Go 0-2 and the season is practically over. Unless you’re the Dallas Cowboys, who rebounded from 0-2 in 1993 to win it all, the chances of winning after an 0-2 start are slim. And this year, there already are more 0-2 teams than there have been since the 16-game schedule started in 1978.
Of the eight teams that started 0-2 last year–Jets, Jaguars, Seahawks, Cardinals, Giants, Lions, Panthers, and Saints–only the Lions came back to make the playoffs. None of the others finished with a winning record.
Two years ago, there were seven teams with 0-2 starts; only the Patriots came back to make the playoffs.
This year, there are 10 teams with 0-2 starts–Bengals, Patriots, Jets, Raiders, Seahawks, Bucs, Cardinals, Giants, Falcons, and Saints.
Who’s to blame: Of the 10 teams that are 0-2, four changed quarterbacks on Sunday. The Bengals replaced Jeff Blake with Erik Wilhelm. The Seahawks replaced Rick Mirer with John Friesz. The Bucs replaced Trent Dilfer with Casey Weldon. The Cardinals replaced Boomer Esiason with Kent Graham.
The 1-1 St. Louis Rams also replaced Steve Walsh with rookie Tony Banks.
The Raiders are 0-2 with second-stringer Billy Joe Hobert playing for supposedly injured Jeff Hostetler, who said he practiced all last week but wasn’t allowed to play by coach Mike White. Hostetler is scheduled to return this week.
Dream season: If there isn’t perfect parity yet in the NFL, there is perfect symmetry–10 teams are 2-0, 10 are 1-1, 10 are 0-2.
Lame Colts: The news isn’t all good for the 2-0 Colts, who will limp into Dallas this week with a roster so crippled they will make the Cowboys look healthy. They are barely able to celebrate their first 2-0 start since 1977.
They finished Sunday’s victory over the Jets with five starters in street clothes–linebacker Stephen Grant (groin), defensive end Tony Bennett (knee), cornerback Derrick Frazier (broken arm), left tackle Kipp Vickers (knee), and right guard Jay Leeuwenburg (ankle).
Running back Marshall Faulk is nursing a dislocated toe. Cornerback Ray Buchanan pulled a muscle on an interception.
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Richard Dent replaced Bennett and injured a hip. He had been nursing an injury on the other hip. Linebacker Quentin Coryatt (leg) didn’t start, but had to play when Grant got hurt. Left tackle Troy Auzenne (bone bruise) didn’t start, but had to play when Vickers got hurt.
The list doesn’t include linebacker Trev Alberts and defensive tackle Ellis Johnson, already injured and out for most of the year.
Still, Jim Harbaugh keeps coming. In 17 games under coach Lindy Infante’s system, Harbaugh has had eight games, including Sunday’s, with a rating over 100.
Jets defensive back Otis Smith wasn’t impressed. “To me, he’s no big threat, not the type of guy who’s going to beat us,” Smith said before the game.
“Otis, my man,” Harbaugh said afterwards.
The other Walsh: The 49ers are doing their best to keep the return of coach Bill Walsh a secret. After the new “administrative assistant” and adviser to offensive coordinator Marc Trestman watched from the press box in the preseason, he has decided to spend the regular season in the owner’s box, removed from game-day action.
“We were going to see how it went in the preseason,” Trestman said. “It looked like it was going to be a distraction to our team. We mutually decided that would be the best thing for all of us. After talking to Bill, he was stronger about it than I was. If he feels he has something to say to me, we’ll meet at halftime.”
Trestman said he meets with Walsh for about 15 minutes a day during the week. That’s long enough to impart wisdom such as: “Have Steve Young throw to Jerry Rice.”
Player of the year: The early candidate is easy: Bruce Smith, Bills’ defensive end. Miffed because a new contract did not come through before the season, Smith is playing at an all-time high level.
In the opener against the Giants, he had nine tackles, two sacks and forced the Dave Brown fumble that Chris Spielman recovered in overtime, leading to the winning field goal.
Said Giants coach Dan Reeves: “I mean Bruce Smith was unbelievable. He ate our lunch. We didn’t have anybody at crucial times that slowed him down. The speed at which he played was definitely a different speed from which we tried to block him.”
Against the Patriots on Sunday, he had six tackles and three sacks.
The cash register is ringing.