With one week in the books, it’s time to reconfigure the Power Rankings.
For those of you who think that a win by your favorite team guarantees a spot in the top 16, think again.
And for those of you who review these in the Rumor Mill, click again.
1. New Orleans Saints (No. 1 last week; 1-0): It wasn’t pretty, but the fleur-de-lis are still kings of the hill.
2. Baltimore Ravens (No. 3; 1-0): Less than two years after spoiling the Texas Stadium swan song, the Ravens screwed up the Jets’ coming-out party at the new Meadowlands Stadium.
3. New England Patriots (No. 8; 1-0): Sending the Jets to 0-2 could be as satisfying for the Pats as any of their Super Bowl wins.
4. Minnesota Vikings (No. 4; 0-1): The schedule doesn’t get much easier, but losing by only five on the night they raised the banner in New Orleans is no cause for panic.
5. Green Bay Packers (No. 7; 1-0): Despite handing out multiple concussions to Eagles players, the Packers need to learn how to deliver a knockout blow.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (No. 10; 1-0): If Troy Polamalu stays healthy, the Steelers could be at No. 1 by Halloween.
7. Houston Texans (No. 13; 1-0): If the Texans don’t get too carried away with a possible changing-of-the-guard win over Indy, this could be Houston’s year to make some real noise.
8. Tennessee Titans (No. 17; 1-0): Why do we have a feeling that the team that used to play in Houston is on a collision course with the team that currently plays there?
9. Indianapolis Colts (No. 2; 0-1): Since starting the 2009 season with a 14-0 record, the Colts are 2-4, with an average margin of defeat in excess of 15.
10. New York Jets (No. 6; 0-1): Giants fans finally have forgiven the Ravens for Super Bowl XXXV.
11. Miami Dolphins (No. 12; 1-0): A much tougher test than Trent Edwards comes on Sunday, when the Fins get a full dose of Favre.
12. New York Giants (No. 14; 1-0): What better way to open the new stadium than winning there on Sunday, and then watching the Jets lose there on Monday?
13. Washington Redskins (No. 19; 1-0): Albert Haynesworth has volunteered to be traded to the Cowboys and play right tackle.
14. Dallas Cowboys (No. 5; 0-1): It could be a long year for Wade Phillips. Or maybe it will be a short one.
15. Jacksonville Jaguars (No. 18; 1-0): Kassim Osgood made the most of his chance to finally play offense by delivering a game-winning touchdown reception.
16. Kansas City Chiefs (No. 25; 1-0): The Chiefs gave Philip Rivers a much-needed “Code Red.”
17. San Diego Chargers (No. 9; 0-1): Another year, another slow start for the Chargers.
18. Cincinnati Bengals (No. 11; 0-1): Maybe Batman and Robin left the field early at halftime because they thought the Commissioner had activated the Batsignal. (Hat tip to PFT reader who put that either in the comments or on Twitter, or both.)
19. Atlanta Falcons (No. 15; 0-1): If Matt Ryan wants to be a top-five quarterback, he needs to deliver late wins on the road against tough teams.
20. Philadelphia Eagles (No. 16; 0-1): Some Eagles fans already want to know if the Redskins maybe would trade Donovan McNabb back to Philly.
21. Chicago Bears (No. 23; 1-0): Needing a fluke to beat a team that had won only two games in two years is not the ideal way to start the season.
22. Denver Broncos (No. 21; 0-1): The Broncos are now 2-9 since starting 6-0 last year.
23. Carolina Panthers (No. 22; 0-1): In anticipation of his first start, Jimmy Clausen will spend extra time working on throwing . . . his receivers under the bus.
24. Seattle Seahawks (No. 26; 1-0): The Seahawks won their opening game by 25 points. And last year they won it by 28. And then they lost 11 of the next 15.
25. Arizona Cardinals (No. 24; 1-0): Unless the Rams have gotten a lot better, the Cardinals could be in for a long year.
26. San Francisco 49ers (No. 20; 0-1): Mike Singletary could be thanking a lot more opposing coaches this year.
27. Detroit Lions (No. 29; 0-1): Over the next few weeks, Shaun Hill gets a chance to prove that the Niners kept the wrong guy.
28. St. Louis Rams (No. 30; 0-1): Sam Bradford will need another shoulder operation after throwing more than 50 passes on Sunday.
29. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (No. 32; 1-0): Quietly, the Bucs have won three of their last four games.
30. Cleveland Browns (No. 27; 0-1): Jake Delhomme’s redemption had a much shorter shelf-life than his disintegration.
31. Oakland Raiders (No. 28; 0-1): It’s a good thing the Raiders have improved so much since last year.
32. Buffalo Bills (No. 31; 0-1): It’s a good thing the Bills hired an offensive genius.