Week 4 Power Rankings

In Week 4, more teams emerged as legitimate contenders. New England beat Baltimore, Denver didn't miss a beat despite finally playing a solid opponent and I'm starting to think I was too harsh on Indianapolis.

Also, more teams emerged as legitimate dogs. Buffalo got blown out by a Chad Pennington-less Dolphins squad, Tennessee rolled over and got stomped by Jacksonville and Washington once again struggled against a weak opponent.

So without further ado, bring on the rankings!

The Big Boys

1. New Orleans Saints (4-0) (Up 2) - Question: What do you get when you give Drew Brees the NFL's 2nd best rushing attack and a top 10 defense? Answer: The #1 team in the NFL.
2. New York Giants (4-0) (Down 1) - They're absolutely dominating opponents, but won't see a true test until Week 6 at New Orleans. Their #1 pass defense should obliterate Oakland this Sunday.
3. Indianapolis Colts (4-0) (Up 3) - I wasn't sold on Indy after struggling against Jacksonville and Miami, but those teams look a little more formidable now. Peyton Manning is on pace to throw for 5283 yards.
4. Minnesota Vikings (4-0) (Same) - The Vikings passing offense is only 21st in the NFL, but Brett Favre is making the plays that previous Vikings QBs couldn't. I still can't believe I picked Green Bay to beat them on Monday with Jared Allen lining up against a Guard playing out of position and a backup Left Tackle.
5. Denver Broncos (4-0) (Up 4) - They finally beat a solid opponent and have a defense that ranks in the top 5 in points allowed, yards allowed, passing yards allowed, rushing yards allowed, sacks and interceptions.
6. New England Patriots (3-1) (Up 6) - They appear to be back on track after a questionable start, Tom Brady is getting better each game and the defense appears to be much improved from the past two seasons. There just aren't any real glaring holes on the Patriots.
7. Baltimore Ravens (3-1) (Down 5) - They're still a completely legitimate team and will probably be higher in these rankings by year's end. Plus, if a couple of questionable calls had gone the other way against New England, they'd still be undefeated.

The Sidekicks

8. New York Jets (3-1) (Down 3) - I still love Rex Ryan and I still love the Jets' defense, but coming into this year, the big knock on this team was a rookie starting QB and a frightening lack of gamebreaking weapons on offense. Against New Orleans, those issues were very apparent.
9. San Francisco 49ers (3-1) (Same) - The defense has been exceptional ever since Mike Singletary took over midway through last season. Last year he improved the defense by 10 points per game and this year they're giving up the second lowest total in the NFL (13.2 ppg)
10. Philadelphia Eagles (2-1) (Same) - Andy Reid is 10-0 in games coming off of a bye. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that record improves to 11-0 after hosting Tampa Bay this coming Sunday.
11. Pittsburgh Steelers (2-2) (Up 5) - How about Chris Kemoeatu and that O-Line showing up against The Bolts? They helped Rashard Mendenhall run for 165 yards in his first full game as a starter. Still, they have to close out games better. Last year that was their biggest strength. This year it's becoming a legitimate concern.
12. Chicago Bears (3-1) (Up 1) - No glaring weaknesses and a surprisingly improved Defensive Line have led the Bears to three straight wins. Matt Forte finally got it going last week, albeit, against the Lions.
13. Cincinnati Bengals (3-1) (Down 5) - Carson Palmer had to scramble for a first down on 4th and 11 to avoid a tie against a team that had scored one TD in 9 games. Could this franchise be any less consistent?

The Average Joes

14. Green Bay Packers (2-2) (Same) - They're putting up points on offense and making plays on defense, but they'll struggle to find consistency all season if their Offensive Line doesn't improve.
15. Dallas Cowboys (2-2) (Down 4) - They clearly have the talent to beat teams inferior to them, but lack the coaching and leadership to take down the better teams in the league. Could Tony Romo be any less clutch?
16. Atlanta Falcons (2-1) (Down 1) - Coming off of three unimpressive performances, they'll look to rebound when they travel cross country to San Francisco this Sunday.
17. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-2) (Up 5) - What a difference a healthy Offensive Line makes. David Garrard is very quietly leading a top 10 offense, while players with hyphenated names are making plays all over the field for them. Unfortunately, they still can't get pressure on opposing QBs.

Who are these guys?

18. Houston Texans (2-2) (Up 2) - Their inability to run the ball may unfortunately hold them back from breaking out this season, but their upcoming contest at Arizona will be a fun one to watch.
19. San Diego Chargers (2-2) (Down 2) - The problem here is in the trenches. The Offensive Line without Nick Hardwick has been awful, as the Chargers are averaging just 2.7 YPC. The Defensive Line without departed Igor Olshansky and injured Jamal Williams are giving up over 150 yards per game on the ground. Philip Rivers can't do it all himself.
20. Arizona Cardinals (1-2) (Down 2) - The NFL's 30th ranked pass defense gets to face Andre Johnson this week. Fantasy nerds are drooling all over their mothers' basements.
21. Miami Dolphins (1-3) (Up 7) - I was too harsh on Miami, and no, it isn't because they blew out the Bills. It's because they have the NFL's best rushing attack and are stopping it just as well. When you control the ground game and time of possession, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.
22. Seattle Seahawks (1-3) ( Down 3) - They're mediocre on offense, they're mediocre on defense, they've lost three straight and got killed by Indianapolis last week.

The Forgettables

23. Washington Redskins (2-2) (Up 2) - If you're the Giants, you make bad NFL teams look like Division III Liberal Arts Colleges. If you're the Redskins, you would even play down to the ability of a Division III Liberal Arts College. They have two more warm-up games to wake up before facing a brutal end stretch, starting Week 7 against Philadelphia.
24. Detroit Lions (1-3) (Same) - They're improved and Matthew Stafford is looking better each week, but their defense is still allowing 33.5 points per game. Gunther Cunningham's defenses haven't been good since he had Derrick Thomas in the 1990s.
25. Carolina Panthers (0-3) (Up 1) - They're losing games by an average of 29-12.3. Chances are they'll do better against the struggling Redskins.
26. Tennessee Titans (0-4) (Down 5) - Isn't it funny that Kerry Collins suddenly isn't a "game manager" anymore now that the defense doesn't have Albert Haynesworth? Can we finally conclude that "game manager" = mediocre QB with an elite defense. QBs get too much credit in Tennessee.
27. Buffalo Bills (1-3) (Down 4) - Wow. How bad have they looked in back-to-back games against New Orleans and Miami? It appears that if you have an elite running game, you'll have no problem beating the Bills

The Losers

28. Oakland Raiders (1-3) (Down 1) - They got completely shut down in Houston by one of the NFL's worst defenses. Jamarcus Russell's 48.5 QB rating against the Texans actually raised his season rating by 2.6 points.
29. Kansas City Chiefs (0-4) (Same) - They actually made a late push against the Giants. Too bad the Giants' QB at that point was David Carr.
30. Cleveland Browns (0-4) (Up 2) - They doubled their TD total of the previous 9 weeks against the Bengals, and scored just 20 points. A loss at Buffalo on Sunday would give them an 11-game losing streak, tying a franchise record set in 1975.
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-4) (Down 1) - At least Aqib Talib is playing well.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-4) (Down 1) - They've lost 14 straight and are scoring 6 points per game this season. Can anyone remember when the bottom of the NFL was as awful and helpless as the past two seasons?