NFL Power Rankings Week 3: Which Teams Are Simply Paper Tigers?

While teams have only played two games, it's not hard to see which teams currently appear to be playoff contenders, only to prove they were just pretenders as the season progresses.

The Washington Redskins have taken their two games against weak defenses and parlayed that to a 2-0 start to their year.

While Rex Grossman has yet to display the kind of play that has led him to disappoint fans in seasons past, I don't see it being very likely that he can carry the Redskins to the playoffs.

Once the Redskins get into the meat of the season, they will find themselves slipping down the divisional rankings in the difficult NFC East.

But they won't be alone in that effort.

The Dallas Cowboys fell to the New York Jets in Week 1 and pulled out the redemptive win over the San Francisco 49ers in a Week 2 game that saw Dallas quarterback Tony Romo leave and then return to the game after suffering a broken rib and punctured lung.

While that was indeed an impressive (if not moronic) comeback by the quarterback, Romo has been known to cost his team more wins than he gives them in clutch performances. A suspect defense and injuries to the offense will also bog down the Cowboys on their playoff hunt.

The Buffalo Bills, while extremely impressive through two weeks, will wind up hamstrung by their difficult division. Sharing the AFC East with the New York Jets and New England Patriots means that there's not much room for mistakes if the Bills want to remain in the playoff discussion.

In Week 3, the Bills have a major test on their hands when they take on the Patriots in Buffalo.

While it will be a good sign for the future if they can match the top-ranked New England offense while putting pressure on their struggling secondary, without a win here, Buffalo is already on their way to missing the playoffs for the 12th-straight year.

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