A lot of movement in the ERP Power Rankings between weeks one and two.  That is to be expected this time of year, as we’re all still figuring out which teams are good and which teams are bad.

Are the Cowboys & Vikings bad, or just struggling through two early losses?  The three of us have Dallas ranked at 19, 21, and 23, so we obviously think this winless streak is indicative of things to come, while Minnesota was ranked 14, 22, and 24.  Sharkey ranked Minnesota 14th, and while he doesn’t see anything at all from their offense, he believes their defense is still good enough to give them an upper half of the league ranking.

What about Chicago, Kansas City, and Tampa Bay?  Lucky to win two games, or are they for real?  Chicago cracked the top ten in our rankings, proving how much ERP is buying into this team right now.  For Tampa and KC, there are strong disagreements.  Doozer and MIB both have KC at #11, while Sharkey has them at 18.  Meanwhile, for TB, Sharkey and Doozer have them at 21st and 22nd, respectively, while MIB moved them all the way up to 12.

This proves nothing, except that maybe Sharkey is really skeptical of early success, MIB is buying into early success, and Doozer isn’t sure what to make of it from one team to the next.

At the top, the Saints remained #1 for the 3rd poll in a row, getting two of three first place votes.  Baltimore and New England both fell out of the Top 5, where they were replaced by AFC South compatriots; the Texans and the Colts.  The Pittsburgh Steelers got the other first place vote in this weeks rankings, and that helped move them up from #5 to #2.

This weeks big losers are the Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, and Dallas Cowboys, who fell from 10th, 12th, and 13th, respectively, last week, all the way down to 20th, 21st, and 22nd.

The Chicago Bears were definitely the big winners, climbing 11 spots to #9 in our rankings, joining the Top 10.  They join the San Diego Chargers as newcomers to the top 10, replacing the Minnesota Vikings and Tennessee Titans.

These rankings are based on the individual lists of all three of us, which have been combined and averaged out to give you ERP’s Power Rankings.  Included with each team is how many places they rose or fell compared to last week’s ERP rankings, what their record is, and a small blurb from one of the three of us.

Let us know how much you agree, or more likely, how much you disagree.

1. New Orleans Saints (2-0) – They’ve looked less than impressive in their first two games, but still have an undefeated record.  We’ll see if the Reggie Bush injury makes any difference. (MIB)




2. (+3) Pittsburgh Steelers (2-0) – This defense is good.  Real good.  (doozer)




3. (+3) Houston Texans (2-0) – Beat your main divisional competition?  Check.  Overcome adversity on the road when you could easily quit and say we’ll get it back next week?  Check.  This team is for real. (shark)




4. Green Bay Packers (2-0) – Hello NFC Central’s driver seat. (doozer)




5. (+2) Indianapolis Colts (1-1) – Oh, so that’s what the Colts offense looks like. (MIB)




6. (+3) New York Jets (1-1) – So they beat New England and barely lost to Baltimore.  That’s about as good as you can get at 1-1. (MIB)




7. (-4) Baltimore Ravens (1-1) – Great defense.  Struggling offense.  Haven’t we seen this before? (doozer)




8. (-6) New England Patriots (1-1) – Is this team great?  Or greatly overrated?  I have no idea anymore.  (shark)




9. (+11) Chicago Bears (2-0) – They’re here because they’re 2-0.  If they beat Green Bay on Monday Night we’ll talk about them being a contender. (MIB)




10. (+4) San Diego Chargers (1-1) – It’s looking more and more like a loss in Arrowhead won’t wind up being a bad loss for this team.  That’s not necessarily a good thing. (shark)




11. (+4) Miami Dolphins (2-0) – They’re 2-0 so they [almost] sneak into the Top 10.  The games between them and the Jets and the Patriots should be exciting. (MIB)




12. (-1) Kansas City Chiefs (2-0) – Not sure how I feel.  Should have seen more from them on Sunday.  Chargers are knocking at the door. (doozer)




13. (+3) Atlanta Falcons (1-1) – They’re supposed to blow the Cardinals out at home. (doozer)




14. (-6) Tennessee Titans (1-1) – 11 points scored and 7 total turnovers.  Even a Charlie Batch led offense could have beaten the Titans this past week… (shark)




15. (+7) Cincinnati Bengals (1-1) – New England crushes the Bengals.  Bengals beat the Ravens.  Ravens beat the Jets.  Jets beat New England.  Huh? (MIB)




16. (+3) Philadelphia Eagles (1-1) – The starter never loses his job to injury.  If you’re going to yank Kolb for Vick, why do you trade McNabb?  This isn’t going to end well.  (d00zer)




17. Washington Redskins (1-1) – Inconsistency defined.  They could easily be 2-0 or 0-2. (MIB)




18. (+6) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-0) – 2-0?  So what? (doozer)




19. (+6) San Francisco 49ers (0-2) – After Monday Night’s loss, Frank Gore said of the Saints: “We whupped their behinds up and down the field.  They couldn’t stand up to us.  We beat ourselves.”  He has to learn that great teams win games they should lose (see: NO, week 2 vs. SF), and bad teams lose games they should win (see: SF, week 2 vs. NO). (shark)




20. (-10) Minnesota Vikings (0-2) – Wow, they’ve looked awful.  Let me self-correct: Brett Favre has looked awful.  He single-handedly lost the first two games for a team that has a pretty good defense and an above-average running game. (MIB)




21. (-9) New York Giants (1-1) – Exposed. (doozer)




22. (-9) Dallas Cowboys (0-2) – If they lose to Houston this weekend, and are sitting at 0-3 heading into their week four bye, is Wade Phillips still their coach in week 5? (shark)




23. Denver Broncos (1-1) – Better than the Seahawks. (doozer)




24. (-6) Seattle Seahawks (1-1) – Worse than the Broncos. (doozer)




25. (+3) Detroit Lions (0-2) – Disrespect to the 49ers, Cowboys, and Vikings, but this is the most exciting 0-2 in the NFL. (shark)




26. (-5) Jacksonville Jaguars (1-1) – Sorry to the people of Jacksonville.  You were doomed the second I drafted Maurice Jones-Drew. (doozer)




27. (-1) Arizona Cardinals (1-1) – What did they expect when they start a guy who was released by the Cleveland Browns? (MIB)




28. (+2) Oakland Raiders (1-1) – Maybe the Bruce Gradkowski era will be longer than the Jason Campbell era. (MIB)




29. (-2) Carolina Panthers (0-2) – So much for being a sneaky good team like the 2008 Panthers. (shark)




30. (+2) St. Louis Rams (0-2) – Well, they almost beat another really crappy team.  And then they failed.  Yay. (MIB)




31. (-2) Cleveland Browns (0-2) – The Eric Mangini Farewell Tour rolls on. (doozer)




32. (-1) Buffalo Bills (0-2) – They’re starting a kid from Harvard.  Harvard!  I’m sure the rich tradition of Ivy League quarterbacks in the NFL will get them to that next level. (MIB)