NFL Power Rankings: Cowboys, Steelers need to survive
The Pittsburgh Steelers have entered that strange space where they’re just hoping to survive for six weeks or so. The Dallas Cowboys already lived in that space.
The Steelers will be without Ben Roethlisberger for a reported 4-6 weeks. Tony Romo is out for the Cowboys, on injured reserve/designated to return and not able to play again until Week 11.
So, if you’re deciding to rank all the NFL teams, how do you rank those two teams?
We have a better idea what to expect from the Cowboys because we’ve seen them once. And now we know that, since Brandon Weeden refuses to throw more than 10 yards downfield, teams can just stack the box against the run. The Atlanta Falcons seemed to figure that out pretty quickly after a slow start, and they won going away in the second half.
The Steelers are really a mystery. It makes little sense why they signed Michael Vick to back up Roethlisberger when they’re styles are nothing alike. But, there weren’t many options for the Steelers in late August when they signed Vick. So now the Steelers have to figure out an offense that suits Vick, who hasn’t played well since 2010. At least he has good players around him.
if you’re ranking these teams on what they are now, neither can be very high. Nobody fears Weeden’s Cowboys or Vick’s Steelers. But both teams are also likely going to get their quarterbacks back with plenty of time to go in the season, and they were both top-10 teams with their quarterbacks.
I think both will survive. I don’t think the Cowboys will be great without Romo, but I don’t trust any other NFC East team to take advantage. I think the Steelers, with all that offensive talent, can figure out a way to squeeze out a few wins until Roethlisberger returns. I don’t think we’ve heard the last of either team. They’ll be good when their quarterbacks return, it’s just a question of what situation they find themselves in when that happens.
Here are Shutdown Corner’s power rankings after Week 3:
32. Chicago Bears (0-3, Last week: 32)
I think it’s smart for them to have a fire sale. They know who they are, and there’s no use fooling themselves into thinking they can win 10 of 13 from here on out. But it’s odd they didn’t have that big picture in mind when they should have found a way to trade a certain quarterback in January or February.
31. New Orleans Saints (0-3, LW: 31)
Another team is having to apologize for not getting C.J. Spiller the ball enough. I don’t know, perhaps there’s another reason this keeps happening other than multiple coaching staffs simply forgetting to get Spiller the ball week after week.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2, LW: 29)
It’s hard to build momentum when you follow up what looked like a solid win against the Dolphins by giving up 51 points at New England.
29. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-2, LW: 30)
Jameis Winston’s completion percentage wasn’t great (17-for-36), but he averaged 15.4 yards per completion. He doesn’t mind pushing the ball downfield. That’s a good thing.
28. San Francisco 49ers (1-2, LW: 23)
The 49ers get the Packers at home next week. If they get blown out a third straight week, then it’ll be clear that Week 1’s win over Minnesota was just an absolute fluke.
27. Washington Redskins (1-2, LW: 27)
Kirk Cousins isn’t the answer, clearly. That brings us to Robert Griffin III. There are only two explanations for why he’s on the roster: A) the organization thought that Griffin could possibly get another shot at some point this season, B) it’s incompetent management. I don’t see a third option.
26. New York Giants (1-2, LW: 26)
I’m not sure why some Giants fans believe a home win over Washington is the start of them marching toward an NFC East title, but to each their own.
25. Tennessee Titans (1-2, LW: 28)
That was a tough, tough loss on Sunday, capped by a terrible call on the two-point conversion attempt at the end. But everything bad that happens to the Titans this year needs to be followed by remembering this: Marcus Mariota is really, really good. That gives the Titans way more hope than they had at this time last year.
24. Houston Texans (1-2, LW: 24)
Arian Foster will return soon, maybe this week. The Texans got off to a terrible start, but they’re tied for first place in the AFC South.
23. Cleveland Browns (1-2, LW: 22)
You’d guess that anytime they throw for 341 yards this season they would win. But the defense let down, giving up 469 yards and way too many big plays.
22. Detroit Lions (0-3, LW: 21)
Not enough has been made of linebacker DeAndre Levy’s absence. He’s a really good player. Detroit clearly misses him.
21. St. Louis Rams (1-2, LW: 20)
They didn’t really beat Seattle, right? There’s no way they could have looked so good against the Seahawks and so bad in the two games that followed. Must have been a hallucination.
20. Miami Dolphins (1-2, LW: 14)
You have any hope that they start playing hard for Joe Philbin? Me either.
19. Baltimore Ravens (0-3, LW: 16)
The Ravens might be the best 0-3 team in recent history. If any of these 0-3 teams can still win 10 games, it’s the Ravens. But the hole is massive now.
18. Oakland Raiders (2-1, LW: 25)
There’s a lot to be excited about, but the Raiders are allowing 335.7 passing yards per game. They just gave up 341 yards to Josh McCown. They’re making strides, but the rebuilding effort still has a ways to go.
17. Philadelphia Eagles (1-2, LW: 18)
If I’m Chip Kelly, I’m making sure Ryan Mathews doesn’t get stuck on one carry in a game again, like he did against Dallas. I’m also not sure I just give DeMarco Murray a vast majority of the snaps right away when he returns.
16. San Diego Chargers (1-2, LW: 13)
Playing at Cincinnati and then at Minnesota in consecutive weeks was a tough scheduling spot. I’m not giving up on them yet.
15. Indianapolis Colts (1-2, LW: 12)
Not all wins are the same. If you watched that game, you know that the Colts weren’t impressive at all. They won, and it’s better to fix issues coming off a win, but that wasn’t some clear turning point.
14. Kansas City Chiefs (1-2, LW: 9)
At the end of the first half, the Chiefs called a Hail Mary pass. Instead of throwing it deep and risking a turnover — again, it was the last play of the half — Alex Smith scrambled for a few utterly meaningless yards as time ran out. Nothing sums up Smith and the Chiefs’ insanely conservative offense better than that play.
13. New York Jets (2-1, LW: 10)
Ryan Fitzpatrick threw 58 times, partially because they were down early and partially because the running game wasn’t good with injured Chris Ivory getting no carries. The Jets will never win a game in which Fitzpatrick has to throw 58 times. Feeling pretty confident in that prediction.
12. Dallas Cowboys (2-1, LW: 7)
According to Pro Football Focus, via Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 of Brandon Weeden’s 26 passes didn’t travel more than 9 yards downfield. And you have an idea why Weeden washed out as a first-round pick of the Cleveland Browns.
11. Carolina Panthers (3-0, LW: 19)
It has been pointed out repeatedly that the Panthers have probably the worst crew of receivers in the NFL. So shouldn’t we be giving Cam Newton some credit right about now?
10. Minnesota Vikings (2-1, LW: 17)
Adrian Peterson has 260 yards on 49 carries the last two weeks. When you look at all the big-name running backs either struggling or hurt, it’s amazing how seamlessly Peterson has come back at age 30.
9. Pittsburgh Steelers (2-1, LW: 8)
For as bad as we think the Steelers’ defense is, after a tough Week 1 assignment at New England, they gave up three points in the first three quarters to the 49ers (San Francisco scored 15 points during fourth quarter garbage time) and 6 points to the Rams. Is it possible Pittsburgh’s D is better than we’re giving it credit for?
8. Atlanta Falcons (3-0, LW: 15)
New offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan figured out early on that he could call plays all day for Julio Jones, and Jones would be open just about every time. It doesn’t matter if the opponent knows what’s coming. Also credit Shanahan for moving Jones around the formation to keep defenses from keying on him.
7. Buffalo Bills (2-1, LW: 11)
Give Rex Ryan credit for going with Tyrod Taylor at quarterback. Most coaches would have played it safe. Ryan took a chance and it’s paying off.
6. Seattle Seahawks (1-2, LW: 5)
If push came to shove, I’d pick them to beat the Cardinals on a neutral field, so I’m breaking a rule of my power rankings by ranking Seattle behind Arizona. But the Seahawks still haven’t looked quite right, on offense at least.
5. Arizona Cardinals (3-0, LW: 6)
They’re still a hard team to totally figure out, because they’re like the Big 12 team that plays an FCS team and the two worst FBS opponents it can find and blows them all out to start the season. That’s not the Cardinals’ fault, but when you’ve beaten the Bears, Saints and 49ers it’s tough to gauge how good you are.
4. Denver Broncos (3-0, LW: 3)
Gary Kubiak deserves a lot of credit for modifying his offensive approach to play to Peyton Manning’s strengths. Maybe that’s the cure-all to the Broncos’ offense. If it is, we know the defense is nasty.
3. Cincinnati Bengals (3-0, LW: 4)
Make no mistake, playing at Baltimore against a Ravens team that absolutely knew it had to win to realistically remain alive this season, and being down twice in the fourth quarter and still winning … very impressive.
2. Green Bay Packers (3-0, LW: 2)
It wouldn’t surprise me if Clay Matthews ended up as the defensive player of the year. What he’s doing, going from inside linebacker to the outside on passing downs, is not getting enough attention.
1. New England Patriots (3-0, LW: 1)
No Super Bowl championship hangover, apparently.
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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
