The Packers are again at the top of the Power Rankings this week as they remain undefeated. The Ravens and Steelers switch spots after Joe Flacco led a late drive to win the game at Heinz Field. The Bears, Texans, and Bengals all cracked the top 10 this week with the Patriots and Bills both losing and falling out of the top ten.

The big winner this week is the Dallas Cowboys who jump from 21^st to 15^th, with a win over Seattle to stay within striking distance of the Giants who have a tough schedule coming up. Another big move was the Jets who while only moving from 13^th to 11^th with their win over Buffalo, have jumped both the Patriots and Bills to be the highest ranked AFC East team.

The big losers this week are the New England Patriots who fell from 6^th to 13^th after their second straight loss. The Bills also saw themselves fall from 14^th to 8^th after getting beat at home by the Jets. The Chiefs dropped from 21^st to 16^th after their four game win streak was snapped by the winless Miami Dolphins in a big way.

The Cardinals, who last week fell behind the Rams, switched with the Rams again this week after beating St. Louis in OT on an amazing punt return by rookie Patrick Peterson. Rounding out the bottom of the rankings again this week are the Indianapolis Colts who lost again this week and look like they’ll be the front runners for Andrew Luck in next year’s draft.

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The NFL season is a quarter of the way through after four weeks and what a start we have witnessed. Despite the lockout and no training camps, teams have not missed a beat. The offensives have put up historic numbers, setting NFL records in passing yards for a single week by week one and breaking that record in week two.

Also for the first time in history, in weeks two and four, there were no divisional games. The league protected itself just in case of a lockout. Now bye weeks come into play, where teams will be giving off selected weeks from week five to eleven. Here is how the teams stack up through four weeks:

The Real Deal

No Surprise

.500 Club

Overachievers: 

Underachievers: 

Andrew Luck Sweepstakes

Rebuilding

Ken Durden / Shutterstock.com

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With preseason finally over, and Monday nights opener against the Dolphins waiting on the other side of the weekend, the New England Patriots seem once again poised to make another promising run at the Lombardi Trophy.

Already loaded with offensive firepower, the Pats spent the off-season beefing up their d-line with the additions of Albert Heyensworth, and former jets defensive end Shaun Ellis; moving from a predominantly 3-4 based defense to a 4-3 in hopes of finally adding the all-elusive pass rush to their arsenal.

But with last year’s quick playoff exit to the Jets still fresh in fans minds, and the sting from a playoff romping at the hands of Baltimore in 2009 still palpable, there are certainly questions about the 2011 New England Patriots that go beyond personnel acquisitions and schematics.

Consider this; the Patriots haven’t won a playoff game since beating the Chargers in the 2006 AFC Championship game. Furthermore, their last three playoff exits have not been easy defeats to swallow; in three losses to the Giants, Ravens, and Jets, Belichicks teams looked weak, confused, and perhaps most concerning of all, under prepared.

What’s troublesome about this is that while the Super Bowl teams of 2001, 2003, and 2004 were all extremely skilled, they specifically prided themselves on always being defensively strong, mentally sound, and extremely well prepared. Perhaps these first three Super Bowl victories spoiled us all, letting us believe that no pressure, no situation, no one game was too much for the unflappable Tom Brady and his stoic puppeteer Bill Belichick.

But three Lombardi trophies and seven years later, has the allure been lost, the mojo run out? At whatpoint does the “Patriot Way” become not what it was from 2001-2004, but what it has become from 2007-2011? One also has to wonder what this season means to the legacies of Tom Brady and Bill Belicheck.

A Super Bowl win would undoubtedly secure Brady’s spot in the greatest of all time debate, making him only the third quarterback ever, along with Bradshaw and Montana, to win four Lombardi’s. For Belichick, another Super Bowl victory would give him six rings over all, with four as a head coach, tying him with Chuck Noll for the most by any head coach. But another playoff loss?

Without a doubt, both Belichick and Brady will go down as some of the best ever at their respective positions; no one can argue that. But a failure to win one more big game together could tarnish the twilight years of Brady’s career, leaving his lasting image as someone who won early, but faltered late.

Most importantly, if neither Brady nor Belichick win another ring, each will have a clear superior: Brady behind Montana and Bradshaw, and Belichick behind Noll. This season is not just any season for the Patriots; resting in the balance are the legacies of coach and quarterback, a prospect which makes Monday nights debut against Miami that much more exciting, as if it needed to be.

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With three weeks of the preseason finished and the starters sitting for the entire fourth game this week against the Philadelphia Eagles it’s time to look ahead to the regular season. The Jets are on a Super Bowl or bust mission this season, but can they really make it there or are they all talk.

Going into this season the Jets have a lot of question marks, but they have a ton of upside and the results could culminate in winning it all. Some of the big questions for the team are: How much depth do they have on the O-line?

Will Mark Sanchez continue to improve in his third season and take the steps he is expected to take and become the leader the team needs? How will Sanchez and his new look receiving core gel and how quickly?

Will Shonn Greene be able to perform at a high level as the feature back all season? Can they generate any QB pressure without a prolific pass rusher? Will the two rookies Mohammad Wilkerson and Kendrick Ellis be able to contribute in their rookie years?

While this may seem like a lot of questions as well as key ones, and most of them having to do with the offense, the Jets looked good overall in their preseason campaign. It seemed like what the team needed was just more time as with every game a different problem would arise. Against the Texans the line couldn’t protect Sanchez, against the Bengals they couldn’t run the ball, and against the Giants they couldn’t pass.

The one thing that has been consistent for the Jets in the preseason is their defense. The starting unit has only allowed 10 points in the 3 preseason games.

Rex Ryan, who usually doesn’t hesitate to gush about his defense said on Tuesday, “”Will we end up being the best defense in football? I think so. I challenge everybody: Put your negatives comments out there and we’ll see what happens in the end, because I think our defense is going to be outstanding.”

“I wouldn’t trade this defense for anybody’s in the league.”

The Jets defense is definitely poised to be a top 3 if not best defense in the league with 10 returning starters and 9 of the 10 having 2 years under Rex Ryan’s defense which should mean less communication breakdowns than there have been. The Jets also have 10 defensive backs who have played in the system which should help the continuity of the secondary.

For the first time in his tenure with the Jets OLB Calvin Pace will play in the first game. He missed the first month of 2009 due to suspension and 2010 due to a broken foot. Pace is the teams best pass rusher and having him from the start should help the defense overall.

Another big difference from last year is the status of CB Darrelle Revis. He’s participated fully in training camp and is in top shape this year as opposed to last year having held out all of the preseason. That probably led to his slow start and the hamstring injury he suffered in Week 2.

With the defense looking to be in top form and help carry the Jets there season really comes down to the continued development of Mark Sanchez. He showed how good there offense can be against the Bengals, but also how inconsistent as we saw against the Giants.

If Mark Sanchez continues to take steps forward, Shonn Greene steps up to the challenge of being a featured back in the NFL, and the Jets D can dominate like they have the past two years the Jets look to be on their way to a potential Superbowl title.

So the big question on all Jets fans minds and many people around the NFL this season is this: Will the Jets be flying high or crashing and burning when its all said and done with?

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