NFL Power Rankings: Which Terrible Teams Have a Chance To Bounce Back?

The gap between great and terrible teams in the NFL is widening after Week 3. 3-0 and 2-1 squads are beginning to separate from the 0-3 and 1-2 clubs.

However, it is very possible that the teams with a slow start out the gate could reverse momentum and force parity amongst the power rankings.

For the purpose of this article, I am defining terrible teams as those that fall amongst the bottom 10 of my power rankings in Week 4.

You’re opinion may vary and I’m sure I’ll hear it in the comments, but these are the five teams who I think had a rough start to the season but have a chance to redeem themselves in the coming weeks.

Let’s look at the teams who might be moving on up as the season chugs along.

Follow @AlexPKay

Indianapolis Colts

I have these guys at the very bottom of the rankings, so honestly there is nowhere for them to go but up.

I could see them digging themselves out of this hole by signing a new quarterback, but they may just keep the ship ‘steady’ with Kerry Collins and Curtis Painter as their signal callers.

Andrew Luck is considered a can’t miss NFL QB prospect, so having him learn the ropes under Peyton may be better than signing Favre or Garrard and winning four to five games. 

Minnesota Vikings

My colleague Wes O’Donnell called this team the most "perplexing" in the league and I couldn’t agree more.

They have lost all three of their games by less than a single touchdown and have blown huge leads with very questionable decision making.

The Vikes were up 20 points on the Lions but decided to enter some sort of de facto two-minute offense and neglected to eat up the clock with Adrian Peterson.

If they can figure out how to call plays and protect leads, this team is going to win games this year.

I had Minnesota pegged at 8-8, and they very well could be 3-0 or at least 2-1 right now if they played smart football.

Carolina Panthers

Cam Newton got his first win last week in a wild game that was played in a monsoon against Jacksonville.

This should build his confidence and I think that it could lead to them stealing a win or two in their upcoming tough schedule.

The Panthers play the Bears, Saints and Falcons over the next three weeks, so the team would be feeling very good coming out of that brutal stretch with at least one victory.

It would also help their status in the rankings if they played some close games like they did against Green Bay. 

Miami Dolphins

After getting lit up at home by the Patriots and Texans, I fully expected the Dolphins, who were 1-7 at home and 6-2 on the road in 2010, to take care of business against the Browns in Cleveland.

They have too much talent to be 0-3, and I expect them to get things in order over the next few weeks and get some wins.

It’s up to Chad Henne to start processing the game at a high-level and play like he did in Week 1 against the Patriots on a consistent basis. That is the key to success for this team.

Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals are 2-21 on third-down conversions this season.

2 for 21.

That is the key stat that is absolutely killing this team. Andy Dalton looks like a good quarterback, but asking him to convert 3rd-and-longs on a consistent basis is way too much pressure on the rookie.

If the team can get their act together and start making plays on first and second down, they will be in much better shape.

They lost to Denver by two and San Francisco by five after beating the Browns by 10 in their opening game.

This team has a lot of potential but they need more consistency on the offensive end to move up in the rankings this year. Let’s see if Marvin Lewis can get them to do just that.