Week 5 Power Rankings

The Elite

Still no one. There has not been a single team to separate themselves from the pack 4 games into the year. There seems to be a lot of parity this season, and thats the way the NFL wants it. Lots of teams in this years mix, because there is a lot of mediocrity. This is also why there have been so many underdogs covering spreads in the early going this season. But lets get on with the ranks.


The Contenders

1. Baltimore Ravens
2. New York Jets
3. Pittsburgh Steelers
4. Green Bay Packers
5. Atlanta Falcons
6. Kansas City Chiefs
7. San Diego Chargers
8. Houston Texans
9. New Orleans Saints

I've cut the contenders by three this week. The Colts, Titans, Dolphins and Bears all put in performances this week that simply could not be considered contender worthy. The Colts and Titans lost close games to bad teams, and the Bears and Dolphins got blown out by mediocre teams. That means they all fall back to the middle of the pack.

The San Diego Chargers are the newest member to the group of contenders, and they got there with a performance that was purely dominant against Arizona. Arizona is terrible, but you can't deny a team that was so pristine on both sides of the ball a spot in the contenders ring. They rise up from number 15 all the way to number 7.

The Baltimore Ravens secure the top spot for this week after knocking off last week's top team. I love the Ravens and thought they were a top 3 team preseason, and I think they have shown a great balance that no other team has matched. They may be there for a while.

The Jets move into the number two spot after thrashing the Buffalo Bills. Wouldn't be that impressive, but they have done more than enough this season to prove they belong here. If Sanchez continues to develop, this may be a dynasty in the making.

The Mediocre

10. Indianapolis Colts
11. Chicago Bears
12. New England Patriots
13. Tennessee Titans
14. Denver Broncos
15. Dallas Cowboys
16. Minnesota Vikings
17. Washington Redskins
18. Miami Dolphins
19. New York Giants
20. Philadelphia Eagles
21. Cincinnati Bengals
22. St. Louis Rams
23. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
24. Seattle Seahawks
25. Cleveland Browns
26. Jacksonville Jaguars

Here is where I illustrate my earlier point about parity. Three teams fell into the realm of mediocrity while another three rose up from the dregs to join them. The Rams made the biggest jump, and they actually showed some serious fight against the Seahawks. They actually have two wins in four games, and I can honestly say I'm totally shocked. I DID NOT expect Sam Bradford to play anywhere near this level this fast. This is one team that could actually vastly outperform preseason expectations and it is all on Bradford. If he keeps this up, expect further climbs up this board. If he shows signs of being a rookie, they could be back in the Garbage in no time.

Also joining the Rams in the ascent to the middle are the Cleveland Browns and Jacksonville Jaguars, two teams that pulled off victories over higher ranked opponents. I expected the Browns, but I didn't see the Jags winning at all. Every powerhouse team is allowed to lay an egg once in a while, and the Colts sure did there. I don't trust the Jags at all, but any team that can beat the Colts has to make it out of Garbage-level.

The New England Patriots showed some serious life on Monday night... and then proceeded to trade away Randy Moss, their biggest weapon. How this plays out is yet to be seen but I can't think its a good thing. I still think they are a 9-7 mediocre team, even with their trouncing of Miami. The Moss trade kinda keeps them in limbo for me. The Dolphins, however, fall considerably out of the ranks of contenders all the way down to 18.

Washington has jumped five spots with a statement win over Philadelphia, further proving that the NFC East is a jumbled mess of mediocrity. I doubt any team in this division breaks from this group the rest of the season (the Cowboys have the best chance, and they were on a bye). I will say this, Ryan Torain impressed me. If they let this kid run the ball on a full time basis, and I believe they have to with Portis out, they could grind out a few more wins in this weak division and could surprise with a division win and a trip to the playoffs. I'm not counting on it, but they DO sit in first as we speak.


The Garbage

24. Carolina Panthers
25. San Francisco 49ers
28. Detroit Lions
29. Oakland Raiders
31. Arizona Cardinals
32. Buffalo Bills

All of these teams lost and remain Garbage to me. The Cardinals fall all the way down to the number 31 spot, and are going to move forward with undrafted rookie quarterback Max Hall. Larry Fitzgerald can NOT be pleased with this situation.

See you tomorrow morning with this weeks Picks!