Week Two is now in the books, and we are left with more questions than answers regarding how this season will play out. We have identified seven hot takes from last week and will determine if they are overreactions or not.
The Packers are the best team in the NFL.
They certainly look like it through two weeks. But other teams are giving them a run for their money. The Eagles are the defending Super Bowl champs and have a 2-0 record just like the Packers, so they should still technically be looked at as the best team in the league until they lose their first game. The Bills are also 2-0, and they dominated a divisional opponent, came back against the Ravens, and have the reigning MVP on their roster. Even the Chargers have a case to be considered the best team in the NFL after they recorded a neutral site victory and a road win in back-to-back weeks against divisional opponents. Green Bay is one of the best teams in the league, but the Eagles still carry that title until proven otherwise.
Overreaction
Daniel Jones is an MVP candidate.
He has to be considered one through the first two weeks of the season. He is tied for third in total touchdowns. He’s also second in passing yards, sixth in quarterback rating, sixth in QBR, and averages the most passing yards per attempt amongst players who have thrown at least ten passes this year. Most importantly, his squad is 2-0 with a win over a team that made the playoffs last season. Considering how bad the Colts’ passing attack was last year compared to how good it is now with Daniel Jones leading the charge, the former New York Giant should be viewed as an MVP candidate.
Proper Reaction
The Houston Texans will miss the playoffs.
Despite their record, this is still a good team. They just ran into two excellent opponents that they’re not all that familiar with. The Rams and Buccaneers are legitimate threats to win the Super Bowl. Yet, the Texans only lost to those 2025 playoff teams by six combined points. Houston has the lowest point differential amongst all 0-2 teams (-6). If they had held on for just six more seconds on Monday night, the conversation surrounding this group would be very different. They can right the ship with back-to-back games against the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Tennessee Titans and make it back to 2-2. With that being said, the Texans cannot afford to lose either of those matchups. Otherwise, they’ll have a steep hill to climb to get back to the top of the AFC South with Indy likely to improve to 3-0 with a game against the lowly Titans this weekend.
Overreaction
The Dallas Cowboys are a playoff team.
Don’t get it twisted, the defense was as bad as we all expected it to be on Sunday. However, it’s worth mentioning that they just signed an established pass rusher in Jadeveon Clowney and had to play that game against the Giants without one of their top two cornerbacks, so there’s a good chance this unit will perform better this weekend. Outside of the defense, the offense and special teams are terrific. Dak Prescott looks like the 2023 version of himself that played at an MVP level. They also have a reliable rushing attack thanks to the career resurgence of Javonte Williams. We also can’t forget about Brandon Aubrey, who is the most reliable kicker in the NFL. He almost single-handedly won them that matchup with a kick to force overtime and another one to win the game. Even though the defense was awful in Week Two, the team still came out on top. Their offense is clearly good enough to win them several games this season. As long as the defense shows some improvement from last week, then the Cowboys will be a tough matchup for any team in the NFL.
Proper Reaction
The Steelers’ defense is bad.
Pittsburgh’s defense has not played up to its potential through the first two weeks of the 2025-26 campaign. They’re allowing 31.5 points per game, which is the fourth-worst mark in the NFL. But when we look at the injuries that this squad has been dealing with, it becomes clearer why they have let up so many points. They’re missing their first-round pick from this year, a starting cornerback, and a starting safety, which isn’t ideal since they traded away Minkah Fitzpatrick in the off-season. They’re also expected to be down a starting linebacker as Alex Highsmith deals with an ankle injury. Joey Porter Jr., DeShon Elliot, Derrick Harmon, Malik Harrison, and Alex Highsmith will eventually return to the lineup. When they do, this defense will look much better than it did through the first two weeks of the season. Don’t expect Pittsburgh to give up 30+ points for a third straight week.
Overreaction
Sunday is a must-win game for the Chiefs.
The Kansas City Chiefs’ dynasty is entering uncharted territory. They’re at risk of losing four consecutive games dating back to Super Bowl LIX if they can’t beat the New York Giants on Sunday Night Football. Granted, their first two games haven’t been layups. They lost to an excellent divisional opponent in a neutral-site game in Week One and had to host the defending Super Bowl champs in Week Two. Who knows, maybe we wouldn’t be having this discussion if the Tush Push was correctly officiated. There’s no shame in losing to a pair of teams that are 4-0 combined. But there IS shame in losing to the New York Giants, a franchise that is tied for the second-lowest winning percentage in the NFL since the start of the 2023 season. If the Chiefs fail to beat the Giants, then it is time to hit the panic button.
Proper Reaction
It was a mistake for the Vikings to move on from Sam Darnold.
Don’t get me wrong, I think J.J. McCarthy is a bad quarterback and will not be the face of the franchise when all is said and done. However, it is too early in his tenure to label him a bust. He’s the youngest quarterback in the league and has only played two regular-season games at the NFL level. Young QBs need time to develop, so it’s too early to close the book on him. At the same time, Sam Darnold was never going to be the savior for the Minnesota Vikings. Even after having what was undoubtedly the best season of his career last year, he could only muster nine points in the playoffs with some of the best offensive weapons in the NFL. There was also no way that the Vikes would’ve been able to replicate their success from last season with Darnold this year, considering the schedule they have and the injuries they are currently dealing with. J.J. McCarthy might not be the right answer, but there were plenty of other quarterbacks Minnesota could’ve brought in that would have helped this team make a playoff push this year. Sam Darnold will never be a Super Bowl-winning quarterback, and the Vikings recognized that, so they moved on from him, which was the right decision. Who they chose to replace him, though, was highly questionable.
