The NFL seems to have one constant over the years: the Kansas City Chiefs are always contenders under the coaching of Andy Reid and the on-field leadership of Patrick Mahomes, the best player in the league. Something like this hasn’t been seen since the New England Patriots of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady.
In their first two games, the Chiefs defeated two teams that supposedly will threaten their reign in the American Conference. In the opening of the 2024 season, in which they are going for an unprecedented three-peat, they defeated the Baltimore Ravens and last Sunday at Arrowhead they beat the Cincinnati Bengals 26-25 with a field goal in the final second.
In the other 31 teams in the league, everything is very unstable.
Ravens, Bengals, and Bears did not got the start they were hoping for
In Baltimore, they say it's not time to panic and that the season is "a marathon," but they acknowledge that it's not the start they expected with two losses, the most recent being a surprise loss at home to the Las Vegas Raiders by 26-23. Running back Derrick Henry has not yet shown the effort everyone expected and QB Lamar Jackson, the 2023 season MVP, has only thrown for 520 yards in two games.
But on the Bengals' side, who like the Ravens also lost one of their games against the Chiefs, they seem to be complicated by the failed negotiations to extend the contract of receiver Ja'Marr Chase and the absence of Tee Higgins, their other star WR.
The Bears' campaign, in theory, is not bad with one win and one loss, and quite logical on Sunday night against the Texans (19-13). The problem is that quarterback Caleb Williams, the first selection of the last Draft, has been far from what he showed in the preseason, inaccurate in long passes and out of sync with his receivers. It is true that a good part of his problems are due to having one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL, but in Chicago they have quickly gone from hope to fear of continuing in the mediocrity of the last 10 years.
The young receivers begin to respond
For most experts, wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. was the best overall player in the past Draft, and was selected by the Arizona Cardinals with the fourth pick. It was surprising that in the loss against the Bills in Week 1, he only had one reception for 4 yards, but Harrison Jr. dispelled any doubts with two touchdown receptions and a total of 130 yards in the victory against the Rams last Sunday.
Malik Nabers, the sixth pick in the 2024 Draft, has also been performing well, accumulating 193 yards and a touchdown. This is extraordinary considering he plays for the Giants, one of the worst teams in the NFL.
The same cannot be said of Rome Odunze, the ninth pick, who has only accumulated 44 yards in two games with the Chicago Bears and has shown some coordination issues with the quarterback, also a rookie, Caleb Williams.
The Carolina Panthers did panic
Ever since David Tepper bought the Panthers in 2018, the team has been on a downward spiral. The best example is that in March 2023, they traded to the Chicago Bears the first-round picks of the 2023 and 2024 Drafts; the second-round picks of the 2023 and 2025 Drafts, and star receiver D.J. Moore, all in order to move up in the order and secure the first overall pick in the 2023 Draft that belonged to the "Bears."
The goal in Carolina was to secure the rights to the best available quarterback and from there build the team's resurgence. But the Panthers were wrong again, as instead of selecting C.J. Stroud (from Ohio State) they opted for Bryce Young.
Stroud was chosen as the Offensive Rookie of 2023, while Young had one of the worst seasons for a first-year player with 10 interceptions and 11 touchdowns. Young continued with the poor performance in the first two games of 2024, with losses against the Saints (47-10) and the Chargers (26-3), and head coach Dave Canales decided to bench the quarterback who came from Alabama and give the starting position to veteran Andy Dalton.
In this way, Young becomes the first quarterback selected as the number one overall pick in the draft to be sent to the bench as a backup in his second season.