NFL Week 3 Power Rankings

Five Quick Hits

* There are 32 teams in the NFL. So far this season, there are 13 I have yet to see, but I've seen the Raiders and Eagles three times each.

* I don't live within 100 miles of Oakland or Philadelphia. Note to television producers: I don't care about Randy Moss or Terrell Owens nearly as much as you seem to think.

* You know what's great? No one refers to Tampa's rookie RB as Carnell "Cadillac" Williams. They just call him Cadillac. That's old-school.

* Fans in Denver and San Diego booed Eddie Kennison and Eli Manning, respectively, every time they touched the ball. It didn't seem to affect either player, but that's exactly what the fans should be doing. Kennison and Little Manning disrespected their teams.

* Maybe it's premature for this, but Darren Sproles reminds me of Tiki Barber in 1999, or Buddy Young in 1950.

***

Week 3 was big for fantasy football players and for injuries. David Akers probably got the most attention, but Rodney Harrison, Chad Pennington, and Takeo Spikes are just three of the other major injuries from the NFL's third week of action. Speaking of bad news, Sean Salisbury still covers the league. I'd like to take issue with some of his comments from Monday night, but first ... Chris Berman.

According to Boomer (I think he tries to eat you if you don't call him "Boom" these days), Akers' hamstring was "literally killing him" on Sunday. It's the first life-threatening hamstring injury I've ever heard of. Similarly, Cadillac Williams came "literally right out of the showroom." I don't have a clever joke about that one, but it's still not true. And even though Berman said it on both NFL Primetime and Fastest Three Minutes, Marc Bulger's touchdown pass "between" two defenders was actually between one defender and the sideline. Sports fans probably say "I used to like him" about Berman more than any other broadcaster except maybe John Madden.

On the bright side, ESPN's normally putrid Sunday night team did a really nice job with the Giants/Chargers game, especially the first half.

Moving on to the power rankings, brackets show last week's rank.

1. Indianapolis Colts [2] — I'm concerned about the offense. I haven't seen the Colts' last two games, but it seems like everyone is playing the same defense — six, seven, eight defensive backs — against them. And it's working. It's not that the players all got worse in the offseason — Peyton Manning completed 83% of his passes this week, but they were all for short yardage. If the Colts can't start beating that coverage, they don't deserve this spot.

2. New England Patriots [3] — It's ludicrous to raise them a spot after they lose Harrison for the season, but after a win at Pittsburgh, what choice do I have? Their lack of success running the ball is cause for concern. Beginning my Salisbury notes, on Monday night, he called Adam Vinatieri a first-ballot Hall of Famer. I think Vinatieri probably will make the Hall, but only four "new" players can make it per year, and I don't think Vinatieri is going in on the first ballot.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers [1] — Is there anything more annoying than losing a game 51 seconds after it ended? A clock error gave New England time for a game-winning drive, and while the Steelers will probably say that they should have stopped the Pats anyway, that's a rough way to lose a game that might mean home field advantage a few months from now.

4. Cincinnati Bengals [8] — The Bengals aren't ranked here because they mopped the floor with the Browns, Vikings, and Bears. Starting cornerbacks Deltha O'Neal and Tory James have a combined six interceptions, tying the total of the next-highest teams in the league (Bears and Bucs). When your corners are that dangerous, you can hold a lead, and with Carson Palmer throwing to Chad Johnson, you'll probably have a lead to defend.

5. Atlanta Falcons [7] — I'm not convinced of Atlanta's consistency, but I love their pass defense. The run defense has been toasted in consecutive weeks, by Shaun Alexander (144 yards, 5.1 average, TD) and Willis McGahee (140 yards, 5.2 average, TD). They were okay the week before because the Eagles never rush, and they'll beat Minnesota for the same reason.

6. Philadelphia Eagles [4] — Donovan McNabb finished Sunday's game with decent numbers because he passed 52 times, but he clearly didn't look 100% against Oakland, and it's obvious that injuries are affecting his play.

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers [9] — Cadillac Williams is a sensational talent, and I enjoy watching him play, but he's not going to have a very long career if he keeps getting so many touches. On the first drive of Sunday's game, Williams had eight carries and got hit on an incomplete pass thrown his way. He finished the game with 37 rushes, bringing his season total to 88. That puts him on pace for 469.

The record is 410, by Jamal Anderson in 1998. Anderson was injured in the second game of the next season and out of football three years later. Since 1990, the only other players with more than 375 are Terrell Davis, Barry Foster, Edgerrin James, Jamal Lewis, Eddie George, Emmitt Smith, and Ricky Williams twice. Davis, Foster, James, and Lewis all suffered significant injuries the next season, missing a total of 45 games. George followed with his worst season as a pro, with under 1,000 yards and a 3.0 average — he's never been the same. Even Smith had a down season the next year, with his lowest average in 12 years in Dallas. Ricky Williams had a bad season after the first time, and retired after the second. Michael Pittman is a serviceable back, and he should be getting more carries to help keep Cadillac healthy.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars [10] — Donovin Darius was actually injured in Week 2, but that's one more big defensive name that's done for the year. I'd like to see more offense from a team ranked this high, but their overtime win over the Jets wasn't as close as it appeared.

9. Seattle Seahawks [15] — Outscored the Cardinals 27-3 in the second half after going into the locker room up by one. Have we finally found a worse second-half team than the Seahawks?

10. Buffalo Bills [11] — Former Bills coach Gregg Williams now works in Washington, and J.P. Losman is doing his best "Mark Brunell in 2004" impression. Takeo Spikes is out for the season, and the offense has to start producing.

11. Denver Broncos [20] — Champ Bailey, whom last year I called the most overrated player in the NFL, was having a nice game before his injury. The Broncos aren't really as good as they looked on MNF, but Trevor Pryce had a monster game.

12. Baltimore Ravens [13] — Salisbury says that Brooks Bollinger should wear a suit of armor next week, because "Ray Lewis is mad". Lewis only averages two sacks a season, so if I were Bollinger, I'd be more concerned about Terrell Suggs, who averages 11.

13. Carolina Panthers [6] — The defense clearly is not what we expected, and I think the offense is nicely summed up by a quick note I jotted down on Sunday:

S.Davis = poo

That's a shorthand way of saying that Carolina can't run the ball and isn't creating turnovers on defense.

14. San Diego Chargers [19] — Early in the third quarter, Luis Castillo was called for roughing the passer, nullifying an interception. In Week 2, a roughing penalty on Castillo wiped out a sack that would have given Dallas 4th-and-20 on its own 10. Instead, it was 1st-and-10 on the 25. The Cowboys drove for a touchdown and won by four. This week's call was a little nitpicky, but those are game-changing plays, and Castillo needs to keep his head in the game.

15. Kansas City Chiefs [5] — It's hard to overstate how much they miss Willie Roaf. Salisbury says that Kansas City's is "obviously" one of the top three offenses in the NFL. Right now, they're ninth in yards and tied for 13th in points, and I don't expect them to finish in the top three of either category. Stats aside, I think it was pretty obvious to anyone who watched KC against Oakland or Denver that this is not one of the top three offenses in the league anymore.

16. Detroit Lions [16] — Used the bye week to move into sole possession of first place in the NFC North.

17. Minnesota Vikings [22] — Michael Bennett is a fantastic athlete, but Mewelde Moore is pretty clearly the best running back on the team. Injuries to some of the team's offseason defensive acquisitions have put the burden back on the offense.

18. New York Giants [14] — Little Manning had the best game of his career and they lost by 22.

19. Washington Redskins [17] — If they're going to win games, they'll have to score eventually, and that post pattern to Santana Moss won't work again all season. Washington's defense looks exceptional so far, maybe the best in the league.

20. Dallas Cowboys [18] — The last time Drew Bledsoe threw this many passes for Bill Parcells, they went to the Super Bowl. The comeback against San Francisco was kind of impressive, but it's canceled out by the shame of having to come back against San Francisco.

21. Miami Dolphins [25] — Gus Frerotte went 14-for-33 and averaged 5 yards per attempt on Sunday, but it may be time to start giving offensive coordinator Scott Linehan some serious credit. Miami's offense isn't going to make anyone forget last year's Colts, but it's quickly erasing memories of last year's Dolphins. Miami should probably be ranked higher than this, so it's not out of the question that they could rise two or three spots during their bye week.

22. New York Jets [12] — Brooks Bollinger is starting at Baltimore on Sunday. I don't think Kurt Warner and Tom Brady have to worry about their legends.

23. St. Louis Rams [24] — It was nice to see Marshall Faulk back on the field and producing, but this team's real producer is Torry "Big Game" Holt, who lived up to that billing with 163 receiving yards against Tennessee. The Rams' schedule is awfully soft, and they could push Seattle for the NFC West title.

24. Oakland Raiders [23] — For years, I've been complaining about the Walsh Offense and the gnat attack: short passes for short gains, with no risks downfield. Now Norv Turner has Kerry Collins running an Al Davis downfield passing offense, and I think it's ugly and artless.

25. Cleveland Browns [27] — They've lost to two top-five teams and won at Lambeau Field. That last part doesn't mean as much as it used to, but it looks like the Browns can play with anyone.

26. Tennessee Titans [26] — Kyle Vanden Bosch actually leads the NFL in sacks, but the defense is miserable. Expect the Colts to show some life this week when Peyton Manning has the ball.

27. New Orleans Saints [21] — This weekend will be their second "home" game, in the fourth stadium they've used this season, only 542 miles from the Superdome. Aaron Brooks looks lost on the field.

28. Chicago Bears [28] — The Kyle Orton buzz didn't last long. Even Ryan Leaf never threw five interceptions in one game.

29. Green Bay Packers [29] — I'm not sure which member of referee Ron Winter's crew hit Al Harris in the face with a flag, but I thought it was pretty well-established, after Jeff Triplette blinded Orlando Brown, that you weren't supposed to do that.

30. San Francisco 49ers [32] — After leading 21-6 and 31-19, they managed to blow the lead in the fourth quarter. On the bright side, Brandon Lloyd is emerging as a receiver, and Kevan Barlow and Frank Gore combined for 107 yards on just 19 carries against Dallas.

31. Houston Texans [31] — If this team doesn't get better quickly, there are going to be some major shake-ups within the organization at the end of this year. That could include changes at head coach and quarterback.

32. Arizona Cardinals [30] — They have a home game in Mexico City, followed by a home game at Sun Devil Stadium, then a bye, then another home game in Arizona. After that, it's four at home and seven on the road. That's rough even for good teams.