Month: September 2013

San Francisco 49ers: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#5)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, 49ers, Uncategorized

Last week: 2 (-3)

The 49ers get a pass from me for losing in Seattle because the Seahawks are near impossible to beat at home and they get a pass for last week because they were without Vernon Davis and they were very possibly distracted by the Aldon Smith situation. The whole team played like they showed up to the practice facility at 7 AM drunk. Jokes ahead, I have no idea why the 49ers allowed him to play last week. Arrest aside and prescription drugs aisde, this is a guy who thought it was appropriate to show up to practice drunk. That’s a sign of a guy who feels he’s above the team because of his star status and allowed him to play just reinforces that. Smith is on leave indefinitely seeking treatment and won’t play against the Rams this week, but they do get Vernon Davis back and they have enough other talent, so I expect them to bounce back. If they lose this week, then they’ll be out of passes.

Week 3 Studs

FB Bruce Miller

Week 3 Duds

QB Colin Kaepernick

CB Tarell Brown

LE Tony Jerod-Eddie

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Green Bay Packers: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#6)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Packers, Uncategorized

Last week: 5 (-1)

The Packers may be 1-2, but they’ve lost to the 49ers and Bengals (two other highly rated teams) in easily winnable games, so I’m not going to hold it against them very much. Their bye is early this year, as they go on bye this week, but it does come at a perfect time as they need their running backs to get healthy. Johnathan Franklin, their 3rd string running back, looked good against a tough Cincinnati run defense, rushing for 103 yards and a touchdown on 13 attempts, but coughed it up at a critical time in the loss.

Week 3 Studs

RT Don Barclay

LG Josh Sitton

MLB Brad Jones

Week 3 Duds

LT David Bakhtiari

LE BJ Raji

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Cincinnati Bengals: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#7)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Bengals, Uncategorized

Last week: 15 (+8)

The Bengals’ win last week was the definition of a statement win. Not only did they beat the Packers, but they did it despite losing the turnover battle by 2. Teams win just 17.9% of the time when losing the turnover battle by 2 historically. I still think Andy Dalton is a limiting factor on this team, but his previous 1-11 record in 2011 and 2012 against eventual playoff teams doesn’t seem relevant at this point. His supporting cast is definitely good enough to mask his flaws, especially their defense. They leaped ahead of the Ravens, who are still unable to consistently move the chains offensively, in the AFC North in my mind this weekend.

Week 3 Studs

RE Michael Johnson

CB Leon Hall

Week 3 Duds

TE Jermaine Gresham

RG Kevin Zeitler

LOLB Vontaze Burfict

DT Geno Atkins

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Dallas Cowboys: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#8)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Cowboys, Uncategorized

Last week: 7 (-1)

The Cowboys have more wins than the rest of the NFC East combined and are the only team in the division to win a game outside of the division. They look like the clear favorites, though the loss of Anthony Spencer hurts. It especially hurts him as he’s one of two franchise tagged players (Henry Melton) done for the season. Jairus Byrd, meanwhile, has yet to play with injury. However, the way George Selvie has played in his absence makes the injury hurt less.

Week 3 Studs

QB Tony Romo

RB DeMarco Murray

RT Doug Free

C Travis Frederick

DE DeMarcus Ware

SS Barry Church

Week 3 Duds

None

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Detroit Lions: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#9)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Lions, Uncategorized

Last week: 8 (-1)

Nate Burleson’s injury is a pretty ridiculous story, but it also might be a blessing in disguise for the Lions. Burleson’s numbers might look good (19 catches for 239 yards), but he has one of the easiest jobs in football, with Calvin Johnson opposite him, Matt Stafford throwing to him, and one of the pass happiest coaching staffs in football. The 32-year-old showed a noticeable lack of explosion on the field and the now healthy Ryan Broyles, who will take his spot, could be a serious upgrade.

Week 3 Studs

WR Calvin Johnson

Week 3 Duds

C Dominic Raiola

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Chicago Bears: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#10)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Bears, Uncategorized

Last week: 9 (-1)

The Bears are 3-0, but they were favored in all 3 games. Win in Detroit this week and we’ll talk about seriously moving them up. Their “vaunted” defense has forced a league low 9 punts all season. Yes, they have 11 takeaways, but their combined punts forced and takeaways is just 20, which is also one of the worst in the NFL. In terms of preventing their opponents from moving the chains on any given 1st and 10, they are right around 75%, very middle of the pack, which is right around where their improved offense is as well. They can’t continue relying on takeaways and recovering 75% of fumbles they force. It’s very possible they miss Lovie Smith’s defensive leadership. Over 30 veterans Charles Tillman, Julius Peppers, and Lance Briggs are also disappointing. And now they’re without Henry Melton. This is a very shaky 3-0.

Week 3 Studs

RG Kyle Long

RE Julius Peppers

Week 3 Duds

TE Martellus Bennett

TE Steve Maneri

RT Jordan Mills

CB Charles Tillman

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Carolina Panthers: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#11)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Panthers, Uncategorized

Last week: 14 (+3)

The one week I give up on the Panthers, this happens. They looked exactly as I expected they would this season last week and then some. They could easily be 3-0 right now and though my 12-win prediction for them isn’t coming true, last week’s win could easily propel them to 10 wins and a post-season appearance. They have to continue what they did last week and avoid the mistakes (vanilla offense, conservative decision making, lack of read option and quarterback run plays) they were making in the first 2 weeks of the season.

Week 3 Studs

RT Byron Bell

LT Jordan Gross

LG Amini Silatolu

RE Greg Hardy

LE Charles Johnson

Week 3 Duds

RG Chris Scott

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Kansas City Chiefs: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#12)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Chiefs, Uncategorized

Last week: 13 (-1)

Any talk that Alex Smith is better than Colin Kaepernick is absurd. Alex Smith hasn’t completed a single pass outside the hash marks longer than 10 yards downfield all season. He’s attempted just 18 of 105 passes more than 10 yards through the air and just 4 more than 20 yards through the air. He’s not getting anything out of talented outside receiver Dwayne Bowe. He’s just too easy to defend. Eventually, he’ll have to make things happen downfield and I don’t think he’s capable of doing that. He’s also yet to throw an interception on 105 attempts, something else that won’t continue. Between that and the fact that the Chiefs have recovered 85.7% of fumbles, the Chiefs’ +9 turnover margin is going to be unsustainable.

Week 3 Studs

RB Jamaal Charles

LE Tyson Jackson

LOLB Justin Houston

ROLB Tamba Hali

Week 3 Duds

QB Alex Smith

WR Dexter McCluster

RT Eric Fisher

CB Dunta Robinson

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Baltimore Ravens: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#13)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Ravens, Uncategorized

Last week: 10 (-3)

The Ravens blew out the Texans last week, but they still have problems moving the football, as 14 of their 30 points came directly off returns. The two teams were pretty even in terms of first downs, total yards of offense, and punts so it was much more even than the 30-9 final score would suggest. Fortunately, as bad as their offense is right now, their defense seems to have turned around 180 degrees from a disappointing start in Denver week 1 as their new players have gelled together. With Elvis Dumervil in and Terrell Suggs healthy, their pass rush and possibly their whole defense, is better than it was last regular season.

Week 3 Studs

LOLB Elvis Dumervil

SS James Ihedibgo

Week 3 Duds

LT Bryant McKinnie

RT Michael Oher

C Gino Gradkowski

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Atlanta Falcons: 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings (#14)

stevenlourie 2013 NFL Power Rankings, 2013 Week 4 NFL Power Rankings, Falcons, Uncategorized

Last week: 14 (-3)

I do have the Falcons a few spots higher than the Dolphins even though they lost in Miami, but I don’t really see much difference between these two teams. If they had played in Atlanta, the Falcons probably would have won. If they had played 100 times on a neutral field, the Falcons probably would win 55. However, at 1-2 in the NFC, Falcons fans should be nervous. They really need to bounce back at home against the Patriots this week.

Week 3 Studs

QB Matt Ryan

WR Julio Jones

Week 3 Duds

RT Lamar Holmes

LE Jonathan Massaquoi

FS Thomas DeCoud

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