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NFL Power Rankings: Cowboys Are No. 1

Posted Sep 25, 2008 12:00PM By Michael David Smith (RSS feed)

Filed Under: Cowboys, NFL Power Rankings

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FanHouse's weekly look at all 32 NFL teams

My power rankings got a bit of a shakeup this week, with my No. 1 team needing overtime to beat my No. 28 team at home, and my No. 4 team getting blown out by my No. 29 team at home. What does it all mean? Are NFL power rankings a futile exercise in this topsy-turvy league? Maybe, but they're fun to argue about, so let's do them anyway.

  • 1. Cowboys (3-0) | Prev.: 3
    It was some time around the third quarter of the Cowboys' win at Green Bay that I realized they're the best team in the NFL. My favorite thing about this year's Cowboys is that their offense doesn't just make big plays, it can also overpower opposing defenses, thanks to Marion Barber and a good offensive line.
  • 2. Eagles (2-1) | Prev.: 5
    Donovan McNabb showed his toughness once again, returning to the game against the Steelers even though he felt like he got kicked in the chest by Kareem.
  • 3. Giants (3-0) | Previous Week: 1
    I don't feel the least bit bad about dropping them after a win, not when it was an overtime win, at home, against an 0-3 team. I do, however, think that the suspension of Plaxico Burress is going to turn out to be a good thing, as Tom Coughlin tells his players they can't rest on the laurels of last year's Super Bowl.
  • 4. Packers (2-1) | Prev.: 6
    Yes, I realize that I raised the Packers after a loss, but it was a loss to the best team in the league. I expect them to bounce back nicely at Tampa Bay on Sunday.
  • 5. Ravens (2-0) | Prev.: 15
    This Ravens defense is just ridiculously good through two games, so ridiculously good that I kind of assume that all the old guys on defense are going to wear down as the season goes on, while all the young guys on offense are going to come back to earth. For now, though, I'm tentatively declaring the Baltimore Ravens the best team in the AFC. Didn't see that one coming.
  • 6. Bills (3-0) | Prev.: 7
    I don't think Bills quarterback Trent Edwards is getting enough credit for the team's 3-0 start. He's completing 67% of his passes and has thrown just one interception through three games. And he's only 24 years old. Bills fans have to feel very good about the future of their franchise.
  • 7. Steelers (2-1) | Prev.: 2
    Last week I thought the Steelers were the best team in the AFC, but that was before I realized just how bad their offensive line is. How is Ben Roethlisberger supposed to last 16 games?

  • 8. Chargers (1-2) | Prev.: 11
    Do you realize that LaDainian Tomlinson ran the ball 26 times last night and he never broke one for longer than five yards? And that was against a Jets team that lost its best run-stuffer, Kris Jenkins, in the first quarter. If Tomlinson's toe is so badly injured that he can't do better than two and a half yards a carry, why isn't Norv Turner resting him, instead of giving him the ball 26 times in a game the Chargers won easily?
  • 9. Broncos (3-0) | Prev.: 10
    The offense is great, but they've given up more than 30 points, at home, to two straight opponents. At some point they need to get that defense straightened out.
  • 10. Titans (3-0) | Prev.: 16
    Looking ahead at the Titans' schedule, they'll be either 5-1 or 6-0 when they host the Colts on Monday Night Football in Week 8. I would have said you were crazy if you had told me this before the season, but I think they might be able to build up a nearly insurmountable lead in the AFC South by halfway through the season.
  • 11. Redskins (2-1) | Prev.: 19
    If they were in any other division I'd give the Redskins a better than even chance of at least being a wild card team, but in the NFC East I just don't see it happening.
  • 12. Jaguars (1-2) | Prev.: 17
    The Jaguars had to win at Indianapolis or their playoff hopes were close to over after three weeks, and they get credit in my book for getting the job done, although it should be noted that they needed a major mistake by an official to get it done.
  • 13. Panthers (2-1) | Prev.: 9
    Good to have Steve Smith back? I guess, but it looked like Jake Delhomme was forcing the ball to Smith: He completed just four of his nine passes to Smith, but 13 of his 20 passes to everyone else.
  • 14. Bears (1-2) | Prev.: 12
    Is there a groin-grabber on this team? Tampa Bay offensive lineman Jeremy Trueblood said someone squeezed his junk during a pileup in Sunday's game at Chicago. Asked if it could be true, Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris said, "Probably. I don't know. They grab [testicles], they pinch, they do everything underneath the pile. It's football. It's what goes on during the whistle."
  • 15. Colts (1-2) | Prev.: 8
    The bad news; This team's run defense is horrible. The good news: The last time this team's run defense was horrible, it got good all of a sudden just in time, and they won the Super Bowl.
  • 16. Vikings (1-2) | Prev.: 14
    After watching that 20-10 win over the Panthers, I think benching Tarvaris Jackson for Gus Frerotte was the right move, but I also think their defense is going to need to hold a whole lot of teams to 10 points if they're going to win many games.
  • 17. Patriots (2-1) | Prev.: 4
    Looking for something to be happy about, Patriots fans? You've got great special teams. Best in the league overall, and the only team in the league that's above average in all five special teams categories: Field goals, punts, kickoffs, punt returns and kickoff returns.
  • 18. Cardinals (2-1) | Prev.: 18
    Some guys go in the tank when they think they're underpaid, others work harder to prove that they deserve a raise. Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin is clearly in the latter group. Boldin looks like he's going to have the best season of his career -- and this is a guy who's had 100 catches and 1,400 yards in a season before.
  • 19. Buccaneers (2-1) | Prev.: 23
    The Bucs passed the ball 67 times and ran 16 times against the Bears. Don't you get the feeling that deep in his heart, Jon Gruden thinks that's about 15 passes too many?
  • 20. Saints (1-2) | Prev.: 13
    Saints guard Jamar Nesbit was suspended four games for violating the NFL policy on steroids and related substances. Nesbit says he wasn't trying to cheat and that he just took a supplement that he didn't know had a banned substance in it. Maybe he's telling the truth, but that, of course, is what everyone always says when they get caught breaking the performance-enhancing drug rules.
  • 21. Dolphins (1-2) | Prev.: 29
    Rookie No. 1 overall pick Jake Long is one hell of a right tackle. Of course, he plays left tackle. Also: Tight end Anthony Fasano is quietly having a great season.
  • 22. 49ers (2-1) | Prev.: 21
    Mike Martz, the 49ers' offensive coordinator, was fired by Detroit because Lions coach Rod Marinelli didn't think Martz was good enough at drawing up and calling running plays. So Martz had to get a lot of satisfaction out of rushing for 182 yards against Marinelli's defense on Sunday.
  • 23. Seahawks (1-2) | Prev.: 22
    Julius Jones is looking like a very good free agent signing; according to Football Outsiders, Jones has been the fourth-most productive running back in the NFL this season.
  • 24. Jets (1-2) | Prev.: 20
    The Jets did something with punter Ben Graham that I can't recall ever seeing before: They cut him after their Week 2 game, and then, when the guy they signed to replace him got hurt in practice, they re-signed him in time for him to play in their Week 3 game. Asked how he felt about it, Graham said, How would you feel being fired from your job to be hired three or four days later? It's awkward
  • 25. Bengals (0-3) | Prev.: 28
    You have to respect the way they fought against the Giants, and T.J. Houshmandzadeh had one of the games of the year.
  • 26. Raiders (1-2) | Prev.: 27
    Could Al Davis please just put Lane Kiffin out of his misery already? I think he will after Sunday's game against the Chargers. The Raiders are heading into their bye week after San Diego, which feels like a natural time to make the change.
  • 27. Falcons (2-1) | Prev.: 23
    Home wins against the Lions and the Chiefs make the Falcons' 2-1 record about as soft a 2-1 record as a team can get. But I promise, Falcons fans, if they win at Carolina on Sunday I'll move them into the Top 20.
  • 28. Browns (0-3) | Prev.: 25
    When you're coming off a 10-6 season, and then three weeks into the next season the fans are already buzzing about a guy who might be the coach next year, that's a pretty serious problem for the current coach. I like Romeo Crennel, but he'd better get this thing turned around very, very quickly.
  • 29. Texans (0-2) | Prev.: 26
    There's talk of benching Matt Schaub, but that would be a Band-Aid over a gunshot wound. The Texans are ailing on offense, defense and special teams.
  • 30. Lions (0-2) | Prev.: 32
    Fired Millen!


  • 31. Chiefs (0-3) | Prev.: 31
    The state of the professional football in the state of Missouri is pathetic. Did you see Tyler Thigpen on Sunday? He made Ryan Leaf look like Peyton Manning. And yet the Chiefs aren't their state's worst team.
  • 32. Rams (0-3) | Prev.: 30
    Scott Linehan benched Marc Bulger for Trent Green, but does anyone really believe Bulger is even close to the Rams' biggest problem? They're losing by 29 points a game, and through three weeks of the season they look like not just the worst team in the NFL, but one of the worst teams in NFL history.

Tags: nfl+power+rankings, NflPowerRankings, NFLPowerRankings08

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