The balance of power shifts as top teams fall on Sunday
1. Miami Dolphins (3-0)
Previous ranking: 4
The Dolphins made a big statement on Sunday beating the division rival Bills. They’re #1 for now but let’s hope they avoid the trap game at the Bengals on Thursday.
2. Buffalo Bills (2-1)
Previous ranking: 1
The Bills take their first loss of the season, but you can’t ignore all the talent on this roster and how dominant they looked in Weeks 1 and 2 until they start stringing losses together.
3. Philadelphia Eagles (3-0)
Previous ranking: 6
The second remaining unbeaten team in the NFL is slightly below Buffalo and Miami due to beating lesser competition thus far. The Jags this weekend all of a sudden look like a tough game, but once they get past this week their schedule looks very easy. Don’t be surprised to see this team get the top seed in the NFC.
4. Kansas City Chiefs (2-1)
Previous ranking: 2
The Chiefs fall to Captain Clutch Matt Ryan on the road, but one loss is not enough to lose faith in Mahomes and Kansas City.
5. Green Bay Packers (2-1)
Previous ranking: 9
The Packers continue to rebound from their Week 1 loss, this time beating the Buccaneers on the road. Their schedule is much tougher than the Eagles, so their Week 12 game in Philly will be critical.
6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1)
Previous ranking: 3
No elite WRs for Tom Brady means he is only able to come up with 12 points at home against the Packers. The Bucs must get healthy fast, or they may fall too far behind to hope for the top seed in the NFC.
7. Los Angeles Rams (2-1)
Previous ranking: 7
The Rams win again albeit against a Cardinals team they have dominated in the past. A Monday night game in San Francisco gives them a chance to prove their offense is still elite against a top defense again.
8. Baltimore Ravens (2-1)
Previous ranking: 8
Lamar Jackson keeps scoring touchdowns, and the Ravens keep winning games. They are one miracle comeback by the Dolphins away from being 3-0 and have scored the most points in the NFL so far. Watch out.
9. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-1)
Previous ranking: 29
The Jags rocket up the rankings by knocking their “prove it” game out of the park. After back-to-back dominant wins against very strong teams they look like the class of the AFC South, especially since Trevor Lawrence seems to be developing into who we thought he would be. Yes, the Chargers were a bit banged up but if you lose by 28 points at home a few starters being out would not have changed the result.
10. Minnesota Vikings (2-1)
Previous ranking: 15
Kirk Cousins turns back into a decent quarterback once he is out of prime time, this week leading a comeback win over Detroit with a 28-yard touchdown pass with 45 seconds left in the game. An impressive day for Minnesota too considering Justin Jefferson was held to just 14 yards.
11. Cincinnati Bengals (1-2)
Previous ranking: 11
The Bengals finally get their first win over a weak Jets team. Thursday night against Miami could make or break their season.
12. Los Angeles Chargers (1-2)
Previous ranking: 5
The Chargers went down hard against Jacksonville on Sunday, and now look pretty banged up as Joey Bosa and Rashawn Slater could miss multiple weeks each. It would be a shame to see this teams season be derailed by injuries but that unfortunately looks like where it’s headed.
13. Indianapolis Colts (1-1-1)
Previous ranking: 20
Three weeks, three different results for Indianapolis as they beat the Chiefs for their first win of the season. With the Jags facing a tough game in Philly this week, the winner of the Colts-Titans matchup this week could find themselves tied for first in their division.
14. Denver Broncos (2-1)
Previous ranking: 12
Broncos country moves down slightly after looking terrible in a win over San Francisco Sunday night. Scoring 11 points with nine three-and-outs was probably not the offense they had in mind when trading for Russell Wilson.
15. San Francisco 49ers (1-2)
Previous ranking: 10
Losing by 1 point in a game in which your quarterback ran out of the back of the endzone probably isn’t the best feeling in the world. Now they get the defending champs who they have won 6 of the last 7 against. Time to rebound.
16. Tennessee Titans (1-2)
Previous ranking: 19
The Titans keep their season alive and send the Raiders to 0-3 as the apparent worst division in football in the AFC South finishes 3-0 against the strong AFC West this week.
17. Cleveland Browns (2-1)
Previous ranking: 21
The Browns beat the division rival Steelers to keep pace with the Ravens in the AFC North. They now visit the Falcons this week, so they’ll be 3-1 by Monday.
18. Arizona Cardinals (1-2)
Previous ranking: 13
Kyler Murray isn’t able to will the Cardinals to win this time as they fall to the Rams at home. A game against the Panthers this week is getable, but this team needs to be careful they don’t completely implode.
19. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-2)
Previous ranking: 17
The Steelers need to give Kenny Pickett a shot to be the starting quarterback because the offense under Mitch Trubisky is yet to score over 23 points.
20. New England Patriots (1-2)
Previous ranking: 16
The Pats were unable to corral Lamar Jackson and are now staring a 1-3 start right in the face as they travel to Green Bay this week. The schedule does open up a bit but with two of the top three teams in the league in their division this team may have the biggest uphill climb to the playoffs as anyone.
21. Dallas Cowboys (2-1)
Previous ranking: 23
Cooper Rush improves to 3-0 as a starter and hands the Giants their first loss of the year on the back of an 11 play 89-yard touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.
22. New York Giants (2-1)
Previous ranking: 22
New York falls for the first time this season and cannot afford any more let down games if they hope to stay alive in the wild card race.
23. New Orleans Saints (1-2)
Previous ranking: 14
This was a bad loss for the Saints in a game which most people would have penciled in a win all offseason. The offense looks incredibly flat, and I don’t think Jameis is healthy at all, but most of the blame should go on offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael. The Saints rank last in the NFL in percentage of plays where a WR is open, and with Michael Thomas Jarvis Landry and Chris Olave, that is simply inexcusable.
Offenses with the lowest rates of pass-catchers being considered open or wide open (PFF)
30. Bears (38%)
31. Colts (37%)
32. Saints (36%)— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) September 27, 2022
24. Chicago Bears (2-1)
Previous ranking: 26
The Bears are 2-1 but Justin Fields does not look ready at all as he has thrown for just 297 yards in three games on top of a 51% completion percentage and a 2:4 touchdown to interception ratio. Their game against the Giants this week will prove which overachieving team is for real.
25. Detroit Lions (1-2)
Previous ranking: 24
The Lions look much improved this year, but still need to learn how to finish games. Sitting at 1-2 with a positive point differential must sting but it can be viewed with some optimism, as soon as this team can figure out how to hold a lead late, they will go places.
26. Carolina Panthers (1-2)
Previous ranking: 31
The Panthers defense looked very good against the Saints, taking advantage of their ineptitude to score a touchdown on a fumble recovery and holding New Orleans scoreless until the fourth quarter. The offense has far to go however, as bad as the Saints were they still outgained the Panthers by 133 yards.
27. Atlanta Falcons (1-2)
Previous ranking: 32
The Falcons finally managed not to blow a lead in the fourth quarter. The defense came through with a game sealing interception despite a lost fumble by Marcus Mariota late in the fourth quarter, proof that even a broken clock is right twice a day.
28. Las Vegas Raiders (0-3)
Previous ranking: 18
This is the absolute worst possible start for the Raiders. No one significant is injured, yet they aren’t winning. Three losses to three decent teams by a combined 13 points could prove deceptive, but this team is nearly dead after just three weeks.
29. Washington Commanders (1-2)
Previous ranking: 25
The Commanders were dominated by the division rival Eagles in Carson Wentz’s first game against his old team. Wentz was sacked 9 times and the defense couldn’t do anything to slow down Jalen Hurts as the Commanders are all alone in the cellar of the NFC East.
30. Seattle Seahawks (1-2)
Previous ranking: 27
The Seahawks must have been really juiced up to stick it to Russell Wilson in Week 1, as they have looked like a completely different team over the past two weeks.
31. New York Jets (1-2)
Previous ranking: 28
The Jets will continue to idle along until Zach Wilson returns, as they simply don’t have the talent to compete with most of the teams in the league. Joe Flacco is currently leading the league in passing attempts with 155. I am not so sure having Flacco throw the ball 50+ times a game when you have two RBs averaging 5.3 and 4.4 yards per carry is going to win a lot of games.
32. Houston Texans (0-2-1)
Previous ranking: 30
The Texans are the bottom of the heap this week simply because they do not have a win yet and have much less upward mobility than the teams above them. Davis Mills hasn’t done anything since Week 1, and they have lost to average and below average teams. They are a tough out, but I don’t see more than 3-4 wins in their future.
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