Power Rankings
Rankingologist: Z
Analysis: Arod, Z, Fallen
1. Los Angeles Rams (3-0) (LW: 1): I’m calling it now, the Rams are in the conversation for a perfect season- yes, 17-0. The defense is playing absolutely lights out, and the XP should continue to trend in the upward direction as they take on the 49ers once again. It is not a question of ‘if’, but ‘when’ rookie running back C.J. Donaldson takes the leap to superstardom.
2. New England Patriots (3-0) (LW: 2): Gavin Wimsatt leads all rookie quarterbacks with a 115 QBR and the Patriots cruise past the Jets this week. The Patriots haven’t missed a beat despite starting a lower overall quarterback. Dot only needed to throw the ball 13 times to get this win, so it’s a testament to his defense.
3. Houston Texans (3-0) (LW:4): Houston had another scare this week against a weaker coach, a similar style of game to their week 1 game against the Ravens. The Texans have to be spamming the strip button on defense after forcing two strip fumbles on back to back drives that successfully set them up for the game winning drive to defeat the Giants.
4. Atlanta Falcons (3-0) (LW:6): Nef escapes the Ravens by the skin of his teeth to keep the perfect season intact. The defense had some obvious holes, but the team is doing what they need to do to control and dictate the flow of their games. Is it too early to enter Jayden Daniels into the MVP conversation? Through 3 games, he led the Falcons to a 3-0 start while compiling 8 touchdowns to just 1 interception. We gave Nef a lot of slack about the trade and resign of Parsons, but he gets some respect back for the Daniels move which surely is bolstering the offense.
5. Kansas City Chiefs (2-1) (LW:3): The Chiefs drop their first matchup of the year against the Raiders. Four interceptions on the day for Patrick Mahomes is extremely uncharacteristic for the 10th year field general. The Chiefs defense also gave up 255 yards on the ground on the day. The Chiefs still control their division, and playing a cleaner brand of football has to be at the top of their list. They have a tough matchup with the Seahawks in week 4.
6. Detroit Lions (2-1) (LW:5): The Lions drop a tough one in Chicago after starting off with a 14-0. They do not seem to have an answer for Breece Hall as he has tormented them on multiple occasions this cycle. Their young QB Nico Iamaleava left the game with an injury but it’s not long term and he’ll be back next week for their week 4 tilt against the sinking Dolphins.
7. Seattle Seahawks (2-1) (LW: 8): After being upset by week 2 by the Cowboys, Z and the Seahawks used week 3 to reassert their dominance taking down the 49ers on the road. Bo Nix was flawless going for 330 yards and 4 touchdowns. They don’t play the Rams until week 15 and week 17, but you can bet your bottom dollar, those two games will have a playoff caliber atmosphere as we wind down the season and the two battle for divisional supremacy. First things first, I am so looking forward to the Matigy vs Z week 4 duel!
8. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-1) (LW: 9): Trevor Lawrence is averaging almost 400 passing yards per game this season and leads the league with 1196 passing yards. Jacksonville is allowing the second most yards in the league, ranking 31st in passing yards against. So, their offense has to be humming in order to keep up with their opponents. If they can improve their defense just slightly, expect to see the Jaguars in the upper half of the league this season.
9. Green Bay Packers (2-1) (LW: 10): The Packers defeated the Panthers 38-17 in week 3. Jordan Love was efficient on the day, completing 12 of his 16 passes for 205 yards and a touchdown on the day. The hero of the day was Jawhar Jordan, the second-year back from Louisville. He carried the ball 23 times for 191 yards and three touchdowns on the day. The Packers look to continue their momentum against the red hot Falcons in week 4.
10. New Orleans Saints (2-1) (LW:16): Saints climb the rankings, rightfully so, after back to back wins against the Bears and Bengals. With KMFO gone, I am going to call the Saints one of the top 2 or 3 favorites to take the Super Bowl title in season 4 (Even with him here, they went down to the wire week 1). The one red flag going into week 4, the defense ranks last in total offense and passing offense. Is this a cause for concern this season? The roster is too good for them to not get that under control.
11. Buffalo Bills (2-1) (LW:17):Bounceback week for the Buffalo Bills and Josh Allen after getting a loss to the Lions last week. Allen had his first interception free game putting up 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. Sam Adams II was the leading receiver and leading rusher, it’s possible he’s a target for a development story next week.
12. Pittsburgh Steelers (2-1) (LW:18): Minkah Fitzpatrick leads the league in interceptions this season and the Steelers beat the breaks off the Colts this week. The Steelers lost Najee Harris in the off-season, while they rank 22nd in the league in rushing yards, they have used a committee approach at the running back position. Shoutout to 84 speed Pat Freiermuth leading this team in receiving yards.
13. Minnesota Vikings (2-1) (LW:19): The Vikings get their second consecutive win with a dominating 42-7 performance over the Dolphins. Tua put on a masterclass, throwing for 133 yards and three touchdowns. Bucky Irving also contributed 107 and two touchdowns on the ground. The Vikings will take on the pesky Jets in week 4.
14. Las Vegas Raiders (2-1) (LW:23): The Raiders get their second divisional win in a row while also getting their first win over their divisional foe Matigy and the Kansas City Chiefs. While Arch had a rough day throwing the ball, rookie back Dylan Edwards continued his big rookie season with 137 yards on the ground and a touchdown. The Raiders will look to continue their momentum in week 4 against the Chargers.
15. Washington Commanders (2-1) (LW:26): The Commanders get their second win in a row, and cements Miles’ longest career PML win streak. They currently sit at 2-1 and are 2-0 in the division. This is Miles’ best chance to win the division, and he has just the chance to prove how far he’s come since last cycle as he’ll match up with Keraun and the Texans.
16. Cleveland Browns (1-2) (LW: 7) Bandit is ready to take over a loaded Browns squad, but there are questions surrounding the quarterback position after Cam Jenkins was caught shaving points and penalized into oblivion. I am excited to see the approach that Bandit takes with this team because they are coming off a SuperBowl victory, it’d be difficult to mess them up.
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-2) (LW:11): I was really excited to see how the Ravens would scheme the multi-talented backfield they put together this past offseason. Cammy went out and spent $23 million on Keaton Mitchell, who as of the close of week 3, has a total of 8 carries for 2 yards. They’re sitting at 1-2, and a loss to the Giants this week could all but put a fork in their season as the NFC North still lurks in the shadows of their schedule.
18. Carolina Panthers (1-2) (LW:12): It’s all about the Brealon bucks over in Charlotte. The team ranks in the bottom 2 in passing and total offense, but who cares right? The Braelon bucks are thriving! Tick tock, the clock is ticking as we all eagerly await the arrival of ‘Season 5’ JT. Will we be cheated out of that this cycle?
19. Philadelphia Eagles (1-2) (LW:13): Dropping two games in a row is not ideal for HD and the Eagles, but with the way the division has panned out in recent seasons a few early losses won’t be nearly enough to prevent the Eagles from making a run for their first divisional title of the cycle. This is HD”s best shot to get a division title and he’ll have to kick start that with a matchup with the Cowboys in week 4.
20. Tennessee Titans (1-2) (LW:14): There’s some controversy in Tennessee at the quarterback position, and this seems like it’s an annual story whether it’s due to performance or injury. Malik Willis and Will Levis played this week and between the two still threw three interceptions. The Titans need to find an identity for their offense. The lack of a team leader is going to hurt the morale of this team.
21. Arizona Cardinals (1-2) (LW:15): Top 3 passing team, but bottom 3 rushing team? Don’t they have a gentleman by the name of Demercado? Has anyone seen him? Better yet, has anyone seen Que? Going down as a dark cycle in Glendale unless things take a miraculous turn for the better season 5.
22. Cincinnati Bengals (1-2) (LW:20): Give Silent some credit, he started Joe Burrow this week.. However, he still ended up throwing 4 interceptions. Cincinnati actually leads the league in passing yards, so they are targeting their receivers but Ja’Marr Chase leads the team with 406 yards. Nyck Harbor, the controversial first round pick is getting his targets, he is tied with Chase for 16 receptions. The Bengals still have time to clean up the turnovers, but for them to compete in the league, they have to protect the ball.
23. New York Jets (1-2) (LW:22):Greeny and Caleb Williams completed 83% of his passes and while this number was very accurate, it didn’t lead to any touchdowns and led to 1 interception. Albert O was targeted the most in this game by the Jets and leads his team with 20 receptions. I don’t think that’s going to be a successful approach moving forward.
24. Dallas Cowboys (1-2) (LW:21): CJ Baxter and the Cowboys rushing attack cooled off in Week 3 as they only amassed 104 total rushing yards en route to a 30-25 loss to the Washington Commanders. This drops the Cowboys to 1-2 on the year and 0-2 in the division, not an ideal start for a coach aiming to make the Cowboys 4x NFC East division champions. The Cowboys have a week 1 rematch against the Eagles in week 4.
25. Los Angeles Chargers (1-2) (LW: 27): The Chargers get back in the win column after defeating the CPU Browns 41-14. While there’s not too much to be written about their on-field performance, their GM skills just netted them 99 overall Dexter Lawrence, who should have a MAJOR impact on their run defense. The Chargers play the Raiders in a marquee matchup in week 4.
26. Chicago Bears (1-2) (LW:28): The Bears have to be happy after getting a dominating win over their foe the Detroit Lions by a score of 45-14. After falling down early 14-0, the Bears quite literally ran away with it, led by 140 yards and three touchdowns on the ground by Breece Hall. After a disappointing 0-2 start, is this the win that kick starts the Bears season as they try to repeat as division champions?
27. San Francisco 49ers (1-2) (LW:25): Great news, they kept it close and only lost by 13 after converting a garbage time touchdown in the closing moments of the game. Take a seat and listen closely fish. There are no such things as moral victories in PML. You either won the game, or lost the game. Nobody will give you credit for only losing by 13, or covering a 20 point spread. Here’s the kicker too, when you start winning games, they will only raise the bar to playoffs, then, if you make the playoffs, the bar is set just a tad higher. I say that to say this, if you’re seeking validation amongst your peers in this league, you’re chasing the metaphorical ‘white rabbit’.
28. Denver Broncos (1-2) (LW:29): DK is out and the Broncos have a new head coach. I don’t think the Broncos are going to be expected to do very much this season, but maybe their new head coach could surprise some owners that underestimate him.
29. New York Giants (1-2) (LW:24): The Giants fell 41-38 to a tough opponent in the Houston Texans. Quinn Ewers played perhaps his best game as a pro, throwing for 4 touchdowns and 353 yards on the day. However, the news that is emerging from Giants camp is the trade of Dexter Lawrence II to the Los Angeles Chargers. Dexter has been an interior force for the Giants all cycle and we’ll see just how much they’ll miss him as the Giants take on the struggling Buccaneers next week.
30. Baltimore Ravens (0-2) (LW:30):Baltimore put up 500 yards of offense and this was another game where they should have won, but poor tackling and awful defensive positioning allowed Atlanta to drive the field to win the game. Arod is improving, staying with teams and competing, but it hasn’t led to what truly matters, wins.
31. Indianapolis Colts (0-3) (LW:31): Anthony Richardson is tied with a few others leading the league with 7 interceptions and their offense is in the bottom 5 in the league in first downs gained. There’s a problem moving the ball in Indy and it’s very difficult to understand considering the offensive firepower that sits on this roster. There are only three winless teams left in the league, but Indy is not expected to win next week against the Jaguars.
32. Miami Dolphins (0-3) (LW:32): With the amount of speed that exists on the Miami offense, how do they have the worst team in total offensive yards gained? Achane is the offense for the Dolphins, but they have to do better to spread the ball around. Losing by 35 points this week to the Vikings isn’t a morale booster and they have a Lions team that is coming off a loss next week on their schedule, can the Dolphins pull off the upset?
