Can an NFL team go from 0-2 to the playoffs? It’s a long shot, but these 9 teams did it
Nine NFL teams are still searching for their first win of the 2024 season after suffering back-to-back losses to open their schedules.
Historically, starting 0-2 means the odds are against you. The AthleticsAustin Mock’s playoff odds reflect that. None of the current 0-2 teams have more than a 44 percent chance of making the playoffs or a 26 percent chance of winning their division. Seven of the nine teams already have less than a 20 percent chance.
GALLING DEEPER
Which 0-2 NFL teams should panic? Model predicts playoff chances for Ravens, Bengals and more
But going from 0-2 to the play-offs is not impossible.
Nine teams have reached the playoffs after starting 0-2 in the past ten seasons, and two franchises have accomplished the feat multiple times.
Here’s a look at which teams overcame a rough start and advanced to the play-offs, and how they did it.
How they ended: 10-7, AFC South champion
Post season result: Lost in division round
Houston started 2023 with losses to the Ravens and Colts, but the Texans had a young roster that wasn’t quite up to par yet.
Once rookie QB CJ Stroud found his groove and the Texans had an offensive line that would protect him, the season got back on track.
In Weeks 1 and 2, the Texans allowed Stroud 11 sacks and 44 pressures, both league-leading percentages, according to TruMedia. Houston would allow the ninth-fewest pressures (188) the rest of the season.
One of the keys to the Texans’ improved pass protection was simply getting their top offensive linemen healthy. Of the six linemen who made the most starts from Weeks 3-18, including Pro Bowler Laremy Tunsil, only Shaq Mason and George Fant started both of the first two games.
Houston, like a few teams on this list, benefited from a weaker division. No other team in the AFC South won more than nine games.
GALLING DEEPER
Everything is different for the Texans thanks to CJ Stroud: ‘He has a dog in him’
2022 Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Burrow and the Bengals overcame a slow start to the 2022 season and won 12 games. (Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)
How they ended: 12-4
Post season result: Lost in conference championship
After appearing in the 2021 Super Bowl, the Bengals opened 2022 with losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers (in overtime) and the Dallas Cowboys, but won four of their next six games to finish the regular season on an eight-game winning streak. (Their Week 17 game against the Buffalo Bills was canceled after Bills safety Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest on the field.)
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow had his two worst games of the season during the 0-2 start, throwing a career-high four interceptions in Week 1 and passing for a season-low 199 yards in Week 2. As Burrow improved, so did the Bengals. From Weeks 3-18, Burrow led the NFL in passer rating (105.5) and completion percentage (69.1). He also ranked second in passing touchdowns (32) and touchdown-to-interception ratio (4) during that span.
2018 Houston Texans
How they ended: 11-5
Post season result: Lost in wildcard round
Houston started the 2018 season 0-3, losing to the New England Patriots, Titans and Giants, but after a pair of overtime wins in Weeks 4 and 5, the tide turned after the poor start.
Including those OT wins over the Colts and Cowboys, the Texans were able to pull off a nine-game winning streak, buoyed by their ball-hawking. From Weeks 4 through 13, the Texans forced 19 turnovers, the second-most in the NFL during that span, and scored 74 points from them, the third-most in the league. After failing to force a turnover in two of those first three losses, Houston forced at least one turnover in every game for the rest of the season.
How they ended: 10-6
Post season result: Lost in wildcard round
The Seahawks struggled to get an effective offense going early in the 2018 season, but after two straight narrow losses to the Broncos and Chicago Bears, Seattle got its ground game back on track.
In those two games, the Seahawks rushed for 64 and 74 yards and turned the ball over five times. In Week 3, Seattle finally surpassed 100 yards on the ground in a win over the Cowboys, and then it was off to the races.
Seattle rushed for over 100 yards in all but one game the rest of the season and led the NFL with 173 rushing yards per game from Week 3 through Week 17. The Seahawks also committed just six turnovers the rest of the season.
Alvin Kamara won the Offensive Rookie of the Year award in 2017, helping New Orleans reach the playoffs. (Harry How/Getty Images)
How they ended: 11-5
Post season result: Lost in division round
After three straight 7-9 campaigns, the start of the Saints’ 2007 season seemed to predict more of the same, as New Orleans suffered losses to the Minnesota Vikings and Patriots. But stars would quickly emerge during an eight-game winning streak that followed.
Before the season, the Saints drafted both the Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the Year in Alvin Kamara and Marshon Lattimore, along with players such as Ryan Ramczyk, Alex Anzalone and Trey Hendrickson, who have gone on to become starters in the NFL. The Saints also signed running back Adrian Peterson.
As New Orleans began to play Kamara more and eventually traded Peterson, their offense, led by quarterback Drew Brees, became more explosive. In Weeks 3-17, the Saints led the NFL with 391.9 yards per game and ranked third in scoring with 26.8 offensive points per game, according to TruMedia.
Kamara led the NFL with 6.1 yards per carry and caught 81 passes for 826 yards. He was one of seven Saints named to the Pro Bowl that season.
How they ended: 10-6
Post season result: Lost in wildcard round
The Dolphins picked up their first win of the 2016 schedule in Week 3 with an overtime victory over the Cleveland Browns, but the turnaround didn’t come immediately as two more losses followed. With a 1-4 record heading into Week 6, Miami was in decline.
Then a crucial part of the attack came back.
Jay Ajayi, a fifth-round pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, was inactive in Week 1 and saw limited touches in Weeks 2-5. In Week 6, he carried the ball 25 times for 204 yards and two touchdowns, leading Miami to a 30-15 victory over the Steelers.
He followed that up with another 200-yard game against the Bills in Week 7. Ajayi finished the season with 1,272 rushing yards and eight touchdowns as Miami won nine of 11 games to close out the season and secure a wild-card spot in the playoffs.
2015 Houston Texans
How they ended: 9-7
Post season result: Lost in wildcard round
The Texans lost their first two games en route to a 1-4 start to the season. Houston was 3-5 in its Week 9 bye, but closed the season by winning six of its last eight games with three straight division victories to secure an AFC South championship and a playoff spot.
Houston went 5-1 in their division that season despite fielding four different quarterbacks.
How did the Texans do it? Houston’s defense ranked third in the NFL, allowing 310.2 yards per game. The strength of that unit kept the Texans in the game, despite the inconsistency at QB, either through poor play or injury.
Houston seemed to get just enough out of their QBs, including Brandon Weeden, who was claimed by Houston after being released by the Cowboys, and TJ Yates, who signed with the Texans just before their bye week. Both players started and played in games for Houston following the bye week, helping the team win five of the six games played.
2015 Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks went from 0-2 to the playoffs twice with Pete Carroll and Russell Wilson. (Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
How they ended: 10-6
Post season result: Lost in division round
The Seahawks opened the season 0-2, but were 4-4 in their Week 9 bye. Seattle finished the year with six wins of its last eight to secure a wild-card playoff spot.
In each of those first four losses, the Seahawks led in the fourth quarter but couldn’t close out the game. Once they shook off their habit of blowing leads, Seattle’s offense and strong defense, which allowed the second-fewest yards per game that season, were able to return the team to the playoffs.
2014 Indianapolis Colts
How they ended: 11-5
Post season result: Lost in conference championship
The Colts had the unfortunate fortune of opening their 2014 campaign against two Super Bowl contenders. Despite staying close in one-score games with the Broncos, who won 12 games and led the NFL in offensive points per game that season, and the Philadelphia Eagles, who finished the season with a top-five offense, Indianapolis still had to carry an 0-2 record into Week 3, when it crushed the Jacksonville Jaguars to kickstart the season.
The Colts would lose only three more times the rest of the year en route to reaching the AFC Championship Game.
(Photo: Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
