Week 6 will commence in just a couple of days, so here’s Second & Inches’ power rankings. Here’s the format:
Rank|Team|(Record)|Div. Rank|(Div. Record)|Next Game|Comments
1 Baltimore Ravens (4-1) 1st AFC North (2-1) |@Patriots
Baltimore has staged some extremely tough road victories, and stuffing Denver last week gives the NFL’s #2 defense a lot of confidence on its way into Tom Brady’s turf.
2 Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1) 2nd AFC North (0-1) |v.Browns
Big Ben makes his return after a 4-week suspension, and who better to get back to football speed against then the Browns, who will start rookie QB Colt McCoy.
3 New York Jets (4-1) 1st AFC East (3-0) |@Broncos
The Jets’ defense has been stifling and Mark Sanchez has yet to throw a pick this season, and should only get better with the addition of Santonio Holmes.
4 Atlanta Falcons (4-1) 1st NFC South (1-0) |@Eagles
Matt Ryan has started winning on the road finally, and Michael Turner looks much better than last year. Throw in the 10th-best D, and you’ve got a helluva team in Atlanta.
5 New England Patriots (3-1) 2nd AFC East (2-1) |v.Ravens
Let’s hope Deion Branch makes up for the loss of Randy Moss with an extremely stingy Ravens’ defense on its way in.
6 Chicago Bears (4-1) 1st NFC North (2-0) |v.Seahawks
With Jay Cutler, this team is way better than with Todd Collins. However, the defense has shown that it can take over a game and win when its QB throws 4 picks.
7 Indianapolis Colts (3-2) 3rd AFC South (0-2) |@Redskins
The Colts have been the team to beat for so long, it seems to finally be catching up with them. Peyton still looks great, but the defense and running game have been lackluster, with way more problems in the latter.
8 Washington Redskins (3-2) 1st NFC East (2-0) |v.Colts
Donovan McNabb has given this team a chance to win this year. With an ugly come-from-behind win against Green Bay, the ‘Skins have proven they can stage an upset. Consistency is their next challenge to overcome.
9 Green Bay Packers (3-2) 2nd NFC North (1-1) |v.Dolphins
The Packers have been completely ravaged early this season by injuries, and with QB Aaron Rodgers receiving a concussion, there’s a lot of pressure on the defense to keep this team afloat.
10 Kansas City Chiefs (3-1) 1st AFC West (1-0) |@Texans
The Chiefs have a good defense and can win games. To keep it going for the rest of the season, Matt Cassel must step up, or the Chiefs will miss the playoffs yet again.
11 Tennessee Titans (3-2) 4th AFC South (0-0) |@Jaguars
Ignore any and all division rankings in the AFC South, they all are 3-2. The Titans looked very impressive on both sides of the ball against the Cowboys. Winning their first division game may be the key to what looks like a tough race in the South this year.
12 New Orleans Saints (3-2) 3rd NFC South (1-1) |@Buccaneers
Drew Brees is talented enough to pick up his game and get the offense back on track. The defense is having a lot of trouble taking the ball away this year, and that’s a huge difference in 2010 from 2009.
13 Houston Texans (3-2) 1st AFC South (1-0) |v.Chiefs
The Texans can put up huge offense, but they also let huge offense stack up against their woeful secondary. It remains to be seen whether this year is the year they get it together, or if it’s just more of the same ol’ Texans.
14 Philadelphia Eagles (3-2) 3rd NFC East (0-1) |v.Falcons
Michael Vick wants to play the Falcons, and with him at the helm, the Eagles stand a chance to win this and many other tough conference games. Not so sure about them with Kevin Kolb.
15 New York Giants (3-2) 2nd NFC East (0-0) |v.Lions
The Giants laid a smack-down on the Texans, but their defense stinks. If Eli Manning can pick apart better defenses, this team will go places. Luckily Detroit’s up next.
16 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1) 2nd NFC South (1-0) |v.Saints
Capitalizing on turnovers at key moments has kept the Bucs in games this season. Second-year QB Josh Freeman is looking impressive, too. This game against the Saints will be huge.
17 Jacksonville Jaguars (3-2) 2nd AFC South (1-0) |v.Titans
The Jaguars have been pretty decent this season, and another AFC South victory would shut the mouths of their doubters.
18 Miami Dolphins (2-2) 3rd AFC East (1-2) |@Packers
I just realized the three Florida teams are in a row. Anyhow, the Dolphins have a chance to improve their record after a bye week against a banged-up Packers squad.
19 San Diego Chargers (2-3) 3rd AFC West (0-2) |@Rams
The Chargers look awful on special teams this year, and that’s what is stopping them from being 5-0. They seem to go on an 8+ game winning streak every year, though, so I’m not worried yet.
20 Minnesota Vikings (1-3) 3rd NFC North (1-0) |v.Cowboys
Things aren’t looking too good for Minnesota, and a lot of people are questioning Brett Favre’s decision to go for a 20th season. Good to see Randy in purple again, too.
21 Dallas Cowboys (1-3) 4th NFC East (0-1) |@Vikings
If the ‘Boys lose to the Vikings, their hopes of playing the Super Bowl at home are essentially nullified.
22 Denver Broncos (2-3) 4th AFC West (0-0) |v.Jets
Kyle Orton is good, but not good enough to make up for the lack of a running game or a solid pass rush or a run-stuffing defense or…
23 Oakland Raiders (2-3) 2nd AFC West (1-0) |@49ers
Now that the Chargers’ monkey is off their back, the Raiders need to focus on keeping momentum going with a chance to win the wide-open AFC West.
24 Cincinnati Bengals (2-3) 3rd AFC North (1-1) |BYE
It seems like their decisive victory over the Ravens was ages ago. Besides T.O. being totally bad-ass, the Bengals are in a lot of trouble if they keep losing to teams like the Browns and the Buccaneers. Good time for a bye.
25 Arizona Cardinals (3-2) 1st NFC West (1-0) |BYE
The Cardinals are playing pretty decent defense, but Max Hall? Really? Really? Isn’t Daunte Culpepper or anyone else a free agent?
26 St. Louis Rams (2-3) 3rd NFC West (1-1) |v.Chargers
After posting back-to-back wins for the first time in a long time, the Rams got destroyed by the Lions. Strong special teams could bring them back to .500 this week.
27 Seattle Seahawks (2-2) 2nd NFC West (1-1) |@Bears
I don’t think the Seahawks will be able to get much done outside of excellent KR and PR play (their guys lead the NFC in both) until the QB issues are solved.
28 Cleveland Browns (1-4) 4th AFC North (1-1) |@Steelers
Colt McCoy is going to get an extremely rude awakening this weekend. The defense in Pittsburgh is already licking their chops.
29 Detroit Lions (1-4) 4th NFC North (0-3) |@Giants
What a way to gain the first win of the season. If the offense clicks like that once Matthew Stafford returns, we may see a 5- or 6-win season for the cowardly Lions.
30 San Francisco 49ers (0-5) 4th NFC West (0-1) |v.Raiders
The good news is that they’ve only lost one divisional contest, which means that they can still win the NFC West with a turnaround. Bad news is that they have yet to win, and another loss practically ends what should have been a stellar campaign for the Niners.
31 Buffalo Bills (0-5) 4th AFC East (0-3) |BYE
A bye week means you can’t lose another one, right?
32 Carolina Panthers (0-5) 4th NFC South |BYE
Even with 4 interceptions, this team can’t capitalize. Lame.
