Which 2-0 NFL Teams Are Contenders & Which Are Pretenders?

Nine NFL teams have begun the season with a record of 2-0.

In the AFC, the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Houston Texans have all started 2-0.

In the NFC, the Seattle Seahawks, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers have begun the season with a record of 2-0.

Some are serious contenders to make a deep playoff push, while others have gotten off to a good start but are not considered to be good enough for a deep playoff push.

Below, we take a look at which 2-0 NFL teams are contenders and which are pretenders.

2-0 NFL Teams That Are Contenders

Some NFL teams that are 2-0 are contenders to make a deep playoff push.

Below are four NFL teams that are 2-0 that can make a deep playoff push.

Kansas City Chiefs

The defending back-to-back Super Bowl champions have started the season with a 2-0 record.

With Patrick Mahomes at QB, the Chiefs are the Super Bowl favorites and there is no question that they are legit contenders.

Mahomes has the Chiefs in the AFC Championship game each year.

The defense for the Chiefs has been good this year as well.

Losing RB Isiah Pacheco will hurt the offense but having Mahomes will make up for it.

Andy Reid is the best head coach in the league right now.

Rashee Rice continues to improve and has looked very good after two weeks.

Combining the fact the Chiefs have Mahomes, Reid, and a top defense, they will once again look to make a deep playoff push as they try to win the Super Bowl for the third straight year, something no team has ever accomplished.

Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills have kicked off their season with two straight wins.

They scored over 30 points in each contest.

Despite losing WRs Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, the offense has not missed a beat with Josh Allen at QB.

Allen has played at an MVP level thus far and he is one of the favorites to win the award so far.

Buffalo’s defense will get healthier as the season continues and will improve.

With Allen under center, Buffalo is a serious contender to make a deep playoff push.

Buffalo will just get better as the season goes on and the Bills will remain one of the best teams in the league.

Houston Texans

The Houston Texans had a lot of hype entering the season and have so far lived up to the hype.

CJ Stroud is picking up where he left off from his sensational rookie campaign.

Stefon Diggs, Nico Collins, and Tank Dell form the best WR trio in the league.

Houston’s defense has looked excellent so far this year.

Will Anderson Jr has looked even better in his second year and Danielle Hunter has been a nice addition to the defense.

Houston has a very good all-around team with both the offense and defense playing well.

The Texans are stacked all-around and are a serious contender to make a Super Bowl push.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming off a major week 2 victory.

They were on the road against one of the best teams in the NFC, the Detroit Lions, and defeated Detroit 20-16.

Baker Mayfield has been playing very well this year, having 474 passing yards, five passing TDs, and one interception through two games.

Chris Godwin looks much better this year than last year.

Godwin was coming off a major injury in 2022 and he may not have been fully healthy last year but he looks very good this year.

Mike Evans remains one of the most consistent WRs in the league.

Baker has two superb WR weapons at his disposal in Evans and Godwin.

Tampa Bay’s defense has been good as well, holding the Lions to just 16 points.

The NFC South is much better this year with the Saints being 2-0 and the Falcons having a much improved roster.

Still, the Bucs look very good so far and are a contender to make a deep playoff push.

2-0 NFL Teams That Are Pretenders

Some NFL teams that are 2-0 are pretenders and will not make a deep playoff push or even make the postseason.

Below are five NFL teams that are 2-0 but are considered pretenders.

Los Angeles Chargers

The Los Angeles Chargers are 2-0 to begin the season.

Part of this is due to an easy schedule in their first two games.

They faced the Las Vegas Raiders at home then faced the Carolina Panthers.

The defense has looked good so far but they have faced two weaker offenses.

The ground attack has been good but the Chargers do not have any weapons at WR to scare a team.

Jim Harbaugh is a clear upgrade over Brandon Staley as head coach but still, the Chargers do not have the weapons on offense to compete with the top teams in the AFC.

Despite a 2-0 start, the Chargers may still not even make the playoffs in a tough AFC.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers have won back-to-back road games to begin the season.

Their defense has looked outstanding so far.

Through two games, they have allowed one TD.

They faced the Falcons and Broncos.

Their defense is a contender but their offense is not.

Winning games the way the Steelers have is not sustainable and will not work against the juggernauts of the AFC.

Through two games, the Steelers have mustered just one offensive TD.

While there is room for improvement on offense, they simply can not compete with the likes of the Chiefs, Bills, or Texans in the AFC.

Also, while the Bengals and Ravens are 0-2, they will start to click and will challenge the Steelers in the AFC North.

With how the offense has performed, the Steelers are not contenders to make a deep playoff push.

Seattle Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks are 2-0 and Geno Smith has looked good.

However, their two victories have been against the Broncos and Patriots, two of the worst teams in the league.

Both games were within a TD.

In week 3, the Seahawks will face the Dolphins at home and Miami is not expected to have Tua.

Seattle may begin the year 3-0 but their luck will eventually run out.

In a division with the 49ers and a rising Cardinals squad, the Seahawks will be in a battle to remain in first in the NFC West.

Seattle will eventually cede the top spot in the division to the 49ers.

The Seahawks could be a playoff team but they are not good enough to make a serious playoff push.

Minnesota Vikings

Minnesota is coming off a major week two victory at home against the San Francisco 49ers.

QB Sam Darnold has played well and WR Justin Jefferson remains elite.

Jefferson left the week two contest with a quad injury but it is not considered to be serious.

He may not end up missing any time.

Minnesota’s defense has looked good through two weeks.

They have a very difficult matchup in week three against the Houston Texans.

The Detroit Lions are still the best team in the NFC North and it will be difficult for the Vikings to remain first in the division.

While Minnesota has looked good through two weeks, it is tough to trust Sam Darnold for an entire season, and the Vikings are not contenders.

New Orleans Saints

Another team coming off a major week two victory is the New Orleans Saints.

They smashed the Dallas Cowboys in Dallas to go 2-0 on the year.

The offense for the Saints has been clicking through two weeks.

They have another tough matchup in week 3 against an Eagles team coming off a disappointing week 2 loss.

While New Orleans has a good team, they will come back down to earth sooner than later.

Derek Carr is playing great but history shows this will not continue.

New Orleans’ defense was not tested in week 1 against the Panthers but they fared well in week two against Dallas.

The Saints have a good defense but their offense will not continue to produce the way it has.

Despite a 2-0 start, the Saints are still pretenders.