1. Packers (No. 1; 2-0): After getting torched by the Saints and the Panthers, it could be time to worry about the pass defense.
2. Saints (No. 2; 1-1): The Saints are still pretty good.
3. Patriots (No. 5; 2-0): Tom Brady is on pace to throw for more than 4.2 miles this year.
4. Jets (No. 6; 2-0): The latest incarnation of the Heidi game features a Jets team that finally could be ready to end the season the same way as it did that year.
5. Chargers (No. 3; 1-1): With the Chiefs coming to town, the slow-starting Chargers seem poised to finish the month at 2-1.
6. Falcons (No. 9; 1-1): Though the Vick injury made things easier, Matt Ryan and company finally won an important game by showing up in the clutch.
7. Lions (No. 12; 2-0): The most stunning reversal, perhaps in league history, continues when the Lions visit a Minnesota team that has mastered the series in recent years.
8. Texans (No. 10; 2-0): They’ll have a short trip to play in New Orleans, but a win there would show just how far this franchise has come.
9. Ravens (No. 4; 1-1): Someone forgot to tell the Ravens that the 35-7 win over the Steelers didn’t come in the AFC title game.
10. Steelers (No. 11; 1-1): There’s nothing like a shutout to make a defense look like the exact opposite of old and slow.
11. Bills (No. 13; 2-0): On Sunday, the Bills will put their two-game winning streak up against a 15-game losing streak to the Pats.
12. Bears (No. 7; 1-1): The Bears have to shake off a loss to the Saints and get ready for another Packer invasion.
13. Eagles (No. 8; 1-1): It’s always smarter to point at the scoreboard after the game has ended.
14. Cowboys (No. 14; 1-1): It’s going to take a win over a much better team than the 49ers to press the Tony Romo career reset button.
15. Buccaneers (No. 15; 1-1): If the Bucs could always play like they played in the second half of Sunday’s come-from-17-behind win over the Vikings, the Bucs would never lose a game.
16. Redskins (No. 20; 2-0): The Kyle Shanahan Sideline Joystick Offense is working well, so far.
17. Giants (No. 23; 1-1): The NFC East could be the most evenly-matched division in the league.
18. Cardinals (No. 17; 1-1): The best team (for now) in the NFC West barely cracks the league-wide top 20. Sounds about right.
19. Panthers (No. 22; 0-2): They keep losing, and they keep rising. If they lose to the Jaguars, the climb won’t continue.
20. Raiders (No. 19; 1-1): If this team can ever learn how to win games out of the AFC West, they could become one of the best teams in the league.
21. 49ers (No. 19; 1-1): If the Niners blow any more 10-point leads, No. 11 won’t be the quarterback for very long.
22. Titans (No. 27; 1-1): The team that used to be in Houston could have something to say about whether the team currently in Houston will finally get to the playoffs.
23. Jaguars (No. 16; 1-1): Jack Del Rio’s career in Jacksonville now hinges on the ability of rookie quarterback Blaine Gabbert to play like rookie quarterback Cam Newton.
24. Broncos (No. 28; 1-1): Injuries have given the Broncos cover to try out a potential Tebow solution.
25. Bengals (No. 26; 1-1): Yeah, they lost to the Broncos. But at least they didn’t get Stokley’d again.
26. Rams (No. 21; 0-2): To have hope in December, the Rams need to steal one or two during a killer stretch of early-season games.
27. Browns (No. 31; 1-1): Beating the Colts in Indy doesn’t quite have the same sizzle as it used to.
28. Vikings (No. 24; 0-2): After halftime, the team’s “Cover 2” defense becomes “Cover Nobody.”
29. Seahawks (No. 25; 0-2): This will change once the Seahawks get to play some home games.
30. Colts (No. 29; 0-2): Maybe the Colts will need Peyton Manning to return not to compete for the playoffs, but to avoid matching the 2008 Lions.
31. Dolphins (No. 30; 0-2): A woeful 1-11 at home since late December 2009, the Texans, Steelers, and Patriots each have won twice as many games there since then.
32. Chiefs (No. 32; 0-2): The ACC would reject their application for membership.