()= Last week’s rank
32(32). Buffalo Bills 0-3
Well the move to Ryan Fitzpatrick seems to have paid off as Fitz threw for 6 more yards and led the team to 13 more points than Trent Edwards had in their first 2 games. Unfortunately for the Bills, Tom Brady can light up any defense that’s not the Jets and the Bills still lost 38-30. Fortunately for the Bills, their defense won’t be facing Tom Brady every week and thus won’t be giving up 38 points every week. Unfortunately for the Bills, Ryan Fitzpatrick won’t be able to face the Patriots cupcake defense every week. Also unfortunately for the Bills, they are one of just 5 0-3 teams and with their next 5 opponents a combined 11-4 right now, the future doesn’t look too much brighter.
The Bills have made a lot of questionable decisions in the recent months. Whether or not you agree with their decision to use a the #9 pick on a running back, when their running game was the team’s strength and the offensive line and quarterback position were in shambles, you have to be confused by the fact that they aren’t using him. Spiller has received 12 carries in 3 games. Like I predicted, thanks to their lack of a good offensive line and a good quarterback, the talented Spiller only has 38 yards, a 3.2 YPA.
Also, in a mere three weeks, this team went from saying that Trent Edwards was their guy to outright releasing Trent Edwards. They couldn’t have learned that much in Edwards’ 52 attempts this season that they didn’t already know from his previous 826 attempts (no arm strength, no idea how to lead a drive, no willingness to throw down field). Why did they cut him now, after having to pay him a roster bonus as well as two weeks’ salary, rather than cutting him in the early offseason?
Actually, tying this point in with the last point, why didn’t they just draft a quarterback at 9? Or 41? Jimmy Clausen was there at 41. This is the same Jimmy Clausen that looked halfway decent for the Panthers in his first career start against an amazing Cincinnati defense, despite not having any offensive line in front of him, despite having a suddenly moronic John Fox calling the shots on the sidelines, and despite not having a single receiver capabale of creating separation between him and his man.
31(30). Cleveland Browns 0-3
Are the Browns better than they look? After all, they haven’t lost by more than double digits yet this season and actually looked decent hanging with the Ravens last week in a 7 point loss. I’d say defensively, they are underrated. That defense is better than most think. However, offensively they are miserable, especially through the air. Their receiving corps are probably the worst in the NFL and Seneca Wallace is not even one of the 32 best quarterbacks in the NFL today. How Peyton Hillis ran for a huge day against Baltimore’s defense and a stacked box is beyond me, but I doubt he can keep that up. That’s the only reason why they weren’t blown out at Baltimore. And the reason they weren’t blown out in their first two games is because they were playing the Chiefs and Buccaneers.
30(28). Detroit Lions 0-3
The injury bug has not been kind to the Lions this year. First it blew up Matt Stafford’s shoulder (well technically Julius Peppers, who Jeff Backus attempted to block, did) and now Jahvid Best, hailed as the heir to Barry Sanders after his amazing week 2, has gone down with an injured toe. Laugh all you want, toe injuries can be deadly to running backs. They can absolutely sap their explosiveness in the way an ankle or a hamstring injury would. In fact, if not for Best’s injury, they might have beaten the Vikings last week. It’s not like Brett Favre was playing well, even Lions the Packers miserable secondary. Between Stafford’s injury, Best’s injury, and that touchdown that wasn’t by Calvin Johnson week 1, the Lions are my pick for the unluckiest team in the league this year. I guess the football gods couldn’t stand to see the Lions with a good record, as they could easily be 2-1 so far with some luck.
29(25). Jacksonville Jaguars 1-2
Can you even call what the Jaguars have a defense? In addition to ranking 24th against the run, something they were attempting to improve by drafting Tyson Alualu #10 overall in April, the Jaguars are dead last against the pass, giving up 9.9 yards per attempt (almost a first down every time the other team throws). I didn’t think their secondary could be worse than it was last season, but it has somehow managed to be. And with Peyton Manning coming into town this week, that’s a bad sign. The only reason the Jaguars have stood a chance against the Colts in recent years (2 double digit losses in their last 16 meetings) is because the Jaguars frequently have a strong running game, which has been the achilles heel of the Colts defense since as long as I can remember. However, with Maurice Jones Drew hurt and struggling, they don’t stand a chance this week. In fact, until MJD is right, this team is going to have to rely on David Garrard (or even worse, recent pickup Trent Edwards) to make plays downfield enough to compensate for this defense. They aren’t going to beat a lot of teams that way.
28(26). Oakland Raiders 1-2
Earlier I talked about how the football gods couldn’t stand to see the Lions with a good record. Something similar is happening in Oakland. Some teams are just supposed to be bad. The Raiders solidified their defense this offseason and finally got a competent quarterback. 2 weeks later, they had to bench Jason Campbell for Bruce Gradkowski. 3 weeks later they sit at 1-2 (despite early games against St. Louis and Arizona) and their defense is allowing the 9th most points in the league (again, despite early games against St. Louis and Arizona). They would have been 2-1, but Sebastian Janikowski missed a chip shot that most high schoolers could hit, to end the game. It’s ok, though, he’s a kicker. They’re notoriously inconsistent. That’s why you don’t use first round picks on them…oh wait.
27(29). Arizona Cardinals 2-1
A lesson can be learned from the Cardinals this year. Even if you lose half of your team in the offseason, you can still start the season 2-1 if you have early season games against the Rams and Raiders. Don’t buy into this team at all. They beat those 2 miserable teams by a combined 5 points and should have lost to the Raiders if it wasn’t for that missed field goal. In their other game, they lost to the Falcons by 34. Those are the real Cardinals.
The sad thing is, with the early season Chargers, the Seahawks (twice), the Buccaneers, the not really as good as their record says Chiefs, the Panthers, the 49ers (twice), and the Broncos on their schedule this season, they could win this division. If they go 4-5 in those games (not completely crazy) and get a fluke win in one of their other 4 games, they could win this division and go to the playoffs. Imagine that. Derek Anderson in the playoffs. Gotta love the NFC West.
26(23). Carolina Panthers 0-3
Considering he’s a rookie, it’s his 3rd career week in the NFL, it was his first start, it was against a Bengals defensive squad that made Joe Flacco look like Kyle Boller, his coach has suddenly become a moron who can’t create a successful game plan, his receivers have no idea how to get open, his center has no idea how to snap a football, and his offensive line can’t pass block or run block, and he had a good 5 days of working with the first team to get prepared, Clausen’s 16 for 33 for 188 yards and a pick performance wasn’t terrible. Maybe if this team gets themselves together, they can actually win a few games. Clausen is going to have more time with the first team in the coming weeks, meaning more time with his receivers, his line, and figuring out how to hold onto a crummy snap by center Andrew Crummey. Their rookie receivers, Brandon LaFell and David Gettis, will continue to mature. Maybe John Fox will remember how to write a game plan.
Note to John Fox, the strength of your offense is your running game, not your passing game, so I have no idea why they have passed 92 times to 81 runs this season and I’m not just saying that as a frustrated Jonathan Stewart fantasy owner.
25(27). Denver Broncos 1-2
Did Kyle Orton shoot up with steroids this offseason? His arm strength is much improved from last season. In fact, he threw for more yards last week than John Elway ever did in a single week. They still lost, but that’s not really his fault. It’s not his fault they can’t run or stop Peyton Manning. Actually no one can stop Peyton Manning, but you get the point. In 3 games, Kyle Orton has a YPA of 8.6, 2.2 higher than his career average and 1.6 career than his career high, a 66.4% completion percentage, up 7.9 points from his career average and 4.3 from his career high, a QB rating of 96.4, 18.8 points higher than average and 10.6 points higher than his career high, and 1078 yards, good for 2nd most in the league. If only he had some help.
24(31). St. Louis Rams 1-2
The Rams won their first home game since October of 2008 and just like their last home victory, it was a surprise upset of an NFC East team (Cowboys in 2008 and Redskins in 2010) deemed significantly better than them. The Rams hope what happened in 2008 afterwards, they won again the next week, happens again this year, and with the travel challenged Seahawks (3-14 on the road since 2008, 6-19 since 2007) coming to town, that’s possible. In the horrible NFC West, that win might be enough to put them at least in a tie for 1st place. Gotta love the NFC West.
The rest of the NFL should look at St. Louis as an example of what to do when you suck. If you suck and your quarterback sucks, draft a new quarterback. Quarterback challenged teams like Cleveland, Seattle, Arizona, Cincinnati, Kansas City, Buffalo, San Francisco, and Minnesota should take note. Obviously don’t reach for a quarterback that didn’t grade out well with you, but if you scout a kid and bring him in for a workout and you’ve determined that’s he’s got the potential to be a top 10 or top 15 quarterback in the league, take him. You won’t win a Super Bowl without a top 10 or top 15 quarterback. Sam Bradford looks on track to become one of those quarterbacks.
23(21). Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2-1
Last week I said this team could win 7 or 8 games and put themselves in good position to make the leap back into the playoffs in 2011 because Josh Freeman looked for real at quarterback. After Freeman’s 20 for 31 for 184 yards and a pick against Pittsburgh last week, my stance remains unchanged. The Steelers are that tough of a defense, especially on your quarterbacks. Is Matt Ryan bad because he went 27 of 44 for 252 yards and a pick week 1 against Pittsburgh. The 40 for 62 for 453 yards 5 picks and 0 picks he’s thrown since then would beg to differ. How about Vince Young, who went 7 for 10 for 66 yards and 2 picks and got benched against Pittsburgh. Young has gone 23 for 33 for 274 yards 3 touchdowns and 0 picks in his other 2 games, both of them, like Ryan’s, were wins. Freeman has a tough matchup against Cincinnati week 5, after his bye, and then New Orleans week 6 but after that, except him to get back on track against St. Louis, Arizona, Atlanta, Carolina, and San Francisco. He’s a good quarterback and with a good year he’ll be knocking on top 15, can win a Super Bowl with the right supporting cast, status.
22(24). Kansas City Chiefs 3-0
For the first week this year, I can’t say the Chiefs won in spite of Matt Cassel. Sure his 16 for 27 for 250 yards 3 touchdowns and 1 interception performance, in a 31-10 win over San Francisco, was aided by San Francisco’s miserable secondary and suddenly miserable pass rush, but he play well. If he continues to do that, this team is going to be a legitimate threat to San Diego in the division, but I need to see him continue to do that before I can call them any more than a 7 or 8 win team.
And as for the Todd Haley for Coach of the Year talk, I think it’s extremely premature and extremely off. This is the coach who’s not even using his best player as a starter, at least best offensive player (Brandon Flowers has moved into the team’s best overall player spot in my mind). Jamaal Charles once again outgained Thomas Jones despite getting fewer touches, something he’s done every week of this season and something he did last season as well, when Jones was in New York.
21(22). Seattle Seahawks 2-1
The Seahawks are proving once again that they are a great home team, winning two games in impressive fashion at home so far. However, they do need to win on the road too. This team is 3-14 on the road since 2008. Also, they aren’t going to get two amazing kick return touchdowns from Leon Washington every week, so they’re going to need to find a different way to get points for the future. They’re 1-2 without Washington’s returns. Also, they’ve been lucky enough to not face any teams with an elite pass rush. Matt Hasselbeck is really going to struggle against an elite pass rush.
20(10). San Francisco 49ers 0-3
I can’t remember the last time I picked a 0-3 team to win their division. Think about it, Seattle and Arizona are both 2-1, but are either of those teams actually that good. St. Louis is 1-2, but can you really pick the Rams to win this division. That leaves the 49ers, who sit a mere 2 games out. If they fix some of their mental mistakes and actually get their plays called in time, they could still be a good team. I’m not liking what I’ve seen out of their defense at all, with their poor secondary and suddenly mediocre pass rush, but Alex Smith is actually playing decent overall, when you consider the play calling and the issues with getting plays called in team.
I do have to say I love the NFC West. Think about it, either Alex Smith, Derek Anderson, Matt Hasselbeck, or Sam Bradford are going to the playoffs this year, that is unless of course, Smith is benched for David Carr, Derek Anderson is benched for Max Hall, or Matt Hasselbeck is benched for Charlie Whitehurst. The NFC West also single handedly made me change my Power Rankings format. I used to have to make sure that all projected division winners would be in the top 10, to fit the title I used for each section (playoffs and maybe more, dark horses, etc) but I couldn’t put San Fran, my projected NFC West winner, or really any NFC West team, in the top 10 this week, so I changed it up and got rid of categories.
Finally, I’d like to say that the 49ers don’t need to make any drastic changes. Yes, Jimmy Raye needed to go. This were right in firing him. However, Mike Singletary is a good coach. How will firing him help? Who are they going to hire instead? I also don’t agree the calls for Alex Smith to be benched. I don’t know if anyone has had a more unlucky to start to his career, whether it be injuries, a bad offensive line, a revolving door of o-coordinators, or to start this season, an o-coordinator who can’t get the plays off in time. He’s had less of a chance than David Carr to prove himself, and just as bad luck. Let him play out the year and if he struggles and they miss the playoffs, draft another quarterback. Carr isn’t going to be the longterm answer anyway.
19(21). Philadelphia Eagles 2-1
How are people considering Michael Vick a top 5 quarterback right now? He wasn’t even a top 5 quarterback before he went to jail. He’s had 2 good starts against crappy defenses (Detroit and Jacksonville) and two strong quarters in garbage time against a Green Bay team who he caught off guard. Even so, a 61% completion percentage and a YPA of 8.4 are already amazing stats, especially for two easy games. Kevin Kolb went 24 for 34 for 302 yards and 2 scores against the Chiefs last year. Why isn’t he a top 5 NFL quarterback? I expect Vick to struggle more this week against the Redskins, who have a decent, but not terrible defense.
18(8). Washington Redskins 1-2
Before the Redskins’ game with the Rams last week, I saw the tiny spread in favor of the Redskins and jumped on it, over the lowly Rams, who were 6-43 in their last 49 before that. However, the Rams won. I think the reasoning for that was that the Redskins were tired. They played their hearts out in a loss in overtime to the Texans, a devastating loss that at one point they dominated. McNabb had Philadelphia circled on his schedule next, going home to face the team that discarded him, and he simply paid no attention or at least no respect to the Rams. And he lost. This just goes to show that anything can happen on any given Sunday.
17(9). New York Giants 1-2
My prediction, Tom Coughlin will be fired either during this season or directly after it. This is a talented team. They just aren’t playing well. A lot of that has to do with Eli Manning, who has suddenly transformed from Super Bowl winning game manager to 6 interception in 3 games gunslinger, and not the good kind of gunslinger. However, the blame is going to fall on Coughlin. Coughlin’s been there a while and it may just be team for a chance of voice.
You also can’t underestimate what the loss of former defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has meant to this team. Their once Super Bowl winning pass rush has been bottom of the barrel in terms of sacks since Spagnuolo, now Rams coach, left.
16(18). Minnesota Vikings 1-2
They may have won last week against the Lions by 14, but they’re issues are hardly behind them. Brett Favre’s performance, 23 for 34 for 201 yards a touchdown and 2 picks, against Detroit is hardly impressive. This offense needs to get themselves together in the bye week otherwise they’re not making the playoffs. The defense is playing well, much better than their much hyped offensive unit, giving up a total of 38 points in 3 games. But their offense, outside of Adrian Peterson, isn’t doing anything. They need to get themselves ready for the rest of the season during the bye week. They won’t be woken out of their bye rest easily, facing the Jets, Cowboys, Packers, and Patriots (4 playoff teams from 2009) in consecutive weeks.
15(16). Cincinnati Bengals 2-1
Anyone else noticing how bad Carson Palmer is? Palmer has a 57% completion percentage for a YPA of 5.8, with 3 touchdowns and 3 picks, but really 5 picks as two were dropped against Baltimore. And it’s not like he can blame his supporting cast anymore. The line is playing surprisingly well, keeping defenders out of his face. He’s also been sacked 3 times. His receiving corps are stacked with guys like Ochocinco, TO, Jordan Shipley, and Jermaine Gresham. Cedric Benson is an extremely talented back, though he doesn’t look it as opponents can stack the box against him. It’s pathetic for Palmer when you have Ocho and TO on your side and you still can’t make the defense fear your long game enough to keep the men out of the box. And it’s not like he’s facing amazing defenses. Other than Baltimore, he’s faced New England (who gave up 30 points to Ryan Fitzpatrick, Palmer’s former backup, last week), and Carolina. I don’t expect him to be much better against Cleveland’s underrated squad this week.
Luckily for him, this defense is awesome, so they can still realistically carry him to the playoffs, though not likely. With the exception of those 38 points they gave up to New England, they have given up 17 points in 2 games, all while generating a mere 3 sacks. That just goes to show how awesome Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph are at cornerback. A decent quarterback, with all of those weapons I named on offense, and this amazing defensive squad, should be able to win 11 with this team. Palmer will be lucky to win 9.
14(15). Miami Dolphins 2-1
I’m moving the Dolphins up 1 slot even after their loss, because Chad Henne finally proved, for the first time this season, that he could make things happen downfield with his cannon for an arm, if necessary. I’m guessing the reason we didn’t see it in the first 2 weeks was because it was unnecessary. Chad Henne threw for 363 yards on 26 for 44 for 2 scores and a pick against New York’s defense week 3, in a loss. Yeah, this is a watered down Jets defense (no Kris Jenkins, no Darrelle Revis, no Calvin Pace), but they’re still a very solid squad. You saw what they did to Tom Brady week 2. And you saw what Tom Brady did to the Bengals and Bills weeks 1 and 3.
However, the defense has gone south at the wrong time. Allowing 31 points to the Jets’ offense is bad. Even the Patriots didn’t do that (28). I had some concerns about this defense going into the season. Their secondary was secretly awful last season (31st in the league) and was starting 3 players who had less than 2 years of experience this season. After cutting their top two pass rushers for 2009, Jason Taylor and Joey Porter, I wondered if they’d be able to create enough pressure to mask their secondary’s weaknesses. Their 6 sacks aren’t horrible, but allowing 402 yards to the Jets is not a good sign, especially having to face Tom Beiber…er Brady next week.
13(17). Tennessee Titans 2-1
Vince Young is not bad. Vince Young has had a good season, with the exception of that Pittsburgh game. At the same time, Josh Freeman has had a good season, with the exception of that Pittsburgh game. Same with Matt Ryan. Vince will be fine going forward and this team, when he’s right, is capable of making the playoffs. Remember, Vince is 10-3 as starter since he took over mid last season. He’s had help from this defense, this offensive line, and someone named Chris Johnson, but he still has all of those assets on his side this season so he and his team should be fine.
12(13). Baltimore Ravens 2-1
I think we can forgive Joe Flacco rough early season start. Weeks 1 and 2 he was 37 for 77 for 402 yards 1 touchdown and 6 picks, but he was facing two playoff teams from 2009, the Jets and Bengals, whose strengths are their defenses, with 6 days to prepare in between, on the road. In better conditions, across the Browns, Flacco threw for 3 scores, no picks, on 22 for 31 for 262 yards. Now he faces Pittsburgh. Actually, that just doesn’t sound fair.
11(5). San Diego Chargers 1-2
It’s tough to tell whether or not this team just sucks because it’s early in the season and they always suck early in the season or whether they actually just suck. They better hope it’s the former, because the Chiefs already have a 2 game lead and own the tiebreaker. In a way, this reminds me of last year, when the Broncos surprisingly jumped out to a 6-0 record early, and the Chargers sat at 2-3, and the Chargers still won that division by 5 games, but I’d still be concerned if I were a Chargers fan. They’ve let a lot of good players go in recent years that they simply haven’t replaced and they haven’t made a good draft pick early since they drafted Antonio Cromartie in 2006.
10(12). Dallas Cowboys 1-2
The Cowboys finally looked like the team they were supposed to be, beating a good Texans team in impressive fashion. Unlike the Vikings, who also got a win to avoid an 0-3 start, the Cowboys actually looked good doing so and have instilled hope in me once again that this team can make the playoffs. It took them a while though. Between their 5 preseason games and those two regular season losses, they essentially had a 7 game warm up period. Let’s hope for their sake they stay strong for the rest of the way because they can still make the playoffs. That 0-2 start didn’t doom them to anything if they play well in their next 13 games.
9(11). New York Jets 2-1
Every week Mark Sanchez has a good game, it makes me believe more and more that this team can win the Super Bowl. Unfortunately he’s only so I’m not that high on this team as a Super Bowl contender. However, a talented quarterback was the missing ingredient to their Super Bowl formula before the season and now it appears that Sanchez is well on his way to being that top 15, top 10 quarterback that all Super Bowl winners need. Remember, only one quarterback in the past 20 years has won a Super Bowl, before making a Pro Bowl, and that was Eli Manning in 2008, who made the Pro Bowl the following year. Interpretation, you don’t win a Super Bowl without a good quarterback. Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson get ragged on as being the worst quarterbacks to win a Super Bowl in the past 20 years, but both of them had made Pro Bowls before hoisting the trophy.
8(7). New England Patriots 2-1
Their offense is really good. Their defense is really bad. Until one of those things changes, this team is a playoff team, but nothing else. Tom Brady has proven he can light up any defense that isn’t the Jets’. The Pats defense has proven that they’d have a hard time holding Boston College under 30. I mean they couldn’t hold the Bills under 30. What makes you think they could hold a college team under 30?
7(19). Chicago Bears 3-0
Their 3-0 start has had a lot to do with luck, but it’s not been all luck. Yes, if a few things had gone differently, they could realistically be 0-3 or 1-2, but look at how they are playing. If you’re a running back, you might as well take the day off against them. You’re not getting many yards. This run defense, this defensive line, and especially this pass rush, led by Julius Peppers, has been amazing. Peppers may only have 1 sack (week one when you blew up Matt Stafford’s shoulder), but if it wasn’t for all the holds he caused the Green Bay Packers offensive line to commit to stop him, he might have 3 or 4 sacks easily. He’s that tough to stop.
The defensive line and the front 7 have proven, no Tommie Harris, coach’s decision, no problem as they are holding opponents to under 3 yards per carry anyway. A big part of their strong and improved run defense is the return of Brian Urlacher. Despite his age and his injury from 2009, he is still as scary as ever.
While the defense is traditional Bears defense, the offense is far from traditional Bears offense. And I don’t just mean that because they finally appear to have a capable signal caller. I mean that because they aren’t traditional at all. They give up sacks. They throw interceptions. But they get the job done with big plays and they are 3-0, thanks in large part, to their 66 points. I don’t have them as a legitimate Super Bowl contender, as they’ve only won their 3 games by a combined 15 points and could easily be 1-2 or 0-3, but maybe in the future I will consider them that.
6(4). Houston Texans 2-1
All good things must come to an end and that includes Houston’s amazing and inspiring start to the season. Forever cast aside as a team that couldn’t make the playoffs and couldn’t beat the colts, the Texans started the season by beating the Colts by over a touchdown and then mounting an amazing comeback to beat the Redskins in overtime, despite trailing, at one point, by multiple scores. They couldn’t continue that week 3 against the Cowboys, but it’s definitely not panicking team. That was a good Cowboys team they lost to. They can get back on track this week versus the Raiders.
5(14). Atlanta Falcons 2-1
Beating the Saints in the Super Dome was like their Super Bowl. It’ll be interesting what kind of energy they play with next week, whether they come up energized or complacent, with the 0-3 49ers coming into town. However, I’m not here to talk about that game. I’m going to talk about that win. That win cemented the Falcons as an elite team in this league and possibly the favorite in the NFC South. The season is early and I don’t want to take the NFC South title away from the Saints just yet, especially considering, if they made that late kick from about 30 yards out, the Saints would have won that game, but the Falcons are definitely a team to fear now.
4(3). New Orleans Saints 2-1
The Saints have been beaten in a close game at the Superdome. They are no longer invincible. They have yet to go over 30 points in a game. They could be suffered a Super Bowl hangover. Garrett Hartley, last year’s hero, has lost his starting job after missing 3 field goals in his first three games, including the game winner against Atlanta in overtime, a chip shot. This isn’t the same team that won it all last year. They can get it together and become that team, especially once Darren Sharper returns, but the Falcons have made them bleed and made them appear human, and once that happens, the floodgates could open.
3(2). Indianapolis Colts 2-1
Running game? Nope. Pass protection? Nope. Pass defense? Nope. Run defense? Nope Healthy receiving corps? Nope. Peyton Manning? Yep. And really that’s all they’ve needed this season to start 2-1. Their running game, supposed to be one of their best in the Peyton Manning era with both Joseph Addai and Donald Brown healthy, is averaging 3.3 yards per carry and has yet to have a carry that went for more than 17 yards. That offensive line has looked fine on paper, only giving up 3 sacks. However, any other quarterback behind that line is sacked 6-7 times. Peyton Manning is just that robotic at getting the ball out of his hands right before the pressure gets there. Their pass defense is giving up 7.6 yards per attempts and just allowed Kyle Orton to throw for more yards than John Elway ever did. Their run defense is giving up 5 yards per carry. Their receiving corps are missing both Pierre Garcon and Anthony Gonzalez. However, Peyton Manning is still 2-1. He’s feeling the pressure well enough to avoid an extra 3 or 4 sacks. He’s finding receivers such as Austin Collie and undrafted rookie Blair White for big games. And he’s making the opponent’s pass defense look worse than his team’s and that’s really the key.
2(1). Green Bay Packers 2-1
I wouldn’t be surprised if Chad Clifton is still holding Julius Peppers. Coming into this season I remarked on the fact that this offensive line only gave up 14 sacks in their last 8 games last year and cited that as a big reason why they would win the Super Bowl this year. Rodgers has only been sacked 3 times this year, but this offensive line committed enough penalties to single handedly nullify Rodgers’ 34 for 45 for 316 yards 1 touchdown and 1 pick (on a Hail Mary from mid field to end the half) performance. They’ll need to fix that if they’re going all the way this season.
1(6). Pittsburgh Steelers 3-0
How good are the Steelers? Their first 3 opponents are 6-0 in games not played against the Steelers, and 0-3 against the Steelers. Their first 3 opponents’ quarterbacks are a combined 92 for 147 for 1085 yards 12 touchdowns and 1 pick in games not played against the Steelers and a combined 54 for 85 for 504 yards no touchdowns and 4 picks. Thev’ye held Michael Turner to 48 yards. They’ve held Chris Johnson to 34 yards. They just won a game in which they scored 28 points and had their once 4th string quarterback start. They are really, really, really, really good, and Ben Roethlisberger isn’t even back yet. If they can mesh quickly when Ben comes back, this is a legit 13-3 team that can run the table once again.
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