| Rank | Team |
Comment |
| 1 (2) |  | The champs are back,
and they didn't wait long to make a statement. After so many Super Bowl
champions have disappointed in the season following their glory, the Colts
shocked the world with a defensive statement against last year's top
offense in football. With the Colts' offense and defense on the same page,
nothing can stop them. |
| 2 (1) |  | The Chargers may not
have been as flashy as the Colts and the Patriots were in Week 1, but it
certainly isn't an easy feat to defeat the defending NFC Champions in your first
game of the season. The Chargers were able to do it without a respectably
rushing average from Tomlinson, once again emphasizing the fact that this team
is full of depth at every position. |
| 3 (3) |  | The Patriots played
well enough to move up in the rankings, but the Chargers and Colts didn't
do anything to lose their spots. Unfortunately for New England, their huge
victory over the Jets was overshadowed by the illegal antics used by
Belichick and company during the game. The price was hefty, but their
season isn't affected. |
| 4 (4) |
 | This is the first of
three consecutive mulligans. I'm willing to give one, maybe two mulligans
per year to a team. For the Saints to come out against the Colts defense
and show absolutely nothing on either side of the ball was quite alarming
for Sean Payton's team. |
| 5 (5) |  | I didn't see anything
from the Bears' running game, carrying over the issues they had during the
preseason. Although I didn't think Rex Grossman really did anything to
lose the game, the offense in general simply does not seem to have enough
firepower. If the Bears fall again, it won't be long before the Packers
are two games ahead of them. |
| 6 (6) |  | The final team to earn
a mulligan, the Ravens are in desperate need for some help. The last time
the Ravens had so many crucial injuries, the Steelers and the Bengals made
the postseason while Billick's crew did not. |
7 (8)
|  | The Cowboys secondary
was ripped apart again, bringing back all of the issues from last year.
However, seeing Tony Romo in a groove removed any doubt that his botched
hold last year would carry over mentally this year. |
8 (7)
|  | Special teams can
really kill a team, and that was definitely the case in Week 1 for the
Eagles. At least ten points were directly due to fumbled punts, and that's
not something the defensive unit can smile about after the work they put
in. |
| 9 (11) |
 | Matt Hasselbeck did
not throw an interception and Shaun Alexander went over 100 yards rushing
in the Seahawks' first game of the season. They won't be low key very much
longer, because with those two men healthy, Seattle is a force to be
reckoned with in the NFC. |
10 (13)
|
 | The Bengals defense
hasn't been good for a long time, but if they're able to hang around and
intercept all of the tipped balls, they can take the AFC North. Carson Palmer is
in sync with Chad Johnson sooner than last year. |
11 (9)
 |
 | Why boo Chad
Pennington? Pennington led the Jets to the postseason last year, and
actually had a very good game against the Patriots overall. The Patriots
may simply be too tough for anyone to beat this year, so a better test for
the Jets comes this week against Baltimore. |
12 (10)
|
 | The Broncos' offensive
effort against the Bills was fairly explosive, but how is it that they
only put 15 points on the board, nearly losing the game if it weren't for
Elam winning it as time expired? That's not how a contender should be
winning football games. |
13 (15)
|  | The Packers carried
over their momentum last season using tremendous efforts from their
defense and a little luck on special teams. Brett Favre has to hope that
the running game will mature quickly to allow this team to compete for the
division title right away. |
14
(18)
|
 | I was waiting for the
Panthers to show me that they're back to being at top form this season.
Their dominating victory on the road against the St. Louis Rams was
certainly a step in the right direction. |
15 (19)
|
 | The Titans
took a running back that they were about to waive (Chris Brown), and were
able to get over 170 yards rushing out of him against one of the top
defenses in the NFL. I guess they won't be missing Travis Henry. |
| 16 (14) |
 | Despite the victory,
the 49ers didn't explode as I thought they would against the Cardinals. I
haven't lost faith in them though, as I expect Frank Gore and Alex Smith
to get more comfortable again in the coming weeks. |
17 (12)
|
 | It really is a shame
that the two fumbles from Steven Jackson changed all of the momentum the
Rams had against Carolina. Now, the Rams have started the season off on
the wrong side of the record. |
18 (16)
|
 | I don't expect the
Jaguars to be torched on the ground as they were last week for the rest of
the season, but a performance like that sure raises a lot of questions. |
| 19 (17) |
 | With Brandon Jacobs
out and the injury concerns to Eli Manning, the season isn't starting off
as the Giants had hoped it would. |
| 20 (21) |  | After Ben
Roethlisberger threw for four touchdowns against the Browns, it's time to
show that he can reproduce that type of effort over the span of several
weeks. |
| 21 (20) |  | Matt Leinart could not
get anything going early on against the 49ers, but seeing Edgerrin James
get close to 100 yards rushing is a positive sign. |
| 22 (22) |  | The Bills let a huge
game slip away that could have cost them their season. They may seem
drastic for Week 1, but the Bills need to have a season in which they
start off on fire, not end on fire. |
| 23 (25) |  | After watching the
Eagles and Giants fall in Week 1, Joe Gibbs and the Redskins are hoping
that fundamental football will carry them into the playoffs like it did a
few years ago. |
24 (28)
|
 | Jon Kitna may still
throw some interceptions, but he has a full arsenal of weapons to make this
one of the best passing offenses in the NFL. Roy Williams, Calvin Johnson,
Shaun McDonald, and Mike Furrey combine for an offensive coordinator's dream. |
25 (29)
|
 | Last year, the Bears
went to the postseason with a solid defense, a solid run game, and a below
average passing game. That could very well equate to the Vikings gameplay
this year: can they surprise some teams down the stretch? |
| 26 (23) |  | Jeff Garcia wasn't
able to produce as much firepower as he did with the Eagles, proving again
that the Buccaneers' biggest mistake was failing to acquire a big-name
receiver. |
| 27 (26) |  | Trent Green didn't
play bad, but the Dolphins are already looking up to the Patriots after
Week 1. |
28 (30)
|
 | It only took Matt
Schaub one week to have a better winning percentage than David Carr ever had. |
29 (24)
|
 | With all due
respect to the Houston Texans' defense, things are not even close to
looking positive for the Chiefs at this point. Neither side of the ball
looks to be impressive, coming from a team that made the postseason last
year. |
30 (27)
|
 | Charlie Frye's
performance was so putrid in Week 1 that the Browns traded him to the
Seattle Seahawks. With Derek Anderson as the new starter, another
evaluation period takes place for Week 2. |
| 31 (31) |
 | Josh McCown provided
an offensive spark that no one could have expected, but the Raiders'
secondary full of talent failed to stop anyone on the Lions. |
| 32 (32) |
 | The Falcons aren't bad
just because Michael Vick is gone, they're just bad period. |
