Ain't it grand having football back? Fantasy football managers are already punching the air over the Joe Burrow injury, Kansas City Chiefs fans who have grown accustomed to winning haven't felt that feeling yet, Dallas Cowboys fans are already about to bust a blood vessel, and the New York fan bases for the Giants and Jets are miserable. We're only going into Week 3, and all is right in the world — but not without some major surprises that have shaken up how we have to view our NFL Power Rankings.
There hasn't been a bigger surprise through the first two weeks of the season than Daniel Jones and the Indianapolis Colts (further adding to the misery of Giants fans, it should be said). The former first-round pick has been a revelation for Shane Steichen's team, spearheading an offensive juggernaut that is now 2-0 on the season. On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have teams like the aforementioned Chiefs, but also the Denver Broncos, the team the Colts beat in Week 2, that have gotten off to inauspicious starts.
And speaking of starts, the magical season opener from J.J. McCarthy and the Minnesota Vikings already looks like fool's gold after they came crashing back to Earth.
Ranking all 32 teams after two weeks as wild as these in the NFL isn't an easy task, but it's the one we've got. We start these Week 3 NFL Power Rankings in South Beach, where it seems pretty clear that things are going to be arduous throughout the 2025 season already.
32. Miami Dolphins (32)
Here's the truth about the Miami Dolphins. Nothing that we've seen through the first two weeks should make anyone believe anything but the fact that this is one of the worst defenses in the NFL. However, it's also true that there are going to be weeks when we still see flashes from Tua Tagovailoa and Co. in the Mike McDaniel offense that allow them to make games competitive and are, frankly, fun and exciting to watch.
That's not a recipe for success, though. We've seen far too often in the past year that the Dolphins offense isn't capable against high-level defensive opponents. When you pair that with this unsightly defense, that's going to mean a long, long season for Miami, one in which they may squeak by to beat some of the worst teams on the schedule, and likely get dog-walked by the cream of the crop.
31. Carolina Panthers (29)
Don't be fooled by the Panthers nearly staging a comeback in Week 2. The Cardinals, while a team that I still believe in, are a team that has the world's worst habit of playing with their food way too early and it almost biting them. And even despite them doing that and Carolina having an opportunity to pull out a win late in the game, they were unable to do so.
Bryce Young did show some more positive signs than we saw in Week 1, which is a good thing for the future of this offense. However, the defensive problems this team faced a year ago aren't even close to fixed at this point. The Panthers are going to be in a dogfight, perhaps one of the saddest you've ever seen, with the Saints to figure out which team is actually the worst in the division. Not exactly the battle that either fan base was hoping for.