NFL Power Rankings: What We Learned About Every Team in Week 1

After 16 games that ran the gamut from blowout to overtime nail-biter, the first week of the 2012 NFL season is in the books.

It can be dangerous to read too much into a single game, but that doesn't mean we can't glean valuable information from the season's inaugural contests.

With that said, here's my first set of NFL power rankings for 2012, including what we learned about each team in Week 1.

32. Miami Dolphins (0-1)

There really wasn't anything on display during Sunday's 30-10 loss to the Houston Texans that we hadn't already seen in the preseason and on HBO.

The Miami Dolphins are a bad football team, and after tossing three interceptions, Ryan Tannehill demonstrated that he's still very much a rookie quarterback.

31. Cleveland Browns (0-1)

Speaking of rookie quarterbacks leading bad football teams...

When your starting signal-caller gets stuck under the American flag during the National Anthem, you know it's going to be a long day.

Sure enough, Brandon Weeden tossed four picks, and the Cleveland Browns squandered a chance to upset the Philadelphia Eagles, falling 17-16.

30. Indianapolis Colts (0-1)

After enduring a horrendous 2-14 season a year ago, the Indianapolis Colts will take their hope in small doses as the team rebuilds.

There was indeed a bit of room for optimism in the Colts' 41-21 loss to Chicago, but as the final score indicates, rookie quarterback Andrew Luck and the Colts have a long road ahead of them.

29. Tennessee Titans (0-1)

OK, so let's list the things that went right for the Tennessee Titans in a lopsided loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday.

The defense was eviscerated.

"Star" running back Chris Johnson gained four yards on 11 carries.

The starting quarterback and middle linebacker got hurt.

Oh, I said right.

Never mind.

28. Buffalo Bills (0-1)

The Buffalo Bills entered Sunday's game against the New York Jets as a trendy sleeper pick to make the playoffs this year.

They left it as the runaway winner of Week 1's "biggest disappointment" award.

The new-look defense was shredded by a Jets offense that looked nearly as terrible in the preseason as quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick did in the game, and the team lost starting tailback Fred Jackson for a month with a knee injury.

If it could go wrong, it did.

27. St. Louis Rams (0-1)

The St. Louis Rams, much like the Indianapolis Colts, suffered through a horrible 2011 season and are undergoing an extensive rebuilding project.

Just like the Colts, the Rams were losers on Sunday, but in taking the Detroit Lions down to the wire before falling 27-23, the team at least showed some signs of life under new head coach Jeff Fisher.

26. Oakland Raiders (0-1)

Well, so much for quarterback Carson Palmer's proclamation that the Raiders' preseason woes on offense were nothing to worry about.

Worried yet, Carson?

Granted, the Oakland wide receiver corps is a bunch of guys that they picked up outside a mall in Alameda, but the fact remains that right now the Raiders can't move the ball with any consistency at all.

25. Carolina Panthers (0-1)

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton took the NFL by storm a year ago during a record-setting rookie season.

The only storm on the field Sunday in Tampa Bay was courtesy of Mother Nature, however, as the Panthers offense was completely out of sorts in a 16-10 loss to the Buccaneers.

24. Kansas City Chiefs (0-1)

Man, did the Chiefs pick the wrong game to be without their best cornerback.

With Brandon Flowers on the shelf, the Chiefs ran into an Atlanta Falcons offense that was an absolute buzzsaw, and the result was a 40-24 loss.

There was a silver lining, however, as running back Jamaal Charles and safety Eric Berry seem to be fully recovered from the knee injuries that ended their 2011 seasons.

23. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1)

So close, and yet so far.

On the positive side, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blaine Gabbert looked like a much-improved player to begin his sophomore season at the helm for the Jaguars.

On the negative side, the result on the scoreboard was the same, as Jacksonville lost in overtime to the Minnesota Vikings.

22. Seattle Seahawks (0-1)

The Russell Wilson bandwagon just hit a pothole.

Yet another trendy playoff pick that fell flat in Week 1, the Seattle Seahawks were on the losing end of a sloppily-played 20-16 affair with the Arizona Cardinals.

Frankly, I think the Seahawks are better than the next team on this list, but given that they just lost to them, I can't bring myself to rank them ahead of the Redbirds.

21. Arizona Cardinals (1-0)

The Arizona Cardinals are the team that receives the dubious distinction of being the lowest-ranked team that won on this list.

Mind you, the team and quarterback Kevin Kolb (who came on in place of the injured John Skelton) gutted out a tough win, but the problems that faced this team before Sunday are still there.

They can't run the ball, they can't pass-protect, and this week they get New England in Foxboro.

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0)

They didn't get many style points doing it, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers slogged out a win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday to kick off the Greg Schiano era.

Schiano's not a "win pretty" coach anyway, but the Buccaneers at least showed some toughness and cohesiveness, traits that were sorely missing in last year's face plant by the team.

19. Minnesota Vikings (1-0)

There may not be a happier fanbase in the National Football League than folks in Minnesota after Week 1.

Not only did the team eke out an overtime win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, but running back Adrian Paterson carried the ball 17 times and appears to have completed a near-miraculous recovery from an ACL tear last December.

Every year in the NFL, a team comes out of nowhere to challenge for a playoff spot.

Just sayin'...

18. Cincinnati Bengals (0-1)

The Cincinnati Bengals were one of the Cinderella teams of the National Football League in 2011.

If Monday night's shellacking at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens was any indication, the clock may have struck midnight, as the Cincinnati defense was absolutely shredded.

Granted, it's only one game, but it was an awfully ugly one.

17. Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)

This week's winner of the Ugliest Victory of the Week award goes to the Philadelphia Eagles, who narrowly escaped Cleveland with a one-point win.

The Eagles will surely take it, but the same miscues and turnovers that led to an 8-8 season last year were on full display Sunday.

Against a team that isn't terrible, the Eagles would have had their heads handed to them.

16. San Diego Chargers (1-0)

Did someone mention uninspiring victories?

The San Diego Chargers didn't squeak by the Oakland Raiders in Week 1's last game, but it wasn't exactly what I'd call a convincing victory, either.

Unless, of course, you're trying to convince me that the Raiders stink.

In which case...sold.

15. New York Jets (1-0)

After the Jets demolished the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, I'm sure that supporters of Gang Green will decry this ranking as being much too low.

However, after one week, I still can't get past the fact that Jets looked awful all preseason long. I'm not convinced that Week 1 was about the Jets being that good so much as it was a matter of the Bills being that bad.

14. New Orleans Saints (0-1)

You know what I said about not reading too much into one game?

Forget it.

You know how they say that it's important for teams not to panic after Week 1?

Forget that too.

The Saints defense just had 40 points laid on it at home by a rookie quarterback.

It's OK to panic.

13. Washington Redskins (1-0)

Speaking of said rookie quarterback.

Washington Redskins signal-caller Robert Griffin played about as well as any rookie ever has in his NFL debut, throwing for 320 yards as the team shocked the Saints in New Orleans.

This ranking may be a little on the high side, but they earned it.

12. Detroit Lions (1-0)

Much like the Philadelphia Eagles, the Detroit Lions are a team that didn't so much "emerge" with a victory Sunday as escape with one, needing a late scoring drive to get past the St. Louis Rams, 27-23.

Also much like the Philadelphia Eagles, Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford had a disturbing propensity for throwing to the guys in the wrong-colored hats on Sunday, tossing three interceptions.

11. New York Giants (0-1)

The New York Giants kicked off their Super Bowl defense in most uninspiring fashion last Wednesday, falling to the Dallas Cowboys at home, 24-17.

The most alarming aspect of this game was probably the lack of a push from New York's vaunted defensive line, but the Giants circle the wagons better than any team in the NFL, as they demonstrated very aptly in the playoffs a year ago.

10. Chicago Bears (1-0)

The Chicago Bears appeared to pick up right where they left off in the early part of last season, when the team started 7-3 before being decimated by injuries on offense.

The Brandon Marshall experiment in Chicago is off to a rousing start, as Marshall reeled in nine Jay Cutler passes for 119 yards and a score in his first game with Da Bears.

9. Dallas Cowboys (1-0)

This is another ranking that may raise more than a few eyebrows, as after knocking off the defending Super Bowl champions on opening night in their own house, fans of the Dallas Cowboys may well believe that the team should be ranked higher than this.

However, if there's one thing the Dallas Cowboys have been over the past few seasons, it's consistently inconsistent. I need to see more than one good game before I trust them.

8. Green Bay Packers (0-1)

I can't say that it's shocking that the Green Bay Packers lost Sunday, as the San Francisco 49ers are a very good football team.

With that said, the way they lost—at home—was alarming.

The Packers were out-muscled, out-hustled, and for much of the game, quarterback Aaron Rodgers was uncharacteristically out of sorts.

Week 2 feels early to call a game "must win," but against the Bears at home on Thursday night, that's the situation Green Bay finds itself in.

7. Pittsburgh Steelers (0-1)

Do you get the feeling the Steelers would be fine with not traveling to Denver for a while?

For the second time in nine months, the Pittsburgh Steelers traveled west to face the Broncos at Mile High Stadium, and for the second time, the game didn't end the way they'd like.

At least Tim Tebow wasn't involved, or we'd never hear the end of it.

It's also looking like Ben Roethlisberger may be in for a career year, because right now the Steelers ground game is, well, grounded.

6. Denver Broncos (1-0)

The Peyton Manning era in Denver got off to about as good a start as fans of the Denver Broncos could have hoped, as not only did Manning look sharp in throwing for 253 yards and two scores, but the Broncos got the win.

Even more importantly, Manning took some shots and appeared no worse for wear.

Looks like the forehead's back, folks.

5. Atlanta Falcons (1-0)

The Atlanta Falcons were as sharp as any team in the NFL in the preseason, and quarterback Matt Ryan and Co. continued that into the season opener with a systematic disassembling of the Kansas City Chiefs.

However, the Falcons were dealt a serious blow Monday when it was revealed that cornerback Brent Grimes would miss the rest of the rest of the 2012 season with a torn Achilles.

4. New England Patriots (1-0)

It was hardly surprising to see the New England Patriots make quick work of the Tennessee Titans, nor was it shocking in the least to see tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez each have nice days.

What was surprising (at least a little) were the outstanding efforts from the New England defense and running back Stevan Ridley.

It's hard to know what to make of the former given how bad the Titans looked, but a rushing attack would make an already frightening New England offense absolutely terrifying.

3. Houston Texans (1-0)

My, how times have changed.

It wasn't that long ago that having the Houston Texans ranked this high would have gotten me committed.

However, with quarterback Matt Schaub back under center, running back Arian Foster chewing up yardage on the ground, and a punishing defense, the Texans are a very balanced team and legitimate Super Bowl contender.

2. Baltimore Ravens (1-0)

Of all the dominant performances of Week 1, none matches the pasting that the Baltimore Ravens laid on the Cincinnati Bengals Monday night.

Baltimore's new no-huddle offense fired on all cylinders, the defense was its usual stout self, and the Ravens made a playoff team from a season ago look like the Dolphins.

Yikes.

1. San Francisco 49ers (1-0)

OK, so about that talk that the San Francisco 49ers' 13-3 season was a fluke and that the Seattle Seahawks would win the NFC West...

I think all it did was make the San Francisco defense angry.

Not only was the 49ers defense as good as advertised in Sunday's win over the Packers, but Alex Smith outplayed Aaron Rodgers.

Yes, you read that right.