NFL Power Report

ESPN uses five different writers for their Power Rankings, and those guys write like one general sentence about each team. Right here, you get one guy who looks at every team, every game, and pores through all kinds of statistics for interesting information. This Power Report doesn’t blindly go by record but also by the “eye test” to weigh sustainability.

1. Texans. Taking advantage of a light opening schedule with another beat-down of a bad team. Outscoring opponents 126-56. NFL’s stingiest defense, best in points allowed and giving up third down conversions only 25% of time. Ought to clinch the division by Thanksgiving.
2. 49ers. What can you say after a 34-0 pasting on the road? I guess you can say, coming off a bad loss, the Jets caught the 49ers at a bad time. 245 yards rushing, no giveaways, defense forced 7 three-and-outs and turnovers on 4 other possessions; that was as dominating a game could be.
3. Falcons. Down by a point, ball on your own 1 with 59 seconds left and no timeouts? No problem for the season’s first quarter MVP Matt Ryan, who made three big plays to get his team in position for a game-winning field goal. Matty Ice has 11 touchdowns (plus one rushing) to two interceptions and no fumbles, and the Falcons are 4-0. On the other side of the ball, the Falcons defense has forced 14 turnovers in 4 games (and they didn’t even play the Eagles). Redskins and Raiders up next so 6-0 looks likely.
4. Patriots. Two missed field games or the Pats could have had 58 points. Someone must have showed Tom Brady the scoreboard at halftime because the Patriots went on a 45-7 run to finish the game. Look at this: the Patriots had two 100+ yard rushers in the game. 2-2 record but the two losses are by a missed field goal and a controversial made field goal.
5. Ravens. I haven’t seen the exact stats, but I’m sure no one throws the ball deep more than Joe Flacco. The Ravens came dangerously close to giving a game to the Browns, who had two shots to the endzone at the end. The Ravens have the #2 ranked offense. 3-1 is where you expect the Ravens at this point.
6. Packers. Aaron Rodgers finally has a huge game, but doesn’t everyone against the Saints? Packers have had the toughest early-season schedule but still need to be careful of a trap game in Indianapolis next week.
7. Bears. The defense destroyed the Cowboys on Monday Night and the offense went 7/12 on third downs. Jay Cutler has really picked up his performance in the second half of games, this time completing 11 of 12 passes for 219 and a couple touchdowns after halftime. They have a chance at collapsing more often than more elite teams, but the Bears are solid all the way around.
8. Cardinals. Speaking of trap games, Arizona almost lost their undefeated season at home against one of the worst teams in the NFL. For a defense that shut down Tom Brady and Michael Vick and stood tough holding off Seattle at the end in Week 1, they just gave up 431 passing yards by Ryan Tannehill, which makes me nervous the rest of the way. But anyway, they are 4-0 which is better than anyone expected them to be. And their next games against the Rams and Bills are certainly winnable, too.
9. Eagles. How’s this for a stat: there were 9 straight punts in the first half of the Giants/Eagles game and 0 in the second half. The Eagles 3 wins are by a combined 4 points but as the former Eagle Herm says, you play to win the game. Michael Vick played a great game against the Giants and LeSean McCoy ran hard in the second half. The defense also played well, but the biggest story for the Eagles = no turnovers.
10. Giants. The defense couldn’t stop the Eagles in the second half, as Philly moved the ball downfield and kicked four straight field goals. A little something more in the first half would have helped; they punted their first five possessions. 0-2 in the NFC BEast.
11. Vikings. Christian Ponder is the only starting quarterback who hasn’t thrown an interception, and he is completing 68% of his throws. The defense is solid, and when you add two special teams touchdowns to those facts it is no wonder the Vikings are 3-1. No game is easy, but the Vikings do not face a challenging opponent the next 6 weeks.
12. Chargers. Hard to really judge the Chargers so far, three easy wins against bad teams but blown out at home by the Falcons. The result is middle-of-the-pack in every category. In New Orleans next week against a desperate team.
13. Broncos. A 31-point division win is as good as it gets in the NFL. Manning had his best game as a Bronco, 30/38 passing for 338 yards and 3 touchdowns. The defense will be challenged again against the Patriots and Chargers next, both games away.
14. Steelers. Pittsburgh is worst-ranked rushing offense, which seems to be a good sign historically. They don’t have a run longer than 13 yards. Ben Roethlisberger is a quiet superstar; all he does is make amazing plays. The bye week came at the perfect time, as Troy Polamalu, James Harrison and Rashard Mendenhall all ought to be ready to play Week 5.
15. Bengals. Since that embarrassing loss to the Ravens in Week 1 the Bengals are taking advantage of a favorable schedule (Browns, Redskins, Jaguars, Dolphins, Browns). Dalton-to-Green becoming one of the NFL’s best air connections.
16. Cowboys. Win, embarrassing loss, win, embarrassing loss; not a pattern for a champion contender. Cowboys better figure out a way to protect Tony Romo during the bye week. Five interceptions, two returned for touchdowns. The defense has been pretty strong but an offense like that makes everyone look bad. For all the talent Dez Bryant may have, he makes too many mistakes, dropping passes and missing routes.
17. Seahawks. Easy to see that trap game coming after a crazy win the previous Monday Night. Marshawn Lynch is the league’s leading rusher but Russell Wilson is last in passing. The only touchdown Seattle allowed was on a fake field goal so we can see that the defense is still really strong.
18. Lions. The last two games the Lions have given up four touchdowns on special teams and fumbled another one that went the other way. They have also dropped about five passes in the endzone. Sitting in last place, it’s time for a bye week.
19. Rams. Rookie kicker Greg Zuerlein is 12-12 for field goals, including 8 from 40+ yards.
20. Redskins. Alfred Morris is a rookie 6th round pick but has been remarkably consistent, leading the NFL’s top rushing offense attack. Robert Griffin III has been pretty remarkable, completing about 70% of his passes and rushing for 252 yards and 4 touchdowns. He takes a lot of hits and that is a cause for concern later in the season, but perhaps if his receiver didn’t throw a temper tantrum last week and take the kicker out of field goal range the Redskins could be 3-1. Redskins have lost the most yards via penalty.
21. Buccaneers. Three heart-breaking losses in a row. It looked like the Bucs were ready to win until they let RGIII run wild and get in position for a field goal. Bucs defense has been very bad and the offense hasn’t gotten going, either.
22. Saints. Finding new ways to lose. This week: missed field goal with 3 minutes left. I don’t care much for Drew Brees’ touchdown game streak, the last four games have been losses so what is there to celebrate?
23. Colts. According to ESPN, Andrew Luck has the highest Total Quarterback Rating so far; I don’t understand that one bit. The Colts have nobody with multiple touchdowns.
Jaguars.
24. Panthers. Same ol’ Cam Newton, great for three quarters, chokes at the end and the Panthers lose. I’m tired of (1) the touchdown celebrations and (2) woe-is-me attitude. Cam may be exciting but the Panthers don’t know how to win.
25. Jets. Once again: Mark Sanchez struggles, the Jets are down 34-0 and they still don’t use Tim Tebow? Sanchez completed 43% of his passes the last 3 weeks, has no confidence and looks completely awful. And looking forward, consider that his top receiver, second receiver and tight end are all hurt and a game against the league’s #2 passing defense is next; Rex Ryan’s undying loyalty makes no sense. And oh yeah, by the way: Colin Kaepernick had more rushing yards Sunday than the Jets offense. The offensive line is a disaster, this team has no direction and no hope. Rex Ryan should be fired.
26. Bills. They definitely made Patriots fans nervous at halftime, but 6 turnovers in New England turned it into a blowout. CJ Spiller and Fred Jackson were surprise actives for the game, but maybe they should have taken another week off as both fumbled. West Coast road trip to San Francisco (3-1) and Arizona (4-0) next.
27. Dolphins. Back-to-back overtime losses following a win show that the Dolphins are playing very competitively. Raise your hand if you predicted Brian Hartline would be the league’s leading receiver after four games (a 253-yard game certainly helps).
28. Jaguars. Considering the three losses are against teams that are 3-1 right now, it is no surprise that the Jags are off to a tough start (and Bears are next). Receiver Laurent Robinson was concussed for the second game in a row. The defense puts no pressure on the opposing quarterback.
29. Raiders. Strange that the Raiders have run less than any team in the league, but they keep falling behind so much and so early. Raiders offense could do nothing against the Broncos, going three-and-out on four straight possessions after halftime while the defense let Peyton Manning go crazy. Defense has yielded 32 third down conversions, worst in the NFL. It is nice to know that Darrius Heyward-Bey is back at practice and should be ready for their next game after a taking a vicious hit that knocked him unconscious last week (unfortunately, their next game is against the high-flying Falcons).
30. Chiefs. Okay, I’ve given up on the Arrowhead Advantage. Turnovers are killing the Chiefs; they have 15 already (including a league-high 8 lost fumbles) and only 2 takeaways.
31. Titans. Chris Johnson finally showed some signs of life, but the Titans still have tons of other problems. The defense is allowing a quarterback rating of 118, rated 27th against the run, and giving up nearly 38 points a game. The offense rushing is ranked #29, and quarterback Jake Locker has already been knocked out of two games.
32. Browns. Rookie Trent Richardson has touchdowns in each of the last 3 games. Why is Brandon Weeden throwing 52 times? With three injured receivers this week, Coach Shurmur better have a better plan.