Fresh off the back of a dreadful 4-12 performance in Gridiron’s Pick ‘Em game, editor Matthew Sherry tries to make sense of a remarkably unpredictable Week 2 in his Tuesday Morning Touchdown column.

Puttin’ Six On The Board

The Best Coach In The NFL?

I was having a discussion with Gridiron friend and Arizona Cardinals fan Paolo Bandini when he suggested, only half-jokingly, that Bruce Arians is the best coach in the NFL. Bandini’s reasoning? All he does his win. If victories are an overused barometer in determining a quarterback’s success, then they most definitely aren’t when it comes to coaches. That’s their job and Arians, to his credit, does a lot of it. Sunday’s W means the 62-year-old is now 23-11 in his two-and-a-bit years at the helm of Arizona, which is a fantastic record. Consider, too, that he’s turned Carson Palmer from a man Oakland (OAKLAND!) couldn’t wait to get rid of into someone who’s now 17-3 in his last 20 starts and you begin to really appreciate the scale of Arians’ efforts. The best coach in the NFL? Not while the Hoodie’s stalking the sideline. Top three? Absolutely.

The Ravens Are Circling Baltimore

Things can turn around quickly in football. Last week, I was bemoaning the dreadful performances from Tampa Bay, Oakland, Cleveland and Jacksonville. This week? I stand and applaud after all four went and bloody won. Perhaps the most surprising of those was the Raiders enjoying a complete turnaround against the Baltimore Ravens having been humiliated by Cincinnati last week. The latter, much like the Indianapolis Colts, were many people’s Super Bowl picks. I don’t want to be the fool who writes off a team coached by John Harbaugh after two games, but I didn’t see it at the start of the season – and I certainly don’t now. This is a Baltimore side with very few offensive playmakers and a quarterback who isn’t elite, despite some elite stretches. On the other side of the ball is a unit that’s a pale imitation of recent years, especially now rusher Terrell Suggs is done for the year. With the Bengals looking better than advertised and the Pittsburgh Steelers offense firing on all cylinders, it could be a struggle for the Ravens to even reach the post-season.

The Seahawks Will Soar Again

My favourite stat of the week: four of the nine 0-2 teams (Baltimore, the New York Giants, the New Orleans Saints and the Seattle Seahawks) have been Super Bowl champions in the last six seasons. One squad in that list I’m certain will bounce back are the Seahawks. The schedule-makers were not kind to Pete Carroll’s men this off-season, with two of their toughest clashes kicking off the campaign. Seattle is 1-3 in their last three road games against the St. Louis Rams, and a trip to Lambeau was always going to be a tough ask – even without Kam Chancellor holding out. They return to the sanctuary of CenturyLink over the next two weeks, though, and I expect normal service to be resumed. The Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions don’t look equipped to win in that building, so 0-2 will quickly become 2-2. And 2-2 will become at least 10- or 11-win campaign. The only question, in my mind, is whether the Hawks can secure that all-important home-field advantage again.

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The Saints Won’t

Take everything I’ve just said, flip it on its head and you’ll know how I feel about the New Orleans Saints. Having played Arizona relatively close on the road in Week 1, it looked like Mickey Loomis’ off-season brain wave (the one that saw him seemingly put all of the roster up for trade, with Jimmy Graham and Kenny Stills among the head-scratching casualties) might actually work. That thought quickly eroded, though, as the Saints lost at home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Yes, the same Buccaneers who were blown out at home by a Tennessee Titans team who on Sunday were easily beaten by the Cleveland Browns. The most embarrassing part? The 26-19 scoreline actually flattered them! The loss was New Orleans’ sixth in a row at home, a venue where Drew Brees and Co. had previously been virtually unbeatable. It’s the sort of streak that will ensure the unthinkable happens at the season’s end: owner Tom Benson telling Loomis, Sean Payton and maybe even Drew Brees, ‘Thank you for everything, but we’re going to head in another direction’.

No End To AFC East’s Status Quo

Thirty-eight of 59 for 466 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. I know we were all expecting Tom Brady to come back with fire in his belly this year, but those numbers – against that Buffalo Bills defense – were beyond a joke. Keep in mind it’s the same Bills unit who shut down Aaron Rodgers, among others, last year with one new advantage: having the NFL’s premier defensive mind pulling the strings in Rex Ryan.

On the subject of the defending champions, remember when you looked at their early-season schedule and thought it might open the door for others in the AFC East? Those were the days. Having already overcome two of the tricky tests in that run with consummate ease, New England head into the next two outings seemingly certain to reach 4-0. The Jacksonville Jaguars are up next at Foxboro before Brady and Co. make the trip to Jerry World for a clash with a Dallas team shorn of Tony Romo and Dez Bryant. Most disappointingly for those hoping to see a tight competition, the team many expected to pose the biggest threat have looked awful through the opening two weeks. The belief was that the Miami Dolphins could start 6-0 given their early fixtures; instead, they’re lucky to be 1-1 having followed a dire Week 1 win over Washington by losing in Jacksonville. And while the Jets are off to a fine start under Todd Bowles, it seems like the folks in Boston can get working on those AFC East winners t-shirts and hats.

What’s My Name?

As someone who’s spent numerous press conferences trying (often unsuccessfuly) to eke interesting comments out of people in the public eye, I love Buffalo Bills head coach Ryan. He’s brash, bold and boisterous: a reporter’s dream. However, there are times when said approach just ends up making you look stupid. One of those instances was this week as New England running back Dion Lewis responded to Ryan’s claim that he didn’t even know his name by racking up over over 100 all-purpose yards and scoring a touchdown in the 40-32 win in Buffalo. I guess you know his name now, Rex…

P.A.T

If Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano really is on the hotseat, then general manager Ryan Grigson should be too. The Colts did nothing to address actual needs this off-season and instead spent big money on ageing free-agents, which is pretty much Rule 1 of What Not To Do As An NFL GM. An 0-2 start is recoverable in that weak AFC South, but the many pre-season Super Bowl tips look well wide of the mark. That’s largely because of Grigson, although Andrew Luck (who’s now thrown five picks in two games!) needs to improve dramatically if he’s to become the quarterback many claim he already is.