The Big Boys
- New York Giants (3-0) - Who said Eli needs Plax? As I predicted, Manning has been even better without Burress, connecting with new favorites Steve Smith and Mario Manningham. Oh, and the defense allowed only 86 yards last week. Ridiculous.
- Baltimore Ravens (3-0) - A team known for stifling defense has scored 34.3 points per game. Joe Flacco is looking extremely sharp so far.
- New Orleans Saints (3-0) - 40 points per game? Are you kidding me? And as impressive as Drew Brees has been, what's being overlooked is the running game, which is putting up over 170 yards per game.
- Minnesota Vikings (3-0) - One word to describe Brett Favre's game-winning pass to Greg Lewis last week: Ridinculocity. I'm having a hard time thinking of any play that was that amazing, in which NO luck was involved. That play was pure skill.
- New York Jets (3-0) - The NFL's 3rd ranked defense has a QB who appears to be the real deal, a Head Coach who has lit a fire under his team and a CB in Darelle Revis, who is nearing Nnamdi Asomugha status right now.
6. Indianapolis Colts (3-0) - Yes, the Colts are 3-0. Yes, Peyton Manning is leading the NFL's leading pass offense. But I do have my questions. Like, how did Miami's running game dominate them so badly two weeks ago and how did they struggle so badly at home against Jacksonville?
7. San Francisco 49ers (2-1) - It hasn't been pretty, but take away that ridinculocity from Brett Favre and this team is 3-0 with a win at Minnesota. Frank Gore's ankle injury will hurt them, but Singletary + Shaun Hill seems to = Wins.
8. Cincinnati Bengals (2-1) - They beat Green Bay. They beat Pittsburgh. If it weren't for the luckiest play ever for Brandon Stokely, they would have beaten Denver and would be 3-0. Regardless, people are starting to notice their defense, while Cedric Benson has emerged as a pretty solid back.
9. Denver Broncos (3-0) - 10 bucks says you didn't have the Broncos at 3-0 to start the year. Yeah, they've only allowed 5.3 points per game so far, but let's see how they handle Dallas this weekend before getting too crazy about them.
10. Philadelphia Eagles (2-1) - 5th ranked defense, 7th ranked offense and #1 ranked creative playcalling have fans believing the sky's the limit for this talented group.
11. Dallas Cowboys (2-1) - The sky isn't falling nearly as much as the media would like you to believe. Big D's only loss was by 2 points to arguably the best team in the NFL. The Defense also finally woke up this past Monday night.
12. New England Patriots (2-1) - Yeah, they could be 1-2 right now if it weren't for a choke job by Buffalo, but Tom Brady looked very sharp in a win over Atlanta, while the defense has been a pleasant, yet unheralded, surprise.
The Average Joes
13. Chicago Bears (2-1) - Jay Cutler has been fine since the Week 1 debacle, while the defense has been a surprising bright spot, but where in the world is Matt Forte?
14. Green Bay Packers (2-1) - Still kind of a mystery. They're only the 22nd ranked offense, but are scoring 27 points per game. Their defense also seems suspect, but they've intercepted 7 passes already. This team has potential.
15. Atlanta Falcons (2-1) - 23rd on offense, 24 on defense. Michael Turner is having the sophomore slump many expected Matt Ryan to have.
16. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-2) - The only 1-2 team that people don't seems worried about. Big Ben has put them in position to win, and allowed the defense to hold for the win. The problem is, they can't run the ball, which is a big reason reason why they're not closing out games.
17. San Diego Chargers (2-1) - Running game has really struggled, but luckily Philip Rivers has picked up the slack. Still, they struggled to beat Oakland, and Miami should have been much easier than it ended up being last week.
Who are these guys?
18. Arizona Cardinals (1-2) - Well, they can still throw the ball, but Kurt Warner is hurting. They can beat the bad teams, but struggled mightily against Indianapolis and San Francisco. Also, they can't stop the pass, and there's no bright side to that one.
19. Seattle Seahawks (1-2) - They are absurdly banged up for the second year in a row, but have remained competitive. Last week, behind Seneca Wallace, they were beating Chicago until the Two-Minute Warning.
20. Houston Texans (1-2) - The good news is, they can still throw the ball all over the field and put up points. The problem is, Steve Slaton is having a horrific sophomore slump and the defense is allowing over 200 yards per game on the ground.
21. Tennessee Titans (0-3) - Yeah they're 0-3, but they've been in position to win all three games. They went down to the wire at Pittsburgh, had to endure a great comeback by Houston and remained close with the Jets. They really need a win at Jacksonville this weekend.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2) - They've been competitive, but like all three AFC South teams not led by Peyton Manning, they have many, many question marks, starting with a completely non-existent pass rush.
The Forgettables
23. Buffalo Bills (1-2) - Good news: They should have beaten New England and Fred Jackson has over 400 total yards already. The bad news: They got whooped by a Saints team that didn't even have their best stuff on Sunday.
24. Detroit Lions (1-2) - As owner William Clay Ford said: "We got King-Kong off our back". Nice to see Matthew Stafford have a quality game.
25. Washington Redskins (1-2) - They're far too talented to be this low on the list, but they have an awful habit of playing down to their competition. Clinton Portis is wearing down prematurely.
26. Carolina Panthers (0-3) - Stop buying into Carolina, people. Jake Delhomme and John Fox have put up a lot of wins over the years, but they're also what's made Carolina so wildly inconsistent in the same span. Also, as expected, the injury to Ma'ake Kemoeatu is allowing teams to run all over them.
The Losers
27. Oakland Raiders (1-2) - Can we say it? Can we finally, without question, say it? Jamarcus Russell is an awful NFL QB who was only drafted #1 overall because of arm strength, a mistake that scouts make year after year after year. His rating is 39.8 this year with a 41.3 completion percentage.
28. Miami Dolphins (0-3) - Whether you like Chad Pennington or not, you have to admit that he is unquestionably the leader and MVP of this team. They'll miss him a lot. Ted Ginn may have a slight grin on his face, however, now that he can better utilize his deep speed.
29. Kansas City Chiefs (0-3) - Their defense is a little better, but their offensive line is not. Larry Johnson is rushing for 2.5 yards per carry and the QBs have been sacked 8 times this year. Also, they lost at home to the Raiders.
30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-3) - 0 points, 58 passing yards, 28 rushing yards, just 5 first downs, 0 sacks, 0 turnovers forced and 226 yards allowed on the ground at home against the Giants over the weekend. This was professional football players playing against each other, not Florida vs. Charleston Southern. Shameful performance by the rebuilding Bucs.
31. St. Louis Rams (0-3) - They've put up 8 points per game against less-than-stellar offenses, they've allowed over 400 yards per game, their only receiver who has over 85 yards over the first three games was the #5 receiver for Atlanta last year, and they probably will have Kyle Boller starting at QB for them. This is ugly.
32. Cleveland Browns (0-3) - Trent Dilfer, arguably ESPN's best analyst, said that Peyton Manning and Tom Brady would struggle with this offense. They've allowed 11 sacks in three games and their average score per game is 10-32. They've also failed to score an offensive touchdown in 8 of their last 9 games. That may be the worst stat in all of football right now.
