1. New England Patriots (3-0; Last Week- No. 1)
We’re not going to knock the Pats for a Bye Week. If anything, Bill Belichick’s team is only scarier after they get another week to prepare and make adjustments.
2. Green Bay Packers (4-0; Last Week- No. 2)
With how Aaron Rodgers looks right now, and with the Packers’ defense playing very well, you could make a great argument this team belongs at No. 1. Consider them 1B to New England’s 1A.
And man, a New England-Green Bay, Brady-Rodgers Super Bowl would be pretty awesome.
3. Denver Broncos (4-0; Last Week- No. 4)
This pass rush is nasty, leading the NFL with 18 sacks.
Peyton Manning is still throwing some ducks and the run game is still lacking consistency, but with their defense, their offensive issues won’t matter vs most teams.
4. Cincinnati Bengals (4-0; Last Week- No. 5)
Through four weeks of the season, Andy Dalton trails only Aaron Rodgers in QB rating at 123.9. No, seriously.
This is a very good all around team right now, and they have an opportunity to turn some doubters into believers by beating the Seattle Seahawks in Week 5.
5. Arizona Cardinals (3-0; Last Week- No. 3)
Very surprising home loss to the Rams, after the Cardinals were playing better football than just about anyone through the first three weeks. They’re expected to get Andre Ellington back from a sprained PCL this week, and now will have a nice three-man running back rotation of Ellington, Chris Johnson, and David Johnson. The balance in offense should only benefit Bruce Arians’ vertical attack that Carson Palmer runs so well.
6. Atlanta Falcons (4-0; Last Week- No. 7)
Dan Quinn has the Falcons as the NFL’s most improved team so far.
And they actually have a running game! The Falcons have an NFL-leading nine rushing toucdowns, with Devonta Freeman accounting for seven of those. From 2012-2014, the Falcons never topped a dozen touchdowns once in a season.
7. Seattle Seahawks (2-2; Last Week- No. 6)
Thanks largely to some bad officiating, the Seahawks came away with a win on Monday night vs a winless Lions team, but it was hardly an impressive effort at home.
They still don’t have a rushing touchdown, which shows how badly they need a healthy Marshawn Lynch back.
8. Carolina Panthers (4-0; Last Week- No. 10)
We’re still skeptical of this offense over the long haul, but the bottom is they’re 4-0, and their defense will always give them a chance.
Panthers cornerback Josh Norman would win the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award if it were given away today. Norman already has four interceptions (two of which for a pick-six), one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. That’s really nice production over a couple years for a cornerback, and he’s done it in just four games.
9. New York Jets (3-1; Last Week- No. 13)
The Jets look like a legitimate playoff contender. Like the Falcons with Dan Quinn, it’s clear that the impact of new head coach Todd Bowles is already being felt by the Jets. They’re playing his style of football.
By the way, is Bowles ever not smiling?
10. Minnesota Vikings (2-2; Last Week- No. 9)
Winning in Denver with a young quarterback (Teddy Bridgewater) against that pass rush is an extremely difficult task, and the Vikings almost pulled it off. Any questions about Adrian Peterson having any rust or diminished skills have been answered with a firm “No”, as he leads the NFL in rushing yards and is averaging 5.0 yards per carry.
11. Pittsburgh Steelers (2-2; Last Week- No. 11)
A disappointing loss to the Ravens, even without Ben Roethlisberger. That loss may sting even more in the coming weeks for the Steelers, as their next four games will be very tough: at San Diego (Monday Night Football), vs Arizona, at Kansas City, vs Cincinnati.
The Steelers will likely try to slow the game down with Vick at quarterback and let Le’Veon Bell do work.
12. New York Giants (2-2; Last Week- No. 17)
Two straight wins and great performances by the Giants.
New York now has a great opportunity to create some separation from the Cowboys while Tony Romo and Dez Bryant are out. Here are the next five games on the Giants’ schedule: vs San Francisco, at Philadelphia, vs Dallas, at New Orleans, and at Tampa Bay.
13. Buffalo Bills (2-2; Last Week- No. 8)
An up and down four weeks for the Bills. This is one of the hardest teams in the NFL to figure out.
14. St. Louis Rams (2-2; Last Week- No. 20)
The same thing that we said about the Bills. The Rams looked awful in their two losses, but looked awesome in their two wins, both of which over Super Bowl contenders in the Seahawks and Cardinals.
One thing that we do know about the Rams is that Todd Gurley is a beast. The rookie running back shredded a good Cardinals defense for 146 yards over 19 carries (7.7 yards per carry) in the Rams’ 24-22 victory over Arizona.
15. Dallas Cowboys (2-2; Last Week- No. 12)
Injuries are killing this team. They just need to find a way to hang in the NFC East race while Tony Romo is out and they can make a run. We know this is a Super Bowl contender if healthy.
16. San Diego Chargers (2-2; Last Week- No. 16)
Antonio Gates returns from his suspension on Monday night against the Steelers and should provide a boost to the Chargers’ offense. Right now, this team screams 8-8.
17. Indianapolis Colts (2-2; Last Week- No. 14)
They needed overtime to beat the Jaguars at home with Matt Hasselbeck at quarterback, and Hasselbeck will have to play in place of an injured Andrew Luck for the Colts again on Thursday night at Houston.
The Colts are lucky they play in the AFC South, where they have time to get healthy and work out their issues.
18. Baltimore Ravens (1-3; Last Week- No. 21)
Their first win of the season was a huge one at Pittsburgh in Week 4. The Ravens have a chance to get to .500 with their next two games being against the Browns and 49ers.
19. Kansas City Chiefs (1-3; Last Week- No. 15)
One of the NFL’s most disappointing teams through four weeks.
And where did the KC defense go? The Chiefs are allowing 31.3 points per game, tied for the worst mark in the league.
20. Oakland Raiders (2-2; Last Week- No. 18)
The Raiders blew a great chance to go 3-1, but there are still plenty of positives for this young team.
Raiders-Broncos games are always big, but this will especially be a huge one in Week 5 for an Oakland team that finally has the talent to make a statement in the AFC West.
21. Washington Redskins (2-2; Last Week- No. 23)
Nice win over the Eagles for Washington. They need to find a way to win at least one of these next two games on the road against the Falcons and Jets, and stay at .500+.
22. Tennessee Titans (1-2; Last Week- No. 25)
The Titans get the Bye Week Bump thanks to the struggles of teams that were ranked ahead of them.
23. New Orleans Saints (1-3; Last Week- No. 31; Biggest Riser)
It was in the loud dome at home against a banged-up Cowboys team, but the Saints will gladly take their first win of the season.
The Saints’ best football is still to come as it’s clear Drew Brees isn’t yet 100%.
24. Philadelphia Eagles (1-3; Last Week- No. 19)
It’s time for the Eagles’ offense to show some consistency, and the team to, you know, win games.
25. Chicago Bears (1-3; Last Week- No. 32)
That was a very impressive first win for the Bears over a solid Raiders team in Week 4.
While the narratives will try to tell you otherwise, Jay Cutler is a very tough quarterback and showed that again by playing through a hamstring injury that was expected to keep him out for at least another week or two. Not only did Cutler play through the injury, but he played very well, and led Chicago to a game-winning drive.
26. Detroit Lions (0-4; Last Week- No. 24)
0-4, but robbed of what would’ve been a fantastic win at Seattle over the Seahawks on Monday night. It will be interesting to see how the Lions respond, but at 0-4, they may be in too large of a hole for it to matter when talking playoff contention.
27. Cleveland Browns (1-3; Last Week- No. 27)
The loss at San Diego was in very Browns fashion. That would’ve been a very nice road win to get to .500, but instead sit at 1-3.
28. Miami Dolphins (1-3; Last Week- No. 22; Biggest Faller)
Another embarrassing effort from this team finally got Joe Philbin fired.
As we talk about every week on here, the Dolphins definitely have more talent than their performance on the field would lead you to believe. We’ll see if things change under interim head coach Dan Campbell. Whatever the case, things can’t get much worse.
29. Houston Texans (1-3; Last Week- No. 26)
We knew the quarterback situation was a mess, but allowing 48 points as the Texans did in Week 4 at Atlanta? The defense has to be a strength (and probably has to be an elite unit) for this team to be competitive.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-3; Last Week- No. 29)
There is some talent on this team, but not enough to afford to keep missing the field goals that they are.
31. San Francisco 49ers (1-3; Last Week- No. 28)
Colin Kaepernick keeps going backwards. It’s hard to watch.
32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-3: Last Week- No. 30)
Looking like the favorites to pick No. 1 overall in the draft, again.
