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In this week's addition of Revenge of the Birds power rankings, I release to you a first ever addition.
What makes this addition special? Well it only has one team on it, the Arizona Cardinals. After that, who cares?
Just kidding about the one team, but not about the ranking.
1. Arizona Cardinals
I'll say it right out, the Cardinals are the best team in football right now. They're sure don't make it look pretty, but football thankfully isn't a beauty pageant. The Cardinals, or The Ugly Betty's, have gotten torn up in total pass yards allowed, have almost no pass rush and a QB who is known for his turnovers. Pundits will say we beat two weakened teams in the Eagles and the Cowboys, but as we all know and what the pundits ignore, is that the Cardinals have overcome adversity at almost every turn and like Rocky have taken blow after blow, only to emerge bloodied but victorious.
Gronk is probably the most important offensive player in the NFL right now. Pre-Gronk Patriots looked bad. They had crap WRs and were embarrassed by the Chiefs. Post-Gronk Patriots all of a sudden are un-freaking-stoppable. Pre-Gronk and everyone is talking about how Julian Edelman is a bust, Post-Gronk and now he is getting compared to Emmanuel Sanders. The next big question for the Patriots is consistency. Cardinals have it, will the Pats have it Post-Gronk?
Ouch, I did not see that coming. Peyton Manning had been looking like a player created Madden QB these last two seasons. 99 ratings across the board and the stats to boot. However against the Patriots the Denver defense was exploited, forcing Manning to play from behind all game. Despite his ridiculous 400+ yards thrown, he wasn't able to convert many passes into points and suffered some untimely interceptions.
4. Philadelphia Eagles
I'm a homer, but not so much so as to not recognize how good this Eagles team can be. Chip Kelly is truly an offensive guru and with a healthy interior line and healthy Sproles their offense is amazing. Losing Nick Foles for likely the rest of the season definitely impacts their future prospects, but if Kelly can make Mark Sanchez look good, NFL beware what happens when he gets his hands on a real QB.
Time travel to before week one of the preseason and tell me you imagined the Cardinals, Eagles and Lions as three of the top five teams in the NFL? No one but homers thought that and none thought all three teams would be here. Detroit was on a bye this week but has shown despite missing Megatron that they are a talented football team with a ferocious front four.
After a rough two game losing streak the Colts bounced back with a Monday night drubbing of the Giants. Andrew Luck continues his impressive play with a 4 TD game. The defense doesn't look as strong as it did during their winning streak and is something to watch in regards to their rise or fall in the rankings.
It's hard to write about Pitt being good so we will just leave it at this, 12 TDs thrown in two games. WTF mate.
Another team with a loaded offense and question marks on defense. In the same vein as the Cowboys, the Packers can maul you on offense but are just as likely to get mauled on defense. The Packers are a tricky team to rate as they have holes on defense but if Aaron Rodgers is on that night, they are near impossible to beat.
9. Dallas Cowboys
As much as I want to bag on the Cowboys, I can't. With Tony Romo in the game, this game is probably a much more respectable loss. It is definitely more likely that DeMarco Murray breaks 100 yards (on like 30 carries) and that the Cardinals would have had to win in the final seconds in a heart attack inducing game. With Romo the Cowboys are a dangerous team with a lot of talent on offense. Without him, they are the Cardinals of yesteryear.
10. Miami Dolphins
Secret agent men. The Dolphins are 5-3, winning their last three after starting 2-3. They shut down a very potent Chargers offense and manhandled the Chargers defense all game long. Ryan Tannehill is playing smart, mistake-free football and putting points on the board. The true success story, however, isn't the QB but the defense. Miami is emerging into a top tier defense and is underrated by many.
And the rest...
11. Kansas City Chiefs
13. Seattle Seahawks
14. Buffalo Bills
15. Cleveland Browns
16. Baltimore Ravens
18. San Diego Chargers
20. Houston Texans
24. St. Louis Rams
25. Chicago Bears
26. New York Giants
27. Atlanta Falcons
28. Tennessee Titans
31. Oakland Raiders
32. New York Jets