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9 NFL teams have 2 wins through 9 weeks: Analysis

Written by: ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer

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Nine NFL teams have virtually no chance nine weeks into the season.

The Patriots, Raiders, Jaguars, Browns, Giants, Saints and Panthers are 2-7. The Dolphins and Titans are 2-6.

On the other side, 11 teams have at least six wins.

So much for parity.

The league’s goal has always been to ensure that each team remains in contention for as long as possible. But 28.1% of teams (more than a quarter of the league) will likely spend the second half fighting for draft rankings.

Maybe Miami still has a chance to bounce back because Tua Tagovailoa is back and playing well. The Dolphins went 1-3 and were averaging just 10 points when Tagovailoa left the game with a concussion. They lost both games since his return but scored 27 points in each.

Oddsmakers respect Miami. The Dolphins fell just 1 point away from home against the Los Angeles Rams (4-4) on Monday night.

“I live with real hope, how people’s games are getting better. Are we getting better?” coach Mike McDaniel said Thursday. “Does that mean it complies with standards or that losses are acceptable? Absolutely not, but what’s vital for successful football teams in any NFL season is that they master the art of being better at noise and not mistaking noise for simply losing.

“And when you’re winning, the noise is very loud and sometimes you can experience that; You might be sitting at 6-2 and if the ball isn’t getting better despite all the noise, I have no real hope. My hope is real because the football I watch and detail is improving and I think the team is focused on producing a game where they feel they have mastered their style of football. “I think the football team knows that when that happens, things will work themselves out in the win column.”

The Dolphins are one of only two two-win teams to make the playoffs last season. Cleveland is the other. Both finished 11-6 and lost in the AFC wild-card round.

The Jaguars, Saints and Giants had playoff aspirations.

Jacksonville advanced to the divisional round by winning the AFC South in 2022 after going 9-8 in each of the previous two seasons. But this year has been a disaster for coach Doug Pederson, quarterback Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars. They lost five games by five points or less.

“You have to rebuild them,” Pederson said. “You have to get them ready for another challenge. I need to show them and talk to them about accountability, ownership, doing your job, doing better, doing the little things.

“I need to show that in a team environment, bring it to light and show the kids: ‘Listen, this is what’s holding us back right now; X, Y and Z are playing,’ whatever it is.”

The Giants also made the playoffs in 2022 with Brian Daboll named AP Coach of the Year in his first season in New York. They went 6-11 last year with quarterback Daniel Jones missing 11 games due to injuries.

Jones returned, but things didn’t get any better for the Giants.

“Well, these guys, everybody, the coaches, the players, you see we’re all doing this to try to win,” Daboll said. “We spend a lot of time here. We train the right way. We work hard. When you don’t get results, it’s absolutely frustrating. You do everything you can to win. Ultimately, this is my job and my job is to support and lead. Again, the responsibility should be on me, not these guys.” . They work their ass off.”

New Orleans finished 9-8 last season and is off to an impressive start this year, going 2-0 and scoring 91 points. Nothing has gone right for the Saints since Week 3. The loss caused coach Dennis Allen to lose his job this week.

Carolina, New England and Tennessee needed to rebuild, so it’s no surprise that both teams are struggling.

At least the Patriots have reason to be optimistic, as rookie Drake Maye looks like he could be the starting quarterback of the franchise. Las Vegas, Cleveland, Tennessee and Carolina have question marks at this important point.

“I know everyone is excited about our quarterback and he’s a good player for us,” coach Jerod Mayo said. “He’s going to continue to improve going forward, but he realizes there’s a lot of work to be done for him personally as well. You see some of the other guys, they’re at different points in their rookie year. Your rookie year is always tough, no matter what position you play. Again, these guys are getting better and better.” “It’s about getting better day by day, and whether you’re talking on the field or off the field, you’re going to face different situations every day.”

Associated Press contributed to this article