ESPN.com NFL Power Rankings

[MrRant 0]

1 (1)  Patriots  1-0-0  The run defense might be a concern, but we're guessing Belichick and Co. will find a way to work around it.

 

2 (2)  Eagles  1-0-0  Apparently Donovan McNabb is pretty happy with his new toy at wide receiver.

 

3 (5)  Seahawks  1-0-0  Losing Shaun Alexander for any time would be a blow to this offense. Maurice Morris is decent, but he's nowhere near Alexander's league.

 

4 (9)  Titans  1-0-0  Not too many people saw this game, but trust us, Chris Brown is the real deal at RB.

 

5 (10)  Broncos  1-0-0  That move Quentin Griffin put on Jerome Woods on Sunday night was just flat out sick.

 

6 (7)  Vikings  1-0-0  Wow. We knew Minnesota's offense was going to be good, but they sure did put on a show Sunday.

 

7 (3)  Colts  0-1-0  The Colts can talk all they want about the best team not winning Thursday, but the fact remains the same: one team is 1-0 and the other isn't.

 

8 (11)  Packers  1-0-0  This week's bold prediction: Ahman Green will rush for over 2,000 yards this season.

 

9 (4)  Chiefs  0-1-0  Looks like the same story as last season. The Chiefs can score with anybody, but the defense is going to be a problem, especially against the good teams.

 

10 (14)  Jets  1-0-0  Obviously a healthy Chad Pennington helps Curtis Martin, but what we watched Sunday was more than that. Martin looked much more explosive than he was last season.

 

11 (16)  Rams  1-0-0  We heard it from Rams fans last week about their No. 16 rankings, and maybe it was too low, but they sure weren't all that impressive in Week 1 against the Cardinals.

 

12 (20)  Redskins  1-0-0  Things went about as well as they could have in Joe Gibbs return to the sideline in D.C.

 

13 (8)  Panthers  0-1-0  That Steve Smith injury was tough to watch. He really came into his own last season and was poised for even bigger things this year.

 

14 (22)  Steelers  1-0-0  At his current pace Jerome Bettis is going to carry the ball 80 times for 16 yards and score 48 TDs this year.

 

15 (6)  Ravens  0-1-0  Teams are going to stack the line against the Ravens and Jamal Lewis all season and if Kyle Boller can't make them pay, the Ravens are going to be in trouble.

 

16 (17)  Jaguars  1-0-0  Huge win for the Jags. Byron Leftwich might not have played well, but he got the W and that's what QBs are measured by.

 

17 (12)  Cowboys  0-1-0  The Cowboys aren't going to win too many games when they have to pass the ball 51 times

 

18 (15)  Bengals  0-1-0  All you Carson Palmer haters out there, if the Bengals stumble this year it's not going to have anything to do with the second-year QB.

 

19 (19)  Falcons  1-0-0  It wasn't an earth-shattering performance, but a lot of eyes were on Michael Vick and he got the Falcons a win.

 

20 (29)  Browns  1-0-0  What an effort by the Browns defense. We'll be the first to admit that this one caught us by surprise.

 

21 (13)  Saints  0-1-0  Looks like it could be the same old story for the Saints. Lots of talent, little results.

 

22 (25)  Lions  1-0-0  Getting that 24-game road losing streak off their backs was a huge step for this up-and-coming young team. But Charles Rogers' season-ending injury is a big blow.

 

23 (23)  Raiders  0-1-0  One loss and players are already complaining about substitutions and playing time! We thought they fired Bill Callahan?

 

24 (21)  Buccaneers  0-1-0  The Bucs looked old and slow on offense, not a good combination.

 

25 (18)  Bills  0-1-0  Eric Moulds (8 catches) was big in the opener, but the Bills need another receiver to step up.

 

26 (24)  Dolphins  0-1-0  A.J. or Jay? It really might not matter all that much. The Dolphins aren't going to be that good with either at QB.

 

27 (31)  Chargers  1-0-0  Apparently Drew Brees isn't ready to just hand the starting job to Philip Rivers.

 

28 (27)  Bears  0-1-0  Fantasy alert: David Terrell finally looks ready to be a No. 1 receiver for the Bears.

 

29 (26)  Texans  0-1-0  Losing to the Chargers at home in Week 1 isn't the way to start the season for what's supposed to be an up-and-coming team.

 

30 (30)  49ers  0-1-0  We've raved about him before in this space, but Julian Peterson is a stud. The guy is just an athletic freak.

 

31 (28)  Giants  0-1-0  Well, at least Eli Manning got his first big hit out of the way.

 

32 (32)  Cardinals  0-1-0  The Cardinals might not win much this year, but any team looking past them will be in trouble.

 

Discuss.

[CanadianChris 0]

I would've put the Giants last. I also would've had the Packers ahead of the Colts. The Titans are way too high for only beating a demoralized Dolphins team.

[The Man in Blak 0]

I'm a little surprised that Arizona would be in dead last, considering that they nearly stole the game from St. Louis.

 

I'd put the Patriots on top and the 49ers in the basement.

[nl5xsk1 0]

31 (28)  Giants  0-1-0  Well, at least Eli Manning got his first big hit out of the way.

The hit on Manning was my highlight from week one.

 

And count me as someone that would have put the Giants last ... the Cards didn't look that bad against the Rams, and if the Giants and Cards played this week, I'd probably put my money on Arizona.

[alfdogg 0]

I prefered the hit on Keyshawn, myself.

[Exslade ZX 0]

I prefered the hit on Keyshawn, myself.

Is that who took that ridiculous looking flip hit, that made me cringe? :s Ouch. If that's the one, I can't really remember...all I can picture is that it was a team in white lol...think it was the Cowboys but I'm not sure.

 

2 (2)  Eagles  1-0-0  Apparently Donovan McNabb is pretty happy with his new toy at wide receiver.

I love the way they worded that...referring to him as nothing more then a toy. That's just wrong

[packwingfn 0]

14 (22)  Steelers  1-0-0  At his current pace Jerome Bettis is going to carry the ball 80 times for 16 yards and score 48 TDs this year.

 

I couldnt stop laughing at that.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Quite honestly the Ravens should be like #31 after that miserable performance vs the Browns.

[Dr. Tom 0]

Power ratings are worthless this early in the season. After week 4-5, they'll start to mean something.

[MrRant 0]

^

 

Bitter.

[iggymcfly 0]

Yay for the Jets. I don't want to get my hopes up yet, but they look like they might actually be decent this year.

 

Oh, and just because I feel like posting it, here's what's gonna happen in the NFL this year.

 

AFC Championship: Patriots over Browns 30-24

NFC Championship: Falcons over Eagles 21-20

Super Bowl: Patriots over Falcons 38-17

 

...and power rankings that are based on the field, not my imaginative fantasy:

 

1. Patriots

2. Eagles

3. Broncos

4. Seahawks

5. Colts

[Dr. Tom 0]

^

 

Bitter.

No, practical.

 

Take the Patriots, for example. They beat the Colts not just because of Vanderjagt's missed kick, but because of poor play-calling and decisions on the part of the Colts' coaches and players. The Colts ran the ball right down their throats all game, then foolishly abandoned it when they should have stuck to it. Then Dallas Clark got selfish and wanted to be a receiver, while if he'd stayed home, someone would've been able to put a body on Willie McGinest. The Colts lost that game more than NE won it. So where does NE sit in the power rankings?

 

The first game of the season doesn't indicate where a team is going to end up. Are the Cowboys going to give up 500+ points this year? Is JAMAL~! going to rush for 800 yards while the Ravens lose every game? Obviously not. When the season has hit the quarter-pole, then I'll think that power rankings mean something. Until then, they're just filler on ESPN's website.

 

BTW, 44-41. Bitch.

[Cartman 0]

I can't stand this explanation people give for a good team losing a game to another good team. "This team lost the game more than that team won the game". That is such garbage. The Colts, as usual, were outcoached by the Patriots. As far as I know, the Coaching Staff is part of the team...in the NFL it's an especially important part. The Colts ran the ball down the Patriots' throats all game, sure, then their star rusher got the ball knocked from his hands TWICE by the Patriots defense.

 

Not to mention Brady and his recievers had a field day with the Colts' weak ass defense and only turned the ball over once due to a missed route. Try as hard as you want to believe the Patrots aren't better than the Colts but the fact is they cannot beat the Pats.

 

The Patriots WON that game, and the Colts LOST that game. The better team WON the game.

[Brett Favre 0]

I think it's fair to say the Pats didn't fumble the ball for James. They didn't miss for Vanderjackass. So yeah, the Colts lost the game really more than the Pats won it.

 

But I still think the Pats are better team.

[Cartman 0]

Go back and watch replay's of the fumbles. The guy didnt just DROP the damn ball, it was knocked out of his hands by, get this, Patriots Defenseive Players!!!!!! Go figure!!!!

[Dr. Tom 0]

"This team lost the game more than that team won the game". That is such garbage.

And would your opinion be the same if the Colts had lost to the Broncos, homer?

 

The Colts, as usual, were outcoached by the Patriots.

I guess, if only because the Colts' playcalling was terrible when it counted. On the play when he was sacked at the end of the game, why didn't Manning simply hand the ball off to James? The Colts had 200 rushing yards at that point in the game. 200. Even if they rush for no gain, Vanderjagt is looking at a kick 10-12 yards shorter than the one he ended up missing. And if the run gets a first down, they can spike the ball and stop the clock. The Colts also failed to run when they had the ball on the 6 down 3-0, and instead, Manning got intercepted in the end zone. Why didn't they just run the ball? That's just Indy coaching poorly, not NE coaching well. They were getting killed on the run all day and failed to adjust, but the Colts refused to press their advantage at crunch time. THAT is why they lost the game more than NE won it.

[2GOLD 0]

Why didn't they run?

Obvious things

A: James had two fumbles in the red zone, you don't give him the ball again in the pressure spot when you are unsure of his head

B: Everyone was EXPECTING them to hand off to set up for a FG, they wanted to fool the Pats defense on the play action and go over the top. Willie was on a dead straight blitz so he couldn't be fooled anyway

C: Manning was hot, he was hitting his routes and they wanted to go for the win figuring at the very least it would be an incompletion

D: Tom Brady and Adam Vinateri

 

As much as I dislike him, there may not be a better QB in the clutch. The Colts did NOT want to go to overtime against the Pats with the chance of Brady getting the ball first and Vinateri kicking in a clutch situation.

 

As for bad playcalling, James didn't just drop the damn ball. It was stripped from his hands twice. Once up the middle on the goal line. I guess that was a bad call, despite the Colts running through the middle of the Patriots defense all game? Also, Manning is the leader so the best plan for the Colts would have been to take it out of the hands of their leader? And what happened if James fumbled again, then what? Is it "oh they should have passed! Why were they running the ball?"

 

New England plays a bend but don't break defense, you can march on them but inside the 20 they will find a way to stop. Whether it be better reads, outstanding plays (god, Buschi made a play most WRs couldn't have made and Manning was pressured), or hell if I know.

 

I don't understand why no one wants to give an ounce of credit to the Patriots when they win. And no, I'm not in Boston and I am not going to show some kind of bs favoritism for New England. They lose, they got beat by a better team. It happens. Unless someone drops the ball in the end zone with no time left when a touchdown wins the game, teams don't beat themselves. The Bengals did not beat themselves, Houston did not beat themselves, even the Bills did not beat themselves but they came awfully close.

 

"We beat ourselves" is the NFL equal of putting your fingers in your ears and running around yelling LA LA LA LA.

[Dr. Tom 0]

A: James had two fumbles in the red zone, you don't give him the ball again in the pressure spot when you are unsure of his head

He doesn't fumble much, so the odds of him doing it again are very small. Especially since he'd certainly be covering up the ball in that case. Besides, he's not the only RB on the roster; Dominic Rhodes is often used in short-yardage situations. The fact remains that a run up the middle for 0 yards takes 10-12 yards off the missed FG.

 

B: Everyone was EXPECTING them to hand off to set up for a FG, they wanted to fool the Pats defense on the play action and go over the top. Willie was on a dead straight blitz so he couldn't be fooled anyway

And the Pats never expected a run on any of the 40 rushes for 200 yards the Colts had that game? When you've rushed for 200 yards, there's no reason to abandon it when the game is on the line. As for Willie's play, had Dallas Clark stayed in to block (as he was being yelled at to do on the O-line) instead of trying to be a glory hog and catch a pass, someone would have had a body on McGinest. James read the blitz and stayed back to block, but it wasn't enough. No one disrupted McGinest at the line.

 

C: Manning was hot, he was hitting his routes and they wanted to go for the win figuring at the very least it would be an incompletion

40 rushes for 200 yards.

 

D: Tom Brady and Adam Vinateri

Who would have about no time left on the clock to do anything with a tie game.

 

I'm not trying to give NE no credit, because they did come out with the win against a very good Colts team. But to ignore the Colts' poor choices and virtual beating of themselves in a rush to give the Pats mad props is disingenuous.

 

Also, Manning is the leader so the best plan for the Colts would have been to take it out of the hands of their leader?

40 rushes for 200 yards. Ya dance with the one dat brung ya. The Patriots were not able to stop the Colts' running game all day, and the Colts abandoned it for the pass when they didn't need to. The fact remains that running the ball is still the most important component of an NFL offense, the Colts were excelling at it that day, and they went away from it. Besides, a "leader" shouldn't run backwards five yards when he's got someone in his face and take the team out of easy FG range. That's *terrible*.

[iggymcfly 0]

I think the Colts are starting to get a mental block with the Patriots. They expect to fuck it up late in the game so they do. It's the same reason that the Eagles will lose again in the NFC Championship this year.

[2GOLD 0]

I think the Colts are starting to get a mental block with the Patriots. They expect to fuck it up late in the game so they do. It's the same reason that the Eagles will lose again in the NFC Championship this year.

 

No, I think the Eagles will try something different this year.

This year they will decide the Title game isn't worth losing and give up in the second round.

[Cartman 0]

D: Tom Brady and Adam Vinateri

Who would have about no time left on the clock to do anything with a tie game.

 

It's the overtime they were afraid of. They did not want to risk the Pats winning the coin toss and getting the ball first.

 

Also, yes they ran all over the pats all day...UNTIL they got in the red zone. Out of all that rushing they ended up with only 1 TD by Rhodes. By right they should have been able to just run right by the pats in other Red Zone opportunities, but because the Pats' Defense plays for the Red Zone stop, that didn't happen.

[Dr. Tom 0]

You're missing one of the key points, though. Even a run up the middle for no gain helps them. They lost 12 yards on that sack, I think, pushing the Colts out of easy FG range. Even if Edge barely gets back to the line (and it's safe to assume he'd have to dodge McGinest at some point), it's a kick that's 12 yards shorter.

 

I look at it this way: if they run, even for no gain, there's a 99% chance that they keep the ball, and probably a 90% chance the game goes into OT. OT itself is a coin flip, so they have a 99 and 90% chance to get to a 50-50 situation. If they pass, they have about a 50% positive expectation (Manning's completion % - his INT %, adjusted for the red zone, where passing is harder). If they get the first down, the clock can easily be stopped. An incompletion leaves them where they started. An INT or fumble is game over, obv. I think the percentages are better with the run, especially considering they'd rushed the ball 40 times and gotten 5 yards a carry against a top-shelf defense by doing it.

[2GOLD 0]

You're missing one of the key points, though. Even a run up the middle for no gain helps them. They lost 12 yards on that sack, I think, pushing the Colts out of easy FG range. Even if Edge barely gets back to the line (and it's safe to assume he'd have to dodge McGinest at some point), it's a kick that's 12 yards shorter.

 

I look at it this way: if they run, even for no gain, there's a 99% chance that they keep the ball, and probably a 90% chance the game goes into OT. OT itself is a coin flip, so they have a 99 and 90% chance to get to a 50-50 situation. If they pass, they have about a 50% positive expectation (Manning's completion % - his INT %, adjusted for the red zone, where passing is harder). If they get the first down, the clock can easily be stopped. An incompletion leaves them where they started. An INT or fumble is game over, obv. I think the percentages are better with the run, especially considering they'd rushed the ball 40 times and gotten 5 yards a carry against a top-shelf defense by doing it.

 

But James had fumbled and Manning was finally on target. They did not believe the Pats could stop the pass and New England was getting called for the five yard rule alot.

 

It was a smart call and it just didn't work. Willie was the only player on the New England defense who was not fooled into thinking it was a run because he couldn't be fooled. He was on the QB no matter what and he just got lucky that it was a play action.

 

Had it been a run, James would have been slammed and possibly got the ball stripped again. They left the game in the hands of Manning and he got sacked big time. It happens. No way they could have known Willie would be on a straight blitz. Then again, he got them last time so someone blew an assignment I will give you that one.

 

Other than a blown assignment, it was the right call. Just didn't work.

[Guest Vitamin X]

The fact remains that running the ball is still the most important component of an NFL offense, the Colts were excelling at it that day, and they went away from it.

Forgive Dr. Tom. As a Ravens fan, he has no idea what having a good quarterback on your offense can do for you.

[Dr. Tom 0]

Hey now, I remember the days of... um... er, Bert Jones, when he was with the Baltimore Colts?

 

Anyway, peep the "Pass for Show, Run For Dough" section in my NFL article. Running the ball is still the more important part of the offense, no matter how much love the passing game gets on the highlight reels.

[Slayer 0]

Oh come on, I'm sure you remember a spry young rookie by the name of Unitas

 

That was back when you started collecting SS checks

[Cartman 0]

Hey now, I remember the days of... um... er, Bert Jones, when he was with the Baltimore Colts?

 

Anyway, peep the "Pass for Show, Run For Dough" section in my NFL article. Running the ball is still the more important part of the offense, no matter how much love the passing game gets on the highlight reels.

Except my Pats won TWO Superbowls with a near nonexistent running attack.

 

Why? Well because they didn't NEED one. they have the best QB in the NFL right now and he's proven that time and time again.

 

7-0 in Overtime BTW.

 

6-0 in the Playoffs.

 

18-1 in games deviced by 6 points or less.

 

I'll take those stats over any others.

[Dr. Tom 0]

Except my Pats won TWO Superbowls with a near nonexistent running attack.

Except that wasn't at all true in 2001.

 

Antowain Smith rushed for over 1150 yards and 12 TDs that year. Overall, the Pats rushed the ball 473 times that year, good for 8th in the NFL (and almost 30 carries a game), and gained over 1750 yards, good for 13th in the league, still above average, and hardly "near nonexistent". BTW, their 482 pass attempts ranked 24th in the league that year, and their 3326 yards was good for 21st -- both quite a few spots below the league average. And 482:473 is quite a balanced ratio, almost exactly 1:1.

 

BTW, in the Super Bowl that year, the Pats ran 25 times (for a solid 133 yards) and passed 27, a balanced attack. The Rams, meanwhile, went 44:22 on the pass:run ratio. So to say your team's running game was in any way "near nonexistent" that season is selling them short.

 

In 2003, they definitely passed the ball more. But you know what? They still rushed the ball 473 times, but that figure was only 12th in the league that year. So the NFL, on average, was rushing more, and the Pats basically went against the grain, the credit for which goes to their coaching staff. They didn't have any one back break 650 yards, but they did amass over 1600 as a team.

 

7-0 in Overtime BTW.

 

6-0 in the Playoffs.

 

18-1 in games deviced by 6 points or less.

 

I'll take those stats over any others.

And what about the knowledge that the law of averages will catch up with you? You can't keep winning close games forever.

[nogoodnick 0]

Ratings are worthless, but fun. Pats looked awesome, Giants should be on bottom. The Cowboys are stupid and sholdve kept Quincy and drafted Steven Jackson. In the words of Jeremy Shockey, " Bill Parcells is a homo."

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

You might as well count a lot of the Pats' passing yards as running yards, since they rely on YAC so much.

 

It's also a stretch to call Brady the best QB in the league, I think. That guy is SO well protected, and he's got a defense that gets him back out on the field time and time again. I've no problem with calling them the best team in the league, but I don't think they have the best player at any position, really.