Week Four power rankings

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1. Seattle Seahawks (No. 1 last week; 2-1):  Richard Sherman is even better than the bye.

2. Cincinnati Bengals (No. 2; 3-0):  Winning at Foxboro on Sunday night will no longer be viewed as an upset.

3. Denver Broncos (No. 3; 2-1):  The team they need to be most worried about in the AFC resides in the AFC West.

4. Arizona Cardinals (No. 6; 3-0):  Nothing wakes up a dead nerve faster than a couple of great performances from Drew Stanton.

5. Baltimore Ravens (No. 7; 3-1):  Steve Smith arrived as a luxury; he has become a necessity.

6. Philadelphia Eagles (No. 4; 3-1):  For a team with almost no offensive line, they’re not bad.

7. San Diego Chargers (No. 8; 3-1):  The Chargers are glad the Jets are sticking with Geno Smith for their visit to San Diego.

8. Detroit Lions (No. 12; 3-1):  Sunday’s visit from Kyle Orton and the Bills is precisely the kind of game the Lions of recent years would have found a way to lose under current Buffalo defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.

9. Green Bay Packers (No. 14; 2-2):  For this week’s spelling bee, Aaron Rodgers will try “euonym.”

10. Indianapolis Colts (No. 16; 2-2):  Thirty years after the Colts escaped in the night to Indy, Baltimore’s current team will announce its arrival by kicking down the door.

11. San Francisco 49ers (No. 17; 2-2):  “Who’s got it better than us?  According to unnamed sources, everybody!”

12. Atlanta Falcons (No. 9; 2-2):  At this rate, offensive line coach Mike Tice will be suiting up to play.

13. Dallas Cowboys (No. 19; 3-1):  Glitz, glamor, glory.

14. Houston Texans (No. 20; 3-1):  Maybe J.J. Watt should play quarterback, too.

15. Pittsburgh Steelers (No. 10; 2-2):  Mike Tomlin doesn’t like being known as a players’ coach.  If Sunday’s performance continues, he may not be known as any kind of coach.

16. Kansas City Chiefs (No. 24; 2-2):  The biggest question from last night’s romp is this — how in the hell did they lose to the Titans?

17. New Orleans Saints (No. 11; 1-3):  At least Rob Ryan won’t be able to blame the lack of head coaching opportunities on his hairdo.

18. Chicago Bears (No. 13; 2-2):  The Bears should petition the NFL to play all remaining games on the road.

19. New England Patriots (No. 5; 2-2):  Tom Brady said he’ll retire when he sucks; when is the press conference?

20. Carolina Panthers (No. 15; 2-2):  Giving up 75 points in two games isn’t quite the best way to win the division again.

21. Buffalo Bills (No. 18; 2-2):  Quarterback change now, coaching change later.

22. Cleveland Browns (No. 22; 1-2):  No Manziel news during the bye week was the best news the Browns could have gotten.

23. New York Jets (No. 21; 1-3):  With games coming up against the Chargers, Broncos, and Patriots, the clock is ticking on Geno.

24. Miami Dolphins (No. 25; 2-2):  Maybe Joe Philbin should refuse to commit to Ryan Tannehill every week.

25. New York Giants (No. 26; 2-2):  Yep, being on the hot seat is the best thing that could have happened to Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning.

26. Minnesota Vikings (No. 29; 2-2):  Sixteen years ago, a rookie receiver helped the Vikings pull off a win for the ages at Lambeau Field.  Now, Teddy Bridgewater gets his chance to do the same thing.  If he can play.

27. St. Louis Rams (No. 27; 1-2):  Take a look at the next eight games on the schedule.  The wheels are about to come off.

28. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (No. 32; 1-3):  The quarterback of the past and the quarterback of the future still isn’t the quarterback of the present?  Sure.

29. Washington (No. 23; 1-3):  Robert Griffin III or Kirk Cousins?  How about neither?

30. Tennessee Titans (No. 28; 1-3):  Ken Whisenhunt says he may have overestimated his team.  The rest of the world properly estimated them.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars (No. 31; 0-4):  Shad Khan is showing far more patience with his football team than his soccer club.

32. Oakland Raiders (No. 30; 0-4):  The bye week is favored by 9.5 points.

134 responses to “Week Four power rankings

  1. The Steelers are in a tough spot, but it’s like this every year. This is a team that doesn’t peak until Dec/Jan/Feb. We really don’t care until then. Still, let’s address the truth: the Steelers’ games are being sabotaged by Goodell and his Goons. Because the Steelers are leaving for a league of our own after our final Lombardi March, Goodell and co. are doing everything to prevent that from taking place. It’s bad for their business. Without the Steelers, the NFL’s revenues will notice a sharp decline. The NFL needs us, but we’re over them.

    The game isn’t what it used to be, and it’s really, really sad. What we’ve built is being destroyed. Remember when players could tackle? Remember when you didn’t have to wait 10 seconds after a big play to ensure there are no flags just so you can celebrate? Remember when football players were permitted to play football? What we have now is not football, but an abomination of suits, pens, and bottom-lines. History has quickly been forgotten and the future looks bleak. The SFL seeks to restore the values we desperately miss. New players entering our league sign off that they understanding the inherent dangers of the game. We won’t modify the game year after year after year. What we had was never broken; they broke it. Follow us. Let us rebuild our game.

  2. The Eagles aren’t nearly as good as you have them ranked here but other than that… I see no issues. The Steelers are pretty bad but they moved down far enough for this week, probably a bit more next week.

  3. With the recent history of “Power Rankings” have the Pats ever been ranked this low? Oh, how the mighty have fallen! It’s going to get worse y’all!

  4. How did RG3 lose his starting and why is not even considered a starting QB in this league? I get that he’s been injured but talent wise, I think he can still be a good QB in the NFL.

  5. The hawks should really occupy the top 5 spots on this list. The gap In talent between the hawks, and the top other teams is massive. I sense a repeat!! #12thmanisheretostay #dynastybeforeyoureyes #wilsoniselite

  6. The Bears are who we thought they were! Frauds! Bear down and down and down and down……

    Cutler overrated, Jeffrey overrated and that vastly overrated D. Here is a tear for Bears, who thought that just because they made changes to their defense they would be better. Clearly that is not the case.

  7. Interesting. The Patriots are ranked 5 spots higher than Miami – but the Dolphins beat them by two scores and got better results at the two common opponents they faced (closer loss to the Chiefs, bigger win against Oakland).

  8. Giants nation requests that you keep ranking us below the likes of the Jets and bills from here on out. Thanks in advance.

  9. WOW! Miami is the only winner last week and trashed the raiders that the patz just barely beat.
    Plus, trashed the patz during their head-to-head.

    Get your head out of your backside.

  10. the tards are not 4th eagles got dominated by us and the ravens got spanked by who dey and LOL at green bay they should be 15th. Move us back into the top 3 where we belong, we should be 4-0 anyway if not for our OC. #Nobodyhasitbetter

  11. The Ravens under Kubiak are top 5 with the Colts in virtually every offensive category only difference is Baltimore’s defense also ranks in the top 5 in Points, yards, 1st downs, red zone and just about every other category. The Colts rank between 18th and 32nd in those same categories. Colts may score or may not but the Colts stand little chance of stopping anything the Ravens do and they are now without their starting safety as well. Doesn’t bode well against one of the hottest offenses in the league, the Ravens, who has sliced and diced some of the best defenses in the league already.

  12. These are always a bit subjective, but, having said that, it is hard to see how the Falcons can be in the top 15 and the Saints in the top 20. They are both playing pretty badly right now.

  13. Feels about right for the Bears. It’s very hard right now to peg their true quality because they have played their last 3 games shorthanded at almost every position due to injuries. It’s not an excuse, but it is an issue, and has kept them from building chemistry and playing with consistency, especially on defense.

    A late bye (Week 9) could not have come at a worse time for this team. If they are still .500 at that point that has to be considered a win.

  14. seahawksfansince2013 says: Sep 30, 2014 10:39 AM

    The hawks should really occupy the top 5 spots on this list. The gap In talent between the hawks, and the top other teams is massive. I sense a repeat!! #12thmanisheretostay #dynastybeforeyoureyes #wilsoniselite

    Typical seattle bandwagoner, while you think the stolen term “12” is cool, the rest of the world is laughing at you. The gap in talent…that is totally hilarious!

  15. seahawksfansince2013 says:Sep 30, 2014 10:39 AM

    The hawks should really occupy the top 5 spots on this list. The gap In talent between the hawks, and the top other teams is massive. I sense a repeat!! #12thmanisheretostay #dynastybeforeyoureyes #wilsoniselite

    Yeah, the gap in talent is huge. Just ask the Chargers huh?

  16. It’s nice how you’re finally acknowledging that the Lions are good this year. Better late than never I guess.

  17. It’s funny watching y’all take the bait.

    Hawks still #1 and should be. Before you get excited about this team or that, check strength of schedule so far.

    Three playoff teams.

  18. Nice to see Arizona getting some love. Even with the defensive injuries I don’t think winning Sunday is outright outta the question.

  19. 2. Cincinnati Bengals (No. 2; 3-0): Winning at Foxboro on Sunday night will no longer be viewed as an upset.

    ————————

    You’re right. Cincy should not only win, but dominate this week. We’re going to play a similar game to what NE faced last night. Shut-down D. Smash mouth running game. Jeremy Hill goes off in this game. Carlos Dunlap will be all over Tom Brady. Bengals 4-0

  20. Let me get this straight. #26 (2-2) whips #12 (2-2) with a rookie quarterback making his first start.
    With #12 coming off 10 days rest.

    Got it.

  21. I’d argue that Steve Smith, Sr, is still a luxury for the Ravens. The real reason why they finished 8-8 last year was because of pathetic offensive line play, which was the #1 reason why they had no running game.

    So what did Ozzie Newsome, Eric DeCosta, and John Harbaugh do?

    Only hired Gary Kubiak and Rick Dennison, and blew up the offensive line to rebuild it from page 1.

    Even with losing Eugene Monroe for at least the next month, their o-line is still solid with an undrafted rookie free agent filling in for him.

  22. The eagles shouldn’t be ahead of the niners after what we saw this week. A few interesting games next week. Will be intriguing to watch smith face his old team. The chiefs have played a string of good games and the niners just somewhat shut people up

  23. As much as I love seeing Seahawks #1 they’re not, at least not until they show consistency in all 4 quarters. Bangels should be #1, Chargers #2, Cardinals #3, Seahawks #4… As of right now.

  24. Falcons #12???

    Dallas looks pretty darn good and they are below the Falcons?

    NO #17??? You are what your record says you are. They have struggled all year even with their lone win which could have very easily gone the other way.

  25. 19. New England Patriots (No. 5; 2-2): Tom Brady said he’ll retire when he sucks; when is the press conference?

    ————

    Just a tad disrespectful don’t cha think?

    He is certainly playing poorly, but so was Phillip Rivers last year and he’s playing great now. Brady looked sharp in the preseason and I hope he bounces back.

    He has before. They lost to SD at home in 2005 41-17. They still won the division, then they lost in the AFCCG in 2006 (After beating a great SD team) and then he had his MVP 2007 season.

    Hurt his knee in 2008, looked shaky in 2009 and then was the unanimous MVP in 2010.

    Why do people want an icon like Brady to fail. I don’t get it. Sure you want the Patriots to do badly if you cheer for another team, but why hate on Brady? Especially, when we all know that if Brady suddenly became available there would be 20+ teams clamoring to get him to see if he had a few more years left.

    He’s older and we all know he may be done at any time… This could be it, but he certainly earned a chance to have a few bad games and to work his way out of it after winning over 75% of his games for 12 years.

    Calls for benching Brady for a rookie QB, no matter how good Garopollo looks, are totally rediculous.

    I hope Garopollo is actually good, but he could flame out in 5 games. It happens all the time to guys that are supposted to be great and look good in garbage time.

    It’s far from time to abandon Brady and it’s disrespectful to a guy that has been great for the league for so long.

  26. Denver may not win their division and even if they do, they might not have a good enough record to get a seed. Right now Cinci has the inside track on first seed and the second seed is wide open.

  27. Again, the Vikings get NO respect …..I’m not saying that they should be in the top 10, but the team that they just hammered (which has the SAME record as them) is sitting at #12, and the Vikes are at #26 (with 12 other teams with the same record ahead of them)……ridiculous and a total sham.

  28. renbutler says:Sep 30, 2014 11:33 AM

    Told you all last week that the Colts were a top-ten team, and I got a lot of thumbs down…

    Slow your roll…they have won 2 games in a row against the Jags and Titans.

  29. repeat from last week ( you can add they beat the living snor out of the skins to the end)

    kev86 says:
    Sep 23, 2014 10:58 AM
    Giants are ranked too low. Lost to the Lions on the road on MNF and should have beaten a solid Cardinals team. They dominated the Texans.

  30. Yeah, yeah, the Patriots lose 41-14 (27 points) on the road, drop 14 spots and Brady should retire. Broncos lose in the SB 43-8 (35 points), and Peyton is the best QB ever and the rules must change to help him win more.

    Patriots sucked last night and deserve a big drop, but if you’re not also talking about Roethelisberger, Brees, or Manning(s) being done you are not being honest with yourself.

  31. I’m a Texans ST holder and couldn’t possibly put us ahead of the Giants. To have the Giants 12 places lower is just stupidity.

    As for “29. Washington” whateverrrrrrrrrrrrr. #eyeroll

  32. These rankings are so off. For starters having the Giants ranked lower than the jets is comical. Green bay, 49ers and Steelers are too high, Bears probably too low; should I go on.

  33. The Ravens under Kubiak are top 5 with the Colts in virtually every offensive category only difference is Baltimore’s defense also ranks in the top 5 in Points, yards, 1st downs, red zone and just about every other category. The Colts rank between 18th and 32nd in those same categories. Colts may score or may not but the Colts stand little chance of stopping anything the Ravens do and they are now without their starting safety as well. Doesn’t bode well against one of the hottest offenses in the league, the Ravens, who has sliced and diced some of the best defenses in the league already.

    Do you think that playing against the Eagles and Broncos instead of the Browns and Panthers might have something to do with this?

  34. ” Kansas City Chiefs (No. 24; 2-2): The biggest question from last night’s romp is this — how in the hell did they lose to the Titans?”

    That sinking noise you hear is the stomach pits of the Broncos and the Chargers.

  35. The Giants have improved every week and are 2-2. The Jets have declined every week and are 1-3. How exactly are the Jets ranked ahead of the Giants?

  36. “The game isn’t what it used to be, and it’s really, really sad.”

    Your tears are ruining my computer screen.

  37. Wow all of the Colts fans need to take an unbiased look at stats:

    Baltimore D has allowed 15ppg through 4 games. Colts are allowed almost 24ppg.

    The Colts offensive stats may look awesome, but it’s largely due to games against poor defenses. JAC (32), TEN (17), PHI (28) and DEN (27). Baltimore is ranked 13th in total D, and 2nd in ppg. This will easily be Indy’s toughest test so far.

    And the Indy D also has reaped the benefits of good matchups. Outside of Philly’s 10th ranked O, they’ve faced DEN (23), TEN (26) and JAC (31). Ravens O you ask? 6th ranked O. AGAIN, toughest test so far.

    So keep riding that high horse, we’ll see who comes out on top next week.

  38. “Who’s got it better than us? According to unnamed sources, everybody!”

    *******

    poor 9er’s!

    But the Eagles at 6, after their so called high powered offense was held scoreless on Sunday?!

  39. Lol at the Brady comments. Really … no running game, no OL , WRs dropping balls running wrong routes and Brady is too blame … LOL.

    How about the Pats are too cheaper to pay their players and bad drafting. They got good FA players for nothing because of their winning ways and they can thank Brady for that.
    Chargers went down hill too once they started taking away all of Rivers weapons.
    No QB can do it alone … Football is a team sport.

  40. Love the hysteria surrounding the Pats. I guess when you’ve been so immune to those kind of losses for 14 years it comes as a huge shock to all.

    But, if looking good in September was a prerequisite for winning the Super Bowl than many of the recent champions wouldn’t have rings. If 12, 87, and 24 are healthy in January than the Pats still have enough to make a run.

  41. For Colt & Ravens fans arguing over stats & rankings is meaningless. If it meant anything, how did the Bucs just beat the steelers, or the Chiefs winning? Let’s just wait till after the game.

  42. I was waiting for the inevitable “Brady v. Manning” comparison.

    I want to thank weepingjebus for not letting me down.

    BTW, people are saying Brady is done because he has had 4 bad games in a row, all against lesser teams. Further, people aren’t saying Manning is done because he had 2 great games and 1 above-average game against arguably the league’s best defense.

  43. Everybody saying the 49ers should be ranked ahead of the Eagles didn’t watch that game. The Eagles had ZERO offense with missing 3 starters on the oline and still ONLY LOST BY 5 POINTS. The Special teams and defense beat up on the 49ers all day. If the eagles had their oline they would have spanked the 49ers. The question remains though… Can the make shift oline bring it together? We will see…

  44. I think this list is pretty accurate (and I got a great laugh out of the Raiders comment).

    I do kind of feel bad for the Colts fans commenting because they really seem to think that beating the Jaguars and a Titans team with Charlie Whitehurst at QB means that the terrible play they saw the first two games wasn’t real.

    Reality check folks, you’re probably looking at a 4 games loosing streak starting with the Ravens and not ending till the first game in November vs the Giants (and that is a tossup). On the bright side though that Sunday Night game vs the Patriots in November will be pretty good.

  45. Houston ranked higher than the Chiefs? C’mon man! KC has a dynamic runningback. HOU has a runningback who can’t stay healthy and isn’t nearly as good as he was a few years ago (thanks for running him into the ground Gary Kubiak). KC has Alex Smith, who is so much better than what HOU has. There’s a reason Fitzpatrick has been on 5 or 6 teams during his 10 year career. He isn’t the worst QB in the league, but you can’t depend on him. He is prone to making costly mistakes at the wrong time. He’s not the guy who can carry the team on his shoulders if necessary. Although I do appreciate Fitzpatrick ‘ s heart. He dove head first to pick up some first downs, and he threw one hell of a block on a reverse. That’s something Schaub would NEVER do. Anytime there was pressure, he would drop to the ground and curl up in a little ball. But Fitzpatrick just isn’t that good of a QB. This year’s texans are better than last season. But realistically, a successful season is 8-8. I’m thinking they’ll go 6-10, or maybe 7-9. KC has the potential to go 10-6 or better. And I’m a Texans fan.

  46. Vikings deserve better than 26 after beating the Falcons.

    Steelers are still ranked too high at 15. The Bucs? Come on man.

    Saints way over ranked. Lost bad to Dallas are 1-3 and 0-3 on the road.

    I think the Panthers and Patriots are ranked a little low. They will still probably win their divisions.

  47. Atlanta is 3 1/2 pt favorites to win the game. They lose and only drop 3 spots?

    Minnesota is 3 1/2 underdogs and they win the game. They only rise 3 spots.

    I could kinda understand this if both were ranked in the top 10 or so, but the way it is now, your ranking system blows monkey chunks!

  48. bobonmycob says:
    Sep 30, 2014 12:35 PM
    Everybody saying the 49ers should be ranked ahead of the Eagles didn’t watch that game. The Eagles had ZERO offense with missing 3 starters on the oline and still ONLY LOST BY 5 POINTS. The Special teams and defense beat up on the 49ers all day. If the eagles had their oline they would have spanked the 49ers. The question remains though… Can the make shift oline bring it together? We will see…
    – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
    Maybe news doesn’t travel to the east coast, but the 49ers are without their best corner, best OLB, best ILB, and their starting nose tackle just on defense. This list includes Bowman and A. Smith, some of the top defensive players in the game. By the way Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree, and their starting right tackle Anthony Davis all went to the locker room during the game; two of which did not return. The Eagles lost to a better team.

  49. It’s hilarious how the week 2 domination of Seattle by SD is immediately forgotten and ignored.

    If/when the Seahawks struggle against the Redskins this week– and just might get beat– and will drop from #1 to…. #1.

  50. what a load …how is it the the Vikings are below all these teams that have had no success ..and don’t even have a better standing ..everyone like to dish on us but for a team they all call bad were beating team everyone says we cant(not to even mention the schedule) ….yet were below the teams that are not even beating teams there supposed to be able to beat …

  51. Giants with Eli Manning and @ 2-2 are ranked lower than the Jets @ 1-3 with Geno Smith? Nice list!!! yikes!!

  52. keppdog23….

    Where do you find your stats? Indy’s run D is 11th and pass D is 19th.

    Denver owned us with the Julius Thomas matchups with linebackers. Philly with Sproles out in the flats where our linebackers couldnt touch him.

    The Ravens dont have the personnel to exploit Indy’s weak middle of the field linebacker coverage.

    Indy’s outside defenders have been solid.

    Its your right to feel that Baltimore will breeze past Indy. I just feel like you might end up disappointed.

  53. Big props to Mike Zimmer for the job he is doing in Minnesota.

    The Vikings have been dealt an unbelievable amount of adversity so far this year and despite it all, Zim is holding things together and has them playing up to their talent if not beyond it. The Vikings may still be rattling around the basement of the power rankings but as long as Teddy’s ankle heals the arrow is pointing up and they won’t be down there much longer.

  54. The Packers at 9 ? Because of their great O line? Great running game? Great defense? Because they beat a team with a equally crappy defense ? When they play teams with a very good secondary they’ll have a much harder time scoring. If teams double Jordy Nelson from start to finish it’s going to be harder for them in the long term.

  55. “Time For A New League says:
    Sep 30, 2014 1:35 PM
    It’s hilarious how the week 2 domination of Seattle by SD is immediately forgotten and ignored.

    If/when the Seahawks struggle against the Redskins this week– and just might get beat– and will drop from #1 to…. #1.”

    Didnt know a 9 point (call it 6 cause that fg in last mins) game is domination but alright.

  56. To be fair, the Jets did beat Oakland Week 1 at home 19-14, totally makes sense having them above the Giants. Also, if you’re saying that Drew Stanton was great vs. the Giants then you obviously didn’t watch that game.

  57. Remember everyone, last year was Peyton Manning’s “best” year (even though he clearly wasn’t as good as in a number of his prime years), and so now Tom Brady “sucks”. It has nothing to do with god-awful OL play or multiple WRs being out or his best target being less than 100%. Nope, if Brady’s performance isn’t good, it’s all on him. Because this is boxing. Not football.

    Go read some Bill Barnwell if you’re interested in some actual analysis as to how much this is Brady’s fault, and how much it isn’t (spoiler: it isn’t very much).

  58. whatnojets says:
    AFC East is wide open:

    #19 – Patriots
    #21 – Bills
    #23 – Jets
    #24 – Dolphins
    ————————–
    Correct, here are the actual standings.

    AFC East
    W L
    Bills 2 2 L2
    Dolphins 2 2 W1
    Patriots 2 2 L1
    Jets 1 3 L3

  59. last week you said eli’s on his last legs.

    this week a little less huh? it’s almost like he had a new offense to learn or something.

    I understand keeping us (the giants) below the boys and (ea)girls until we prove we can beat them. but below the jets and the bills? REALLY??

  60. jchaiss says: Sep 30, 2014 11:26 AM

    As much as I love seeing Seahawks #1 they’re not, at least not until they show consistency in all 4 quarters. Bangels should be #1, Chargers #2, Cardinals #3, Seahawks #4… As of right now.

    ____________________________________

    Inclined to agree…

    Go Hawks!

  61. “Cincy should not only win, but dominate this week… Jeremy Hill goes off in this game. Carlos Dunlap will be all over Tom Brady. Bengals 4-0”

    It’s been a while since I’ve seen a 2-safety final score prediction.

  62. I am a Ravens fan but they are ranked too high-9 to 11 seems about right if that. The secondary has warts. If t Kubiak continues with improving the offense then maybe but not now.

  63. Not sure why the Browns rank below the Saints when (a) the Browns have a better record than the Saints, and (b) the Browns played the Saints in Week Two and beat them.

  64. 18. Chicago Bears (No. 13; 2-2): The Bears should petition the NFL to play all remaining games on the road.
    ——
    Or in the CFL

  65. Chargers are too low at #7. We put a hurting on the Seahawks, even with a free TD by the refs.

    Instead of:
    5. Ravens
    6. Eagles
    7. Chargers

    You should have the Ravens at #7, while the Chargers or Eagles are toss-ups for the 5/6 slots.

  66. The Ravens top 5 and Joe Flacco a top 10 QB? Isn’t that what we thought after 4 weeks?

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