Here’s a weekly look at the top and bottom five in the NFL:
1. New England Patriots (7-0)
Previous Rank: #1
Sunday was a great example of how good Tom Brady is. Bill Belichick pulled him during the forth quarter of a blowout, but inserted him back into the game after Miami cut the score to 49-28 and immediately he threw his sixth touchdown pass of the day. Remarkable.
2. Indianapolis Colts (7-0)
Previous Rank: #2
Jacksonville lost starting quarterback David Garrard to an injury Monday night, but it wouldn’t have mattered if he had played the entire game. Indy ran at will all night and the game was never in doubt. The Jags were supposed to be a true test for the Colts, but the game only proved how good Indy actually is.
3. Dallas Cowboys (6-1)
Previous Rank: #4
The most encouraging thing that occurred for the Cowboys this past weekend was that the defense played with emotion. The Dallas offense has been great, but the play of the defense will be the true factor in whether or not this team can make a deep postseason run.
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2)
Previous Rank: #3
Pittsburgh’s loss on Sunday night proved that even though the Broncos haven’t played well at times this season, Denver is still a tough place to win. The Steelers are going to have to cut down on the turnovers or else more losses will be coming soon.
5. New York Giants (5-2)
Previous Rank: N/A
Eli Manning is playing with tons of confidence and the defense is smacking people around and wrecking havoc – the G-Men are currently the hottest team not named the Patriots or Colts.
28. San Francisco 49ers (2-4)
Previous Rank: N/A
It’s getting hard to watch this train wreck every week. Wow, what a promising offseason turned into mush thanks to a few key injuries. One good note, however, has been the play of rookie middle linebacker, Patrick Willis. That guy is an absolute playmaker.
29. New York Jets (1-6)
Previous Rank: #29
Has someone seen Thomas Jones? He has two games of over 100 rushing yards and that’s it. Other than that, he’s rushed for: 42, 67, 35, 36 and 67 yards. And oh by the way, he has zero touchdowns – none, zero, zilch!
30. Atlanta Falcons (1-6)
Previous Rank #30
The Michael Vick saga, the key injuries (they’ve lost two left tackles to season-ending injuries and it’s only Week 8!), Byron Leftwich providing a spark and then going down – somebody on the Falcons really did a number on the football gods, because clearly this team is cursed. Perhaps the worst curse of all, however, is the curse of the Joey Harrington. That guy just sucks the life right out of every team he plays for.
31. Miami Dolphins (0-7)
Previous Rank: #31
The Dolphins have one of the worst defenses I’ve ever seen and that’s hard to swallow considering they still employ Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor. The ironic part is that the offense is actually playing well this year; although with Ronnie Brown now out for the year with an ACL injury, that is likely to change soon.
32. St. Louis Rams (0-7)
Previous Rank: #32
It’s flabbergasting to see a team with so many offensive playmakers struggle so much. Steven Jackson is set to return this week from injury, but this team is so off track right now, it hardly matters.
