NFL Power Rankings: Which Teams Have Biggest Targets on Their Backs?

We're just two weeks into the 2011 NFL season, and already two teams have separated themselves as the leading Super Bowl contenders.

The New England Patriots have announced their presence with authority to open the season. Tom Brady and his offense are currently averaging a ridiculous 563 yards per game while scoring 36.5 points per game. The 34-year-old quarterback has already thrown for 940 yards, with seven touchdowns and an interception. Brady also has a league-leading 128.0 quarterback rating.

The Patriots went 14-2 last season, and their fast start has everyone around the NFL assuming that they are off to another dominant season. While the team's defense has some holes—they've surrendered 479 total yards per game (31st in the NFL) thus far—Brady and head coach Bill Belichick are hard to bet against, given their track record.

It's a safe bet that every team the Patriots face for the rest of the season will give them their best shot. That's a dangerous position to be in, but it isn't anything new for New England. The Pats have separated themselves from the pack in the AFC, especially with a dominant 35-21 win over the San Diego Chargers on Sunday.

The Green Bay Packers had a magical run to a championship in Super Bowl XLV. Now they're the defending champions and have opened the season 2-0, with wins over the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers. Winning a title is difficult, and defending it is even harder.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers is now regarded as one of the the elite signal-callers in the game. Opposing teams were already looking to attack him, so being a defending champion is likely to make his life in the pocket even more difficult.

While everyone wants to beat the defending champions, it's even more tantalizing to face them when they have a visible weakness, and the Packers clearly have one. Through two games, Green Bay is giving up an average of 476 yards, including an NFL-worst 400 yards passing.

With the news that veteran safety Nick Collins will miss the rest of the season due to a neck injury, that hole just got bigger. Teams will surely attack the Pack through the air as much as possible.

Both the Patriots and Packers have come out early this year and shown themselves to be early favorites. But being the favorite means you have to carry that mantle into every game. Both squads now have huge targets on their backs.

Week 3 Power Rankings

1. New England Patriots (2-0)	17. New York Giants (1-1)
2. Green Bay Packers (2-0)	18. Oakland Raiders (1-1)
3. New York Jets (2-0)	19. Arizona Cardinals (1-1)
4. Philadelphia Eagles (1-1)	20. San Francisco 49ers (1-1)
5. Houston Texans (2-0)	21. St. Louis Rams (0-2)
6. New Orleans Saints (1-1)	22. Tennessee Titans (1-1)
7. Baltimore Ravens (1-1)	23. Carolina Panthers (0-2)
8. Pittsburgh Steelers (1-1)	24. Cincinnati Bengals (1-1)
9. Atlanta Falcons (1-1)	25. Cleveland Browns (1-1)
10. Detroit Lions (2-0)	26. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-1)
11. San Diego Chargers (1-1)	27. Denver Broncos (1-1)
12. Dallas Cowboys (1-1)	28. Miami Dolphins (0-2)
13. Chicago Bears (1-1)	29. Minnesota Vikings (0-2)
14. Buffalo Bills (2-0)	30. Seattle Seahawks (0-2)
15. Washington Redskins (2-0)	31. Indianapolis Colts (0-2)
16. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-1)	32. Kansas City Chiefs (0-2)