I'm still shaking my head over taking the Chargers No. 1 last week. (What was I thinking?!)
But with another week comes more data, and you will be shocked and amazed at the variance between last week and this week:
2. Colts (LW: 4)
3. Ravens (LW: 7)
4. Pats (LW: 12)
5. Bengals (LW: 2)
6. Falcons (LW: 14)
7. Seahawks (LW: 8)
8. Broncos (LW: 9)
9. Eagles (LW: 10)
10. Chargers (LW: 1)
11. Jaguars (LW: 6)
12. Cowboys (LW: 13)
13. Rams (LW: 17)
14. Panthers (LW: 15)
15. Redskins (LW: 22)
16. Saints (LW: 5)
17. Vikings (LW: 11)
18. Bills (LW: 25)
19. Giants (LW: 18)
20. Jets (LW: 16)
21. Steelers (LW: 19)
22. Chiefs (LW: 28)
23. Dolphins (LW: 20)
24. Texans (LW: 29)
25. Browns (LW: 27)
26. Cardinals (LW: 23)
27. 49ers (LW: 21)
28. Packers (LW: 24)
29. Titans (LW: 26)
30. Lions (LW: 30)
31. Bucs (LW: 31)
32. Raiders (LW: 32)
-- D.S.
Posts
31 comments:
I'll start by saying I'm a Chiefs fan.
But based on the fact that they lost to two of your top 8 teams (but put up a heck of a fight against the Broncos) and then trounced the 49ers 41-0, how are they not a little higher? Saints? Vikings? Bills!?!?!
Gotta go with Dallas, Chargers, and Ravens. I don't trust the Bears on offense yet. I don't care how well they are doing now, Mr. Grossman will not keep up this pace, and their running game has yet to come together. Mr. Rivers will get better (presumably) as the season goes along, Mr. McNair will atrophe (presumably), and if TO doesn't destroy the Boys (your guess is as good as mine) they should be in it at the end.
Why regret the Chargers pick? They're clearly better than the Ravens and should have won that game, on the road, no less. It's too bad MartyBall is going to kill that team once again this year. Worst coach in the league - not even close.
No NFC teams are even in the discussion for best team. AFC is so ridiculously stacked it's unfair: Colts, Pats, Broncos, Steelers, Bengals, Chargers, Ravens, Jaguars. Sick. Two of those teams won't make the playoffs.
Obviously, it's still early - but for the playoffs, I like the Bengals and the Broncos.
21st for the Steelers?!
Crazy man. Crazy.
I cannot agree with Cincy at #5. They were exposed as frauds this past weekend. The Pats were missing half their secondary and the great Carson Palmer couldn't get the passing game out of first gear. Of course all this means that the Steelers are even bigger frauds than previously thought.
Not sure you can immediately vault the Bears to the #1 spot, but they have joined the discussion. Until someone proves otherwise, i think Indy has to stay #1, with the Bears a close 2nd.
The Bears rushed for over 140yds against Seattle, so I think their running game is coming together just fine. I certainly don't see how anyone could put Dallas ahead of them, when Dallas isn't even the best team in their division (see philly).
As for the biggest gainer this week, it HAS to be the Patriots doesn't it? To demolish the Bengals like that, I think they've served notice that they aren't about to fade away that easily.
Lion's are hanging on, here's hoping they can keep from dropping to the last spot.
I think the top 3 looks pretty good. I said it last week, I am from Indy but I would still say the Bears as of today look to be a little better then the Colts. Colts defense is just a little thin right now with injuries, so it will be interesting to see when guys like Nick Harper, Bob Sanders, and Cory Simon start getting back in the lineup how that affects things. Running game looks like it may be starting to come together, which prior to last week was a concern. The Bears right now just have it all. Total shutdown defense and an offense that so far has been much more then proficient to win them games. Until Rex Grossman actually starts blowing games for them, I am not going to say they aren't deserving of the #1 spot.
To quote Mr. Bellding: "Whoa whoa whoa, what is going on in here?" How do the chargers drop from 1 to 10 after losing to the now-number 3 team while Philly beat up on the sad-sack Pack and are ranked ahead at 9?
How can Denver be ranked lower then NE when they pounded them in Foxborough. I agree that NE looked good this past week, but c'mon.
Dan, I agree with most of what you wrote here but c'mon the Dolphins just lost to Houston and yet you have Houston ranked below Miami especially just one spot that seems like a no brainer to me.
The Bengals are a fraud at #5. They struggled against the Steelers up until they fumbled the ball away twice, then the next week they get slaughtered by a Pats team that is one of the weakest in years. And how in the world can you lose on National TV Sunday night to the Bears, and move up a spot?? I know Alexander is hurt, but you can't move them up in the rankings for LOSING! Yet SD looses to an undefeated team in the last minutes, and drops 9 spots...
1. I can't quite figure out how Seattle can get completely shellacked by Chicago and move UP a spot.
2. I'm with "dbills" -- on every PR I've seen, Philadelphia has skyrocketed after beating up on a dreadful Green Bay team. I don't get it.
Isn't the point of Power Rankings to take into consideration every aspect of the game (who teams have beat, by how much, where, etc.)?
THB – I defend the Cowboys pick on the grounds that the Boys have a much, much better defense than Philly. Yes, McNabb is light-years ahead of Bledsoe, but Dallas has better players surrounding him on offense. If they could get that kicking game straight and if they would address TO’s issues and have him see a psychiatrist, I’d have no hesitations to put them at #1. As it is, I still believe the Chargers are the best team in the NFL. Dallas v. Chargers in Miami. (And I don’t even like Dallas!)
I like the Bears at #1 - no one else looks as complete on both sides of the ball right now. Indy shouldn't have let the Jets make a game of it last week, and how deep into the season McNair can play effectively remains to be seen.
The Steelers probably shouldn't be that low. I have to think they're better than at least the Vikes, Bills, Saints and probably the Jets.
Dan no way the Titans are ahead of the Bucs and Lions. At least the Lions score points. I don't think that the Titans have put up 20 points in a game yet and twice they have given up over 40. The only team worse than them is obviously the Raiders. I continue to hope that they get the 2nd pick in the draft and get Calvin Johnson. A Young to Johnson connection with LenDale running the ball will be a nice trio for the next several years.
I was going to make an argument that the Jets shouldn't have moved down at all based on their performance against the Colts, but I am probably too biased
As a Bears fan, I'm trying to get used to this new "quarterback" position they are utilizing this year to actually score points! Go Bears!
Bears, Colts, and Ravens MUST be Top 3 (you pick the order). Chargers and Broncos aren't that far behind. Honestly -- a close loss to an excellent team and you drop the Bolts nine spots? No.
How can you have the Texans ranked below the Dolphins when they just beat them?
I don't want to criticize you, because it takes a lot to rank the NFL teams 1-32 and if you asked 100 people to do it I doubt any 2 would be the same.
Generally it looks pretty good, just wondering why you had the Jets 16th and after playing the number 2 team to the wire, you dropped them 4 spots. What was it you didn't like about them?
Fudgies moved up two spots...WHOO-HOO!! LOL
Ok I looked through it again and now I'm just all flustered. San Diego goes on the road and barely loses to Baltimore and you drop them 9 spots.
Then, you have Seattle going on the road and getting absolutely ass waxed by the bears, and they move up a spot.
I think Shanoff has used to many PED's. He's out thinking himself.
Bears at #1:
Works just fine for me. Spare me the "they haven't quite proven it yet" talk, because, this season, nobody has. The Ravens and Colts haven't 'proven' any more than the Bears.
Bengals at #5:
When the Pats are clicking on all cylinders and playing with a chip on their collective shoulder, there isn't a team in the league that can beat them. How the hell else do you think they rang off 3 SBs in 4 years? I have no problem with the Bengals staying this high, particularly after they demolished Pittsburgh.
Seahawks moving up:
wtf?
Chargers dropping to 10:
They were obviously way, way overranked last week, so dropping to 10 isn't nearly as big a deal as it seems. They should have been 4 or 5 to begin with. And yes, the reemergence of Martyball, which eliminates just about any doubt regarding them finding a way to choke away this season like they have the last few, is that big a deal.
Jaguars at 11:
Too high. As are the Redskins. *Neither* of them are that good.
Cowboys at 12:
Probably about right. No Bledsoe-QBed team should EVER be in the top 10 under ANY circumstance.
Jets at 20:
They drop 4 spots after playing your #2 team down to the wire? That's harsh, man. I'd have thought they'd move up for that effort.
Steelers at 21:
Is fine. After all, they've beaten one team this season, and that is the 23rd ranked Dolphins. There is absolutely no reason for them to be in the top 15.
Chiefs at 22:
Probably a little low. Their D is legit for the first time in ages, and their O finally started clicking again.
Dolphins at 23:
Way too high. They are one of the worst teams in the league, without question. Which means they'll likely come out swinging next week and take down the Pats, but that's for next week.
Bucs at 31:
Probably a little low, but at this point does anyone even care? Once you're below 25, you pretty much just suck.
Okay, how does Seattle move "up" one spot after being drubbed my the Bears? How does that horrible loss make them better than last week?
"When the Pats are clicking on all cylinders and playing with a chip on their collective shoulder, there isn't a team in the league that can beat them." And it didn't help that the Bengals can't stop the run.
oct, how can you say Cincinnati demolished Pittsburgh? You clearly weren't watching the game. Pittsburgh thoroughly dominated the entire game. They killed Palmer and outgained the Bengals by a large margin. If Cowher didn't use Colclough on punts, no way Pittsburgh loses that game. Cincy is damn lucky they're not 2-2.
Ok first off the Pats are the frauds. Kinda ridiculous to call the Bengals a fraud for playing 1 bad game in 4, say what you want about the Steelers game they went into Pitt and beat them. Let's see how many teams can say that at the end of the year. You want to talk about the Pats secondary being hurt that's fine but why not mention the vast amount of injuries to the Bengals especially on the OL? Now I know most of you came over from the ESPN days of the MQ, and I was able (barely) to deal with the obvious NE love that only the worldwide leader can properly give but the Pats are THE fraud so far this year. 3-1 having played 1 good game. If they weren't in the worst division in football they wouldn't be a playoff team. You want to call the Bengals a fraud for playing 1 bad game in 4 then call it how it is and call the Pats a fraud for play 3 bad ones in 4 games.
PHI is about where they should be: pretty good team, but McNabb kills drives by simply missing throws.
IND is about where they should be (Top 5), but they will again lose in the playoffs. The "vaunted" Dungy defense is good against the pass and that works against most of the league when their offense gets the lead. However, they get beat up against a good running team that doesn't turn the ball over. Their small, "quick" D-Lineman get man-handled. Can you imagine the final score against the mid-90s Cowboys? It'd be Superbowl XXVII all over again! (Disclaimer: I hate the Cowboys, but they were AWESOME to watch!)
I was watching the Steelers/Bengals game, and you're right, demolish was a strong word. My mistake, all the way. Reading Shanoff has that effect. Still, I'd argue that it was a convincing victory.
As for Curtis- go back to the week 4 thread, where I thoroughly disproved your claim about the pats playing "1 good game" in "the weakest division in football." In fact, screw it, I'll repost the applicable parts for you:
====Eh? Let's look at the respective divisions of the Pats and Colts, and we'll be able to say who really has the easier road the playoffs. Try to think objectively for a second, although I know that may be an impossible task for someone who's so deluded as to think that the Colts are worthy of the title of the NFL's best despite having never won anything, and despite having barely eeked out a 3-point victory over the Jets while simultaneously stating that the Pats' 7 point victory of the same team wasn't a quality win.
Good teams:
Jacksonville (S), Buffalo(E).
Right now? The teams are about equal. Make of it what you will, but both are 2-2. After losing to the Redskins, Jax has clearly dropped to the "upper-middle of the NFL pack", so to speak. The two games that they won were both basically gift-wrapped by the opposition's suspect QBs, so you'll have to forgive my lack of enthusiasm where the Jags are concerned, despite whatever Shanoff might think this week. Until Leftwich definitively proves that he is better than Losman (and to this point, unbelievably enough, he hasn't), the two teams won't be substantially different.
Mediocre teams:
Jets (E).
After the way the Jets played Indy this week, you either have to a) admit that the Jets are pretty good, or b) admit that the Colts aren't an elite team right now. I'm more inclined to go with option as, as you should be too. It's the truth.
God-awful teams:
Miami (E), Tennessee (S), Houston (S).
And, to be honest, if any of these teams has *any* chance whatsoever of turning things around, it's the Dolphins. Culpepper sucks, and their O-line isn't great, but the cellar dwellers of the "powerhouse" AFC south have far more problems than even that. Seriously, the Titans have already given up (starting Young), and Houston never even had a hypothetical chance to begin with.
Honestly, it just baffles me that an Indy fan could start playing the schedule card. Neither division is great, at the moment, but even now the AFC is better, and used to be by an even greater margin.
3:19 PM
=====
While we're at it, how many 'good' games have the Colts played?
They beat the Jets by 3 points, and since a 7 point win over them isn't good enough for you, this apparently isn't either. They only survived the Jags game because Leftwich sucks too much to hit his guys in man coverage. They beat Houston 43-24, which hardly qualifies as 'good' in anyone's book. And the week 1 victory against the Giants was hardly decisive. The point? No sane person would say that *any* of those victories were nearly as convincing as the Pats' dismantling of the Bengals, and they've played 1, 2 'good' games themselves at most. It's not like the Colts, or anyone else for that matter, are in some whole separate stratosphere. Nobody is.
And look at the bigger, organizational picture for a sec. Guess how many playoff games the Colts have won since 2001. Don't, actually, I'll just tell you. It's 3. That's exactly as many *Super Bowls* as the Pats have won. I know you're an irrational Colts fan who is forced to go against any measurable form of meaningful success, since, well, your team hasn't achieved any of them, but those are the facts. The Colts have won jack and shit.
Complain as much as you want, it doesn't change anything. And until they get to a Super Bowl, let alone win one, the Pats are a better long term organization, and, in terms of teams they put on the field, the Colts' superiors (check out their head to head records, especially in the *playoffs*, over the last 4 years).
Oh yeah, and for those who say that this is the weakest team the Pats have fielded in awhile: it isn't. It's better than the 2001 and 2002 teams, better than last year's, and, due to Maroney giving them far and away their best running game in years, I'd say that they're almost on par with the 2003 team. They're definitely worse than the 2004 team, but that's a far cry from "the weakest in years".
The Bengals got it taken to them on the ground by a couple of very good running teams. Will it be their downfall in the playoffs? Probably, though a lot could change, for better or worse, between now and then. Will it keep them from making the playoffs? I doubt it.
As to my assessment of the Bengals, all that I was saying was that I'm not going to write them off after the Pats killed them. They haven't been exposed as frauds, by any means. They'll be fine. As far as I'm concerned, they could still very well take the division from the Ravens. It's just stupid how willing people are to leave teams for the dead after one loss.
Every team loses a few games in pretty ugly fashion over the course of the season. Except the Colts, and hell, it's not like that's helped them any once the playoffs come around.
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