NFL Power Rankings: Where Do Buffalo Bills Rank in NFL's Balance of Power?

After an impressive 2-0 start to the 2011 season, the Buffalo Bills were considered to be a nice little story, but their staying power was quite questionable. There was no way they would keep it up with the mighty New England Patriots and Tom Brady coming into town, right? Wrong.

Four Brady interceptions and a 34-31 win later, the Bills are finally getting their due as a legitimate contender. One win does not a playoff team make, however. Bills fans surely remember the 2003 season when Buffalo beat New England to open the year and received every accolade possible.

It was all downhill from there, though, as the Bills went on to miss the playoffs. Perhaps the 2008 season is a bit fresher in the minds of the Buffalo faithful. The Bills started 4-0 that season, but ended up going 7-9 and once again failing to make the postseason.

Even with recent history saying the Bills are nothing more than an aberration, there is reason to believe (or Bill-ieve) in Buffalo this season. The offense may read like an island of misfit toys with Ryan Fitzpatrick (seventh round), Fred Jackson (undrafted), Stevie Johnson (seventh round) and David Nelson (undrafted) all essentially being picked off the scrap heap, but the Bills are for real in that regard.

The Bills are fourth in rushing, third in total yardage and first in scoring over the season's first three games. While those numbers might come back to Earth a bit, the Bills have an offensive system that works. Head coach Chan Gailey runs a spread offense that keeps opposing defenses off balance.

Fitzpatrick, a Harvard graduate, is the perfect signal caller to run it as well, as he can quickly process defensive schemes and make the necessary adjustments. Buffalo's fantastic passing game is supplemented by a grind-it-out running game behind the underrated Jackson.

Defense may be a problem, but the Bills seem willing and able to outscore their opponents. While the pass defense is soft, Buffalo's league-worst run defense from 2010 has improved markedly and will certainly come in handy.

The Bills will need to get to the quarterback with greater regularity moving forward because they can't expect to be fortunate to pick off four passes on a weekly basis. As long as the defense bends, but doesn't break, though, the Bills should certainly be playoff bound.

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