NFL Power Rankings: NFC East slips, Falcons rise
Lots of changes at the top as three NFC East teams lose and the Falcons continue their stunning early-season performance. About the only thing we can count on these days is Detroit losing; and even that was a close call on Sunday.
I see BBiB! is up bright and early trying to influence our poll. And in this case, we agree with the lad that his Steelers should move up after all the NFC East carnage over the weekend.
1. Titans (5-0) (2): Titans kick back and relax on bye week and emerge as NFL’s only undefeated team. It should stay that way on Sunday, since they’re at the Chiefs.
2. Steelers (4-1) (5): Steelers also get a week off after huge road win in Jax. Now it’s off to Cincinnati for what should be another win. Unless Ryan Fitzpatrick suddenly turns into Carson Palmer, the Steelers have no excuses in this one.
3. Giants (4-1) (1): A dismal day for the NFC East, starting with a 35-14 whipping in Cleveland for the defending Super Bowl champs. They haven’t looked that bad in a long, long time.
4. Cowboys (4-2) (4): Not only do they lose to the Cardinals on the road in OT, but they lose Tony Romo for a month with a broken pinkie and Felix Jones for at least a week or two – maybe longer – with a hammy.
5. Buccaneers (4-2) (9): It’s Jeff Garcia’s job to lose after a huge win over NFC South rival Carolina.
6. Panthers (4-2) (6): So much for that five-game winning streak in Tampa.
7. Redskins (4-2) (3): Evidently, the ‘Skins were reading their press clippings, because they lost at home to the previously winless Rams.
8. Broncos (4-2) (7): Repeat after me, Jay Cutler: Never, ever brag that you have a stronger arm than John Elway.
9. Bills (4-1) (8): Trent Edwards looks like he’s ready to roll after recovering from a concussion. Big one at home against the Chargers on Sunday.
10. Colts (3-2) (14): Now that’s the Peyton Manning we’ve come to know.
11. Jaguars (3-3) (13): The slow start is officially over as Jags manhandle Broncos in Denver with strong running game.
12. Eagles (3-3) (12): Eagles back in the NFC East race with win at San Francisco, despite no Brian Westbrook.
13. Chargers (3-3) (15): Bolts throttle Pats and look like they’re almost back to where they should be. We’ll reserve further judgement until we see what they do in Buffalo this weekend against NKR’s beloved Bills.
14. Falcons (4-2) (22): I’m pretty sure we’ve got our offensive rookie of the year. Matt Ryan saves the day again as Falcons come back to beat Bears and move into three-way tie for top spot in NFC South.
15. Cardinals (4-2) (21): They don’t get much bigger than this: win over Dallas in OT at home after blowing 24-14 fourth-quarter lead.
16. Bears (3-3) (10): Kyle Orton brings back Bears back with dramatic last-second TD. But Ryan one-ups him to set up game-winning field goal with no time on the clock.
17. Patriots (3-2) (11): We know about the problems at quarterback. But it’s the problems on defense that are just as worrisome.
18. Jets (3-2) (17): Brett Favre not at his best, but Jets do enough to fend off feisty Bengals.
19. Vikings (3-3) (18): It’s hard to say anything good about a 12-10 win over the Lions at home, other than it means the Vikings are tied for first in the division. And that ain’t bad.
20. Saints (3-3) (19): Drew Brees is on track to shatter Dan Marino’s passing record for most yards in a season.
21. Ravens (2-3) (16): Ravens’ defense comes up microscopically small in Indy.
22. Packers (3-3) (20): Packers hold serve in Seattle as Aaron Rodgers battles continues shoulder problems.
23. Browns (2-3) (26): The Browns aren’t officially out of their early-season funk. But whacking the Giants at home on Monday night will sure go a long way. Wow.
24. Dolphins (2-3) (23): Dolphins defense comes up small in Houston, as Wildcat offense is getting a tad predictable.
25. 49ers (2-4) (24): From bad to worse? After home loss to Eagles, Niners now go east to face a Giants team in bounce-back mode after drubbing in Cleveland.
26. Texans (1-4) (30): A week after Sage Rosenfels blew by trying to run in the fourth quarter, Matt Schaub wins it with quarterback draw against Dolphins.
27. Seahawks (1-4) (25): Matt Hasselbeck’s achin’ back and knee keep him out of the lineup, and the Seahawks go kaput at home against the Packers.
28. Rams (1-4) (32): Rams win! Rams win! Rams win!
29. Raiders (1-4) (27): Tom the Cable guy no better than Lane the Fired Guy.
30. Chiefs (1-4) (28): We’ll see if Tony Gonzalez is still a Chief at 4 p.m. Eastern.
31. Bengals (0-6) (29): They don’t win, but they do play hard. BBiB! had better have his Steelers ready on Sunday.
32. Lions (0-5) (31): Welcome home, Lions! We’ve missed you here in the basement. Make yourselves at home. Looks like you’ll be here a while.
E-mail
Facebook
Digg
Delicious
Comments (11)
Redskins too high. Perhaps wins over Philly and Dallas not as impressive as most first thought. They lost at home to the Rams. The Rams BG! No way the 4th best team in the league loses at home to the Rams. Bucs, Bills, or Colts all have as much right.
NFC East Bias rears its ugly head....
Chargers, Saints, and Cardinals too low.
BBiB!
You are right on just about all of those counts, and I've taken the unusual step of making a series of changes and thus avoid further embarrassment. Saints was a tricky one. Yes, they beat an awful Raiders team in a blowout. But they lost at home the week before to Minnesota. So even though Vikes squeak past Lions, I couldn't justify putting Saints ahead of them.
Holy cow. Changes based on my comments! I am truly honored. And of course, now feel all powerful!! Bwaaa ha ha!!! Hopefully it won't go to my head but I wouldn't count on it.
Yes, your comments! I think I will invoke a one-hour statute of limitations on these things. If you or someone else has a valid point about the rankings, I will take it under consideration and make any changes if necessary.
Thanks for your continued readership, BBiB!
We all knew the Giants would lose a game, or a few.
It was the Superbowl for Cleveland, a good team (remember last year) that had trouble putting things together got the chance to focus and knock off the SB champs. Good for them. Giants and Eli can't be expected to maintain top focus forever, especially with AP hurting.
Now the Giants need to look at what they did badly, paying attention to some of Jaworski's notes (spectacular at breaking down plays), and fix what was exploited.
I am comfortable with your #3 ranking, Mr. Glauber. Seems spot on to me.
PS As for what the Giants did well, Plax was strong and Steve Smith really stepped his game up nicely, Ross tackling Edwards, catching up to him, not giving up after the truf gave out under his feet, also showed good spirit. I think the D really needs AP to run right, and the Browns figured out how to take Eli out of his game... having a 350lb man falling on him full weight early on, and other shots, probably affected Eli.
The Jets light up the Cardinals and are below them?
I cant remember if there was ever a year in the NFL when all the teams were this bad? The top ten is full of mediocre or less teams like Washington, Tennessee, Tampa, Carolina, Denver.
Seriously? Not only do the Jets beat the cardinals and are ranked below them but the Jets win this week and still drop a place in your rankings. I thik Glauber is hell bent on seeing the Jets fail becuase he said so before the season started.
Seriously? Not only do the Jets beat the cardinals and are ranked below them but the Jets win this week and still drop a place in your rankings. I think Glauber is hell bent on seeing the Jets fail becuase he said so before the season started.
I have to agree -- the Jets, considering how mediocre the NFL is this year -- definitely should be in the top 10. Come on!
The Jets' win over the Cardinals was nearly three weeks ago. In that time, the Cardinals have beaten the previously unbeaten Bills AND a Cowboys team many believe are good enough to win the Super Bowl.
The Jets have beaten the Bengals - barely.
It's a right here, right now thing, and it's not always perfect.
For instance, the Rams beat the Redskins, but I'm not about to rank the Rams higher than the Redskins.
Same with the Browns beating the Giants.