Wow. This past weekend in the NFL was full of surprises: Tom Brady's injury, the Chargers' last-second loss, the pounding the Bears put on the Colts...the list goes on and on. Here's our power rankings for week 2 (warning: full of movers and shakers).
1. Dallas Cowboys (1-0)
Why: The Cowboys retain the top spot after their convincing 28-10 victory over the Browns. Their offense was rolling, and their defense shut down Braylon Edwards and company.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0)
Why: Pittsburgh's 38-17 defeat of the Texans sounds impressive enough already, but Houston also scored both of their touchdowns during garbage time in the 4th quarter. Willie Parker was strong, and James Harrison led the defense with 3 sacks and a forced fumble.
3. New Orleans Saints (1-0)
Why: The Saints eked out a 24-20 victory at home against the Bucs, and, as expected, their offense was explosive. If their defense can continue to play just semi-decently, New Orleans will push for the Super Bowl.
4. New York Giants (1-0)
Why: The Giants were in control for the entire game in their 16-7 win over the Redskins, even if it wasn't quite reflected in the score. Their pass defense was outstanding, and Eli Manning played well.
5. Green Bay Packers (1-0)
Why: The Packers, with the exception of Aaron Rodgers, return largely the same 13-3 team from last year to this 2008 season, and they looked good in their 24-19 win over the Vikings. Aaron Rodgers handled his first ever NFL start with poise, and Ryan Grant had a good game against the tough Viking run defense.
6. Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)
Why: The Eagles rolled over the Rams 38-3 on Sunday. Donovan McNabb looked like his old self, throwing for 361 yards and 3 touchdowns without even having his top 2 receivers.
7. Tennessee Titans (1-0)
Why: Tennessee's defense was relentless in the team's impressive 17-10 win over the Jaguars with 7 sacks, 2 interceptions, and a forced fumble. Despite their struggles at quarterback, the Titans are still very solid overall.
8. Indianapolis Colts (0-1)
Why: The Colts looked horrible in their 29-13 loss to the Bears on Sunday night. Peyton Manning was hesitant and rusty after missing the preseason while resting his knee.
9. San Diego Chargers (0-1)
Why: The Chargers lost a heartbreaker to Carolina, 26-24, after Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme connected with Donte Rosario in the end zone on the final play. They also lost Pro Bowler Shawne Merriman for the season after he opted today to have surgery on torn knee ligaments.
10. Denver Broncos (1-0)
Why: The Broncos dominated on both sides of the football in their 41-14 victory against the Raiders. As long as their defense can stop the run, Denver will win games, as Jay Cutler and the offense can put up a lot of points.
On the bubble: Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars, Carolina Panthers
If you agree or disagree with any part of our rankings, leave a comment!
Come back next Tuesday for week 3 rankings.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
NFL Week 2 Power Rankings
Posted by james at 4:38 PM
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4 Comments:
wow okay first why is San Diego behind Indy when they had a closer game and are better overall even without Merriman. second why is Tampa Bay not on the list despite coming close to beating the number 3 team, New Orleans. third why does it say that the broncos will win games if they can shut down the run when the reason for their blowout of Oakland was because of good pass defense shutting down Oakland until the 4th when it didn't even matter. They gave up almost 150 yds to fargas and mcfadden.
hello anonymous
addressing your concerns:
-san diego is behind indy precisely because of the reason that you gave...merriman is probably their best and most important player and is their leader on defense
indy lost because of manning's troubles, which are likely short-term, and because of their poor run defense
chicago was focusing on stopping bob sanders, which they did very well, but expect indy to make adjustments to this
-tampa bay isn't in the rankings because, despite the 24-20 score, the game was controlled mostly by new orleans
the bucs only had one offensive touchdown, since their other score was an interception return by philip buchanon
they did do a good job of staying in the game though...if they play well this week, they could move up
-the broncos only gave up that many yards to fargas and mcfadden because most of the yards were gained in the 4th quarter when it didn't matter anymore...fargas had a 42 yard run in the 4th along with some other 7 or 8 yard carries
the broncos shut down the two backs when the game was still within reach for the raiders...they stopped mcfadden on a 4th and 1, and also stopped them on 3rd and short on several occasions
dont you think the bills deserve to be in the top 10? the chargers lost a close one, but they also lost their best defensive player...the bills dominated, i wanna hear your take on them.
yes, the bills played very well last weekend against the seahawks...i tried to squeeze them in, but there really weren't any teams that i could drop, so they got stuck at the top of the teams on the bubble
i think that with brady's injury, the bills are the top team in the nfc east...look for them to move up if they play well this week against the jags
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