POWER RANKINGS: WEEK 2

The Chiefs avoid starting the year like they did last year, and get the week 1 win at home. Now I won't lie to you, it wasn't very pretty. The offense for the Chiefs looked rough for a good handful of drives. I think the best thing the Chiefs did, was make less mistakes than the Ravens, as it feels like the Ravens beat themselves. The front seven looked strong for the Chiefs. The secondary however, looked a little rough. Ravens aren't known for their passing weapons or offense, but between Bateman, Flowers, and Likely, they all looked really good. This is a secondary that will need to clean up their act if they are getting a 100% ready passing attack from the Bengals next week. I will say, Andy Reid blows me away every year, and I think he is doing an excellent job by not putting all the pressure on Mahomes to try and win games, and is relying on good defense and timely offense.

After he made us go through all of those constant reports in the news, Aiyuk is going to need to show up and be worth all of that money. The 49ers might be the most reliable team in the NFL, in terms of knowing what you're getting. The defense won't give up more than 25 points, and will get a takeaway, and they will run the ball extremely effectively. This team did just fine without the best running back in the league, so that is why they stay at 2. They put up 32 points on a 'top defense' with a backup runningback, and Aiyuk on a snap count. The only negative thing I could say here is overall the passing game could've looked a lot better, but CMC also helps out the passing game.

Boring, right? The top 3 teams don't budge on the week 2 power rankings, and for good reason. The Lions defense absolutely showed out. Holding that offense to 20 points is a huge victory, even if it was without Puca in the second half. They also were very effective on offense without using Amon-Ra, which is huge, as I thought that they relied on him too heavily, as that appears untrue. It wasn't a pretty win, as if the Rams got the OT coin toss, then the game could have ended very differently very easily. That being said, I saw more good than bad on Sunday Night.

This offense looked dynamic. I think if we learned anything from the Texans this week, is that that offense can beat you in SEVERAL different ways. I think there is some room for concern for the defense, but not much. A divsional matchup, with some garbage time points make it look worse than they actually performed. The defense allowed the offense to not have pressure and constrict the playbook, which is all it has to do this season. Has the Stroud MVP campaign began?

This team could have won the game even when they beat themselves. They were a toe away from potentially going to OT, however, I will say, the football gods didn't allow it. This offense looked really, really rough. I don't understand the lack of usage of Henry, The reciever room looks sketchy, and when Likely is the best target, no offense to him, that's not a great look. After week 1 you should be excited about multiple offensive weapons, not just 1. The defense played well as expected, but this team has some things to figure out, and not beat themselves on the big stage again.

I am going to lay it out, Hurts looked pretty bad. Hurts was simply carried by his supporting cast even more than he normally was on Friday night. I don't think this is a victory that the Eagles can point to and be happy about outside of Barkley, and the redzone defense. For the most part, the Packers sort of beat themselves, along with Saquon dominating the game. Mixed feelings about the Eagles, so they stay put.

I know many may have been dissapointed by the Bills this week, but they played as I expected them to. Looking at the numbers, you wonder how they scored 34 points, but the offense got it done, and it didn't feel like it was at full force. It feels like there is more to tap into weapons-wise, and that's gotta be exciting. Now the defense, didn't perform quite as well, however I do think the Cardinals offense will be very effective this year, so it isn't terribly suprising. I do think they were great on 3rd downs, and great in the redzone.

If there was any concern about the Cowboys offense, I think they for the most part, put them to bed. 33 points on a 'top defense' is nothing short of spectacular. You can say what you want about the Browns and how poorly they played, but the Cowboys took advantage and some. The defense was phenomenal, and even the special teams was great. I'd say the Cowboys made some good investments this offseason.

I wouldn't be fooled, the Rams simply moved up on the Power Rankings thanks to a couple of teams moving down. That's not to say they played poorly, it was a tall task to beat the Lions week 1. I think there wasn't anything that we saw on Sunday night from the Rams that should really worry anybody (outside of Puca). If anything, Kupp looked spectacular, and the defense came to play against a high octane offense, and only allowed 20 points through 4 quarters. So in some ways, I guess they are deserving of moving up in power rankings.

With Wilson hurt, this team was still able to go into Atlanta and beat them week 1. I think if you are a Steelers fan, you gotta feel good about the defense, and feel just okay about Fields. He wasn't bad by any means, but no offensive touchdowns doesn't look great either. That's not even being a box score watcher at that point, you are going to have to put it in the endzone eventually. I think however the performance by Fields buys Russ some more time to get fully healthy, and to force him to ball out whenever he does get on the field. I think the Steelers are trending up, especially when the rest of their division lost this week.

So remember when I said to not overreact? This is why. The Bengals played horrible, but this is what they do at the start of the season. It's no excuse, nor to say that there isn't some real concerns, because there certainly are, but I wouldn't read too much into it. I say that because if I told you that the Bengals beat the Chiefs next week, would you be surprised? No, you probably wouldn't, so that's why they only drop a couple spots.

Now the Bucs on the contrary, I am worried that this could be an overreaction, but I am going for it, for now. The Bucs looked phenomenal, offensively and defensively. Baker was the best QB this week by far, and the run game was efficient. The defense played great, but that is where doubt forms in my mind. They played a weak team, with a rookie QB in his first start. It can absolutely be explained away by that, but it is really hard to sweep their offensive masterclass under the rug.

We all saw that touchdown throw by Anthony Richardson, right? That was insane, and easily the best throw I have seen in a long time. As for the whole team, it wasn't a bad outing at all. The run game could have been better, but they were trailing most the game, so I'll excuse it. Although I have them dropping a spot, I am not concerned about them, I still think they are good, they just played a really good team.

This may be higher than most are, but I think the Chargers looked really good on Sunday. Look at it this way, what were the concerns for the Chargers coming into the year: Defense, and protecting Herbert. They allowed 10 points to a division rival that dropped 63 last time they played, and Herbert was sacked only once. The run game was phenomenal, and Herbert didn't blow away, but he certainly didn't do bad at all either. Keep in mind, this is usually a division rival that stomps them, and they flipped the script.

Man the Saints are odd. Only they would randomly drop 47 in week 1, and then be 6.5 point underdogs the next week. What I'm not buying from this game is Derek Carr, as the dude had no pressure whatsoever all game. What I will buy is the defensive performance, as the pass rush and the secondary both looked elite.

I swear I don't have a bias against the Dolphins, but like they did not play good really at all. Tua looked solid, and so did Achane, but in terms of the overall team, there is much improvement. Remove the Tyreek TD, and they more than likley lose this game. It's not that often that you can say the defense outperformed the offense for the Dolphins, but here we are. If they beat the Bills Thursday night, then I will move them up, but until them, I am yet to be wowed.

For anyone freaking out about how Caleb played, you gotta relax. I know people don't trust Bears QBs, but Williams is far too talented to fail. There really weren't any amazing QB performances this week, plus it was his first game, and against a decent defense. I'd be more concerned about the run game, as Swift was pretty bad, and it never got going in an efficient way, which is the key to letting your young QB's get going. As long as they don't fall too behind the Texans Sunday, then I think we are going to get a better version of this offense.

Not a great start to the Kirk era in Atlanta, but I am confident they will bounce back. The Steelers have a great defense, and didn't let them do much of anything. That being said, the passing game has to have some answers, or some pass catchers that Kirk can trust. It didn't look like Kirk trusted any of his receivers at all, which is sort of mind boggling knowing the talent they have. Defense looked good as they didn't allow any touchdowns, but the passing game has to be better.

The Seahawks were a tale of two teams Sunday. You have the first half Seahawks, where it looked like Geno was 8 years younger and the offense did not want to use it's best players. But you also have the second half Seahawks, that looked far more comfortable in the passing game, and moved the ball very well. That all being said, the defense was lights out from start to finish. Outside of a grabage time touchdown, they only allowed 9 points, and that was only because two of the drives alreadt started in FG range. Truly absurd work.

This is the most awkward team to rank this week, as they lost, but they played a really good team, but their QB also got hurt. A lot of variables at play, but I think 20 is a fair spot for them. I will mention they still would have slid down power rankings even if Love was healthy, as the run defense was bad, and Love didn't look super great either. Weirdly enough I am pretty excited to see Malik Willis play next Sunday with an actual team around him. Who knows, he may be sort of decent.

Let's be honest, the Jaguars outplayed the Dolphins for most of the game Sunday. There is just simply a lot of options on offense for them, and I think Lawrence might have found his favorite in Brian Thomas Jr, who looked like a seasoned vet. Now much like their season last year, they fell apart towards the end, but to their credit, the Dolphins can get back in games in a hurry, which is what they did. It is hard to conain the explosiveness of that team for 4 quarters, so I think you got to take the 3 quarters and 20 points. The offense will likely need an identity if they want to finish games well, but other than that, I was thoroughly impressed.

How about Sam Darnold? I will preface this by saying that I don't know how sustainable success like that is with the roster they have, but it certainly was a clean job. Very efficient on the offensive side of the ball, which I will highlight since I think the Giants have a decent defense. Kevin O'Connell might be the most underrated head coach in the league if he can make an offense look this dynamic with Sam Darnold at the helm.

The offense for the Cardinals looked pretty fun. Two great runningbacks, Kyler creating magic, and they didn't even use their two best pass catchers either, and they scored 28 points. However, that defense did not do them any favors. I know Josh Allen is good, but you got to have at least a handful of stops. It didn't feel like they were able to slow the Bills down at all, and I have an odd feeling that this is what their season is going to look like. The offense will look really fun and exciting, but so will the other team's offense.

So Rodgers played a full game in what feels like almost 2 whole years, and it was about what you would expect a 40 year old to play like. I don't think Rodgers was bad, but I don't think he is their savior that gets them over the hump. That being said, I've been low on the Jets last season, and going into this season, and that's not just because of the shaky QB situation. It is because I don't think Saleh is a very good head coach. He hasn't proved to me that he is. I have never come away from a game thinking, wow, Saleh really outcoached *insert coach's name*. People gave him a pass because they didn't have an actual 'QB'. Well now they do, and they got blown out by a super bowl contender, when they are apparently supposed to be one. I don't think the season is over, as Rodgers will likely get better over the year, but this leaves a salty taste in the mouth's of Jets fans.

Gotta say, I saw it coming from a mile away. Never understood why so many were so high on the Browns this year. They clearly weren't in the super bowl bubble last year, and they regressed. Can the identity of your team still be relying on your defense to win games when they give up 33 points? The Offense is a dumpster fire, and it is all because of number 4. Watson played horribly, and it is obvious he drives down team morale. Guys don't want to make plays for him, because he won't make plays for them. The Broncos may have handled the Wilson situation horribly, but at least they made a decision and are sticking to it, or at least seem like there is some sort of plan. I don't think there is any plan with Watson, or if there is, it is waiting for him to either get hurt, or play so bad they put a backup QB in AGAIN, and then just repeat that until his contract ends? This team needs Nick Chubb badly.

So I may have accidentally moved the Raiders up on the power rankings after scoring 10 points in a loss. It was simply because I still thought they weren't a bottom 6 team in the league, but had to move up due to other factors, like the Titans. They played like a team in the middle of a bridge season, not much to add, other than to wonder when or if Adams gets traded during the season.

In my personal opinion, Daniels was the best rookie QB by far this week. I thought he showed maturity as a passer, being relatively efficent, not turning it over, and even being an excellent rusher. His team didn't do him any favors on defense or on special teams, however, which ultimately got them the loss. I think if Daniels got the first game jitters out of the way and is going to improve, this team will start playing some competitive football. That is, if the defense wants to not give up 37 points.

I don't want to be a Debby Downer, but I think the Patriots beating the Bengals was a little more the Bengals beating themselves. The Patriots got some fortunate turnovers and played great defense, and didn't turn it over on offense. However, any praise beyond that, would be an overreaction. Their leading reciever was Austin Hooper, with 31 yards. That is simply not sustainable if they plan on wanting to win games this year. I congragulate them on the victory, but this team will certainly need to clean some stuff up.

Will Levis quite LITERALLY fell to his knees after throwing a game losing interception. Levis may not be the guy, but I seriously hope he sticks around in the league, because he is truly is so entertaining to watch. I think the Titans just need to find some identity as a team, because once they got their lead, there was nothing that they could lean on. In hindsight, this team is not made to hold leads, which makes sense why they blew theirs. It is built to play mid scoring games and narrowly win. I was higher than most on the Titans going into the year, so don't take this low ranking as me giving up on them. If this roster is clicking, it can be very good. Until then, we will have to settle for Levis creating memes on the field.

Not a lot to be happy about with the Broncos performance Sunday. The only excuse you can have is that it is Nix's first start, and it was against a potential top 5 defense. I think it's worth noting that the Defense did play well in the first half. Other than that, it was a dumpster fire. I can't give too much credit to the defense for Denver, as to anyone who watched the game, The Seahawks were beating themselves on offense. That was, until they figured it out in the second half, and then the Broncos couldn't slow them down. The score makes it seem like it was closer than it actually was, thanks to a garbage time TD drive. I theorized that the roster wasn't there yet, and I still don't think so on offense. The RB room is a mess, and the WR room is very young still and needs developing. I would hope that they improve after this past week, but playing an arguably better team defensively and offensively in the Steelers is not going to be pretty. 

That was a pretty rough watch on Sunday. I think the main stat most people are talking about with the Giants, is the fact that Daniel Jones has thrown more TDs to the other team than his own. Weird stat yes, but that is incredibly concerning. I think that Daboll is still a good head coach, and I think that there is a solid defense there, and some decent weapons on offense. It is becoming apparent that the Daniel Jones deal may be one of the worst in recent memory, and I'd imagine his leash doesn't extend past this season, if he is still the starter by the end of the year.

I know I am moving them to the bottom of the power rankings, but I believe it is important to stay patient with this team. This was one of the ugliest losses the Panthers have had in a long time, and I do think they are the worst team, right now. I'm holding out some hope for a couple of reasons: Firstly, the Saints do this. The Saints are one of the weirdest teams in the NFL, so them putting up a blowout at home against a division rival, isn't that out of left field. Panthers just simply don't match up well with the Saints. Secondly, I still like their offseason additions, they just need some time to work it out. I don't think this is the worst roster in the league, so I think there is a football team somewhere in there. The only thing I worry about is the Head Coach. It felt like an odd pick from the get-go, and so far it didn't feel like a tuned up team. He is going to have to make improvements, because this roster is slightly better than that.