- JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 18: Roy Robertson-Harris #95 of the Jacksonville Jaguars tackles Matt Ryan #2 of the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth quarter at TIAA Bank Field on September 18, 2022 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Courtney Culbreath/Getty Images)
After two weeks of play, there are a pair of 2021 division champions still looking for their first victory of the season.
A week ago, no team in the AFC South could manage a victory. On Sunday, every team in the AFC North took it on the chin. The surprises continued throughout the league. And there were memorable comebacks in Baltimore and at Las Vegas. Welcome to the second edition of the 2022 NFL Power Rankings.
NFL Power Rankings, Week 3 edition
Arthur Smith’s club couldn’t close the deal last week at home vs. the Saints. This week, the Falcons headed to the west coast to take on the defending Super Bowl champion Rams. Atlanta trailed 21-3 after two quarters and were down by 25 points early in the third quarter.
Still, Smith’s team was down 31-25 with less than five minutes to play and looked to complete the comeback. But Marcus Mariota was picked off by Jalen Ramsey in the end zone.
The Matt Ryan Era in Indianapolis began with an overtime tie at Houston last week. Now the Colts were on the road for a second straight week and looking to beat the Jaguars on the road for the first time since 2014.
But it was an incredibly long afternoon for Frank Reich’s club as Ryan threw three interceptions and the Colts’ offense gained only 218 total yards. And 2021 NFL rushing leader Jonathan Taylor was held to only 54 yards on just nine carries.
The Panthers staged quite the second-half comeback vs. the Browns last week but still came up short. They headed north to face the Giants and looked to put an end to an eight-game losing streak that dated back to a season ago.
Christian McCaffrey ran for 102 yards and caught four passes for 26 yards. Despite two early turnovers, Carolina would own a 13-6 third-quarter advantage. But the Panthers were a miserable 2-of-12 on third-down conversions.
Last Sunday at Los Angeles, the Raiders’ offense had its issues with a revamped Chargers’ defense. Now the club was home to take on the Arizona Cardinals, who gave up 44 points at home to the Chiefs last Sunday.
Josh McDaniels’ team made it look easy in the first half in building a 20-0 lead. But the Las Vegas’ defense couldn’t chase down Kyler Murray when it counted most. And a Hunter Renfrow fumble in overtime spelled doom.
The franchise was seeking its first 2-0 start since 2011 as Ron Rivera’s club traveled to the Motor City. But the Commanders’ defense had all kinds of issues, most notably in the first half, and dug themselves a 22-0 hole.
The team would rally in the second half but it wound up being too little and too late. Carson Wentz wound up throwing for 337 yards and three scores (1 interception). Washington defenders surrendered 425 total yards by game’s end.
The Seahawks come off a short week as well as a surprising win over the Broncos. They headed to San Francisco looking to continue their winning ways against the 49ers. Quarterback Geno Smith wasn’t as sharp on Sunday as he was on Monday night vs. Denver. He threw for 197 yards but was sacked twice and served up an interception.
Meanwhile, Seattle’s only touchdown came on an 86-yard blocked field goal return by cornerback Mike Jackson.
The defending AFC champions headed to Dallas to take on a shorthanded Cowboys’ team down their starting quarterback. It was another rough afternoon for Joe Burrow. After being sacked seven times last week vs. the Steelers, he was dropped six times by Dallas’ defenders.
Cincinnati managed only 254 total yards but rallied from a 17-3 deficit to tie the game with 3:45 to play. But the Cowboys closed the deal with a game-winning field goal.
The Jets’ offense had its issues in a frustrating home loss to the Ravens. They traveled to Cleveland to take on the Browns and rallied for an improbable win. Down 30-17 with 1:55 to play, Joe Flacco found Corey Davis for a 66-yard score and the PAT narrowed the gap to six points.
An onside kick gave the Jets the ball back. Flacco connected with rookie Garrett Wilson (15 yards) with 22 seconds to play and the PAT gave New York the stunning victory.
The Cardinals made their way to Sin City. Arizona spotted Las Vegas a 20-0 halftime lead. But Kyler Murray was electrifying in the second half. He finished with 277 passing yards and one score (1 interception) and ran for another TD.
That rushing score was followed by a two-point conversion pass to A.J. Green to send the game into overtime. Then Byron Murphy picked up a Hunter Renfrow and took it back for a score to complete the comeback.
The Jaguars had their chances last Sunday at Washington and wound up squandering an eight-point fourth-quarter lead in their 28-22 loss. But this would be the team’s home opener and the franchise had beaten the Colts the last seven times they host them, including a game in London.
Doug Pederson’s team played turnover-free football, Trevor Lawrence threw two TD passes to Christian Kirk and the Jaguars’ pass rush sacked Matt Ryan five times.
Off the first-ever tie in the brief history of the franchise, the Texans made their way to the Mile High City looking for their first victory this season. Lovie Smith’s club settled for three field goals in this contest but owned the lead for the majority of the contest.
Houston took a 9-6 advantage into the fourth quarter but it was an afternoon in which quarterback Davis Mills and the Texans’ attack amassed only 234 total yards (80 rushing) on 59 plays.
Matt Eberflus’ squad pulled off one of the bigger upsets of Week 1 in stunning the Bears at rainy Soldier Field. Now the Bears made their way to Soldier Field for another prime time clash with the Packers. Chicago owned an early 7-3 lead but were down, 24-7, at intermission and outgained in total yards, 233-84.
It didn’t get any better in the second half and by game’s end, Eberflus’ team had allowed 203 on the ground and Justin Fields was kept in check.
Tennessee made its way to Orchard Park for the first time since 2018 as the Titans and Bills clashed for the fifth straight year. Mike Vrabel’s club was outgained 234-90 in the first half and trailed 17-7 at intermission.
Things got worse for the defending AFC South champions, who turned over the football four times (two interceptions by Ryan Tannehill) while finishing the night with only 187 total yards. And Tennessee is 0-2 for the first time since 2012.
Off a somewhat surprising Monday night loss at Seattle, the Broncos hosted the 0-0-1 Texans in a battle of winless teams. The Denver offense continued to have its issues, especially in the red zone. And Nathaniel Hackett’s club was limited to exactly 16 points for the second time in seven days.
But the Broncos’ defense did not surrender a touchdown, allowed just 234 total yards (80 rushing) and sacked Texans’ quarterback Davis Mills three times.
Second-year quarterback Trey Lance had a rough outing in rainy Chicago last Sunday. Now the 49ers returned home to take on the Seahawks. And the team’s second-year signal-caller suffered a season-ending ankle injury and is on the mend following surgery (via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner).
Enter veteran Jimmy Garoppolo, who threw for 254 yards and one touchdown. San Francisco’s defense held Seattle to 216 yards and came up with two interceptions.
Mike Tomlin’s club hoped to get off to a 2-0 start for the second time in three years as they hosted the Patriots. The Steelers never owned a lead and their offense struggled throughout the game for the second consecutive week.
Matt Canada’s offense was limited to 243 total yards and quarterback Mitch Trubisky threw for only 168 yards and one TD (1 interception). Without outside linebacker T.J. Watt, the defense failed to record a sack.
Only the Chiefs (44) and Eagles (38) scored more points last week than the Lions. Unfortunately for Dan Campbell’s team, they were playing Philadelphia. Now the club was home for the second consecutive week and took on the Commanders.
The Lions were impressive in all phases in the first half and owned a 22-0 lead at intermission. They held on for a nine-point victory as Jared Goff threw four TD passes and rookie Aidan Hutchinson had three sacks.
Matt LaFleur’s team faced an NFC North rival for the second straight week. And the Packers were looking to avoid their first 0-2 start since 2006 when they hosted the Bears in primetime. Green Bay was down 7-3 in the first quarter but seized control of the game by halftime.
Aaron Rodgers threw for 234 yards and a pair of touchdowns. But the night belonged to the Packers’ running game as Aaron Jones totaled 132 of the club’s 203 rushing yards.
Seeking their first 2-0 start since 1993, the Browns hosted one-time division rival Joe Flacco and the New York Jets. Kevin Stefanski’s team appeared to be in control. Nick Chubb ran for 87 yards and three touchdowns and Cleveland owned a 13-point lead with less than two minutes to play.
But Flacco got hot, the Browns could not handle an onside kick and the Cleveland secondary was burned with 22 seconds to play. The defense allowed 402 total yards.
The Giants pulled off one of the bigger upsets of Week 1 by rallying to beat the Titans at Nashville. Now the club hosted the Carolina Panthers looking for its first 2-0 start since 2016. It certainly wasn’t pretty when it came to either team’s offense as neither club gained at least 300 total yards.
But Brian Daboll’s club played turnover-free football, got one Daniel Jones’ touchdown pass and saw veteran Graham Gano connect on four field goal attempts.
The Ravens disposed of the Jets last Sunday and this week faced the second of four straight AFC East opponents when they hosted the Dolphins. Speedster Devin Duvernay returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown.
And John Harbaugh’s club owned a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter. But the breakdown in the Baltimore secondary were numerous. And the Ravens were outscored 28-3 in the final 12:12 and were handed a stinging defeat.
With Dak Prescott sideline for the time being, backup quarterback Cooper Rush got the start against the visiting Bengals. He wound up throwing for 235 yards and Dallas would build a 17-3 halftime lead. But the Bengals would come back and knot the game at 17-all with 3:45 to play.
Later, the Cowboys would get the ball back with less than a minute to play. Six plays and 57 yards later, Brett Maher hit on a 50-yard field goal on the final play of the game.
Dating back to 2019, the Saints had beaten the Buccaneers six consecutive times during the regular season. Of course, the team did drop a playoff meeting with Tampa Bay in 2020. Now the clubs renewed acquaintances at the Superdome.
New Orleans’ defense was stellar, limiting Tom Brady and company to 260 total yards on the day and kept the Bucs out of the end zone for three quarters. But five turnovers would spell doom for Dennis Allen’s team.
A week ago, the Patriots scored as many points (7) as the Steelers had sacks. Now Bill Belichick’s team looked to get its offense untracked at Pittsburgh. New England owned an early 3-0 lead and save for an early Mac Jones’ interception, played efficient football.
Nelson Agholor caught six passes for 110 yards and one touchdown. The Pats ran for 124 yards (71 and a TD by Damien Harris), gained 376 total yards and owned the football for 33:36.
Things looked good early on for Brandon Staley’s team on Thursday night at Arrowhead Stadium as they battled the Chiefs. But the Bolts couldn’t protect a 10-0 second quarter lead.
Third-year quarterback Justin Herbert threw for 334 yards and three scores but had an interception returned 99 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter. After the game, Gavino Borquez of ChargersWire.com reported that Herbert had suffered a rib injury.
The team looked to avoid its first 0-2 start since 2011 as the Rams hosted the Falcons. Sean McVay’s club wound up building a 28-3 third-quarter lead before things started to go Atlanta’s way. It took a Jalen Ramsey end zone interception in the closing moments to secure the victory.
Matthew Stafford threw for 272 yards and three scores but was picked off twice. Cooper Kupp caught 11 passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns but also lost a fumble.
The Vikings made their way to the City of Brotherly Love for the first time since 2018 as they clashed with the Eagles for the first time since ’19. The Minnesota defense had no answers when it came to the Eagles’ attack.
Philadelphia rolled up 486 total yards (347 in the first half) and the Purple Gang was down 24-7 after two quarters of play. Kevin O’Connell’s club managed only 62 yards on the ground and Kirk Cousins was picked off three times.
The Buccaneers’ defense looked strong Sunday night at Dallas. Now Todd Bowles’ club headed to the Superdome looking to end a six-game regular-season losing streak to the Saints. Quarterback Tom Brady’s frustrations were evident and he barely completed half of his passes (18-of-34).
But the afternoon would belong to the Tampa defense in the form of five takeaways (including a pick six by Mike Edwards off Jameis Winston) and six sacks.
Call it quite the comeback. The Dolphins entered the fourth quarter at Baltimore down 35-14 on Sunday. But Tua Tagovailoa was just getting warmed up. He finished with 469 yards through the air and six touchdown passes.
His seven-yard TD toss to Jaylen Waddle with 14 seconds to play gave Miami the improbable win. Dating back to last season, the Dolphins are now 10-1 in their last 11 games dating back to last season after opening 1-7 a year ago.
The Eagles’ offense had its way with the Lions last Sunday at Detroit. But Nick Sirianni’s team had to hold on for a 38-35 victory. Next up was another NFC North team as the Vikings visited Philadelphia on Monday night.
Once again, Philadelphia had few problems moving the football. The Birds rolled up 347 total yards and 24 points in the first half. Jalen Hurts threw for 333 yards and one score (1 interception) and ran for 57 yards and two touchdowns.
Under Andy Reid dating back to 2013, the Chiefs owned a 13-5 record over the rival Chargers as the teams met on Thursday night at Arrowhead Stadium. The reigning AFC West champions would trail the Bolts, 10-0, in the second quarter before Patrick Mahomes warmed up.
He would throw for 235 yards and two scores. But Jaylen Watson picked off Justin Herbert in the fourth quarter and took the prize 99 yards to give the Chiefs the lead for good.
The defending AFC East champions had a little extra time to prepare for their Monday night visit from the Titans. And Sean McDermott’s club was impressive once again. Josh Allen threw for 317 yards and four touchdowns, three to Stefon Diggs.
The Buffalo defense limited Derrick Henry to 25 yards on 13 carries. And the Bills wound up with four takeaways. The defending AFC East champions have won their first two games by a combined 72-17 score.