Week 1 of the NFL season brings with it plenty of overreactions since it is the first meaningful football we've seen in months. Starting the season 0-1 brings with it plenty of panic, especially for teams who had meaningful expectations like the New England Patriots, Green Bay Packers, Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos.
Not everyone managed to avoid that dreaded 0-2 hole but several of the 0-1 teams did get their seasons back on schedule by securing an important victory on Sunday. Let's look at which squads made the most meaningful statements in their second game of the season.
New England Patriots
Losing on the road to the defending champs wasn't entirely unexpected for the Patriots but the way they lost raised serious questions entering Week 2. Drake Maye's three picks in the fourth quarter cost New England the game, setting up what felt like a do-or-die home game against Pittsburgh.
The return of Treveyon Henderson proved pivotal as his burst unlocked New England's offense in a 20-6 win over the Steelers. The big story of the game was the New England defense, which smothered Aaron Rodgers and company all day long and even set up a 4th-and-43 at one point in the contest.
Carolina Panthers
It appears that the NFC South runs through Carolina once again. After giving up 59 points in a Week 1 loss to the Bears, the Panthers responded with a stifling defensive effort in a 34-3 beatdown of the Atlanta Falcons to extend Bryce Young's mastery of his division rivals.
Young tore apart the Falcons' defense, completing 23-of-36 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns. The Panthers' defense also took advantage of the complete haplessness of Atlanta's quarterbacks, forcing five turnovers with the highlight being a pick six from Devin Lloyd.
New Orleans Saints
The team most likely to give Carolina the biggest run for their money in the NFC South is New Orleans, which looked impressive in an overtime defeat in Detroit in Week 1. Seeing the Saints go on the road again and beat Baltimore, which absolutely bullied the Colts seven days ago, was extremely impressive work.
Bottling up Derrick Henry, who ran for only 68 yards on 16 carries, was quite the statement for the Saints' defense. Tyler Shough also made some key plays through the air as part of a 252-yard day, allowing New Orleans to head home winners.
Denver Broncos
Things looked dicey when the Broncos were down 10-3 at halftime but Denver responded to adversity with a tremendous second half. Bo Nix was highly efficient, completing 22-of-31 passes for 288 yards and a touchdown, while the Denver defense gave up only three points after halftime to give the offense time to re-assert their will.
This wasn't an easy spot for the Broncos either as they finished Week 1 late, leading to a short turnaround against an impressive Jaguars team that demolished the Browns on Sunday. Getting into the win column here gives Denver a chance to stabilize as they look up at both the 2-0 Raiders and 1-0 Chiefs in the AFC West.
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