NFL Power Rankings Week 2: Teams Rising and Falling After Opening Week

Week 1 of the 2012 NFL season produced tons of surprising results. 

From the successful return of Peyton Manning in Denver, to the 49ers' upset of the Packers at Lambeau, the NFL's opening week shook up the order of power across the league. 

As teams like the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys impressed, others like the Tennessee Titans and Seattle Seahawks disappointed. 

Let's take a look at my NFL power rankings heading into Week 2. 

No. 1. Baltimore Ravens (1-0)

The Ravens sent a message that received loud and clear by the rest of the NFL on Monday Night Football in Week 1. Baltimore annihilated division rival Cincinnati by the largest margin of opening week with 31 points. 

Baltimore dominated on both sides of the ball, scoring 44 points and forcing all sorts of turnovers from the Bengals en route to the most impressive debut by any NFL team in 2012. 

No. 2. New England Patriots (1-0)

Stevan Ridley rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown against Tennessee, adding another dimension to the Pats' already frightening offensive attack. 

No. 3. San Francisco 49ers (1-0)

San Francisco looks like the NFC's most complete team in 2012. The Niners went into Lambeau and shut down Aaron Rodgers and the vaunted Packers aerial assault.

No. 4. Houston Texans (1-0)

The Texans did exactly what great teams do against inferior opponents, beat them by 20 points at home. 

No. 5. Dallas Cowboys (1-0)

No one gave the Cowboys a shot to win on opening night in East Rutherford. But they made the defending Super Bowl champion Giants look bad at home, and that's easy to do. 

No. 6. Denver Broncos (1-0)

Peyton Manning is back and looks just as strong as ever before. That's good news for Bronco Nation. 

No. 7. Atlanta Falcons (1-0)

The Falcons looked impressive offensively in Week 1, scoring 40 points on the road at Arrowhead. 

No. 8. Chicago Bears (1-0)

Jay Cutler finally has a pair of game-breaking targets in Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery.

No. 9 San Diego Chargers (1-0)

Although the box score won't show it, the Chargers turned the Raiders over on downs twice in the second half on Monday night, and should have won by more than eight on the road. 

No. 10. Detroit Lions (1-0)

It wasn't at all pretty for the Lions in Week 1, but they got the W at home and that's what counts. 

No. 11. Washington Redskins (1-0)

The Redskins' stock has risen considerably after their season-opening win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. 

Rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III played a sensational game and looks to be the real deal after making all the right decisions in Week 1. 

Washington's defense also impressed, holding the Saints' high-powered offense to just 32 points in the Superdome and forcing three turnovers. 

No. 12. Green Bay Packers (0-1)

Green Bay had plenty of chances to get back into their Week 1 matchup with San Francisco, but continually shot itself in the foot with penalties and mistakes. 

No. 13. Pittsburgh Steelers (0-1)

The Steelers' loss to the Broncos on the road was a lot closer than the final score indicates. A late pick-six of Ben Roethlisberger put the game away. 

No. 14. Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)

Four picks from Michael Vick? Eagles beat the Browns by a point? I'm still not sure about what I saw from Philly in Week 1. 

No. 15. New York Jets (1-0)

It will take a few more wins before we forget about that pitiful preseason display by the New York Jets.

No. 16. New Orleans Saints (0-1)

The Saints' defense must improve if New Orleans is to be considered a Super Bowl contender in 2012. Giving up 10 points per quarter won't cut.

No. 17. New York Giants (0-1)

It's been more than a decade since the defending Super Bowl champions lost their season-opener. The Giants looked like anything but champions last Wednesday against the Cowboys.

No. 18. Arizona Cardinals (1-0)

A narrow win over the Seahawks, who started a rookie at quarterback on the road, is hardly enough to make me consider Arizona a threat to the Niners in the NFC West. 

No. 19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0)

Don't get too caught up in Tampa's dominant defensive performance on Sunday. The Panthers only ran the ball 13 times all day. 

No. 20. Minnesota Vikings (1-0)

It's tough to feel good about a win that comes in overtime against the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars. 

No. 21. Kansas City Chiefs (0-1)

Kansas City gave up 40 points at home to an offense not from Green Bay, New Orleans or New England. 

No. 22. Cincinnati Bengals (0-1)

Cincinnati has taken a major fall after being routed by the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football. After pulling within four points of the Ravens in the third quarter, the Bengals gave up 27 unanswered points to lose by 31 on the road. 

Obviously, Cincinnati is not as bad as it looked in Week 1, but nonetheless the Bengals are a team in serious need of proving themselves in Week 2 at home. 

No. 23. St. Louis Rams (0-1)

The Rams deserve some credit for nearly upsetting the Lions at home in Week 1. But that's about it. 

No. 24. Seattle Seahawks (0-1)

Despite all the preseason buzz surrounding rookie Russell Wilson and the Seahawks, Seattle looked like the 7-9 team they were a year ago in Week 1. 

No. 25. Carolina Panthers (0-1)

The Panthers are only this high because they held Tampa Bay to under 260 total yards in their loss on Sunday. Otherwise, you could make the case that they should be lower. 

No. 26. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-1)

Maurice Jones-Drew looks to be the Jags' only hope this season. He's a great running back, that's for sure, but that's asking too much. 

No. 27. Oakland Raiders (0-1)

Oakland had six points through the first 59 minutes of their Week 1 loss to San Diego at home. Head coach Dennis Allen won't be around long if the Raiders can't produce offensively. 

No. 28. Tennessee Titans (0-1)

The Tennessee Titans are one of the teams taking a significant fall after opening week. Tennessee could only muster up 20 rushing yards against the New England Patriots on Sunday, which is mind-boggling. 

Chris Johnson was held to just 0.4 yards per carry on 11 rushes at home in Week 1. That statistic points to horrid offensive line play and leads me to believe that the Titans may be headed for a four-win season in 2012.

To only score 13 points at home against a Patriots defense that ranked towards the bottom of the league last season is unacceptable. But losing by 21 points as well is outright embarrassing. 

No. 29. Indianapolis Colts (0-1)

If the Colts insist on having Andrew Luck drop back nearly 50 times per game they are going to lose a lot of games in 2012. 

No. 30. Buffalo Bills (0-1)

The Bills gave up six touchdowns to a team that had scored just one in the entire preseason. Need I say more? 

No. 31. Miami Dolphins (0-1)

Miami turned the ball over four times against Houston and racked up just 275 total yards of offense in a 20-point loss. Yikes. 

No. 32. Cleveland Browns (0-1)

Cleveland failed to score an offensive touchdown on Sunday, and looked completely inept offensively as rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden tossed four interceptions. 

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