NFL Power Rankings: Week 3 Expert Consensus from Around the Web

After a wild second week of the 2014 NFL regular season, the focus for many football fans has shifted to the power rankings heading into Week 3.

With top teams like New Orleans and Indianapolis starting the season with consecutive losses and underrated contenders like Buffalo and Houston making an early splash, the power rankings have been shaken to their core.

Here are the latest expert power rankings from around the web and my full breakdown and rankings for every team.

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

*Pete Prisco’s Power Rankings via CBSSports.com.

*Frank Schwab’s Power Rankings via Yahoo.com.

*Matt Miller’s Power Rankings via BleacherReport.com.

Donald Wood’s Power Rankings

Beck Diefenbach/Associated Press

32. Oakland Raiders

The connection between quarterback Derek Carr and wide receiver James Jones started to take form in Week 2, but the team still lost to Houston. The road will be bumpy for the offense led by a rookie QB, but the team must show improvement in Week 3.

31. Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jacksonville Jaguars were a force in the NFL for the first half of the first game of the season. Since then, the team has been utterly destroyed in all facets of the game. In the tough AFC South, Jacksonville is already in trouble. It’s almost Blake Bortles time.

30. St. Louis Rams

Injuries have destroyed a bright season for the St. Louis Rams. The lack of depth on the rebuilding franchise has been exposed, and teams will continue to take advantage of the wounded roster throughout the year.

29. New York Giants

Eli Manning and the New York Giants offense was terrible during the preseason, but hardcore fans were convinced the team would remedy its issues during the regular season. After two-straight losses to open the year, the problems have continued.

28. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Rams are one of the worst teams in football, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers couldn’t manage to pull out the win. Lovie Smith is taking over a rebuilding franchise, but the team must begin to show some improvement moving forward.

27. Houston Texans

Two wins to open the season has many people jumping to conclusions about the Houston Texans, but a win over the inept Washington Redskins in Week 1 and the lowly Oakland Raiders in Week 2 has inflated the team’s stock. The team gets another favorable matchup against the Giants in Week 3.

26. Tennessee Titans

After beating Kansas City in Week 1, many thought the Tennessee Titans could be sleepers in the AFC. Dallas dominated Tennessee in Week 2 and erased any of the notion that the Titans are legitimate contenders.

25. Washington Redskins

The dislocated ankle for Robert Griffin III, via the team’s official Twitter, is a devastating blow for the team. Fortunately for Washington Redskins fans, Kirk Cousins may be a better overall fit for head coach Jay Gruden’s offensive schemes.

24. Dallas Cowboys

Beating the Titans got some of the heat off the Dallas Cowboys for now, but major weaknesses are still obvious. Dallas should be able to mask their defensive issues against St. Louis in Week 3, but will be exposed by the better teams in the NFC.

23. Miami Dolphins

A stunning win over the New England Patriots had fans in Miami flocking to the Dolphins' bandwagon. After losing to the division rival Buffalo Bills, though, it remains to be seen if Miami is a contender or a pretender.

Jason Miller/Getty Images

22. Cleveland Browns

The NFL debut of Johnny Manziel may have been lackluster, but the Cleveland Browns have now almost beaten Pittsburgh and did beat New Orleans. Forget Johnny Football, how about Brian Hoyer?

21. New York Jets

Blowing a huge lead against the Green Bay Packers was hard enough to swallow, but an ill-advised time out negated a beautiful touchdown pass from Geno Smith. The New York Jets must beat Chicago on Monday night to build confidence in the team again.

20. Kansas City Chiefs

Losing to the Denver Broncos was expected, but the team played tough despite losing top offensive star Jamaal Charles to a high-ankle sprain, via Lindsay H. Jones of USA Today. The Chiefs should be able to bounce back against Miami.

19. Minnesota Vikings

With Matt Cassel showing exactly why he has become a career backup, it’s just a matter of time before the Minnesota Vikings make the switch to rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Expect Bridgewater as the starter by Week 6.

18. Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills have started the season playing very well, but it remains to be seen if the team is true contenders or pretenders. A matchup against San Diego in Buffalo is a great test of exactly what the Bills have to offer.

17. Detroit Lions

The offensive unit is what makes the Detroit Lions so dangerous, and when the team only manages to score seven points all game, something is very wrong. The Lions must establish the run early in Week 3 and let Stafford unload the ball downfield as the game progresses.

16. Carolina Panthers

Cam Newton’s return was a welcome sight for the Carolina Panthers, but the chemistry was off with his top receiver Kelvin Benjamin and he was sacked too many times. Carolina has a chance to be a threat in the NFC South, but they must address the inconsistent rushing attack before being considered a Super Bowl contender.

15. Chicago Bears

Beating San Francisco was a huge accomplishment for the Chicago Bears, but Jay Cutler and the entire team must focus on the New York Jets and the marquee Monday Night Football matchup if they want to contend in the tough NFC North.

14. Arizona Cardinals

A red hot start to the season has the Arizona Cardinals sitting at 2-0, but a battle against the San Francisco 49ers will help fans understand where the two teams stand in the NFC West. This should be an intense defensive battle with some explosive plays on the offensive side of the ball. The winner of this game will have earned it.

13. San Francisco 49ers

It’s hard to tell what kind of team San Francisco really is after two very different outcomes through the first two weeks. A divisional test against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday will expose the true weakness of the 49ers.

12. Atlanta Falcons

A loss to Cincinnati was a tough pill to swallow after beating New Orleans in Week 1, but the Atlanta Falcons are still healthy and will have a chance to bounce back against Tampa Bay. If Atlanta does anything but dominate the Buccaneers, expect the Falcons to drop in the rankings.

11. San Diego Chargers

A win over the Seattle Seahawks was the biggest upset of the year thus far, but the San Diego Chargers must focus on beating a tough Bills team in Buffalo. A win this week could have the Chargers climbing into the top 10.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers

The issues on defense were apparent in Week 2, but the real issue was the lack of a consistent attack from the offense. The Steelers must feed Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown early and often to beat Carolina in Week 3.

9. Baltimore Ravens

Playing on Thursday Night Football is a tough task, but the Baltimore Ravens handled the pressure and dominated Pittsburgh in Week 2. The Ravens play Cleveland in Week 3, and the team better be ready for an intense matchup against a better-than-expected Browns roster.

8. New Orleans Saints

It was hard to imagine putting one team with two losses this high in the rankings, but I found myself doing it twice. The New Orleans Saints have a great team and will turn it around before it’s too late. Saints fans shouldn’t panic yet.

7. Indianapolis Colts

Just as New Orleans fan shouldn’t panic, the Indianapolis Colts have faced incredibly tough matchups through the first two weeks and couldn’t pull out the wins. If the team uses the losses as motivation, the Colts could easily beat Jacksonville Sunday and turn the season around.

6. Green Bay Packers

It’s hard to imagine a Week 3 game as a must-win for any team, but that’s the case for the Green Bay Packers. After losing in Week 1 and almost falling to the New York Jets, Green Bay must beat the division rival Lions and prove the team’s worth in the NFC.

5. Cincinnati Bengals

Even with injuries starting to become an issue, the Cincinnati Bengals managed to shut down the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2. The elite defensive unit and consistent rushing attack are exactly what the team needs to be a threat in the AFC this season.

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

4. Philadelphia Eagles

The come-from-behind win over Indianapolis was a true testament to the mental strength of the Philadelphia Eagles and should have supporters of the team very excited. Add in a favorable matchup against the Griffin-less Redskins in Week 3, and the stage has been set for a 3-0 start in Philadelphia.

3. New England Patriots

After the stunning defeat to Miami in the opening week of the season, New England avenged the loss by dominating Minnesota and gaining confidence in all facets of the game. With the rushing attack finding a rhythm and Brady building chemistry with his receivers, the Patriots are once again legitimate threats.

2. Seattle Seahawks

A loss against San Diego was tough enough to swallow in Week 2, but a meeting against the Denver Broncos will be an incredibly difficult test this early in the season. NFL fans will be spoiled with a marquee matchup like Seattle vs. Denver this week.

1. Denver Broncos

As well as the Denver Broncos have played this season, the rematch of last year’s Super Bowl will determine whether Denver deserves to retain the top spot or if Seattle is the cream of the NFL crop.

*Stats via NFL.com.

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