Some coaches here have changed positions but mostly it’s the same group. Still, just like with the players, November and December tend to bring out the best and worst of coaches as well. Here is the updated Coach of the Year power rankings….

1. Jim Caldwell, Indianapolis Colts—Everyone kept saying the Colts hadn’t played a quality opponent yet. Well, they beat the Patriots in a thriller last Sunday night, and Caldwell’s team mirrored his calm sideline demeanor in working their way back from 17 points down late in the game to stay undefeated.

2. Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints—Each game is getting to be an adventure, and after almost blowing it against the lowly Rams, coach Payton’s stock has to have dropped just a tad. Still, his Saints are 9-0, and at the end of the day, all nine of those wins count.

3. Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati Bengals—The Bengals are for real. And Marvin Lewis, the defensive minded coach who has never had a defense to speak of in Cincinnati, finally has one. Boy, does he have one. But more than that, his Cardiac Cats are playing so inspired that they are now 7-2, leading the tough AFC North, and they are a combined 4-0 against the Steelers and Ravens. Wow.

4. Brad Childress, Minnesota Vikings—Not much changes for Childress after disposing of the Lions last Sunday. It’s just that what Lewis has done is a bit more impressive.

5. Josh McDaniels, Denver Broncos—He’s now lost three straight, but I guess if you look at this and think that McDaniels’ Broncos are 6-3 when everyone may have expected them to be 3-6 at this point, he deserves to stay here….for now.

Honorable mention: Mike Tomlin, Steelers; Ken Whisenhunt, Cardinals; Jack Del Rio, Jaguars

Here’s how I see things 1-32 in the NFL with nine weeks in the books:

1. New Orleans Saints (8-0)
Nobody should be surprised that the Falcons and Panthers gave the Saints issues at home the past two weeks. After all, Atlanta and Carolina are familiar with New Orleans since they play them twice a year. The real story is how the Saints never panicked when they got down early and outplayed both the Falcons and Panthers in the fourth quarter.

2. Indianapolis Colts (8-0)
The Colts have the eighth best defense in the NFL, which is rather remarkable given that starters Bob Sanders and Marlin Jackson haven’t played much at all. Dwight Freeney has terrorized opposing quarterbacks this season.

3. Minnesota Vikings (7-1)
Heading into the second half of the season, the only question I have about these Vikings is whether or not Brett Favre will stay healthy enough to lead this team deep into the playoffs. Last year, he couldn’t and the Jets tanked in the final month of the season.

4. New England Patriots (6-2)
We’ll get a great idea of how good this Patriots team is this weekend when they travel to Indianapolis to take on the undefeated Colts. Bill Belichick better figure out a way to get Dwight Freeney blocked so Tom Brady can build off the momentum he has created the past three games.

5. Cincinnati Bengals (6-2)
I get the feeling that people keep waiting for the Bengals to cave and sink back to reality. Those folks will be waiting a while because this team is underrated, not overrated. A win this week in Pittsburgh and everyone will be believers.

6. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2)
Jon Gruden hit the nail on the head when he said on Monday night that the Steelers close out games better than anyone in the league. One of the rare times they didn’t close out a team was earlier this season in Cincinnati, when the Bengals beat them on a last-second touchdown. They’ll get a chance to avenge that loss this Sunday in Pittsburgh, as well as take a one-game lead in the AFC North if they can pull off a win.

7. Denver Broncos (6-2)
I’m not ready to suggest that Denver is overrated or will start to freefall, but it is a little troubling that they’ve played two good teams the past two weeks and were beaten soundly in both contests. It’s time for Josh McDaniels to prove that he can make adjustments and Kyle Orton needs to take better care of the ball when his team is trailing.

8. Dallas Cowboys (6-2)
Given all their talent, I want to believe that the Cowboys have turned the corner under Wade Phillips. But this isn’t the first time in the past couple years where they’ve stringed together a couple of good outings to get people to believe. Their win in Philadelphia was awfully impressive, but they need to prove that they can sustain their momentum.

9. Philadelphia Eagles (5-3)
The Eagles had an opportunity to make a statement at home against the Cowboys last Sunday night and failed. Hopefully Brian Westbrook will return soon, because Philly’s offense can look stagnant at times without him.

10. Atlanta Falcons (5-3)
Michael Turner started hearing the words “one-year wonder” being tossed around a couple weeks ago and didn’t like it. He’s responded with two 150-plus rushing performances and has looked like the back he did last year. It’s a good thing too, because Matt Ryan hasn’t played well since Atlanta’s win in San Francisco four weeks ago.

11. Arizona Cardinals (5-3)
The Cardinals’ win over the Bears was one of the more complete victories of the season for any team. Now if they could only figure out how to win at home…

12. San Diego Chargers (5-3)
What a great final drive by Philip Rivers and the Chargers’ offense in New York last week. Norv Turner still needs to figure out how to generate a running game, but all of a sudden San Diego is right on Denver’s heels again in the AFC West.

13. Houston Texans (5-4)
The Texans shot themselves in the foot last Sunday in Indianapolis too many times to count. But they proved that they can hang with the best in the AFC and that will give them confidence moving forward.

14. Baltimore Ravens (4-4)
There’s no doubt that the Ravens are a good team. They were just beat by a better one last Sunday in Cincinnati.

15. New York Giants (5-4)
Has the Giants’ coaching staff lost faith in Eli Manning? They didn’t allow him to test the end zone once after their defense intercepted Philip Rivers late in the fourth quarter last week and set the offense up with great field position. Tom Coughlin and company seem to be playing not to lose these days.

16. Miami Dolphins (3-5)
It’s apparent this season that the Dolphins don’t have enough talent to beat top competition, but that hasn’t stopped Tony Sparano’s squad from battling week in and week out.

17. New York Jets (4-4)
Rex Ryan, Mark Sanchez and the Jets need to find where that swagger is that they played with the first couple weeks of the season. Maybe they located it during their bye.

18. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-4)
What a game for Mike Sims-Walker last week: Six catches, 147 yards and one touchdown. He’s put together a solid season thus far and is starting to make a name for himself.

19. Green Bay Packers (4-4)
It’s almost like Dom Capers’ defense takes every other week off. How the hell do they allow Josh Freeman and the Bucs to rack up 38 points on them last week?

20. San Francisco 49ers (3-5)
The 49ers need a good showing against the Bears on Thursday night if they want to get back into the race in the AFC West. Alex Smith has played pretty well for them, but wins are what matter most in this league.

21. Chicago Bears (4-4)
There’s no team in the league that gives up quicker than the Bears do when they face a double-digit deficit at halftime.

22. Carolina Panthers (3-5)
The Panthers gave a great effort last week in New Orleans, but in the end turnovers killed them. Injuries are starting to mount up for this team, but a win this Sunday at home against the Falcons will keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

23. Seattle Seahawks (3-5)
Good thing Seattle’s defense intercepted Matthew Stafford five times last week, because the offense tried to give the game away early.

24. Tennessee Titans (2-6)
Vince Young has found his confidence again, folks.

25. Buffalo Bills (3-5)
Maybe Trent Edwards can spark the Bills’ offense this week. Or not…does it really matter?

26. Washington Redskins (2-6)
You can tell that Jim Zorn has no control over his players when DeAngelo Hall and Albert Hanyesworth are mixing it up with their opponents on the sidelines when they’re getting their ass handed to them.

27. Detroit Lions (1-7)
Learn from that performance in Seattle, young Matthew Stafford.

28. Oakland Raiders (2-6)
Enjoy whatever time you have left in Oakland Tom Cable, because your time is quickly running out.

29. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-7)
It wasn’t a perfect performance, but Josh Freeman showed some real poise in his first career start last week. Hopefully he can build off that and learn some things this year.

30. Kansas City Chiefs (1-7)
Outside of forgetting to cover Mike Sims-Walker, the Chiefs’ defense really didn’t play that bad last week in Jacksonville.

31. St. Louis Rams (1-7)
Let’s see if the Rams can build any momentum after compiling their first win before their bye last week.

32. Cleveland Browns (1-7)
This might be cruel given the state of our economy, but somebody got fired for putting the Browns on Monday night football this year right? Given how bad they were last year, it’s absolutely inexcusable for this crap team to be on prime time television.

Photo from fOTOGLIF
]]> http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/11/11/2009-nfl-power-rankings-week-10/feed/ 0 http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/11/04/2009-nfl-power-rankings-week-9/ http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/11/04/2009-nfl-power-rankings-week-9/#comments Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:41:52 +0000 Anthony Stalter http://www.scoresreport.com/?p=28279

Here’s how I see things 1-32 in the NFL after eight weeks in the books:

1. New Orleans Saints (7-0)
The Saints have the most balanced offensive attack in the NFL, have been a more aggressive and opportunistic defense under new coordinator Gregg Williams and are off to their best start in franchise history. There is a lot of season left, but this team has a Super Bowl-feeling about them.

2. Indianapolis Colts (7-0)
I don’t know if the 49ers necessarily laid out a blueprint on how to stop Peyton Manning and the Colts, but they at least showed how to contain the potent Indy offense for four quarters.

3. Minnesota Vikings (7-1)
I bet Brett Favre and Jared Allen wish they could play the Packers every week, because they’ve owned Green Bay in two games this season.

4. Denver Broncos (6-1)
Teams always learn more from losses than they do wins, so it’ll be interesting to see how Josh McDaniels and his coaching staff adjusts heading into Monday night against the Steelers.

5. New England Patriots (5-2)
We’ll see what kind of team the Pats are over their next five games: vs. Miami, at Indy, vs. the Jets and at New Orleans. Is Tom Brady back to his usual self or did he just benefit from putting up outrageous numbers against two bad teams in the Titans and Bucs the past two games?

6. Cincinnati Bengals (5-2)
The Bengals should be fresh coming off their bye, but they face two opponents in the Ravens and Steelers in the next two weeks that are looking to avenge losses to Cincinnati earlier in the season. Can the Bengals at least earn a split to stay atop the AFC North?

7. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2)
The Steelers are feeling good after beating the Vikings two weeks ago and then getting Week 8 off. But they travel to Denver and then host Cincinnati the next two weeks, so we’ll see whether or not their record isn’t just a byproduct of facing bad teams like the Titans, Lions, Browns and the ever-inconsistent Chargers.

8. Dallas Cowboys (6-2)
Wade Phillips’ defense is starting to do a better job of creating turnovers and getting pressure on the quarterback. In the Cowboys’ last two games, they’ve racked up five takeaways and seven sacks. It’s no surprise that Dallas won both of those games and they’ll need more of the same when they travel to Philadelphia on Sunday night.

9. Philadelphia Eagles (5-2)
What an impressive win last Sunday as the Eagles thumped the Giants in every facet of the game. Can they do it again this week in another big divisional test?

10. New York Giants (5-3)
I don’t know what to make of this team – are they suffering from injuries or have the last three weeks been the norm? To date, the G-Men only have one win against a winning team, which came in Week 2 against the Cowboys. Their four other victories came against the Redskins, Bucs, Chiefs and Raiders. Yikes.

11. Atlanta Falcons (4-3)
If the Falcons can combine their offensive effort from the first half on Monday night, with their defensive effort in the second half they’d be one hell of a football team. But at this point, I think this team is going to continue to suffer some growing pains on both sides of the ball.

12. Baltimore Ravens (4-3)
The Ravens obviously figured out a few things during their bye week, because they looked like a different defensive team Sunday then they had in their previous three games (all losses). But they have a rough five-game stretch coming up, which includes games against the Bengals, Colts, Steelers and Packers. Their only gimmie is a Week 10 date with the Browns.

13. Arizona Cardinals (4-3)
Just when you think the Cards are ready to turn the page and build some momentum, Kurt Warner throws 17 picks in a loss to a bad Panthers team at home.

14. Houston Texans (5-3)
The Texans’ defense has played better of late, even if the stat sheet doesn’t suggest it. But they’re going to be tested this Sunday in Indianapolis and you know Peyton Manning will want to atone for only scoring 18 points against the 49ers last week.

15. San Diego Chargers (4-3)
The Chargers are like a poor man’s Steelers in that they find ways to win sloppy games, yet aren’t as talented as Pittsburgh to get away with it every week. How San Diego only beat the Raiders by eight points last week is staggering.

16. Green Bay Packers (4-3)
Before their loss to the Vikings, I was ready to jump back on the Packers-are-a-sleeper-contender bandwagon. Now I’m back on the, who-the-hell-has-this-team-beaten?…bandwagon.

17. Chicago Bears (4-3)
The Bears’ victory over the Browns last Sunday was one of the more unimpressive 30-6 wins I’ve ever seen.

18. Miami Dolphins (3-4)
Holy sh*t, somebody found Ted Ginn Jr.

19. San Francisco 49ers (3-4)
If the Niners had anything resembling an offense in the second half last week, they would have probably beaten the Colts.

20. New York Jets (4-4)
Does anybody watch the demeanor of Mark Sanchez when he makes a poor decision? It’s like watching a little kid make a mistake in a Pop Warner game: He sulks, he hangs his head, he’s looking for someone to help cheer him up. Toughen up a little, Mark.

21. Carolina Panthers (3-4)
Even though I’m not a fan, I must admit that John Fox’s teams never quit. Just when you think they’re ready to concede the fact that they’re a bad team, they go to Arizona and beat a pretty good Cardinals squad.

22. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-4)
I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that the Jags lost last week in Tennessee. Jack Del Rio has a young team on his hands and inconsistency is going to be a theme in 2009.

23. Buffalo Bills (3-5)
Holy sh*t, somebody found T.O.

24. Seattle Seahawks (2-5)
I think a Jim Mora-coached team will always be an unprepared team. He just isn’t a good enough schemer to help his team overcome their limitations.

25. Washington Redskins (2-5)
Apology not expected, Daniel Snyder.

26. Tennessee Titans (1-6)
Wow, now there’s a shock – Vince Young comes off the bench and provides a spark. I realize VY isn’t the answer in Tennessee, but at least that team showed signs of life. Jeff Fisher made that move two weeks too late.

27. Oakland Raiders (2-6)
Al Davis might as well make it 2-for-2 in firing head coaches in the middle of the season the past two years.

28. Detroit Lions (1-5)
If you threw any kind of money down on the Rams or Lions this week, I must question your sanity. And if you’re Detroit, how the flip do you lose to St. Louis at home? Ah yeah, Calvin Johnson didn’t play…

29. Kansas City Chiefs (1-6)
Let the Jamaal Charles era begin in KC.

30. St. Louis Rams (1-7)
Congratulations to Steve Spagnuolo for earning his first win as a head coach. I checked with the NFL and yes, it still counts even though it was against the Lions.

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-7)
Well, let’s see what you’ve got, Josh Freeman.

32. Cleveland Browns (1-7)
The Browns have to have the worst offense in the history of the league. I’ve never seen a team so inept and the funny thing is that Derek Anderson was supposed to be an upgrade over Brady Quinn in the passing game despite his penchant for throwing interceptions. If Cleveland goes 1-15 and Eric Mangini isn’t fired, then I’m calling shenanigans and the behalf of George Kokinis.

Here’s how I see things 1-32 in the NFL now that seven weeks are in the books.

1. New Orleans Saints (6-0)
Considering they gave up 34 points last week, it would be easy to assume that the Saints defense didn’t play well. But it was actually Drew Brees that allowed the Dolphins to jump out to a 24-3 halftime lead with all the turnovers he had. Credit Sean Payton for not abandoning the run and getting away from his game plan despite the early deficit.

2. Indianapolis Colts (6-0)
The Colts continue to feast on bad teams, as they blew out the Rams in St. Louis last Sunday. But they’ll get a couple of decent challenges from their next four opponents: 49ers (or maybe not considering how overrated Mike Singletary’s team now looks), Texans, Patriots and Ravens.

3. Denver Broncos (6-0)
It’s amazing how this team continues to be underdogs week after week. Despite being undefeated and facing an opponent that has lost three straight, the Broncos are 3-point underdogs at the Ravens this Sunday. Something tells me Josh McDaniels wouldn’t have it any other way.

4. New England Patriots (5-2)
I’m not overlooking the fact that the Patriots absolutely demolished two bad teams the past two weeks. But I’m also not going to overlook how comfortable Tom Brady seems in the pocket again.

5. Minnesota Vikings (6-1)
Why Brad Childress decided not to use Adrian Peterson more in those final six minutes on Sunday is beyond me. Brett Favre shouldn’t be attempting 51 passes in a game unless it’s a blow out and the Vikes need to throw to get back into it.

6. Cincinnati Bengals (5-2)
Any lingering doubts about whether or not the Bengals could put their home loss to the Texans in Week 6 behind them were erased once they scored their fourth touchdown of the first half against the Bears. What a season Cedric Benson is having.

7. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2)
This hasn’t been an overly impressive team through the first seven weeks of the season, but the Steelers always have a knack for making their opponents look really bad on Sundays.

8. Arizona Cardinals (4-2)
This may be a little high for the Cardinals, but I can’t force myself to rank them below the Giants after their impressive win last week in East Rutherford. There’s a lot to like about this Cardinals team right now: They’re playing well defensively, their offense is starting to get into a rhythm and Beanie Wells is even showing potential in the running game. ‘Zona is once again the team to beat in the NFC West.

9. New York Giants (5-2)
The Giants are who we thought they were: An injury-riddled team that is going to have to battle some tough opponents over the next couple weeks to stay afloat in the NFC East.

10. Dallas Cowboys (5-2)
If the Cowboys can play with the same intensity, focus and determination every week as they did last Sunday against the Falcons, they’ll have no problem making the playoffs. I swear the Dallas players thought it was the Super Bowl with how they got up for Atlanta.

11. Atlanta Falcons (4-2)
The Falcons’ secondary woes were on full display last week in Dallas, which isn’t a good sign considering they take on the Saints next Monday night. Offensively, Atlanta has to figure out a way to get Michael Turner going; he’s averaging a full YPC less this year (3.4) than he was last year (4.4). The rushing lanes aren’t there like they were last year, and neither is Turner’s explosion.

12. Green Bay Packers (4-2)
Give the Packers credit for not getting caught looking ahead to their game this Sunday against the Vikings. They went into unfamiliar territory last Sunday in Cleveland and beat the piss out of a bad Browns team. Now they need to prove they can beat a team with a winning record.

13. Philadelphia Eagles (4-2)
The offense wasn’t that impressive Monday night outside of playmaker DeSean Jackson, but the Eagles’ defense played like a unit on a mission. Will Witherspoon already looks like a solid addition at linebacker.

14. Baltimore Ravens (3-3)
It’s time to find out whether or not the Ravens ironed out their issues over the bye. This team needs to play better defensively if it wants to stay in the playoff hunt – especially in the secondary.

15. New York Jets (4-3)
Rex Ryan did exactly what he needed to do last week: Take pressure off of Mark Sanchez and allow the ground game and defense to win in Oakland. Well done, Rex.

16. Chicago Bears (3-3)
It doesn’t get any uglier for the Bears than it did last Sunday in Cincinnati. This team has major defensive issues (the injuries certainly don’t help) and they still can’t figure out their rushing woes.

17. Houston Texans (4-3)
They nearly let one get away last Sunday, but the Texans deserve credit for hanging on in the fourth quarter and winning back to back games for the first time all season.

18. San Diego Chargers (3-3)
The Chargers needed that kind of win in Kansas City last week. Maybe it’ll lift them to a second half run.

19. Miami Dolphins (2-4)
Put the game away, Miami! Put it away! What a monumental confidence builder that would have been had the Dolphins beat the Saints last week. Either way, the Fish was again proved that they’re going to be a tough opponent from here on out.

20. San Francisco 49ers (3-3)
Everyone sipped the 49ers Kool Aid a little too early. Hopefully Alex Smith can spark the lifeless offense like he did last week in Houston and get this team back on track.

21. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3)
Check out some of these opponents the Jags face in the second half: Titans, Chiefs, Bills, 49ers and Browns. This could easily be a 8-8 team, which would be a major accomplishment given how young it is on both sides of the ball.

22. Buffalo Bills (3-4)
The Bills’ hapless offense needs to thank the defense for handing them golden field position the past two weeks. What a great effort Buffalo’s D has given.

23. Seattle Seahawks (2-4)
Everyone keeps talking about how good of a coach Jim Mora is. Well, we’ll find out, because he could never make any adjustments in Atlanta when things started to go wrong and I highly doubt he figured anything out during Seattle’s bye week. That said, this team does have a rash of injuries to deal with, so maybe he deserves a reprieve this season.

24. Carolina Panthers (2-4)
The Panthers had a golden opportunity vs. the Bills last week to get back to .500 and build some momentum heading into the second half. Then Jake Delhomme threw an interception…then another one…then another one…

25. Washington Redskins (2-5)
It wasn’t Sherman Lewis’ fault that the Redskins lost to the Eagles on Monday night. The players just need to execute better.

26. Detroit Lions (1-5)
Hopefully Matthew Stafford is healthy and ready to go this week, because he offers the Lions (and their fans) a little bit of hope for the future.

27. Oakland Raiders (2-5)
Hey, there’s the JaMarcus Russell we’ve all come to know and love.

28. Kansas City Chiefs (1-6)
What a brutal effort at home last week by the Chiefs but hey, at least they don’t have to worry about their former productive running back taking pot shots at their head coach for his lack of NFL playing experience. Oh, oh – nor do they have to worry about their running back making homophobic slurs via Twitter. Yep, at least they don’t have to worry about that…

29. Tennessee Titans (0-6)
If Jeff Fisher sticks with Kerry Collins and the Titans continue to lose, he’ll be on the fast track out of Tennessee. Bud Adams wants to see himself some Vince Young and, like, now.

30. Cleveland Browns (1-6)
The Browns couldn’t score a touchdown if the ball was marked inside the red zone every possession and the defense played with five players.

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-7)
The Josh Freeman era is about to start in Tampa Bay, although unless he plays defense he’s not going to help this team out much.

32. St. Louis Rams (0-7)
The only good service the Rams have done this season is trade Will Witherspoon to Philadelphia.

Okay, so we can finally separate Josh McDaniels and Marvin Lewis after the former beat San Diego to reach 6-0 and the latter lost a tough home game to Houston. Here is our current power rankings for NFL Coach of the Year:

1. Josh McDaniels, Denver Broncos—Seriously, 6-0? The schedule keeps getting tougher, but it doesn’t seem to faze this team or their confident coach. Dude is a mini-Belichick, the first “offspring” to be worthy of that title.

2. Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints—After beating the Giants to reach 5-0, we can start talking about the very real likelihood of the Saints reaching the Super Bowl for the first time, and this guy is a big reason why. It’s still amazing that he managed to pay his defensive coordinator a quarter mil of his own cash to lure him, but it seems to have been worth it.

3. Jim Caldwell, Indianapolis Colts—Just like his QB, you can’t fault Caldwell for the bye week.

4. Brad Childress, Minnesota Vikings—Now 6-0, there should be no question that Childress did himself and the city of Minnesota a huge favor bringing back #4. He sure wasn’t going to be 6-0 with Tarvaris Jackson, was he?

5. Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons—A tough win against the Bears, and this team is not fading any time soon. Really, the Falcons and Saints are two of the best teams in the NFC and it should be interesting when they meet.

Honorable mention: Tom Coughlin, Giants; Bill Belichick, Patriots; Marvin Lewis, Bengals

Here’s how I see things 1-32 in the NFL now that the first six weeks of the season are in the books.

1. New Orleans Saints (5-0)
As of right now, I don’t see how any team in the NFC can walk into the Superdome and beat the Saints on their home turf. Drew Brees is the early-season MVP and Gregg Williams has transformed New Orleans’ defense overnight.

2. Indianapolis Colts (5-0)
Outside of maybe Miami, the Colts haven’t been tested by a formidable foe. But they’ve done what they’re supposed to do: Crush bad teams. They’ll crush another one this week in the Rams.

3. Minnesota Vikings (6-0)
The way the Ravens moved the ball at will on the Vikings’ defense in the fourth quarter on Sunday is troubling, but nobody can stop Brett Favre and Adrian Peterson right now…except maybe the Steelers, that is. Minnesota gets another huge test this weekend in Pittsburgh.

4. Denver Broncos (5-0)
I see an offensive growing under Josh McDaniels, which is a bad sign for future opponents. What a great special teams effort by Eddie Royal on Monday night.

5. New York Giants (5-1)
Sunday proved that the Giants have to get healthy on defense. They can get away with not having several defensive starters against teams like the Redskins, Bucs, Chiefs and Raiders, but the Saints made them look like a JV squad.

6. Atlanta Falcons (4-1)
The Falcons weren’t overly impressive on Sunday night, but their defense rose to the challenge. They forced two red zone turnovers, completely shut down the Bears’ running game and held Chicago to only 14 points. It looks like Mike Smith’s young defense is starting to come together.

7. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2)
The Steelers played a sloppy game on Sunday, but Ben Roethlisberger continues to make plays vertically in the passing game and now that Troy Polamalu is healthy, Pittsburgh’s defense is almost back to form.

8. New England Patriots (4-2)
Sure, the Titans are a bad football team. But Tom Brady finally looked like Tom Brady again on Sunday and New England’s defense turned in its best effort of the season.

9. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2)
I think the Bengals’ loss to the Texans on Sunday will actually do them more good than bad. The players may have started to read their own press clippings and now Marvin Lewis can remind his team that they have a long way to go.

10. Chicago Bears (3-2)
The Bears missed so many opportunities to earn a victory Sunday night in Atlanta that I would need a calculator, a ruler, an abacus and a stiff drink to total all of them up. The offensive line better start gelling soon or else Chicago’s running game is going to be non-existent all season.

11. Baltimore Ravens (3-3)
The Ravens deserve props for battling back on Sunday after falling behind by double-digits. But the bottom line is that they’ve lost three in a row and their defense hasn’t played well in weeks.

12. Philadelphia Eagles (3-2)
The Eagles’ pathetic, inexcusable loss to the Raiders on Sunday proved how valuable left tackle Jason Peters is. After Peters left the game with an injury, Donovan McNabb spent more time on his back than on his feet.

13. San Francisco 49ers (3-2)
The Niners spent their bye week stewing over the 45-10 drubbing the Falcons gave them in Week 5. I shudder to think what their practices have been like this week under Mike Singletary.

14. Green Bay Packers (3-2)
The Packers better not overlook the Browns this Sunday in Cleveland with a home game against Favre and the Vikings coming up the following week.

15. Arizona Cardinals (3-2)
What an impressive win for Arizona against the Seahawks last week in Seattle. Are the Cards starting to find their rhythm offensively?

16. Houston Texans (3-3)
I want to believe in this team, but every time I move them up in the power rankings they lose the next week. Their offense can contend with anybody, but their defense falls asleep every other week.

17. Dallas Cowboys (3-2)
It’s time to see what the Cowboys are made of. They get the Falcons at home this week and are fully rested coming off their bye. A win and maybe we can start believing in this team again.

18. Miami Dolphins (2-3)
Chad Henne is 2-0 as a starter this year and got a full week to prepare for the Saints. A win over New Orleans at home and Miami will get right back into contention in the AFC East and give them confidence. Of course, beating the Saints is easier said than done.

19. New York Jets (3-3)
Now isn’t the time for Rex Ryan to be contemplating a quarterback change. He chose Mark Sanchez in the offseason and now he has to stand by him threw the ups and downs.

20. San Diego Chargers (2-4)
Ron Rivera has no idea how to fix the Chargers’ defense. They can’t generate any pressure and opposing quarterbacks are absolutely picking them apart.

21. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3)
Yes, the Jags almost lost to the Rams at home last Sunday. But this isn’t a very good team, so they’ll take wins whenever they can get them.

22. Carolina Panthers (2-3)
Wins over the Redskins and Buccaneers don’t prove anything, but at least John Fox’s squad is building some momentum. That said, Jake Delhomme better start throwing to Steve Smith soon, or else the receiver will become a distraction. Smith rarely gets credit for it, but he’s one of the more underrated complainers in the league.

23. Seattle Seahawks (2-4)
Not what I expected from the Hawks after they drilled the Jaguars in Week 5. Against the Cards last Sunday, Seattle looked like the same befuddled, lifeless team they did when Seneca Wallace was under center.

24. Oakland Raiders (2-4)
Now why can’t the Raiders team that played last Sunday show up every week? They wouldn’t be a playoff contender, but they’d at least be competitive.

25. Buffalo Bills (2-4)
The Bills were handed a win last week in New York, but at least they showed that they have a pulse.

26. Detroit Lions (1-5)
Well, the Lions had been competitive up until this point. For all the Detroit fans that were lobbying for Daunte Culpepper to start over Matthew Stafford, how do you feel now?

27. Washington Redskins (2-4)
Stripping Jim Zorn of his playcalling duties won’t fix all of the Redskins’ offensive woes, but it certainly can’t hurt.

28. Cleveland Browns (1-5)
Josh Cribbs had more rushing yards (45) than Jerome Harrison (26) on Sunday. I know Cribbs is a fantastic player, but it’s never a good sign when one of your receivers out gains one of your running backs – Wildcat be damned.

29. Kansas City Chiefs (1-5)
The Chiefs are closing in on their second win – I can feel it. And it could be this week against the Chargers.

30. Tennessee Titans (0-6)
Hey Jeff Fisher, your team has given up. I know the idea of starting Vince Young makes you want to throw up, but your squad needs a spark, my man. Give them one before this is your last season in Tennessee.

31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-6)
The Josh Freeman era is quickly approaching in Tampa.

32. St. Louis Rams (0-6)
The Rams showed some fight in Jacksonville last Sunday, but unfortunately the same, sad end result transpired.

Here’s how I view things 1-32 after five weeks of NFL action:

1. New York Giants (5-0)
The G-Men didn’t suffer a letdown against the Raiders last weekend and Eli Manning didn’t appear to be slowed by his foot injury. The Giants will now get their biggest test of the year this week: A road trip to New Orleans.

2. Indianapolis Colts (5-0)
The Colts carved up opponents in the first five weeks of the season and now have the bye week to rest up before making a run at the top seed in the AFC.

3. New Orleans Saints (4-0)
A win over the Giants this Sunday will prove that the Saints are the best team in the NFC. Drew Brees and company is well rested, but the Giants have one of the best defenses in the league and will challenge New Orleans from start to finish.

4. Minnesota Vikings (5-0)
Everything is working out swimmingly right now for the Vikings. Opponents are still stacking the box in efforts to stop Adrian Peterson and Brett Favre is beating teams with his accuracy through the air. The Vikes’ defense has played great thus far, but the Ravens will test them this Sunday.

5. Denver Broncos (5-0)
After earning a fluke win against the Bengals in Week 1 and notching two gimmies against the Browns and Raiders in Weeks 2 and 3, respectively, the Broncos showed their meddle in wins over the Cowboys and Patriots. This team is legit.

6. Philadelphia Eagles (3-1)
The Eagles may possibly have the easiest first half schedule of anyone in the NFL. With wins over the Panthers, Chiefs and Bucs already in the books, the Eagles will take on the Raiders and Redskins in the next two weeks. They better notch two more victories because after they play Washington in Week 7, Philly faces a daunting second half schedule that features the Giants (twice), Bears, Falcons, Chargers, 49ers, Cowboys (twice) and Broncos.

7. Cincinnati Bengals (4-1)
The Bengals have beaten playoff-caliber teams virtually every week and the amazing thing is that they should be undefeated right now had they not allowed a fluke TD to the Broncos in Week 1. And much like Denver, this Cincy team is for realsies.

8. Atlanta Falcons (3-1)
The Falcons absolutely destroyed a good 49ers team last week and it all started up front with the offensive line. Atlanta’s front five gave Matt Ryan excellent protection so he could carve up San Fran’s defense and also gave Michael Turner ample running room. The Falcons have a tough stretch of games coming up, but if Mike Smith’s team continues to play as well as it did last week, then Atlanta will hold strong.

9. Chicago Bears (3-1)
The Bears return to the scene of their most heart-breaking loss of the 2008 season this week when they travel to Atlanta to take on the Falcons. Think Lovie Smith’s defense will cover the out route this time if Matt Ryan needs a big completion along the sidelines with the game on the line? Jay Cutler won in Atlanta last year as a member of the Broncos and his current team is well rested after having their bye last week. Chicago will be well prepared.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2)
Troy Polamalu and Willie Parker are set to return for the Steelers this week, although defensive end Aaron Smith could miss the next three months after he has surgery to fix a torn rotator cuff. While Smith’s loss will be felt, getting Polamalu back is huge.

11. New York Jets (3-2)
Hey – there’s the Braylon Edwards Cleveland fans had been looking for when their team drafted him in the top 5 a couple years back. Too bad he’s now wearing green and white. All of a sudden things are awfully quiet in New York following back-to-back losses…

12. New England Patriots (3-2)
Tom Brady looks out of sync with his receivers and even in the Patriots’ three wins this season, he hasn’t looked himself. He looks like he’s playing with a lack of confidence.

13. Baltimore Ravens (3-2)
The Ravens can’t stew over their losses to the Patriots and Bengals too long with a trip to Minnesota on the docket. They need to go back to the drawing board and rekindle the confidence that made them 3-0.

14. San Francisco 49ers (3-2)
Mike Singletary must have thrown up nine times after watching the film of the Falcons’ 45-10 win over the Niners last week. San Fran clearly thought their bye week was one week earlier than they thought.

15. San Diego Chargers (2-2)
The Chargers had a week off to figure out what’s wrong with their defense. We’ll see if Norv Turner’s team ironed out their issues during their bye when they take on the division-leading Broncos on Monday night.

16. Green Bay Packers (2-2)
The Packers better hope that Mark Tauscher can help solve their issues along the offensive line or else Aaron Rodgers won’t make it past Week 10.

17. Seattle Seahawks (2-3)
Don’t sleep on the Seahawks now that Matt Hasselbeck is healthy again. If he can remain healthy, the Hawks are far from finished.

18. Arizona Cardinals (2-2)
The Cardinals blew a 21-0 lead last Sunday against the Texans, but give them credit for keeping their composure and coming up with a huge goal line stand to earn a victory.

19. Miami Dolphins (2-3)
The spark that Chad Henne has given the Dolphins has been fun to watch. Nobody runs the Wildcat formation like Miami does.

20. Dallas Cowboys (3-2)
The Cowboys may have a winning record, but all three of their wins have come against opponents with losing records and two of which (the Bucs and Chiefs) are still winless. Dallas needed a comeback and overtime to beat a bad Kansas City team. Ouch.

21. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-3)
Just when you think the Jags are going to be competitive this year, they go out and lay a dud in Seattle.

22. Houston Texans (2-3)
Texan fans need to sit down and buckle up because they’re going to be on a roller coaster all season.

23. Carolina Panthers (1-3)
Congratulations to John Fox and his Panthers for earning their first victory of the 2009 season. They had to rally from double digits down against a bad Redskins team to do it, but hey, a win is a win.

24. Detroit Lions (1-4)
Even though they’re 1-4, the Lions have shown more fight in five games this year than they did in 16 games last season.

25. Washington Redskins (2-3)
I guarantee that Daniel Snyder already has a list of head coaching candidates that he’ll interview after the season is over. At the top: Jon Gruden.

26. Tennessee Titans (0-5)
Vince Young may not solve all of the Titans’ problems, but he would at least provide a spark. Jeff Fisher needs to make a change.

27. Cleveland Browns (1-4)
Cleveland’s 6-3 win over Buffalo on Sunday might go down as the ugliest victory in NFL history.

28. Buffalo Bills (1-4)
This pathetic excuse for a team let Derek Anderson complete just 2 of 17 pass attempts and still win. The Bills are horrible and their near-win against the Patriots in Week 1 is nothing but a distant memory.

29. Kansas City Chiefs (0-5)
At least the Chiefs are showing a little bit of fight. That’s more than I can say about the three teams listed under them.

30. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-5)
Even though they lost, quarterback Josh Johnson displayed some good things in Philadelphia on Sunday. Too bad he doesn’t play defense.

31. Oakland Raiders (1-4)
If JaMarcus Russell weren’t a former No. 1 pick and had just an average NFL arm, he wouldn’t be on any team’s roster. Not as a starter, not as a backup, not even as the guy that fetches water for the head coach. He’s that bad.

32. St. Louis Rams (0-5)
Two days after Matt Holliday ripped the hearts out of St. Louis sports fans everywhere, the Rams gain 400 yards of offense and 27 first downs yet still get their ass handed to them. Way to go Rams.