NFL Week3 Power Rankings
By Thomas EmerickSports Staff
September 22, 2007
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1. Indianapolis 2-0 (1) Indy fans should thank their lucky stars that Bob Sanders is healthy, because he’s truly essential to their shot at a Super Bowl run. When it seemed Vince Young would break a big one, who kept tripping him up? |
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2. New England 2-0 (2) They sure needed those cameras against San Diego…. |
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3. Pittsburgh 2-0 (7) I’m a bit more impressed than last week, but they still haven’t beaten anyone legit. Still, the way they diversified their offensive attack makes this team very dangerous. |
| 4. San Diego 1-1 (3) They didn’t seem in sync against Chicago, and it showed in New England. |
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5. Baltimore 1-1 (6) Ray Lewis could roll in on a wheel chair and he’d still pound receivers in front of the first down marker. |
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6. Tennessee 1-1 (11) Valiant performance against the far superior Colts. Vince Young is developing a nice connection with the unsung Roydell Williams. And I bet you’re wondering, “Thomas, how could they move up when they lost? Why am I reading this?” Well, not everything needs to be confined to some sort of mysterious unwritten rule. They played a lot better in their loss than Chicago did in their win. |
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7. Cincinatti 1-1 (4) Perhaps I bumped them up a bit high last week (perhaps). We knew what we were getting with Cincy’s defense. If they don’t take the ball away, they can’t stop anyone- not even the Browns. |
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8. Chicago 1-1 (10) Hester’s at it again! Unfortunately, so is Rex. |
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9. Washington 2-0 (22) I truly believe this is their best team of the decade so far. A division road win in, as Ron Jaworski calls it, “an old-time snotknocker” can go a long way toward building a teams confidence and faith in their identity. You never want to lose a snot-knocker. |
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10. Denver 2-0 (9) You can't underestimate the importance of a reliable kicking team (just ask the Giants). |
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11. Dallas 2-0 (16) Before everyone starts donning Romo the “Boy Wonder” again, let’s remember that he tore up the NFL’s two worst secondaries. |
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12. Houston 2-0 (13) TEPR’s (Thomas Emerick Power Rankings) week two Upset Special Is the real deal. Call me crazy, and you could make some compelling arguments for that, but with their defense and and stability at QB, this team could contend for a playoff spot this year. (Disclaimer in effect if Andre Johnson’s injury plagues him all season. He’s their best player.) |
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13. Green Bay 2-0 (14) In his three-touchdown second half against the Giants, Favre was very unFavre; taking what the defense gives him. This formula could work very well for an offense with little firepower elsewhere. |
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14. San Francisco 2-0 (18) Creating momentous turnovers, while Alex Smith converts them enough to get by. He’ll need to step up more as they hit the tougher parts of their schedule.. |
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15. New York Jets 0-2 (23) |
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16. Philadelphia 0-2 (5) Donovan and the Eagles have deteriorated faster than those Coors Light press conference commercials. They used to be so funny, but the new ones just lost their edge. |
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17. New Orleans 0-2 (8) |
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18. Carolina 1-1 (12) Steve Smith can't do it all by himself. |
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19. Arizona 1-1 (27) It's so tempting to jump on this bandwagon every year, but how many times can you put your hand on a stove before you're afraid to get burned? |
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20. Seattle 1-1 (15) It's always tough to lose on a late fumble like that. Let's see how they respond. |
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21. St. Louis 0-2 (21) Costly turnovers are killing them. |
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22. Detroit 2-0 (24) A concussion can't stop the "Kitna Express" from rolling, and I'm referring to both the player and my fantasy team. |
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23. Buffalo 0-2 (19) Their performance was nearly as bad as Frank Beamer's in that weird "money flying out of the printer" commercial. Why, when you know he's a terrible actor, would you emphasize this by holding the camera on his reaction for five seconds before cutting? Possibly the worst commercial I've seen. |
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24. Tampa Bay 1-1 (29) How about that old-timers connection? Who knew Garcia to Galloway would be so potent? |
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25. Cleveland 1-1 (32) It's uncanny how the Browns always elevate their game when Cincy comes to town. Derek and the Brownimoes have lifted themselves from doormat status. |
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26. Oakland 0-2 (30) ...Wishing Denver hadn't called that timeout... |
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27. Jacksonville 1-1 (17) I suppose I grossly overestimated them to start the season. |
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28. Miami 0-2 (25) Trent Green just threw another interception. |
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29. Minnesota 1-1 (26) Brad Childress with the TEPR taking creative license: Yeahhh…that Tavaris Jackson sure seems promising…ehhhh… (grabs collar uncomfortably) Is it really hot in hear errr…what’s with the thermostat?!?!!?! |
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30. Kansas City 0-2 (28) ...wishing they hadn't punted to Devin Hester... |
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31. New York Giants 0-2 (20) Looking forward to rebuilding year '08! |
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32. Atlanta 0-2 (31) Put up a better fight on defense, but thy'd have to execute near perfection to win with this bunch. |
Alright, now that I’ve weirded out my few readers, I’m hoping they’ll take my prognosticating advice!
Three Locks (3 for 3 last week)}
Indianapolis over HOUSTON (uppercase indicating home team)
NEW ENGLAND over Buffalo
PITTSBURGH over San Francisco
Upset Special/Bonzanza/Concoction/Any good ideas for catch phrase?!?
(1-0, Houston over Carolina last week)
Tennessee over NEW ORLEANS
You Must Be Insane
Cincinnati over SEATTLE (ehh, I’ve seen crazier)
Week 3 Survivor (Pittsburgh, Jacksonville already picked)
New England (vs. Buffalo)
Comments (4)
the announcers saying "they have no answer for kevin curtis" has to be some sort of sign of the apocalypse, no chance he's ever heard that before in life, including pop warner or high school...
Posted by patrick j | September 23, 2007 4:21 PMthomas,
where is your week 1 rankings? You have preseason ranking but then skip week one. You really didn't but why if the NFL and all the sports pages call week 1, one, week 2, two then why don't you make week 3 rankings after the teams played three games. Afterall, with your confusing system you will have a week 18 which everyone knows the NFL goes to 17 weeks. IF also would help people find your rankings better when they search for rankings that match the NFL week.
Thanks,
Clay
Posted by Clay | September 25, 2007 11:13 AMDallas
Boy wonder just tore up the vaunted Bears D. Should have been worse. Our D shut down the Bears offense but that is not something to brag about. Circle New England game. That shoudl test this D.
Posted by Clay Eiland | September 25, 2007 11:18 AMClay, you brought up some interesting points. If anyone wants to comment, please go for it- I'm up to responding to all of them. Heck, even if this article becomes wildly popular, and I can accrue above, say, 5 or 6 responses, I'd want to respond to my readership base.
Anyways, NFL.com does the same format as far as week designation, so I'm ok with keeping it this way. When the regular season ends, I'll merely do a "End of Regular Season Ranking", or something that rolls off the tongue better.
But I do agree with you on my week 1 ranking, I named it, "nfl power rankings: the preseason edition". Just calling it week 1 would've been less confusing, we'll fix that.
I mean, yeahhh, "boy wonder" did tear up the bears d, but they're missing half their starters. Right now, they're no longer a top 5 defense, not by a long shot.
I was cracking up when I read the Kevin Curtis comment. Even his parents had to be surprised.
Posted by writer Thomas | September 29, 2007 2:29 PM