NFL Power Rankings Week 4: Where Each Team Stands After Latest Set of Games

There is still a lot of football left to be played, which means that early records do not mean much when it comes to NFL power rankings. 

Obviously, it is always important to come away with wins. However, it is also necessary to examine who each team has played and how it performed throughout the season.

This is why the current NFL standings do not accurately reflect what they will look like at the end of the season. 

Instead, here is a look at the latest power rankings to better show where each team stands after three weeks of the season. 

1. Seattle Seahawks (3-0)

The Seahawks proved they were the best team in the NFL with a blowout win over the San Francisco 49ers. Dominating the Jacksonville Jaguars might not impress anyone, but it certainly will not hurt their standing going forward.

2. Denver Broncos (3-0)

Injuries are starting to pile up, but you almost get the feeling that Peyton Manning can do whatever he wants right now. As long as he is healthy and has his variety of weapons to throw to, the Broncos will be almost impossible to stop.

3. New England Patriots (3-0)

The Patriots were very fortunate to have an extremely easy start to the year. Tom Brady was struggling to connect with rookie receivers Kenbrell Thompkins and Aaron Dobson, while almost all of the other offensive weapons were hurt.

However, New England survived the early rough patch and had the best game of the season in a 23-3 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Now as the schedule gets harder, the team is more prepared offensively and should be able to continue to get better.

Additionally, the defense is playing well enough to carry this squad a long way this year.

4. Chicago Bears (3-0)

Although the defense has been a little concerning, the unit continues to cause turnovers at a high rate and puts the offense in a great position to score.

On offense, Jay Cutler might have the best supporting cast of his career, and this will lead to a big season for the veteran quarterback.

5. New Orleans Saints (3-0)

Over the course of the season, no one will doubt the offense. The connection between Drew Brees and Jimmy Graham is as good as there is in the league, and the other key players make it even better.

However, the big story so far has been the defense, which has improved dramatically compared to last year. If this keeps up, the Saints will once again be in the Super Bowl conversation.

  

6. Cincinnati Bengals (2-1)

The young team experienced the highs and lows in one game after going up 14-0 against the Green Bay Packers and falling down 30-14. The Bengals then showed incredible resolve by coming back to win at home.

Cincinnati already had talent, but you need confidence to be an elite team in the NFL. This win will provide that and make the Bengals a team to beat in the AFC.

7. Green Bay Packers (1-2)

While the record looks ugly, there is little reason to panic. The Packers went on the road against two good teams and lost close games.

With the bye week coming up, Green Bay will look to get healthy and start winning once again.

8. Miami Dolphins (3-0)

There is a lot of doubt when it comes to the Dolphins, but the improvement of Ryan Tannehill should make people believe that this squad is for real.

Of course, a road game against the Saints on Monday Night Football might bring the team back to earth a bit this week. 

9. San Francisco 49ers (1-2)

On one hand, San Francisco remains this high despite a 1-2 record due to the elite level of talent at virtually every position. This team went to the Super Bowl last season and should be a contender once again when things click.

However, the last two games provide some serious concern for the 49ers.

The squad seems to have abandoned the run after excelling in that category in the past few seasons. On the other side of the ball, the defense has allowed 351 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns in the last two games.

When a team can no longer do the things that led to success in the past, there is reason to doubt a bounce-back effort anytime soon.

10. Kansas City Chiefs (3-0)

Alex Smith learned in the past few years that efficiency is better than flashy. The veteran quarterback might not do anything amazing, but he is a significant upgrade over the turnover-prone players that preceded him.

With a defense that has been good since last season, this team could be playoff bound.

11. Atlanta Falcons (1-2)

As good as Julio Jones has been to start the year, Matt Ryan is starting to rely on his top receiver too often and is making mistakes because of it. Combining this with a struggling secondary is a recipe for failure. 

Fortunately, this is still a dangerous offense that will be able to outscore a lot of teams this year.

12. Baltimore Ravens (2-1)

While the Ravens were able to get back on track with a win over the Houston Texans, the offense is still a concern. The defending Super Bowl champs lack playmakers, and no one has been stepping up when things go bad.

At some point, Joe Flacco is going to have to earn his new contract.

13. Houston Texans (2-1) 

Matt Schaub simply is not good enough to carry the offense, which means that the team has to get back to running the football. If Arian Foster is not healthy enough to do it, then Ben Tate should get more carries.

Either way, this must return to being a run-first team that uses its defense to win games. 

14. Indianapolis Colts (2-1)

If the Colts were that good against the 49ers in Week 3, imagine what could happen when Trent Richardson actually learns the offense and contributes.

The defense also played as well as it had all year, which is certainly encouraging after a less-than-stellar start to the season.

15. Detroit Lions (2-1) 

Detroit won for the first time in its history in Washington D.C., which is actually quite an impressive feat. Beating the struggling Redskins is not impressive, but the fact that it never had been done is simply stunning.

More importantly, the Lions are good enough to contend for a playoff spot this season if they can learn to avoid mistakes. This heavily-penalized, turnover-prone team might struggle a bit more than others in this aspect.

16. Dallas Cowboys (2-1)

In the two wins, DeMarco Murray has 46 total carries and 261 rushing yards. In the one loss, the running back only had 25 yards on 12 carries.

This is an issue that goes back to last season, when the Cowboys were 4-1 when Murray had at least 15 carries, but only 1-4 when he played but did not reach that mark.

Dallas needs to use the run game to set up the pass and not the other way around. Otherwise, it will put too much pressure on Tony Romo, which usually leads to poor play.

The team has enough talent to win the NFC East, but the offensive strategy going forward could prevent this from happening. 

17. Tennessee Titans (2-1)

The largely unproven Jake Locker had one of the biggest moments of his career when he completed a 34-yard pass to Justin Hunter win 15 seconds left to win the game. Tennessee will remain a run-first team, but there should be at least a little more confidence in the young passer going forward.

18. Carolina Panthers (1-2)

Everyone knows that Cam Newton is capable of the type of performance he displayed against the New York Giants. He was impressive with his arm and his legs, totaling four touchdowns in the 38-0 victory.

The key is for him to be able to do it on a more consistent basis. If Newton can provide this type of weekly effort, the defense is good enough to have a big season.

19. San Diego Chargers (1-2) 

Despite the loss to the Titans, Philip Rivers is playing some of his best football in years. He is completing passes at a high rate and avoiding turnovers for the most part.

Although the defense has struggled at times, San Diego can expect to at least be close to .500 once again.

20. St. Louis Rams (1-2) 

The last game was an embarrassment. While the final score was only 31-7, the offense could not get anything done early and the game was virtually over in the second quarter.

Sam Bradford has struggled under pressure, and he is running out of time to prove himself as a legitimate NFL quarterback.

21. Arizona Cardinals (1-2) 

Until the offensive line improves, it is hard to imagine the Cardinals having too much success in the future. Carson Palmer has been getting killed, and it is leading to the mistakes everyone was afraid of coming into the year.

22. Philadelphia Eagles (1-2) 

While the run game is still exciting to watch, Michael Vick has not showcased the accuracy necessary to keep the offense afloat. To make matters worse, the defense struggles at the most basic part of football: tackling the guy with the ball.

23. New York Jets (2-1)

There are a lot of Jets fans excited about the early start to Geno Smith's career, but they should hold off on buying Super Bowl tickets just yet.

The rookie quarterback will need to get his completion percentage up and cut down on interceptions before he can lead a team to the playoffs or more.

24. Pittsburgh Steelers (0-3)

Despite the 17-point loss to the Bears, there are plenty of positives for the Steelers to feel good about.

First, the offensive line held up a little better against what is one of the better defensive lines in the NFL. After facing the Bengals and Bears in the past two weeks, the rest of the league should be easier to handle.

Additionally, the squad is starting to get healthier. Heath Miller made his season debut Sunday, and he will give Ben Roethlisberger a quality checkdown target when he is pressured. Also, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports reports that Le'Veon Bell will return to the team in Week 4:

This will help improve the offense, which will eventually lead to wins in Pittsburgh.

25. Washington Redskins (0-3) 

After missing the entire preseason, it is understandable for Robert Griffin III to still be rusty.

However, the defensive effort has been inexcusable. The unit has allowed the most yards in the NFL, and there have been few signs of improvement over three weeks. 

It will not matter what RG3 does unless the defense does something productive.

26. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-3) 

Although the Buccaneers have lost all three games to start the year, there are still the pieces to have some success going forward. The biggest question mark is at quarterback, and Josh Freeman might be out of a job if he keeps playing like he has so far.

27. Buffalo Bills (1-2) 

Like the Redskins, the problems have little to do with the young quarterback at the helm. Instead, it is the defense that will hold this team back all year.

That being said, C.J. Spiller might qualify as one of the most disappointing players in the NFL in the early part of the season.

28. Cleveland Browns (1-2)

There were a lot of not-so-nice things said about the Browns after trading away Trent Richardson, including from Bleacher Report's Mike Freeman:

However, this seemed to fuel the team to come through with its first win of the season. Still, this seems like more of an indictment on the Vikings instead of a big moment for Cleveland.

29. Oakland Raiders (1-2) 

All of a sudden, Terrelle Pryor looks like more than just a guy who can run around in circles and gain small chunks of yards. In the loss to the Broncos, he actually looked like a quarterback.

There are too many holes on this team to expect a lot of wins, but at least he gives them hope.

30. Minnesota Vikings (0-3) 

Adrian Peterson carried an otherwise mediocre team to the playoffs last season. It seems unlikely he will be able to do it again with a quarterback that has not improved and a defense that has gotten much worse.

31. New York Giants (0-3)

The talent is there to turn things around, but there are not too many teams that have looked worse than the Giants to start the year.

Eli Manning and the offense have given the ball away a league-high 13 times this year, while the defense has given up the most points in football.

To make matters worse, the offensive line has struggled immensely, allowing the Carolina Panthers to total seven sacks last week.

Still, we have seen this team with its back against the wall before. Do not be surprised to see them come through with a huge victory at any point. 

32. Jacksonville Jaguars (0-3)

Jacksonville had little chance of going into Seattle and coming away with a victory. Then again, there will be a lot of matchups this year that the Jaguars have a little chance of winning.

The return of Blaine Gabbert at quarterback could help, but it is not likely.

Follow Rob Goldberg on Twitter for the latest breaking news and analysis.