Joe Burrow and the rest of the defending AFC champions certainly expected better. After the franchise’s first Super Bowl appearance in more than 30 years, the Bengals’ title defense is off to a rocky start. Cincinnati is 0-2 after losing a pair of three-point games to Pittsburgh and Dallas.
Perhaps more concerning than Cincinnati’s winless start is the Bengals’ offensive woes. Burrow, sacked 70 times a year ago, has already been sacked 13 times this season despite the Bengals’ heavy investment in their offensive line during free agency. Despite the problems, Burrow and his teammates remain resolute in their resolution.
“O-and-two is tough, but there’s no panic,” Burrow said, via The Athletic. “There is still a lot of ball to play.”
“We’re looking forward to winning right now,” running back Joe Mixon said. “No need to panic, but at the end of the day we have to start. We know what we have in our dressing room. Our defense has played ass. We have to do everything we can in attack to counter what It’s an unfortunate situation, but it’s up to us.
The Titans, one of the teams the Bengals defeated in last year’s playoffs, are also 0-2 after being beaten at Buffalo on Monday night. The Titans and Bengals are the most surprising of the five teams currently 0-2 entering Week 3 of the regular season.
It’s not a busy road, but teams that started 0-2 did indeed reach the Super Bowl. Four teams overcame 0-2 starts to reach the big game. Three of those teams left the Super Bowl hosting the Vince Lombardi Trophy, proving that it’s not always how you start, it’s how you finish that makes all the difference.
Here’s a look at the four teams the Bengals and Titans will try to make the history books when all is said and done.
- Finished 12-4, 1st in NFC East
- Defeated the Bills 30-13 in Super Bowl XXVIII
Main reason for slowness beginning: Emmitt Smith, the league’s top rusher the previous season, missed the first two games due to a contract dispute. Without Smith, the defending champion Cowboys were eliminated by Washington in Week 1. A three-point loss in a Super Bowl rematch with Buffalo was enough to convince Jerry Jones to bring Smith back to the bargaining table and return to the field.
Main reason for quick finish: With Smith back, the Cowboys have won six straight games, with Smith rumbling for a career-high 237 yards against the Eagles. Smith capped off his MVP season with an all-time performance in the Cowboys’ regular season finale against the Giants. Despite a separated shoulder, Smith rushed for 168 yards and caught 10 passes for 61 yards and a score as Dallas won in overtime.
In the playoffs, Smith had 418 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns. He earned MVP honors after rushing for 132 yards and two touchdowns in the Cowboys’ second straight Super Bowl win over Buffalo.
- Finished 11-5, 1st in AFC East
- Lost to the Packers 35-21 in Super Bowl XXXI
Main reason for slow start: Turnovers plagued the Patriots in their first two games. They coughed up the ball four times — including one leading to the game’s first touchdown — in a Week 1 loss to Miami. They took an early lead at Buffalo the following week before a special teams fumble set the Bills’ go-ahead score. New England then tied the score before Jim Kelly threw the game-winning touchdown in the final minutes.
Main reason for quick finish: They never fully resolved their turnover problem, but for the most part the Patriots were able to overcome their mistakes for the rest of the season. The New England defence, heavily influenced by assistant head coach Bill Belichick, forced a series of turnovers that often made up for errors on offense. The Patriots offense committed 21 turnovers in the final 14 games of the season. The New England defense, led by Pro Bowler Willie McGinest, linebackers Chris Slade and Ted Johnson, and defensive backs Ty Law, Lawyer Milloy and Willie Clay, forced 36 turnovers (including the playoffs) after the start 0-2.
In addition to the defense, the Patriots received big individual efforts from quarterback Drew Bledsoe, running back Curtis Martin and rookie receiver Terry Glenn. Each player was named to the Pro Bowl while leading an offense that finished second in the league in scoring.
The turnovers, however, reared their ugly head in Super Bowl XXXI. The Patriots briefly led the favored Packers, but were eventually eliminated by four giveaways. In the loss, the New England defense failed to allow reigning league MVP Brett Favre and the Packers offense to register a single point in the second half.
2001 Patriots
- Finished 11-5, 1st in AFC East
- Defeated the Rams 20-17 in Super Bowl XXXVI
Main reason for slow start: The New England offense scored just 20 points in its first two games. The Pats had just three runs on the board against the Jets in Week 2 before Bledsoe was knocked out of bounds by Jets linebacker Mo Lewis late in the game. The injury was serious, as Bledsoe was hospitalized to treat a sheared blood vessel in his chest.
Main reason for quick finish: With Bledsoe on the mend, Tom Brady entered the lineup for the Patriots’ third game of the year against Peyton Manning and the Colts. New England dominated the game in all three facets and would take their record to 5-4 going into a Sunday night showdown with the Rams and their “Greatest Show on Turf” offense. The Patriots lost a hard-fought game, but that was enough for Belichick to declare Brady the starter for the rest of the season.
The 2001 Patriots never lost again, winning their final six games of the regular season to clinch a playoff berth. They were the recipients of the legendary “Tuck Rule” in the Divisional Round before upsetting the Steelers in the AFC title game. They took a 17-3 lead against the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI before winning the game on Adam Vinatieri’s last-second basket.
Giants 2007
- Finished 10-6, 2nd in NFC East
- Defeated the Patriots 17-14 in Super Bowl XLII
Main reason for slow start: The Giants defense allowed 80 points in the first two games of the season. Tony Romo torched New York for 345 yards and four scores in Week 1. Brett Favre threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns in Week 2 as the Giants’ season seemed over before Week 3.
Main reason for quick finish: Led by a defensive line comprised of Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck, the Giants defense performed much better after their rocky start. The Giants allowed less than 20 points in five of their next six games to improve to 6-2 at the halfway point.
At 10-5, the Giants had already clinched a playoff berth when the 15-0 Patriots came to town in Week 17. Despite having nothing to play for, the Giants played their starters and almost ended the Patriots’ perfect season. They didn’t win that night, but five weeks later, on the biggest stage in professional football, the Giants defeated the Patriots in the second-biggest upset in Super Bowl history. Eli Manning’s late-game heroism will live on in Super Bowl lore.
