Los Angeles Rams jump to number one in NFL power rankings heading into Week 3

Jay Asser 20:48 20/09/2018
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  • With Week 2 of the season in the books, we’re starting to get a clearer look at the league.

    After holding the top spot last week, the New England Patriots were knocked off their perch by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Championship Game.

    The Los Angeles Rams, meanwhile, continued to take care of their business with another dominant win. In every facet, the Rams are looking like world-beaters and every bit worth the ‘super team’ tag they were bestowed after a busy offseason.

    Elsewhere, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are rising fast thanks to a red hot start by Ryan Fitzpatrick and the offence.

    Check out our power rankings heading into Week 3 below.

    1. Los Angeles Rams
    Record: 2-0 | Last week: 3

    Their wins have come against fairly easy opponents, but it’s hard to ignore just how dominant they’ve been on both sides of the ball.

    2. Jacksonville Jaguars
    Record: 2-0 | Last week: 6

    They made a statement with their win over New England as Blake Bortles’ performance was hugely encouraging for their Super Bowl hopes.

    3. Minnesota Vikings
    Record: 1-0-1 | Last week: 4

    Kirk Cousins showed in Week 2 why he was worth his monster contract as he brought the Vikings back to keep them unbeaten.

    4. Kansas City Chiefs
    Record: 2-0 | Last week: 7

    Their offence has been dazzling as Patrick Mahomes has yet to display his inexperience, looking like an early MVP candidate.

    5. Green Bay Packers
    Record: 1-0-1 | Last week: 5

    They should have won the NFC North clash, but it’s a good sign that they were in the position they were despite Aaron Rodgers not being 100 per cent.

    6. New England Patriots
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 1

    It’s clear they have some things to figure out, especially on defence where they were absolutely shredded by Jacksonville.

    7. Philadelphia Eagles
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 2

    Carson Wentz’s return will undoubtedly help, but it won’t fix the defensive issues they had against Tampa Bay.

    8. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
    Record: 2-0 | Last week: 18

    While Ryan Fitzpatrick will cool off at some point, the offence could be for real considering the talent they have.

    Fitzpatrick

    9. Atlanta Falcons
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 9

    They were perfect in the red zone in Week 2 after disastrous results in the opener, so they’re certainly capable of turning around their woes there.

    10. Cincinnati Bengals
    Record: 2-0 | Last week: 23

    Their offence is clicking and when Andy Dalton is playing like this, they’re a definite playoff contender.

    11. Denver Broncos
    Record: 2-0 | Last week: 16

    Case Keenum hasn’t been stellar, but the defence has given the other side of the ball margin for error.

    12. New Orleans Saints
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 10

    They could just as easily be 0-2, but at least the defence was better in their second game than they were in the Week 1 debacle.

    13. Los Angeles Chargers
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 13

    While Buffalo isn’t the best opponent to gauge where a team is, the Chargers still looked impressive.

    14. Carolina Panthers
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 11

    After shutting down a lacklustre Dallas offence in Week 1, their defence wasn’t nearly as effective against Atlanta.

    15. Pittsburgh Steelers
    Record: 0-1-1 | Last week: 8

    Kansas City are going to make many defences look bad this season, but the Steelers were especially a mess.

    16. Miami Dolphins
    Record: 2-0 | Last week: 16

    The early season schedule is kind and gives the current AFC East leaders a chance to jump out to a strong start.

    17. Baltimore Ravens
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 12

    The absence of suspended cornerback Jimmy Smith was very evident in the secondary in their Week 2 loss.

    18. San Francisco 49ers
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 17

    They’ll get a serious test this week against Kansas City’s high-flying attack which should tell us more about where they are.

    at Levi's Stadium on September 16, 2018 in Santa Clara, California.

    19. Chicago Bears
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 19

    At some point, Mitchell Trubisky will have to do more heavy lifting if the Bears want to take the next step.

    20. Dallas Cowboys
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 26

    Dak Prescott and the offence needed that performance against the Giants, but they still have plenty to prove.

    21. Washington
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 15

    Was their surprising double-digit loss to Indianapolis an aberration or a sign of things to com

    22. Houston Texans
    Record: 0-2 | Last week: 14

    Deshaun Watson doesn’t look comfortable at all behind an offensive line that is getting run over repeatedly.

    23. Tennessee Titans
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 25

    They had a nice bounce-back effort in Week 2 despite being without their starting quarterback.

    24. Indianapolis Colts
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 30

    They actually looked like a team instead of a one-man show reliant on the arm of Andrew Luck.

    Luck

    25. Seattle Seahawks
    Record: 0-2 | Last week: 20

    The defence is doing all that it can, but there’s just not enough surrounding Russell Wilson on the other side of the ball.

    26. New York Jets
    Record: 1-1 | Last week: 21

    It will be interesting to see how they and Sam Darnold respond to a loss on a short week.

    27. Cleveland Browns
    Record: 0-1-1 | Last week: 29

    They’re this close to being 2-0 and a breakthrough should be on the way, but they have to finish games.

    28. New York Giants
    Record: 0-2 | Last week: 22

    Their offensive weapons are mostly going to waste and something has to change if they don’t want a repeat of last year.

    29. Oakland Raiders
    Record: 0-2 | Last week: 28

    It’s funny, they could really use a dynamic pass rusher, kind of like the one they just let go.

    30. Detroit Lions
    Record: 0-2 | Last week: 27

    With the way their defence, has looked, it’s almost inevitable that they’ll be 0-3 after facing Tom Brady.

    31. Arizona Cardinals
    Record: 0-2 | Last week: 31

    Sam Bradford has been even worse than expected as their offence has lacked any semblance of pop.

    32. Buffalo Bills
    Record: 0-2 | Last week: 32

    Josh Allen was an improvement on Nathan Peterman, but that was a very low bar to clear.

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