NFL Power Rankings Week 3: Which Teams Have Fallen Most from Week 1?

In the NFL, so much can happen in two weeks. Star players can be lost for the season, a lucky bounce or a bit of fortuitous scheduling can mean the difference between an 0-2 and a 2-0 record, and sometimes all of our predictions and expectations are just plain wrong.

In terms of power rankings, it's even more difficult to say which teams truly are the best and the worst in the league with only the preseason to go on.

Heading into the season, I had the Kansas City Chiefs ranked 16th; I saw their terrible performances during the preseason not as an indication of trouble ahead but as confirmation that head coach Todd Haley viewed the exhibition contests as a way to evaluate talent rather than running plays.

Whether the Chiefs' ill preparation for the preseason has any impact on why they sit at 0-2 right now is unknown. What is known, however, is that they have dropped to 30th in my power rankings, based on their two blowout losses, their average five points per game and their league-last 110.5 passing yardage average.

The Indianapolis Colts were in a unique situation going into Week 1, and their spot in my power rankings reflected that. Prior to the start of the season, quarterback Peyton Manning was ruled out, though not initially as long as he's sidelined now (perhaps the full season), and they sat at 24th, with an asterisk.

Now that Manning is likely done for the entire season, and the Colts have been manhandled without him, they have dropped to No. 31 in my rankings heading into the third week, with no asterisk to excuse them any longer.

It's not looking good for Indianapolis' chances to rise from the bottom this week, as they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers. Pittsburgh had no issue blanking another struggling team, the Seattle Seahawks, in Week 2.

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