NFL Power Rankings: Week 2

My current NFL Power Rankings of the 2023 NFL season for Week 2. The 49ers and Dolphins soar with impressive Week 1 wins.

I’m going to use these rankings as the order for my 2024 NFL Mock Draft during the early stages of the 2023 season. Follow @walterfootball.

NFL Power Rankings updated Sept. 12, 2023

San Francisco 49ers (1-0) – Previously: 9.
If Brock Purdy’s elbow isn’t an issue – and it didn’t appear to be in the opener – and the offensive line can hold up without Mike McGlinchey – which was not a problem versus Pittsburgh – then the case can be made for the 49ers to be the favorites in the NFC.
Philadelphia Eagles (1-0) – Previously: 4.
The Eagles were sluggish after they went up 16-0, but can you blame them? They had a game against the Vikings coming up in just four days, so it’s not a surprise that they took the rest of the afternoon so lightly.
Kansas City Chiefs (0-1) – Previously: 2.
The Chiefs won’t really be docked because they were missing their top offensive play-maker, Travis Kelce, and their best defensive player, Chris Jones. The fact that they lost by only one point despite missing those guys says a lot.
Miami Dolphins (1-0) – Previously: 7.
Will Tua Tagovailoa remain healthy? If so, we can expert much more of what we saw from the Dolphins in San Angeles. Tyreek Hill is on pace for nearly 3,600 receiving yards!
Buffalo Bills (0-1) – Previously: 5.
Well, I guess you could say the silver lining is that the Bills won’t have to worry about the Jets in the division. However, there’s still the issue with Josh Allen. What happened to him that he would regress like this? He made such great strides in his second and third seasons, but he has declined recently.
Cincinnati Bengals (0-1) – Previously: 1.
I’m not worried about the Bengals at all. Joe Burrow wasn’t 100 percent, so I didn’t expect the team to win in Cleveland. The Bengals began 0-2 last year with losses to Mitchell Trubisky and Cooper Rush, and yet they went to the AFC Championship. I suspect something similar will happen this year. However, I’m going to move the Bengals out of the top spot until Burrow shows us that he’s healthy.
San Angeles Chargers (0-1) – Previously: 3.
What a huge disappointment. I liked the Chargers at 30/1 to win the Super Bowl this year, but their defense was an abomination against the Dolphins. I realize stopping Tyreek Hill is impossible, but where was the pass rush against a Miami offensive line missing Terron Armstead?

Detroit Lions (1-0) – Previously: 8.
The Lions are now 9-2 in their previous 11 regular-season games. They had a nice victory in Kansas City. David Montgomery and the offensive line played well, but the real MVP for them was Kadarius Toney, who came up huge in the clutch with some key drops.
Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0) – Previously: 10.
The Jaguars were losing 21-17 entering the fourth quarter in Indianapolis. This may seem like a negative, but the Jaguars played sloppy football, and yet they still ended up winning by 10 points. Calvin Ridley really took the offense to the next level.
Dallas Cowboys (1-0) – Previously: 11.
The Cowboys were never challenged against the Giants because they were give 14, erm, 13 free points on defensive and special teams. Though a 40-0 win looks dominant, it was very misleading. I wouldn’t read too much into it.
Pittsburgh Steelers (0-1) – Previously: 12.
There’s no way the Steelers were as bad as they looked against the 49ers in the opener. They have too much with their skill players and their defense. They’re also extremely well coached. I suspect a big bounce-back performance in the near future.
Cleveland Browns (1-0) – Previously: 13.
With how much the Browns dominated the Bengals in the trenches, I expected a much better win for them. They let the Bengals hang around for a while because Deshaun Watson was so bad in the first half. Weather played a factor, but still. Also, the injury to Jack Conklin will be problematic.
Baltimore Ravens (1-0) – Previously: 14.
Outside of Zay Flowers being awesome, the Ravens don’t have much to write home about with their win. They prevailed by 16 points, but they were up just 7-6 at halftime, and Lamar Jackson was very sloppy with the ball while being pressured frequently. The win was so unimpressive that I accidentally marked down the Ravens as 0-1 before seeing my mistake at the last second.
Green Bay Packers (1-0) – Previously: 28.
No Cookie Jordan Love looked good versus Chicago. Of course, he had one of his easiest matchups to start, as the Bears won’t generate any sort of quarterback pressure this year.
New York Jets (1-0) – Previously: 6.
This new ranking assumes Aaron Rodgers’ torn Achilles. The Jets had a great, emotional win versus the Bills on the anniversary of 9/11, but reality will now set in, and the Jets must move on with Zach Wilson once again despite surrendering so many resources to the Packers.

Los Angeles Rams (1-0) – Previously: 18.
It turns out the Rams are a better team with Matthew Stafford and Aaron Donald are healthy. Cooper Kupp is not, but who needs him when you have Puka Nacua!?
Atlanta Falcons (1-0) – Previously: 20.
The Falcons could be the best team in the NFC South after signing Calais Campbell, Jessie Bates, and David Onyemata, and then drafting Bijan Robinson. They had a nice win in Week 1, as they did something in that game that they weren’t able to do the past few years, which was rush the quarterback consistently.
Denver Broncos (0-1) – Previously: 16.
Where was Denver’s pass rush against the Raiders? It’s not like the Broncos were battling the old Hogs, or anything. The Raiders thought so lowly of their offensive line that they wanted to draft Paris Johnson No. 7 overall! Denver didn’t get any sort of pressure on Jimmy Garoppolo. That said, the Broncos would have won had they just hit their kicks.
Tennessee Titans (0-1) – Previously: 15.
I was never a Ryan Tannehill fan, but how did he get so bad so quickly? He threw three interceptions against the Saints and easily could have had a fourth. He also missed two wide-open receivers for touchdowns in the fourth quarter. It was a truly pathetic performance, and one that has to make DeAndre Hopkins feel terrible about his decision this offseason.
Seattle Seahawks (0-1) – Previously: 17.
The Seahawks were terrible metrics-wise late in 2022, so a blowout loss to the Rams was not surprising at all. The defense is horrible, and some regression from Geno Smith was expected after he led the NFL in dropped interceptions.
Washington Redskins (1-0) – Previously: 21.
The Redskins were trying their best to sabotage a potential victory when Antonio Gibson lost a fumble in the red zone, and then Sam Howell lost a fumble that was returned for a touchdown. The Redskins ended up barely winning, but at least they were able to overcome all of their stupid mistakes.
Minnesota Vikings (0-1) – Previously: 23.
Are we going to see the opposite of what occurred last year? In 2022, the Vikings won so many games they should have lost. We begin this season with a Minnesota loss in which the Vikings outgained the Buccaneers by more than 100 yards. Kirk Cousins sabotaged a potential win with so many mistakes.
New England Patriots (0-1) – Previously: 27.
The Patriots lost to the Eagles, but they outgained Philadelphia by 131 yards. Two plays really cost them, so New England shouldn’t be discouraged by the loss. Kendrick Bourne, by the way, is a stud.
New York Giants (0-1) – Previously: 19.
The Giants looked like they would challenge the Cowboys early. They had a great initial drive, but a botched snap, a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown, and a fumble returned for six gave the Cowboys an easy win, with the Giants melting down in frustration. New York is a prime candidate to bounce back soon, but the right side of the offensive line is a huge problem area.
New Orleans Saints (1-0) – Previously: 24.
How did the Saints win by only one point with Ryan Tannehill putting together one of the worst quarterbacking performances we’ll see this season? Getting a victory is nice, but the overall output has to be discouraging. The offensive line was especially horrendous.
Las Vegas Raiders (1-0) – Previously: 31.
So far, so good for the Raiders in the Jimmy Garoppolo era, though if the Broncos had just hit their kicks, they probably would have lost. I get the feeling that we just saw two bottom-10 teams battle each other.
Houston Texans (0-1) – Previously: 22.
Houston’s defense gave the team a real chance to pull the upset. They swarmed Lamar Jackson, which is why the score was just 7-6 at halftime. The problem, as usual, was the offense, but things will improve as C.J. Stroud and his young receivers get more experience.
Carolina Panthers (0-1) – Previously: 25.
Bryce Young made some big mistakes against the Falcons in the opener, but he didn’t have the best help from his receiving corps. This is an area the Panthers must desperately upgrade next spring. Something they won’t need to bolster is their pass rush, which ranked No. 1 in Week 1!
Chicago Bears (0-1) – Previously: 26.
There’s only so much Justin Fields could do. His offensive line couldn’t protect him, while his defense couldn’t get off the field. It’s crazy that Chicago got so much hype this offseason despite the overall roster being so poor.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0) – Previously: 30.
Before you get excited about the Buccaneers, consider that they were outgained, 369-242, by a sub par Minnesota team. The pass protection was a huge issue against a Vikings team missing Marcus Davenport. If Kirk Cousins wasn’t so sloppy with the ball, the Vikings would have prevailed.
Indianapolis Colts (0-1) – Previously: 29.
I don’t think what Anthony Richardson did in his debut is sustainable. He took so many big hits, he can’t possibly last the entire year. And I don’t need to tell you that the Colts aren’t going to win many games with Gardner Minshew at quarterback.
Arizona Cardinals (0-1) – Previously: 32.
The Cardinals almost ruined their own tanking plans by nearly winning in Washington. Luckily for them, the Redskins stopped being completely incompetent in the second half, and things reverted back to normal. That said, the Cardinals placed an unexpected amount of pressure on Sam Howell. They produced the fourth-most pressure in the NFL in Week 1! Where did that come from?

2023 NFL MVP Projection:

1. Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Dolphins
2. Tyreek Hill, WR, Dolphins
3. Christian McCaffrey, RB, 49ers
4. Jalen Hurts, QB, Eagles
5. Micah Parsons, DE, Cowboys

Go to 2024 NFL Mock Draft