Post-Week 2 Power Rankings

With 2 weeks of NFL play behind us, let’s stack up the teams 1-32 as we head into Week 3.

1 – Ravens (2-0)

There shouldn’t be any question in anyone’s mind about who the league’s best team is. Baltimore has proven that they are far and away better than any other squad in the NFL. They don’t even need their flashy offense to be a highlight machine to dominate teams, as their defense looks even better than it did last year. The addition of RB J.K. Dobbins has made their run game even more dynamic than a year ago. This team will be challenged by Kansas City this week, but it’s hard to see them coming up short. They’re just that dominant.

2 – Seahawks (2-0)

Seattle is easily the NFC’s best team so far this season, and it is largely thanks to their new strategy: “Let Russ Cook”. QB Russell Wilson looks like the best player in football and is easily the early MVP frontrunner. Any and every offensive piece just works with Russ. He has only two (2!) more incompletions than touchdowns this year, with 9 scores and 11 missed throws. The biggest problem with this team is that their pass rush is almost nonexistent, and that allows opposing QBs to tear them apart. They’ve given up nearly 850 passing yards in the first 2 weeks of the year. It’s a talented young secondary, but the Hawks will need their defensive linemen to do more if they want to get to Tampa in February.

3 – Chiefs (2-0)

The defending champs were stumbling in Los Angeles for over half of their game vs. the Chargers on Sunday, but were still able to emerge victorious thanks to some Mahomes magic and a Harrison Butker kicking masterclass. I would pump the brakes on any doubt or questions, as they were facing a QB that they didn’t prepare for at all and who exceeded expectations in his first NFL game. They’re still a great team on both sides of the ball. They’ll face their toughest test of the year this Monday night against Baltimore in what should be one of the best games this season.

4 – Packers (2-0)

The Pack attack is back. Green Bay’s offense has looked superb in the first 2 weeks of the season, scoring 85 total points. QB Aaron Rodgers looks as sharp as ever, even with a WR core made up of people who would be nobodies on any other squad (who would’ve known Marquez Valdes-Scantling would be one of the rising stars of 2020?). RB Aaron Jones has also been putting on a show week in and week out, proving himself to be one of the elite RBs in the league, both running and receiving. The NFC North doesn’t look as formidable as some of us may have thought, which will aid the Packers this year as they face a very difficult schedule. This Sunday’s showdown against New Orleans should be a fun one.

5 – Rams (2-0)

As I said in my Week 2 review, the Rams have figured out how to run their offense to perfection, and it looks amazing. QB Jared Goff has been rolling out left and right, hitting his targets and gashing defenses. Their run game looks very solid as well, led by rookie RB Cam Akers out of Florida State. LA’s defense needs no introduction, as headliners Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey have been making plays as they always do. The Rams needed to come out strong to start 2020 if they wanted to compete in the NFC West, the league’s toughest division, and they’ve done just that. Let’s see if they can keep it up.

6 – Bills (2-0)

The Buffalo Bills might be 2020’s most surprising team so far. Raise your hand if you thought Josh Allen would lead the league in passing through 2 weeks. I obviously can’t see you but I’ll assume your hand stayed down. The addition of WR Stefon Diggs has transformed this once-stagnant passing offense into a machine. When you combine the arm talent of Allen with the deep threat of Diggs, you get a match made in heaven. I’m very interested to see how this offense continues to play once they start playing better defenses. I’m giving Buffalo the benefit of the doubt after playing the Dolphins and Jets. I hope they don’t let me down.

7 – Raiders (2-0)

Speaking of surprising teams, the Las Vegas (still sounds weird, right?) Raiders have looked great to start 2020. Sitting at 2-0 after a Monday night upset victory over the Saints, the Raiders have a lot of people talking about them. Jon Gruden’s team has looked very good offensively, with Derek Carr maturing as a passer and Josh Jacobs carrying the load on the ground. If this team can continue gashing teams on offense and tighten up its defense (which is certainly the weak spot of the team), then the Raiders can definitely keep up in a very good AFC West and fight for a wild card spot.

8 – Saints (1-1)

I think Drew Brees misses Michael Thomas. The Saints offense still put up numbers in Monday night’s loss, but it was largely due to short passes and checkdowns. When Brees threw the ball downfield, the results weren’t very pretty. Their defense also struggled mightily in Vegas after playing very well against Tom Brady and the Bucs a week beforehand. I still think this team is very good (one of the best in the league in fact), but until the offense gets back in sync and the defense starts playing like they should, they’re going to be pegged down a notch.

9 – Buccaneers (1-1)

Tampa Bay got their first victory in the Tom Brady era on Sunday against a very bad Carolina team in convincing fashion. You can tell the chemistry on offense is going way up in Tampa, as Week 1 no-shows like Mike Evans and Leonard Fournette feasted on the Panthers defense. This team’s defense was already great, and the offense is getting sharper by the week. I didn’t want people to overreact to their Week 1 loss, and this is exactly why. This team is going to be playing some great football this season.

10 – Patriots (1-1)

Yes, the Brady-less Patriots are in the top 10. However, I don’t think I’m overrating them at all. If their Week 2 contest in Seattle was any indication of how the Cam Newton-led Patriots are going to play this season, I think they can beat anyone on any given Sunday. I guess we should’ve expected that from a team coached Bill Belichick. I think this team is very solid on both sides of the football, but could really use a deep threat to open up the offense a bit more. Even without one, Cam Newton had one of the best passing games of his career. If you were worried about New England once the GOAT left and Superman arrived, you were wrong.

11 – Cardinals (2-0)

The Cardinals might have been the team I was most excited to see play this season, and they have not disappointed one bit. 2nd year QB Kyler Murray has been playing so well that he’s garnering MVP talks. It helps that he now has arguably the best WR in football in DeAndre Hopkins catching his passes now. Kyler’s talents with his arm and legs is quickly making him one of the league’s most dynamic players. Their defense looks very sharp, with Chandler Jones making life hell for opposing quarterbacks, as he always does, and newly-paid safety Budda Baker flying all over the secondary. This is an exciting team with a young core and a very vibrant energy. I can’t wait to see what this year holds for them.

12 – 49ers (1-1)

The 49ers were hit with more injuries in the first 2 weeks of the season than most teams will have in a whole year. With defensive linemen Nick Bosa and Soloman Thomas out for the year, the rest of the Niners defense is going to need to tighten up. Those players helped that defensive unit be the best in football a year ago. Without them, this team is bound to struggle against opposing offenses (although that certainly won’t be the case this week against the Giants). Offensively, star QB Jimmy Garoppolo, TE George Kittle, and RB Raheem Mostert will all miss extended time with various injuries. Kyle Shanahan will look to Nick Mullens to keep the ship together for the next couple of weeks. I think this team will be fine in time as they start to get healthy again, but for now, they will struggle.

13 – Titans (2-0)

You might think that Tennessee is a bit low for being 2-0, but I have my reasons. For one, this team looked half asleep in their Week 1 victory over the Broncos. They certainly woke up against Jacksonville last week, but I just feel like this team is too talented and too well-coached to have that game come down to a game-winning field goal with 90 seconds left. Ryan Tannehill has played extremely well so far, but this team has had to rely on Stephen Gostowski to kick 2 game-winning field goals in 2 games. Unless the Titans start to beat teams convincingly, as they should have these last 2 weeks, I’m not sure what to make of them.

14 – Steelers (1-1)

I have no idea what to make of the Pittsburgh Steelers, especially offensively. This team’s defense certainly speaks for itself, but the offense looks… weird? I think they’ve certainly played well for a unit that has missed its starting QB for over a year, but I also feel like they should be playing better. Their contest against Denver last week should not have been as close as it was. If they struggle against bad teams, I’m not sure how this team will fare against some of the giants of the AFC. I’ll have to wait and see.

15 – Chargers (1-1)

This rating has one major contingency: the Chargers starting QB. In Week 1 against Cincinnati, with Tyrod Taylor at the helm, the Chargers offense looked lifeless and dreary, despite getting the win. Last week against the Chiefs, with Justin Herbert under center, the Chargers offense looked alive and electric, despite losing the game in OT. Bolts HC Anthony Lynn insists that Taylor will remain the main signal caller, but I don’t think that it’s the right move based on what we’ve seen. This roster is too talented to not be led by someone who provides them the spark that they need. If Tyrod Taylor returns and this team looks pedestrian again, I think the choice becomes obvious.

16 – Cowboys (1-1)

You can get mad at me all you want, but this is the absolute highest I’m willing to put Dallas. This roster looks like one of the league’s best on paper, but they’ve given us a very weird sample to go off of in the first 2 weeks of the year. Against Los Angeles, the defense played alright, but the offense looked lifeless and stuck in the past. Against Atlanta, the defense was getting torn apart, and the offense ended up looking great after getting off to a slow start. However, I’m going to take what I saw from the Cowboys offense last week with a grain of salt, as the Falcons defense couldn’t stop a nosebleed with an entire box of tissues. Their special teams also looked atrocious with not one, but TWO failed fake punts. I need to see more complete performances from this team to show me that they’re better than I think they are.

17 – Bears (2-0)

The Bears are my lowest-ranked undefeated team after 2 weeks, and I don’t think I need to explain why. Yes this team hasn’t lost yet, but they’ve beaten 2 of the worst teams in football, and both games came down to getting a stop in the endzone on the final play. I do see a lot of improvement in QB Mitchell Trubisky’s play, but if the Bears were better, they wouldn’t have struggled with Detroit and New York as much as they did.

18 – Browns (1-1)

The Browns offense decided to wake up last Thursday night, and it looked great. QB Baker Mayfield played with confidence and threw the ball very well against the Bengals defense. WR Odell Beckham Jr. made a very nice touchdown catch that should get Browns fans everywhere excited. But this team’s strength is its run game, led by two studs in the backfield: Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. Their defense giving up 30 points to an offense like Cincinnati’s is a bit concerning, but if their run game can play like it did last week on a consistent basis, then Cleveland is going to be in a lot of football games this year.

19 – Falcons (0-2)

Oh, Atlanta. Why must your sports teams be so cursed? The Falcons blew another 20+ point lead on Sunday against the Cowboys to drop to 0-2 on the young season. Despite that, I still think this is a good team, hence them being the highest-ranked winless team of the week. Matt Ryan and his WRs have looked very good in one of the league’s best aerial attacks. This team’s two biggest problems are defense and coaching. Atlanta’s defense has given up 78 points through 2 weeks, with QBs Russell Wilson and Dak Prescott airing it out with ease against their secondary. And HC Dan Quinn couldn’t keep a big lead even if he wanted to. This team will still win games this year, but Sunday’s loss will put a huge dent in their confidence going forward.

20 – Jaguars (1-1)

Who said Jacksonville would throw away the 2020 calendar and tank for Trevor Lawrence? This team has fought for all 60 minutes in back to back weeks, and could even be 2-0 right now. The Jaguars almost completed a double-digit 4th quarter comeback led by QB Gardner Minshew II, who probably has the best mustache in the world (and isn’t bad at singing Celine Dion either). This team is definitely very talented on both sides of the ball, as young studs like WR DJ Chark, LB Myles Jack, CB CJ Henderson, and more have been showing out. Will Jacksonville be picking very high next April? Probably. But this team will not go down easily at all.

21 – Colts (1-1)

The Colts formula for 2020 didn’t work out in Week 1, but it definitely did last Sunday: ask Philip Rivers to do his job, and let the defense do the rest. Rivers is certainly not doing anything flashy on offense, but Indy’s new starting RB Jonathan Taylor has been playing very well and carrying the offensive load on the ground. The stars of this team are certainly on their defense, as newcomer DeForest Buckner and all-pro LB Darius Leonard are shining in the front 7. Unfortunately, star safety Malik Hooker suffered a torn achilles on Sunday and will miss the season. This team is certainly good enough to compete on a weekly basis as a middle-of-the-pack squad in the AFC.

22 – Vikings (0-2)

The final year of QB Kirk Cousins’ contract is not off to the best start. Cousins played perhaps the worst game of his career on Sunday in Indianapolis, and Minnesota was blown out. Putting them this low might be a bit over-reactionary of me, because I still think this roster is very talented and has proven that in the past. But until Kirk Cousins plays like an $86 million quarterback, this team will struggle mightily.

23 – Texans (0-2)

How can you not feel bad for Deshaun Watson? Houston was blown out again on Sunday, albeit against the best team in the league, and there was nothing the star QB could do about it. I’m sure he would love to have the help of a star receiver like DeAndre Hopkins, but HC Bill O’Brien apparently doesn’t think so. This team can still win games against teams that aren’t elite, but I don’t think they can compete against the league’s best this year. We’ll have to see how they play against teams that aren’t the defending champions or the current Super Bowl favorites.

24 – Washington (1-1)

The Washington Football team showed us a very important truth on Sunday: they are who we thought they were. After an inspiring win in Week 1 against Philadelphia, Washington looked awful against the Cardinals. The defense, which was one of the league’s star units of Week 1, was gashed by Kyler Murray and the Arizona offense. The defensive line still looked very solid, but the secondary was all over the place, blowing coverages and missing several tackles. Safety Troy Apke was the weakest link on Sunday, missing assignments all over the secondary and getting embarrassed by Kyler any time he left the pocket. Offensively, Washington couldn’t get anything going until the final 10 minutes of the game, which was over at that point. QB Dwayne Haskins didn’t have time to breathe as Washington’s paper-like offensive line allowed 8 QB hits and 4 sacks while giving Haskins less than 2.5 seconds to throw. The committee of RBs didn’t look too shabby, but it still wasn’t nearly enough. Washington made the score look better than the game actually played out with a couple of late touchdowns, but this squad is simply not good enough to compete with competent teams. Maybe force-feeding Terry McLaurin on slant routes for 60 minutes is the best path to victory.

25 – Eagles (0-2)

Time is running out for HC Doug Pederson and QB Carson Wentz in Philadelphia. The Birds looked like their wings were clipped offensively for the second straight week, as Wentz threw 0 touchdowns and 2 more interceptions against the Rams defense. This is a team that looks uninspired on both sides of the football, and the league is starting to take notice. RB Miles Sanders has looked very sharp, but that cannot be said about anyone else in Philly right now. If #11 doesn’t improve his play and revert back to the Carson Wentz of old, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see rookie QB Jalen Hurts under center soon.

26 – Dolphins (0-2)

The Dolphins have played as expected with Ryan Fitzpatrick under center to start this season. They’re staying in ballgames, but not playing well enough to beat their opponents. Perhaps once rookie QB Tua Tagovailoa takes the reins, we’ll see the Dolphins winning games like these. Despite their 0-2 record, the Dolphins have a lot of bright spots on both sides of the ball that their fans should be very excited about. Their young talent is continuing to develop nicely, and big free agent signings are seeming to payoff. I think that Miami will be a very good team soon. But for now, they’re still trusting the process.

27 – Broncos (0-2)

Denver already didn’t look good to start the year, especially with star LB Von Miller getting hurt and being out for the season. But now, they’re facing a month without starting QB Drew Lock. Is it too early to stick a fork in this team? Jeff Driskel will be under center for the next several weeks, which doesn’t seem very inspiring. This seems to be another year where the Broncos will be struggling mightily and looking towards the offseason before it even begins.

28 – Panthers (0-2)

The Teddy Bridgewater experience in Carolina hasn’t gotten off to the best start. The Panthers are sitting at 0-2, although I think they could have easily won their Week 1 contest against the Raiders. Star RB Christian McCaffrey has predictably carried this team on his back, but an injury sustained against Tampa Bay on Sunday will sideline him for the next 2-4 weeks, so I don’t expect this team to be winning many, if any, games for a while.

29 – Bengals (0-2)

I don’t think Bengals fans are mad at all about being winless right now. Rookie QB and #1 overall pick Joe Burrow has somehow exceeded expectations through two weeks and kept this team in both games this year against solid opponents. Burrow certainly hasn’t looked like a rookie, which is even crazier considering the fact that this is one of the league’s rosters. Bengals fans should be very excited about this team’s future with Burrow under center, but they’ll need to surround him with more talent if they want to consistently win games. He can’t do it alone.

30 – Lions (0-2)

The Lions got off to a hot start on Sunday, but then decided they didn’t want to play anymore as they were crushed by their division rivals in Green Bay. Their defense was being toyed with by Aaron Rodgers and company, and their offense looked nonexistent after the first quarter. This team has talent, but it’s hard to see them winning many games this year. They’ll probably be down here for a long time.

31 – Giants (0-2)

The Giants were already one of the league’s worst teams, but with Sunday’s injury to star RB Saquon Barkley, they have become much worse. Barkley suffered a torn ACL against Chicago and will miss the remainder of the season. New York’s defense was already a bit questionable, but they could always rely on #26 on the other side of the ball. Now, I’m not sure what the Giants are going to do offensively. Signing RB Devonta Freeman certainly helps, but nobody can replace Saquon. It’s going to be a long year in New York, but perhaps it’ll even longer for the other team in the Big Apple.

32 – Jets (0-2)

Just as the Ravens were the no-doubt #1 team in the NFL, the Jets are the no-doubt #32 team. Riddled by offensive injuries, this team is just unwatchable in every aspect. QB Sam Darnold is struggling mightily, mainly because he has nobody to throw the ball to, and their defense looks like they spend all of pregame watching Trevor Lawrence highlights. HC Adam Gase is almost certainly on his way out of New York, and it’s a wonder how it has taken this long. But even a new HC isn’t gonna make this team better any time soon. They need divine intervention. And man, those uniforms are terrible.