NFL Power Rankings: Which Teams Are Best in NFC?

Through three weeks, three NFC teams find themselves in the top-10 of the NFL: the Green Bay Packers, New Orleans Saints and Detroit Lions.

The Packers come in at the overall No. 1 spot after dropping to No. 2 in Week 3 after struggling to defeat the Carolina Panthers. However, after their dominant showing against divisional rival Chicago Bears, they regained the top spot.

Green Bay boasts both a top-10 pass-and-run game and has the best rush defense in the league. The only place the team struggles—defending the pass—could serve to hurt them down the stretch. However, at 3-0 and at the top spot in the NFC North, the Packers are atop the power rankings.

They are followed by the New Orleans Saints, whom the Packers beat in Week 1. The Saints are similarly dominant on offense, but have less success stopping the run and experience similar trouble with pass defense as the Packers do.

This issue—high-octane offenses struggling to defend the pass—is an issue plaguing teams around the NFL this season. It's only a matter of time until it causes an otherwise dominant team to lose a number of games.

This Sunday, the Saints take on the Jacksonville Jaguars. Barring a shocking turn of events, New Orleans should maintain its spot at the top of the rankings for Week 5.

The Detroit Lions, ranked fifth, have seen themselves in the top 10 of the power rankings for the first time in a decade. They are one of the few well-balanced teams to have emerged in the NFL thus far, with a top-three defense and top-five offense.

On paper, the Lions appear to have problems with rushing the ball and stopping the run, but those statistics are skewed. The team has a highly efficient passing game that doesn't rely on the run to succeed. Furthermore, they faced the Minnesota Vikings and Adrian Peterson in Week 3, who ran wild on the team in the first half, only to rush five times in the second half.

While the NFC fields only three top-10 teams through three weeks of the season, these three are going to be definite teams to watch as the year progresses. All three have excellent chances of making deep runs in the playoffs, while the Green Bay Packers could reach their second Super Bowl in as many years.

The key to staying on top is balance; if the Packers, Saints and Lions can establish and maintain it, their respective seasons should end positively.

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