Which NFL Teams Look Like Legitimate Super Bowl Contenders After Week 1?

If the conference championship games were determined after one week of play in the NFL, I have a good idea as to the four teams that'd be participating. 

In reality, every NFL club has 15 more games on their 2012 schedule, and history tells us a lot can happen from now until New Year's Eve. 

But the following four clubs certainly got everyone thinking about their Super Bowl candidacy after remarkably impressive showings on Kickoff Weekend.

Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons were in a tightly contested game with the upstart Kansas City Chiefs, tied 17-17 late in the second quarter. 

Then Atlanta's sheer talent took over. 

They scored 23 straight points to take a 40-17 lead after a Matt Bryant field goal midway through the final stanza. 

Matt Ryan was arguably the most efficient quarterback in Week 1, going 23-of-31 for 299 yards with three touchdown tosses and zero interceptions.

Though they only averaged 3.7 yards per rush, the Falcons' receiving contingent was unstoppable. Julio Jones caught six passes for 108 yards with two scores. Roddy White added six catches for 84 yards. Tony Gonzalez was found in the end zone on one occasion and finished the afternoon with five grabs for 53 yards. 

On defense, Atlanta tallied three sacks, reeled in two interceptions and recovered a Matt Cassel fumble.

Not an absolutely dominant effort, but it was quite the impressive showing for a team that many believe is the class of the NFC South.

San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers gave the Packers all they could handle, and then some. 

Their defense stifled Aaron Rodgers, hitting him five times and registering three sacks. Though he still threw for over 300 yards, he was out of sync for much of the early evening and rarely got into a rhythm. 

San Francisco controlled every facet of the game, really. 

They averaged 5.8 yards per carry, Alex Smith completed 20-of-26 passes for 211 yards, two touchdown passes and zero interceptions en route to a 125.6 QB rating. 

Winning on Lambeau Field is no easy task, but boy, the 49ers sure made it look relatively simple. 

New England Patriots

Another start to the season, another encouraging win for the mighty and perennially masterful New England Patriots. 

They faced an up-and-coming Tennessee Titans team with a young and exciting quarterback making his first professional start and a dynamic running back everyone believed would bounce back from a sub-par 2011 season. 

What did they do? 

Well, they jumped out to a 21-3 lead, and held that dynamic runner, Chris Johnson, to 11 carries for four yards on their way to a convincing 34-13 victory. 

Second-year running back Stevan Ridley averaged 6.0 yards per carry and Tom Brady was Tom Brady, completing 23-of-31 passes for 236 yards with two touchdown passes. 

Keeping the Titans under 300 total yards is huge for a Patriots defense allowed over 410 yards per contest in 2011. 

Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens took it to their divisional rival Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football—a performance that had a little bit of everything. 

After a Mike Nugent field goal made the score 17-13 in the third quarter, the Ravens turned it up. 

Joe Flacco orchestrated a long drive that ended with a lofted 10-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dennis Pitta. 

After the defense held, leading to a Baltimore field goal, Ed Reed put the final nail in the coffin: intercepting Andy Dalton and taking it to the house for six. 

The second-year QB struggled for the majority of the evening, dealing with an array of Ravens blitzes and an aggressive secondary that yielded him a 65.3 QB rating. 

Baltimore's running game worked wonders in the no-huddle offense, averaging 5.3 yards per carry. 

Flacco was solid, too. 

He fell short of 300 yards passing by one yard, had two touchdown passes and finished the 44-13 rout with a 128.4 QB rating against one of the league's more intimidating defenses.