Just like there are different levels of panic for every 0-2 team, there are different levels of hope for every 2-0 team. For some teams, this might be as good as it gets; for others, this start solidifies the idea that they can contend for the playoffs and beyond. There's one clear commonality between every undefeated team, though: Key contributors -- and perhaps unexpected contributors -- have stepped up in a major way.
Coaches often talk about the entire roster (and practice squad) being vital to a team's success, rather than just the stars, and it's true. Teams can't win with just their stars. They need the lesser-known players to excel, too.
Whether it's a big jump or simply solid play at a key spot, these players make teams more complete. As Week 3 looms, here are the "secret weapon" players who don't often get the headlines but have been a big reason their team does. Upton Stout is listed at 5-foot-9 and 181 pounds, but he is an absolute dog of a competitor who plays much bigger than he is.
He already has three tackles for zero or negative yards, including a half-sack on Malik Willis in Week 2. Stout attacks the line of scrimmage with reckless abandon and is a willing tackler, and perhaps my favorite play of his this year was one that didn't go in the stat sheet. Another great play from @upton_5tout!Watch him blow up the screen by bouncing the blocker back into the ball carrier!The guy even started a fight with Stout after the play because he was big mad about it. pic.twitter.com/s3bsX7o7gI Yes, it's only been two weeks, but I debated whether Deone Walker even belongs on this list.
He might just be a star, plain and simple. But as a 2025 fourth-round pick playing an unglamorous position, he qualifies. Walker is 6-foot-7 and 331 pounds but moves like a guy 60-70 pounds lighter.
Seriously, his movement skills are in the "rare" category, and when you combine them with elite strength and power, his film is laughably good. He sealed the Bills' Week 1 win over the Texans by roasting Ed Ingram and sacking C.J. Walker's nine pressures are tied with All-Pro Jeffery Simmons for most among defensive tackles this season.
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