Dave B’s NFL Power Rankings – Week 5
Week 4 of the NFL season has come and gone – the cream is really starting to rise to the top while there is some teams already looking like pretenders in this young season – can you say Cowboys?
As per usual in this parity-latent league, the Power Rankings are fluid, they are unpredictable and they are simply the most interesting of any of the professional sports. There isn’t a whole lot of movement at the top this week but down the list everything has been turned upside down.
Enough talk – let’s get on with Dave B’s Week 5 edition of the Rankings!
1. TEXANS (2) – Beat a tough Broncos team at Mile High in Week 3 and followed that with another impressive win against Tennessee. The Texans are 4-0 and get the honor of facing the hideous Jets. They are superb defensively and offensively they are as balanced as any team in the game.
2. FALCONS (1) – dismantled the Broncos in the first three quarters and destroyed the decent looking Chargers in San Diego. They barely squeaked one out against Carolina but they are 4-0. With Matt Ryan, Roddy White and Julio Jones it is difficult to see any team slowing the Falcons right now.
3. 49ERS (3) – The Niners laid an egg against the Vikings in Week 3 but bounced back in a big way with a 34-0 shellacking of the Jets proving that their Week 3 effort was the exception not the rule. They are certainly an elite NFL team.
4. RAVENS (5) – The Ravens haven’t been overwhelming this season but there is no doubting the talent of this team on both sides of the ball. They play a weakish Chiefs team this week and should emerge 4-1.
5. CARDINALS (7) – The Cards may be lucky to be 4-0 but as one of the three undefeated teams in the NFL so far they have to be top 5.
6. BEARS (11) – looked awful in Week 2 and if not for a strong defensive effort and a pitiful offensive game by St. Louis, this team may be under .500. But an impressive Week 4 beat down of the Cowboys in Dallas has the Bears looking top tier again. How about that defense?
7. EAGLES (10) – 3-1 on the year and finally looked like a 3-1 team in their Week 4 win against the Giants. They lead the NFC East and they still haven’t played their best game yet.
8. PATRIOTS (6) – The Pats are 2-2 on the season but finally looked like the dangerous offensive force in the second half of their Week 4 game against the Bills. This team is playing some defense and finally the offense is taking care of the rest. 200+ yards on the ground in Week 4 helps as well.
9. CHARGERS (9) – are 3-1 on the year and for once the defense is taking care of business and allowing the offense to play rather conservatively. It is rare that the Chargers have a winning record in September and because of it they land in the top 10.
10. GIANTS (4) – The G-Men barely hang on to a top 10 spot after their Week 4 loss at Philadelphia. Despite, the Giants are still potent on both sides of the ball and should be above .500 after next week’s game against Cleveland. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
11. PACKERS (12) – If you don’t believe in karma, look at the Packers. After losing in Week 3 in ridiculous fashion in Seattle, they survived in Week 4 because of a missed 48 yards field goal in a game that they should have lost. At 2-2 the Packers surprisingly lie outside the top 10 in the Rankings.
12. BENGALS (15) – Beat the Redskins in Week 3 with a tremendous offensive effort and followed it up with another offensive explosion against the Jags in Week 4. After an ugly Week 1 loss, the Bengals have quietly rebounded to three straight nice wins. With Andy Dalton and AJ Green, expectations are that this team will remain in the top half of the league.
13. STEELERS (13) – Still Top 15 despite not playing last week! Rashard Mendenhall will return this week and provide a boost to an offense that has been lights out so far this season. Health has been an issue but as this team gets healthier so should their position in the Rankings.
14. VIKINGS (18) – are a surprising 3-1 on the season despite a pitiful offensive effort in Week 4 – thanks Special Teams! Wins against the 49ers and the Lions have the Vikings #14 heading into their bye week.
15. COWBOYS (8) – Ugly, ugly game Monday night against Chicago has the Boys clinging to a top 15 spot. And I’m being generous!
16. BRONCOS (19)
17. REDSKINS (21)
18. RAMS (22)
19. SEAHAWKS (14)
20. JETS (16)
21. BILLS (17)
22. PANTHERS (29)
23. DOLPHINS (30)
24. RAIDERS (23)
25. TITANS (24)
26. JAGUARS (26)
27. COLTS (27)
28. BUCCANEERS (28)
29. CHIEFS (25)
30. LIONS (20)
31. SAINTS (31)
32. BROWNS (32)
