reel. Just keep moving the chains and maybe you’ll start to win these games because there is a troubling trend emerging here:
- Coach Shane Steichen is 0-4 in games where Richardson plays most of the snaps.
- He is 9-6 in all other games.
If the Colts (0-2) keep losing, those chants for Joe Flacco to come in as something different are going to grow louder and louder. It’s too early for that now, but Richardson is a tough quarterback to trust.
26. Daniel Jones, New York Giants
Week 2 rank: 27 (+1)
This was probably the best game Daniel Jones has played since his 2022 playoff win in Minnesota. Washington has always been his best opponent, and it helps when the Commanders are down as bad as they are defensively.
But you have to say Jones’ teammates cost him in this unique game where the Giants only had seven possessions. Devin Singletary wasted one of them with a fumble in Washington territory, and Malik Nabers dropped a crucial 4th-and-4 pass on the Giants’ final offensive snap in a tied game.
The Giants couldn’t kick a go-ahead field goal because of their injured kicker situation, so the three touchdowns Jones led only led to 18 points in the 21-18 loss. But it was a good showing for his connection with Nabers as he found him 10 times for 127 yards and a touchdown. Just need to see the rookie make this catch if he’s going to be a great No. 1 here.
27. Jacoby Brissett, New England Patriots
Week 2 rank: 25 (-2)
They do not ask Jacoby Brissett to do much in this offense, but you’d like to see more than 15-of-27 passing for 149 yards and 3 sacks taken. Tight end Hunter Henry had all but 40 of his passing yards on a huge day, but that just means the wide receivers were very quiet again.
Brissett’s running game piled up 180 yards, but in overtime with a chance to win the game, they were stuffed on a 3rd-and-1 run and never saw the ball again after Seattle won on a field goal. You might want to have seen Brissett get the quarterback sneak call there as that’s something he has been good at in his career, and we know that play was a weapon in the Tom Brady era for years.
But Brissett has never been an asset with the game on the line, and that’s why you should expect these kinds of losses to continue as long as he’s the quarterback they’re starting while rookie Drake Maye waits his turn.
28. Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
Week 2 rank: 29 (+1)
Deshaun Watson cut down on the negative plays and led an excellent opening (scripted?) drive that ended with his 1-yard touchdown run. But after leading the offense to three scores on all his first-half possessions, the Browns ended up punting on 5-of-6 drives after halftime and had to hang on for dear life in an 18-13 win over Jacksonville.
The Browns had 13 penalties for 100 yards, many that set the offense back, so it was a rough game all around. But still much better than the disaster against Dallas in Week 1.
29. Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears
Week 2 rank: 28 (-1)
We saw Caleb Williams in his prime-time debut in Houston, and it was a rough outing as he took 7 sacks in a 19-13 loss that his defense kept within reach for him. But he was under a lot of pressure with a bad line in front of him, the running game was nonexistent, and that wide receiver trio we raved about going into the season did not materialize. Keenan Allen was out and rookie Rome Odunze didn’t come down with a touchdown in the end zone on a play he could have made to help his struggling quarterback out.
Basically, the Bears still look like the Bears we have come to expect. Williams has yet to throw a touchdown, and more worrisome than that, he is only averaging 4.0 yards per pass attempt on 66 throws. Only four quarterbacks since 1970 had a lower YPA in their first two starts (min. 50 passes). But the good news is one of those quarterbacks was Donovan McNabb (3.9) on the 1999 Eagles with Andy Reid.
But right now, we are seeing a Heisman winner learn the hard way he’s no longer in college. Williams is 0-for-10 on deep throws of 20-plus yards with a couple of picks.
One positive: Williams is getting the ball out in 2.64 seconds according to NGS, which is right behind Patrick Mahomes (2.62) this season for one of the fastest times. He doesn’t hold the ball forever, but he is going to have to start developing a quick game with his coordinator (Shane Waldron) to account for this pressure.
30. Will Levis, Tennessee Titans
Week 2 rank: 31 (+1)
I am starting to see why the Colts were linked to drafting Will Levis at No. 4 in 2023 instead of the pick they actually made in Anthony Richardson. They are similar quarterbacks in the way that they can make some spectacular plays and turn around and make an abysmal play on the next snap.
This type of inconsistency is hurting the Titans in that 0-2 hole as Levis again had costly turnovers that were avoidable in Sunday’s 24-17 loss to the Jets. Rookie coach Brian Callahan already seems to be understanding that he’s got a wild gunslinger to control:
But the reason it’s hard to quit a gunslinger is sometimes they’ll drop this 40-yard throw in a bucket and get an incredible diving touchdown catch from Calvin Ridley to tie the game:
Plays like that are why Levis is currently No. 4 in CPOE (+6.9%), which rewards improbable completions on tougher throws. But now more than 10 starts into his career, we need to see Levis improve his decision making, make the easier plays, and the Titans may have something to build on here. But he is currently killing this team with turnovers in winnable games.
31. Bo Nix, Denver Broncos
Week 2 rank: 32 (+1)
We’re at 22 points on 26 drives now for the Bo Nix-led offense, which is terrible, but at least there was some improvement in Week 2 against a veteran defense like Pittsburgh. Nix hit some bigger completions this week, even if it took some creative play calling to do it, but he increased his yards per completion a full 7.0 yards to 12.3 after that abysmal debut.
The interception in the end zone while the Broncos trailed 10-0 in the third quarter is obviously one he’d love to have back. The game could have been much more interesting with points there, but hopefully, he’ll learn from that mistake after this 13-6 loss.
But there’s not going to be much success in Denver this year if it can’t find more of a running game for Nix, who actually led the Broncos with 25 yards on the ground. He led Denver in rushing in Week 1 too, becoming the only quarterback since 1950 to lead his team in rushing in his first two starts.
But that’s just asking for trouble from an overwhelmed rookie.
32. Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers
Week 2 rank: 30 (-2)
Since 1950, an NFL quarterback has completed at least 18 passes in a game 14,220 times. Bryce Young is the first quarterback in that group of 14,220 games to not throw for at least 100 yards while completing at least 18 passes. Against the Chargers, Young was 18-of-26 for 84 yards.
After a historically bad game, it might be over for Young in Carolina as head coach Dave Canales wasted no time Monday by announcing Young was benched for Andy Dalton. Going back to last season, Young has led the Panthers to 13 points over his last four starts, tied for the fewest points in any 4-game span by an NFL team since 1978.
In his lone start in Seattle last year, Dalton threw for 361 yards and led the Panthers to 27 points. Expect to see a boost this week for the Carolina offense as Young is apparently on track to be one of the biggest busts in NFL history. His relatively cheap contract is the only thing that should keep him below JaMarcus Russell, the No. 1 pick by the Raiders in the 2007 draft. But there was also no C.J. Stroud in that draft that the Raiders passed by for Russell like the Panthers did for Young.
Getting benched just 18 starts into your career is uncharted territory for a No. 1 overall pick at quarterback. But it’s hard not to justify it as Young has no redeemable qualities. Even when facing no pass pressure, Young ranks dead last in EPA per dropback according to NGS.
Maybe his height really is the issue as he seemingly can’t see over his offensive line and doesn’t respect the pocket. There’s no fix for that either, and he just doesn’t have the playmaking ability of Kyler Murray.
It’s probably a wrap for Young in Carolina.
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