KingPriest2
10-12-2004, 11:17 AM
Power Rankings: Favre from good in Green Bay
By Pete Prisco
SportsLine.com Senior Writer
Tell Pete your opinion!
Updated Oct. 12
There is good news for 31 of league's 32 teams. And that is?
They aren't the Green Bay Packers.
PHOTOS: « PREV | NEXT »
Tom Brady's play is as impeccable as the Pats' 19-game win streak. (AP)
What in the name of Vince Lombardi has happened to that team? The Packers firmly believed they were the best NFC team last year, and had they not had the fourth-and-26 disaster in Philadelphia, it would have been the Packers in the Super Bowl. (Yes, Panthers fans, they believe they would have defeated you on the road.)
Now they can't win inside the hallowed halls of Lambeau Field, losing for the third consecutive time.
Lambeau Leap? It's more like the Lambeau Flop.
After Week 1, the Packers seemed so right. They beat the Panthers on the road on the opening Monday night, but they have lost four consecutive since, making them one of the biggest fallers in the SportsLine.com Power Rankings.
The top 10 seems so long ago.
Now they're at 25 and only an abundance of bad teams keep them from falling even lower.
And Brett Favre stayed around for this? Didn't you think he would call the ABC truck late Monday night and tell them he had a retirement announcement to make, right smack in the middle of that game?
It was a disaster decided by the start of the fourth quarter, yet there was dancing and anger all over the country as we moved toward 1 a.m. Tuesday, but it had nothing to do with the score.
All the fuss came because of one Javon Walker. Picking up huge chunks of garbage-time receiving yards, he was either making or killing Fantasy squads.
Can you envision it: Guy lying in bed next to his sleeping wife yelling loudly for the Titans to stop that guy, leading to a barking dog, who wakes up the 7-month-old kid who starts crying, leading to a hot-tempered wife.
All because of Javon Walker?
POLL
What is more likely to happen?
Pats go undefeated
Red Sox win World Series
Get real. This is Boston we are talking about!
That sure doesn't seem right, old Fantasy geek. (By the way, Walker cost me a game in our SportsLine.com Experts League, which isn't to be confused with the Gridiron Guru League. I never played this stuff until the bosses asked about it a couple of years ago, and here I was Monday night hoping the Packers would just run out the clock. But not with Ahman Green. Dan Marino, my opponent in the Guru League, had him and I didn't want any comebacks. Have I become a Fantasy Goof?)
Back to the rankings, the top three teams remain the same, with the New York Jets moving in as the No. 5 team. They take over for the choking Seahawks, who blew a 17-point fourth-quarter lead against the Rams on Sunday in a game Mike Holmgren botched late, proving once again that clock management is a lost art for NFL coaches.
So are the Jets for real? We won't know until Oct. 24 when they play the Patriots on the road in what could be a meeting of unbeaten teams.
What we do know is they have something really going for them. And that something is this: They have to be thrilled they aren't the Green Bay Packers.
The complete Power Rankings after Week 5:
POWER RANKINGS
Current Team Previous
1 New England Patriots 1
And the beat goes on. The Patriots just might push that unbeaten season.
2 Philadelphia Eagles 2
Coming off the bye week, they get a chance for revenge against Carolina. Even if they win 75-0, it won't be equal to losing last January in the NFC title game.
3 Indianapolis Colts 3
If that defense continues to play like it did against the Raiders, they will be even better. We know the offense will score.
4 Minnesota Vikings 6
Will anybody be able to stop their offense? It looks like Daunte Culpepper has moved to the elite class.
5 New York Jets 7
After a date with San Francisco on Sunday, they have a huge one looming with the New England the following week. Be careful this week, Jets.
6 Denver Broncos 9
If not for a Quentin Griffin fumble late against Jacksonville, and thus a Mike Shanahan bonehead call, the Broncos would be unbeaten.
7 Seattle Seahawks 4
They will regret in a big way blowing that fourth-quarter lead to the Rams. The division was over if they won.
8 Pittsburgh Steelers 10
Big Ben is lighting it up in Pittsburgh and the Steelers are 4-1, and we love the way he plays. But have they really beaten anybody?
9 New York Giants 12
This is becoming a heck of a story. And to think they started at the bottom of these rankings.
10 Atlanta Falcons 5
Something doesn't seem right with that offense and Michael Vick. He just looks too tentative.
11 St. Louis Rams 13
What a comeback for Marc Bulger? That might have been a season-saver of a fourth quarter.
12 Detroit Lions 15
Steve Mariucci is doing a heck of a job with this team. Getting two road victories in four weeks is huge for a young team.
13 Jacksonville Jaguars 8
Has their defense been exposed as a fraud? It sure looks that way.
14 Baltimore Ravens 14
They won in vintage Ravens style against the Redskins, but can they keep doing that? Doesn't the offense have to come alive at some point?
15 Dallas Cowboys 11
The Cowboys are coming off a tough home loss with the hot Steelers on tap in Big D on Sunday.
16 Tennessee Titans 19
They survived the elimination game with the Packers. At 2-3, they're still alive. If they play like they did Monday night, they're more than alive.
17 San Diego Chargers 23
Let's give Marty Schottenheimer loads of credit for having this team at 3-2. And what about Drew Brees?
18 Carolina Panthers 16
They're staring 1-4 in the face heading to Philadelphia for an NFC-title game rematch with the rested Eagles. Can they climb out of that kind of hole?
19 Kansas City Chiefs 25
After an off week, their game at Jacksonville doesn't look nearly as daunting as it might have before. This team can turn it around.
20 Houston Texans 20
Love the way this team fights. David Carr is on his way to being something special.
21 Oakland Raiders 22
So much for this being a playoff-caliber team. Kerry Collins and the offense don't seem to be working.
22 New Orleans Saints 18
Figuring out this team is far too hard. Now the heat is on the coaching staff and the quarterback.
23 Cleveland Browns 21
The heat is on Butch Davis. All of the injuries might give him a reprieve this year.
24 Cincinnati Bengals 26
Maybe the bye week was a good thing for this young team. It hasn't all been Carson Palmer's fault, either. The defense has struggled.
25 Green Bay Packers 17
That was awful Monday night in every way imaginable. This is not a very good team right now. For this Green Bay group, the Pack won't be back.
26 Washington Redskins 24
Ouch. The offense is awful, which we never expected from a Joe Gibbs team. They had 107 yards of total offense against the Ravens. Yecch.
27 Chicago Bears 27
An off week was a good thing for this injury-plagued team as they ready to face another reeling team in the Redskins.
28 San Francisco 49ers 32
Give this young team credit. They kept fighting against the Cardinals and ended up with one heck of a victory. Was that the coming-out party for Tim Rattay?
29 Arizona Cardinals 28
Just when they look like they're ready to escape the abyss, they have a fourth-quarter fold against the 49ers.
30 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30
The new era started all right, but did anybody think it would be the Brian Griese era? Griese was very good against the Saints coming off the bench.
31 Buffalo Bills 29
This will be a trying season for coach Mike Mularkey. He has to make sure there is no divide between the struggling offense and the good defense.
32 Miami Dolphins 31
It has finally happened. This team is at rock bottom. But, hey, look at the bright side. Ricky Weirdo wants back in.
By Pete Prisco
SportsLine.com Senior Writer
Tell Pete your opinion!
Updated Oct. 12
There is good news for 31 of league's 32 teams. And that is?
They aren't the Green Bay Packers.
PHOTOS: « PREV | NEXT »
Tom Brady's play is as impeccable as the Pats' 19-game win streak. (AP)
What in the name of Vince Lombardi has happened to that team? The Packers firmly believed they were the best NFC team last year, and had they not had the fourth-and-26 disaster in Philadelphia, it would have been the Packers in the Super Bowl. (Yes, Panthers fans, they believe they would have defeated you on the road.)
Now they can't win inside the hallowed halls of Lambeau Field, losing for the third consecutive time.
Lambeau Leap? It's more like the Lambeau Flop.
After Week 1, the Packers seemed so right. They beat the Panthers on the road on the opening Monday night, but they have lost four consecutive since, making them one of the biggest fallers in the SportsLine.com Power Rankings.
The top 10 seems so long ago.
Now they're at 25 and only an abundance of bad teams keep them from falling even lower.
And Brett Favre stayed around for this? Didn't you think he would call the ABC truck late Monday night and tell them he had a retirement announcement to make, right smack in the middle of that game?
It was a disaster decided by the start of the fourth quarter, yet there was dancing and anger all over the country as we moved toward 1 a.m. Tuesday, but it had nothing to do with the score.
All the fuss came because of one Javon Walker. Picking up huge chunks of garbage-time receiving yards, he was either making or killing Fantasy squads.
Can you envision it: Guy lying in bed next to his sleeping wife yelling loudly for the Titans to stop that guy, leading to a barking dog, who wakes up the 7-month-old kid who starts crying, leading to a hot-tempered wife.
All because of Javon Walker?
POLL
What is more likely to happen?
Pats go undefeated
Red Sox win World Series
Get real. This is Boston we are talking about!
That sure doesn't seem right, old Fantasy geek. (By the way, Walker cost me a game in our SportsLine.com Experts League, which isn't to be confused with the Gridiron Guru League. I never played this stuff until the bosses asked about it a couple of years ago, and here I was Monday night hoping the Packers would just run out the clock. But not with Ahman Green. Dan Marino, my opponent in the Guru League, had him and I didn't want any comebacks. Have I become a Fantasy Goof?)
Back to the rankings, the top three teams remain the same, with the New York Jets moving in as the No. 5 team. They take over for the choking Seahawks, who blew a 17-point fourth-quarter lead against the Rams on Sunday in a game Mike Holmgren botched late, proving once again that clock management is a lost art for NFL coaches.
So are the Jets for real? We won't know until Oct. 24 when they play the Patriots on the road in what could be a meeting of unbeaten teams.
What we do know is they have something really going for them. And that something is this: They have to be thrilled they aren't the Green Bay Packers.
The complete Power Rankings after Week 5:
POWER RANKINGS
Current Team Previous
1 New England Patriots 1
And the beat goes on. The Patriots just might push that unbeaten season.
2 Philadelphia Eagles 2
Coming off the bye week, they get a chance for revenge against Carolina. Even if they win 75-0, it won't be equal to losing last January in the NFC title game.
3 Indianapolis Colts 3
If that defense continues to play like it did against the Raiders, they will be even better. We know the offense will score.
4 Minnesota Vikings 6
Will anybody be able to stop their offense? It looks like Daunte Culpepper has moved to the elite class.
5 New York Jets 7
After a date with San Francisco on Sunday, they have a huge one looming with the New England the following week. Be careful this week, Jets.
6 Denver Broncos 9
If not for a Quentin Griffin fumble late against Jacksonville, and thus a Mike Shanahan bonehead call, the Broncos would be unbeaten.
7 Seattle Seahawks 4
They will regret in a big way blowing that fourth-quarter lead to the Rams. The division was over if they won.
8 Pittsburgh Steelers 10
Big Ben is lighting it up in Pittsburgh and the Steelers are 4-1, and we love the way he plays. But have they really beaten anybody?
9 New York Giants 12
This is becoming a heck of a story. And to think they started at the bottom of these rankings.
10 Atlanta Falcons 5
Something doesn't seem right with that offense and Michael Vick. He just looks too tentative.
11 St. Louis Rams 13
What a comeback for Marc Bulger? That might have been a season-saver of a fourth quarter.
12 Detroit Lions 15
Steve Mariucci is doing a heck of a job with this team. Getting two road victories in four weeks is huge for a young team.
13 Jacksonville Jaguars 8
Has their defense been exposed as a fraud? It sure looks that way.
14 Baltimore Ravens 14
They won in vintage Ravens style against the Redskins, but can they keep doing that? Doesn't the offense have to come alive at some point?
15 Dallas Cowboys 11
The Cowboys are coming off a tough home loss with the hot Steelers on tap in Big D on Sunday.
16 Tennessee Titans 19
They survived the elimination game with the Packers. At 2-3, they're still alive. If they play like they did Monday night, they're more than alive.
17 San Diego Chargers 23
Let's give Marty Schottenheimer loads of credit for having this team at 3-2. And what about Drew Brees?
18 Carolina Panthers 16
They're staring 1-4 in the face heading to Philadelphia for an NFC-title game rematch with the rested Eagles. Can they climb out of that kind of hole?
19 Kansas City Chiefs 25
After an off week, their game at Jacksonville doesn't look nearly as daunting as it might have before. This team can turn it around.
20 Houston Texans 20
Love the way this team fights. David Carr is on his way to being something special.
21 Oakland Raiders 22
So much for this being a playoff-caliber team. Kerry Collins and the offense don't seem to be working.
22 New Orleans Saints 18
Figuring out this team is far too hard. Now the heat is on the coaching staff and the quarterback.
23 Cleveland Browns 21
The heat is on Butch Davis. All of the injuries might give him a reprieve this year.
24 Cincinnati Bengals 26
Maybe the bye week was a good thing for this young team. It hasn't all been Carson Palmer's fault, either. The defense has struggled.
25 Green Bay Packers 17
That was awful Monday night in every way imaginable. This is not a very good team right now. For this Green Bay group, the Pack won't be back.
26 Washington Redskins 24
Ouch. The offense is awful, which we never expected from a Joe Gibbs team. They had 107 yards of total offense against the Ravens. Yecch.
27 Chicago Bears 27
An off week was a good thing for this injury-plagued team as they ready to face another reeling team in the Redskins.
28 San Francisco 49ers 32
Give this young team credit. They kept fighting against the Cardinals and ended up with one heck of a victory. Was that the coming-out party for Tim Rattay?
29 Arizona Cardinals 28
Just when they look like they're ready to escape the abyss, they have a fourth-quarter fold against the 49ers.
30 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30
The new era started all right, but did anybody think it would be the Brian Griese era? Griese was very good against the Saints coming off the bench.
31 Buffalo Bills 29
This will be a trying season for coach Mike Mularkey. He has to make sure there is no divide between the struggling offense and the good defense.
32 Miami Dolphins 31
It has finally happened. This team is at rock bottom. But, hey, look at the bright side. Ricky Weirdo wants back in.