1. Indianapolis Colts - Defending champs looked scary good on both sides of the ball against a talented Saints team. Can Bob Sanders stay healthy?
2. New England Patriots - Cheaters breezed past the presumptive next best team in their division. The Chargers should provide a better measuring stick.
3. Cincinnati Bengals - Offense may drop off a notch this year with some pieces missing, but they'll still be explosive. Defense looked aggressive and opportunistic, but can they do it against an actual pro offense?
4. San Diego Chargers - Got a few lucky breaks in beating the NFC's supposed best team. This week will show if they can beat a good team on the road.
5. Carolina Panthers - Shut down a dynamic Rams offense. The running game was much improved behind a healthy O-line using a new ZBS philosophy. Steve Smith was Steve Smith.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers - Smashed Cleveland, what else is new? New OC Bruce Arians has invigorated their passing game.
7. Dallas Cowboys - Offense had all its' weapons on display. If Wade Phillips can tighten up the defense, they have the talent to be a contender. Getting Terence Newman back will help.
8. Seattle Seahawks - With most of their players healthy, they casually squashed Tampa.
9. Green Bay Packers - Beat a strong Eagles squad. This defense is for real.
10. Denver Broncos - Both offense and defense showed flashes in a down-to-the-wire thriller.
11. Chicago Bears - Defense was amazing, offense looked like the keystone cops. Grossman and Benson have a lot to prove, and the loss of Mike Brown and Dusty Dvoracek will hurt.
12. Baltimore Ravens - Lost a close game, with an assist from the zebras. This team may struggle to keep this spot with the major injuries they sustained.
13. Philadelphia Eagles - McNabb looked rusty in a close opening loss on the road.
14. Washington Redskins - Greg Williams has more to work with this year. Jason Campbell is the truth.
15. New Orleans Saints - Ugly loss evoked memories of the Ain'ts. This team has more talent than they showed, but another loss could cause them to plummet in these rankings.
16. Tennessee Titans - It may not be pretty, but all Vince Young does is win. A huge game from his backfield against a tough defense sure helps a lot. Underrated offensive line makes things work.
17. St. Louis Rams - Lots of talent on offense, defense still looks like garbage. Another ugly loss and they'll plunge down the charts.
18. San Francisco 49ers - Wow, maybe Nate Clements really was worth eighty million dollars! Offense still looks scattered, but Patrick Willis is going to be the best middle linebacker since Ray Lewis.
19. Jacksonville Jaguars - Del Rio is gone if this team continues to underachieve. Too much talent on this roster to be losing to Tennessee.
20. Houston Texans - Looked impressive against Kansas City. Can they beat a real NFL team?
21. Minnesota Vikings - Disgustingly good defense and Adrian "All Day" Peterson make things an awful lot easier for Tarvaris Jackson, but at some point he'll have to throw the ball to win.
22. Buffalo Bills - Killer special teams helped them hang with a much higher-rated Denver team to the final play. Marshawn Lynch is legit.
23. New York Jets - Took a pounding, but exposed cheaters in the process. Looks like this team might take a step back after overachieving last year.
24. New York Giants - Secondary was humiliated, but their offense showed some serious firepower. Will have to play through significant injuries the next month or so.
25. Arizona Cardinals - Passing game was suprisingly bad, defense surprisingly good. Running game ground out a decent performance. Managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in typical Cardinals fashion.
26. Detroit Lions - Beating Oakland is nothing to thump their chests about. Offense is as good as expected, defense is worse than expected.
27. Miami Dolphins - Their defense is good enough to keep them competitive. Their offense is bad enough to keep them from winning.
28. Cleveland Browns - They've started to acquire some talent, but still not enough to make them competitive. When will Brady Quinn be forced into the lineup?
29. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - So much for being improved with Jeff Garcia. Gruden can't last past this year.
30. Oakland Raiders - It doesn't get much worse than losing to the Lions in your own back yard, especially when the "good" unit on your team gets pulverized.
31. Kansas City Chiefs - This team is a punchline.
32. Atlanta Falcons - Welcome to the NFL Bobby Petrino.