NFL Power Groupings, Week Two: Making Sense of a Topsy-Turvy League

(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

It seems as if pundits had just about everything figured out after week one.

• Jay Cutler is a bust.
• No one can stop Adrian Peterson.
• Cincinnati can't buy a win.
• Kurt Warner is finished.
  

Little did anyone suspect that, over the course of an NFL season, things change. Boy oh boy, did things change from week one to week two.

Jay Cutler and Chicago looked good through the air against Pittsburgh as the Steelers couldn't stop Johnny Knox. Adrian Peterson was held under 100 yards by the Detroit Lions. Cincinnati defeated near-consensus Super Bowl pick Green Bay, thanks to Cedric Benson. Kurt Warner passed for an NFL record 92 percent, crushing the Jaguars.

In addition, the Patriots lost to the Jets in Giants Stadium for the first time since 2000. Shaun Hill and Kyle Orton are 2-0. Tennessee is 0-2. Joe Flacco is leading an explosive Baltimore offense. Tom Brady is statistically comparable to Byron Leftwich.

Are we watching the bizzaro-NFL?

Meanwhile, a few things stayed true to the script: The Detroit Lions are racing after the record for consecutive losses, the Dallas Cowboys can't win a big game, this is Drew Brees's league, and the rest of us are just witnesses.

Kudos to Angel Navedo for starting this NFL Power Rankings off right with a great article after week one. He's provided a great blue print which will serve the rest of us Featured Columnists well for the rest of the season.

I'm going to keep his blueprint but expand and tweak it just a little bit, as week two leaves us with a bit more demarcation between squads.

As a Detroit Lions Feature Columnist, I will honor my team's No. 1 selection and name these tiers after famous first-round quarterbacks.

The Akili Smith Division

St. Louis, Kansas City, Detroit, Carolina, Jacksonville

The Cincinnati Bengals made a huge mistake in drafting Akili Smith. The Saints offered them nine draft picks to move up in that draft.

These teams have all made horrendous mistakes to get to this point as well—first round busts, squandered talent, numerous organizational changes. Mistakes happen, but these teams have majored in error to be this bad. 

For Carolina and Jacksonville, the problems revolve around sticking with mediocre quarterbacks for far too long. Jacksonville has already publicly stated they would draft Tim Tebow if he was available. Carolina might be better off with Matt Moore than Jake Delhomme—a veteran who is playing only slightly better than rookie Matthew Stafford.

For the other three, years of mismanagement have gotten them to where they are today. All three stripped down to bare bones this offseason. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither is an NFL franchise.

Of the three, Detroit has played the stiffest competition and led Minnesota at half. Kansas City has looked impotent offensively, while St. Louis has looked bereft of any certifiable talent.

The Tim Couch Division

Tampa Bay, Cleveland, Tennessee, Washington, Oakland

Tim Couch was the first overall pick in 1999. Tim Couch was a huge bust, but Tim Couch was not a bad quarterback. Rather, Tim Couch was consistently average. Had Couch been an undrafted free agent, he might still be in the league. Much like Tim, these teams aren't horrible, just horribly mediocre.

Tampa Bay and Cleveland have met low expectations and run into good teams these first two weeks. Neither had any clear cut winner in their respective QB races, neither has very impressive personnel in the offensive skill positions.

Tennessee misses Albert Haynesworth more than anyone would have guessed, giving up 47 points in two games—it took five games in 2008.

Washington and Oakland look like Couch could help their squads, being completely horrendous so far offensively—lacking a true identity. Both teams have top-level running backs yet rank in the bottom half in rushing yards this season.

The Drew Bledsoe Division

Miami, Cincinnati, Buffalo, Houston, Seattle

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