Week 3 gave us a wide-array of results as the Chiefs, Bills, Texans, Browns and Dolphins all won by 20 or more (50 in the case of Miami). Elsewhere, the Colts, Bengals, Packers, Vikings and Steelers all won in games that came down to the wire (including a 17-point 4th quarter comeback at Lambeau). And of course, who could forget the biggest upset of the year, as the Cardinals took down the Cowboys with relative ease.
In terms of the rankings, the Seahawks made the biggest jump, moving up seven spots while the Jets took the biggest tumble, falling nine spots.
The Prime Time Pick’em nearly gave us back-to-back weeks of 4-0, but the Rams came up just short (in fairness, I did not think Joe Burrow was going to play). Nonetheless, the season record moves to a solid 8-3. This week, we have an NFC North showdown with first place on the line as the Lions travel to Lambeau to take on the Packers. If you know anything about me, it’s rare that I will pick my team and this week is no different as I like the Lions to beat the Packers once again. On Sunday night, I like the Chiefs to roll over the Jets and in the Week 4 finale, I’ll make it a clean sweep by road teams and take the Seahawks over the Giants.
Here are the rankings as we head to Week 3. Teams’ previous ranking in ( ).
1. San Francisco 49ers (1): I know we’re only three weeks in, but you have to wonder if there’s a team on their schedule that is going to beat them. After watching the Cowboys get beat by Arizona, I’m not sure there is.
2. Miami Dolphins (3): They scored 10 touchdowns on Sunday. You don’t need to know football to know that’s insane. But for added context, Zach Wilson accounted for six total touchdowns last season (he started nine games) and nine touchdowns his first season (he started 13 games). I repeat – Miami scored 10 touchdowns this week. That’s a touchdown every six minutes of game time.
3. Philadelphia Eagles (4): Jalen Hurts is now 20-1 in his last 21 regular season games. Is that good?
4. Kansas City Chiefs (5): As you may have heard, Taylor Swift attended the Chiefs game. Travis Kelce finished the game with just a tick under 70 receiving yards. Coincidence? I think not. And in other news, per ESPN, Kelce jersey sales have soared nearly 400% since Sunday.
5. Buffalo Bills (6): For those of us who thought the Bills might regress a bit this year, I’d say they look just fine after their last two games. They now have a huge early season matchup against the Dolphins.
6. Detroit Lions (7): Many viewed the Lions as the favorites in the division this season; let’s see how they respond to those expectations as they travel to Lambeau this week with first place on the line.
7. Dallas Cowboys (2): The loss of Trevon Diggs for the season is certainly a big hit to the defense, but the way they played against Arizona, they have bigger concerns on their hands.
8. Green Bay Packers (12): At the end of the third quarter I was ready to drop this team about 10 spots in the rankings. And then, everything changed. If they stay healthy, they could still challenge any team in the NFC this season, but I think this team is primed to be a serious contender starting in 2024 and beyond.
9. Baltimore Ravens (9): Once you saw how many starters this team was missing, it was almost too predictable that they were going to lose. Despite the injuries though, the offense hasn’t looked like what we thought it would so far this season.
10. Pittsburgh Steelers (13): If they can just get average play out of the offense, they could be so good, despite how loaded the AFC is. If they can get a win this week against the Texans, that would put them 3-1 heading into a showdown with the Ravens.
11. Cleveland Browns (16): Last week I said their Week 3 performance could go a long way in deciding how the rest of their season may go. Well, they completely dominated a Titans team, without Nick Chubb, and I’m back on the bandwagon. I still think they are likely going to be inconsistent – but they have a lot of the necessary pieces to be a playoff team.
12. Cincinnati Bengals (14): It wasn’t pretty but they got their first W of the season. Joe Burrow was clearly not 100% but he made it through the game without any setbacks. If past seasons are any indicator, this team may start to put it all together in the next couple of weeks.
13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11): Tampa struggled on Monday night but nonetheless I am still impressed with their defense and they have weapons on offense. I don’t foresee them as a huge threat to make a deep playoff run, but I absolutely think they can win the division and host a playoff game.
14. Seattle Seahawks (21): I really need to stop sleeping on this offense (and Geno Smith in particular). They have weapons all over the place and are proving that 2022 was not a fluke.
15. New Orleans Saints (15): Being 3-0 and getting Alvin Kamara back would have been a dream scenario for the Saints. Now they are 2-1 and have an injured quarterback. How long Derek Carr is out could have devasting impact on this team, as Jameis Winston is simply not reliable.
16. Los Angeles Chargers (17): Even when they win, they lose. Mike Williams tearing his ACL is a big loss for this team as Justin Herbert is now missing 2 of his 3 best weapons.
17. Jacksonville Jaguars (8): Not scoring a touchdown at home against the Chiefs was concerning. Getting blown out at home by the Texans is borderline DEFCON 1.
18. New England Patriots (25): As expected they got their first win of the season but will now face another tough test as they travel to Dallas.
19. New York Jets (10): The entire world has written off Zach Wilson, and rightfully so. However, I’m giving him one more chance. He just faced two of the best defenses in all of football. Now, I’m not saying he’s going to beat the Chiefs this week, but he needs to be able to put up a respectable offensive performance if he wants to keep his job as the starter.
20. Washington Commanders (18): The honeymoon phase is over for the new ownership group as the Commanders were decimated by the Bills this week. It doesn’t get easier next week either as they face the defending NFC Champion Eagles.
21. Atlanta Falcons (20): Last week I said I was not a believer in Desmond Ridder. Then he goes out and scores 6 points against a Lions defense that, as far as we know, is not all that good. Let’s see how he bounces back against a struggling Jaguars team.
22. Indianapolis Colts (26): It’s impossible not to root for Gardner Minshew. But what got lost in this game was that kicker Matt Gay drilled four 50+ yard field goals, the first time that has ever been done in NFL history.
23. Los Angeles Rams (23): If they can get Cooper Kupp healthy (and keep him healthy), it sure feels like this team could have a top 10 offense.
24. New York Giants (19): It goes without saying that the Giants really need a healthy Saquon Barkley if they’re going to be a legitimate contender in 2023.
25. Tennessee Titans (22): Year in and year out, the Titans are one of the hardest teams to figure out and 2023 is no different. With that said, I don’t think they’re very good – but at the same time there’s no chance you’ll find me betting against them either.
26. Arizona Cardinals (32): The Cardinals were doing a great job tanking, until they weren’t. How they beat the Cowboys by double digits I’m still trying to figure out. If they beat the 49ers this week, perhaps Arizona is the best team in football?
27. Minnesota Vikings (24): When you go 11-0 in one score games in one season, there’s no where to go but down. Minnesota has now lost three straight one score games and is in panic mode. They should be able to right the ship to some extent, as they have the Panthers and Bears in two of their next three games.
28. Houston Texans (31): CJ Stroud has shown a lot of promise through his first three starts and looked really good this week against the Jags. It’s a bit early for Texans fans to get too excited, but it definitely feels like he could be a franchise quarterback.
29. Las Vegas Raiders (29): There were an awful lot of Steeler fans at the Raiders home opener on Sunday night – and I expect more of the same at their next home game in Week 5 when they host the Packers on Monday Night football.
30. Carolina Panthers (28): Andy Dalton showed he can still play in this league – sure feels like the New York Jets may come calling.
31. Denver Broncos (27): When you are 0-3 and give up 70 points, you probably deserve to be ranked dead last in the rankings. But, since the Chicago Bears still exist, this will have to do for now.
32. Chicago Bears (30): Every season there is one team that is a complete and total dumpster fire. You could argue that the Bears have now been that team at least two consecutive years.
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