I said there would be a lot of movement in the power rankings as teams find their footing early this season, and that continues after a wild Week 3.
1. Buffalo Bills (3-0) | Last week: 2 (+1)
The biggest test of their young season comes this Sunday night at Baltimore, but the Bills look scary right now. All that you would have hoped for—a freer and more balanced offense, continued strong play from the secondary, the reemergence of Von Miller—has come to be through three games.
2. Kansas City Chiefs (3-0) | Last week: 1 (-1)
While they might not look all that scary in terms of blowing teams out, finding a way to win games behind a totally disrespected defense has been the MO for the Chiefs in recent years.
3. Detroit Lions (2-1) | Last week: 7 (+4)
A strong bounce-back effort from the Lions included David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs controlling the game on the ground behind the offensive line—a formula that’ll open things up for the rest of the offense.
4. Minnesota Vikings (3-0) | Last week: 12 (+8)
The Vikings defense continues to play at a high level, with five-plus sacks in each of their wins during the 3-0 start. Sam Darnold threw four touchdowns to four different receivers, and Bill Belichick had fitting comments about Darnold’s start with Minnesota:
"Right now the Vikings are one of the top two or three teams in the league..
Everybody has liked Sam Darnold except for the Jets" ~ Bill Belichick #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/Q6OadTmjwl
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 23, 2024
5. Seattle Seahawks (3-0) | Last week: 10 (+5)
Seattle’s the first team since the 1979 Steelers to start 3-0 while allowing under 150 pass yards in each game. The schedule has not been overly imposing in the passing attack department, but the unit really flies around.
6. Houston Texans (2-1) | Last week: 3 (-3)
Brian Flores’ defense gave C.J. Stroud and the Texans fits, but I think Houston was missing Joe Mixon (ankle) as one of the most underrated players and tone-setters in the league. Looking to get back on track, the Texans have the chance to put the Jaguars into an 0-4 hole this Sunday.
7. San Francisco 49ers (1-2) | Last week: 5 (-2)
Brock Purdy was outstanding in the Niners’ loss to the Rams, and it was a game he—by scrambling around with a seemingly effortless ability to make plays, including three scores to Jauan Jennings—and San Francisco were controlling until late. The determined defense shouldn’t have much trouble hosting the Pats this week.
8. Baltimore Ravens (1-2) | Last week: 9 (+1)
Derrick Henry is still Derrick Henry, running all over a Cowboys defense that fell behind early to Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. One concern for Baltimore is that—while they didn’t blow the lead this time—has shown some trouble closing out games.
9. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-0) | Last week: 11 (+2)
The teams they’ve faced have profiled as defensive matchups, but the Steelers are allowing a league-best 8.7 points per game. Mike Tomlin gets the most out of his guys.
10. Philadelphia Eagles (2-1) | Last week: 16 (+6)
Led by flash plays by Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter, the Eagles defense had a major bounce back effort in slowing down the red-hot Saints offense. Philly’s offense woke up late in the victory, and this week against a Bucs team that’s had their number will be another good test.
11. New Orleans Saints (2-1) | Last week: 4 (-7)
The Saints came back down to earth a bit in their loss to the Eagles, and losing center Erik McCoy (groin) for several weeks is a critical blow to the offense.
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-1) | Last week: 6 (-6)
Maybe it was somewhat of a letdown from the hard-fought win at Detroit in Week 2, but the Bucs struggled to do much of anything at home versus the Broncos. We’ll see if the defense can get healthier for this Sunday.
13. Green Bay Packers (2-1) | Last week: 15 (+2)
Malik Willis again played great in place of Jordan Love, and he got to do it against his former team in his second start. Jaire Alexander had a pick-six to highlight a defensive effort that included eight sacks against the Titans. This week’s matchup with the Vikings is going to be fun.
14. Dallas Cowboys (1-2) | Last week: 8 (-6)
The defense getting torched at home has been a regular occurrence dating back to last postseason, and I think it’d help to get the run game going to control things more—which is what Mike McCarthy wants to do.
15. New York Jets (2-1) | Last week: 18 (+3)
The Jets defense used blitzes much more than usual last Thursday night, and it paid off with a shutdown of New England. Offensively, Aaron Rodgers had a throwback type of performance for an attack that’s finding a groove.
16. Los Angeles Chargers (2-1) | Last week: 13 (-3)
Despite the drop of a few spots in this week’s power rankings (partly due to Justin Herbert continuing to be banged up), I love how the Chargers have looked under Jim Harbaugh. I’m anxious to see the defense perform against Kansas City this week, though it’ll be without star safety Derwin James due to his one game suspension.
17. Los Angeles Rams (1-2) | Last week: 24 (+7)
Both sides were banged up, but the Rams even more so on offense—yet Sean McVay’s club found a way, spearheaded by three Kyren Williams touchdowns—to get the win over the Niners and avoid 0-3. Williams doesn’t get enough praise for his ability as one of the league’s top playmakers.
18. Arizona Cardinals (1-2) | Last week: 17 (-1)
The Cardinals were in it versus the Lions, so it was disappointing to see Kyler Murray show some of the visible frustration he sometimes displays when things aren’t going right. Expect a big game from Murray and Marvin Harrison Jr. versus the Commanders in Week 4.
19. Indianapolis Colts (1-2) | Last week: 22 (+3)
It took a big effort from Jonathan Taylor (23 carries, 110 yards, two touchdowns) and the defense—with a key strip sack from rookie first-rounder Laiatu Latu—but the Colts got their first win of 2024 over the Bears. I think Anthony Richardson, coming off a second straight poor outing, just needs to relax and not press.
20. Atlanta Falcons (1-2) | Last week: 20
The late non-pass-interference call that was not made on what would’ve set the Falcons up for first-and-goal at the one and a great shot to win the game is an unfortunate story, but at least the Falcons had the defending champions on the ropes on Sunday night.
21. Denver Broncos (1-2) | Last week: 28 (+7)
That was more like it for the Broncos offense, which featured Bo Nix moving around more and looking comfortable operating Sean Payton’s offense. This week against the Jets—with some bad blood there—is a key test.
22. Washington Commanders (2-1) | Last week: 29 (+7)
Jayden Daniels was one of the top performers of Week 3, setting the NFL record for single-game completion percentage by a rookie, capped by a total dime touchdown throw to Terry McLaurin to basically ice the game at Cincy. The defense needs work, but Daniels is doing what it takes to move the ball and score points.
23. Chicago Bears (1-2) | Last week: 19 (-4)
The Bears have dropped two straight after starting the year 1-0, and they must take advantage of the winnable matchups coming up on the schedule before a brutal stretch kicks off in mid-November. Perhaps things will change, but free agent running back signing D’Andre Swift never felt like a great fit for Chicago in my opinion, and we’ll see if Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson get more work as they look to get something going on the ground.
24. Cincinnati Bengals (0-3) | Last week: 14 (-10)
If a team was going to start 0-3 and make a run, the Bengals would be among the most likely to do so given their history of slow starts. However, the play of the defense is highly concerning and quite surprising.
25. New York Giants (1-2) | Last week: 31 (+6)
Cleveland is a mess right now, but the Giants move up after looking much more like the team they were hoping for last week, with nine players recording half a sack. Rookie receiver Malik Nabers is already a superstar.
26. Miami Dolphins (1-2) | Last week: 23 (-3)
Mike McDaniel structured everything around Tua Tagovailoa, and quarterback situation for Miami is holding them back right now. Seattle was a very difficult draw for the Dolphins, though, and they’ll look to find something that works this Monday night against the Titans.
27. Carolina Panthers (1-2) | Last week: 32 (+5)
Given the play of the offensive line—one of the most important pieces of having success in the NFL—and the way Andy Dalton threw the ball in his first start of the year, the Panthers deserve a nice leap in the power rankings after beating the Raiders.
28. Las Vegas Raiders (1-2) | Last week: 21 (-7)
For Vegas, obviously not the home opener you want or expect. Head coach Antonio Pierce’s post-game comments about “business decisions” being made by players were eye-opening, and we’ll see how the team responds.
29. Cleveland Browns (1-2) | Last week: 25 (-4)
Too much is being asked of the Browns defense right now, and the Deshaun Watson experiment continues to provide disastrous results.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-3) | Last week: 26 (-4)
Something feels broken with the Jaguars right now. They must make it a game at the very least this Sunday against the division-leading Texans.
31. New England Patriots (1-2) | Last week: 27 (-4)
The Week 1 win over the Bengals is not looking as impressive in hindsight, and overall the Patriots reverted back to how we expected them to look last Thursday night. I thought it was unfair to put rookie quarterback Drake Maye out there at the end of the loss—and then not even call timeouts to see if they could at least get in the end zone on top of it.
32. Tennessee Titans (0-3) | Last week: 20 (-2)
Will Levis threw a pick-six in the loss to the Packers, and things just haven’t come together for an oddly structured team. Levis led a comeback effort that might have made the franchise confident in his ability to be a franchise quarterback last season on Monday Night Football, so maybe a rematch with Miami will generate a spark for the 2024 team.