Here are my week 5 NFL power rankings.
1. Green Bay Packers. 5-0. The best team with the best quarterback playing at the top of his game.
2. Baltimore Ravens. 3-1. The best defense plus a pretty good offense.
3. Detroit Lions. 5-0. As Steve Young said on TV, their D-line gives them a chance to win every week. Calvin Johnson may break Randy Moss’ record for most TD catches in a season.
4. New England Patriots. 4-1. A great offense, but the defense is ranked dead last.
5. San Francisco 49ers. 4-1. The defense is ranked 2nd in points allowed per game with 15.6. Gore and Hunter are one of the best tailback tandems in the league. And Alex Smith has the third-highest QB rating in the NFL (104.1) behind Rodgers and Brady. Jim Harbaugh is outcoaching everyone.
6. New Orleans Saints. 4-1. Very similar to the Patriots – offense is great, but can the defense stop anyone?
7. San Diego Chargers. 4-1. Philip Rivers is this team, and he’s thrown 6 TDs and 7 INTs so far this season.
8. Buffalo Bills. 4-1. The offense ranks third in the league in points per game (32.8), but the defense is ranked 30th in yards allowed per game (421.8).
9. Pittsburgh Steelers. 3-2. It looked like the team was imploding, and then Roethlisberger threw five TD passes on Sunday. The defense is still top-tier, too.
10. Oakland Raiders. 3-2. The best run game in the NFL, but the defense is nothing special and Jason Campbell limits how well this offense can perform.
11. Dallas Cowboys. 2-2. The defense can stop the run and rush the QB, plus Miles Austin should come back from an injury this week. This team can beat anyone. They need Romo to stop losing games with INTs.
12. Washington Redskins. 3-1. A good defense and a well-coached offense.
13. Tennessee Titans. 3-2. Good offensive and defensive lines, but losing Kenny Britt holds this team back from becoming elite.
14. New York Giants. 3-2. The defense has allowed 122.2 yards per game on the ground.
15. Philadelphia Eagles. 1-4. They can’t block or stop the run, but did you know Michael Vick is the 17th leading rusher in the NFL with 318 yards? He ranks ahead of Ray Rice and Ahmad Bradshaw. As long as Vick’s healthy, the Eagles have a chance to win every week no matter how poorly the rest of his team plays.
16. Houston Texans. 3-2. Losing Mario Williams for the season makes this team ordinary.
17. Cincinnati Bengals. 3-2. They can run the ball, the defense is tough, A.J. Green is a stud, and Andy Dalton is improving.
18. New York Jets. 2-3. This team can’t pass, run, or stop the run, but they can shut down one wide receiver per game with Darrelle Revis, so they’ve got that going for them.
19. Atlanta Falcons. 2-3. They lost to Tampa Bay and they barely beat Seattle. They cannot stop the pass.
20. Chicago Bears. 2-3. These guys looked awful on Monday Night against the Lions. At least Matt Forte is good.
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 3-2. The Niners exposed and embarrassed this team. Plus their best defender Gerald McCoy will miss some time with a high ankle sprain.
22. Carolina Panthers. 1-4. Cam Newton is already a top-ten quarterback in the league, and Steve Smith is still a premier wide out.
23. Cleveland Browns. 2-2. These guys are the best of the ten bad teams in the league.
24. Seattle Seahawks. 2-3. Bad team but they have Earl Thomas.
25. Kansas City Chiefs. 2-3. Bad team, but they have Dwayne Bowe.
26. Minnesota Vikings. 1-4. Bad team, but they have Adrian Peterson.
27. Denver Broncos. 1-4. Bad team, but they Von Miller. They finally switched to Tebow at QB, and they should have done that weeks ago.
28. Arizona Cardinals. 1-4. Bad team, but they have Larry Fitzgerald. Kevin Kolb looks pretty bad.
29. Jacksonville Jaguars. 1-4. Bad team, but they have Maurice Jones-Drew.
30. St. Louis Rams. 0-4. Bad team, but Steven Jackson’s coming back from a thigh injury.
31. Indianapolis Colts. 0-5. Bad team but they have good defensive ends.
32. Miami Dolphins. 0-4. Just a bad team.
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