Sports
Reality Check for NFL's 0-2 Teams: Who Can Still Make the Playoffs?
Sep 15, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) runs during the second half against the Las Vegas Raiders at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images Nine NFL teams own the dreaded 0-2 record as Week 3 of the season arrives.
Players and coaches of those teams will tell you it means nothing, that we’re just two games into the season.
But we all know better.
The 0-2 mark has been the barometer of mediocre or bad teams over the past four seasons. Only two squads out of 32 have managed to make the playoffs after consecutive losses to open the season, a paltry 6.3 percent.
But not all 0-2 teams are equally bad. For example, the Baltimore Ravens are nowhere near as horrible as the directionless Carolina Panthers.
Also, the team (Cincinnati Bengals) with Joe Burrow as its quarterback is much more likely to have a strong turnaround than a club (Denver Broncos) feeding rookie Bo Nix to the wolves each week.
We’ll take a look at the teams that still have plenty of life left. (And quickly touch on the teams that don’t).
BALTIMORE RAVENS
The Ravens visit the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, a challenging opponent that makes an 0-3 start a real possibility. Baltimore has started 0-3 just once, back in 2015 when it finished 5-11 and had four quarterbacks start multiple games.
But this is a team with two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson running the show. The Ravens lead the NFL in total offense (417.5 yards per game), but mistakes and failed opportunities have them in a tie for 14th in scoring offense at 21.5 points per game.
Once Baltimore cleans things up and figures out how not to blow 10-point fourth quarter leads (see last Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders), things will improve fast. Look for Baltimore to be battling for the AFC North crown down the stretch.
CINCINNATI BENGALS
Injured Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (1) walks to the locker room at halftime of the NFL 16 game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh on Saturday, Dec. 23, 2023. The Steelers led 24-0 at halftime. credits: Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK The Bengals are also in the AFC North and could quickly get to .500 with the Washington Commanders at home and the woeful Panthers on the road as their next two games. Cincinnati’s 0-2 consists of a rough loss (to the New England Patriots) and a near upset (losing to the Kansas City Chiefs on a last-second field goal).
The Bengals are more like the team that battled Kansas City and have strong leadership from coach Zac Taylor and Burrow. How Cincinnati fares in division games will be key to any turnaround. Last season, they went 1-5 against the AFC North and missed the postseason.
It certainly helps the Bengals’ chances that another division team is also 0-2. But Cincinnati can’t afford many dreadful losses like the New England contest.
LOS ANGELES RAMS, JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
Sep 15, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp (10) prior to a game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images These teams aren’t showing a lot of life right now but have the potential to turn things around. The Rams face a must-win this week with the powerful San Francisco 49ers coming to town. The Jaguars are also in a tough spot with road games against the Buffalo Bills (on Monday) and Houston Texans next on the slate.
The Rams badly miss future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald on defense, and standout receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua are both out with leg injuries. So Matthew Stafford has to help his club get through the short-team challenges, but on the other hand, it’s definitely hard to erase last Sunday’s horrific 41-10 loss to the Arizona Cardinals out of the memory.
Jacksonville decided to hand out a five-year, $275 million contract to Trevor Lawrence, and I can’t seem to find his Super Bowl appearances. Oh, I see, he’s just getting paid like he has some. The Jaguars have scored just 30 points in two games. The best thing they have going is residing in the AFC South, where three of the four teams are 0-2.
NO-CHANCE GROUP
Sep 15, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) throws against the Los Angeles Chargers during the second half at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images The headliners are the Carolina Panthers, who went 2-15 last season. Their awful 2023 trade with the Chicago Bears to earn the right to draft Bryce Young somehow looks even worse after the latter’s benching.
The Indianapolis Colts (Anthony Richardson) and the Broncos (Nix) can make developing their young quarterbacks the main priority. The Tennessee Titans seem to have lost their identity in the post-Derrick Henry era, while good luck to the New York Giants, who continue to resist pulling the plug on Daniel Jones.
Sports
NYCFC announce departure of D Strahinja Tanasijevic
Mar 15, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York City FC defender Strahinja Tanasijevic (19) runs with the ball during the second half against New England Revolution at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images New York City FC defender Strahinja Tanasijevic has departed the club, the team announced on Wednesday.
Tanasijevic, 28, joined NYCFC in February 2024 and made 43 appearances across all competitions.
“We would like to thank Tana for the commitment and professionalism shown throughout his time with the Club,” sporting director Todd Dunivant said. “This move provides an opportunity for Tana to pursue the next step in his career while also giving the Club additional roster flexibility. We wish Tana and his family all the best moving forward.”
Tanasijevic played for several clubs in his native Serbia prior to joining New York City FC.
–Field Level Media
Sports
LeBron James on GOAT debate: 'Not taking nobody over me'
Nov 27, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) smiles after a Philadelphia 76ers foul during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images LeBron James told Time magazine that he believes he is the greatest basketball player of all time.
When asked the age-old question of who is the GOAT in the NBA, James embraced his own name.
“I’m not taking nobody over me,” he told Time in a profile published Monday. “There’s no question.”
James, however, admitted the NBA has other all-time greats, namely Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Larry Bird and Shaquille O’Neal, among others.
“But I think Mike will say the same thing,” James said. “Rest his soul, Kobe will say the same thing. Magic will say the same thing. Bird will say the same thing. Shaq could say the same thing. The late great Wilt (Chamberlain), Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar). I don’t think none of us are going to take somebody else.
“If there’s a general manager and he’s eyeballing all of us on a baseline, with the No. 1 pick, it’s gonna be hard not to take me, champ.”
James, 41, just completed his record-setting 23rd NBA season, and the league’s all-time leading scorer is heading into unrestricted free agency.
“It’s up to the mind,” James told Time about whether he will suit up next season or retire. “Where the mind goes, the body will lay. When I’m not in love with getting to the arenas on game days five hours before to start my preparation, if I’m out of love with getting to practice 2 1/2 hours beforehand, then I know I’ll be done. Because then I’m going to start cheating the game.”
James averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds this season with the Los Angeles Lakers. The 22-time All-Star, four-time league MVP and four-time NBA champion is the all-time leader in games (1,622) and points (43,440).
–Field Level Media
Sports
WNBA champion Aces not invited to White House
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) celebrates as she receives the MVP trophy after defeating the Phoenix Mercury 97-86 to win the WNBA Championship in a four-game sweep in Game Four of the WNBA Finals at Mortgage Matchup Center on Oct. 10, 2025, in Phoenix. The Las Vegas Aces did not receive an invitation to the White House after winning the 2025 WNBA title in October, a team spokesperson confirmed to USA Today on Wednesday.
The decades-old tradition of championship sports teams visiting 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. has not included any WNBA or NBA teams during President Donald Trump’s second term in office.
The New York Liberty did not visit the White House after winning the 2024 WNBA championship. The 2024-25 NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder did not go either, due to what the team called a timing issue.
The Aces, who will be in Washington, D.C., for a July 22 game against the Mystics, have won three of the past four WNBA championships. They visited the White House twice during the Biden Administration.
The Aces had considered visiting the National Museum of African American History and Culture as an alternate way of commemorating their championship during next month’s trip to the nation’s capital, but ran into a scheduling conflict, per USA Today.
–Field Level Media
NYCFC announce departure of D Strahinja Tanasijevic
LeBron James on GOAT debate: 'Not taking nobody over me'
