NFL Power Rankings: Big board gets shaken up

Welcome to the first month of the NFL regular season, where teams are still trying to find their footing, attempting to craft an identity and get a handle on what works and what doesn’t. As a result, you get weeks like the one we just had, where just about everything goes against popular wisdom and power rankings like ours get turned upside down. Read on to figure out who’s on top, who made some big gains (I see you Marcus Mariota) and who is suddenly in some trouble.

1. Chiefs (3-0 — last week, No. 1): Kansas City is playing the most complete football in the league right now. The Chiefs are top 10 in points for and points against, and they’re at the top of the best division in football. Next week: vs. Redskins.

2. Patriots (2-1 — last week, No. 2): Tom Brady pulled out another comeback win to save them against the Texans. Still getting some things figured out on both sides of the ball. Next week: vs. Panthers.

3. Falcons (3-0 — last week, No. 3): Second narrow win in the first three games of the season. We were tempted to move them past New England, but the three spot feels appropriate, at least for another week. Next week: vs. Buffalo.

4. Packers (2-1 — last week, No. 5: Man, that was a little close, Rodgers. But that’s why Aaron Rodgers is Aaron Rodgers. Like the Patriots, you kind of get the feeling that Green Bay is also trying to figure some stuff out on both sides of the ball before an inevitable October win streak. Of course, that process of finding some balance is easier when you have a franchise quarterback under center to help hold the figure while things get squared away. Next week: vs. Chicago.

5. Steelers (2-1 — last week, No. 4): The first of this week’s head-scratchers. You can argue that they’re a good team trying to figure things out before the season really kicks into high gear, but early-season or not, good teams don’t lose to the Bears. Will be fascinating to see where they go from here and how they respond. Next week: at Baltimore.

6. Titans (2-1 — last week, No. 13): Knocking off the Seahawks is a signature win for a young team on the rise. Don’t make us regret doing this, Titans. Next week: at Houston.

7. Raiders (2-1 — last week, No. 7): We put the Raiders ahead of the Seahawks here, because a road loss to the Redskins is only slightly better than a road loss to the Titans. Plus, pretty much all our teams we put in this stretch last week all also lost. So good news for Oakland. Next week: at Denver.

8. Seahawks (1-2 — last week, No. 6): Another puzzler. The Seahawks need to get some things figured out, sooner rather than later. They have a stretch of eminently winnable games looming (home against the Colts, on the road against the Rams and Giants). There’s still time for that offense to get squared away. Next week: vs. Colts.

9. Broncos (2-1 — last week, No. 8): Road losses to the Bills aren’t going to look good on the resume, fellas. Early-season gut check looms this week against Oakland. Next week: vs. Raiders.

10. Cowboys (2-1 — last week, No. 10): A road win over the Cardinals allows them to stick in the top 10. But Dallas really needs to get that secondary figured out. Next week: vs. Rams.

11. Eagles (2-1 — last week, No. 14): I’m starting to buy into the Eagles, especially after that wild ending last week against the Giants. I mean, New York pretty much gave it away, but that last-second kick was something else. Like the look of this team. Next week: at Chargers.

12. Lions (2-1 — last week, No. 9): Detroit is right there. This is a team that should have playoff aspirations. So why don’t I have much confidence in them? Next week: at Vikings.

13. Texans (1-2 — last week, No. 13): Deshaun Watson can play. If they can get the offensive line and secondary figured out — and how to best utilize their timeouts — Houston might have something there. Next week: vs. Titans.

14. Vikings (2-1, last week, No. 20): I’ve got to be honest — I have no feel for Minnesota right now. But given the fact that they crushed the Bucs and pretty much everyone else in the middle of these power rankings suffered some sort of blisteringly bad loss, we’ll make them our big climbers of the week. Next week: vs. Lions.

15. Redskins (2-1 — last week, No. 21): I have many of the same feelings about the Redskins as I do for the Vikings. Not sure what’s going to happen to them between now and the end of the season. But a home win over the Raiders and some poor play by those franchises around them mean they get to leapfrog over a bunch of other teams into the top half of our big board. Next week: at Chiefs.

16. Ravens (2-1 — last week, No. 12): We dropped them four spots, and even then, it still doesn’t feel like it was enough after what happened to them Sunday in London. Maybe they just fattened up on two lousy opponents and we overrated them? It’s happened before. Regardless, it’ll be interesting to see how they respond. Next week: vs. Steelers.

17. Bucs (1-1 — last week, No. 15): I still believe this team is talented enough to make a run at the NFC South title. Of course, given the youth on the roster, maybe that’ll be the 2018 division title. Next week: vs. Giants.

18. Panthers (2-1 — last week, No. 17): They looked OK the first two weeks and then got curbstomped at home to the Saints. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Next week: at Patriots.

19. Dolphins (1-1 — last week, No. 16): You lose to the Jets, you’re lucky not to get relegated like the English Premier League. Consider yourselves fortunate that you only dropped three spots, Dolphins. Next week: at London vs. Saints.

20. Cardinals (1-2 — last week, No. 18): Unless something crazy happens, without David Johnson, this is a .500 team at best. That would be a disappointment, and enough to create some heat on Bruce Arians. Next week: vs. Niners.

21. Bills (2-1 — last week, No. 23): Buffalo is a couple of bad plays away from being 3-0. Not saying they’re going to be playing deep into January, but this is a good start for a team that could ultimate have .500 aspirations. If they do that, 2017 will be remembered a success for the Bills. Next week: at Falcons.

22. Saints (1-2 — last week, No. 22): Like we said last week, there’s still some life left in New Orleans. The margin for error is slim, but they still have enough talent to make it interesting in the NFC South. Next week: at London vs. Dolphins.

23. Rams (2-1 — last week, No. 26): First place in the NFC West feels like it should get you more than this. But right now, that’s OK for Los Angeles. Next week: at Cowboys.

24. Jaguars (2-1 — last week, No. 30): Why not? They beat the Texans at home, and they crushed the Ravens in London. Next week: at Jets.

25. Bears (1-2 — last week, No. 25): Really nice win against the Steelers. But I still want to see what Mitch Trubisky can do. Next week: at Packers.

26. Giants (0-3 — last week, No. 19): Look, if the Giants are going to go down, at least they’re going to be interesting, with them giving the game away against the Eagles and OBJ peeing. And we’re just three games in! (If I had told you that the Jets would get their first win of the season before the Giants, I would have said you were bananas. But here we are.) Next week: at Bucs.

27. Bengals (0-3 — last week, No. 27): Brutal road loss against Green Bay, a game the Bengals had in hand. But hey, they scored their first offensive touchdown of the season. So that’s something, right? Next week: at Browns.

28. Chargers (0-3 — last week, No. 24): Last week I said I have no idea what to think of the Chargers. Now, I know what to think: They're a .500 team at best. Next week: vs. Eagles.

29. Colts (1-2 — last week, No. 31): Indy gets points in our eyes because their win was an upset — the Browns were favored. Next week: at Seahawks.

30. Niners (0-3 — last week, No. 28): For the second consecutive week, they pushed a divisional opponent to the limit but came up just short. A little more scrap like that would be a good sign for this young San Francisco team. Next week: at Arizona.

31. Jets (1-2 — last week, No. 32): Out of the cellar? Out of the cellar. So 0-16 isn’t going to happen. Next week: vs. Jaguars.

32. Browns (0-3 — last week, No. 29): They’re winless. But you know what? Their games are competitive. Two of their losses have been by three points or less. And if you’re a glass-is-half-full type, that counts for something. Next week: vs. Bengals.