Week 2 review: Bills buzzing, Saints striving, Chargers choking
By Paul Gould
During the coverage of Sunday’s slate of games, a stat appeared on screen showing that since the adoption of a 17-game season, 77% of teams starting 2-0 make the playoffs. That probability halves to 39% for teams posting a 1-1 record. And for those still searching for a first win at 0-2, the chances of seeing them in the postseason is a paltry 12%.
Just two weeks into the action, fortunes are being defined. So, this week I’m taking a look at an unbeaten team, a middle of the pack team (1-1), and a winless team, each of whom have caught my eye.
The skills to pay the Bills - Buffalo 2-0
A 41-31 final scoreline flattered the Lions in their Week 2 Thursday night defeat against the Bills. Buffalo dominated them from start to finish, christening their new Highmark Stadium and adding the scalp of a second 2025 playoff team in successive weeks to begin the new season. Right now, no team is playing better than them in the AFC. All of which begs the question – will this version of the Bills be the first to emulate the fabled Marv Levy teams of the early 1990s and take the franchise back to the Super Bowl?
There are echoes of that group. For Kelly, read Allen. For Thomas, read Cook. For Reed, read…okay, perhaps the comparison doesn’t quite match up across the board, but the current offense might be the most complete group the Bills have assembled in 30 years.
Arguably, Josh Allen has the best pass-catching weapons at his disposal since he was drafted. Kincaid and Knox represent a frightening enough tight end tandem even before the WRs enter the discussion. The receiver position has felt like the weak link in recent years, but DJ Moore has come in as WR1 and the supporting cast of Coleman, Shakir and Palmer is good (and deep) enough to stretch opposing defenses beyond breaking point.
On the ground, the Bills possess the league’s leading rusher in 2025 in James Cook and the player who ranks 18th in the all-time rushing touchdowns list, Josh Allen. Yes, you heard that right. The Bills QB ranks higher in that statistic than Hall of Fame running backs Edgerrin James, Tony Dorsett and Earl Campbell.
Okay, let’s pump the brakes a little. The defense has conceded more than 30 points in both games thus far. And although there’s plenty of talent on this side of the ball, is there enough to fill the legendary shoes of Bruce Smith, Cornelius Bennett, Daryll Talley, Nate Odomes who helped propel Buffalo to four straight Super Bowls in the early 1990s? Perhaps not, but there’s a strong spine for impressive new DC Jim Leonhard to work with, including the likes of Deon Walker, Greg Rousseau, Bradley Chubb, Terrel Bernard and Christian Benford. Leonhard has promised to attack with a newly installed 3-4 base. If he can deliver, then the sky is the limit.
There’s a lot to be excited about for the Bills Mafia. With the Patriots expected to regress somewhat, the AFC East title appears to be the minimum expectation in 2026. In an open Conference, a Super Bowl berth is a realistic goal. A franchise first Lombardi trophy? If so, new legends will be born.
The Saints be praised - New Orleans 1-1
There’s been very little to shout about for Saints fans in recent years. Without a playoff appearance since the 2020 season, the team has struggled to find an identity or draw much media attention. But there are early signs that the 2026 version of the Saints is a different beast; one that can return the franchise to relevance. Despite being the underdog in both games played thus far, New Orleans was just one play away from starting 2-0. But that failed gamble to go for a two-point conversion at the end of overtime against the Lions, rather than accept a tie, is a mark of the gutsy confidence that head coach Kellen Moore has instilled.
That mindset has helped the Saints go toe to toe with Detroit and Baltimore, two teams talked up as Super Bowl contenders before the season began. On show on both occasions has been a resilience to come from behind and take the game to the opposition. New Orleans trailed 21-0 in the third quarter in Detroit before launching a blistering comeback and then overturned a 17-9 deficit entering the fourth quarter to defeat the Ravens. And all of this has been achieved on the road.
The Saints toughness is matched by their talent. Tyler Shough continues to blossom in his second year at quarterback and has an elite receiver as his principal target in Chris Olave. Devaughn Vele is underrated and talented in equal measure as a WR2 and Juwan Johnson is dependable at tight end. If New Orleans can get their running game going with Travis Etienne and Alvin Kamara (it’s been sluggish through two weeks) then the offense can move up another couple of gears.
On the other side of the ball, DC Brandon Staley continues to quietly build a strong unit. Kool-Aid McKinstry is a promising young corner, Kaden Elliss has returned to the fold after a three-year stint in Atlanta to hook up with Pete Werner in the linebacker unit and there’s potency up front with the likes of Cam Jordan, Carl Granderson and Chase Young.
So, the foundations for success are evident. The Saints now need to prove that they aren’t just cardiac kids but are also capable of controlling games from start to finish and produce wins by more comfortable margins.
Based on a very small sample size, the NFC South is shaping up to be a straight fight between the Saints and Panthers and the games between them may determine the eventual division winner. But for the first time in a good while there’s optimism in the Big Easy.
‘Chargers gonna charge’? - L.A 0-2
It was all supposed to be so different for the Chargers. Coming off the back of a playoff appearance, star tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater returning from serious injuries, new OC Mike McDaniel dialling up spectacular plays for Justin Herbert and co to execute, and a defense aiming to break into the top ten in the league.
Then look at the schedule. They opened the campaign with two apparent lay-ups on home soil against the Cardinals and Raiders, both considered to be vying for the unwanted label of worst team in the NFL.
A return to the postseason was the expectation, perhaps even as division winners and with ambitions beyond…
And now here we are, October football has yet to arrive and the Chargers are in deep, deep trouble at 0-2.
It’s not just that the team lost to the Cardinals and Raiders, but it’s the manner of those defeats, bizarrely both by the same 26-14 scoreline, that is cause for alarm. The Chargers have been shocking.
As a Raiders fan, it’s taking all my strength to restrain myself from writing about how well the Silver & Black played against them, but the Chargers failings are the bigger story here.
The offense looks lost. Timing is off and ball security has been woefully lacking, with LA coughing up the pigskin on six occasions against the Raiders. Fortunately for the Chargers, they recovered five of those fumbles to prevent the final scoreline from being more lopsided.
The return of Alt and Slater appears to have had little impact as yet, with Alt struggling badly against Maxx Crosby on Sunday. He committed three false start penalties and conceded the safety in the fourth quarter. The offensive line is creaking, and Herbert has looked flustered as a result. Not only was he responsible for three of the fumbles committed, but the star QB also threw two picks and ended the game with a putrid passer rating of 59.5.
Things were barely any better against the Cardinals with the offense only having 22 minutes of possession and converting on just two out of eight third down attempts.
The defense isn’t without blame either for the Chargers’ sorry start. The unit gave up almost 400 yards against the Cardinals in Week 1 and they currently rank 29th in the NFL on pass defence.
This is the first time in his illustrious coaching career that Jim Harbaugh has begun a season 0-2. But looking at the upcoming schedule, the situation could be about to get a whole lot worse. At Bills, at Seahawks, home Broncos, at Chiefs, at Rams, home Texans, and at Ravens is a spine-chilling run of games to Thanksgiving.
Following the game, Harbaugh said: “No one in that locker room is deterred”. The Chargers, it seems, will have to prove that facing hardest circumstances possible.
PAUL GOULD
NFL ANALYST
A freelance writer and editor based in Cambridgeshire, Paul has avidly followed the NFL since the late 1980’s and spends much of his spare time wondering if he’ll ever see the Raiders play in a Super Bowl again.
